When the Blue Jays returned from their West Coast road trip from hell on July 10, the painful end of a 1-9 spiral, they had stumbled into a tie for the last AL Wild Card spot with the Mariners. It was the Red Sox, now in absolute freefall, who sat comfortably on top. The Blue Jays are now playing their best baseball of the season at the best possible time. With Sunday’s 4-1 win over the Tigers, who recorded more errors than hits, Toronto is on a 12-3 streak since returning from the West Coast and is 11-3 under new manager John Schneider. “I love it,” Snyder said. “We’re coming off a tough stretch on the road and everything that’s happened off the pitch, and I like the consistency with which they play. Offensively, defensively and on the mound. Our bullpen was awesome. Our starters were great. The kids rock it. It’s fun right now.” Snyder’s role was not subtle. There was a change at the top of the lineup, sparking a much more aggressive style of play. On Saturday, when the players showed up for the day game after a night game, a DJ was set up in the middle of the clubhouse, pounding the walls with music. That’s easier to accomplish when you’re winning, of course, but with the Trade Deadline approaching, this team will only get stronger. Last season, that meant José Berríos, whom the Blue Jays landed on July 30 for Austin Martin and Simeon Woods Richardson, their No. 2 and No. 4 prospects at the time. On Sunday night, instead of worrying about which jersey to wear on Monday, Berríos will host his Blue Jays teammates at his home near Tampa, Fla., for a team-building party. He will join the yards with his neighbor, George Springer, for the holidays. He and the rest of the Blue Jays will be watching, optimistic but confident. “In this situation, we still have two months left in the season,” Berrios said. “We’re still there. We have a chance to make the playoffs. Everyone knows we have an opportunity to add some skill. I don’t know who and when [a trade is] it will happen but i know it will. Right now, we still believe in our team. We have the talent. We have the team.” Berríos’ July helped limit the Blue Jays’ need in their starting rotation. Consistency eluded the right-hander for most of the season, a strange turn for one of baseball’s most predictable products dating back to 2017, but he eventually righted the ship, giving the Blue Jays three playoff starters along with Alek Manoah and Kevin Gausman. Matt Chapman was the engine of that surge for the lineup, with a two-run home run Sunday that was his fourth in as many days. He spent July doing his best Wladimir Guerrero Jr. impression, and after a recent swing tweak to better use his legs paid off, the star third baseman is primed for a hot run. Chapman was the big addition earlier this year in the middle of Spring Training, so he knows the world of trade speculation well. “Everybody’s talking about it a little bit, like, ‘Where’s this guy going to go?’ Chapman said. “It’s more curious to hear the names of the guys out there and where they’re going instead of who we’re going to find. We’re not in those conversations with the front office and we don’t necessarily know. We are confident in the team we have at the moment. Obviously, whatever Ross is [Atkins, executive VP of baseball operations and general manager] and Markos [Shapiro, president and CEO] and these guys decide to do it, we’re on board.” Every player is different. Some love to play GM while others prefer to stay out of the noise, but there’s a common thread that runs through them all: It’s a lot easier to keep track of that speculation when your team is buying rather than selling. The bullpen remains Toronto’s biggest need, but even this team has looked strong recently. Starting and bench depth are also on the table, with the Blue Jays well-positioned in terms of prospects and dollars to make a big push if they find the right fit. This deadline will be driven by the opportunity in front of the Blue Jays, however, and it’s one that this roster has fully earned as it finds itself after an uneven start to the season.
