As the 2026 season bites the dust for the Blue Jays, there are still 16 grace notes on the sheet of dirge music: That’s the number of players who made their Major League Baseball debut with Toronto this year.
asserted
who → bite → Toronto
A whopping figure that speaks to so many roster crises that had to be navigated on a team ravaged by injuries, how frequently general manager Ross Atkins dipped into the waiver wire outcasts, and the cannonball express between Toronto and Buffalo.
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Atkins → speak → Toronto
“It’s really weird to see that,” says manager John Schneider of the trolley car that continually dropped off MLB virgins at the clubhouse platform.
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that → ’ → platform
Bizarre, bundling 30-year-old Kazuma Okamoto into the beginner class, but he’s a rookie on this continent.
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he → bundle → continent
“Weird when you’re shuffling new guys in and they’re trying to just get their feet wet under them a little bit,” continues Schneider.
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Schneider → shuffle → them
What everyone else wants to forget, this year of unmagical baseball, the Sixteen in the Six will forever savour.
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Sixteen → want → Six
From the touching story of Rudy Martin Jr.’s 12 years before the mast of minor-league ball before cracking Toronto’s lineup on Sept. 11; to the hot, bat-first, big-league April start of Yohendrick Piñango (outfield misadventures punched his return ticket to the Bisons); to the faintly recalled Hayden Juenger: two relief appearances, 13.50 ERA.
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misadventures → crack → Juenger
“It’s The Show, man,” grins Sean Keys, who catapulted to T.O. on June 27 off the springboard of an unexpectedly strong performance in Triple-A. “The little kid in me has been dreaming about this my whole life.
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kid → ’ → this
I’ll definitely never forget and I’ll spend the off-season reflecting on it.”
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I → forget → it
When Alejandro Kirk missed two months early in the season with a fractured thumb, Brandon Valenzuela got his splashy break in the majors: hitting .252 with seven home runs, five doubles, 18 RBIs and a .790 OPS across 46 games.
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Valenzuela → miss → games
“For any rookie, making their MLB debut is pretty unforgettable,” Valenzuela was saying on Saturday morning.
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Valenzuela → make → morning
“It’s a huge event in your life.
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It → ’ → life
I got to play with a bunch of all-stars and future Hall of Famers, so that was pretty cool for me.
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that → get → me
“And playing with Kirk, the first two catchers (on the same team) in the major leagues from Mexico, we’re going down in history for that alone.”
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we → play → that
An eyepopping trade deadline arriviste was Brett Bateman — pause here to whoop-whoop his head-first-into-the-wall catch for the third out in the seventh inning Saturday at the Rogers Centre — who injected instant energy and uplift into Toronto’s August surge.
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who → pause → surge
“I still don’t think I’ve taken it all in and realize the hard work has paid off.
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work → think → it
There’s a lot of things that I’ve got to work on.
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I → ’ → that
Just because I played well for a month and a half, it doesn’t mean that I have a spot saved.
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I → play → spot
I have to prove it next year from spring training.”
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I → have → training
The towering José Rodriguez (six-foot-six) got into just four games of relief, debuting on Sept. 8, but struck out five in 4 1/3 innings.
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Rodriguez → get → innings
Acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers in a minor-league deal, he was optioned to Buffalo between games of the doubleheader in Baltimore this past week.
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he → acquire → Baltimore
“Last week, last month has been crazy with getting traded and then I really didn’t expect getting called up.
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I → trade → ?
When I got the news, it was the happiest moment of my life, even though I was here for a short time.”
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I → get → time
No one has impressed more than Miles, though, a found gem after losing three years to injury: “I always believed I was capable of doing something super-special.
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I → impress → something
But getting the chance to actually do it, be here every day, that’s what was really special about this season.
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what → get → season
The impression he hopes to have left with the brass: “Hard worker, shows up every day, smile on his face, is ready to answer the call whatever role it might be — middle relief, long relief, opener, closer.
uncertain
it → hop → call
I’ll take the ball and answer the call.”
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I → take → call
Lefty Brendan Cellucci launched his MLB career on Sept. 15, retired all five batters he faced and has given up just one hit (0.00 ERA) in a half-dozen trips to the mound.
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he → launch → mound
“It’s everything I’ve ever dreamed of.
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I → ’ → ?
It’s what I’ve worked for my whole life.
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I → ’ → what
It’s a beautiful thing.”
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It → ’ → ?
The Aporia
