Dylan Cease Hoping to Achieve a First in his Career with the Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays are banking on a big year for their new starting pitcher.

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Dylan Cease's deal with the Toronto Blue Jays has been one of the largest splashes of the offseason. The highly coveted starting pitcher signed a seven-year, $210 million deal after spending the last two seasons with the San Diego Padres. His contract is by far the largest that any starting pitcher has gotten this offseason, with Michael King behind him at $75 million.

Cease has already accomplished quite a bit in his seven-year career, finishing in the top four in the Cy Young voting two different times (2022, 2024). He also threw a no-hitter on July 25, 2024, against the Washington Nationals, striking out nine. His high volume of punch outs is Cease's calling card, racking up 200+ in five straight seasons.

However, there is one goal that Cease has surprisingly never achieved in his career.

Cease Has Never Made an All-Star Game

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Shockingly, Cease has never made an All-Star game. It begs the question: Did Toronto overpay for the 30-year-old? At times, Cease has shown his inconsistencies. In July, he posted a 5.67 ERA and allowed at least four earned runs during three starts.

Then, in September, he found his rhythm and recorded a 3.12 ERA. His high volume of strikeouts never wavered, but it does hinder his length of starts. His 29.8% strikeout rate trailed only Garrett Crochet (31.3%) and Tarik Skubal (32.2%).

It makes the lack of All-Star appearances that much more shocking. It also shows that Cease's game speaks for itself. Hitters are chasing at a much higher rate, and Cease is in the 80th percentile on chase rate, according to Baseball Savant.

Obviously, players aren't judged on All-Star appearances. It's how one performs in October that is the ultimate test. The Blue Jays came up just short of a World Series title in 2025. The front office has been extremely aggressive as they look to reload this roster.

The Cease signing was only the beginning, as they've addressed the offense, bullpen, and starting rotation.

Cease gives Toronto one of the elite rotations in baseball. He and Kevin Gausman highlight the staff, but Trey Yesavage broke out during their playoff run and is expected to have a big season. They also have Shane Bieber, Jose Berrios, and new acquisition Cody Ponce.

After signing that massive deal, it could be argued that there are very few pitchers under more pressure than Cease to deliver for Toronto. The Blue Jays can lean on Gausman and Yesavage, but Cease could be the one to push them over the edge. He has to prove that he's worth every penny of that massive deal he inked in December.

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