TORONTO -- Great time for a best-case scenario.
The Blue Jays were quick to shuffle their rotation and Easton Lucas made good on their strategy, pitching five scoreless innings in a 4-2 win over the Nationals on Wednesday afternoon at Rogers Centre.
It was by far Lucas¡¯ best outing in a Blue Jays uniform, a silver lining coming out of a massive blow to Toronto¡¯s pitching staff. Recalled from Triple-A Buffalo last Sunday as the corresponding move for Max Scherzer¡¯s placement on the 15-day IL, Lucas held the Nationals to one hit and two walks with three strikeouts to help Toronto secure its first sweep of 2025 -- in his first Major League start.
The callup came earlier than anticipated, as did the start. Wednesday¡¯s finale originally lined up with Kevin Gausman¡¯s turn through the rotation, but with a tough series against the Mets set to start on Friday in New York, the Blue Jays got creative, giving Gausman some extra rest and turning to Lucas against a Nationals lineup that skews left-handed.
Chalk it up to a team set on finding every possible edge.
Scherzer¡¯s thumb issue cast doubts over Toronto¡¯s pitching depth even before he landed on the IL, and another wave of questions rushed in once the move was made. The Blue Jays had options, including bringing Yariel Rodr¨ªguez out of the bullpen for a spot start. The Cuban righty holds enough potential as a setup man -- a role in which he thrived during his time in Japan -- to stay where he is for now, but he¡¯s built up for length and can still give his team multiple innings if necessary.
That decision opened another avenue for Lucas, who appeared in two games with the Blue Jays after being claimed off waivers from the Tigers last August. Toronto was the third and final stop of Lucas¡¯ 2024 season. The organization saw enough upside to keep him around and work on improvements in the offseason.
¡°I know that I have the stuff, but last year the results were tough,¡± said Lucas, who pitched to a 10.80 ERA over 11 2/3 innings in the Majors in 2024. ¡°¡ To have them have confidence in me and to be the first guy up when they need a guy is incredible. I super appreciate it.¡±
No one was asking Lucas to be Max Scherzer, though.
The directive from manager John Schneider was simple: ¡°Be convicted and stay on the attack.¡± Lucas did just that, riding an effective high fastball and a revamped changeup to some quick outs that allowed the Blue Jays to take a breath before embarking on a stretch of 13 games in 13 days.
¡°He gave us everything that we needed,¡± said George Springer, who belted his first homer of the season to help Lucas to a win. ¡°A performance like that is huge [not just] for him, but especially for us as a team.¡±
That appreciation reached all corners of the clubhouse, including Scherzer, who hit Lucas with a ¡°way to step up¡± after the southpaw¡¯s day was done.
¡°That was awesome,¡± a smiling Lucas recalled. ¡°Yeah, [the starters] were all there. They're super supportive and great dudes, so it's awesome to get to hang around them.¡±
The Blue Jays are headed for New York with a 5-2 record and plenty to like about how things are going on either side of the ball. Still, one good outing does not not make a starter, and Lucas isn¡¯t exactly a lock to occupy this spot until Scherzer is healthy again.
If this team could get a couple more best-case scenarios out of this early adversity, it would probably entail a combination of Lucas starting and Rodr¨ªguez pitching for length out of the bullpen. Names like Eric Lauer and Jake Bloss (Toronto¡¯s No. 6 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) are still in play, though, especially considering the long stretch ahead.
¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± Schneider said when asked about how the Blue Jays will move forward. ¡°I think it was a good lineup for [Lucas] to navigate, with their left-handed hitters. So he did a good job. But I think each outing, it obviously means something, so excited for him today.¡±