The Blue Jays’ bullpen has had a rough August, but the starters have been elite

The Toronto Blue Jays are glad to see August come to an end. The bullpen had been abysmal last month, with a 4.76 ERA, and some pitchers were experiencing their worst stretch of the season. Tommy Nance was the lone bright spot, recording a 0.59 ERA, but was the only bullpen arm throwing in four or more innings who posted an ERA under 4.00. Louis Varland, Jeff Hoffman, and Yariel Rodriguez each posted ERA's over 6.00 in 11 or more outings.

This is the time of the season when workloads can cause some regression. Manager John Schneider has stated that the Blue Jays will revert to a five-person rotation, with Eric Lauer transitioning from the starting rotation back to the bullpen. Lauer had a 5.30 ERA in August, but he has a 0.86 ERA coming out of the bullpen this season. Chris Bassitt addressed the team's needs for managing workloads, stating, "... there's a lot of hatred, so to speak, on the bullpen, but I mean those guys are tired.”

The Blue Jays’ bullpen has had a rough August, but the starters have been elite

With as bad as the bullpen has been, the starting rotation has been the opposite, with four starters posting under a 4.00 ERA in 27 or more innings. Shane Bieber is the exception, having thrown only 11 1/3 innings, returning to MLB after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024.

Bieber has looked impressive after his two starts, with MLB insider Buster Olney saying, "The Blue Jays may have possibly made the best trade in all of sports." Over Bieber's two outings, he posted 15 strikeouts, one hit batter, and held batters to a .175 batting average off of him. The righty has been pinpoint with his command, although his only flaw has been two solo homers he's allowed.

Kevin Gausman has been up and down all season, but he has posted solid outings over the last two months, with an overall 2.51 and 3.55 ERAs. The ace is in prime form with a 35:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio and held batters to a .199 batting average off of him in August.

The Blue Jays will need this elite performance this week when they start their last series against the New York Yankees, with Gausman starting game one. It's a vital series, with the Blue Jays leading the Yankees and Boston Red Sox by only 2.5 games for the AL East title.

Max Scherzer has produced his best month of the season. He's struggled all season, making fans doubt that his offseason signing was a smart move. However, the 41-year-old has posted a 3.34 ERA in August, although his ERA is heavily skewed by allowing four earned runs in each of his last two outings, against the Minnesota Twins, in which he gave up two home runs in each game.

Before these games, Scherzer allowed one earned run in each of three games and two earned runs against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Home runs were a struggle in these games as well for Scherzer, giving up one home run in three of these four games. The Blue Jays are hoping to get production like the latter while the team battles for the AL East title.

Bassitt started the season hot, but cooled off quickly and hasn't been a top starter until August. He posted a 3.67 ERA in August, but struggled against teams fighting for postseason berths, allowing three earned runs against both the Dodgers and Texas Rangers. Control has been an issue for the right-hander, who gave up 16 free passes in August.

With Bieber having a triumphant return, Bassitt may face critical competition for postseason rotation spots, highlighting the importance of strong performances leading up to October. Schneider must now strategically determine which postseason-ready arms to select from a surplus of options.

José Berríos had a 1.97 ERA in June, but has struggled since in July (5.83) and August (4.64). In 10 outings over the two months, the 31-year-old only exceeded 90 pitches once and has allowed 58 hits. The final stretch of the season serves as a postseason audition, with Berríos and Bassitt closely vying to secure the final spot in the playoff rotation.

With the bullpen’s struggles, the starting rotation will need to continue its success to hold off the Yankees and Red Sox to win the AL East. Luckily, even with the bullpen blowing leads, the offense has ranked in the top five in MLB in key statistics, including runs, RBIs, home runs, and OPS. September is going to be a stressful month for fans, regardless of their favorite team, but it will be fun to watch the games unfold.