Grading Every Player Who Appeared for the Blue Jays in 2026: Relievers

I've already graded the Blue Jays' position players and starting pitchers. Now, I'm finishing the series with the bullpen arms. 

Toronto ranked third in MLB in bullpen innings, with their relievers averaging 4.23 innings per game. Those relievers also ranked among the top third of teams in ERA, xERA, and FanGraphs WAR. Their 52 saves were the third-most in the majors, behind only the Rays and Brewers, who finished with the best records in their respective leagues. Similarly, the Blue Jays finished third in save percentage, trailing only Aroldis Chapman's Red Sox and Josh Hader's Astros.

One Toronto reliever led the AL in ERA and fWAR, while another led the majors in holds. Three Blue Jays ranked among the top 10 relievers in games pitched, including one who led all MLB hurlers with 83 appearances. The last time any pitcher made more appearances in a single season was 2011.

It wasn't all sunshine and roses for a Blue Jays bullpen that was often overburdened, but by and large, it was a successful season for the arm barn. Let's get to the grades.

Tanner Andrews: B-
Andrews made two scoreless appearances in May, then spent the rest of the season in Buffalo.

Brendan Cellucci: B+
The 28-year-old rookie was quietly excellent for the Blue Jays in September, pitching 8.2 scoreless innings with 11 strikeouts.

Chad Dallas: C+
Dallas threw some innings. Aside from one blow-up outing, he did his job. 

Lazaro Estrada: C
Estrada threw some innings. They were fine. A long IL stint kept him from pitching more.

Braydon Fisher: A-
I briefly considered being cheeky and grading Fisher as both a starter and a reliever. After all, he started 10 games, he finished 10 games, and he made at least one appearance in every inning from the first to the 11th. The righty is the only pitcher in major league history to pitch at least 75 games in a season, start at least 10 of them, and finish at least 10 of them. And he did all that with a 3.21 ERA and 1.63 WPA.

Josh Fleming: C
Fleming had some success for Triple-A Buffalo, but he gave up four runs in three innings in his only appearance for Toronto.

Mason Fluharty: A
Fluharty pitched in more than half of Toronto's games this year, and I only wish he could have pitched in more; the Jays were 46-37 (.554) when he played and 33-46 (.418) when he didn't. The southpaw dominated same-handed hitters, ranking third among AL relievers (min. 50 BF) in wOBA and second in xwOBA against lefties. All told, Fluharty finished with a 7-1 record, 19 holds, and a 3.30 ERA.

Tyler Heineman: B
Heineman pitched 3.1 innings in 2025, giving up 12 runs on 15 hits. In 2026, he threw another 3.1 frames for the Jays, but this time he only gave up five runs on seven hits. That improvement earns him a solid grade (despite his 13.50 ERA).

Jeff Hoffman: B
Some blown saves in March and April cost Hoffman the closer's job. Yet, all things considered, his 2026 was an improvement over his 2025. His 3.94 ERA with the Jays was solid, and his underlying numbers were even better.

Hayden Juenger: C
After several years in the Blue Jays' minor league system, Juenger gave up three runs in one inning during his big league debut. He only pitched one more game for Toronto before he was DFA'd.

John Klein: B
Klein threw four scoreless innings in his lone outing for the Jays.

Chase Lee: C-
I was hoping for more from the side-armer. He didn't deliver.

Brendon Little: C+
In 2025, Little was dominant through the first half and struggled after the break. This year, it was the other way around. He gave up 11 runs in his first 3.2 innings, then spent most of the next three months in Buffalo. After he rejoined the Jays in the second half, he posted a 2.28 ERA with similarly strong peripherals down the stretch. I struggle to justify a grade above the C-range given his full season numbers, but I'm optimistic about Little heading into 2027. 

Michael Lorenzen: D+
Lorenzen was not very good for the Blue Jays.

Adam Macko: C
The Slovakia-born, Alberta-raised lefty made his MLB debut in 2026. Only eight players on this list gave the Jays more innings than Macko. 

Joe Mantiply: B+
Mantiply was trying to get his career back on track after a dismal 2025. He largely succeeded, pitching to a 3.00 ERA in 27 frames.

Spencer Miles: A+
The Toronto Star's Mike Wilner asked Blue Jays players to vote for four team awards: MVP, top pitcher, top rookie, and unsung hero. Miles received votes in all four categories. I can't quite see the argument for Miles over Cease or Varland in the MVP and top pitcher categories, but I'm giving him the same grade as both of them because of how wildly he exceeded expectations. A Rule 5 pick, Miles came into the season with almost no professional experience. He turned in 95.2 innings over 45 games with a 2.63 ERA and 2.0 fWAR. 

Tommy Nance: B
Nance took a step back from his shockingly impressive 2025, but he was perfectly solid in a low-leverage role for the Jays. Before he was traded, he pitched to a 3.82 ERA in 33 innings.

José Rodríguez: B
Rodríguez made four scoreless appearances in September. I have very little else to say about him.

Yariel Rodríguez: D+
It was a rough year for Rodríguez. His ERA and xERA both started with a seven, and his strong numbers at Triple-A Buffalo weren't strong enough to convince the Jays to give him a longer leash in the majors. Then he spent the last three months on the injured list.

Tyler Rogers: A+
The rubber-armed Rogers has casually become the game's premier setup man. He has thrown at least 70 innings in each of the last six years, reaching 30 holds in five of them. By ERA, 2026 was his best full season yet, thanks to a career-high groundball rate and a career-best hard-hit rate.

Connor Seabold: C
Seabold gave up three runs in 3.1 innings for the Blue Jays.

Paul Sewald: B+
The former closer made 17 appearances for Toronto. He only gave up one earned run in 14.1 innings of work.

Myles Straw: B+
Straw took over as the team's go-to emergency arm after Heineman was traded. He made it through his first three outings without allowing a run before he gave up a homer in his final pitching appearance of the season.

Ricky Tiedemann: B+
The former top prospect made his long-awaited big league debut in 2026. He threw six innings in five games and only gave up one run.

CJ Van Eyk: C
Van Eyk was a human being who pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2026. 

Louis Varland: A+
Do I even need to explain this one? Varland wasn't just the best reliever on the Blue Jays – he was the best reliever in the American League. He saved 35 games in 37 chances, pitching to a 1.27 ERA. I hate to say it, but if Varland had been the closer from day one, maybe this whole season would have turned out differently. 

Austin Voth: C
Voth was a human being who pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2026.

Matt Waldron: C
Waldron was a human being who pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2026. (Can you tell I'm getting tired?)

Simeon Woods Richardson: B-
Woods Richardson was surprisingly effective for the Jays until the wheels came off in his final appearance.

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