Spencer Miles has been one of the brightest spots for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2026.

Miles was an unlikely addition to the Blue Jays roster following the 2025 season. Toronto acquired him in the Rule 5 draft in December. After being drafted by the San Francisco Giants in 2022, Miles played just 14 2/3 innings in the minor leagues due in part to injuries keeping him on the sidelines. He never played above Single-A and posted a 4.30 ERA during his Minor League career.

Miles has more than eclipsed his number of innings pitched during his time with the Blue Jays. So far in 2026, Miles has 33 1/3 innings in 15 games with the Blue Jays, with a 2.16 ERA. He posted a 3.50 ERA in his first 11 appearances with the Blue Jays, during which he gave up nine runs.

However, the Blue Jays have leaned heavily on Miles since DFA’ing Eric Lauer on May 11. Without a fifth starter, Miles has acted as the bulk reliever for the Blue Jays during a series of bullpen games. He pitched 3 2/3 scoreless innings against the Detroit Tigers on May 16. In that outing, Miles threw 56 pitches, a sizeable increase from his previous season-high of 43.

Miles’ next outing was even better. He struck out six in 4 1/3 scoreless innings against the New York Yankees. Once again, he increased his season-high pitch count to 63. He upped his pitch count to 66 in his next appearance against the Miami Marlins. Once again, he went 4 1/3 innings, while giving up one run.

The Blue Jays have won all four bullpen games since DFA’ing Lauer. That’s especially impressive given that the Blue Jays have not had a day off since May 14. Since May 10, the Blue Jays’ bullpen has given up 21 runs in 67 1/3 innings. Five of those runs came in Friday’s 6-5 win over the Baltimore Orioles, during which Austin Voth acted as the bulk arm for the Blue Jays.

While Miles has been upping his pitch count, the Blue Jays have been cautious about starting him. He’s only started one game this season, on May 10 against the LA Angels, when he pitched three scoreless innings while throwing 38 pitches. Later in that game, Lauer came in and surrendered six runs. Lauer had been struggling for most of the season. However, Miles’ strong start against the Angels may have given the Blue Jays confidence they could survive without Lauer.

The Blue Jays have been pushing Miles further each time he’s come in as a bulk reliever, and it seems he could still go a little further. Before the game against the Marlins, the Blue Jays had said he could get up to 70 pitches.

The deeper Miles can get, the better for the Blue Jays, especially now that Dylan Cease is on the IL. The Blue Jays are down to three healthy starters, putting extra strain on a bullpen that has thrown 47.6 percent of the innings for the Blue Jays in 2026. With such a thin rotation, the most important thing the Blue Jays can get right now from their pitchers is length.

As the Blue Jays continue to stretch Miles out, they will have to be cautious. So far, Miles has been able to meet every challenge he’s faced with the Blue Jays. However, Miles missed significant time from 2023 to 2025 due to back and Tommy John surgery.

The good news for the Blue Jays is that relief is coming to the pitching staff. Shane Bieber and Max Scherzer are working their way back. While their return will mean that the Blue Jays won’t have to rely on Miles as much, that may be for the best, given that he has had serious injuries in recent seasons. Nevertheless, he has earned the trust of the team, having shown that he can handle himself in any situation the Blue Jays need.

A big reason for the Blue Jays’ success in 2025 was how players stepped up to fill whatever hole the team had at the time. The biggest example of that was Lauer, who many considered to be the MVP of the Blue Jays. Unfortunately, Lauer was not able to carry over that performance into 2026. Luckily for the Blue Jays, Miles seems to have stepped into that role. It’s rare to see this kind of performance from a Rule 5 player.

2026 has been an uphill battle for the Blue Jays, but Miles has been one of the biggest reasons why the team has been able to tread water despite a slew of injuries.

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