5 Blue Jays players who were cursed in 2023

Over the course of the 2023 season, the Toronto Blue Jays had many players that made significant contributions to the ballclub in helping them reach their ultimate goal in making the MLB playoffs. In one way or another, they either met or exceeded expectations in guiding the team towards winning and success.

However, there were a few players that seemed to be cursed in terms of the amount of bad luck they ran into in 2023, as they had previously proven to be invaluable contributors in the past. Here, we take a look at five players that unfortunately didn’t end up having the year they envisioned despite their sound track record, but hopefully can bounce back in the not-so-distant future.

Adam Cimber

For Adam Cimber, 2023 was certainly a year he would like to forget. Cimber was coming off an impressive 2022 season with the Jays in which he compiled a strong 10-6 record with 19 holds and four saves, along with a 2.80 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 58 strikeouts in 70.2 innings pitched. He was certainly looking towards a third consecutive strong season with the ballclub ever since coming over from the Miami Marlins back in 2021.

He actually began the 2023 season on a good note, as he held his opponents scoreless in his first four outings of the season. However, things would begin to spiral downward for Cimber from there on. He would surrender runs in four of the next seven outings and eventually land on the IL by the end of April due to a right rhomboid strain. After coming back near the end of May, things got even worse for Cimber as in his next 11 appearances, he would give up 12 earned runs including three home runs in just 10.2 innings of work for a horrific 10.13 ERA and 1.88 WHIP. His season would end mercifully when he found himself on the IL once again due to a right shoulder impingement that eventually became a season-ending injury.

Cimber has been a solid MLB reliever ever since his debut in the majors back in 2018 with the San Diego Padres. Over his six-year career, he had been one of the more reliable and dependable bullpen arms in MLB during that span, so it’s most certain that he didn’t just forget how to pitch all of a sudden. So perhaps he just ran into a case of bad luck, along with some ailments that no doubt affected his effectiveness. Hopefully he will have the opportunity to bounce back in 2024 when given the chance once again by the Jays.

Danny Jansen

In the case for Danny Jansen, he actually had a fine season in 2023, unlike some of the other Jays mentioned in this list. As a matter of fact, he was actually one of the Jays’ most clutch and productive hitters all season.

Last year, Jansen finally had his MLB breakout season by hitting 15 home runs and tallying 44 RBI with a solid .260 average in just 72 games played. So if projected over an entire season, we are talking about potentially 30+ HR and 90+ RBI.

This season, Jansen was looking to build upon his success from last year and he did exactly that. In 86 games, he has mustered career-highs in doubles with 15, home runs with 17, and RBI with 53. Most importantly, a lot of his productive output either helped the Jays tie a game or put them ahead, a trait that was severely lacking for most of the other players in the lineup. So why was Jansen cursed? Well, he wasn’t cursed in terms of his performance, but he was definitely cursed all season when it came to injuries.

Just look at the list of his ailments in 2023: groin, forearm, wrist, hand, and finger. It also certainly didn’t help when he was among the league leaders in hit by pitch with 10 during the 2023 season. But the ultimate dagger was the injury that came in early September in which his broken finger put him out for the rest of the season. By knocking out the Jays’ most clutch performer on the roster, they were bound to feel the effects of it heading into the postseason. Indeed that was exactly what happened as the Jays only scored one run in two games to bow out to the Minnesota Twins in the AL Wild Card series.

Hopefully Jansen can avoid being hit by pitches (and thus injuries) the following season so that he can remain healthy to help the Jays as much as possible to return to their winning ways.

Nate Pearson

When it comes to Nate Pearson, it just felt like he has been cursed all this time since his MLB debut back in 2020 with the ballclub. With his amazing stuff, he was expected to be a top-notch, front-end of the rotation starter for many years to come when he made his rapid ascension from the minors to the major leagues. However, it just seemed like every time he was about to break out, something would happen to him, whether it be losing his consistency and command, or falling to injuries that would put him out for a period of time, setting him back.

Nevertheless, he had put all of that behind him as he started the 2023 season with a clean bill of health and full of promise heading into his seventh professional baseball season. When he was promoted once again to the big league club at the end of April, Pearson took off as he finally displayed the dominant form many expected him to be all these years.

In his first 17 appearances, Pearson was lights out, going 4-0 with a 1.96 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, giving up only five earned runs with five walks and 26 strikeouts in just 23 innings pitched. To everyone, it seemed like he has finally arrived and here to stay. Unfortunately, things unravelled for him quickly as he practically fell off a cliff in the following couple of months. With his effectiveness and confidence all shattered, he was ultimately sent back down to the minors once again, going back to the drawing board once more.

The curse apparently still remains as Pearson still hasn’t had the breakthrough season everyone has been waiting for. But time is beginning to run out, so hopefully for 2024, Pearson will finally have both fate and luck on his side and ultimately show everyone once and for all that he could indeed be an effective MLB player.

Alek Manoah

Finally, of course, there’s former ace Alek Manoah. There’s probably no one on the team that encountered as much bad luck than what Manoah had for the 2023 season. Back in 2022, he was basically almost on top of the baseball world, as he posted a stellar campaign in which he pitched to a 16-7 record with a 2.24 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, with 180 strikeouts in 196.2 innings pitched. He was so impressive that he was also an All-Star and AL Cy Young finalist that very same year.

But boy does that seem like ages ago now. In 2023, practically everything had fallen apart for Manoah right from the very beginning. He would struggling mightily with his control and command throughout the season, failing to find a groove even after some hard fought impressive outings. They had even tried sending him down to the minors, hoping for him to rebuild his pitching game and regain his confidence to back to where it was before.

Unfortunately, even after all that, things still didn’t turn for the better, as ultimately Manoah would lose his spot in the rotation once again when he was optioned to the minors shortly after the trade deadline. He would not rejoin the club during the stretch run and was eventually shut down for the season in September.

For someone with Manoah’s skills and abilities and the strong resume he has built up, no one was expecting such a collapse to happen. But if he can focus on the fundamentals both physically and mentally, and rebound from the unfortunate luck he had in 2023, he could be back bigger and better in no time for the future of the Jays’ franchise.