Trey Yesavage struggles with command in fourth rehab outing

Trey Yesavage made his fourth and likely final rehab outing on Tuesday, and it didn’t go great.

The Toronto Blue Jays’ right-handed pitcher got his first out early, as Petey Halpin flew out on the third pitch of the game. Yesavage then walked top prospect Travis Bazzana on seven pitches. Yesavage got Kahill Watson to chase a splitter well below the zone for his first strikeout of the start.

It looked as if Yesavage was about to get out of the inning thanks to a ground ball from Nolan Jones, but Yesavage made a throwing error on the toss to the first baseman. That resulted in a run coming in and Jones going to third base. Cooper Ingle drove in Jones to make it 2-0, then Yesavage got out of the inning with a pop out.

The 22-year-old’s best inning was the second inning. Yesavage got Milan Tolentino to fly out softly for the first out. Next, he got Kody Huff to chase a 87.7 mph slider just below the zone for his second strikeout. The third out of the inning came courtesy of a lineout on the first pitch of the at-bat.

Yesavage’s worst inning was the third. Halpin hit a lead-off double, then Yesavage walked Bazzana a second time. Next up, Yesavage induced a fly out off the bat of Watson, but then walked Jones to load the bases, his third walk of the game. Yesavage’s final batter drew a walk to score a run, and Yesavage was taken out of the game. Brendon Little came in to replace Yesavage, getting a flyout that scored a fourth run.

Overall, Yesavage had a line of 2.1 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K. His command eluded him in the third inning, as he threw 35 pitches in the third inning before being replaced. In total, Yesavage threw 64 pitches, with only 37 of them being for strikes.

Diving deeper into his outing, Yesavage’s fastball averaged 94.3 mph, a tick down from his average last season. Yesavage’s fastball topped out at 95.8 mph, generating two whiffs on 10 total swings. The 22-year-old’s splitter also had a 20 whiff%, getting one whiff on five total swings. Of the three pitches, his slider was his best weapon, generating three swings on nine total swings.

Despite his struggles in this game, this appears to be Yesavage’s final rehab outing in the minor leagues. When Yesavage returns, the Blue Jays will need him to be better than what he showed in the four rehab games he appeared in. That said, getting a starter back will be huge for them, especially with Eric Lauer’s struggles.

José Berríos starts for the Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays on Wednesday.

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