I don't think the goal was to compete with the moves that the Jays made (and for all the Jays gave up, their moves better work... though I really wish it would blow up in their faces). I think the goal was more to at least stay in the Wild Card hunt and if we're in the AL East race too in the end, great.
But yes, the team had bigger problems. I wouldn't be surprised if we TRIED to sell but couldn't get as much for Davis, Chen, and/or Wieters as we thought we should. Parra was a decent move, but unfortunately, we have had other problems that have reared their ugly heads even worse than we had seen earlier this season. There was reason to believe at the end of July that MAYBE we could have another run left in us.
Now, there's nothing left in the tank and that is clear. Getting above 75 wins would be pretty surprising to me at this point. A winning record is a pipe dream. But the Parra move won't have anything to do with it, and we gave up a player with little future value IMO.