With thumb issues sending Max Scherzer to the IL this past weekend, the Blue Jays were faced with a predicament, and the season was just getting started. The club had used up some length in the bullpen to cover Scherzer’s early exit, and while Chris Bassitt delivered on Sunday to cover some ground, the Jays still needed to cover Scherzer’s next start.

The club had a few options up their sleeve and chose to hand the ball to left-hander Easton Lucas, who was acquired off the waiver wire last August from the Detroit Tigers and made a handful of appearances in the big leagues to finish out the 2024 campaign. Lucas struggled this spring – eight runs allowed through 8 1/3 innings with four walks – and was optioned midway through March to Buffalo, but the club needed someone to bridge the gap to close out the Washington Nationals series, and the 28-year-old was given the nod, making his first Major League start.

What followed was a tremendous performance from the Pepperdine alum, who toyed with the Nationals’ hitters from the get-go and wasn’t producing many mistake pitches.

The southpaw seemed comfortable on the mound, getting through the first inning with just a single being the only hit on record. He was sitting in the low 90s with his fastball but ramped it up a couple of notches when needed, hitting 94-95 MPH on occasion. Lucas was also mixing in his changeup and his slider well, keeping hitters off balance while throwing the occasional cutter. While he battled at times against some of the top Washington bats, he mostly came out ahead – an eight-pitch at-bat against CJ Abrams resulted in a flyout, while a seven-pitch at-bat with Nathanial Lowe ended in a swinging strikeout, with the lefty batter chasing a fastball. His only real blemish was the two walks he allowed, which chewed into his pitch count. Even so, Lucas was never in any real danger. No batter made it into scoring position during his outing.

Finishing with a 60.8% strike rate on 74 pitches, Lucas not only secured the win and put up a zero on the scoreboard, he did what the Jays needed him to do: bridge the gap.

Having Scherzer hit the IL out of the gate is a tough pill to swallow, and with the Jays about to play 13 games in a row starting tomorrow in New York, they needed a longer-term solution in the rotation. There wasn’t going to be an open spot to move one of the other arms around; somebody was going to have to pitch on the road when Scherzer’s spot came around, and a bullpen day shouldn’t be the go-to answer.

All eyes were on Bloss on Tuesday night in Buffalo, but his outing didn’t fair well. Eric Lauer was strong in his start on Saturday, allowing just two runs across four innings, but he needs a 40-man roster spot.

Lucas checked off a lot of boxes on who the short-term solution should be, and he needed to go deliver and hold up his end of the bargain, which he did. With his strong start against Washington, he likely gets the ball again on Tuesday in Boston and could get it again the following Sunday in Baltimore. Those teams will be a tougher test compared to the Nationals lineup he faced yesterday, but the Jays need him to chew up some innings, especially because there are no off-days for a considerable amount of time.

For now, Lucas has earned the opportunity for at least another start and potentially more, depending on how Scherzer’s thumb responds to treatment.

If the southpaw struggles, the club could pivot to an arm in Buffalo if needed, but that’s not a fail-safe, especially since the Bisons’ arms are struggling out of the gate in their own right, and their starting depth is weak at the moment with various injuries to top prospect arms.

The best-case scenario is that Lucas finds a way to replicate his outing yesterday on the road, and the bridge continues to be gapped until Scherzer is healthy enough to pitch again. He’s earned the right to continue trying until things go awry.