Toronto Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was hit by a pitch during the fifth inning of Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The first baseman may miss Monday's game against the Miami Marlins.Mark Blinch/Getty Images
The Blue Jays lost to the Pirates 4-1 on Sunday but of more concern was pitcher Dylan Cease and first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. exiting early with injuries.
Cease, who has never missed a start in eight major league seasons, removed himself in the fifth inning after feeling pain in his left hamstring. Earlier in the same frame he started to shake that leg and he called trainers out due to cramps.
Toronto manager John Schneider said Cease will have an MRI to determine the extent of his condition although Cease said he did not want to miss his next start later this week versus the Orioles in Baltimore.
“He is very valuable to us and we wanted to be careful,” Schneider said. “We’ll check out the MRI and see how he does.”
Guerrero was struck on the right elbow by a pitch from Pittsburgh starter Mitch Keller, also in the fifth inning. He immediately turned and walked to the dugout.
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“He told me his arm was numb and that he couldn’t feel his right hand,” Schneider explained. “It was kind of like he got hit on the funny bone with a baseball going at 90 miles per hour.”
An X-ray showed no fracture, however.
“He is obviously going to be sore but I think we got the best possible news we could,” the manager said. “He could possibly even play [Monday] but if he needs a day or two to heal that’s no big deal.”
The Blue Jays had hoped to sweep an opponent for only the second time in 2026 but ended up taking two of three against the Pirates. The Jays have won two of their last three series and in between split four contests with the New York Yankees. They face the Miami Marlins the next three days at Rogers Centre before playing four in a row at Camden Yards against the Baltimore Orioles.
Trey Yesavage will get the start on Monday against the visiting Miami Marlins.Bailey Hillesheim/The Associated Press
Trey Yesavage (2-1) is scheduled to make his sixth start of the season on Monday with Jason Junk (2-5) on the mound for Miami.
Keller improved to 5-2 as he allowed four hits, one an RBI-single by Ernie Clement. Cease (3-3) left with two outs in the fifth after giving up two runs. He struck out eight but gave up a home run on the game’s first pitch to Spencer Horwitz and a leadoff blast by Oneil Cruz in the second. It was Horwitz’s fifth of the campaign and No. 11 for Cruz.
Pittsburgh plated its other two runs on a home run by Esmerlyn Valdez off reliever Chase Lee. It was Valdez’s first big-league hit in eight at-bats.
Toronto left 10 runners on base including two each in the fifth, seventh and ninth innings. It was held to five hits, but got five walks and had two batters struck by pitches. It was haunted by its boogeyman going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position.
“We just didn’t get it going today really,” Schneider said. “We didn’t get the big hit. It just wasn’t our day.”
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He said he was too busy to worry about the players that left early.
“You are worried about the game so you just carry on,” he said. “But it’s not ideal when those two guys leave early.”
Cease had won three of his last four decisions and now has an MLB-high 92 punch-outs in 11 starts.
Brandon Valenzuela, the rookie catcher, had a feeling even before Cease removed himself that something was amiss.
“In my opinion he was feeling something a lot earlier,” Valenzuela said. “He wasn’t as sharp as he usually is. I knew something was going on. Pitchers are very competitive and never want to leave a game, especially him.”