The Toronto Blue Jays' pitching staff was dealt another blow Thursday with news that right-hander Trey Yesavage will start the regular season on the injured list.
The 22-year-old is dealing with a right shoulder impingement, manager John Schneider said.
"It's something that he reported to camp with and obviously led to his slow buildup as well," he told reporters at the team's spring training complex. "Right now (he's) feeling good. He's in a better place now to continue to ramp up.
"So he's going to continue on the program he's been on, but will open the season on the IL."
The development came a day after the reigning American League champions confirmed that right-hander Jose Berrios will start the season on the IL due to a stress fracture in his pitching elbow.
Yesavage is expected to continue throwing as part of his spring buildup. He was scheduled to pitch off a mound on Wednesday, March 25, a team spokesman said.
Berrios, meanwhile, was tabbed to take a couple of days off as a precaution before resuming throwing later this week.
The injuries mean left-hander Eric Lauer will likely make the starting rotation to start the season.
Kevin Gausman has been tabbed for the Opening Day start against the visiting Athletics on March 27. Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce and Max Scherzer were expected to be the other starters.
Shane Bieber, who pitched during the stretch drive and playoffs after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2024, won't be ready for the start of the campaign.
He experienced forearm fatigue in the off-season and will be built up slowly.
After progressing through the minor leagues last year, Yesavage made his big-league debut with the Blue Jays in September.
He posted a 3-1 record and 3.58 earned-run average over six appearances in the post-season.
Earlier this week, Yesavage threw 35 pitches over a two-inning appearance in a minor-league game.
"We had a plan in place to slow-play it anyway after last year," Schneider said. "We wanted to get over that hump initially, and did, but in terms of a timeline, (there's) nothing definitive.
"But he is feeling really good right now, and I think he is in a good place to build up. So we'll just see where that goes."
Toronto reached the World Series last year but fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games.
