BALTIMORE -- With the Trade Deadline finally behind the Blue Jays, they need to find a new way to measure success. Wins and losses still matter, but they aren’t exactly in a playoff race here.

If this is all about 2025 now, Toronto needs to see signs of hope. That’s up to its Deadline prospect haul -- particularly the more advanced group of right-hander Jake Bloss, outfielder Jonatan Clase and third baseman Charles McAdoo -- but outfielder Joey Loperfido gets the first crack.

Coming over from Houston in the package for Yusei Kikuchi -- one which still has people around baseball asking “how’d they do that?” -- the 25-year-old Loperfido is big league ready from Day 1. There he was in the Blue Jays’ lineup for Wednesday afternoon’s 10-4 loss to the Orioles, batting second in front of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who might be playing the best baseball of his career right now. Not a bad place to land.

“He’s really interesting. He’s a late-bloomer,” said general manager Ross Atkins. “He came into his strength later than the average player his age and has already had a ton of Minor League success for someone that has continued to get better. I think it’s coming into his athleticism and learning how to maximize it for him.”

They’re very different styles of players, but Loperfido is the Blue Jays’ shot at getting the same upside that Teoscar Hernández brought to Toronto in 2017, another Astros outfielder who was exiting his “prospect” years with exciting power upside.

Fresh off a 25-homer season in the Minor Leagues in 2023, Loperfido has hit .272 with 13 home runs and a .933 OPS over 39 games in Triple-A in between three stints in the Majors this season. Now, the Blue Jays will give him every opportunity in the world to stick in the big leagues.

It helps to have a few familiar faces around, too. Loperfido and Davis Schneider played against one another in high school, growing up in New Jersey. From Scheider’s Eastern High School to Loperfido’s Haddonfield Memorial High School, it’s a 15-minute drive on a good day, barely five miles apart.

“It definitely eases the transition,” Loperfido said on Tuesday. “I got to chat with him a little bit tonight on the bench. Just having somebody that I already know and had a friendship with beforehand makes this a bit easier. Talking to the rest of the guys, I think everyone is pretty easy-going here and it will be pretty easy to get to know everyone.”

August and September should give Loperfido the perfect time to settle in. The stakes for the team may be low, but the door is wide open for him. With Kevin Kiermaier traded to the Dodgers, Daulton Varsho will take over full-time in center field, which leaves the left-field job up for grabs in 2025 and beyond.

“This is a really great opportunity for me,” Loperfido said. “Talking to the staff, I’ll have a lot of opportunities to play. As a younger player, that’s all you can ask for. I know I’ll get my opportunities, and I know I’ll make the most of them. This is a great clubhouse of guys. I’m happy that I’m here. I’m looking forward to playing here.”

This lineup needs to be more dynamic, but more than anything, it needs power. That has to be Toronto’s focus between now and next spring. With money to spend and a restocked farm system to deal from, it should be doable, too.

The Blue Jays rank 27th in the Majors with just 101 home runs this season, leading only the White Sox, Marlins and Nationals, all of whom are well out of contention. Loperfido isn’t going to fix this by himself, but he can help.

“I just feel like I can impact games,” Loperfido said. “It’s in a variety of ways, whether that’s on the basepaths, with some power or getting on to make things happen. I just try to have good at-bats when I’m up there. I think that’s the name of the game for me, stacking good things and good at-bats on top of each other. I don’t feel like I have to do too much, because I know we have a good lineup, so I’m just trying to carve out my role.”

It’s a strange balance from here. This season has been a disappointment in every way, but the most painful part is over after the Blue Jays dealt eight players at the Deadline. If 2025 is going to be different, it’s the new guys -- like Loperfido -- who need to be part of that change.