The former first-round pick, now back from injury, is off to a fantastic start for the Jays.
On Wednesday night in the Bronx, Toronto Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage put up one of the best start of the season, delivering six shutout innings against the New York Yankees.
Not only did Yesavage blank New York, he limited them to just two hits and no walks while striking out eight.
Since starting the year on the injured list, Yesavage is now 2-1 with a microscopic 1.08 ERA through five starts. At 22-years-old, he's looking exactly how the Jays hoped he would when they selected him in the first round of the 2024 MLB Draft (East Carolina).
Though Yesavage made quite the impact on Toronto during its playoff run to the World Series in 2025, it's important to note that he has only eight regular season starts under his career belt, making what he's doing extra impressive.
As noted by StatsCentre on social media:
Lowest ERA through a pitcher's first 8 regular season starts as a member of the @BlueJays franchise:
1.48- Jeff Musselman (1987-88)
1.83- Trey Yesavage (2025-26 via going 6 scoreless IP tonight vs NYY)
1.89- Kelvim Escobar (1998)
1.96- Roger Clemens (1997)
2.28- Three others tied
While eight starts is obviously a small sample size, that's very noteworthy. Clemens won back-to-back Cy Young Awards in Toronto. Roy Halladay, who is in the Hall of Fame, isn't on that list. Neither is Kevin Gausman, Pat Hentgen, Marcus Stroman or many other solid contributors that Toronto has had over the years.
Aided by his high release slot and his devastating splitter, Yesavage is extremely difficult to hit. And his emergence back to the rotation is something Toronto has needed in the midst of injury woes. Bowden Francis and Jose Berrios are out for the season with Tommy John surgery and Shane Bieber still hasn't pitched yet because for forearm fatigue. Max Scherzer is also on the injured list.
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Trey Yesavage (39) delivers a pitch during the second inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Vincent Carchietta-Imagn ImagesUp next for the Jays
The Blue Jays enter play on Friday at 23-27 and in third place in the American League East. They'll host the Pittsburgh Pirates (26-24) at Rogers Centre at 7:07 p.m. ET.
Gausman will take the mound for Toronto while top prospect Bubba Chandler pitches for Pittsburgh. Gausman is 3-3 with a 3.45 ERA while Chandler is 1-5 with a 5.14. Though he's struggled, he has one of the best fastballs in the league, so the Jays will have to be ready to capitalize on opportunities.
Paul Skenes will pitch on Saturday, making Friday's contest all the more important.
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