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Former Twins reliever Justin Topa signs minors deal with Blue Jays

Thomas Hall — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 17:00:56 GMT

If there’s one thing this season has taught us, it’s that you can never have too many arms.

Keeping in line with that age-old saying, the Toronto Blue Jays added another veteran reliever to their system on Wednesday, signing recently released Minnesota Twins right-hander Justin Topa to a minor-league deal, according to the transaction log.

The 35-year-old reliever, designated for assignment and later released by the Twins last month, has been assigned to Triple-A Buffalo and was activated ahead of Wednesday’s contest versus the Worcester Red Sox — Boston’s affiliate. He last pitched for Minnesota on May 18 and has topped out at 1.2 innings this season.

Topa has split time with three major league teams since debuting in 2020, appearing with the Milwaukee Brewers, Seattle Mariners and Twins before joining the Blue Jays organization. The results have been pretty rough in 2026 thus far, sporting an inflated 8.05 ERA and 6.46 FIP, with nearly as many walks (11) as strikeouts (12) through 19 innings, resulting in a career-worst minus-0.5 fWAR.

Toronto’s brass appears to be betting on last season’s success, though, as Topa enjoyed one of the top performances of his career, pitching to a 3.90 ERA and 3.04 FIP with a respectable 11.6 per cent strikeout-minus-walk rate (K-BB%) and a 47.7 per cent ground-ball rate — which placed in the 76th percentile of the majors — across 60 innings, worth 0.9 fWAR.

The biggest difference between this year and last has been the effectiveness of Topa’s sweeper, which has lost 1.3 m.p.h. from its career-high average velocity of 82.9 in 2025, and has seen its whiff rate plummet from 33 per cent to just 5.9 per cent this season. As a result, the veteran righty had only been throwing his best pitch 16.7 per cent of the time with the Twins — its lowest usage of his career after using it almost one-third of the time in each of his previous five seasons.

Topa becomes the second former Twins reliever to sign with the Blue Jays in as many months, following Matt Bowman, who also inked a minor-league deal after being released by Minnesota in May.

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Mason Fluharty has been a workhorse for Blue Jays’ bullpen this season

Thomas Hall — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 16:30:21 GMT

Only one pitcher has made more relief appearances than Mason Fluharty this season: the Athletics’ Hogan Harris, who leads the majors with 31 to begin the campaign.

Fluharty has been a workhorse, too, as the left-hander has already appeared in 32 games thus far — 30 as a reliever and two as an opener. He’s been used more than any other Toronto Blue Jays reliever in 2026. The likes of Louis Varland, Tyler Rogers, Jeff Hoffman and Braydon Fisher are all looking up at him in that regard.

It’s easy to forget that this is still just Fluharty’s second major league season. And yet, the 24-year-old reliever is already more than halfway to last season’s career-high total of 55 appearances. That’s without including the 11 games he logged with Triple-A Buffalo in 2025, or the additional 11 he made during last fall’s post-season.

The last 14 months have featured a strenuous workload for the second-year lefty, who’s compiled 92.2 combined innings (regular season and playoffs) between the majors and minors since the start of last season. For reference, he hadn’t logged more than 140 total innings across his first three seasons of professional ball after joining the Blue Jays organization as a fifth-round selection in 2022.

Fluharty’s results, however, have continued to improve over time despite shouldering as much responsibility as he has to begin his big-league career. So far this season, he’s dialled up his performance to another level, pitching to a 3.97 ERA and 2.34 FIP with a 21.4 per cent strikeout-minus-walk rate (K-BB%) — up 6.5 per cent from ’25.

Additionally, Fluharty currently sits in the 90th percentile or higher in several categories, including xERA (2.03, 99th), xAVG (.167, 99th), average exit velocity against (85.1 m.p.h., 96th), strikeout rate (30.6 per cent, 93rd) and hard-hit rate against (29.3 per cent, 92nd).

He’s also been excellent in left-on-left matchups, perfectly executing when he’s held the platoon advantage, as left-handed batters are slashing just .136/.235/.136 with a 23.5 per cent K-BB% against him. They also haven’t homered off him since Aug. 1, a span of 35.1 consecutive innings — during which he’s only allowed one home run versus righties.

Most of that success derives from Fluharty’s sharp-breaking, low-80s sweeper — his premier swing-and-miss weapon, which lefties are 3-for-30 (.100) and are whiffing over 35 per cent of the time against this season.

Fluharty comes up with three big outs to keep the Jays within a run!

🎥: Sportsnet | #BlueJays50 pic.twitter.com/oOhYriSbtj

— Blue Jays Nation (@thejaysnation) April 15, 2026

Even more impressive is that Fluharty entered spring training as the so-called “second lefty” reliever in the Blue Jays’ bullpen, slotting in behind Brendon Little. Of course, the latter of that duo was demoted to Triple-A in early April, while his other half has continued to emerge as one of the American League’s most formidable left-handed relief pitchers.

He’s riding right alongside notable AL lefty arms such as Aroldis Chapman, Erik Sabrowski and Jacob Latz — only trailing those three in K-BB% among qualified relievers.

The bullpen has, by far, been this team’s biggest strength over these first two months. But they’ve also had to fire a ton of bullets early on — Rogers, Varland, Hoffman and Fisher have made 28 relief appearances each in ’26 — due to a lack of consistent run support, causing that high-leverage group to operate with minimal margin for error in most situations.

That’s taken a massive toll on those arms, especially after recently concluding a 17-game stretch without an off-day. We’ve already started to see a few leaks begin to seep through those cracks, with both Tommy Nance (forearm) and Joe Mantiply (knee) hitting the injured list last month, further adding to an already far-too-long list of players on the shelf.

Fortunately, the Blue Jays’ back-end arms — Fluharty, Varland, Rogers, Hoffman and Fisher — have successfully staved off the injury bug so far. That group has been running on fumes lately, though, and the longer it takes for the offence to hit its stride, the more they’ll each be at risk of also winding up on the IL.

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Blue Jays: Gage Stanifer fans eight, Lázaro Estrada makes rehab start with Bisons

Michael Coyle — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 14:30:29 GMT

On Tuesday night, three pitchers within the Toronto Blue Jays’ organization made starts in the minor leagues to varying degrees of success.

Lázaro Estrada, who is currently in the midst of a rehab assignment, is working his way back from a right shoulder impingement that forced him to the injured list on April 5. Estrada made his first start with Triple-A Buffalo after making one on May 28 with Single-A Dunedin.

Facing the Worcester Red Sox, Estrada turned in a strong pitching line of 2.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K. Estrada was able to throw 42 pitches, four more than the 38 Estrada tossed in his first rehab outing. While the walks are a concern, the zero in the hit column and ability to work out of trouble could give the Blue Jays’ management the reason to bring Estrada back to the big leagues sooner rather than later.

Estrada made his MLB debut last season on July 5, 2025, against the Los Angeles Angels. The right-hander tossed four innings, allowing only one run, in which was a debut that caught the attention of many Blue Jays fans. Estrada ended up making one more appearance towards the end of July before spending the remainder of the campaign with the Bisons.

The right-hander’s lone appearance in the majors this season came on April 4 during a 6-3 loss against the Chicago White Sox. Estrada tossed four scoreless frames, working as the bulk-guy behind Mason Fluharty, who opened the contest. Estrada walked two and struck out three and could force a return to a Blue Jays’ bullpen that has been overworked through the season’s opening two-plus months.

Gage Stanifer is really starting to find his stride in Double-A with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. After a month of May in which Stanifer went 2-1 with a 1.37 ERA and 1.17 WHIP, the right-hander continued the good run he’s been on during his first June outing.

The 22-year-old squared off with the Pittsburgh Pirates’ Double-A team, the Altoona Curve. Stanifer posted a pitching line of 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 8 K, the second-most strikeouts he has recorded in a game this season for the prized right-hander. At the end of April, Stanifer held a 7.71 ERA, and following his outing on Tuesday, it has dropped to 4.36. Stanifer’s record sits at 2-3 and he holds a 1.50 WHIP this year while recording 54 strikeouts over his 43.1 innings.

After Trey Yesavage’s recent graduation from the Blue Jays’ top 30 prospect list, Stanifer moved up his ranking to number five. If Stanifer continues to flash this level of success at the Double-A level, a promotion to Triple-A before the 2026 season can’t be ruled out as the Blue Jays’ brass continues to test their 2022 19th-round draft pick.

In more concerning news, Blue Jays’ number 13th ranked prospect Silvano Hechavarria once again struggled in Single-A with Dunedin. After opening the season on the injured list with High-A Vancouver, Hechavarria was sent to Dunedin to get some work in before heading back to Vancouver.

The Daytona Tortugas tagged Hechavarria on Tuesday night in his sixth start with the D-Jays. The right-hander finished the evening with a pitching line of 3.0 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 2 K. Last night’s start followed an outing in which Hechavarria lasted only 1.2 innings and gave up five runs (four earned) on two hits and three walks.

Through six starts, the results have mostly been concerning. The 23-year-old now holds an 0-3 record, a 10.93 ERA and a WHIP of 2.00 while striking out 14 over 14 innings. Last season, Hechavarria dominated in his first taste of professional baseball at the Single-A level. Over 11 games (seven starts), the now 23-year-old went 1-2 with a 1.90 ERA and 0.99 WHIP, holding opposing teams to an average of .209 against.

Hechavarria’s work earned him a call-up to Vancouver, where his success continued across 22.1 innings. In four starts, Hechavarria continued to impress, going 3-0 with a 3.22 ERA and 1.21 WHIP. While the results haven’t been close to last year’s level, the hope is that Hechavarria can work his way back to form as he gets further removed from his early-season injury.

Instant Reaction: Kazuma Okamoto hits home run in Blue Jays’ 4-3 loss to Braves

Ryley Delaney — Wed, 03 Jun 2026 11:00:09 GMT

The Toronto Blue Jays are now three games below .500.

Beginning a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday, the Blue Jays fell 4-3 to the team with the best record in Major League Baseball. Let’s take a look at what happened in this one.

The Blue Jays failed to get a base runner in the top of the first, bringing the Braves up to the plate. Lead-off hitter Ronald Acuña Jr. walked, setting up Michael Harris II to drive in the first run with a double. After a ground out that moved Harris II to third, Ozzie Albies hit a sacrifice fly to extend the Braves’ lead to two.

It didn’t take long for the Blue Jays to answer back. Daulton Varsho popped out and Ernie Clement struck out, but Yohendrick Piñango reached with a single, which was followed up by Kazuma Okamoto’s team-leading 13th home run of the season, tying the game at two.

Okamoto drives one into the Chophouse, and we are tied at 2!

🎥 Sportsnet | #Bluejays pic.twitter.com/TrOHro2maP

— Blue Jays Nation (@thejaysnation) June 2, 2026

In the bottom of the third, Kevin Gausman surrendered a two-out double to Matt Olson, who was driven in by Albies, this time with a single. The score stood that way to the top of the sixth, when Nathan Lukes led off the inning with a single, followed by a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. double. Even though they had two in scoring position, the Jays only got one run as Daulton Varsho hit a sacrifice fly. Guerrero Jr. was stranded on second base.

In the bottom half of the sixth, Olson hit his 17th home run of the season, giving the Braves a 4-3 lead that they did not relinquish. They had their chances though, getting a runner on first with either no outs or one out in the next two innings. The start of the top of the ninth was promising, as they had runners on first and second with just one out, but Andrés Giménez popped out, as did pinch hitter Jesús Sánchez to end the game. To make matters worse, Sánchez had a 2-0 count.

Takeaways…

It wasn’t Kevin Gausman’s best start, going 6+ innings with four earned runs allowed, two walks, and eight strikeouts. With this performance, his ERA sits at 3.36. The Blue Jays used three relievers, Braydon Fisher, Mason Fluharty, and Connor Seabold, with all three hurling scoreless outings. At the very least, Gausman pitching into the seventh inning gives Louis Varland and Tyler Rogers another day of rest.

The story of this game was failing to score with runners in scoring position. The Jays had their chances, especially in the ninth, but went 0-6 with six runners stranded on base. It has continued a worrisome trend dating back to the last game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

At least Kazuma Okamoto is starting to get hot again. His home run in his first plate appearance was his team-leading 13th of the season. That happens to be seven more than the second-placed Jesús Sánchez and Andrés Giménez. They have to start hitting for power soon.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is starting to hit for more power lately, at least in terms of doubles. The first baseman hit his 10th double of the season in Tuesday’s game, the only other extra-base hit. Nathan Lukes, Ernie Clement, Okamoto, and Yohendrick Piñango all had two hits in this game.

The Blue Jays will look to avoid losing their third series in their last 13, but will need to find a way to win the next two against the best team in baseball. Wednesday’s game has a 7:15 PM ET start time, with Patrick Corbin on the mound.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

Blue Jays injury update: Kirk and others set for a rehab appearance this week

Ryley Delaney — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 22:00:57 GMT

This week is going to be a busy one for the Toronto Blue Jays minor league system.

Ahead of Tuesday’s series opener against the Atlanta Braves, Blue Jays manager John Schneider updated media regarding injuries. There are four words to describe what he said: Lots of rehab outings.

A slew of #BlueJays injury updates…
John Schneider: "Actually some positive ones" pic.twitter.com/8pyYVABo8i

— Mitch Bannon (@MitchBannon) June 2, 2026

Let’s start with the players who either aren’t ready or won’t need a rehab assignment. Jesús Sánchez was hit in the wrist by an errant throw from a fan. While he isn’t in the lineup on Tuesday evening, he’ll be available off the bench. That’s great news for the team.

Additionally, Lenyn Sosa and Addison Barger have begun baseball activities, with Barger hitting and throwing, while Sosa is hitting. Barger’s news in particular is encouraging, as “elbow soreness” is always worrisome.

As for the rehab outings, the lone position player set to begin a rehab assignment this week is Alejandro Kirk, who hasn’t appeared in a game since April 4th. The Blue Jays’ catcher is set to be the Dunedin Blue Jays’ designated hitter on Wednesday. Getting Kirk’s bat back in the lineup, especially if it’s like anything it was last season, will be a huge boost for the Jays.

It appears that Dylan Cease’s stint on the 15-day injured list will be a minimum one, as there’s a strong chance he’ll make a rehab start with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons on Thursday. Cease has never been on the big league injured list before, so this will be the first time he’s thrown a pitch in the minor leagues since 2019.

Cease’s departure from the rotation has been a tough one for the Blue Jays to deal with, as they now have a bullpen twice over a span of five days. That adds additional stress to an already taxed bullpen. Cease is eligible to come off the 15-day IL on June 9th, meaning he could make that start.

Thankfully, Cease isn’t the only one starting a rehab assignment with the Bisons. Max Scherzer already started a game, going three hitless innings with four strikeouts on May 31st. It seems likely he’ll start another game one on Friday, aiming for 60 pitches.

Shane Bieber is also on a rehab assignment, making a start in the Florida Complex League on May 25th, then another one with the Single-A D-Jays on May 31st. His next start, which looks like it’ll be Saturday, will be with the Bisons. Getting at least two of these starters back would be huge for the Blue Jays and their bullpen.

Right now, the Blue Jays have Connor Seabold, Hayden Juenger, Yariel Rodríguez, and Adam Macko on the 26-man roster. None of those four pitchers, aside from maybe Macko, were projected to be in a Blue Jays bullpen at it’s best heading into the season.

The good news is that the Jays could have a high-leverage option returning, as Yimi García will throw an inning on Wednesday with the D-Jays. García had already begun a rehab assignment in early May, but was shut down after just two outings.

It’s been 11 months since he last pitched for the Jays, so getting a high-leverage reliever back is great news, especially with Jeff Hoffman’s weird season. They could also be getting a low-leverage reliever back, as Tommy Nance is expected to appear in Friday’s Triple-A game.

As he’s done throughout his Blue Jays’ tenure, Nance has quietly put together a strong season, authoring a 3.86 ERA and 2.46 FIP in 21 innings pitched over 20 outings this season. Owning a K% of 29.4%, only Mason Fluharty (32.1%), Louis Varland (35%) and Hoffman (36.6%) have a higher K%.

The Blue Jays currently sit 29-31 and begin a three-game series with the first-placed Atlanta Braves on Tuesday. If they wish to go on a run like they did last season, getting healthy is a big step forward.

Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

June 2 Gameday: Kevin Gausman starts for Blue Jays in series opener against Braves

Michael Coyle — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 21:00:06 GMT

The Toronto Blue Jays are back in action on Tuesday, squaring off with the Atlanta Braves after receiving a much-needed day off on Monday following a stretch of 17 games in 17 days.

If the Blue Jays (29-31) are going to snap their current two-game losing streak, it’s going to be tough, as the Braves (40-20) hold the best record in baseball and sit second in Major League Baseball in both runs with 316 and home runs with 84.

As the Blue Jays’ offence continues to find more consistent production, utility infielder Ernie Clement is doing his best to keep the team afloat. For the season, Clement has appeared in a team-high 59 games and is batting .300 with five home runs and 22 RBIs.

After only hitting one home run through his 121 at-bats in March and April, Clement found some extra power in May, blasting four home runs over the month, all while batting .297. Currently riding a four-game hit streak, Clement will be looking to keep the good times rolling as the calendar flips to June.

The Braves’ offence has received contributions up and down their lineup all season. One player to keep an eye on is power-hitting first baseman Matt Olson. Olson has appeared in all 60 games for the Braves this season and is batting .261 to go along with the team lead in both home runs with 16 and RBIs with 45.

Getting the start for the Braves on Tuesday will be right-hander Bryce Elder. Elder has gotten off to a strong start over his first 12 starts of the 2026 season. The 27-year-old is 4-3 with a 2.50 ERA and 1.08 WHIP over 72 innings.

While Elder doesn’t strike out many, highlighted by 61 punchouts across 72 frames, the righty uses a five-pitch mix to limit hard contact and keeps opposing teams off-balance. Opposing batters have only mustered a .211 average against Elder, so the Blue Jays’ offence will be in tough on Tuesday.

Kevin Gausman will counter Elder for the Blue Jays. The ever-so-steady Gausman has put together a great opening to his 2026 campaign, making 12 starts and recording a 4-3 record, a 3.13 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. The 35-year-old is currently on a three-start streak in which he has allowed one run or fewer, helping put a bow on May when Gausman posted a 3.18 ERA over 28.1 innings pitched.

Gausman has made two starts against Atlanta since joining the Blue Jays and is 1-1 with a 3.75 ERA, with both outings being quality starts.

Here’s how the lineups look for the series opener at Truist Park:

Location: Atlanta, Georgia

First Pitch: 7:15 PM EST

Watch/Listen: Sportsnet One, SN590

Starting Pitchers

Toronto Blue Jays – Kevin Gausman: 4-3 record, 3.13 ERA, 69 IP, 66 SO, 12 BB

Atlanta Braves – Bryce Elder: 4-3 record, 2.50 ERA, 72 IP, 61 SO, 22 BB

Lineups:

Blue Jays:

George Springer – DH
Nathan Lukes – LF
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – 1B
Daulton Varsho – CF
Ernie Clement – 2B
Yohendrick Piñango – RF
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Andrés Giménez – SS
Brandon Valenzuela – C

Braves:

Ronald Acuña Jr. – RF
Michael Harris II – CF
Matt Olson – 1B
Ozzie Albies – 2B
Dominic Smith – DH
Austin Riley – 3B
Mike Yastrzemski – LF
Jorge Mateo – SS
Sandy León – C

Blue Jays’ Max Scherzer targeting another Triple-A rehab start

Thomas Hall — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 20:30:28 GMT

Rehabbing right-hander Max Scherzer is aiming to make another Triple-A rehab start, likely on Friday, according to the future Hall-of-Fame pitcher.

Scherzer spoke to reporters — including Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling — in Atlanta ahead of Tuesday’s series opener versus the Toronto Blue Jays, saying he plans to continue building up in his next start after throwing 41 pitches (24 strikes) during Sunday’s outing with the Buffalo Bisons. He tossed three hitless innings, issuing two walks and four strikeouts against the 10 batters he faced.

The 41-year-old starter also said he hopes to further shake off the rust he encountered in his first outing since hitting the 15-day injured list with right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation over a month ago.

Max Scherzer says he’s going to throw another rehab outing with triple-A Buffalo this week — targeting Friday. Looking to increase volume up to around 60 pitches and continue shaking off rust

— Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) June 2, 2026

Scherzer said his forearm is feeling much better now that he’s had plenty of time to rest and recover. He received a cortisone injection in his pitching arm in early May, then another one in his right thumb less than a week later, as it started to flare up again during his IL stint.

To ensure Scherzer provided his forearm with ample rest, he stopped playing the piano — the unconventional cure for his nagging thumb ailment — and two weeks later, his discomfort returned. So, he told reporters that he’s since begun playing again and has seen a massive improvement in that thumb.

In his second start with the Bisons, the three-time Cy Young winner will be eyeing around 60 pitches over 4-5 innings. After that, the Blue Jays brass will reconvene with the veteran hurler to determine next steps.

It’s possible Scherzer could require a third and final rehab start, or perhaps just a bullpen session, prior to rejoining Toronto’s injury-riddled staff. Since he’s already pitching on traditional four days’ rest, having him start on Friday with Buffalo would potentially line up his next start for June 10.

That could come back home in the series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. But the club hasn’t revealed their upcoming pitching plans yet.

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Looking at the 3 needed changes for the Blue Jays to repeat their success from last season

Veronica Chung — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 20:00:21 GMT

The Toronto Blue Jays were supposed to get going by the end of May, just like last season.

Instead, the 2026 Blue Jays are below .500 (29-31) after losing two straight games to the Orioles this past weekend. Coming off an American League pennant, this wasn’t how their story was supposed to unfold, but it’s the unfortunate reality they face.

The only consolation now is the fact the season is just over two months old, meaning there’s time left for the Blue Jays to course-correct. If they can change their fortune in these three aspects, they’ll have a chance to get back to where they were last year.

Find power in the lineup

The 2025 Blue Jays didn’t strike out much as a lineup last year, and that was the biggest part of their success story. The 2026 Blue Jays aren’t striking out either, as their 19.2 K% as a team is only bested by the Tampa Bay Rays’ 18.7 K%, but their offence hasn’t been hitting for extra bases.

At the 60 games mark last season, the Blue Jays had a .395 slugging percentage and 60 home runs, ranking 12th and 19th respectively. Fast forward to June 2nd, 2026, they have a .380 slugging percentage (t-21st) and 56 home runs, tied for 20th.

Another culprit for the Blue Jays’ lethargic offence is their inability to get on base. The Blue Jays currently rank 25th in OBP and OPS, indicating a deadly combination: a power outage and a dearth of runners on base. They have also only scored 244 runs, which ranks 22nd.

Injuries have forced the Blue Jays to rely heavily on their bench players for run production early on in 2026. Addison Barger’s impending return will give them more power in the lineup, but their stars need to play like stars. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., George Springer, and Daulton Varsho have all seen a decline in their power just over two months into the season, and they’ll have to hit with power more consistently for the team’s offence to stabilize.

The Blue Jays rank ninth in hits, but those results aren’t translating on the field for a multitude of reasons. With runners in scoring position, the Blue Jays are hitting .236, but have the third-lowest wRC+ with RISP. Their quality of contact is well down as well.

Last season, the Blue Jays finished first in OBP, third in OPS and fourth in runs. If the 2026 Blue Jays hope to replicate that level of success, then they need more players to step up in the power department and make more meaningful contact to drive runners in.

Staying patient

The 2025 Blue Jays were known as the relentless bunch because their lineup remained patient at the plate. That is no longer the case for the Blue Jays, as they rank 26th in walk rate. The only teams behind them are the New York Mets, Colorado Rockies, Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants; it’s a troublesome company to be associated with.

Showing discipline in the batter’s box helps hitters to get into more favourable counts, and it increases the probability of getting on base. Being patient is also directly related to putting more players in scoring positions.

The 2026 Blue Jays aren’t striking out, but they are also walking less compared to last season. What this means is that the Blue Jays are making more contact early and aren’t necessarily waiting to see more pitches. It’s not the ideal pairing because the Blue Jays are ninth in hitting into double plays, which entirely erases their offensive momentum.

Their underlying numbers back it up as well. Last season, the Blue Jays were aggressive, chasing 29.3% of the time, but they did a good job of fouling off pitches and eventually earning walks. They’ve been even more aggressive this season (34.1 chase percentage), and they do a good job of making contact, but the foul balls of yesteryear have turned into soft contact outs so far this season.

While the 2025 Jays grounded into the most double plays, they drew more than enough walks to avoid that being an issue. That isn’t the case this season.

The Blue Jays’ true turnaround won’t start until their lineup can become more disciplined as a whole. Teams like the Phillies can get away with not walking much because they are capable of hitting more home runs. The 2026 Blue Jays don’t have that kind of luxury; they aren’t designed to become the house of home runs. Patience should become more than just a virtue for a team that needs to grind it out with tenacity.

Identify ways to get more quality starts

The Blue Jays’ pitching has been quite remarkable for all that it’s gone through with heaps of injuries. Kevin Gausman has been the bona fide ace, despite a few shaky outings, and Dylan Cease worked wonders in most of his starts with eye-popping strikeouts until he went on the 15-day injured list in late May. Even with those contributions, the team only ranks 24th in quality starts this year.

As good as their starters have been, 10th in ERA eighth in FIP, their starters have thrown just 278 innings, the fourth-fewest in the big leagues this season. A big reason for that is once again injuries. José Berríos, Shane Bieber, and Trey Yesavage began the season on the IL, and Cody Ponce joined them shortly after.

On top of that Eric Lauer and Max Scherzer didn’t give them many innings early in the season either, before Lauer was DFA’d and Scherzer hit the IL. Losing Cease has caused the Blue Jays to have two bullpen days. Attempting to fill that gap with spot starts (or a series of relievers) has been rocky for the Blue Jays.

While they tend to do well in bullpen days, their game on May 31 against the Orioles showed the worst-case scenario of a bullpen day. The bullpen has handled it well, but this is unsustainable over the course of a full season.

They’re starting to get healthy, as Bieber and Scherzer have begun rehab assignments, while Cease’s stint on the IL may end up being a minimum one. That said, their starters need to pitch deeper into games to save their bullpen.

Blue Jays: Austin Voth elects free agency after being DFA’d

Michael Coyle — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 19:30:11 GMT

Per MLB.com’s transaction log, Austin Voth has elected free agency for the second time this season.

After having his contract selected on May 27, Voth was designated for assignment by the Toronto Blue Jays on May 30, a day after struggling against the Baltimore Orioles during the Blue Jays’ 6-5 comeback win. Right-hander Hayden Juenger was called up to take Voth’s spot on the active roster on Saturday.

The 33-year-old turned in a pitching line of 3.1 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 0 K, and was tagged for three home runs by the Orioles’ offence, including back-to-back blasts by Pete Alonso and Samuel Basallo in the bottom of the fifth inning.

When all was said and done on Voth’s outing, the Orioles held a 5-0 lead and looked to be in full control of the contest. Voth tossed 70 pitches in the outing, so while the results weren’t great, the right-hander helped cover some key innings, as many of the Blue Jays’ relievers have been overworked early on due to injuries across the starting rotation.

Voth has appeared in two games out of the bullpen for the Blue Jays this season and has recorded a 9.00 ERA and 2.17 WHIP across six innings pitched. The right-hander has failed to miss bats, highlighted by just one strikeout over those six frames.

The Blue Jays originally signed Voth to a minor league contract on March 25, 2026, just prior to the regular season getting underway. After injuries struck in early April, Voth was first called up on April 5 and proceeded to toss 2.2 innings, allowing only one run during a 3-0 loss against the Chicago White Sox.

The next day, Voth was DFA’d and elected free agency on April 9. After two days, Voth ended up inking another minor league contract with the Blue Jays and spent the next month and a half in Triple-A with the Buffalo Bisons. In eight games with the Bisons this season, Voth was 1-2 with a 2.90 ERA and 1.29 WHIP.

While a return for a third stint with the Blue Jays may feel unlikely, it is worth noting that Eloy Jiménez has signed three separate minor league contracts after being let go by the organization. If Voth doesn’t return to the Blue Jays, the pitching depth in the upper minors will take a hit, and depth is something that all Blue Jays fans have realized the importance of this season.

Diagnosing the Blue Jays’ surprising first-half defensive decline

Thomas Hall — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 19:00:11 GMT

Many factors are to blame for the Toronto Blue Jays’ disappointing start to this season, namely these never-ending injury waves and an inconsistent offence. But you could argue that nothing has been more surprising than this team’s uncharacteristically poor defence thus far.

Delivering a fundamentally sound defensive product has been at the core of the Blue Jays’ team identity for the last few years. It’s one of the main philosophies that has separated them from offence-reliant clubs such as the New York Yankees, which also played a crucial role in their magical run to last fall’s World Series.

Across these first two months, however, we haven’t seen nearly enough of the defensively sound 2025 Jays.

Entering this season, Toronto’s defence was widely considered one of the premier units throughout Major League Baseball, after capturing consecutive American League team Gold Glove awards in 2023 and ’24 — almost winning a third straight in ’25 that ended up going to the Texas Rangers, whose defence led the majors in defensive runs saved (89), despite trailing Toronto’s in both fielding run value (44) and defensive WAR (38.8).

But there’s been a massive performance decline among several Blue Jays defenders to start the ’26 campaign, significantly diminishing the organization’s once top-of-the-heap run prevention.

	DRS (MLB rank)	OAA	FRV
TOR’s defence from 2023-25	227 (1st)	46 (T-6th)	109 (2nd)
TOR’s defence this season	0 (20th)	-2 (17th)	11 (6th)

We’ve witnessed an uptick in sloppiness and a failure to convert routine plays, causing Toronto’s defence to plummet from the sport’s top tier to hovering around the middle of the pack, results-wise. If not a bit lower than that in a few categories.

For an active group with four former Gold Glove winners (Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Daulton Varsho, Andrés Giménez, Myles Straw), five if you include Kazuma Okamoto’s NPB accolades, this isn’t anywhere close to the elite standard they’ve previously set.

What’s even more troubling is that, on paper, this was supposed to be an improved defensive personnel compared to a year ago. But instead, it’s been the complete opposite.

So, where have things gone wrong, and how did we arrive here so quickly? Let’s find out.

Core defender struggles

The Blue Jays need their best players to perform as their best players, as the saying goes. Much of the attention in that regard has been directed towards the offence, and understandably so. At the same time, it’s just as meaningful on defence, too, particularly when Varsho and Ernie Clement — two of this team’s top defenders — haven’t been at their best.

Varsho, who entered this season leading all major-league outfielders in DRS (85), OAA (50) and FRV (52) since 2022 and is considered by many — including manager John Schneider — as the premier defender at his position, has submitted a subpar first-half performance in ’26. In 464.2 innings as Toronto’s everyday centre-fielder, he’s accounted for just one DRS, OAA and FRV each thus far.

His range still sits in the 77th percentile of the majors, a ranking most outfielders would be pleased with. But considering he’s placed in the 95th percentile or higher each season since ’22, the 29-year-old’s expectations are higher than most.

It should be noted that Varsho’s average sprint speed has fallen to a career-low 27.2 (feet per second) this season. That certainly shouldn’t be overlooked, though his diminished outfield jumps are where his biggest concerns reside. He’s struggled with all three components in that department — reactions, bursts and routes, all of which have dropped considerably compared to his peak 2022-25 seasons.

That’s recently prompted a change to Varsho’s pre-pitch set-up in centre, during which he now angles both his feet outwards to put him in a more advantageous position for his initial read, as Sportsnet’s David Singh and Arden Zwelling outlined. And if it helps, that’s all that matters.

Daulton Varsho contributed a pair of strong catches during Friday's Blue Jays victory

Varsho, who’s been frustrated with his jumps this season, made an adjustment to his pre-pitch setup recently, angling his feet outwards in order to initiate backwards movement quicker pic.twitter.com/s4ZYSWLtuv

— Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) May 30, 2026

Clement’s defensive metrics have also been uncharacteristically poor this season, as evidenced by his minus-five DRS and OAA each and a minus-three FRV across nearly 400 innings at second base. He’s no longer a full-time utility player — whose infield defence earned a plus-15 OAA last season, placing in the 98th percentile — and has taken over the everyday role at second with Giménez moving over to shortstop.

That was supposed to improve Toronto’s middle-infield duo after Bo Bichette endured a miserable ’25 defensive performance, posting career-worsts in OAA (-13) and FRV (-13) at short. It was shaping up to become a pitcher’s dream tandem, and while there’s still time to evolve into that, they’re currently a long way off from reaching that scenario.

The most glaring issue that Clement must correct is his throwing decisions, the culprit behind three of his five errors on the campaign. This is where some of that earlier-mentioned sloppiness has reared its ugly head.

You may have also noticed that Clement’s arm strength has fallen significantly, averaging a career-low 76.6 m.p.h., down almost four ticks from last year. He hasn’t made any throws above 81 m.p.h. this season, either, also a career-low, though that’s likely a byproduct of being an everyday second baseman. He doesn’t need to let it loose as often anymore, like he used to at third or short.

In any case, the Blue Jays need Clement to play cleaner, and soon.

Key injuries

Alejandro Kirk, one of baseball’s best all-around catchers, has only played five games this season due to a fractured left thumb — and the Blue Jays haven’t been close to the same team without him, in the batter’s box or behind the plate.

Defensively, Kirk is as elite as they come for a catcher. Last year’s Gold Glove finalist, an award won by Detroit’s Dillon Dingler, entered this season trailing only Patrick Bailey for first in DRS and FRV with 48 and 60, respectively, since the start of ’22. There’s simply no replacing that production, despite the Blue Jays’ best efforts with Brandon Valenzuela and Tyler Heineman.

Those two aren’t Kirk, but they’ve done an exceptional job filling in for Toronto’s All-Star catcher on defence, combining for 10 DRS and 12 FRV over 485.1 total innings. That duo has held their own when blocking and framing pitches, and they’ve also been extremely efficient at throwing out baserunners — each ranking in the 86th percentile or higher in caught stealing above average.

There have been some learning curves, though, and those have been the moments when the Blue Jays miss Kirk the most. He brings a certain steadiness behind the plate that’s been absent from this team for nearly two months.

Enduring extended stretches without Nathan Lukes and Addison Barger, the club’s two most dependable corner outfielders, has also contributed to Toronto’s defensive decline from last season. Outside of Myles Straw, those two patrol the left and right corners better than any other players on this roster.

But because of a left hamstring strain and a bout with vertigo, Lukes — who accounted for 10 DRS, one OAA and a plus-five FRV in 909.1 innings split across all three outfield positions in ’25 — has logged fewer than 200 innings in the field this season. Likewise for Barger, who’s compiled just over 50 innings thus far and hasn’t been around to help minimize the running game against the Blue Jays’ outfielders.

When the former third baseman, turned right fielder, is playing, baserunners have to be on full alert, or else they’re liable to be gunned down. And that sense is rapidly growing around Lukes, too.

Corner outfield woes

Without the services of Barger and Lukes, their absences have magnified Jesús Sánchez and rookie Yohendrick Piñango’s performances, neither of whom has performed well in the corners.

Sánchez has played more right than left as a Blue Jay, struggling to minus-four DRS, OAA and FRV each through just over 250 innings. There’s been a noticeable decline in both his initial reactions and bursts, each falling to the worst of his career. And he’s also posted a career-low average arm strength of 86.7 m.p.h., down two ticks from a season ago.

Piñango’s defence has laboured in his brief time with the big-league club, mostly in left, where he’s registered minus-two DRS and minus-one OAA and FRV each over 155 innings. He doesn’t possess a strong arm or quick reactions within his first few steps, areas he’s attempting to make up for with his route efficiency — which also remains a work in progress.

The Blue Jays have needed to sacrifice a bit of outfield defence for offence in recent weeks, and that’s also meant playing Straw less than they’d probably prefer. However, the 31-year-old veteran’s results also haven’t been spectacular, albeit over a fairly limited sample size of 210.2 combined innings between all three outfield spots, as he sports minus-two DRS, one OAA and a zero FRV.

The trio of Sánchez, Piñango and Straw have to take a step forward. But they need more help, too, from those nearing returns from the injured list.