The Blue Jays used five pitchers in nine innings Tuesday, and it still wasn't enough.
Toronto fell 6-1 to the Guardians, dropping to 68-71 and 2.5 games back of Cleveland in the wild-card race.
Spencer Miles opened, working a scoreless first. Ricky Tiedemann followed with a scoreless second, walking two but allowing no hits.
Spencer Arrighetti came in for the middle innings and surrendered two runs across 3.2 innings, carrying a 6.55 ERA that isn't impressing anyone through his first few Blue Jays starts.
Joe Mantiply, activated off the 60-day IL that same day, allowed two runs of his own.
Michael Lorenzen closed it out, giving up two more in the eighth.
Three of those five pitchers weren't even on the roster a few weeks ago. That's how fast this team's plans have changed.
Why help can't arrive soon enough for this staff
Dylan Cease remains the one certainty in this rotation. He's 9-5 with a 2.33 ERA over 25 starts, striking out 217 batters in 150.1 innings while holding hitters to a .176 average.
Everyone behind him is a different story entirely.
Kevin Gausman was traded to the Cubs at the deadline. Jose Berrios is out until late 2027 after Tommy John surgery. Bowden Francis is done for the year following UCL reconstruction.
Patrick Corbin remains out with a left teres major strain. Trey Yesavage is hoping to return this season after August meniscus surgery. Shane Bieber sits on the IL with right teres major inflammation, likely out at least two weeks.
That's six starters sidelined or gone entirely, forcing Toronto into exactly the kind of patchwork night this loss represented.
Jameson Taillon is tentatively lined up to return Friday against the Royals, out since Aug. 11 with forearm tendinitis.
He's made just two starts for Toronto this season, posting a 3.38 ERA over eight innings in that small sample.
Under normal circumstances, a starter's return would just be added depth. Here, Toronto needs him to take the ball every fifth day and simply hold up.
Five pitchers in nine innings says everything about where this staff currently stands. Another significant injury might be more than this team can absorb.
Whether this patchwork approach can hold together long enough to keep October in reach is the real question hanging over the final month.
Can the Blue Jays' patchwork pitching staff survive the stretch run without another major injury?
Also read on Blue Jays Insider :
Blue Jays release another pitcher as September roster move carrousel continues
