The Blue Jays have released pitchers CJ Van Eyk and Beau Phillips, sending both into free agency. It's two more arms gone in a week full of turnover.

Van Eyk's exit comes just days after he cleared outright waivers. Toronto had assigned the right-hander to Triple-A Buffalo on Nov. 2, removing him from the 40-man roster.

Now he's out of the organization entirely. He made his big-league debut with the Jays in 2026, one of many young arms pressed into action during an injury-heavy season.

Phillips also heads to the open market. The club didn't share details behind either decision.

The list of departures keeps growing. Tanner Andrews, Josbel Garcia, Raimundo de los Santos, Daz Cameron, CJ Stubbs and Rhylan Thomas were all released in recent days.

Is Toronto thinning its pitching depth too aggressively? It's a fair question.

CJ Van Eyk's release continues a Blue Jays pitching purge

The Jays used 16 starters in 2026. Losing arms who already have big-league experience could leave them exposed if injuries strike again.

On the other hand, they've been adding. Nurberto German and Feremi Suriel signed recently, joining international additions like Windel Encarnacion and Cai-Chen Long.

Director of pitching Justin Lehr's program favours strike-throwing and count leverage. The front office appears to be reshaping depth around that approach.

The roster churn makes sense on paper, but the timing is risky. Ross Atkins is cutting experienced depth before he's landed the starters needed to replace it.

It's like tearing down a fence before the new one arrives. The yard looks cleaner, but the dog can wander off in the meantime.

The fix has to come in free agency. Michael King, Nick Pivetta and Clay Holmes have all been linked to Toronto.

Rule 5 protection decisions are due Nov. 17, and the lockout arrives Dec. 1. That leaves only a few weeks to rebuild the depth chart.

Both pitchers will now look for new homes. For the Jays, the question is whether the arms coming in will be better than the ones walking out the door.