TORONTO – One of the primary strengths the Toronto Blue Jays have to buoy hopes of a rebound to playoff contention next year is the rotation trio of Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt.
Good pitching is always hard to find and something that’s really been underlined in this season of alarming industry-wide attrition, is that the sport simply isn’t developing enough starters to eventually turn over those currently doing the heavy lifting. When the game’s most durable pitchers age out, it’s not going to be only one team’s problem.
For the time being, that’s a player-development issue but it also reinforces how having three durable, reliable and steady front-line arms in the rotation, like the Blue Jays do for 2025, is a good starting point for any team. And if they’re to be part of the bedrock the club is basing its current intentions to compete next year upon, perhaps the trio should be managed with an eye on setting them up for that over the remaining seven weeks of this wayward campaign?
“It’s a good question, a good point,” Berrios said Friday night, after following up on gems by Gausman on Thursday and Bassitt on Tuesday with seven innings of one-run ball in a 3-1 win over the Oakland Athletics. “Right now, I’m just trying to come to the ballpark and compete, respect my teammates, respect the team, respect the fans, the people that have been cheering for us every day.
“It’s hard when we are in the position where we are right now,” he added. “But like a competitor, I like to win no matter what. I come to the ballpark, trying to stay focused, stay confident and keep doing my thing. That’s my mindset every day.”
Shaking off a worse-than-it-looked outing last Saturday in New York, when he gave up three Yankees homers that were amplified by defensive miscues around them, he allowed just six hits and a walk while striking out eight against a sneakily pesky A’s lineup.
Some of Berrios’ best work came in the sixth inning, when Lawrence Butler led off with a double and Miguel Andujar followed with a walk before JJ Bleday smashed a liner to centre that Daulton Varsho chased down, Brent Rooker struck out and Shea Langeliers popped out, with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. leaping into the protective netting in foul territory to make the grab.
That held the game 1-1 and the Blue Jays capitalized in the bottom half, as Guerrero, who extended his hit streak in the first, singled ahead of a Spencer Horwitz base hit, and scored on Alejandro Kirk’s fielder’s choice.
“He’s kind of doing it all right now,” manager John Schneider said of his all-star first baseman. “And guys are chipping in behind him.”
Horwitz added a 404-foot solo shot to right in the eighth to make it 3-1 and Chad Green locked the game down in the ninth for his 11th save. George Springer’s solo shot in the first opened the scoring before a Rogers Centre crowd of 39,894.
That formula is one the Blue Jays expected a lot more of this season and, with the right moves in what’s a pivotal off-season to come, gives credence to the idea of returning this core next year for another run at the playoffs.
“Anytime you have any of those guys out there, you feel extremely confident,” said Springer. “When they’re all on their A-game and even if they’re not, they’re still three unbelievable talents. The way that Jose threw, the way Bassitt threw, Kevin’s been great, it’s been huge. It’s who they are.”
Berrios is now at a team-high 142.2 innings, which is sixth most in the majors, followed by 132.1 for Gausman and 130 for Bassitt. Behind them in the rotation are Yariel Rodriguez, working as a starter this season after several years of relief work in Japan, and Bowden Francis, who is still trying to find a role.
Both need runway to develop, as does Jake Bloss, the centrepiece of the return from Houston for Yusei Kikuchi, who makes his Blue Jays organization debut Saturday at triple-A Buffalo.
Running a six-man rotation for a period of time is one way to both give that trio some opportunity while lightening the load on the veteran trio the rest of the way through.
But the Blue Jays “haven’t discussed that, really, a lot,” said Schneider. “We would like to keep (Bloss) starting and basically, you see how Yariel and Bowden do the next couple turns through. But a six-man isn’t something we’ve talked about. We’ve kicked it around maybe a little bit, but you want to keep everyone as regular as you can. We’ll see how he is on Saturday and ultimately you want to keep him starting.”
Not just in the minors, which is where the juggling comes in.
The Blue Jays have worked to learn Bloss before throwing him into the mix and once they are “sure he’s feeling good, we can probably create an opportunity for him if he’s throwing well, feeling good and all that kind of stuff,” said Schneider. “We’re going to obviously watch his innings for the remainder of the year. But I would definitely like to see him up here.”
That will be important, too, for helping to assess what the Blue Jays have to fill out the back half of the rotation next year, to help augment the front end.
Now about three-quarters of the way through his season, Berrios said he feels “pretty good, healthy, strong,” while adding that what he needs the rest of the way is “to work more mentally.”
“It’s hard when you don’t have that motivation (of the post-season), that extra (push). But we need to find it and figure it out. And like I said, I need to keep coming to the ballpark, compete and play for my teammates and for the team.”
For the time being, then, no need for kid gloves with the foundational rotation assets the Blue Jays have, a commodity ever harder to find within the game.
“They’re built up to pitch,” said Schneider. “The three of those guys especially, it’s a credit to them for going out and doing what they’re doing right now and wanting to go deep into games. They’re kind of competing with one another as they go. We’re checking in in-between. After the sixth checked in with Jose, it’s a little bit taxing, and he felt great. You trust that they’re going to go out and make pitches and the last three outings, they just continued to do that.”
