2 smart decisions and 2 clear failures on 2025 Blue Jays Opening Day roster

Failure: Final bullpen makeup

When the Jays did their massive overhaul of their bullpen this past winter in the hopes of putting last year's distraous performance in the rearview mirror. The additions of solid arms such as Sandlin and Jeff Hoffman strengthen their core, while also returning stalwarts like Chad Green, Yimi García and Brendon Little.

However they made some interesting decisions at the end of the bullpen when they added Richard Lovelady and Jacob Barnes as the last arms in the unit while, while letting Ryan Yarbrough join the New York Yankees.

While the move also left the Blue Jays without a strong arm, it also leaves only Little and Lovelady as the only left-handed arms in the bullpen. On top of that, both Lovelady and Barnes didn’t necessarily have strong springs, with the former posting a gaudy 6.48 ERA in just 8 1/3 innings of work and the latter amassing a similar 6.75 ERA in 5 1/3 innings.

And although Lovelady didn't allow a run in his first action of the year, only 12 of his 21 pitches were strikes, and he also hit a batter.

Barnes wouldn’t fare much better, giving up two earned runs on one hit and one walk in just one inning of work. It wouldn’t be surprising if they're on short leases at the start of the season.