Blue Jays-Pirates Trade Rumors: Will Toronto Add Star Reliever?

The Toronto Blue Jays’ bullpen is in need of upgrades at the trade deadline.

Jeff Hoffman has been inconsistent as the closer all year, and Toronto’s assortment of trusted setup men are starting to wear down. The Blue Jays have put a lot of strain this year on Yariel Rodriguez, Brendon Little and Chad Green, and there’s still two months left in the season.

Adding a fresh arm into that mix would be a nice boost for a Blue Jays team that has designs on keeping the surprisingly large (5 1/2-game) lead they’ve built in the American League East.

According to one baseball insider, the Blue Jays have identified the Pittsburgh Pirates as a potential trade suitor.

On Tuesday, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported that Toronto and Pittsburgh have been discussing trades involving the latter club’s relievers, most likely closer David Bednar and setup man Dennis Santana.

“The Blue Jays and Pirates have discussed trade possibilities that would involve a reliever going to Toronto, sources say,” Morosi wrote on X.

“David Bednar and Dennis Santana are Pittsburgh’s top bullpen trade candidates; both are eligible for free agency after ’26.”

Bednar has an impressive 2.31 ERA and 12.1 strikeouts per nine innings. Santana has an even better ERA at 1.39, with a stingy 0.84 WHIP.

The price tag would probably be higher for Bednar, but that’s because he’d give the Blue Jays a more reliable safety net for Hoffman in the ninth inning. But either would be a huge pickup.

We’ll see if either Bednar or Santana is donning a Blue Jays jersey by Thursday evening.

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