Toronto Blue Jays 2026 Starter of the Year

It wasn’t a great season for the Toronto Blue Jays’ starters. The injury bug ran rampant through the staff. José Berríos and Bowden Francis missed all season; Shane Bieber made only 11 starts; and Cody Ponce tore his ACL 2 1/3 innings into his first start. We saw Patrick Corbin and Jameson Taillon be acquired at different points in the season, but Corbin made only 19 appearances (15 starts), and Taillon made three starts.

The Blue Jays also acquired Spencer Arrighetti, but they used him mainly as a bulk-inning eater after an opener, with five of his seven appearances coming out of the bullpen. With so many starters spending time on the IL, relievers made 30 starts. This was apparent by the Blue Jays finishing 27th in innings from their starting pitchers. 

The rotation ranked around the middle of the pack among MLB teams, finishing 14th in ERA (4.22), 13th in FIP (4.02), 17th in strikeouts (742), and 13th in fWAR (11.3). However, they allowed the sixth-lowest batting average (.235) and the third-fewest home runs (93).

With so many injuries and poor performances, it wasn’t easy to find standout players. The number one spot was an obvious choice, but after that, it was a toss-up. Braydon Fisher was by far the team's best opener. He threw 11 1/3 innings as a starter, posting a 0.79 ERA, an 11:10 strikeout-to-walk ratio, a 1.15 WHIP, and a 3.81 FIP. He also held batters to a 0.86 batting average. 

Here are the starting pitchers who led the team this season. Spoiler alert: it’s not pretty.

Honorable Mentions

Shane Bieber

• 2026 Stats: 5-2, 55 2/3 IP, 4.37 ERA, 44 SO, 24 BB, 1.42 WHIP, 5.15 FIP

Bieber began the season on the injured list due to right elbow inflammation. He returned in late June but made only 11 starts before getting shut down with a right teres major injury. There were hopes he could return late if a postseason trip were within reach after a side session on September 19. However, the Blue Jays were eliminated a few days later. 

The injuries could have contributed to one of the worst seasons of Bieber’s nine-year career. His 18.2 percent strikeout rate, 9.9 percent walk rate, WHIP, and FIP were the worst of his career. The righty’s ERA was only his second-highest, but he had a 5.97 expected ERA, ranking in the bottom two percent of all MLB pitchers.

Max Scherzer

• 2026 Stats: 4-9, 84 2/3 IP, 5.74 ERA, 68 SO, 35 BB, 1.33 WHIP, 5.11 FIP

Max Scherzer was a tale of two halves. He was atrocious in the first half of the season, posting a 10.23 ERA over 22 innings, but his 4.16 second-half ERA over 62 2/3 innings would have put him in the top three if it were a full-season performance. Injuries were a major issue for the 42-year-old this season. 

Mad Max’s first trip to the 15-day injured list came on April 27 because of right forearm tightness and left ankle inflammation. He returned on June 10 but made only one start before returning to the IL with back spasms. This time, he returned on July 27 and finished the season as a reliable contributor. This included an emotional finale, in which Scherzer threw seven innings of one-run ball while striking out seven. If this were the righty's final season, he would finish ninth on the career strikeout list with 3,557.

No. 3 Trey Yesavage

• 2026 Stats: 5-6, 97 2/3 IP, 3.69 ERA, 97 SO, 47 BB, 1.14 WHIP, 4.22 FIP

Trey Yesavage had massive hype after his success in last season’s postseason. However, a right shoulder impingement cost the righty the start of the season. He returned April 28 and had a solid year. His season only lasted a few months, though, as he underwent surgery on August 11 to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee. 

The rookie returned to make two starts before the season ended, and he's healthy heading into the offseason. Yesavage had a respectable rookie season, posting a 24.2 percentage strikeout rate, but the 11.7 percent walk rate was higher than preferred. His strikeout rate was down from what he showed in his brief debut last season and in the minors, so increasing the whiffs will be a focus this offseason.

The righty has a four-seam fastball, nasty splitter, and slider in his pitch arsenal. To take the next step in his development, Yesavage will work this offseason on adding a curveball or a two-seam fastball. Adding another pitch will help keep opposing hitters off balance next season. This should lead to more strikeouts, especially if he can develop a pitch with as much movement as his splitter and slider, both of which averaged 30 inches of drop. 

No. 2 Kevin Gausman

• 2026 Stats: 5-10, 127 1/3 IP, 4.38 ERA, 127 SO, 35 BB, 1.29 WHIP, 3.98 FIP 

Despite being traded to the Chicago Cubs at the deadline, Kevin Gausman pitched the second-most innings in the Blue Jays’ starting rotation. He and Yesavage were a coin flip for the No. 2 and 3 spots, but with 30 more innings, Gausman provided more production for the Blue Jays throughout the season. His 23.5 percent strikeout rate was his second-lowest since 2019. However, he upped that to 27.1 percent with the Cubs. 

His 2.6 fWAR with Toronto also outperformed Yesavage’s 1.3. It was a decent season for the veteran, which could lead to a reunion next season if he doesn’t retire. If Gausman returns, it’d be a win-win for the Blue Jays. They need a veteran starter, and they got an everyday center fielder in Brett Bateman as part of the trade package they received from Chicago at the deadline. 

No. 1 Dylan Cease

• 2026 Stats: 11-6, 169 IP, 2.40 ERA, 238 SO, 78 BB, 1.10 WHIP, 2.56 FIP

Dylan Cease proved to be a grand-slam offseason signing for the Blue Jays. His 34.9 percent strikeout rate was the best rate of his eight-year career. However, his 11.4 percent walk rate was the second-highest of his career. The high walk rate was expected, but not this high. More walks pushed Cease’s pitch count up quickly, leading to fewer innings per game, resulting in him going six or more innings in only 15 of his 29 starts. 

Cease’s most notable game this season was a near no-hitter. On July 8, against the San Francisco Giants, a perfect game was ruined in the fifth inning by a walk to Willy Adames. However, his no-hitter lasted into the ninth inning, until Heliot Ramos led off the frame with a single. Cease was then removed after 118 pitches. The Blue Jays have only had one no-hitter in their history books, by Dave Stieb in 1990. The team has never had a perfect game. 

The righty also threw a complete-game, one-hitter on July 25 against the Boston Red Sox. He had a perfect game going into the fifth inning before issuing a walk to Caleb Durbin. Cease would lose his no-hitter chance the next inning after a leadoff double to Andruw Monasterio. He threw a career-high 120 pitches in his fourth career complete game. It was also the first complete-game one-hitter in Blue Jays history since 2010, when Shaun Marcum did it against the Oakland Athletics. The hit in that game was a solo home run by Conor Jackson.

Cease will lead a strong rotation next season with Yesavage and José Soriano. The question is who will fill the remaining two spots. Berríos, Francis, and Ponce could be healthy enough to contribute, but the Blue Jays could also elect to bring back Bieber or Gausman to build depth. We saw the issues with a lack of depth this season, likely forcing the team to be aggressive in free agency as well. Whichever route Toronto chooses, the pieces in place should provide the foundation for an outstanding rotation.