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The Toronto Blue Jays looking to bring back Chris Bassitt in new role
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
The Toronto Blue Jays have several free agents this winter, Bo Bichette being the most important, but Chris Bassitt is also a curious case, currently the Blue Jays have Trey Yesavage, Shane Bieber, Kevin Gausman and Jose Berrios that could start, if Bassitt stays what would his role end up being?
He could potentially start, if they cannot find any other starting pitchers, but would that be the ideal rotation?
Would Chris Bassitt be worth it to the Blue Jays?
Ryley Delaney of Blue Jays Nation writes about the role Bassitt would be playing if he re-joins the team.
While he could still be a starter, the Blue Jays should really be going after an ace like a Framber Valdez or Dylan Cease and Bassitt would be more utilized as a reliever but that all depends on what Bichette's contract ends up being us he re-signs.
"The veteran right-handed pitcher had some rough outings here and there, including allowing six runs in two and one-third innings, as well as eight earned runs in two innings. That said, he was rather consistent through the season in giving the Jays five or more innings, doing so 26 times in 31 starts. He had a strong April (2.62 ERA) and a strong September (2.66) to give him a solid season."-Delaney
Bassitt's biggest weakness this season was playing on the road. At home he was stellar with a 2.71 ERA, but on the road it jumped to a 5.47. All five games where he couldn't pitch more than 5 innings all came on the road.
Bassitt at best could be in the number 5 spot on the rotation but ideally that spot should be for Yesavage who still needs to get into the rhythm of an MLB workload.
"If that's the case, there's still a pathway to keeping Bassitt. After not being named to the Jays' American League Divisional Series roster, Bassitt returned to pitch in the American League Championship roster as a reliever."-Delaney
Bassitt could definitely still be useful to the Blue Jays, but in a smaller role for the team. The Blue Jays need to at the very least, sign a middle rotation starter, but ideally a top 2 starter would jump them up the power rankings.
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