Spencer Miles making an undeniable case to be the Toronto Blue Jays’ fifth starter

When the Toronto Blue Jays first had their pitchers and catchers report to spring training in mid-February, it appeared as though eight guys would be vying for five spots in the starting rotation—what a difference a few months can make. 

Injuries have decimated the pitching staff behind Dylan Cease and Kevin Gausman. Trey Yesavage is back and up to speed after missing a few weeks, but Patrick Corbin and the bullpen have been left to hold down the final two rotation spots with Eric Lauer traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers after being designated for assignment.

Yet, as the old expression goes, pressure makes pearls. Spencer Miles has assumed the role of the “bulk guy” during the team’s bullpen games and is exceeding all expectations. His most recent effort was shutting down the powerful New York Yankees for 4.1 innings in Thursday’s 2-0 victory, leading the team to a much-needed series split. The Blue Jays may have stumbled upon an effective starting pitcher. 

The underlying numbers support Miles’ breakout performance 

The Toronto Blue Jays selected Miles in the Rule 5 Draft from the San Francisco Giants organization in December. The former fourth-round pick entered the 2026 season with just 14.2 minor league innings under his belt. 

The 25-year-old’s career had been completely derailed by injuries up until now. He missed all of 2023 recovering from back surgery, then was sidelined for almost all of the following two years recovering from Tommy John surgery on his elbow. 

Yet Miles hasn’t looked like someone who had never thrown a pitch above A-ball before this season. He owns a 2.17 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 29 innings with the Blue Jays thus far, having struck out a batter per inning while walking just eight. 

The numbers under the hood are even more encouraging as Miles has done an exceptional job limiting hard contact. His 84.3 mph average exit velocity ranks in the 97th percentile among qualified pitchers, while his barrel rate and hard-hit percentage both rank in the 89th percentile. 

Miles’ sinker is his best weapon. It sits above 96 mph, which plays up even more when coupled with his 6.8-foot extension. Opponents are hitting just .152 against the pitch thus far with zero extra-base hits. It’s the main driver behind his excellent 50.6% groundball rate. 

Nothing about what Miles is doing is flukey. He’s sure to encounter some regression as hitters become more familiar with him, but his stuff is unquestionably good enough to play at the major league level. The bigger question is whether his body can handle a starting pitcher’s workload over the course of a full season. 

Much was made of Trey Yesavage’s huge jump in innings pitched last season—Miles is in line for an even more drastic increase. Is it fair to ask him to throw five innings every fifth day? Probably not, but the Blue Jays don’t have any better options right now. 

That won’t be the case forever with Shane Bieber and Max Scherzer working their way back from injuries. Miles will probably end up in a more traditional bullpen role when they return. In the meantime, however, he’ll continue to get opportunities every fifth day to prove to the Blue Jays that his long-term role could be in the starting rotation. 

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