Blue Jays seeing major improvements from Brendon Little in the minors

Despite everything that's gone wrong during the first month of the 2026 season for the Toronto Blue Jays, their bullpen has actually been quite solid. The unit ranks a disconcerting 23rd in ERA (4.81), but their 11th-place FIP (3.87), fourth-place strikeout rate (24.0%), and top-ten fWAR (0.8, ninth) all paint the picture of a solid relief corps.

One of the main culprits responsible for that first figure is Brendon Little, who was a quick scapegoat for the team's disastrous start. Sent down to Triple-A on April 5, the 29-year-old southpaw had allowed a mind-numbing 10 runs over his first five appearances in Toronto this year, leading to a 24.55 ERA and 12.96 FIP.

Thankfully, going to Buffalo appears to have been the work trip he needed; Little has tossed seven scoreless innings with the Bisons, striking out 46.2% of the hitters he's faced along the way.

We're still probably a little ways off from his triumphant return to the Blue Jays, but it's safe to say that he's looking more and more like the first-half version of himself from 2025.

Brendon Little's return to Toronto may be coming sooner than Blue Jays expected

The really good news about Little's hiatus to the minors is that the underlying numbers more than back up his dominance. He's yet to allow a single barrel, a huge improvement over the 13.3% rate at which he gave them up in his short MLB stint this season.

He's also generating a ridiculous 37.3% whiff rate, which is perhaps to be expected for a pitcher with a strikeour rate about 25% in the big leagues. Even then, the fact that hitters have mustered a .082 expected batting average and .091 expected slugging percentage against him are total proof that he's simply too good for the level.

Interestingly, he's continued to work hard to implement his new four-seam fastball to the mix, tossing it roughly one-fifth of the time in Triple-A. It hasn't been elite by Stuff+ metrics (83), but it's a promising sign that he's not just falling back on his usual knuckle curve & sinker combo that got him into trouble down the stretch last season.

To be sure, there's still kinks to iron out in his game, including a walk rate that's climbed above 15%. Still, it's hard to imagine how this faux rehab assignment could be going better for Little. In due time, the Blue Jays should benefit from the renewed confidence he's building up the minor leagues.

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