A predicted six-man Blue Jays rotation for 2027 puts Kevin Gausman back in Toronto. He's the one name on that list that doesn't belong.

The projection, laid out with the offseason now underway, runs Dylan Cease, Trey Yesavage, José Soriano, Cody Ponce, Gausman and Shane Bieber.

Going into 2026, the rotation looked like the strength of the roster. Ross Atkins landed Cease as the ace and stacked depth with Ponce, Max Scherzer and Bieber.

Then the IL swallowed it whole. At one point or another, every starter except Gausman landed there.

Bieber, Yesavage and José Berrios all opened the year on the shelf. Berrios never threw a pitch, undergoing Tommy John surgery in May.

Cease was the bright spot. He was phenomenal in his first season in Toronto and should have the Opening Day ball locked up for 2027.

Trey Yesavage slots in as Dylan Cease's No. 2

Behind him, Yesavage projects as the steadier second option. Soriano has the nastier stuff, but consistency gives the young arm the edge.

Spencer Arrighetti doesn't make the cut. After a brutal final couple of months, the plan sends him to the bullpen in low-leverage bulk work to rebuild some confidence.

Now the problem. Toronto traded the veteran at the deadline for Brett Bateman, an excellent return, and the idea is to bring him back on a smaller deal.

That's a bad plan. A 35-year-old the Blue Jays chose to move, with an ERA that climbed about a run above his career norm, shouldn't be handed a rotation spot back.

It's like getting back together with an ex because you still know where everything is in the kitchen. Comfort is doing all the work in that decision.

Bieber is the easier sell. Pitching coach Pete Walker knows exactly what he gets from both arms, but only one comes with Cy Young upside worth paying for.

Ponce carries his own question mark. He's working back from a torn ACL in his right knee, suffered in April.

Berrios complicates things later. If he's back in the early summer months as hoped, John Schneider's staff will face a choice, because Toronto won't run a seven-man rotation.

And if the injuries hit like 2026 again? A sixth starter beats a scramble, but that arm should have a future attached rather than a reunion tour.

Atkins has a full winter to find that pitcher. If he doesn't, this stops being a prediction and starts being the plan.