Tyler Rogers Was a Much-Needed Addition for the Blue Jays' Bullpen

[Bryan Jaeger]

The Toronto Blue Jays failed to address their most significant need at the Winter Meetings. The bullpen was a liability down the stretch. Their relievers' collective ERA rose from 3.57 in the first half to 4.63 in the second half. This was due in part to an August in which their bullpen ERA rose to 4.76 and their walk rate skyrocketed to 14.2%. Closer Jeff Hoffman had his worst month since May, posting a 6.00 ERA and a 7.64 FIP and allowing a slugging percentage of .587. Three of his seven blown saves on the season came in August. 

Yariel Rodríguez, who was recently outrighted off the 40-man roster, saw his stellar first-half 2.47 ERA overshadowed by a 4.21 ERA in the second half. Brendon Little suffered the same trend when he couldn't repeat his 2.03 ERA from the first half, posting a 4.88 second-half ERA. Louis Varland faced a similar fate. After posting a 1.81 ERA while with the Minnesota Twins, he had a 4.82 ERA following the trade to Toronto.

Reliever ERA is volatile, especially in such small samples. Still, all this inconsistency underscored the need for a high-leverage arm. However, Raisel Iglesias, Ryan Helsley, and Devin Williams all signed before the Winter Meetings. There were rumors of the Blue Jays being linked to both Edwin Díaz and Robert Suarez, the top two relievers remaining on the free agent market when the meeting started, but Toronto struck out on both.

Despite missing out on the top names on the market, the Blue Jays finally found their man to help in the late innings. They signed Tyler Rogers to a three-year, $37 million contract, with a fourth-year vesting option that would make it worth $48 million. It will be fun to watch Rogers pitch, as he is a submarine pitcher, which is rarely seen nowadays.

Rogers spent seven seasons with the San Francisco Giants before he was traded at last season's deadline to the New York Mets. He has been stellar over his career, posting a 2.76 ERA, a 306:77 strikeout-to-walk ratio, a 3.31 FIP, and 154 holds over 424 innings. A welcome aspect of his game has been his ability to stay healthy. He has pitched at least 68 games in each of the last five seasons.

The veteran will likely slide into a setup role, pitching in the seventh or eighth inning. He's better against right-handed batters thanks to his sinker-slider combo, with his slider breaking away from same-handed opponents. That being said, his low arm angle helps him fare well against batters on both sides of the plate, though his pitches are especially hard for right-handers to pick up on.

Versus righties last season, Rogers had a 31:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio and allowed a .229 batting average. Against lefties, he produced a 17:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio, although they still managed just a .230 batting average off him. The Blue Jays may have waited longer than fans would have wanted to improve their bullpen, but they hit a home run signing Rogers. His ability to stay healthy and deceive batters will make him a welcome addition in Toronto.

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