Trey Yesavage burst onto the scene last September for the Toronto Blue Jays. He played a massive role in their magical run to the World Series, and now that he has that experience under his belt, expectations for the rookie have risen.
Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report released his breakout pitching candidates for every team ahead of the 2026 season. The Blue Jays candidate is, of course, Yesavage.
And it’s for good reason: the 22-year-old set expectations incredibly high with his electrifying playoff performance, most notably in game five of the World Series. Yesavage pitched seven innings, allowing just one run on three hits with 12 strikeouts en route to a win over the vaunted Los Angeles Dodgers.
Now, Yesavage is a lock to make the Blue Jays opening day roster, potentially as the No. 3 starter behind Kevin Gausman and Dylan Cease.
Yesavage Listed as Breakout Candidate
Here’s what Reuter wrote about Yesavage:
“Yesavage is more experienced than his surface-level numbers suggest after pitching some huge innings in October,” Reuter wrote. “Brilliant starts in the ALDS (5.1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 11 K) and World Series (7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 12 K) proved his stuff would play in the pressure cooker of October baseball. Now, he enters his first full season as one of the AL Rookie of the Year favorites and a lock for the Opening Day rotation.”
Now that we know Yesavage has the guts to pitch in big playoff moments, the question becomes his longevity; can he make 30 starts throughout the season while staying healthy and effective?
This is surely what the Blue Jays strength and conditioning staff has worked on with him in the offseason. At 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, he has the frame to take on a heavy workload, but do remember, this is a guy who was pitching at East Carolina in college less than two years ago.
His quick ascent through the minor leagues in 2025 saw him pitch 98 innings; more than he ever threw in a single season in college, but not nearly as many as will be expected of him this season. True MLB starters are expected to be able to get anywhere between 150-200 innings per season.
Yesavage will need to prove he’s capable of that.
Blue Jays Rotation Taking Form
Toronto’s rotation is strong at the top, but systemic depth is certainly lacking. As of February, with Max Scherzer still unsigned and Shane Bieber expected to start the season on the IL, the health of the top five pitchers becomes hugely important.
As it stands, the Blue Jays rotation will be Gausman, Cease, Yesavage, Cody Ponce, and José BerrÃos.
Gausman, at 34, had a strong 2025 season, but as he continues to age, he projects to drop in the rotation. This makes the signing of Cease that much more important, as he’ll be the No. 2 guy on the depth chart.
Cease will need to get back to the pitcher he was in 2022 with the Chicago White Sox, where he finished with a 2.20 ERA and 227 strikeouts, en route to a second place finish in the Cy Young voting.
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