Blue Jays getting the version of Patrick Corbin the Nationals paid for but didn't receive

When veteran Patrick Corbin signed a one-year, $1 million contract on April 4th, it never seemed like his future with the Blue Jays was guaranteed. At the time, Toronto was in desperate need of starting pitching, as Trey Yesavage, José Berríos, and Shane Bieber were all on the injured list, while Cody Ponce was ruled out for the season.

Corbin was quickly thrown into a thin rotation to provide some much-needed depth, and the veteran southpaw has completely exceeded expectations. His latest outing may have looked like a difficult matchup on paper against Paul Skenes, but Corbin was excellent once again and outdueled the young superstar. The 36-year-old pitched six innings for the first time this season, collected a season-high seven strikeouts, and threw 57 of his 84 pitches for strikes. Through 44 innings in 2026, Corbin owns a 3.86 ERA.

Stylistically, Corbin and Skenes could not be more different on the mound. The veteran tops out at 92 mph, while Skenes' changeup can touch 89 mph. Saturday, though, proved otherwise, as Skenes allowed a career-high nine hits against while surrendering a leadoff homer to George Springer, which marked his 65th career leadoff home run.

Corbin fighting off father time during impressive run with the Blue Jays

Corbin's reversing of the aging curve, much like Springer's 2025 campaign, has been a spectacle to watch. He played for Washington under a 6-year, $140 million contract, but was never more than an average starter at best. His new contract with the Nats started off hot, pitching to a 3.25 ERA back in 2019, and helped them to their first World Series title. After that, it spiraled downhill. Throughout the next five years, Corbin's best season came in 2020, when he posted a 4.66 ERA. During the remainder of his contract, his ERA never dropped below an abysmal 5.20.

Last year, while pitching for the Texas Rangers, Corbin was slightly above his status quo, as he put up a 4.40 ERA across 155 innings. That being said, pitching coach Pete Walker has helped him find a way to surpass that mark from just a year ago.

Corbin is generating a lot of whiffs, specifically with his slider, which batters are hitting at a .146 clip, paired with a 40.9% strikeout rate. It’s one of his best offerings, and it's paired excellently with his sinker, a pitch that he's been throwing 31% of the time. He's also been leaning on his changeup 18% of the time, which has induced a whiff rate of 33.9%.

Up to this point, Corbin’s signing has become far more impactful than Blue Jays fans could have expected back in April. He has completely flipped the script, considering his signing originally felt like a temporary depth addition.

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