Blue Jays' Jose Berrios bounces back in his second start of spring against Yankees
Photo credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Toronto Blue Jays veteran right-hander José Berrios delivered a much sharper performance in his second Grapefruit League outing Saturday, turning in four scoreless innings against the New York Yankees in a split-squad matchup.
While much of the attention in Dunedin, Fla., centered around the club's marquee off-season addition, Berrios quietly made his own impression in Tampa.
The 31-year-old did not allow a hit, struck out two and issued a pair of walks over his four frames of work.
His velocity ticked up noticeably from his spring debut.
Jose Berrios averaged 93.1 m.p.h. with his four-seam fastball and 92.1 m.p.h. with his two-seamer, an encouraging sign as he builds toward the regular season. Despite the strong outing, the Blue Jays fell 5-1.
José Berrios pitched 4.0 scoreless innings vs. Yankees in Tampa today. Velo was back to normal, too. Averaged 93.1 mph with his four-seamer and 92.3 mph with his two-seamer. Normal caveats apply - it's early, results don't matter - but seemingly a positive step.
Berrios was throwing noticeably harder than his last outing against the Phillies.
Jose Berrios just threw one of the hardest 4-seamers he's thrown in a long time. 94.2 MPH at the top of the zone and got a funky swing from Spencer Jones.
Back at TD Ballpark, off-season prize Dylan Cease, who inked a $210-million deal this winter, recorded five outs against the Philadelphia Phillies, striking out three.
Berrios trying to strengthen is place in the starting rotation
With Cease and Cody Ponce joining the organization, Berrios' place in the starting rotation has appeared less certain.
However, performances like Saturday's strengthen his case to remain a key part of the group, particularly with Shane Bieber not yet progressing to mound work and the club taking a cautious approach with Trey Yesavage.
Max Scherzer and Eric Lauer are also competing for rotation spots, adding further intrigue to the mix.
Berrios did not pitch in the 2025 postseason after landing on the injured list for the first time in his career due to what was later revealed to be a torn biceps tendon.
Before the injury, he had been steady as ever, posting a 3.26 ERA across his first 17 starts.
He struggled down the stretch, however, recording a 5.63 ERA over his final 14 appearances.
The right-hander briefly stepped away from the team during the World Series and addressed the matter upon reporting to camp this spring, apologizing to teammates and calling it a «bad decision.»
Berrios finished the 2025 campaign with a 4.17 ERA over 166 innings in 31 starts, his lowest total for both innings and starts in a full season since 2017.
Prior to that, he had made exactly 32 starts in six of the previous seven seasons, with the lone exception coming during the shortened 2020 schedule.
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| POLL | ||
FEVRIER 28|101 ANSWERS Blue Jays' Jose Berrios bounces back in his second start of spring against Yankees Do you think Jose Berrios will be the fifth starter for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2026? | ||
| Yes | 82 | 81.2 % |
| Eric Lauer | 5 | 5 % |
| Max Scherzer | 10 | 9.9 % |
| Other | 4 | 4 % |
| List of polls | ||