Eric Lauer gets the start in Blue Jays spring opener, regular season job still TBD

It’s official. Eric Lauer will take the bump in the Spring Training opener, looking to set the tone as the Toronto Blue Jays begin its quest to defend the Golden Grapefruit and open camp on a strong note. The 28-game Spring Training slate kicks off today against the Philadelphia Phillies at 1:07 PM ET.

Lauer's offseason, on paper at least, wasn't what he had hoped for, as he lost his arbitration case and will earn $4.4 million this season. His role in this upcoming campaign seems to be completely up in the air, and dependant on injuries. Given his stellar outings as a starter in 2025, he's competing for the fifth rotation spot, but will most likely act as a multi-inning bullpen arm. At the end of the day, the 30-year-old lefty will serve as injury insurance and a depth piece for the rotation if José Berríos slots in as the fifth man.

If Lauer, who's in his final year of club control before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2027, preforms how he did in 2025, he'll be in good shape in terms of what he'd command on the open market. Last season, he posted a 3.18 ERA over 104.2 innings, with a career-high 17.8 per cent strikeout-minus-walk rate (K-BB%), which led to his 84th percentile walk rate of 6.1%.

The Ohio native also dipped his toes into some postseason action. Albeit, he was underutilized, only throwing 8.2 innings across five appearances during the World Series run. Across those eight innings, which included five in the Fall Classic, he allowed three earned runs on six hits, while striking out eight. Lauer spent six seasons in the majors with the San Diego Padres and Milwaukee Brewers but then headed overseas to pitch for the KBO’s Kia Tigers in 2024, before signing a minor-league deal with the Blue Jays at the end of that same year.

Interestingly, the Blue Jays have a long history with Lauer, dating back to the 2013 Draft. Here, they selected him in the 17th round, but he opted to attend college at Kent State instead where he put up a ridiculous 1.86 ERA across three seasons. Three years later, the Padres made him a first-round pick in the 2016 MLB Draft.

In the grand scheme of things, the result on a February afternoon start won't carry any sort of weight headed into the regular season, as the Blue Jays look to defend the American League. However, for a pitcher entering his final year of club control, coming off a strong 2025 and staring at free agency in 2027 dead in the eyes, the opener carries a metaphorical significance, so a good start to the spring for him may mean more than fans think.