When the Toronto Blue Jays signed hurler Dylan Cease for a seven-year, $210 million deal, plenty of eyebrows went up around the Majors. After all, signing pitchers to long-term contracts, and for that kind of money, is risky enough.
But on Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cease made the Blue Jays look like geniuses for signing him. With the Jays riding a six-game losing streak and no apparent way to stop the bleeding, Cease took the mound and delivered a solid outing.
Cease went up against Shohei Ohtani. While Ohtani had a better outing, Cease gave the Blue Jays the type of performance the team needed at such a crucial moment.
The 30-year-old tossed five innings, giving up one earned run while striking out eight. Cease left in the sixth in a bit of a pickle, but Louis Varland managed to pitch his way out of the mess. Varland managed to get out of a bases-loaded jam, giving up just one run on a sac fly.
The Blue Jays rallied to win the game and snap the losing streak. Jeff Hoffman nailed down the save in the ninth inning.
Now, make no mistake. Cease’s outing on Wednesday night at Rogers Center wasn’t exactly overpowering. It’s not like he took a no-hitter into the eighth inning. But the performance was the sort of showing that teams often need to stop a slide.
Moreover, facing such a deep lineup like the Dodgers made Cease’s performance all the more important. No, it wasn’t a Cy Young-worthy outing. But it’s what a stopper has to do when the team is on the skids.
Cease Looking Solid for Blue Jays through 3 Starts
Cease has looked good through three starts for the Blue Jays thus far this season. The huge offseason acquisition made his debut on March 28 against the Athletics. He tossed 5.1 innings, allowing one run on three hits, while fanning 12.
In his next outing, Cease wasn’t overly impressive against his former team. Cease surrendered five hits and three runs, two earned, against the Chicago White Sox. He fanned six over 4.1 innings, getting a no-decision in a tough-luck 5-4 extra-inning loss.
Then, Wednesday night’s solid outing snapped the Blue Jays’ losing streak. Cease, who has yet to give up a long ball this season, brought his strikeout total to 26 on the season, and his ERA down to 2.46.
If Cease can keep up those numbers, he may just give the Blue Jays a chance to head back to the postseason this fall.
Jays’ Bats Not Really Supporting Pitchers
While the Blue Jays’ pitching staff hasn’t exactly been dominant this season, the bats haven’t really supported pitchers.
Toronto is 26th in the Majors in runs scored with 41 and 15th in hits. Plus, the ballclub is 18th with 10 longballs. That’s something that has to change. The Blue Jays need the offense to pick up, particularly with the AL East still within reach.
At 5-7, the Jays are just one game behind the 6-6 Baltimore Orioles for second in the division. The New York Yankees are 8-3 to start the season, but there’s plenty of time to turn the ship around.
With decent pitching, the Jays’ bats have to get going if they are to get back into the AL East race.
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