The Toronto Blue Jays may be first in the AL East, but they haven’t had the smoothest ride to get to where they are. The Jays’ starting pitching has seen the ebbs and flows throughout the year, and the club, for a portion of the first two months, struggled to the fifth spot when Max Scherzer was on the sidelines. Thrown in a Bowden Francis meltdown and some stopgap attempts to fill in the spot that crashed and burned (ex: Easton Lucas), things were looking a bit bleak on the pitching front.

Then, Eric Lauer showed up. And he didn’t waste the opportunity.

Lauer returned from playing overseas in the KBO this past winter by signing a minor league deal with Toronto. He began the season in triple-A and made the Opening Day start for the Buffalo Bisons before being called up to the big leagues on April 30th, selecting his contract and designating Casey Lawrence for assignment.

The southpaw originally started in the bullpen before moving into the rotation for two starts in mid-May, and then back to the bullpen following an opener for another two appearences. Lauer then jumped back into the rotation on June 11th against the St. Louis Cardinals, and since then, he has been slotted as a starter.

Overall, Lauer owns a 2.80 ERA and a 3.34 FIP through 61 innings, while also holding a 0.967 WHIP. The former Brewer has amassed a 6.3 H/9 and a 9.6 K/9 while also keeping the walks in check, amassing an 11.4% walk rate. As a starter, he’s held opponents to a .235/.277/.451 slash line with a .728 OPS and has put together a 3.61 ERA through nine starts. In the nine games he started, the Jays have won seven of those contests (both losses, the Jays’ bats provided him limited run support), and through his last seven starts since becoming a fixture in the rotation, he has just one loss to his name. For the season, he owns a 1.7 bWAR and is on track for a career season.

The Ohio product works with a five-pitch mix, heavily relying on his four-seamer (46.1%) that sits in the low 90s, and he mixes in a cutter, curveball, slider, and changeup to round out the arsenal. His two fastball offerings have been plus pitches, with his fastball and cutter ranking at a +5 and +4 pitch run value, respectively, while his slider also ranks at a +3.

Lauer is not perfect on the mound – he ranks in the 21st percentile in hard-hit rate (44.6%), and opponents own a 91.2 MPH average exit velocity off the left-hander (ninth percentile) – but he continues to find ways to get out of tough situations. He’s allowed three earned runs or fewer since becoming a full-time starter, averaging five innings per game and amassing a 2.92 FIP and a 3.34 ERA in that period. He’s hit the six-inning mark on two occasions since his last three outings, and last night against the Giants, he held a perfect game together until the top of the fifth when Willy Adames launched a solo shot over the left field wall.

The 30-year-old is having such an impressive season that he could impact the Blue Jays’ plans at this trade deadline. If the Jays are indeed looking for a starter and Lauer is giving enough confidence to the front office that he can manage the rotation spot the rest of the way, Ross Atkins and co. could use their trade assets in other areas, such as a right-handed bat.

Given what Lauer is doing on the mound, it doesn’t really make sense for the Jays to trade for a back-end starter if Lauer is already providing in that area, especially with Alek Manoah lurking on his recovery train. However, that doesn’t mean the Jays shouldn’t pursue a top arm, such as Mitch Keller or Merrill Kelly, who would provide considerable upside to the Jays’ rotation despite Lauer’s recent success. The left-hander would head back to the rotation and be the long man, ready to go when the Jays need him to give some length as a Ross Stripling 2.0 type.

If the Jays had a ‘this man stepped up when needed’ award at the end of the season, Eric Lauer’s name is likely already on the trophy. He has exceeded any expectations needed of him and has given the Jays some much-needed depth in the rotation when it was one of the biggest question marks heading into the year. He should continue to get some reps in the rotation and has rightfully earned them for the time being.

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