As Blue Jays look to remake bullpen, re-signing Yarbrough makes sense

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Ryan Yarbrough sure drove the Toronto Blue Jays nuts during his five seasons with the Tampa Bay Rays. In the 23 games they faced off, he posted a 9-3 record and 3.52 ERA in 94.2 innings, time and again leaving batters flummoxed that they didn’t square him up. Along the way, he earned their grudging respect.

His July 30 acquisition in a deadline deal that sent Kevin Kiermaier to the Los Angeles Dodgers put an end to those feelings of torment, and with nearly two months together now, the Blue Jays are feeling something new for the crafty lefty — appreciation.

“He is such an undervalued piece in baseball,” pitching coach Pete Walker said Sunday before Yarbrough allowed one run over four innings of bulk work in a 4-3 loss to the Rays. “That kind of guy, you cannot find him. He gives you innings. He's not afraid. He's a professional. He goes about his business the right way. He'll take the ball in any situation.

“I've enjoyed watching him from a distance in the past and now seeing him on our side, I realize how valuable he is to a rotation and a bullpen,” Walker continued. “For me, he's like the glue between the cracks.”

Yarbrough’s certainly demonstrated that in his 11 appearances with the Blue Jays, with three of his past six outings coming in a bulk role on pre-planned bullpen days to ensure the rotation pitches with an extra day of rest. Seven times he’s gone at least two innings, topping out at five frames, and only once has he allowed more than one run.

Besides getting the starters extra rest, his flexibility has also allowed the Blue Jays to better manage the bullpen usage of others, which can reduce the need to shuttle relievers up and down to ensure there are enough fresh arms around.

In short, he impacts the entire pitching staff well beyond his work on the mound, akin to the role Ross Stripling filled when he was initially acquired from the Dodgers in 2020 before cementing his spot in the rotation, and the work Trevor Richards did the past three years.

“He's kind of found his niche a little bit to where he gets it when an opener is needed for him and he gets it if he needs to come in and throw 10 pitches in one outing,” manager John Schneider said of Yarbrough. “It's a really valuable piece to have.”

Facing the Rays for the first time since they parted ways with him after the 2022 season, Yarbrough deserved a better fate. Following Ryan Burr — who in three outings as an opener has thrown 4.1 shutout innings, allowing three hits with seven strikeouts — he nursed a 1-0 lead provided by Leo Jimenez’s fourth-inning sac fly into the sixth, when he left with one on and one out. Zach Pop retired Junior Caminero but then served up a two-run shot to Jonathan Aranda — the infielder going deep in each game of the series — that put the Rays up 2-1, capping a “very strange,” day back at Tropicana Field for Yarbrough.

“A lot of I feel like adrenaline to be able to see everybody again,” he continued. “Being on this side was obviously a technical adjustment, kind of finding my way around and everything, but super cool to be back and a lot of great memories here. Same time it's been good to come over here and kind of get in a good groove and continue that today.”

Ernie Clement’s RBI single in the seventh tied the game again but Christopher Morel’s sac fly off Genesis Cabrera in the bottom half restored the Rays lead and Brandon Lowe’s solo shot off Erik Swanson in the eighth padded their margin.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s RBI single in the ninth, giving him 100 RBIs in a season for the second time, pulled the Blue Jays within one, but they could get no closer.

“It's a great personal accomplishment and to do it the way he's done it, especially in the second half, speaks volumes to how good he is, how talented he is,” Schneider said of Guerrero. “Hopefully he can take a deep breath and say, 'I've got 30 and 100' and get a few more in each of those categories.”

The finale capped a frustrating weekend for the Blue Jays at Tropicana Field, capping a 35-46 season on the road this year. Their final six games of 2024 are at home, beginning Monday with the first of three against Boston.

Yarbrough is the club’s only pending free agent in what will be a cross-roads off-season for the franchise. 

What his market looks like is uncertain but given the steps the Blue Jays took to protect their starters after the deadline, finding ways to do it again in 2025 over the full season is something “we have discussed and thought of looking into next year,” said Walker. “It depends on how you put it together. If you have a guy like Yarbs and you have a good opener, obviously there are some more possibilities. You can kind of squeeze that in when possible to maybe give the rotation an extra day rest here and there and maybe over the course of the season, that makes a big difference.”

In an era that prizes velocity above all else, the way Yarbrough pitches sticks out, with his average fastball velocity of 86.2 m.p.h. ranking in the first percentile. Still, the average exit velocity against him is in the 97^th percentile at 85.9 m.p.h., as he mixes in a curveball, sinker, changeup and cutter to control bat-speed and generate weak contact.

“When you're going against him, it's frustrating and probably uncomfortable for hitters 0-for-3,” said Schneider. “But he has a really good idea of what he wants to do. I've been really impressed with his preparation, professionalism, understanding of what he's good at and you can see why he's been doing it for a long time.”

That experience has him prepared for the adaptability and mindset necessary to perform in a role that isn’t easy.

“The routine at this point is kind of down,” said Yarbrough. “I know what I'm doing at this point with those situations and that role. (Sunday) was a matter of being ready to go and when the phone rang, get up and start throwing, get in there and just execute pitches.”

Something that he’s done well with a Blue Jays team that can use the rare skillset he offers.