Jose Berrios rehab start takes concerning turn in Triple-A

Instead, Toronto is heading into another wait-and-see call. Berrios' first Triple-A rehab start with Buffalo did not look like the clean final step the club wanted before bringing him back.

The line was ugly enough on its own. Berrios worked 4 innings, allowed 5 earned runs on 5 hits, gave up 2 home runs, walked 2, struck out 2, and threw 70 pitches.

That matters because this outing was supposed to be a real checkpoint. Just 3 days ago, Berrios said he was feeling great physically and was lined up for 70-75 pitches, with a major-league return possible if the start went well.

It did not go well. RotoWire reported his fastball sat around 92 mph, and while Buffalo let him stretch out to the planned workload range, the overall sharpness was not there.

That is the part that gives Toronto a harder decision now. A pitcher can survive a messy rehab line if the stuff looks crisp and the body looks right. Berrios checked the pitch-count box, but not much else.

The contrast with his previous outing makes this stand out even more. In his second rehab start last week, Berrios threw 4 scoreless innings, struck out 5, scattered 3 hits, and did not walk a batter for Single-A Dunedin.

That is where this gets tricky for Schneider and the front office. One rough rehab start does not erase the progress Berrios had been making, especially after he had already built from 47 pitches to 55 and now to 70.

But the Blue Jays also cannot pretend this was a harmless box-score blip. Two home runs, 2 walks, and only 2 strikeouts against Triple-A hitters is not the clean tune-up you want from a veteran trying to rejoin a major-league rotation.

That leaves Toronto with 2 choices. It can focus on the workload and trust Berrios' track record enough to activate him anyway, or it can give him another rehab turn and ask for a cleaner version before handing him the ball in the majors.

There is a real case for patience. Berrios is working back from a stress fracture in his elbow, and the whole point of this assignment is to make sure he is not only healthy enough to pitch, but ready enough to help.

For now, the clearest takeaway is simple. Jose Berrios reached the pitch count the Blue Jays wanted, but he did not give them the smooth Triple-A start that would have made the next move obvious.