Alek Manoah of the Toronto Blue Jays delivers a pitch against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first inning at Tropicana Field on May 15.Julio Aguilar/Getty Images
In the hours before a game at Rogers Centre earlier this week, Toronto Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker lined up a group of his guys behind the mound and began hitting ground balls to them.
One by one, each Jays pitcher took turns going to the mound, miming a windup and release, then scooping up a ground ball off Walker’s bat and fielding it to first base. The fast-moving parade of pitchers in this drill – an eclectic mix of shapes and sizes, with varied leg kicks and throwing styles – was a capsulized look at the rich talent the Blue Jays can send at opponents throughout a series.
Even after the departure of reigning American League Cy Young award winner Robbie Ray, the Jays were still projected to have one of the best five-man rotations in baseball this year. At the quarter mark of the season, it looks as though this group is starting to hit its stride. Rather than one star arm, this team has a bunch.
Blue Jays starters have combined for 16 quality starts – tied with the Houston Astros for most in the American League.
“We have an ace-calibre guy going any given day,” said 31-year-old right-hander Kevin Gausman, who has faced 197 batters in 50 innings pitched, allowing just three walks and a single homer against 57 strikeouts. His arsenal includes a splitter that often has batters chasing it out of the strike zone.
“We have a lot of different looks coming at teams. So if we’re playing a four-game series, you know they’re getting a different look every single day. … I think we match up really well against a lot of lineups because of that.”
Alek Manoah has been hot out of the gate in 2022, a breakout rookie last year (3.22 ERA in 111 2/3 innings) who is even better this season. The 24-year-old righty leads the team in ERA (1.71), fifth best in the majors. He’s allowed only eight earned runs in his seven starts.
From the left side, 30-year-old Japanese pitcher Yusei Kikuchi can routinely throw 97 miles an hour with a split. His past outing indicated the Jays have begun to tap his potential – a 6-2 win over Seattle on Monday in which he allowed just one hit in six innings. He said he’s been making in-season adjustments at Walker’s request, working on a ‘big cutter’ that’s similar to the one the Jays helped Ray build.
Blue Jays’ Alek Manoah not shrinking from the big stage
His performance was contagious this week.
“Yesterday I saw Kikuchi – the way he throws – I took that for my outing tonight,” 27-year-old right-hander Jose Berrios said on Tuesday after he pitched into the eighth inning in a 3-0 win. “He inspired me, and you know, I did well like he did last night.”
It was the first runless game of the year for Berrios, and it lowered his ERA to 4.83 from 5.82. The Jays took it as a positive sign for one of the stars of last year’s staff.
“He threw his breaking pitches more for strikes so he was able to keep them off balance,” manager Charlie Montoyo said that night. “Today he looked like the Berrios that we know.”
South Korean left-hander Hyun-jin Ryu has made just five starts. He was on the injured list with inflammation in his left forearm from mid-April to mid-May. His return on May 14, in Tampa, suggested the 35-year-old barely missed a beat – easing in with just over four innings, allowing one run. That will build.
On Friday night, Ryu showed more progress: he pitched six shutout innings against the Cincinnati Reds, allowing six hits (five of them doubles) against three strikeouts and zero walks in a 2-1 victory for Toronto.
Montoyo says the starters have kept the Jays in games, especially when they’ve pitched deep into games. Those performances have helped relieve pressure on the bullpen – which was short star closer Jordan Romano for a few games this week, while he battled a gastrointestinal infection. (Romano returned to close out Friday’s game – his 13th save of the season). The pitchers have also benefited from the defence of new Gold Glove third baseman Matt Chapman.
“Well, we have a chance to win every day,” Montoyo said. “Hopefully when our best get going, pitching like this and catching the ball, we should be okay.”