Just when you thought the Toronto Blue Jays had finally gotten over their injury woes, another one bites the dust. On Monday, the Blue Jays placed starter Max Scherzer on the 15-day IL due to right forearm tendinitis and left ankle inflammation, as per Sportsnet. In a corresponding move, Toronto promoted reliever Chase Lee from their Triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons.
ROSTER MOVES:
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) April 27, 2026
🔹 RHP Max Scherzer placed on 15-day IL (right forearm tendinitis, left ankle inflammation)
🔹 RHP Chase Lee recalled from Triple-A and will be active tonight pic.twitter.com/fEMisHJuxb
With Scherzer being sidelined at this critical point in time, it may have made the Blue Jays’ supposedly tough decision for their upcoming rotation picture that much easier.
Prior to his injury, the Blue Jays had a pitching dilemma on their hands with regards to their starting five. Rookie Trey Yesavage is slated to come off the IL and start in Tuesday’s matchup against the Boston Red Sox. In the meantime, José BerrÃos is feeling great and also believes that he is ready to rejoin the Blue Jays in short order. But with Toronto having Kevin Gausman, Dylan Cease, Max Scherzer, Patrick Corbin and Eric Lauer already in the starting rotation, who would be losing their spot?
How will the Blue Jays' starting rotation look after Scherzer's injury?
Without question Gausman and Cease aren’t going anywhere, given that they are the de-facto duo aces of the Blue Jays pitching staff. That leaves Corbin, Lauer and Scherzer as the candidates to potentially be moved from the rotation. However, the circumstances surrounding each of those three in recent days may have ultimately made Toronto’s decision quite obvious.
The surprisingly effective performance of Corbin to date makes it hard for Blue Jays management to take him out of the picture right now. As for Lauer, he had expressed that he preferred to be a starter over being a reliever and wanted the opportunity to prove it this season. However, the 30-year-old left hander has struggled in each of his past four games. Finally for Scherzer, even prior to his injury, his hold on a rotation spot was in question after posting disastrous outings in two of his last three starts.
As a result, Corbin will likely get a longer look, while Yesavage and eventually BerrÃos should be joining the group to round out the Blue Jays’ starting five. Scherzer will be given all the time that he needs to fully recover from his multiple ailments while it also makes sense to move Lauer to the bullpen so that he can work out the kinks in his game. In such a setup, everyone would have their firm place and set role on the Blue Jays’ pitching staff as Toronto hopes to get the team back on track for the 2026 season.
Whether that setup ultimately comes to fruition will strictly be determined by management. Nevertheless, with the much-needed reinforcements finally arriving, things could finally be looking up for Toronto.