TORONTO — The trade deadline is now less than two weeks away and the Toronto Blue Jays are nine games under .500. While there’s always hope for a rapid turnaround, Toronto’s situation has become increasingly clear. They look like sellers at the 2026 trade deadline.So, with Toronto’s top trade chips in mind, here are five potential deals with historical comparisons the Jays could explore ahead of the Aug. 3 deadline:Kevin Gausman to the Chicago Cubs for SP Brooks Caple (AA) and OF Brett Bateman (AAA)Comparable trade: St. Louis Cardinals’ Jordan Montgomery and Chris Stratton for the Texas Rangers’ No. 11 and No. 14 prospects, per MLB Pipeline at the time (2023)Even if they’re committed to selling, the Jays might not move Gausman. He has an eight-team no-trade list, regularly speaks about how much he and his family enjoy living in Toronto and could be an extension candidate at the end of the year. If they do trade the 35-year-old, it’s a deal Toronto needs to nail.Playoff-calibre starters, especially those with proven success in October like Gausman, tend to fetch a couple of top-15 organizational prospects. The Cubs, a team in desperate need of rotation help, are the perfect fit. Caple is Chicago’s third-ranked rotation prospect, utilizing his five-pitch mix to post a 3.15 ERA in High A and Double A this year. Bateman, a centre fielder who ranks as Chicago’s 18th prospect, is currently posting an .861 OPS at Triple A while blocked by a crowded Cubs outfield mix. The Cubs get their playoff starter, and the Jays add a young rotation piece and centre fielder who could each contribute to the 2027 club.Jeff Hoffman and Daulton Varsho to the Philadelphia Phillies for OF Justin Crawford (MLB)Comp: Three-team trade that sent Tommy Edman and Michael Kopech to the Los Angeles Dodgers and Miguel Vargas to the Chicago White Sox (2024)A deal of this magnitude is difficult to find comparisons for, but it’s the sort of big-swing trade that a gunslinger like Phillies president Dave Dombrowski tends to make.2026 Aces Project update: MLB insiders rank starting pitchersAndy McCulloughThere’s admittedly some nostalgia to this trade, sending Hoffman back to the franchise he flourished with in 2023 and 2024 and Varsho to the team that his father Gary and namesake, Darren Daulton, both played for. But Varsho represents a clear centre-field upgrade for a contending Phillies team, and Hoffman gives them another strikeout weapon at the back of the bullpen.Pegging Crawford’s value is pretty difficult. He hits the ball consistently, but almost always on the ground. He has game-breaking speed, but that hasn’t translated into elite outfield play. With the 22-year-old having five more years of team control left, the Phillies might not be interested in moving him. Conversely, the Jays might want a low-level prospect or two added in to diversify their risk. Either way, with Toronto’s centre-field options for 2027 quite thin, taking an upside shot on a pedigreed and developed prospect like Crawford makes sense.Sean Keys to the Colorado Rockies for OF Brenton Doyle (MLB)Comp: Joey Loperfido to the Houston Astros for Jesús Sánchez (2026)Just because the Jays sell doesn’t mean they won’t acquire big leaguers to help the current core. If Dombrowski balks at trading Crawford, here’s another path for the Jays to find their CF of the future. Two years removed from a 3.9 WAR season, Doyle has lost his centre-field job in Colorado, hitting .207 amid an injury-filled season. He’s a potential non-tender candidate after this year, but the Jays could send one of their many defensively limited lefty hitters to take a shot on Doyle finding form down the stretch.When healthy, Doyle is quite similar to Varsho, grading out as one of the best defensive outfielders in baseball with the ability to hit 15 or more homers and steal 20 bases. He’s entering his second year of arbitration and is under team control through the 2029 season.George Springer to the Boston Red Sox for LHP Jojo Ingrassia (A+)Comp: Justin Turner for the Seattle Mariners’ No. 29 prospect (2024)A designated hitter with an OPS around .700 won’t fetch much on the trade market, but with Springer’s postseason experience and power potential, the Jays should be able to get back a real prospect for the 36-year-old.Turner, traded by the Jays two years ago, really is the perfect comparable here. The Jays acquired RJ Schreck in that deal, a mid-minors prospect who was struggling at the time. Ingrassia is Boston’s 30th-ranked prospect and hasn’t moved through the minors very fast after putting up a 1.85 ERA in Single A in 2024. In 12 appearances in High A this year, he has a 3.51 ERA with 12.5 strikeouts and 4.8 walks per nine innings.Springer has an eight-team no-trade list that could impact his potential destinations, but he grew up a two-hour drive from Fenway Park.Shane Bieber to the Tampa Bay Rays for INF/OF Ryan Vilade (MLB) and P Joe Boyle (AAA)Comp: Cincinnati Reds’ Frankie Montas to the Milwaukee Brewers for INF Joey Wiemer and P Jakob Junis (2024)Like Montas in 2024, Bieber has a curious injury track record but has been an elite pitcher in the past. Starters, especially with the upside Bieber flashed in his latest outing (six strikeouts over six innings), are always in demand at the deadline. If the righty can rattle off a few more quality starts, he could increase his value even further.For now, the Jays could flip Bieber for two pieces who would join the 2026 squad and potentially aid in 2027 and beyond. Vilade, acquired for cash by the Rays in November, has found a niche in his age-27 season as a utility man who mashes lefties. He owns a .270 average and .806 OPS against southpaws this season, with the sort of platoon thump the Jays have lacked all year.Boyle, currently in the minors, is a 6-foot-8 righty with a 97 mph fastball and a plus slider. He hasn’t been able to turn those advantages into consistent MLB success and is experiencing significant command issues in Triple A, but he has the tools to be a swingman or bullpen asset. It’s not a massive return, but Boyle and Vilade are the sort of players that would improve the Jays around the edges.Bonus trade: Max Scherzer to the Washington Nationals for a player to be named later