Easton Lucas' disastrous start brings the Blue Jays' lack of pitching depth to forefront

Well, that was fun while it was lasted.

For two weeks, Easton Lucas looked like one of the best pitchers in baseball.

Then he met the Atlanta Braves.

On Monday, Lucas got the ball on a day that was a celebration of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and promptly laid an egg.

While Lucas was able to go five innings for the third straight start, he allowed eight runs on six hits and surrendered three home runs to a Braves team that entered Monday with only four wins.

While Lucas might get another turn in the rotation, that rough outing has shined a new light on the Blue Jays' lack of starting pitching depth.

Easton Lucas' disastrous start brings the Blue Jays' lack of pitching depth to forefront

After tossing five scoreless innings against the Nationals in his season debut, Lucas tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings against the Red Sox last week, which put him in some elite company.

But now that all seems like 10,000 years ago. The Braves had no trouble with Lucas' arsenal, and ended up putting five balls in play against him that had exit velocities of 105+ miles per hour.

Both of Austin Riley's home runs against Lucas were 110+ mph.

After the game, manager John Schneider said that Lucas' struggles could be linked back to his inablity to locate his pitches.

“It was a combination of [Lucas] just not locating as well as he had the previous two [starts] and good hitters taking advantage of it," Schneider said, per Sportsnet. "“Today it's a tough outing, but he's been really good. And that's why you have depth options. A week ago … everyone was raving about him. Days like today happen and he makes some tough pitches and paid the price. This is the big leagues and those are good hitters.”

And Schneider is right.

Starting pitching, especially as an unproven arm, is a 'what have you done for me lately' business.

And Lucas himself is a depth option. He entered the season with a 9.82 ERA across 14 MLB relief appearances, and started the season in Triple-A after a rough spring training (8.64 ERA in 8 1/3 innings).

But that didn't last long. Max Scherzer lasted just three innings in his Blue Jays debut before he was placed to the injured list due to a thumb injury, which opened up a roster and rotation spot for Lucas.

And while Scherzer has expressed hope that he thinks the injury won't keep him out for a long period of time, he's still feeling soreness in his thumb, and he'll also require a rehab assignment whenever he starts ramping back up.

So what's next if Lucas continues to struggle?

Things aren't looking great in Triple-A right now. The Buffalo Bison's pitching staff has a 4.95 ERA, and Eric Lauer and Trenton Wallace (the two Bison with three starts under their belt) have ERAs of 6.43 and 10.80, respectively.

The one depth option in Triple-A who would be the easiest call-up would be Jake Bloss, who is on the 40-man roster and has yet to make his MLB debut after being acquired by the Astros at the trade deadline last year.

But he hasn't been much better. He's allowed six earned runs in 8 2/3 innings across two starts.

Another option the Blue Jays could consider is to move Yariel Rodríguez to the starting rotation and have him swap position with Lucas or send Lucas down to Triple-A and call up a minor league reliever.

If the Blue Jays elect to go down that route, one logical option for a call-up is Dillon Tate, who is on the 40-man roster and has thrown five scoreless innings so far this season.

But no matter what option they choose, it'll just be a band-aid until Scherzer comes back this year.