Toronto’s Wild Card push hit an uneasy stretch Sunday when the Blue Jays sent Dylan Cease back to Toronto for an MRI on his pitching shoulder. The club was awaiting the results, but it has already removed its ace right-hander from Wednesday’s scheduled start against Baltimore.
Key takeaways
- Cease underwent a shoulder MRI on Saturday after returning to Toronto.
- He has been scratched from the Blue Jays’ Wednesday matchup with the Orioles.
- Manager John Schneider has not ruled out a return for the final regular-season series against Cincinnati.
- Cease has worked through fatigue for several weeks.
- The right-hander owns an 11-6 record, a 2.40 ERA and an American League-leading 239 strikeouts.
A rough finish in Texas
The concern follows Cease’s abbreviated start Friday against the Rangers, a 7-1 Toronto loss that left little room for comfort as the club tries to remain in the American League Wild Card picture.
Cease lasted 2 2/3 innings and threw 74 pitches. He was charged with four runs, though only one was earned, while allowing three hits and issuing a season-high six walks. The outing came after a stretch in which the right-hander had been managing fatigue.
Toronto will now wait on the shoulder examination before deciding whether Cease can take the ball again this season. Schneider left open the possibility that the club’s top starter could rejoin the rotation for the Reds series, the final set on the regular-season calendar.
The rotation’s biggest question
Cease has been the backbone of Toronto’s staff. His 2.40 ERA and 239 strikeouts placed him among the league’s most dependable frontline arms, and he entered Sunday as the American League strikeout leader.
That makes the timing particularly difficult. With Baltimore next and the Wild Card race still demanding every available inning, the Blue Jays are facing a rotation decision without the certainty of their most productive arm. For now, the MRI result will determine whether Cease’s Friday struggle was simply a bad night at the end of a tiring run, or the beginning of a more serious late-season concern.
