Why an Opening Day roster spot could be in reach for Blue Jays' Rule 5 Draft pick

Ever since pitchers and catchers have reported to Dunedin to begin Spring Training, the Toronto Blue Jays have mostly been dealt bad news. There were the injury reports to Anthony Santander, Shane Bieber and Bowden Francis in the first few days. More recently, it was revealed that Yimi Garcia is also not going to be ready for Opening Day as he continues to nurse his elbow injury that shut him down in September.

However, that means the door could be open for an intriguing pitching prospect that the Blue Jays brought into their system in December. That's when they selected Spencer Miles from the San Francisco Giants in the Rule 5 draft. The 6'3" right-hander may now have a clear path ahead of him to getting his name on the Opening Day roster.

Why an Opening Day roster spot could be in reach for Blue Jays' Rule 5 Draft pick

By nature, the Rule 5 Draft Picks usually have an inside edge on making an Opening Day roster, otherwise they get sent back to their previous teams. But that doesn't mean they are guaranteed a spot at all, and after the Blue Jays spent the majority of the offseason building up their pitching depth, the edges of that group could be vulnerable and spots could be up for grabs.

Enter Miles, who has had an unlucky pro-baseball career to this point as several injuries have halted his progress from becoming a useful every day player. He spent all of 2025 rehabing from Tommy John surgery and was only able to really showcase his stuff in the Arizona Fall League last year, when he pitched in 8.2 innings and got his fastball up to 98.4 mph. The Blue Jays wanted Miles in the draft because they liked his four-pitch mix and felt if he could command his stuff he'll have a spot on a big league roster - hopefully theirs.

So with the Rule 5 Draft Pick moniker attached to his name, and the fact that Garcia won't be available to begin the season, Miles has a real chance to head north with Toronto when the season begins. He got off to a good start when he pitched his first inning of Grapefruit League action on Sunday (Feb. 22). Miles pitched one inning with one strikeout, allowing one hit and one walk.

Miles, 25, who was drafted as a starter and has spent most of his minor league career as a starter might have a better path to the big leagues this season as a reliever. He was tabbed as a dark horse candidate to make the Opening Day roster by MLB.com Blue Jays beat reporter Keegan Matheson. Matheson says, "The Blue Jays have some room for a true bullpen competition for the final spot or two, though, and if Miles is missing bats and throwing strikes, he’ll get a long look. Remember, last season the Blue Jays opened the year with Richard Lovelady and Jacob Barnes in the bullpen."

No doubt this is a group that will have many changes over the course of the season and that bullpen door will forever be revolving, but if the Blue Jays really like Miles' makeup and believe he can get outs better than some of their other options, he could stick around for the long run this season.