Ross Atkins must be feeling a bit vindicated this week after the cycle of annual prospect rankings gave a ringing endorsement to his previously maligned 2019 trade deadline.

When the Blue Jays dealt right-hander Marcus Stroman to the Mets in July, one of the biggest complaints from fans and media alike — including this corner — was Toronto’s inability to acquire a top-100 prospect in return. There appeared to be a missed opportunity to add a high upside arm to an organization that didn’t posses nearly enough of them.

That critique no longer holds as much weight as it once did after Baseball America and MLB Pipeline, two of the leading industry standards for minor-league coverage, placed 19-year-old right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson on their annual lists for the first time late last week. Baseball America ranked Woods Richardson 61st overall, while MLB Pipeline put him at 98.

Woods Richardson was acquired along with 24-year-old Anthony Kay in exchange for Stroman, who is eligible for free agency at the end of the season. Woods Richardson and Kay were ranked fourth and sixth in the Mets’ system at the time, per MLB Pipeline, but neither guy had a spot among the top overall prospects on prominent lists.

The perceived lack of return put Atkins under the spotlight. Many people believed the Jays should have secured a better package or made a more concerted effort to sign Stroman long term. Add in another maligned trade with Houston for right-hander Aaron Sanchez and the criticism surrounding the front office by mid-summer was almost deafening.

Throughout the complaints, Atkins and his staff maintained the Jays did get a top-100 prospect and that many others within the industry agreed. They pointed to Woods Richardson being the youngest pitcher in the Florida State League, with advanced skills that exceeded his peers. No, he wasn’t close to ready, but he possessed the type of high upside the organization so desperately craved. Toronto insisted he was the kind of guy worth waiting for.

That seems more believable now than it did when the organization was doing damage control. Initially, the Jays’ internal praise had to be taken with a grain of salt. Of course Atkins would defend the deal — if he didn’t like it, he wouldn’t have made it. There’s an inherent bias that can’t be ignored, but when others across the industry eventually start seeing the same things, it’s time to take note.

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The updated rankings back up what the Jays have been saying for months behind the scenes. Toronto isn’t shopping Woods Richardson, and there’s no reason to expect a deal, but he’s the name teams keep bringing up in talks. He’s in demand and while clubs know Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Nate Pearson are essentially off-limits, they’re in the process of finding out the same about Woods Richardson.

The value of these rankings shouldn’t be overstated because at the end of the day they still don’t mean a whole lot. There are countless highly regarded prospects who became total busts. The fact that Woods Richardson is ranked now and wasn’t a year ago doesn’t guarantee anything. What it does do, however, is show more people are paying attention and there’s agreement on his potential.

It’s worth noting, Woods Richardson’s stock was due for a bump. As the most high-profile prospect in the Stroman deal, scouts and reporters were compelled to take a closer look at his case. Intentional or not, they are more prone to watch video or ask questions about a player they might have previously overlooked. Naturally, people wanted to figure out what the Jays liked so much.

In isolation, that might help explain Woods Richardson’s 98th ranking on MLB Pipeline’s list. What it doesn’t do is provide enough reasoning for his jump to 61 on Baseball America. His arm is what got him there, especially how he showcased it after joining the Jays in early August.

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Woods Richardson made six starts for class-A Dunedin and posted a 2.54 ERA while striking out 29 over 281/3 innings. He displayed a four-pitch mix — fastball, curveball, slider and changeup — with above-average command for a guy at his level. The stretch was so impressive that Baseball America went as far as to suggest Woods Richardson could made his big-league debut by the end of this year. That seems premature — a more realistic expectation is 2021 — but the praise speaks to quality of the pitcher.

After Toronto made the decision to explore trades for Stroman, it had no choice but to acquire a high-end starter. The Jays need to amass a quality starting staff to support an emerging group of young position players, and not everything can be done through free agency. At least some of the work must be done through trades, and Stroman was one of the most valuable tradeable commodities this organization possessed over the last few years.

Squandering the Stroman deal potentially would have long-term repercussions to the speed and quality of the rebuild. It was impossible to say back in July with any degree of certainty who won the trade, and it’s equally as difficult now. The final verdict won’t be known for another year or two, but the perception has started to shift in Toronto’s favour, and for a front office that used to be only bombarded with negative press that must count for something.

Gregor Chisholm is a Toronto-based baseball columnist for the Star. Follow him on Twitter: @GregorChisholm or reach him via email: gchisholm@thestar.ca

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