SUGGESTED BLUE JAYS 6-MAN ROTATION 2025

Prior to All-Star Game first 97 starts

At the time that GM Ross Atkins revealed at the recent Meetings that the Blue Jays were interested in bolstering the rotation via adding an established starter, fans were left to wonder why. After all, wasn’t it a shaky bullpen, that needed to be addressed first?

Why add another starter? Didn’t the Jays already have one of the deepest five-man rotations in baseball. They have three reliable, workhorse starters – Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt -- who take the ball every five days and are consistent in their health. Add to that, their ’24 late-season phee-nom, Bowden Francis, under team control for the next five years, plus a fifth guy, Yariel Rodriguez, working under a comfortable long-term contract. The soon-to-be 28-year-old Cuban righthander needed his rookie year in ’24 to get back into the routine of being a starter, after having spent all of 2023 away from organized pro ball.    

With all of that Toronto rotation certainty, media, plus an angst-ridden fanbase expected the onus to be on improving the obvious weakness … the ‘pen. But perhaps there may be a method to this perceived Blue Jays’ roster-building, off-season madness.

Perhaps the Jays are being forerunners to a cutting-edge concept, moving towards the future of starting rotations. What about if the Jays are looking at a modified six-man rotation, making use of off-days and an extra starter to create a situation in which your main men most often can work through the marathon of 162 games with a built-in extra day of rest?

Here’s a simple question. Given current major-league rosters, comprised of 13 pitchers and 13 position players, and assuming a traditional five-man rotation, who would you rather have as your last pitcher, an eighth men in the bullpen handling mop-up duty, when the game is out of hand, or a sixth starter who would know, heading into the season, exactly what days he is expected to start. Easy answer. Whenever there is a longer stretch in which he is not needed to start, he can be a multi-inning long man. That seems far more desirable than an eighth and final reliever, who more often than not doesn’t have the manager’s trust. No-brainer.

Consider in that scenario, if someone becomes a day-of-game scratch because of a physical setback, instead of reaching into the parallel Bisons universe, finding out whose turn it is in and sending a car service to Buffalo for the drive up the QEW or flying him in from the road, instead of relying on an opener, you would have a true starter on hand, ready on, at least, normal rest.

In fact, the move to six seems inevitable for MLB.

With the influx of Asian pitchers used to pitching every sixth or seventh day and with the gentle manner in which young pitchers are brought along in the minor leagues, instead of having to shut them down in September just as the drive to the playoffs is heating up, why not build in reduced innings over six months so they still have bullets in October.

There’s evolution in the air. The Blue Jays in 2024 attempted, in the final two months, to build an extra day of rest for their three important veterans. To a man, when asked, they appreciated the extra recovery time between starts. They would all still be able to make 30-34 starts.   

Here is how it would work. Pete Walker and his staff would pre-plan a six-man rotation through the All-Star break, 97 games, 109 days. The goal to give the top five starters an extra day as often as possible, by assigning a sixth starter to the mix and by using off days with sagacity. The sixth starter, not yet on board, will be a mid-rotation arm via trade or free-agency.

Begin the exercise by building assignments around Starters 1-2 (Gausman-Berrios in either order). Then add the games for Bassitt as a clear No. 3. Nos. 4-5-6 can then be slotted in.

Within the 109 days, pre-ASG, Starter 1 would have 19 starts; Starters 2-3-4 have 18 each; Starter 5 would get 16 starts, while Starter 6 has 8 scheduled assignments and can, therefore, be used in long relief during his non-starting stretches, or even be optioned to Triple-A.

STARTER 1 (19 GS) …

Rest: 4 days 0; 5 days 19; 6+ days 0

March 27 vs O’s  … April 2 vs Wash … April 8 at Bos … April 14 vs Braves … April 20 vs M’s … April 26 at Yankees … May 2 vs Cle … May 8 at Angels … May 14 vs Rays  … May 20 vs Pads … May 26 at Tex  … June 1 vs. A’s … June 7 at Twins  … June 13 at Phi … June 19 vs AZ … June 25 at Cle … July 1 vs. NYY  … July 7 at CWS  … July 13 at A’s

SUGGESTED: Gausman with all of his 19 starts on 5 days rest. Five days rest are his career best stats.

STARTER 2 (18 GS) …

Rest: 4 days 1; 5 days 15; 6+ days 2

March 28 vs O’s  … April 4 at Mets  … April 10 at Boston … April 16 vs Braves … April 22 at Hou … April 27 at NYY … May 3 vs Cle  … May 9 at M’s … May 15 vs Rays … May 21 vs. Padres … May 27 at Tex … June 3 vs Phils … June 9 at Cards … June 15 at Phi … June 21 vs CWS … June 27 at Bos … July 3 vs NYY … July 9 at CWS

SUGGESTED: Berrios his numbers on 4-5-6+ days rest are steady but has admitted he likes that extra day.

STARTER 3 (18 GS) …

Days of rest: 4 days 3; 5 days 10; 6+ days 5

March 29 vs O’s … April 5 at Mets … April 11 at O’s … April 18 vs M’s … April 23 at Hou … April 29 vs Bos … May 4 vs Cleve … May 10 at M’s … May 16 vs Det … May 22 vs S.D.  … May 28 at Tex … June 4 vs Phils … June 10 at StL … June 17 vs AZ … June 22 vs CWS … June 28 at Bos … July 4 vs LAA … July 11 at A’s

SUGGESTED: Bassitt amazing career W-L on 5 days rest, but consistent with all.

STARTER 4 (18 GS) …

Rest: 4 days 1; 5 days 13; 6+ days 4

March 30 vs O’s … April 6 at NYM … April 12 at O’s … April 19 vs M’s … April 25 at NYY … May 1 vs Bos … May 7 at LAA … May 13 vs Rays … May 18 vs Det … May 24 at Rays … May 30 vs. A’s … June 5 vs Phi … June 11 at StL … June 18 vs AZ … June 24 at Cleve … June 30 at NYY … July 6 vs Angels … July 12 at A’s

SUGGESTED: Sign an outside veteran free-agent starter with post-season experience on a short-term deal to protect innings for your 5-6 starters, Bowden Francis and Yariel Rodriguez.

STARTER 5 (16 GS) …

Rest: 4 days 1; 5 days 10; 6+ days 5

March 31 vs Wsh … April 7 at Bos … April 13 at Bal … April 21 at Hou … April 30 vs Bos … May 6 at LAA … May 11 at M’s … May 17 vs Det … May 23 at Rays … May 29 vs A’s … June 6 at Min … June 14 at Phi … June 20 at CWS … June 26 at Cle … July 2 vs NYY … July 8 at CWS

SUGGESTED: Francis with 16 starts and only one on 4-days rest. Still assuming innings limit. Month of May and from mid-June to all-star would be his busiest stretches. If he averaged 6 IP per start, he would have just 96 innings at the all-star break.

STARTER 6 (8 GS) …

Rest: 4 days 0; 5 days 2; 6+ days 6

April 1 vs Wsh … April 9 at Bos … April 15 vs Atl … May 25 at Rays … May 31 vs A’s … June 8 at Min … June 29 at Bos … July 5 vs LAA

SUGGESTED: Y-Rodriguez because he seems still to be the most useful in terms of a dual role starter and long relief. Has long stretches without a start – between April 15 to May 25; June 8 to June 29. Could even be optioned to Buffalo in that April-May stretch of 39 days so he can remain stretched out.

IF NO OTHER STARTER OBTAINED: Bowden Francis moves up and becomes No. 4 wirh Y-Rod No. 5 with the six-hole going to Bullpen/Yarbrough (or someone short-term acquired via trade or free-agency).  

Mid-Rotation ’25 Free Agents Now Available: RH Nick Pivetta, RH Chris Flexen, RH Mike Clevinger, RH Mike Soroka, LH Matthew Boyd, LH Yusei Kikuchi, RH Justin Verlander, RH Michael Lorenzen, LH Andrew Heaney, LH Max Fried, RH Charlie Morton, RH Walker Buehler, RH Frankie Montas, RH Colin Rea, LH Sean Manaea, RH Luis Severino, LH Jose Quintana, LH Martin Perez, RH Kyle Gibson, RH Trevor Williams, LH Patrick Corbin.