Blue Jays Shake Up Bullpen, Starters Progress

0:00BlueJay's GM Ross Atkins laid out some key bullpened ships on Friday. Relief pitcher Jeff Hoffman won't be the go-to closer anymore after recent struggles. Instead, they're rolling with a closer-by-committee approach, spreading those high-pressure 9th innings across multiple arms. Hoffman still gets big outs, but the load is shared now. Manager John Schneider backed that up, shouting out Louis Barlin for earning trust in leverage spots. He mentioned Mason-Fu Hardy for righty match-ups, Tyler Rogers for grounders, or really anybody ready to step up. This mix keeps things fresh down the stretch. On the starters, Atkins is pumped about Trey Yesavage's health and progress. No firm call yet on his next start, but it could hit the major soon. Jose Barrios is throwing a bullpen today, then heads to Buffalo for a rehab outing with his stuff looking sharp. Outfielder George Springer, the 36-year-old sideline since April 11th with a foot issue, is already hitting and running filling way. Better, it's day-to-day for him.

1:00Addison Barger is in the same boat, grabbing up and needs to face live pitching next. Shane Bieber's not far behind. Treating this like the start of his spring training, he'll hit live hitter soon. These tweaks could steady the Jay's ship as they push forward. Local news, powered by AI. This is Canada News Today.