Toronto’s final home weekend took a subdued turn Saturday as the Blue Jays fell 5-1 to the Cincinnati Reds at Rogers Centre, leaving one game on the schedule and several larger questions waiting beyond it.
Sunday’s season finale will put Max Scherzer on the mound for Toronto. The future Hall of Famer has not determined whether the outing will be the last of his Major League career, giving the afternoon an added weight even as the club begins looking toward 2027.
Yesavage closes an interrupted season
Trey Yesavage made what amounted to a brief farewell appearance, working two innings on a 30-pitch limit. Toronto kept the 23-year-old starter on a short leash after he accelerated his buildup in an effort to be available for a possible postseason push.
Yesavage finished his season with a 3.69 ERA across 97 2/3 innings. A shoulder impingement cost him the first month of the season, and left knee surgery to repair a meniscus sidelined him for another six weeks later on. It was hardly a clean year, but the right-hander is expected to enter next spring healthy, with plenty still to build on.
His offseason priority is straightforward: fewer walks and a broader arsenal.
“I’d like to limit the walks, then hopefully add a fourth pitch to the mix,” Yesavage said.
His fastball and splitter remain the foundation, with a slider already in the mix. He said he has been experimenting with both a curveball and a two-seam fastball, though the decision on which offering best fits his repertoire can wait until the winter work begins.
Rotation work remains unfinished
If Toronto had to set a rotation today, Dylan Cease, José Soriano and Yesavage would form the front of it. The remaining spots are less certain, but there is no shortage of possible routes.
Cody Ponce is expected back after ACL surgery, though the club will need to decide how much volume to ask from him after a season largely lost to injury. José Berríos and Bowden Francis could also become options later in the year, while prospects may force their way into the picture. Toronto also appears likely to seek another middle-of-the-rotation arm.
One of the more intriguing internal candidates is Spencer Miles. The Rule 5 pickup has handled multiple assignments in his rookie year and finished Saturday with another inning, bringing his season line to a 2.63 ERA in 95 2/3 innings.
Miles had limited experience in the lower minors before making the jump to the majors, making his 2026 workload notable on its own. The Blue Jays intend to be deliberate in mapping out his next increase.
“We’re trying to find the perfect spot for the number of innings we want to get him to next year,” manager John Schneider said. “Then, how do we do that and what role do we do that in?”
Schneider suggested an increase of roughly 20 to 30 innings could put Miles in range of a fifth-starter role, provided his offseason goes smoothly.
“I think he has the stuff to do it,” Schneider said, while stressing that the club must commit to a workload plan that accounts for Miles’ unusual development path.
Clement looks to reset
Ernie Clement’s second half has raised another offseason question. He was productive through the first four months, carrying a .738 OPS into August, but entered Saturday at .652 after a difficult stretch. He has hit one home run over the past two months.
Schneider wondered whether the heavy workload caught up with Clement, who remains a popular presence in the clubhouse and a valuable defender.
“He’s played a lot,” Schneider said. “I wonder, ‘Did I play him too much in the second half?’”
The manager said Clement at times appeared to be trying to hit his way out of the slump, leading to more swings at pitches outside his better decisions. Earlier in the year, Schneider said, Clement had done a better job keeping his strike zone tight.
Clement still has a path to appearing in 150 games next season. The unanswered part is whether those games come primarily at second base or through a wider utility role.
For now, Toronto gets one more afternoon at Rogers Centre, with Scherzer’s decision about his future hanging over the final pitch of the 2026 season.
