This spring’s internal bullpen competition is entering its final swing.

Now that things are more or less set with the Toronto Blue Jays’ starting rotation — previously a position of surplus that’s since been whittled down by multiple injuries — and position-player group, all that’s left is to determine which eight relievers will be available to this team on Opening Day, which is officially just one week away.

We already know Yimi García won’t be among that group as he’s expected to begin the year on the injured list. But he’ll hopefully become an option in the not-so-distant future once he fully recovers from off-season elbow surgery, joining a back-end mix that currently includes closer Jeff Hoffman, Louis Varland, Tyler Rogers and Brendon Little.

That high-leverage quartet will undoubtedly make up half of the Blue Jays’ bullpen when it’s time to submit their Opening Day roster next Friday. Given how valuable both Mason Fluharty and Braydon Fisher were during their impressive rookie campaigns in 2025, they’ll also likely make this ‘pen coming out of spring training, and with Eric Lauer now stepping back into a starter’s role amidst José Berríos (stress fracture) and Trey Yesavage’s injuries (shoulder impingement), that’ll leave two spots up for grabs.

Or perhaps there’s only one job available. Tommy Nance, who’s out of options and would be subject to outright waivers if he doesn’t crack Toronto’s Opening Day roster, logged meaningful innings for this bullpen last season, pitching to a 1.99 ERA and 1.87 FIP with a strikeout-minus-walk rate (K-BB%) of nearly 20 per cent across 31.2 innings.

Considering the likelihood of Nance getting claimed off waivers, the 35-year-old righty’s past results will probably be enough to earn him one of those two remaining bullpen spots — which would account for seven of the Blue Jays’ eight relievers to begin this season.

Since Lauer is no longer an option to provide multiple innings of relief, that final bullpen spot will presumably be occupied by someone capable of recording more than three outs in a single appearance, as manager John Schneider informed reporters on Thursday at the player development complex in Dunedin, Fla.

As for internal candidates, the likes of Adam Macko and Lazaro Estrada, both of whom feature versatility in the rotation and bullpen, are certainly on the organization’s radar to potentially serve as traditional multi-inning relievers out of the gate. So are a pair of non-roster invitees, Yariel Rodríguez and Connor Seabold, though they’d first need to be added to the 40-man roster if either were to break camp with the big-league club.

Not to be forgotten are the Blue Jays’ Rule 5 selections, Angel Bastardo and Spencer Miles. Both have started in the past, despite working exclusively as relievers this spring, and could each theoretically assume a multi-inning relief role to avoid being offered back to their original organizations.

Bastardo and Miles have both been pushed beyond an inning of work multiple times this spring, though the latter has pitched the deepest of the two, completing a pair of two-inning appearances thus far — a benchmark that the former has yet to reach.

There’s also a potential scenario where management looks outside its internal system for a bit more length in the bullpen. The annual post-spring training roster churn will soon begin across the industry, meaning an ideal target could become available — think a Ryan Yarbrough type, possibly someone like Peter Lambert if he triggers his opt-out with the Houston Astros following an impressive spring after returning from a year abroad in Japan’s NPB.

But the list of veteran arms with prior starting/bulk relief experience that’ll hit the waiver wire in the coming days should be plentiful, too.

Whatever final decision is made involving that final bullpen job, it’ll be awarded to the hurler who Toronto’s brass believes is among its best eight relievers in the organization. No other factors, such as returning a Rule 5 selection, should influence that call.

However, determining who that eighth reliever is may not be finalized until the days leading up to next Friday’s season opener against the Athletics.