Blue Jays trade deadline target: Griffin Jax

One obvious area the Toronto Blue Jays need to improve in is their bullpen.

Due to injury and poor performance, the Jays’ bullpen has had a rough go of things as of late. The good news is that the 2025 trade deadline is just around the corner, and there are plenty of options on the market, such as David Bednar, Ryan Helsley, Jhoan Duran, and plenty of others, including the reliever we’ll look at in this article.

With a 51-55 this season, the Minnesota Twins are 10 games back of the division lead and five games back of a Wild Card spot. It’s becoming increasingly clear that the Twins will sell at this season’s deadline, and Griffin Jax is one of their best relievers available.

Scouting report

Jax, 30, is a right-handed pitcher who stands at 6’2”, 195 lbs. Drafted in the third round of the 2016 draft, Jax made his debut in 2021 as a starter for the Twins. He transitioned to the bullpen for the 2022 season, where he had a 3.36 ERA and a 3.17 FIP in 72.1 innings pitched. Jax had a similar 2023 season, with a 3.86 ERA and 3.22 FIP in 65.1 innings pitched, before breaking out in 2024.

Last season, the right-handed pitcher finished with a 2.03 ERA and 1.94 FIP in 71 innings pitched. His previous high K% was in 2022 when he had a 26.9 K%, but he blew that out of the water with a 34.4 K% in 2024, along with a 5.4 BB%. So far this season, Jax has a 3.91 ERA and 2 FIP in 46 innings pitched. Moreover, his K% has increased slightly to 36.9%, while he has a 6.7 BB%.

Since moving to the bullpen, Jax’s average fastball velocity has increased season by season. The past two seasons, Jax has averaged 97.1 mph with the heater. Although he throws a strong heater, Jax’s best pitches are his sweeper and changeup. Jax also generates a ton of chases and whiffs, as he’s in Baseball Savant’s 99th and 100th percentiles, respectively.

Contract situation

On top of being a darn good reliever, what makes Jax one of the most sought-after relievers this trade deadline is his team control. This season, the 30-year-old earns $2.365 million and has two additional seasons of arbitration remaining.

Throughout my articles profiling trade deadline targets, I’ve included the note that if the Jays add three million to their luxury payroll, their first-round pick will drop 10 picks. If they trade for Jax and only Jax, they’ll be under the $281 million threshold, but adding only one player seems incredibly unrealistic.

How does Jax help the Blue Jays?

Jax helps the Blue Jays both long-term and short-term. He’s on an inexpensive contract for the 2025 season, with two more seasons of arbitration until becoming a free agent after the 2027 season. As long as he continues to be productive over the next two seasons, the Blue Jays would have a high-leverage reliever under team control.

Of course, Jax’s ability to pitch in high-leverage situations helps in the short term as well, as he’d slot in as a set-up man behind Jeff Hoffman. He’ll cost a significant amount, but he’s arguably one of the best relievers on the market.