Toronto Blue Jays: Taking a look at where all the 2019 starters are now

The Toronto Blue Jays utilized over 21 different players to start games throughot the 2019 season, using the ‘opener’ strategy on multiple occasions, and letting some of the younger prospects make some starts when rosters expanded in September. Here we take a look at where all of those pitchers are to begin the 2020 season in spring training.

The Blue Jays will enter the 2020 campaign with a lot more talent, and far more certainty in their starting rotation than they had last year. It was a rebuilding year, but the Blue Jays ended up using 21 different starters, in what had to be a long season for Charlie Montoyo. Let’s have a look at where those pitchers will be in 2020, and wha they might be up to.

*Pitchers who started games for the Toronto Blue Jays will be organized by the number of games they started, going from most to least*

Trent Thornton 

ERA: 4.84     Record: 6-9     IP: 154.1    WHIP: 1.406     bWAR: 1.8    GS: 29 of 32 appearances

Acquired by the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2018/2019 off-season, Trent Thornton would pitch the most innings and start the most games out of all Blue Jays pitchers for the 2019 season. He would make the opening day roster and would start games until the end of the season, later switching to following the opener when rosters expanded.

Thornton stats were solid given his first year in the MLB, and he is currently in the mix for the 5th spot in the Blue Jays rotation to begin the 2020 season. He was the workhorse/innings eater the Blue Jays needed in 2019, and he stands a very good chance of snagging the last spot in the rotation.

Aaron Sanchez

Blue Jays: ERA: 6.07     Record: 3-14     IP: 112.2     WHIP: 1.686     bWAR: -0.4    GS: 23 of 23

Aaron Sanchez began the 2019 season in the Blue Jays rotation before being dealt to the Houston Astros at the trade deadline. Sanchez had a strong start to the season, pitching to a 3.75 ERA by the end of May, but the success would taper off and rough outings in June and July would skyrocket his stats, eventually finishing with a 6.07 ERA by early August.

Once traded to the Astros, Sanchez would find some success, taking the start in a combined no-hitter just days after being traded, in his first outing with the new club. The success was unfortunately short-lived, as the California native would be non-tendered by the Astros after the season was over and is still currently a free agent.

The heavy lifters

Marcus Stroman

Blue Jays: ERA: 2.96    Record: 6-11     IP: 124.2     WHIP: 1.227     bWAR: 3.2    GS: 21 of 21

To begin the 2019 season, Marcus Stroman was the Toronto Blue Jays de-facto ace of the rotation. He would have a fantastic season at the front of the rotation, pitching to a 2.96 ERA while striking out 99 batters and being the Blue Jays only all-star in 2019.

Stroman and the Blue Jays management had a back and forth battle all season regarding his contract status and whether to extend the New York native, and this would eventually lead to Stroman being traded to the Mets a few days before the deadline. He will begin the 2020 season with the Mets, and will become a free agent at the end of the season.

Wilmer Font

Blue Jays: ERA: 3.66     Record: 2-3     IP: 39.1     WHIP: 1.144     bWAR: 0.9    GS: 14 of 23

Wilmer Font would be acquired by the Blue Jays midway through July from the New York Mets for cash considerations. Being used as both a starter and reliever throughout his career, Font would spend a few outings in the bullpen before being thrown into manager Charlie Montoyo’s opener strategy for most of August and September.

Font would never go on to pitch more than 2.1 innings when he started a game and would transition back to the bullpen in mid-September once the rosters expanded. For the 2020 season, Font is competing for a spot in the Blue Jays bullpen and the ‘opener’ strategy will most likely be a thing of the past given the recent rotation additions and young starting prospects in the minors.

Jacob Waguespack

ERA: 4.38    Record: 5-5     IP: 78.0     WHIP: 1.326    bWAR: 0.9    GS: 13 0f 16

The 6’6″ right-hander was acquired in 2018 in a trade with the Philadelphia Phillies and would spend the rest of the season down in the minor leagues. When injuries arose on the MLB pitching corps, Jacob Waguespack would find himself starting for the Toronto Blue Jays and would have a successful season. He would go on to pitch to a 4.38 ERA with 63 strikeouts and a 1.326 WHIP while finishing the season as a starter on the Blue Jays roster.

For the 2020 season, Waguespack is currently in the mix for the 5th starting rotation spot on the MLB roster. If he were to lose the competition, the Blue Jays do plan to keep him stretched out as a starter in AAA Buffalo instead of moving him to the bullpen.

Clay Buchholz

ERA: 6.56     Record: 2-5     IP: 59.0     WHIP: 1.492     bWAR: -0.3    GS: 12 of 12

Clay Buchholz signed a 1-year contract with the Blue Jays during the 2019 spring training, a move that added some veteran presence on the young roster. He would start five games on the team before finding himself on the injured list (IL) due to right shoulder inflammation, going on to miss most of May, June, and July before returning to the rotation in late August.

Unable to shake the injury bug that has been dogging him the past few seasons, Buchholz became a free agent at the end of the season and is still a free agent to begin the 2020 season.

Things just didn’t go as planned

Clayton Richard

ERA: 5.96    Record: 1-5     IP: 45.1     WHIP: 1.566     bWAR: -0.1    GS: 10 of 10

In the off-season of 2019, the Toronto Blue Jays acquired veteran pitcher Clayton Richard from the San Diego Padres. In the last year of his two year, $6 million dollar contract, the rationale to acquire Richard was another move to add some veteran flavour into a younger pitching corps.

It was unknown whether Richard would make the rotation or find himself in the bullpen when the 2019 season began, but he would start his Blue Jays career on the injured list (IL) with a stress reaction in his right knee. He would spend most of the season on the IL, starting in only 10 games from late May to mid-July, before being put back on the IL (again) and eventually released by the Blue Jays in September. Richard is currently a free agent.

Thomas Pannone

ERA: 6.16     Record: 3-6     IP: 73.0     WHIP: 1.425     bWAR: -0.3   GS: 7 of 37

Thomas Pannone has been one pitcher the Blue Jays have toyed with over the past two seasons in regards to whether to make him a full-time starter or a full-time reliever. In 2019, the Blue Jays had Pannone start the season as a reliever in the bullpen, but would use him as a spot starter on multiple occasions throughout the campaign. He was never able to find his stride when starting games, going three innings or less in four of the games he started while also giving up 4+ earned runs on six of his seven games started.

For the 2020 season, manager Charlie Montoyo has already stated that Pannone will be competing for a spot in the bullpen, meaning his starting days are probably a thing of the past. Given his pedigree, Pannone could be used as a long reliever or middle reliever to help eat innings and give the bullpen some rest if the starter can’t go deep into the game.

Sean Reid-Foley

ERA: 4.26     Record: 2-4     IP: 31.2    WHIP: 1.705     bWAR: 0.1    GS: 6 of 9

Finding himself on the Blue Jays top 30 prospects list over the past few seasons, Sean Reid-Foley has been a key prospect cog in the Toronto Blue Jays farm machine. Reid-Foley would spend some time in both the rotation and in the bullpen in 2019, riding a roller coaster of good starts versus bad starts when he was on the mound. He would spend most of the season in AAA, riding the option bus between AAA and the Blue Jays roster when needed.

Reid-Foley will also find himself in the mix for the last spot in the rotation against the other internal options. If he does not win the last spot, the Blue Jays do plan to keep him as a starter in AAA, with the clock ticking down on where he stands in the organization as a starter or a reliever.

Matt Shoemaker

ERA: 1.57     Record: 3-0    IP: 28.2    WHIP: 0.872     bWAR: 1.2    GS: 5 of 5

Spending his whole career in the Los Angeles Angels organization, Matt Shoemaker would sign a one year deal with the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2018/2019 off-season. He started the season off strong, pitching to a 1.57 ERA while striking out 24 batters through five games. During his 5th start, Shoemaker was part of a rundown when he went down to the ground with an injury. The result was a torn ACL in his left knee, sidelining him for the rest of the year.

This past off-season, Shoemaker and the Blue Jays were heading towards arbitration before eventually agreeing on a one year, $4.2 million dollar contract for the 2020 season. He will factor into the Blue Jays starting rotation, slotting in alongside newly acquired pitchers Hyun-Jin Ryu, Chase Anderson, and Tanner Roark.

Edwin Jackson

Blue Jays: ERA: 11.12    Record: 1-5   IP: 28.1    WHIP: 2.188     bWAR: -1.5    GS: 5 of 8

The Edwin Jackson experiment in Toronto was one that fans would most likely want to forget. Jackson was acquired by the Blue Jays from the Oakland Athletics on May 11, a move to help offset the injuries that had started to plague the starting rotation. The veteran pitcher would start five games for the Blue Jays, pitching to a not so pleasant 11.12 ERA with only 19 strikeouts and over 12 home runs surrendered.

He would find himself on the injured list and would eventually be designated for assignment and then released by the Blue Jays in mid-July. After being released, Jackson would join the Detroit Tigers for the rest of the season. For the 2020 season, the 6’2″ right-hander received a non-roster invite to the Arizona Diamondbacks spring training, where he is trying to earn a spot on the major league roster.

Only One Start

Daniel Hudson, Ryan Tepera, Buddy Boshers, David Phelps, Neil Ramirez, and Ryan Feierabend were all used in the starting role as well for the Toronto Blue Jays last season, with most of these players being used as an opener and only going 1-2 innings. Feierabrand was the only pitcher out of this group to go more than one inning, considering he has been used as both a starter and a reliever in his career. Both Hudson and Phelps would be traded at the 2019 trade deadline, with Hudson winning a World Series with the Washington Nationals.

Hudson became a free agent at the end of the 2019 campaign and would eventually re-sign with the Washington Nationals on a two year, $11 million dollar deal. David Phelps was also a free agent after finishing the season with the Chicago Cubs, and he will be spending the 2020 campaign with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Ryan Tepera was DFA’d by the Blue Jays after the 2019 season and signed a contract with the Chicago Cubs for the 2020 campaign.

Ramirez would be DFA’d by the Blue Jays before the 2019 season ended and he elected free agency. He signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Angels and was invited to spring training.

Boshers was outrighted to the Buffalo Bisons roster at the end of the 2019 season and elected free agency, where he currently still stands. Feierabend elected free agency at the end of the 2019 season and is currently still a free agent.