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Jose Berrios gets positive update.
The Toronto Blue Jays had a major question this offseason about who would be the five starters.
Toronto signed Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce to join a rotation of Kevin Gausman, Shane Bieber, and Trey Yesavage. Yet, the Blue Jays still have Jose Berrios, who left the team during the World Series, as he wasn’t happy he was left off the playoff roster and moved to the bullpen down the stretch.
Berrios’ name came up in trade rumors, but Toronto opted not to move him. And, now as Spring Training opens, the veteran got great news as Bieber will miss the start of the season, meaning Berrios will be in the rotation.
“Blue Jays plan for Shane Bieber to open the season on the injured list,” Blue Jays reporter Ben Nicholson-Smith wrote on X. “He’s dealing with right forearm fatigue and his ramp-up will be delayed past opening day. He’s feeling good per John Schneider and playing catch, but won’t start the season on time. Described as week to week.”
With Bieber missing the start of the season, it will allow Berrios to claim one of the rotation spots. The hope is that Berrios will be much better in 2026 after he struggled down the stretch last season.
Berrios went 9-5 with a 4.17 ERA in 31 games, including 30 starts, last season.
Blue Jays Manager Opens up on Berrios’ Situation
After Berrios was left off the playoff roster, he wasn’t happy with his situation and ended up leaving the team during the run.
The pitcher was noticeably not in the clubhouse or on the bench, which raised some eyebrows. Yet, as the Blue Jays camp opened, manager John Schneider said both parties wished they handled everything differently last season.
“I think it was probably heat-of-the-moment stuff,” Schneider said about Berrios on Tuesday. “He was obviously not pitching for us. He was on the IL. So, we didn’t really deal with it at the time because we were trying to win the World Series. But I think that’s been handled.
“I think Jose realizes that it probably could have been handled a little bit differently. And, I’m sure he does, as well. But he’s the normal Jose that’s coming in ready. He’s had conversations with guys that he needed to have conversations with. And we want to just put that behind us.”
Berrios will now enter camp with hopes of regaining his form and showing he’s back on track and can be an effective starter for the Blue Jays.
Berrios is set to earn $19 million this season and has a player opt-out after 2026.
Toronto Has Starting Pitching Depth
Although the Blue Jays got bad injury news on Bieber, the team has plenty of starting pitching depth.
Schneider confirmed the team will stretch out Berrios and Eric Lauer to add some starting pitching depth.
“How we have planned…you have Cease, you have Gaus, you have Ponce, you got Trey (Yesavage),” Schneider said. “Lauer, we’re going to stretch out as a starter. Jose, we’re going to stretch out as a starter. He’s had a pretty productive offseason. Watched him throw today and was very encouraged.
“Hopefully, Shane isn’t that far behind. We’re kind of in a unique spot where some of our depth is actually on our 26-man roster.”
Toronto also has Ricky Tiedmann and Jake Bloss as two young prospects recovering from injuries who can give some starts down the stretch.
Cole Shelton Cole Shelton covers the NHL, MLB and Cleveland Browns for Heavy.com. He has covered pro and college sports since 2016, including bylines at BJ Penn, USA Today, SB Nation, Rotowire, Canadian Baseball Network and more. More about Cole Shelton
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