Major League Baseball’s trade deadline passed 10 days ago, but the Toronto Blue Jays could still make an impact addition to their pitching staff, thanks to their minor-league system.
The Blue Jays are promoting pitcher Trey Yesavage to Triple-A, which puts him in line for a call-up when the minor-league season ends or perhaps sooner than that, depending on his performance. Yesavage, 22, is ranked as Toronto’s No. 1 minor-league prospect by MLB.com and No. 2 by The Athletic. He was the team’s 2024 first-round pick (No. 20 overall) out of East Carolina.
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Progressing from low Single-A through Double-A so far this season, the right-hander has a 3.01 ERA in 18 starts with 134 strikeouts over 80 2/3 innings (an average of 15 Ks per 9).
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Yesavage’s workload could be a concern as he pitches through his first professional season. The most innings he’s thrown were the 93 1/3 innings he pitched last year for East Carolina. However, the Blue Jays apparently had an innings limit in mind when keeping him out of game action for approximately three weeks around the All-Star break, according to The Athletic.
Also, though Yesavage has started 18 games this season, he wouldn’t necessarily fill that role with the Blue Jays. Toronto manager John Schneider could use him as an opener, pitching one or two innings to start a game or pitch him in relief. The team possibly tipped that off as a consideration when Yesavage came out of the bullpen to pitch five innings last week.
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The Blue Jays may not need Yesavage as a starting pitcher either, with a rotation stocked with Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, Eric Lauer and Max Scherzer.
Toronto also acquired 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner Shane Bieber from the Cleveland Guardians at the MLB trade deadline, and he could be available late in the season as he recovers from Tommy John surgery. Additionally, Alek Manoah is working his way back from reconstructive surgery as another possible reinforcement.
With a 4.28 ERA, Toronto’s pitching staff ranks 23rd in MLB. The starters are 22nd with a 4.43 ERA and the bullpen’s 4.06 ERA ranks 18th. So there is room for improvement. The Blue Jays’ offense is largely responsible for their success, with 583 runs scored so far this season, giving them a +44 run differential (with 539 runs allowed).
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The Blue Jays go into Monday’s MLB slate at 69-50, leading the Boston Red Sox by four games in the AL East and a 6.5-game lead over the third-place New York Yankees.
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