Blue Jays Relief Pitcher Emerging at Perfect Time With Jeff Hoffman Struggling
The Toronto Blue Jays need a few breaks to go their way to start building some positive momentum and stick around in the playoff picture in the American League.
One of the reasons that they started the year so hot was the performance of their bullpen, led by new closer Jeff Hoffman.
He was lights out over his first 14 games, shutting the door on opponents with regularity. He was a perfect 7-for-7 on save chances and recorded three wins as well. His numbers were all off the charts, excelling in every area.
Unfortunately, he has fallen on tough times recently, making the late-game situation for the Blue Jays shaky.
Prior to a shutout inning being worked on May 17, his previous five outings included multiple implosions. He was tagged for three runs against the Los Angeles Angels on May 7 after recording only one out and five by the Tampa Bay Rays after recording only one out.
Unfortunately for the team, Hoffman is not alone in his struggles.
His job as the team’s primary closer isn’t in jeopardy, at least not yet, but they need him to regain the form that he showed earlier in the campaign.
Luckily for Toronto, they have other relief pitchers who are emerging as legitimate weapons for manager John Schneider to rely on.
One of them is Yariel Rodriguez, who was named a reliever on the rise by Greg Jewett of The Athletic (subscription required).
“He owns a four-game scoreless streak, with holds in three. He recorded 10 strikeouts (52.6% K-BB) over his 5.2 innings with a minuscule 0.351 WHIP,” he wrote in a piece that was published on May 15.
Since that point, Rodriguez has made two more appearances and extended his scoreless streak to six games, throwing three shutout innings in total on back-to-back days against the Detroit Tigers.
After a brutal 2025 debut, when he surrendered three runs in an inning of work against the Baltimore Orioles, he has been battling back to get his numbers in check.
He has been scored upon only once in eight May outings and is quickly becoming someone that the coaching staff can trust to come into games and perform at a high level.
Should Hoffman continue to falter, Rodriguez is a name to keep an eye on as someone who could see some save opportunities down the road.
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