Blue Jays face another rotation crisis after Jameson Taillon exits early

Jameson Taillon’s return to the Toronto Blue Jays rotation was supposed to give Toronto one more badly needed starting option for the stretch run. Instead, it may have created another problem for a pitching staff that has spent most of the season trying to stay patched together.

Taillon’s first start back from the injured list lasted only two innings Friday against the Kansas City Royals, with the veteran right-hander throwing just 29 pitches before the Blue Jays turned the game over to the bullpen.

The 34-year-old appeared to be laboring after a few pitches in the second inning. Although he completed the frame, he was replaced by reliever Joe Mantiply in the bottom of the third.

Sportsnet’s Arden Zwelling later reported that Taillon was pulled because of right elbow discomfort, a worrying update considering he had just returned from the 15-day injured list after dealing with right forearm tendinitis.

His final line was one earned run on two hits, with one strikeout. The damage came on a home run by Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., but the bigger concern was what Taillon’s early exit could mean for the Blue Jays’ rotation over the next few weeks.

Taillon had been reinstated from the injured list ahead of Friday’s matchup after being sidelined since Aug. 11. Acquired from the Chicago Cubs ahead of the trade deadline, Taillon had made only two starts for the Blue Jays before suffering the initial injury. In those outings, the Canadian-American dual citizen posted a 3.38 ERA with seven strikeouts and five walks over eight innings.

Now, the Blue Jays are back in a familiar place: trying to figure out how to cover innings in a rotation that has barely had five competent starters in it for very long.

Blue Jays may be scrambling to put together a rotation again

If Taillon misses more time, Toronto is essentially down to Dylan Cease, José Soriano and Max Scherzer as its only main starters. That likely pushes Spencer Arrighetti into a larger role, even though the Blue Jays have used him carefully since acquiring him from Houston in the Daulton Varsho deal.

Arrighetti has started just once for Toronto, allowing four runs — three earned — over four innings on Aug. 27. He struck out four and walked two in that outing. He has also made two bullpen appearances, giving up three earned runs over 3.1 innings against the Yankees on Aug. 21 before holding Cleveland to two runs over 3.2 innings on Sept. 1.

The Blue Jays may still have to lean into more creative pitching plans. Spencer Miles could eventually factor in again as an opener for a bullpen game, a role he has already handled twice recently.

Two of Miles’ last four appearances have come as a starter. He went two innings against Kansas City on Aug. 26 and one inning against Cleveland on Sept. 3. Between those outings and two bullpen appearances, he has thrown 5.1 scoreless innings over his last four games, allowing only three hits while striking out five.

The Blue Jays would also love to get Trey Yesavage or Shane Bieber back soon, though neither appears likely to solve the immediate problem within the next week.

Yesavage was scheduled to throw a bullpen Friday before the team determines his next steps. Manager John Schneider said earlier this week that the door remains open on the potential for Yesavage to "help us out in some capacity,” before the season ends.

Even if Yesavage returns this season, it may not be as a traditional starter. Schneider has already suggested his role could be more of a bulk option on a bullpen-style day, depending on how much he can build back up after the time missed.

Bieber is not quite as far along. The right-hander, who landed on the injured list in late August with shoulder inflammation, has been playing catch in Toronto this week and has reportedly done everything he can to stay close to game-ready while sidelined.

His injury came at a poor time because Bieber had finally started to look like a meaningful stretch-run piece. In his final two starts before hitting the injured list, he went 2-0 against the Rays and Yankees while allowing only two total runs — one earned — over 13 innings against the two best teams in the AL East.

That is why Taillon’s early exit stings beyond one abbreviated start. The Blue Jays were already trying to survive with a thin rotation, and now they may be forced back into a mix of Arrighetti starts, Miles-led bullpen games and whoever else can throw the ball over the plate.

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