The Toronto Blue Jays have officially begun making their offseason moves, with their first trade of the winter seeing them bring in gold glove winning second baseman Andres Gimenez and relief pitcher Nick Sandlin from the Cleveland Guardians. Gimenez brings exciting upside to the Jays’ middle infield, as his gold glove pedigree fits well with the team’s overall commitment to defense, seen when Toronto won their second straight team gold glove award this past season. Gimenez also brings another much needed aspect to the Blue Jay’s lineup, that being a solid left-handed bat. Last season, Gimenez batted .252 and raked nine homeruns while also stealing 30 bases in 152 games for Cleveland. That batting average would rank Gimenez fifth on the team currently and overall his bat will be a prominent piece in Toronto’s offense this upcoming year.

Along with Gimenez, Toronto also received Nick Sandlin, a solid reliever who will be a positive addition as the Jays look to rebuild their bullpen. Sandlin had eight wins over 60 games with the Guardians last season, posting a 3.75 ERA. Although he isn’t anything spectacular, the addition of him in the middle relief part of the bullpen is much needed and he should be able to put up solid numbers this upcoming year.

In exchange for these two, Toronto is sending first baseman Spencer Horwitz and minor leaguer Nick Mitchell back to Cleveland. Horwitz, who is clearly the more valuable piece in return for the Guardians, made a splash for the Jays last season when he batted .265 and hit 12 homeruns in his first full season as a big leaguer. It was surprising to see the Jays decide to move a guy like Horwitz after coming off a season where he was one of the team’s best hitters all year.

Only time will tell if this move will pay off for the Jays, but fans should be excited to see Gimenez in action with his new team.