ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA – AUGUST 20: Spencer Miles #62 of the Toronto Blue Jays looks on against the Tampa Bay Rays during a game at Tropicana Field on August 20, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)
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The Toronto Blue Jays spent much of the 2026 season attempting to stabilize a pitching staff battered by an unrelenting injury cycle.
Cody Ponce, Shane Bieber, Max Scherzer, Patrick Corbin, Trey Yesavage and other important arms all missed substantial time, forcing Toronto to rely on a succession of unconventional options.
Although the campaign has fallen short of the club’s World Series ambitions, reaching the playoffs still appears achievable given the number of pitching injuries Toronto has absorbed.
According to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet, the Blue Jays used 36 different pitchers, excluding position players Myles Straw and Tyler Heineman. That depth helped Toronto weather player absences, offensive slumps and a deadline in which the club had to make precise moves to avoid falling apart.
Amid that instability, right-hander Spencer Miles emerged as one of Toronto’s most valuable and versatile pitchers. The 26-year-old Rule 5 selection entered the season with virtually no major-league or upper-level minor-league experience, yet he has become a dependable part of the rotation and bullpen while the Jays remain in the American League playoff race.
Blue Jays Plan to Define Spencer Miles’ Role During the Offseason
Blue Jays manager John Schneider said the organization will determine Miles’ long-term role during the offseason, though his comments suggested that starting remains a realistic possibility.
MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson reported Schneider saying, “I think the potential is there to be a starter. He’s got the weapons to be a starter.”
That would mark an extraordinary leap for a pitcher who had never appeared above Single-A prior to this season. Toronto selected Miles from the San Francisco Giants organization in the Rule 5 Draft after he missed the entire 2025 campaign following Tommy John surgery.
Miles began the year as an opener and multi-inning option before taking on a more conventional relief role. He has also recorded seven starts, although Toronto has generally restricted his workload when using him out of the bullpen.
He has pitched to a 2.77 ERA with 81 strikeouts and 21 walks across 87.2 innings while moving between multi-inning appearances and traditional relief duties. Miles had thrown only 14.2 minor-league innings before making his major-league debut this season, yet he is now third among Blue Jays pitchers in innings pitched.
His performance has made the offseason decision increasingly important. Miles has already shown that he can succeed in multiple roles, but becoming a full-time starter would require a major workload increase after such limited professional experience.
Toronto, meanwhile, has spent much of the season searching for dependable rotation depth. Miles’ ability to supply starting innings could therefore address one of the club’s most pressing needs.
Schneider is leaving the final decision until the offseason. Even so, his acknowledgment that Miles possesses starter-level tools offers the clearest indication yet that Toronto sees greater long-term potential in one of the team’s biggest pitching surprises of 2026.
