There have been plenty of ups and downs during the Toronto Blue Jays season, but they are on fire lately and look ready to go on a deep playoff run. They swept the Boston red Sox in a three-game series over the weekend by a score of 25-3 and now hold a comfortable lead in the first wild card position. With just three games left in the regular season, it is a good time to look back at the year and why they have been successful.
They started off the campaign with what looked to be one of the best rotations in baseball. However, things did not go as planned. Hyun-jin Ryu made only six starts and then missed the rest of the year with injury. Jose Berrios, their opening day starter has been a complete disaster and is statistically one of the worst starters in baseball. Free agent acquisition Yusei Kikuchi was terrible as well.
So how did a team who had three of their five starting pitchers come nowhere near their expected performance win over 90 games?
24-year-old righty Alek Manoah was sensational. He’s top five in several major pitching statistics in the American League. He set a record for lowest ERA in September with 0.88. Kevin Gausman leads the entire MLB in FIP and earned every cent of his 22-million-dollar contract. Ross Stripling emerged from the bullpen and took Ryu’s spot in the rotation. He went from a utility man to one of the most reliable pitchers in the league.
Alek Manoah is red hot at the perfect time 🔥
He posts the lowest single month ERA in Blue Jays HISTORY
(h/t @SNstats) #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/nYSznmCV85
— Tim and Friends (@timandfriends) October 1, 2022
These three all-star quality starters are one of the best pitching trios in the history of the Blue Jays. When you have starters like this and pair them with a closer like Jordan Romano, you’re going to win a ton of games.
Oh yeah, they also have a top two offence in the AL. Five guys hit over twenty home runs, Bo Bichette set a Jays record for hits in September with 48, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit over 30 home runs and the catching duo of Alejandro Kirk and Danny Jansen were the most productive hitters from the catcher position in the MLB.
Bo Bichette sets the franchise record for most hits in a month! pic.twitter.com/tfn5q5OK53
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) October 1, 2022