The Blue Jays’ 2020 deadline deal with the Marlins is looking uglier by the day, and Griffin Conine is a big reason why.
Miami has already gotten a major lift from Otto Lopez, who was once designated for assignment by Toronto and has turned into one of the National League’s top bats. Lopez is hitting .305 with 91 runs scored, 11 home runs, 71 RBIs and 32 stolen bases in 152 games, and he was named an All-Star for the first time.
Conine may be making Toronto regret the trade even more.
Atkins sent Conine to Miami at the 2020 deadline for Jonathan Villar, though the move was technically for a player to be named later. Four years later, the return looks badly tilted toward the Marlins.
Villar never delivered for the Blue Jays. In 22 games, he hit .188 with a .481 OPS, scored three runs, homered zero times, drove in six and stole seven bases. His stint was so rough that Toronto limited him to just two plate appearances in the expanded playoffs that year.
Conine, meanwhile, has finally broken through as a legitimate big leaguer. In 88 games, the 29-year-old outfielder is batting .256 with an .831 OPS, 42 runs scored, eight doubles, 17 home runs and 39 RBIs.
That production would put him on pace for 80-plus runs, 30-plus homers and 70-plus RBIs over a full season. His year was interrupted when he suffered a left hamstring tear in April and didn’t return until June, but the power has been real. He recently made his latest statement against one of the game’s top closers.
Griffin Conine ties the game with a MONSTER home run 😳 pic.twitter.com/8lWBWvULMO
- MLB (@MLB) September 20, 2026
For Toronto, the sting is obvious. Conine’s 17 home runs would have ranked second on the Blue Jays this season behind Kazuma Okamoto, and his bat would have fit a lineup that lacked punch all year. The Blue Jays also spent the season looking short one outfielder.
Atkins was chasing speed when he moved for Villar in 2020, but the payoff never came. Instead, Toronto gave up a player who has grown into exactly the kind of hitter the club badly needs now.
Conine was a second-round pick in the 2018 draft, and the canceled 2020 minor league season may have played a huge role in how this deal turned out. He spent just 131 games in Toronto’s farm system between 2018 and 2019, moving through three levels and hitting 29 home runs, fourth-most among Blue Jays minor leaguers over that span.
Across those 137 games, his 140 wRC+ ranked seventh in the organization, and he slashed .266/.348/.515 as an age-20 and age-21 player. Without a 2020 season to keep showing that progress, he became expendable.
Now, with Toronto’s offense still struggling in 2026, this trade is even tougher to swallow. Conine looks like the kind of young core piece the Blue Jays could have used from the start.
In Other News...
Blue Jays Fans Have Every Right To Second Guess Schneiders Choices
The Blue Jays recent slide has left every lineup card and bullpen move under a harsher spotlight, and John Schneider has not been immune from the second-guessing that comes with a team fighting to keep its playoff hopes alive. When a losing streak starts to drag the club backward, the natural reaction is to revisit who was getting opportunities, who was left on the bench, and whether different usage might have helped steady the season.
Paul Sewald and Myles Straw are two names that stand out in that conversation, while Ernie Clement and Brandon Valenzuela have drawn scrutiny for the amount of run they received. In a stretch like this, the margins feel especially thin, and the debate now is not just about what went wrong, but whether Schneiders choices matched the moment well enough to keep Toronto from slipping further out of the race. [Read more 🡒]
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Just Made Toronto's Lost Season Even Harder To Ignore
The Blue Jays season has reached the point where every leftover storyline feels heavier, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. added to that reality by reflecting on a year that has not matched the standard he set for himself. After Toronto was eliminated from playoff contention in a loss to the Orioles, Guerrero Jr. spoke candidly about his own performance and the way his contract has been framed, noting that it was built on what he had already accomplished rather than what anyone was projecting next.
For a club trying to make sense of a lost season, that kind of honesty lands with extra force. Guerrero Jr. acknowledged the struggles he has had this year and said his focus now is on using the offseason to get himself ready for a better one, a reminder that even with the standings settled, the pressure on Torontos biggest star is not going anywhere. [Read more 🡒]
Blue Jays May Have Another Rule 5 Bullpen Gem To Chase
Torontos recent success with Spencer Miles has made the Rule 5 draft feel a little less like a lottery ticket and a little more like a place where the front office can find real bullpen help. Miles has already turned into an important relief piece for the Blue Jays, which gives the club a useful backdrop as it scans the Arizona Fall League for the next wave of players who could become available if their current teams leave them off the 40-man roster.
The Blue Jays are doing what smart teams do at this stage of the calendar, keeping an eye on arms who might fit the same kind of profile and could be worth a closer look in winter. There are several pitchers in that mix, and the question now is whether Toronto will have another chance to mine the Rule 5 pool for a reliever who can actually stick, not just survive spring training. [Read more 🡒]