Blue Jays reliever adds a new weapon to his pitch mix that could be a game changer

There are a lot of names from the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays that will cause a reaction when you say their name. For example, if you say George Springer, you'll react with happiness after his Game 7 ALCS home run. If you say Trey Yesavage, you'll talk about his intensity and look ahead to the franchise's future.

If you utter the name Brendon Little, you'll definitely get a reaction, just not the best kind. Little emerged as a top bullpen option in the first half of 2025, having a 2.03 ERA at the All-Star Break. After that, things went downhill for the left-hander, as his second-half ERA inflated to 4.88, finishing with an overall season total of 3.03.

Little enters the new year hoping to leave the 2025 demons behind him, and he may just do that thanks to a new pitch he's bringing into his repertoire.

Brendon Little adds a four-seam fastball to his lineup

During the 2025 season, Little relied on three pitches: a knuckle curve, a sinker, and a cutter. According to Baseball Savant, his most efficient pitch that helped take batters down was his knuckle curve, as opposing batters quickly figured out his sinker and cutter.

The hard-throwing pitches were Little's biggest issue last season. Per his Baseball Savant page, Little's fastball run value was in the 39th percentile and fastball velocity in the 33rd. It's clearly an area that needs improvement to get back to playing like his 2025 first-half self. In this year's Spring Training, Little addressed his issue, and it may get him on the right track.

Little added a four-seam fastball to his current trio of pitches. In 2025, he threw the four-seamer eight times, averaging at 94.4 MPH. In his first appearance this spring, Little experimented with the fastball, and it proved to be efficient. Six of his 19 pitches were with the four-seamer, where he picked up a strikeout in the bottom of the fifth inning. The four-seamer averaged 96.4 MPH, a significant uptick from his 2025 number.

Adding the four-seamer may be what Little needed after his sinker and cutter were figured out. Little's strong suit in 2025 was his strikeout rate, which ranked in the 92nd percentile, and his whiff percentage, which ranked in the 100th percentile. With the knuckle curve being an effective tool, Little bringing in the four-seamer may be what Little needs to keep the strikeout as an important factor.

The Blue Jays current projected bullpen has few left-handed options. Alongside Little, Eric Lauer will likely make the Opening Day roster (barring a trade) but it remains to be seen if he'll be a part of the bullpen or the rotation. The other lefty pitcher that is the most likely to make it out of camp with the Blue Jays would be Mason Fluharty, who also had varying degrees of success in 2025.

The Blue Jays would love to have one realiable left-handed option out of the bullpen to begin the 2026 season and it will be a big benefit if that option can pump fastballs past hitters with a new high velocity pitch.