Dylan Cease Joins Exclusive Blue Jays Pitching History

The Toronto Blue Jays are starting to build some steam as the calendar flips from July to August. While it's likely the front office will trade away a handful of veterans with the upcoming deadline, Blue Jays fans have one player to rally behind on the mound: that's ace Dylan Cease.

Toronto has found more success as of late, and a large part of that has been consistently strong starts from Cease. His July was extra exceptional, so much so that Cease now finds himself etched next to some of the more dominant Blue Jay starting pitchers in franchise history.

Cease Joins Exclusive Club

Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Dylan Cease (84) pitches at Rogers Centre. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Following his recent start against the St. Louis Cardinals, which opened the three-game series at the Rogers Centre, Cease continued his monthly dominance, completing six innings, allowing three hits, one run, and seven strikeouts, along with three walks. He didn't record the win, but the Jays did.

The outing brought his ERA for July to 1.00, even bettering his June ERA of 2.95. The July ERA was the fourth-lowest in franchise history by a starting pitcher, surpassing 30 innings of work. Cease joins Alex Manoah in Sept 2022 (0.88) and Roger Clemens in both 1997 (0.89) and 1998 (0.90).

Lowest ERA in a calendar month, #BlueJays50 history
(Min. 30 IP)

Alek Manoah (Sep 2022) 0.88
Roger Clemens (July 1997) 0.89
Roger Clemens (Aug 1998) 0.90
Dylan Cease (July 2026) 1.00
— Sportsnet Stats (@SNstats) August 1, 2026

On top of his dominant month, Cease is also cementing himself in more Blue Jays history, posting the best opponent batting average for a starting pitcher, currently at .185. He tops Roger Clemens' .195 opposing batting average in 1995, Alex Manoah's .200 opposing batting average in 2022, and Marco Estrada's .205 opposing batting average in 2015.

Cease is making his first impression on the city of Toronto known after signing a massive contract in the offseason to become a pillar in the Blue Jays' starting rotation. With Kevin Gausman likely to be traded at the deadline, and potentially Shane Bieber, Cease is showing himself as the most reliable option to build on.

On the season, Cease holds a 2.41 ERA, ranking sixth-best in Major League Baseball, with 174 strikeouts (ranked third) and a 1.08 WHIP (ranked 15th). Cease has done enough to have his name in the conversation for the American League Cy Young Award, something that's evaded him throughout his career to this point.

Cease could join more exclusive company in Blue Jays history as his tenure continues, but for right now, it's important that their ace continues to deal on the mound, regardless of decreasing playoff odds.

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