The Blue Jays finally had a path toward stabilizing their rotation, and then the injury bug hit again.
For much of the season, Toronto has been piecing together its starting staff on the fly. Cody Ponce went down in the first week, Trey Yesavage and Shane Bieber arrived late, and José Berrios never threw a pitch. Even so, the rotation has remained one of the club’s steadier areas despite the constant turnover.
After the trade deadline, it looked as if help had arrived. Toronto moved former staff ace Kevin Gausman to the Chicago Cubs, then added Jameson Taillon, José Soriano and Spencer Arrighetti in separate deals. At the same time, Bieber and Max Scherzer were turning in better outings, and for a brief stretch it seemed the Blue Jays might have more starters than spots.
That idea didn’t survive long.
On Aug. 4, manager John Schneider said the team would go to a temporary six-man rotation. By that night, Yesavage was hurt in Houston against the Astros, apparently injuring his left knee while warming up before the bottom of the third.
Arrighetti, meanwhile, was already rehabbing a foot injury when Toronto acquired him, and during his first rehab assignment in the organization he appeared to aggravate it again. He was removed after 2.1 innings for Triple-A Buffalo.
Then came Taillon’s setback. In his first home start for Toronto on Aug. 10 against the Boston Red Sox, he cruised through four strong innings before leaving with right forearm discomfort.
The diagnoses followed. Taillon was placed on the 15-day IL with right forearm tendinitis.
Arrighetti was diagnosed with Morton’s neuroma, a foot condition tied to nerve pain. Yesavage underwent surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee and is also on the 15-day IL.
Still, Toronto is not closing the door on any of them for the rest of the season.
Schneider said Yesavage will be monitored week to week. The 23-year-old has a 3.65 ERA in 18 starts, and he could still fill a role similar to the one he had last year, when he was called up in September and gave the Blue Jays meaningful innings down the stretch and into the postseason.
Taillon will rest for a few days before trying to resume throwing, and the MRI brought at least one encouraging update: no structural damage. That matters, especially given his injury history.
As for Arrighetti, Schneider said the team is hoping he can pitch through the diagnosis while getting treatment. There’s no firm timetable, but if he avoids another setback, the 26-year-old could still work his way back to the majors before the season ends. He posted a 4.60 ERA in 17 starts with the Astros before the trade.
Toronto doesn’t need all three back at once. Even one would help a lot right now.
The Blue Jays are back down to four starters, with Spencer Miles and Simeone Woods Richardson available as possible emergency options. That would create another issue, though, because the bullpen is already being stretched thin.
Going into Thursday’s game, Aug. 13, Toronto’s relievers had covered 46.1 innings over the previous 10 days, the most in the majors.
The club is also bringing Paul Sewald into the mix after claiming him off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier in the week, though he is not expected to be activated until Friday.
The timing is rough. Toronto is finally playing the kind of baseball many expected from the start, but sustaining it gets a lot harder if the rotation keeps taking hits and the team can’t get a few arms back soon.
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For the Blue Jays, that matters because the Yankees are still right in the thick of the race, sitting second in the AL East and holding the first American League wild-card spot. A potential Judge return in the final stretch could quickly change the shape of that chase, but for now the bigger question is whether Toronto is dealing with a contender that has already stabilized or one that is about to get a major jolt back in the middle of its order. [Read more 🡒]