Blue Jays To Promote Pitching Prospect Ryan Borucki

According to multiple sources, the Blue Jays are promoting pitching prospect Ryan Borucki to the major leagues ahead of a three-game series in Houston.

As Robert Murray of FRS Baseball reported on Twitter, the Blue Jays are calling up Ryan Borucki to (presumably) start on Tuesday night against the Astros in Houston. Borucki, 24, is currently the number eight prospect in the Blue Jays system, according to MLB.com. Blue Jays radio broadcaster Ben Wagner also reported this promotion. If confirmed, this will be Borucki’s major league debut.

It was speculated that Borucki was getting the call earlier Sunday, as he was mysteriously scratched from his start with the Bisons against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. That game was eventually postponed due to the rain.

Borucki was drafted in the 15th round of the 2012 draft and quickly climbed the minor league ranks, starting the 2018 season at Triple-A Buffalo. He’s been excellent this year, pitching to a solid 3.27 ERA in 77.0 innings, striking out 58 and walking just 28. He’s started thirteen games, including four starts of seven innings or more.

A product of Mundelein High School in the Illinois town of the same name, Borucki spent last season in Buffalo, New Hampshire, and Dunedin, pitching to a 2.93 ERA in 150.1 innings, striking out a whopping 157 and walking 36.

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A left-handed pitcher who stands at six feet, four inces, Borucki was 10th on Jays Journal’s list of the top 2018 prospects in the Toronto organization. His quick, elusive delivery and his exceptional pitch arsenal are two staples of his continued success. You can read Craig Borden’s full scouting report on him here.

For Borucki, this is nothing more than a matter of good timing. With major league starters Jaime Garcia and Aaron Sanchez on the disabled list, the Jays have a spot open. They would’ve had two spots open, but Marcus Stroman was recently activated from the DL and started Saturday night against the Angels.

With that, the young southpaw will (reportedly) join Sam Gaviglio, Marco Estrada, J.A. Happ and Stroman as the team’s starting rotation continues to labour towards the All-Star break. The Blue Jays now head to Houston to face the first place Astros, who are expected to send Justin Verlander out on the mound to oppose Happ in the series opener.

In Game 2, the Astros are expected to counter with veteran Charlie Morton, who is 9-1 with a stellar 2.74 ERA. The game goes at 8:10 PM ET.

Borucki’s call-up could signal the start of the inevitable youth movement that will capture this ballclub over the next few seasons. While it’s not certain that his promotion will be catalytic to the promotion of other young stars, it’s possible that success for him could encourage the front office to bring some younger guys up to the bigs.

One thing’s for certain, though – Blue Jays fans will have their eyes glued to their devices as the first of the next generation of Blue Jays takes the hill for his major league debut.

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