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Should the Blue Jays keep or trade away Eric Lauer?
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Photo credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Ian Hunter
Mar 1, 2026, 09:00 ESTUpdated: Mar 1, 2026, 08:13 EST
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It’s amazing what a few weeks in spring training can do for a player’s stock on the roster. When camp opened, Eric Lauer was on the outside looking in for the Blue Jays’ starting pitching depth choices. But after a few injuries and some delayed spring training plans for other pitchers, Lauer is now on the doorstep of a starting rotation spot.
Depending on how the Blue Jays decide to play this with Trey Yesavage, Lauer will become the fourth, fifth, or sixth starting pitcher on Toronto’s depth chart to start the 2026 campaign. Yes, that even includes the recent addition of Max Scherzer, who will require a ramp-up period.
Straight out of the gate, Lauer could be thrust into the starting rotation earlier than most expected. He figured to be the team’s swingman to bounce between the bullpen and the rotation, but now there’s a chance he may factor into opening day plans.
With his flexibility in both roles, Lauer assured himself of a spot on the 26-man roster, but now his role is even more unclear than it’s ever been. In public, Lauer is telling reporters he wants to be a starter, and the team is treating him like a starter.
There also comes the matter of Lauer’s arbitration case, which saw him earn $4.4 million after filing for $5.75 million. Despite a solid season with the Blue Jays last year, making 15 starts and posting a 3.77 ERA in the rotation, arbitrators didn’t see it the same way. Lauer will earn less this year than the $5.075 million he earned in 2023 as a member of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Lauer is also a free agent at the end of this year, so he’s eyeing a starting rotation spot to maximize his earning potential. Whether that’s with the Blue Jays — or another team — remains to be seen. But with inking Scherzer and stacking yet another starting pitcher on the depth pile, does that mean Lauer is expendable?
Most were talking about Jose Berrios being dangled as trade bait this offseason, but his contract (with the potential for a player opt-out after this year) is untradable. Unless the Blue Jays eat a significant amount of money on that deal, the Berrios contract isn’t going away. And so long as he’s relatively healthy, Berrios is a valuable part of Toronto’s rotation.
But the trade possibility of Lauer is a much more interesting case. He has value — whether that’s as a left-handed starter or reliever — and the Blue Jays may have a surplus of arms at the end of spring training. For any team that’s desperate for starting pitching depth or a swingman, Lauer may become an attractive option.
Lauer isn’t burning a hole in the Blue Jays’ pocket, but with Yesavage, Scherzer and Berrios all vying for spots, it makes for an awkward fit. Add Lauer into the equation, and it becomes even more cumbersome, so there may be a juncture where a roster spot may need to be cleared.
The Blue Jays have to be careful here because they could easily go from a position of strength to getting caught with a lack of starting pitchers. They could do right by Lauer, trade him to a team where he’ll have ample runway to start games and build his value heading into free agency. But what about next week, when Scherzer might have a setback, or Yesavage gets reined in to cap his innings?
Surely, some teams may have expressed interest in Lauer for their starting rotation, but it’s far too early for the Blue Jays to be making any moves like this before camp has concluded. But it may be a deeper conversation for later in April or May when there’s the dilemma of juggling as many as seven or eight starting pitchers.
Chances are, an injury, setback or two will clear the path for guys like Lauer to get some playing time and showcase themselves, so the Blue Jays’ plans should be fluid as there are a ton of question marks in the starting rotation. These things always have a way of working themselves out.
But in the meantime, there’s a guy like Lauer who is healthy, wants to start ball games, and has been vocal about his preference on the team. As much as it’s nice for a team like the Blue Jays to have Lauer’s versatility at their disposal, that becomes a double-edged sword once six, seven and eight options emerge for the starting rotation and a player like Lauer sees himself as a starting pitcher.
Lauer proved his worth and effectiveness multiple times for Toronto last year, jumping in and saving their rotation at several junctures throughout the season. By the end of last August, the team moved him into a bullpen role after Bieber came back into the fold as a starting pitcher.
It’s great for the team to add starting pitching depth by signing players like Scherzer earlier this week, but Lauer may have viewed that signing as one more player standing in his way of cracking the starting rotation. These players will always say they’re playing for the collective good of the team, but let’s be honest, they also want to get paid.
The earning potential for Lauer as a starting pitcher heading into free agency is exponentially higher than as a swingman. Heck, even Clay Holmes went from closing games with the New York Yankees for three seasons to a three-year, $38 million deal with the New York Mets as a starting pitcher.
Holmes lost his spot as the closer late in his tenure with the Yankees, yet parlayed a decent season as a reliever into a significant payday as a starting pitcher. I’m not saying there’s a $38 million deal for Lauer this winter (pending a potential lockout), but his ceiling as a starter is significantly higher in the rotation.
For the most part, that’s out of his hands this year with the Blue Jays, as he’ll be a good soldier and will do what is asked of him yet again, whether that’s bridging the gap between a starter who got bounced in the second inning or starting the back end of a doubleheader.
This situation is one worth monitoring for the Blue Jays, especially if other needs arise on the roster. Lauer may be the trade chip they need to fill a reliever spot or to get a bench bat they need later in the season.

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