Troy Tulowitzki trade sets stacked Blue Jays up to win now, and in the future

After more than 20 years as also-rans in the AL East, the Toronto Blue Jays are trying to position themselves as contenders in 2015, and beyond.

News broke early Tuesday morning that the Toronto Blue Jays acquired All-Star shortstop Troy Tulowitzki in a shocking trade with the Colorado Rockies. In return the Rockies get shortstop Jose Reyes, and three pitching prospects – Miguel Castro, Jeff Hoffman, and Jesus Tinoco. The Blue Jays also get veteran relief pitcher LaTroy Hawkins.

The trade was surprising given the Blue Jays already have the top offense in all of baseball but were in desperate need of an upgrade to their starting rotation. With the Blue Jays appearing to go all in, another trade for pitching help could be in the works before Friday’s deadline. Or they’ll decide to just outslug their opponents.

It’s also a major splash for the Blue Jays considering rumors of how tight fisted their owners, Rogers Communications, were being with the team’s payroll. Tulowitzki is still owed a lot of money over the course of his contract – over $100-million, in fact. But no doubt what made that amount of money palatable to the Rogers suits is that he will be in a Blue Jays uniform until at least 2020. He is no rental player.

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Combined with last winter’s acquisition of third baseman Josh Donaldson, the left side of Toronto’s infield is set for years. And scary good. Donaldson is an All-Star and MVP candidate this season, and is eligible for arbitration in 2016 but can’t become a free agent until 2019. That gives the Blue Jays probably another four-year window to win.

Tulowitzki is also added insurance for the eventual departure, or regression, of sluggers Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion. Both players are in the last year of their deals, but Bautista has a team option for 2016 at $14-million, when he will be 35 years old. Encarnacion has a team option for 2016 at $10 million, he will be 33. But at a combined $24 million it’s a safe bet the Blue Jays will pick up both options and keep their juggernaut offense together for at least another year. Beyond that, Tulowitzki and Donaldson, along with Russell Martin, slot in nicely as the heart of the Blue Jays' lineup.

The Blue Jays, barring any more big trades before Friday, are also still stacked with young pitchers. Marcus Stroman, Daniel Norris, Roberto Osuna, and Aaron Sanchez are all top prospects who have already reached the majors. But they are not enough to help the Blue Jays get over the hump this year.

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As well positioned as they Blue Jays are for the future, they still need another arm right now. And it should be noted that they traded three of their highly-regarded pitching prospects but didn’t get pitching help in return. It just adds to how the bizarre the deal is.

Even with Johnny Cueto, who will make his Royals debut against the Blue Jays on Friday, off the market there are big names to be sought. Cole Hamels, Jeff Samardzija, and David Price all could be had for the right price. What will be interesting for the Blue Jays and general manager Alex Anthopoulos is whether the addition of Tulowitzki means they can afford a big name, or if they feel they can get by with a second-tier guy like Mike Fiers or Mike Leake. Will the Blue Jays be willing to part with what’s left of their top pitching prospects? That remains to be seen, but it feels like Anthopoulos and the Blue Jays might not be done just yet.

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Ian Denomme is an editor and writer for Yahoo Sports. Email him at denomme@yahoo-inc.com or follow him on Twitter.