In Flight: Biggest Blue Jays storylines down the stretch

This is the 2024 campaign's ninth edition of "In Flight," where we take a look at the state of the Toronto Blue Jays.

The Toronto Blue Jays don't have much to play for in the standings over the final two months of the season. They can try and play spoiler to teams in postseason contention, as they did when they took a recent home series against the Baltimore Orioles.

Beyond that, the next seven weeks are about giving younger players an opportunity to acclimate to life in the big leagues and allowing the coaching staff and management to get a sense of who should be in the mix for the 2025 roster. However, a lot of the immediate future hinges on what the team decides to do with its All-Star first baseman.

Vladdy's long-term future in Toronto

After struggling to hit above .200 through the first month of the season, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been among the game's best offensive players since May 1. With the 25-year-old producing at a level not seen since his incredible 2021 campaign, fans are calling for the Blue Jays to sign him to a long-term extension.

Guerrero has pledged his desire to stay with Toronto for the foreseeable future on a number of occasions, but he's also acknowledged that a trade to another team is a plausible scenario. The Blue Jays don't exactly have a lengthy history of extending their players. Only Randal Grichuk and José Berríos have received extensions since Ross Atkins became general manager in 2016. Guerrero's price tag will continue to increase if he keeps tearing the cover off the ball. This offseason will be pivotal to determining how much time Guerrero has remaining in a Blue Jays uniform.

Which young players will stand out?

The Blue Jays have given tons of playing time to younger players after trading veterans like Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Justin Turner, and Kevin Kiermaier at the deadline. Spencer Horwitz, Joey Loperfido, and Addison Barger have all regularly found themselves in the lineup. Horwitz has cooled off of late, but he's shown plenty of flashes this season with his bat and plate discipline.

Loperfido, acquired as part of the Yusei Kikuchi deal, possesses intriguing tools but has some concerning warts within his offensive profile. He had just four hits in 32 at-bats with a 50% strikeout rate in his first eight games with Toronto. Loperfido, 25, has struggled with strikeouts throughout his minor-league career, with some skeptics wondering if he'll be able to make enough contact to emerge as an everyday player.

Barger brings something the Blue Jays have been lacking this season - consistent hard contact. His hard-hit rate has hovered around 30%, a very solid mark. Barger does strike out at a fairly high clip, but he started to show some flashes at the plate at the end of July.

What does the future hold for John Schneider?

The coaching staff and front office have fallen squarely under the microscope with the Jays failing to live up to expectations. Schneider took a good deal of criticism following Toronto's postseason exit in 2023, especially for his controversial decision to pull Berríos in Game 2 against the Twins. There's certainly a strong case to be made that if Schneider's job is in peril, Atkins' should be as well.

Atkins promoted Schneider in July 2022 to replace Charlie Montoyo. The Blue Jays then made the postseason after finishing 46-28, and they went 89-73 last season, but success in October has continued to prove elusive with the franchise still seeking its first playoff win since 2016.

It's hard to imagine any results down the stretch having an impact on Schneider's status for next season. Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro has long been a steadfast proponent of stability, perhaps an indicator that there won't be the wholesale changes a good portion of Blue Jays fans have been clamoring for. Schneider's status for 2025 will be one of the big stories to monitor as the offseason unfolds.

How realistic is a quick turnaround in 2025?

Mark Shapiro has declared that the Jays are planning on quickly putting 2024 behind them and returning to postseason contention next year.

"The decisions coming out of the deadline are representative that we believe there's enough talent in place to build a championship-caliber team next year," the team president said recently. "A lot of work still to be done, (but) that intent is clear."

It's a bold proclamation, but it might not be realistic. Toronto has the league's worst bullpen, a number of starters on the wrong side of 30, and a lineup featuring numerous holes. The team has also struggled to develop homegrown talent, particularly on the pitching side. Shapiro stated that he doesn't expect the club's payroll to decline in 2025, but revenue could take a hit if season-ticket sales suffer after a tough season. Thus, the payroll might potentially be kept in check more than it has over the past few years.

It's hard to see how the Blue Jays are knocking on the door of a division that always ranks among baseball's toughest. The Yankees and Orioles aren't going anywhere. The Red Sox are on the rise, and the Rays should never be overlooked. Toronto needs numerous things to go right during the offseason and 2025 to even hope about being a factor in the postseason picture.