Toronto Blue Jays Starting Rotation Steady, While Yankees Face Setbacks
In Toronto Blue Jays camp, the starting pitching situation has remained largely uneventful, and that’s a positive sign. Teams prefer a smooth progression through spring training with minimal drama and news on the pitching front.
Unfortunately for the New York Yankees, their rotation has faced significant setbacks. Last week, the team learned that right-hander Luis Gil, the reigning American League Rookie of the Year, would be sidelined for three months due to a lat strain.
On Monday, the Yankees received even more devastating news: ace Gerrit Cole, a six-time All-Star and one of the top pitchers of his generation, will require Tommy John surgery to repair a torn right ulnar collateral ligament. He will miss the entire 2025 season, a massive blow to the defending AL champions. The Yankees’ once-strong starting rotation has quickly turned into a potential weakness, with many now considering them to have the worst rotation in the division.
This raises the question: how crucial will starting pitching be in determining the division winner?
“I think you can probably say that about every division,” said Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman after his spring outing on Monday. “You’re only going to go as far as your pitching staff can take you, unless you have an unbelievable offense, and that’s pretty rare.”
“I feel really good with where we’re at,” Gausman added. “I think as a rotation, we’ve got a lot of guys who have done it. We probably have one of the highest career starts among starting fives in baseball, and that’s a good thing. But we also need to be smart with it.”
Gausman Leads Blue Jays’ Steady Rotation Amidst Yankees’ Setbacks
Kevin Gausman is joined in the Blue Jays’ rotation by Jose Berrios, Chris Bassitt, Bowden Francis, and veteran Max Scherzer, who has grabbed much of the spring spotlight.
“You watch him throw and it’s just different,” Gausman said of Scherzer. “He’s a Hall of Famer already, and his ability to make the ball move is pretty impressive.”
However, Gausman himself is the key piece for the Blue Jays’ rotation. After dealing with right shoulder fatigue last spring, which set him back early in the season, he has entered this spring fully healthy and progressing steadily.
If he performs like he did in 2022 and 2023, when he earned Cy Young votes, the Blue Jays’ rotation could be among the league’s best.
In his second spring start on Monday, Gausman allowed three runs on four hits over 2.1 innings in the Blue Jays’ 8-3 win over the Houston Astros. While results aren’t the primary focus at this stage, he’s checking the right boxes as Opening Day nears.
“Velo and delivery are the kind of stuff we’re looking at. Both were really good,” said manager John Schneider. “Just another good step in the right direction getting ready for the season for Kev.”
Gausman’s fastball reached 96 mph and averaged 95 mph, a full mph faster than last season. He threw 50 pitches and worked in his new slider, which produced three strikeouts on nine attempts.
“It was really good today,” Gausman said. “It’s definitely a step forward from the last start. It’s always good when you’re throwing a new pitch to see it get better. Now it’s just about pounding the zone with it a little more. Got a groundout on it, got some punchouts on it.”
For the Blue Jays, it’s more of the same reliable pitching as their division rival, the Yankees, face a severe rotation crisis.