3 Opening Day roster decisions the Blue Jays seem to be hinting at

The Toronto Blue Jays are set to make some difficult roster decisions with Opening Day a week away. At the onset of camp, there seemed there weren't a ton of roster spots up for grabs, but injuries have muddled the picture, and a few players have taken advantage.

Here are three players who now appear to be destined to break camp on the Opening Day roster.

3 Opening Day roster decisions the Blue Jays seem to be hinting at

Yariel Rodríguez

In his first season in the majors, Rodríguez did little to prove that he could be a bonafide MLB starting pitcher. While he recorded 21 starts, he completed five innings in just eight of them, and often had to exit early due to a high pitch count or surrendering too many runs.

And although he got stretched out as a starter this spring, it seemed like the plan for this season was to use the 28-year-old as a bulk reliever and hope that role could yield more favorable results.

The Blue Jays signed Max Scherzer to fill a spot in the rotation, and he looked stellar in his first couple starts with the team.

But things hit a bit of a snag last week when Scherzer said that he was dealing with a thumb injury that flares up at the 50-pitch mark that impacts his ability to grip the ball. Meanwhile, the Jays have been extending the length of Rodriguez’s appearances.

On March 7th, Rodriguez started against the Yankees and pitched three innings, gave up five hits (including a pair of solo home runs) while struck out four. A week later, the Cuban native got the ball again and pitched into the fourth inning (3 2/3 innings), while giving up three hits (and another homer), with four strikeouts and three walks.

He got up to 61 pitches in that game, and the plan seems to be to increase his workload in his last spring training start. He's the obvious option to replace Scherzer if he starts the season on the IL.

Myles Straw

Before spring training, the Blue Jays traded for outfielder Myles Straw along with international bonus pool money that they hoped would give them an advantage in the Roki Sasaki sweepstakes.

The Japanese phenom signed with the Dodgers and the Straw trade was widely panned as he's on a five-year, $25M contract (expiring in 2026) and spent most of last season in Triple-A with Cleveland.

Then, the spring games started. and Straw started to hit the ball with authority, which is not a skill he’s been known for during his seven-year MLB career. Through 15 exhibition games, the 30-year-old is hitting .444 (12-for-27) with a home run, two doubles, and six RBI.

his offensive burst, plus being one of the better defensive outfielders in baseball, has given Straw the inside track on being named to the Opening Day roster while Daulton Varsho recovers from injury.

Davis Schneider

After struggling for much of the final four months of the 2024 season, it seemed like Schneider would need to have a productive spring to make the team — and that’s exactly what the fan favorite has done.

Over 15 games the 26-year-old has hit .321 (9-for-28) with a pair of homers, three doubles, and four RBI. Schneider has returned to the approach that helped him mash in 2023. Being patient at the plate, waiting for the right pitches and looking to do damage has helped Schneider stand out in the right field mix, a position he will need to continue to play now that Andrés Giménez is expected to receive most of the playing time at second base.