The Toronto Blue Jays need all of their starting pitchers to step up, as the team is dealing with multiple key injuries.
The Blue Jays’ starting rotation appeared ready to be one of the most lethal in Major League Baseball, but is going to be missing Trey Yesavage, Shane Bieber and José Berríos to open up the regular season, with all three pitchers beginning the season on the injured list.
Toronto focused on improving its starting rotation in free agency this offseason, signing Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce, but also brought back 41-year-old future Hall of Fame hurler Max Scherzer on a one-year contract. Scherzer struggled during the regular season last year, but stepped up big for the Blue Jays in the playoffs last season and has taken that momentum into spring training.
In Scherzer’s most recent spring training appearance on Friday, the 41-year-old looked to be in peak form, tossing five shutout innings against the Minnesota Twins, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out five batters.
The eight-time All-Star and three-time Cy Young Award winner has been dominant this spring, not allowing a single run across 13 2/3 innings pitched in three starts, and will look for those performances to translate to success in the regular season.
Though Scherzer may not be the star he was once, he has the potential to be an extremely impactful pitcher for the Blue Jays this season, especially with all of the injuries to the starting rotation. After losing Bo Bichette to the New York Mets this offseason, the Blue Jays will need to lean on their pitchers even more if they want a chance to return to the World Series again this season.
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