DUNEDIN — While the lights are bright in Anaheim, the heart of the Blue Jays’ future rotation is beating steadily in the humid air of Dunedin, Florida. Today, Jose Berríos takes the mound at TD Ballpark for his second rehab appearance, a start that many in the front office view as the “final litmus test” for the veteran right-hander’s recovery from an elbow stress fracture.
The road back for “La Makina” has been one of disciplined patience. After being shut down during the final week of Spring Training, Berríos has spent the last month engaged in a grueling recovery protocol. His first rehab start last week for the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays was a successful first step—not for the box score, but for the mechanics. He threw 47 pitches, showing his trademark “slurve” and a fastball that touched 94 mph. Most importantly, he reported zero discomfort the following morning.
“The first one was about seeing if the engine would turn over,” a Blue Jays player development official noted. “Today is about seeing if it can handle the highway. We’re looking for him to reach that 60-65 pitch mark and maintain his velocity through the fourth inning. If he does that, the conversation about him rejoining the big-league rotation becomes very real, very fast.”
The atmosphere in Dunedin is expected to be a mix of “prospect watchers” and nervous scouts. Berríos is the stabilizer this Toronto rotation desperately needs. With Shane Bieber sidelined for the year and the back end of the staff relying on a rotation of “openers,” Berríos represents 200 innings of veteran reliability.
Today’s outing against the Clearwater Threshers will be scrutinized for more than just pitch counts. Scouts will be looking at the “tunneling” of his pitches—making sure that his release point remains consistent as he tires. If Berríos can command the bottom of the zone and navigate a second time through the order without a dip in arm speed, the plan is to move him to Triple-A Buffalo for one final tune-up before a projected early-May return to Toronto.
“I’m ready to help my team,” Berríos told reporters via video call earlier this week. “I’ve done the work in the dark. Now I want to get back under the lights.” For a Blue Jays team looking to climb back to .500, today’s 1:00 PM start in Dunedin might be the most important game of the week.