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One stat to be excited about for every Blue Jays pitcher heading into 2026
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Photo credit: © Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Ben Wrixon
Feb 24, 2026, 19:00 ESTUpdated: Feb 24, 2026, 11:09 EST
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The Blue Jays spent big money this offseason to improve their pitching staff after their offence carried the load in 2025. Now, the arms appear to be the strength of the team in 2026 with the additions of Dylan Cease, Cody Ponce, and Tyler Rogers. 
Here is one stat from 2025 to get excited about every Blue Jays pitcher this year: 
Shane Bieber – 1.017 WHIP 
Bieber did an excellent job of limiting baserunners with the Blue Jays last season. He generally looked sharp in his long-awaited return from Tommy John surgery, and should be even sharper when he’s reinstated from the injured list this year. 
José Berríos – 166 innings pitched
Berríos made 30 starts for the eighth consecutive 162-game season despite dealing with injuries that seemed to reduce the quality of his pitches. Availability is a valuable ability, and Berrios has a long track record when it comes to starting 30+ games and going at least 150+ innings. 
Dylan Cease – 97.1 mph average fastball velocity
The Blue Jays signed Cease to a seven-year, $210 million deal to add elite velocity to a starting rotation that didn’t overpower anyone last year. Honourable mention to his 3.46 xERA from 2025, which implies some serious bad luck was behind the actual 4.55 mark he recorded. 
Braydon Fisher – 32 hits allowed in 50 innings pitched
Fisher exceeded all expectations in his rookie season. All of his stats were great, but allowing just 5.8 hits per nine innings—with an .206 expected batting average—shows how dominant he was. He’s going to be a key arm in the bullpen in 2026. 
Mason Fluharty – 33.1% hard-hit rate
Fluharty’s hard-hit rate ranked in the 95th percentile among all pitchers. That, coupled with holding hitters to an elite 86.6 mph average exit velocity, is a sustainable recipe for limiting dangerous contact.
Yimi García – 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings
Injuries limited García to just 22 appearances in 2025, but he had his usual strikeout ability when he was available. He should be as nasty as ever when healthy. 
Kevin Gausman – 21 fastball run value 
Gausman is getting older, but his fastball isn’t showing any signs of aging. He threw it 54% of the time last year, using solid 94.5 mph velocity and excellent command to set up his signature splitter. He’ll be his usual rock-solid self in 2026 as long as he has his heater. 
Jeff Hoffman – 29.3% strikeout rate
Hoffman was maddeningly inconsistent in his first season as the closer for the Toronto Blue Jays, but still punched out 84 batters in his 68 innings pitched. The stuff is there; he just needs to make a few adjustments to put together a much better season. 
Eric Lauer – 103 location+
Lauer was one of the biggest surprises of 2025, re-emerging as a quality major league pitcher for the Blue Jays after spending the previous year overseas. His location+ —a count and pitch-type adjusted measure of putting the ball in the right place —was the best of his career. 
Brendon Little – 43.5% whiff rate 
Little struggled mightily down the stretch, yet still finished the year as one of the best pitchers in baseball at generating swings and misses. His ridiculous whiff rate ranked in the 100th percentile and helped him record an impressive 30.8% strikeout rate. 
Tommy Nance – 52.3% groundball rate
Nance broke out with a stellar 1.99 ERA in 2025 thanks in large part to an elite groundball rate. It’s exactly what you want to see from a sinker-slider-curveball pitcher like him. 
Cody Ponce – 252 strikeouts in 180 ⅔ innings
Ponce dominated in Korea last year with the Hanwha Eagles. While evaluators often compare the quality of competition in the KBO to that of the minor leagues in North America, he was clearly doing something right. He’s a huge X-factor for this team. 
Tyler Rogers – Four home runs allowed in 77 1/3 innings pitched
The Blue Jays’ entire pitching staff had a home run problem in 2025, but that’s never been an issue for newcomer Tyler Rogers. He specializes in keeping the ball in the ballpark. 
Louis Varland – 98.1 mph average fastball velocity 
Nobody on the Blue Jays throws harder than Varland. He was invaluable out of the bullpen after being acquired at the trade deadline in 2025, and should once again get plenty of opportunities as the lone fireballer among the current crop of relief arms. 
Trey Yesavage – 39 strikeouts in 27 ⅓ postseason innings
Yesavage etched himself into baseball history last October, capping an unreal postseason run with his 12-strikeout masterclass against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series. He’s already proven he can perform when the stakes are high. 

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