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Blue Jays pitching prospect Gage Stanifer strikes out season-high nine batters in most recent outing
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Photo credit: © Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
May 15, 2026, 19:00 EDTUpdated: May 15, 2026, 19:02 EDT
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Toronto Blue Jays prospect Gage Stanifer has started to dial it in with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
The 22-year-old’s start on Friday afternoon continued his trend of good outings, as the right-handed pitcher went five innings with four hits allowed, two runs (one earned), two walks, and a season-high nine strikeouts.
His unearned run came in the top of the first, as Bryan Rincon hit a double, followed by an Aroon Escobar single. Stanifer himself committed a throwing error on a pick off attempt, allowing Rincon to come in to score. Aside from those two hits, Stanifer managed to strikeout the side in the first.
Then in the top of the second, Stanifer struck out the side in order, getting Kehden Hettiger, Bryson Ware, and Austin Murr to whiff for strike three. 
In the third, Dylan Campbell hit a lead-off single and stole second. After issuing a walk to Canadian Dante Nori, Rincon grounded into a double play. However, Escobar drove in the second run of the game with a single.
The final base runner to reach on Stanifer was Raylin Heredia, who drew a six-pitch walk to lead-off the top of the fourth after going down 0-2 in the count. Thankfully, Stanifer got a ground out and two pop outs to strand the runner. In his final inning, Stanifer generated a ground out, then struck out Nori and Rincon to end his outing.
Stanifer departed the seven-inning game with the Fisher Cats down 2-1, but Victor Arias hit his third home run of the season to knot the game up at two. Eventually, the Reading Fightin Phils restored that two-run lead, but Stanifer was tagged with a no-decision.
Overall, Stanifer threw 76 pitches, with 51 of them going for strikes. The right-handed pitcher generated 15 whiffs on 39 total swings, good enough for a 38.5 whiff %. Those nine strikeouts are the most in a single-game this season, and also the most he’s ever had in Double-A. Stanifer fell one strikeout shy of matching his career-high of 10, which he accomplished twice last season. Additionally, he reached the nine-strikeout mark four times in 2025, all in High-A.
Over his last two games, Stanifer has given up just one earned run over 10 innings of work. Batters have gotten eight hits off him, while he’s registered just four walks and 12 strikeouts. 
Since his first two games of the season, where he had back-to-back five-run outings, Stanifer has given up just seven earned runs over his last 22.1 innings pitched, good for a 2.82 ERA. In that same span, Stanifer also has a 28.9 K% and 16.5 BB%, albeit six of the 16 walks he has issued in his last five starts came in one game.
The right-handed pitcher is starting to look like the pitcher he was last season when he shot up the Blue Jays’ top prospect rankings.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.
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