Blue Jays’ Rotation Depth: Optimist, Pessimist, Realist

Realist- Jason Lee

The Blue Jays have one of baseball’s best rotations. Armed with budding young stars and seasoned veterans, the key to 2017 success arguably lies most in the starting five’s performance and health.

However, this also means that any sort of prolonged injury to the starting rotation could derail the Blue Jays’ playoff hopes in 2017. The next pitchers up for the Blue Jays projects to be Latos, Bolsinger, Lawrence, Reid-Foley, in increasing order of likelihood. While none of these names provide management and fans a sense of security, they all have the ability to fill in for 1-2 starts and provide a winning opportunity for a Major League team.

The question lies beyond the 1-2 starts, however. If one or more of the “Fantastic Five” go down with a recovery timetable longer than 2-3 weeks, it is hard to envision the Blue Jays consistently having a chance at winning ball games once every five games.

Considering the strength of the AL East this season, especially the vaunted roster of the Boston Red Sox, the fate of the Blue Jays season could lie on the health of the starting rotation. Having 1-2 starts filled by the current core of minor league depth would most likely signal the end of the Blue Jays’ chances at an AL East pennant, and anything beyond that could seriously threaten the playoff hopes altogether.

The Blue Jays greatest strength lies within the “Fantastic Five”; this rotation could easily carry the Blue Jays to another AL East title. However, the Blue Jays’ greatest weakness and worry also lies within the starting rotation; any long-term injury could end the Blue Jays’ playoff aspirations in 2017.

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