Newly signed closer Kirby Yates is "very likely" to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery on his right arm, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins told reporters before Tuesday night's game.
Yates, whose flexor-pronator strain in his right arm was announced by the club on Monday, made two appearances with Toronto this spring after signing a one-year, $5.5 million contract with incentives in January.
The 33-year-old right-hander, who posted a 1.19 ERA with 41 saves as an All-Star with the Padres in 2019, had all but secured Toronto's closer role, but while there’s no understating the impact of this loss on the back end of the 'pen, the club has pieces to cover Yates’ absence.
This isn’t a new challenge, either, after manager Charlie Montoyo and his staff pieced together their bullpen without closer Ken Giles for much of the shortened 2020 season.
“It’s a big blow,” Montoyo said Monday. “We are lucky that our bullpen is deep enough that we can hang in there until Kirby comes back. I feel good about our bullpen, but it’s a big loss.”
Jordan Romano was recently described by Walker as a “closer in the making,” and the Canadian right-hander is built for the ninth inning. Romano broke out in 2020, posting a 1.23 ERA with 21 strikeouts over 14 2/3 innings before a middle finger injury cut his season short. He struck out the side on Monday against the Tigers, giving him 12 strikeouts over his five Grapefruit League innings.
Romano’s fastball averaged 96.5 mph in 2020, per Statcast, and he’s reached the 98-mph range consistently through Spring Training. His wipeout slider is a top-tier weapon when he’s spotting it, too, rounding out Romano’s classic closer profile.
The only thing working against this simple solution is that the classic closer profile has evolved. This solution won’t be as simple as replacing one arm with another in the ninth inning.
The Blue Jays also trust right-hander Rafael Dolis, who saved five games for them in 2020 and 96 over four seasons in Japan prior to returning to the Major Leagues. David Phelps gives the Blue Jays another veteran option at the back end of their bullpen, while Tyler Chatwood has impressed this spring, too. Ryan Borucki and Julian Merryweather are also expected to see some high-leverage innings.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiSGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm1sYi5jb20vbmV3cy9raXJieS15YXRlcy1leHBlY3RlZC10by1oYXZlLXRvbW15LWpvaG4tc3VyZ2VyedIBUWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3Lm1sYi5jb20vYW1wL25ld3Mva2lyYnkteWF0ZXMtZXhwZWN0ZWQtdG8taGF2ZS10b21teS1qb2huLXN1cmdlcnkuaHRtbA?oc=5
2021-03-23 20:49:48Z
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