The Jays didn't part with can't miss blue chip guys. In a year or two when Reyes can still play and he'll have much less on his contract, he'll still net prospects like that in return. As for Buehrle, yes he will be older, but productive lefties can usually net something in the way of prospects.
To call the Red Sox approach conservative is to assume they have done something. This is the second off season in a row where their biggest need is starting pitching and they still have not made a single rotation acquisition. The off season has just begun, but the fact is that Cherries has done nothing with regard to pitching since he took the helm.