The Toronto Blue Jays entered Spring Training this season with fewer roster questions than years past after their 2025 campaign ended in Game 7 of the World Series.
But one of the biggest question marks revolves around the role of lefty Eric Lauer.
The 30-year-old pitcher is pushing for a spot in the starting rotation this year after finishing last season pitching out of the bullpen.
“Being able to lock in mentally and physically as a starter is what’s best for me,” Lauer said after starting the Blue Jays’ Grapefruit League opener on Saturday. “It’s what I normally do. It’s how I normally prepare. I know where I’m supposed to be at certain times.”
Blue Jays manager John Schneider was not so committed when he spoke to reporters earlier in Spring Training. “He’s going into this saying he wants to be one of the starters,” Schneider said. “If that’s the case, that’s the case. We’re all ready to pivot, but this will be a normal starter’s spring for him.”
Lauer is coming off perhaps his most successful season in the majors since making his debut in 2018. He pitched to a career-best 3.18 earned-run average over 28 games (15 starts) in his first season with the Blue Jays after pitching in Korea in 2024.
Lauer made five appearances in the postseason, allowing three runs in 8.2 innings out of the bullpen. His last outing of the year came in Game 3 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he pitched 4.2 scoreless innings in a 6-5 loss in 18 innings.
While it was statistically a breakthrough season for Lauer, some decisions made throughout the year did not sit well with him. “The whole bouncing back and forth thing last year kind of hurt me in the long run – not physically, but in my standing,” Lauer said on Saturday. “I’d really like to perform, do what I did last year and show that I can start.”
As utility man Ernie Clement described it in July, Lauer was “probably [the Blue Jays’] unsung MVP,” after he stepped in to the starting rotation and stabilized it while Max Scherzer and Bowden Francis both dealt with injuries.
From June 11 to Aug. 27, Lauer started 13 games for the Blue Jays – in those games, he allowed two or fewer runs 10 times, held a record of 6-1 and the team went 11-2 overall. But when Scherzer was healthy and trade deadline-acquisition Shane Bieber was ready to join the rotation, Lauer was sent back to the bullpen, where he pitched the remainder of the season.
Lauer’s uncomfortable year continued into the off-season, when, despite his strong performance in every role he was used, he went to an arbitration hearing that he ultimately lost. The Blue Jays filed at $4.4 million, while Lauer filed at $5.75 million.
Lauer believed that the inconsistent usage – long relievers tend to get paid a lot less than starting pitchers – cost him in arbitration. “The fact I ended the year in the bullpen,” Lauer said Saturday, “was probably what lost me my case.”
The Blue Jays rotation appears to have five pitchers firmly ahead of Lauer: Kevin Gausman, last year’s breakout star Trey Yesavage, Jose Berrios and free-agent acquisitions Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce. Bieber is dealing with forearm fatigue that will keep him out of the rotation early, but when he is ready to go, that will bury Lauer even further on the depth chart – not to mention rumours that Scherzer and the Blue Jays may be working toward a reunion.
It’s rare for a rotation to go an entire season without injuries or performance issues forcing replacements into the mix. It’s why Schneider is happy to have Lauer on the team either way, given that he is flexible and can be used effectively out of the bullpen or as a starter.
“We want to stretch him out like a traditional starter,” Schneider said. “To have that option is great, knowing that he can kind of be a little bit flexible. That’s really, really, beneficial.”
It may not be so easy for Lauer, who will be a free agent at the end of the season, to accept a role that may lead to less lucrative contract offers.
For his part, Lauer has said all the right things when speaking to reporters. Given the nature of the game and injuries, he is looking to continue to build himself up to be ready for whatever the Blue Jays call on him to do.
“The way the game has evolved, it’s good to have as many starters as you possibly can built up,” Lauer said. “You never know what’s going to happen.”
