The Toronto Blue Jays have some major issues headed their way
Photo credit: Blue Jays Nation
After a solid 12-8 start to the season, the Toronto Blue Jays have stumbled significantly, going just 4-12 over their last 16 games.
While some losses came at the hands of stronger opponents, more recently, the team has squandered winnable games with costly mistakes and missed opportunities.
The Blue Jays have blown late-game opportunities in four consecutive games.
Ian Hunter from the Blue Jays Nation writes for a club that's battled offensive inconsistency all season, the Blue Jays finally showed a spark, stringing together hits with runners in scoring position and finding the long ball that had largely eluded them.
However, that surge may have been fleeting, as early signs suggest the momentum isn't sticking.
"Last Saturday, it was a 3-1 lead for the Guardians. The next day, it allowed the Guardians to lead 5-3 heading into the ninth inning. And the first two games of this Blue Jays-Angels series were another pair of bullpen meltdowns, blowing a one and a two-run lead, respectively. And when I say 'meltdown', we're not talking Ryan Pressly's eight earned run meltdown game from earlier this week, but it was a lead blown, nonetheless." -Hunter
Hunter also writes that to put things in perspective, despite their recent four-game slump, the 2025 Blue Jays bullpen is still a clear improvement over last season's group. Their current ERA of 4.33 is nearly a full run lower than the 5.23 mark they posted at this same time in 2024, proof that, while not perfect, this year's relief corps has at least moved in the right direction.
"Some of that may be workload-related, as the Blue Jays have played an unusual number of close games to date. Of their 16 wins, 11 have been by two or fewer runs, which means most of those games have featured at least a few of Garcia, Little and Hoffman, if not all three in the same game, to protect a lead." -Hunter
Ultimately, the Blue Jays' recurring problem since early 2022 has been their inconsistent offense. Without steady run production from the lineup, the pitchers are left with little margin for error, constantly forced to perform under pressure in low-scoring games.
By now, the lineup is fairly predictable. The top three spots are still occupied by Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Santander. George Springer continues to hit in the cleanup spot, followed by Daulton Varsho in fifth and Alejandro Kirk in sixth.
"Sure, they have some big thumpers at the top of their lineup in Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Anthony Santander. George Springer's unexpected resurgence has been a tremendous boost to this team. But outside of those three bats, who else is going to drive the bus on offense for this team in 2025?" -Hunter
I guess that remains the million dollar question within this organization.
Source:
Blue Jays Nation
Despite bullpen struggles, the Blue Jays have a bigger problem under the hood
Blue Jays Nation
Despite bullpen struggles, the Blue Jays have a bigger problem under the hood
| POLL | ||
MAI 9 | 2382 ANSWERS The Toronto Blue Jays have some major issues headed their way Do you the Blue Jays' can turn it around this season? | ||
| yes | 1236 | 51.9 % |
| no | 1146 | 48.1 % |
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