Mike LeSage

On May 30, 2026, the Blue Jays played a game we’d all prefer to forget. Giving up five runs to the Orioles in the ninth inning and getting walked off at Camden Yards has a real ‘on to the next one’ feel to it. I’m content to forget the majority of that game too, but there is one play that I can’t get out of my mind. In the bottom of the fourth inning with Trey Yesavage having loaded the bases and the Jays clinging to a 2-1 lead, Jeremiah Jackson hit a chopper up the third base line. Kazuma Okamoto charged the ball, subtly adjusted his stride and got his right foot to the bag before the ball arrived. The momentum of his charge carried him forward, but he kept his foot on the bag, secured the ball and recorded the force out at third. Okamoto continued another stride towards home, adjusted his body and made a cross-diamond throw to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first to get Jackson by a stride and a half and turn the 5-3 double play. The play at third was so smooth and fluid that it wasn’t immediately clear that Big Oak had garnered the out at his base. The replay was clear and definitive. My initial reaction when seeing that play was that I had just witnessed one of the greatest double plays of all time. I’ve since softened that stance, but I still can’t stop thinking about the play. Impressiveness of defensive plays can be subjective. We’ve talked about the defensive wizardry of guys like Daulton Varsho and Ernie Clement around here a few times. They often make the hardest plays look routine, and while their surehandedness is definitely appreciated by the pitching staff, it doesn’t always make the highlight reels or bring the fans out of their seats. This Okamoto play didn’t move our managing editor, Leo Morgenstern, the same way, and it was left off of his list of the best defensive plays in May. Addison Barger’s 9-2 double play was pretty sweet in its own right (injury aside). Similarly, when you picture a double play, the first instinct is almost never the 5-3. I took a sample of DiamondCentric writers, and none had the 5-3 as their first thought. In fact, only Ryan Salvaggio from Talk Sox included a third baseman at all, opting for the around-the-horn 5-4-3. Up to July 23, there were 433 double plays league-wide that started with the third basemen. That’s just under 20% of the league’s total double plays. Of those 433 double plays starting at third, only 54 went 5-3 (2.5% of league DPs). I’m going to eliminate the DPs that start with a lineout to third and end with catching a runner off their base. Those are fun, and Okamoto has a great one of those from earlier this season too, but they feel spiritually different from getting to your bag and firing a cross-field throw. That play from Okamoto was made in May, and I’m still thinking about it as we near the end of July. That’s gotta count for something. With this being the Jays' 50th season and so much of the talk of the team being centered around that, I’ve gotten into the habit of viewing Toronto’s accomplishments through that lens as well. Where does this Okamoto play stand in the history of 5-3 double plays by Toronto? The two 5-3 plays by Okamoto that I’ve already referenced are the only two the Jays have turned this season, so by default, Oak has the best one of 2026 (so far). In the history of the franchise, the Jays have turned 151 total, and I am entering into this exercise with the assumption that none are going to top May 30, 2026. Kelly Gruber (1990) and Matt Chapman (2023) are the only Toronto players to win a Gold Glove at the hot corner. They might be the top candidates to look at. Scott Rolen won eight Gold Gloves before arriving in Toronto and made just over 200 starts at third base with the Jays. By virtue of all his appearances, no one had more opportunities than Gruber; his 846 games at third are the franchise high. Rance Mulliniks is the sole third baseman with over 1,000 total appearances for the franchise, though *only* 731 were at third base. If you’re looking for a dark horse, he might be the one. I’m going to make a confession here. I was born before the Jays had their first winning season, but I have been spoiled by modern conveniences. I severely underestimated the difficulty I would have in tracking down specific plays from the early days of this franchise. I can tell you with a fair degree of certainty that the first 5-3 double play in Jays history was turned in the bottom of the second inning in the Jays' 11th game. It was a line drive double play caught by Dave McKay and completed by Doug Ault, but I can’t find a video of it. The recap in the next day’s Toronto Star makes no mention of it, instead choosing to focus on the complete game, four-hit win by Dave Lemanczyk. Fair enough. That’s not even the type of 5-3 DP I’m looking for. The first 5-3 groundball double play happened on June 18 of the inaugural season in the franchise’s 60th game. This time Roy Howell was at the hot corner, and Ron Fairly was across the diamond. I can’t tell you much more than that because again, I can’t find any video or mention of it in a recap. I’m going to have to alter the scope of this project and will unfortunately be shortchanging Okamoto in the process. The exercise now becomes ‘finding the best 5-3 double play of the replay era’. A disappointment to be sure. Another historic 5-3 DP thankfully does have some video available. This is the first one to end a game. On July 29, 1988, with Gruber at third, Fred McGriff at first and Duane Ward on the mound, the 42,000+ fans at Exhibition Stadium witnessed history that most probably never realized. As for the play itself, it’s a nice pick from Gruber and an absolute cannon across the diamond to McGriff, but it lacks the grace of Okamoto’s play. In a game on June 7, 1995, the Jays would make 5-3 history again. This game would mark the first time Toronto would turn two 5-3 double plays in the same game. One of them is documented here and shows Ed Sprague fielding and throwing to John Olerud at first. They would turn another one the very next inning, but SportsCentre did not deem that one worthy of a highlight, so we are forced to assume it was less impressive. There is only one other game where the Jays recorded two 5-3 groundball double plays: April 6, 2021, with Cavan Biggio on the hot corner and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first. The first one was pretty smooth. A nice charging grab, a toe-tap on the base and a quick throw across to catch Nick Solak at first. The second one was… an affront to modern baseball. Or at least made to look ridiculous with the hindsight of the defensive shift rules and how we notate baseball plays. While this was ‘technically’ a 5-3 DP, Biggio was lined up in the hole between first and second base with Jonah Heim hitting directly into the shift. This shouldn’t count, and for those 5-3 purists out there (it might only be me at this point), we can’t claim this regardless of what the official record states. I also can’t state it with absolute certainty, but it appears that Guerrero is the only Blue Jay to feature on both sides of a 5-3 double play, having turned one himself from the other side of the diamond. That play isn’t the last time we’ll be talking about Biggio here, though. Over six seasons in Toronto, Biggio made 453 defensive appearances. Eighty of those were at third base. Thanks to Immaculate Grid, I know Biggio made appearances at every position except catcher and pitcher, but when I remember him I think of him as a second baseman and occasional outfielder. That doesn’t mean he was incapable of greatness at third, just that it was less likely. In five out of Biggio’s six seasons in Toronto, he posted a negative score for fielding run value, almost entirely due to his lack of range (his +5 FRV in 2022 may require a separate deep dive). The beautiful thing about highlight reel plays is that they can exist in a vacuum. Every pitch, every ball in play has the potential for greatness. That’s a big reason why we buy tickets and watch the games. Even when the team is playing poorly and the results aren’t there, greatness can happen on the next pitch… September 11, 2023, top of the fifth inning, Texas at Toronto. You might remember that I mentioned Matt Chapman won the Gold Glove at third base in 2023. He was one of the favourites to occupy this space. On this day, however, Chapman found himself on the 10-day IL with a finger sprain – the only IL stint of his time in Toronto. During Chapman’s recovery, Biggio made nine appearances at third. None of those nine appearances included a full game at the position. Biggio was either brought in as a pinch-hitter, moved elsewhere on the field or removed from the game to be pinch-hit for every time – true to his utility form. In that fifth inning, though, Biggio found himself at third. Chris Bassitt started the inning off with a walk and a single to the bottom of the Rangers' order. That brought former Jay Marcus Semien to the plate with runners on the corners and none out. In a 1-2 count, Bassitt jammed Semien with a sinker inside. Semien turned on it and hit a chopper up the third base line right towards the waiting Biggio. Now-Blue Jay Josh Smith, who was on third, was caught too far from the base and attempted a dive back to safety, but Biggio was too quick. Having collected the ball, Biggio was already charging towards Smith. The bases weren’t loaded, so there was no force play, but Biggio’s path led him to step on third just for good measure. Smith attempted a shimmy away from the out, but Biggio put the leather to Smith for the tag and got the throw across the diamond to Vladdy to retire Semien and give the Jays a +13% swing in win probability. With apologies to Okamoto, I’ve got to put him in second place. Against the odds, Cavan Biggio turned the best 5-3 double play I’ve ever seen a Blue Jay make. In the moment, Buck Martinez called it “one of the most heads-up plays you’ll ever see.” In his postgame remarks, John Schneider called it “a great play from Cav” and touted his ability to make plays like that. I’m taking it a step further and calling it the greatest play (of that type) in Blue Jays history.

July was set up to be the defining month of this Jays season. With the trade deadline looming on the horizon and the future of the roster in doubt, every player's performance might have had far-reaching ramifications for the future of the club. With one eye on the month of July and one looking ahead, we celebrate all that the month had to offer. Honourable Mentions Myles Straw July Stats: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER Only two players made it through July without getting tagged with an earned run, and Straw pitched more innings, so he gets the mention (apologies to Chad Dallas). You never want your team to be in position to be running a position player out to the mound, but all things considered, we can’t complain about the work Straw put in while there. Kevin Gausman July Stats: 20.2 IP, 23 H, 14ER, 11 BB, 23K, 2.47 FIP, 0.7 fWAR Gausman’s July was a whirlwind of trade discussion and distraction. This is a monthly award, but I feel some full-season recognition is due. With all the injuries the Blue Jays pitching staff has endured this year, Gausman has been the steadying hand. He has started more games and thrown more innings than anyone in Toronto this year. July wasn’t Gaus’ flashiest month, but he made his starts and put up the second-highest fWAR of anyone on the staff. He also threw the second-most innings of any Jay this month and was the only starter not to give up a home run. Gausman is pitching for Chicago now, but this won’t be the last time I (and others) are writing about him. Shane Bieber July Stats: 22.1 IP, 19 H, 14 ER, 14 BB, 16 K Bieber's first and last starts of the month were not worth writing about, but the ones in between were a reminder of what he can look like at his best. In his two home starts, he scattered three hits apiece and only gave up one run total. The bats barely put enough runs up to register the wins, so Bieber had to be as sharp as ever. Hoffman/Rogers July Combined Stats: 19.2 IP, 12 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, 22 K, 0.7 fWAR I’m putting Jeff Hoffman and Tyler Rogers together here because they both had similarly strong months out of the ‘pen. They both kept the ball in the yard (0 HR) and limited damage (1.37 ERA), combining for nine holds and 21 appearances. No. 3. Spencer Miles July Stats: 21 IP, 21 H, 8 ER, 4 BB, 19 K, 2.48 FIP, 0.5 fWAR Spencer Miles has stepped into the swingman role that Eric Lauer handled last year. Propelled by his results, Lauer made a few PotM appearances, and Miles is following suit. In July, he made two starts, with one tough outing against the White Sox accounting for 75% of his earned runs for the month. Out of the ‘pen, he was lights out: 0 ER, 3 BB, 13 K. No. 2. Louis Varland July Stats: 10 IP, 8 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 9 K, 7 SV The streak ends at three. Until now, Louis Varland had been our PotM each month so far this season. In July, he made his first All-Star appearance and went 7-for-7 in save attempts. He only gave up one run in the month (and still got the save) and is easily the guy out of the bullpen that inspires the most calm amongst fans. His most impressive performance would be the two-inning save against the Nationals in which he navigated the eighth and ninth and only threw 20 pitches. Efficient, in control, unshakable. No. 1. Dylan Cease July Stats: 36 IP, 15 H, 4 ER, 11 BB, 46 K, 2.18 FIP, 1.4 fWAR Almost 12 innings pitched, a pair of quality starts and 16 Ks. That line would be enough to get a pitcher an honourable mention here. In this case, it represents the gulf between what Dylan Cease did this month and the second-most by a Jays pitcher. Cease picked up his first win of the month when he went seven scoreless innings against Seattle, striking out nine against three hits and a walk in what was arguably the best start by any Blue Jays pitcher to that point in the season. By the end of the month, it would barely warrant mentioning. Heading into the All-Star break and facing San Francisco, Cease would take a no-hitter into the 9th inning, notch 11 Ks (his sixth time with 10+ strikeouts this season), and this still wasn’t his best performance of the month! Cease earned the start in the Midsummer Classic and tacked on a bonus inning and 3 Ks to his month, getting three swinging strikeouts against the top of the NL roster. On the road in Boston, Cease continued his dominant month with a masterpiece. Pitching a no-hitter through five innings on the way to a complete game, one-hit shutout. His 12 Ks tied his season high, and taken as a whole, this represented one of the most impressive pitching performances in Blue Jays history. His Game Score of 94 is the sixth highest ever by a Toronto pitcher. The high-water mark of 100 belongs to Brandon Morrow in 2010, which was the last time a Toronto pitcher threw a one-hit shutout. Cease became the 10th Jay to perform the feat, and combined with his almost no-no, joined Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers of the modern era to go 8+ innings, allow one hit or fewer, and strike out 10+ batters in back-to-back road starts. He’s not just our pitcher of the month, he’s MLB’s too:

One-time closer Jeff Hoffman has been traded to the Minnesota Twins, as reported by Jeff Passan. The return for Toronto is reported to be Dasan Hill, John Klein and Dameury Pena. Last year's trade that sent Louis Varland to Toronto and Hoffman's loss of ninth-inning duties made him expendable. Hoffman signed a three-year, $33 million deal with the Jays ahead of the 2025 season and became their de facto closer, racking up 33 regular season saves and another pair in the playoffs, including the Game 7 ALCS clincher. His accumulation of blown saves and 15 homers surrendered, along with the World Series Game 7 blown save, took a lot of the shine off of Hoffman (to put it mildly). The rise of Varland to ninth-inning duties (plus the addition of Tyler Rogers) pushed Hoffman into lower-leverage situations where he performed much better. His cost and diminished role (with improved results) made him an expendable piece. The Twins will be taking on the remainder of Hoffman's '26 salary, but the Jays have agreed to pay a portion of his '27 earnings. The highlight of the package coming to Toronto is Hill. The lefty was ranked as the Twins' No. 7 prospect by MLB Pipeline. He is a 'hard thrower with serious upside,' according to Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. Righty Klein is ranked No. 17 by MLB Pipeline, and for those following along with the live chat on DiamondCentric's YouTube channel, Pena is highly thought of as well. In keeping with the shades of last year's Varland trade, Klein is also a Minnesota native. Our sister site Twins Daily's Prospect Rankings had Hill ranked No. 9, with Klein and Pena outside of the organization's top 20. From their scouting report on Hill: Certainly sounds like someone for fans of the Jays' minor league systems to salivate over while he builds himself into roster contention.

Jeff Passan is reporting that the Houston Astros have acquired Daulton Varsho. The Blue Jays center fielder is set to become a free agent at the end of the season, but the potential of a qualifying offer made his trade availability uncertain. The return for the Jays is reportedly right-hander Spencer Arrighetti. Varsho was worth 11.9 bWAR (8.4 fWAR) over four seasons in Toronto. His steady presence in center field only garnered one Gold Glove, but he arguably deserved at least one more. He came to the Jays ahead of the 2023 season in a trade that sent Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Gabriel Moreno to Arizona. That trade signified a move towards a defense-first outfield and a shift in team-building philosophy. In 2025, Varsho put up a 123 wRC+ (his only Toronto season over 100) and was one of the catalysts propelling the Jays on their postseason run. The 26-year-old Arrighetti has started 17 games for the Astros this season, posting a 7-5 record over 88 innings. His 4.60 ERA and 5.07 FIP line up with 87 Ks against 50 BBs. He is currently on the 15-day IL with nerve irritation in his right foot. He hit the IL twice last season with a broken thumb early in the year and right elbow inflammation, limiting him to just 35.1 IP. In 2024, he threw 145 innings and notched 171 strikeouts. Arrighetti has club control until at least the end of the 2029 season with options remaining, per Keegan Matheson of MLB.com. The Blue Jays are beginning a series in Houston tonight (first pitch 8:10 pm ET), and there are multiple reports that the Astros are hoping to have Varsho in their lineup for this evening's game. Shane Bieber is Toronto's projected starter, but with just over an hour to the deadline, that could change.

Any other day, the story would be about Vladimir Guerrero Jr. breaking his home run drought and the Jays offense breaking open for 10 runs. Just the fifth time this season they’ve notched double digits and the first time since May 9. Kazuma Okamoto’s grand slam, George Springer going back-to-back with Vladdy (just the second time the Jays have done that all season), the power of the stuffed dragon, Daulton Varsho putting his body on the line in center. All of that ended up being secondary; it was the Dylan Cease show in San Francisco. Cease was perfect through four innings, striking out six to that point before issuing a walk to Willy Adames with two outs in the fifth. A swinging strikeout of the next batter, Bryce Eldridge, would end the inning and keep the no-hit bid alive. The sixth inning started with a leadoff walk, followed by another pair of Ks and an easy groundout. The seventh inning looks like a smooth one on paper, but Jung Hoo Lee’s nine-pitch AB was a grind ending in a flyout, and Ernie Clement had to make a nifty play on the final out of the inning to keep the Giants hitless. Eldridge led off the eighth and hit a ball to deep center field. The ball had an xBA of .770, but xBA doesn’t account for Varsho being an absolute maniac. With a lot of fielders, you might think they gave it a little extra to preserve the chance of a no-hitter. Varsho, I think, makes this play even if the Jays are down 10 runs. Crashing into the wall motivates him. It certainly seemed to motivate Cease too, who reached back to strike out the next two batters and put him three outs away from history. On the third pitch to the leadoff batter, Cease’s 118th of the day, Heliot Ramos drove a sinker into center to break up the no-hitter. Ramos’ hit had an xBA of .880, the highest of any Giant on the day, so this wasn’t a case of bad luck necessarily, just bad timing. Cease would be lifted from the game and would exit to a standing ovation. Tyler Rodgers finished it off with four pitches, and that was that. Cease’s final line: 8 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 11 K. Cease’s game score of 88 is the best of any Jays starter this season, eclipsing his own previous high-water mark of 79 just last week against Seattle. In fact, Cease has six of the top 10 starts by game score for Toronto this season. This outing also marks the 10th time this season that Cease has thrown 100 or more pitches, with 118 setting a new career high. Dave Stieb is, of course, the first Blue Jay we think of when we talk about coming close to a no-hitter. Stieb, famously, took three no-hit bids to within an out of immortality before finally getting it done on Sept 2, 1990. He remains the only Blue Jay to ever achieve the feat. Toronto has the second longest active no-hitter drought, with only the Cleveland Guardians waiting longer (Len Barker in 1981). Brandon Morrow in 2010 came within an out of the no-no and struck out 17 on his way in one of the most impressive starts in Blue Jays history. Morrow’s game score of 100 is the Jays’ all-time best. Bowden Francis went into the ninth inning twice in 2024 before surrendering his first hit to the leadoff batter in both games. Marco Estrada took a perfect game into the eighth inning in 2015 (game score of 90), but his pitch count (129) and the game condition (Jays would win in the 12th inning) were against him. Then, of course, there was Roy Halladay’s second ever start. On Sept 27, 1998, Doc took a no-hitter into the ninth inning before losing it and the shutout (he still got the complete game) on a solo home run to Bobby Higginson. Doc’s game score of 89 was just one point better than Cease’s yesterday. Halladay would memorably go on to record a no-hitter (and a perfect game) with Philadelphia. Cease, in the reverse of Halladay, already has a no-hitter on his resume, having achieved it with the San Diego Padres in 2024. Wednesday marked the third time Cease has entered the ninth inning with no hits, having done it with the White Sox as well. That no-hit attempt was broken up by Luis Arraez, who was standing in the on-deck circle for the Giants yesterday – a fact that was certainly on Cease's mind. After the game, when asked if this start would give him a leg up on securing the starting role in the upcoming All-Star Game, Cease deflected and suggested that Cam Schlittler would be the likely starter. Yet, with John Schneider getting the final call, there may be a case for Cease to join Stieb and Halladay as the only previous Midsummer Classic starters with Toronto.