A Major League Baseball team is allowed 13 pitchers on its active roster. And in Toronto, right now, it’s already sold out.
As has already been established, here are the pitchers who will be on the 26-man Blue Jays roster as of today:
- Alek Manoah
- Kevin Gausman
- Joseph Berrios
- Chris Bassitt
- Yusei Kikuchi
- Mitch White
- Jordan Romano
- Erik Swanson
- Yimi Garcia
- Anthony Bass
- Tim Mayza
- Adam Cimber
- Trevor Richards
The first four will be starters. The final seven will be relievers. As for Kikuchi and White, one will be in the rotation and the other will be on relief.
Obviously, injuries are going to affect the depth of the club. But the good news is that the club has depth in the minors.
Right now, among the guys who are on the 40-man roster, but aren’t expected to start the year in Toronto, there are several candidates.
From the lot? There are in particular:
- Hagen Danner
- Thomas Hatch
- Nate Pearson
- Zach Pop
- Zach Thompson
- Trent Thornton
- Yosver Zulueta
We therefore note a few names of players who have experience in the Majors. There are no stars in the lot, but the depth is never made up of stars.
In fact, that’s not always true. After all, there are two other names I omitted that will also form the depth of the club on the mound:
The first is a starter who has fought for the Cy Young before. The second is a reliever who can throw in important situations and draws outs on strikes.
And in both cases, we’re talking about pitchers recovering from Tommy John-type surgery.
At the start of camp, both Gunners will be placed on the 60-day injured list, which will temporarily remove them from the 40-man roster.
And both are aiming for a mid-season return.
Obviously, nothing says that the two guys will have a rehabilitation process that will be adequate. Sometimes a Tommy John can play tricks.
But if they come back, they won’t be depth: they’ll be regulars.
Ryu, if he regains his former form, has the potential to chase Kikuchi out of the rotation and stabilize the whole thing as a fifth starter. Green, he can support Romano in important moments.
If the timing is good, we are talking about potentially two major additions in the middle of the summer… without sacrificing hope, by the way, to acquire them.
Do the Jays have enough depth to get through the season and its many injuries? It is too early to tell at this time since many things can change. Additions can be made in the coming weeks, by the way.
But let’s say it looks good.
- Dexter Fowler puts his feet on the TV.
- Diego Castillo lost in arbitration.
- What’s going on between the Blue Jays and Bo Bichette?
