In Flight: Kikuchi, Berrios rebound, Bass hits bump in the road

This biweekly series will explore some of the biggest storylines surrounding the Toronto Blue Jays' campaign as they chase the franchise's first World Series championship since 1993. This is the second edition of "In Flight."

Stock watch 👀

Yusei Kikuchi 📈

Kikuchi's performance has been one of the most encouraging developments in the first few weeks of the season. The left-hander registered back-to-back quality starts against the Rays and Yankees, allowing just two runs on eight hits with 12 strikeouts across 12 innings.

In his most recent outing at Yankee Stadium, Kikuchi battled exceptionally well and struck out reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge twice.

One of the most encouraging aspects to Kikuchi's early-season success is how effective he's been at limiting walks. The 31-year-old has issued just five free passes over his first 21 1/3 innings while posting a solid 1.17 WHIP. Kikuchi sits inside the top 20 among all starting pitchers in average fastball velocity (95.5 mph). That velocity, combined with his improved command, has made his entire arsenal of pitches much more effective. Outside of Kevin Gausman, Kikuchi has been the Blue Jays' most consistent starting pitcher. Who thought we'd be saying that?

Zach Pop 📈

When the Blue Jays acquired Pop from the Miami Marlins at last year's trade deadline, he arrived as a relatively unknown commodity. Armed with a sinker that hits the upper 90s and an intriguing slider, many looked at Pop as a possible candidate to emerge as another high-leverage option. However, Pop struggled to accumulate strikeouts, registering a paltry 5.77 K/9 across 35 appearances in 2022.

Entering 2023, it was hard to know if Pop would be able to amass more whiffs and maximize his potential. If the start of the season is any indication, the Blue Jays could be looking at a real difference-maker in the bullpen. Pop has more than doubled his slider usage so far and has seen a dramatic increase in strikeouts, whiff percentage, and chase rate.

If Pop can continue to trust his slider in all situations, it'll allow his devastating sinker to be that much more effective. Although he had his first bumpy outing of the season in Houston, it's hard not to be excited about what Pop might be able to accomplish in 2023.

Anthony Bass 📉

Anthony Bass was the other piece acquired in the Miami trade alongside Pop. Bass was excellent down the stretch for the Blue Jays in 2022 but failed to record an out in Game 2 of the wild-card series against the Mariners. Those struggles appear to have carried over to start this season as Bass' numbers are down across the board.

After allowing a .215 batting average on his sinker last year, that pitch has routinely been crushed to the tune of a .600 average so far. The veteran's early-season struggles have forced manager John Schneider to utilize him in lower-leverage situations. Bass has also been forced into the strike zone more because hitters are chasing less, leading to more hard contact.

Jose Berrios 📈

After a pair of rocky starts on the road to start the season, Berrios has bounced back nicely. The right-hander navigated a difficult Rays lineup over five innings in his first start at home before holding the Astros in check over seven sparkling frames in Houston.

Berrios has had a lot of success of late using his slurve. He's been able to lean on it with two strikes as it's consistently given opposing hitters problems.

Berrios mixed and matched brilliantly in his most recent outing, holding the defending World Series champion Astros to just three hits and two runs over seven innings. The hurler induced a season-high 10 ground-ball outs and did an excellent job pitching efficiently, needing only 77 pitches to record 21 outs. If Berrios and Kikuchi can continue to build on their recent success, it'll go a long way to helping the Blue Jays' rotation reach its full potential.

Adam Cimber 📉

Cimber has been one of the most reliable members of the Blue Jays' bullpen since the club acquired him in a lopsided trade with the Marlins in 2021. The sidearmer tied for the league lead among MLB relievers with 10 wins and 77 appearances last season while also posting a strong 2.80 ERA.

But Cimber has struggled in 2023. The 32-year-old has allowed almost 63% of his inherited base runners to score while also recording career worsts in hard hit percentage, barrel percentage, and average exit velocity. When he's at his best, Cimber finds a way to consistently induce soft contact. The Blue Jays are certainly hoping that Cimber can find a way to more closely resemble the pitcher he was over his first season and change with the club.

Statcast standouts 🚀

Chapman's defensive performance

Matt Chapman has been one of baseball's best hitters in the first few weeks of the season. He's at or near the top in many offensive categories and is hitting the ball harder than he ever has. The defensive side is where things get a little more intriguing.

Chapman, a three-time Gold Glove winner and two-time Platinum Glove recipient, has puzzlingly seen his outs above average plummet into the sixth percentile, according to Baseball Savant. The soon-to-be 30-year-old has also been mediocre in defensive runs saved. Chapman's first year in Toronto saw him finish in the 72nd percentile in outs above average while finishing 13th among third basemen with two defensive runs saved. In the years preceding 2022, Chapman finished in the 99th, 80th, 98th, 90th, and 94th percentile in outs above average.

It's fair to wonder if there's some age-related decline occurring, or if this is just some noisy data in a small sample size. As one of this offseason's most intriguing free agents, it'll be interesting to see how teams value Chapman if his offensive numbers end up falling in line with career averages and his defensive play doesn't drastically improve.

Romano's slider usage

Jordan Romano has developed into one of baseball's premier closers since taking the job for the Blue Jays early in the 2021 season. Romano was tied for sixth in saves and second in ERA over the 2021 and 2022 campaigns. The 29-year-old achieved success in the biggest moments thanks in large part to his devastating slider.

The slider has allowed Romano to keep hitters off balance while also inducing a huge number of swings and misses; he amassed an impressive 33.7% whiff rate with the offering in 2022. Romano also has an effective fastball but has honed in on his slider so far this season.

The hurler is throwing his slider more than he ever has in his career at 68.2%. He had a four-out save against the Astros where he threw his slider 14 times and his fastball just once. Hitters are still having a very difficult time squaring the slider up with Romano allowing a paltry .233 batting average and .267 slugging percentage on the offering so far. It'll be interesting to see if opponents are able to adjust if he continues relying on the pitch so heavily or if he'll need to mix in more fastballs to try and keep batters honest.

Pulling the ball less as a team

Over the past few seasons, Toronto developed into of the league's most potent and explosive offensive units thanks in large part to an ability to pull the ball and hit home runs. The Blue Jays pulled the ball more than 40% of the time in each of the last two seasons but have seen that number drop all the way down to 34.9%, which ranks 29th in MLB.

It might not be a bad thing, as the Blue Jays are going up the middle and to the opposite field with regularity. However, they'll be hard-pressed to be among the league leaders in home runs if they don't start pulling the ball more often. A more balanced offensive approach could serve them well in the long run as home runs tend to dry up to some extent under the bright lights of postseason baseball, but it might be a disappointment for fans expecting lots of summer fireworks.

Best moments 🤩

Kiermaier commits robbery

When the Blue Jays signed Kevin Kiermaier in the offseason, it wasn't too difficult to imagine the three-time Gold Glove winner adding to his extensive highlight reel at the revamped Rogers Centre.

It didn't take very long as Kiermaier made what could go down as one of the best catches of the year in the second inning of the home opener, robbing Tigers outfielder Kerry Carpenter of a home run.

Kiermaier has made no secret of how excited he is to be a Blue Jay.

"Baseball works in mysterious ways sometimes ... that catch, it was such a rush, such a thrill," Kiermaier said, according to Gregor Chisholm of the Toronto Star. "It's one I'll go back and watch 10 times tonight, and the Rogers Centre reaction to it was amazing. I was on Cloud 9."

With Kiermaier looking as healthy as he's been in three or four years, expect him to add more exciting plays to his highlight reel.

Springer's first walk-off as a Blue Jay

George Springer has earned a reputation as a clutch player over his 10-year MLB career. The veteran is one of baseball's best playoff sluggers with an impressive 19 postseason home runs. While he's yet to demonstrate that penchant for coming up when the lights are brightest in Toronto, he finally picked up his first walk-off hit as a Blue Jay.

Springer ripped an RBI single up the middle in the 10th inning of a game against the Detroit Tigers to help cap a three-run comeback victory.

"It seems like George is right in the middle of it always," Kevin Gausman said. "That guy is about as clutch as anybody."

Springer's experience and leadership will continue to be leaned on as the Blue Jays look to build on the disappointment of the last few postseasons.

Manoah shoves in The Bronx

It's been a bumpy start to the season for last year's AL Cy Young finalist. Manoah had an ERA approaching seven over his first four starts and was struggling to find his mechanics. But he's always seemed to thrive in a hostile environment, so it's no surprise that he got back on track in the buzzsaw that is Yankee Stadium.

The right-hander stymied the Yankees across seven scoreless innings, scattering just a pair of hits and one walk while striking out five. Manoah's slider was particularly effective in the outing, inducing six swinging strikes on 12 swings for an impressive 50% whiff rate.

"It's just good, exciting baseball," Manoah said, according to MLB.com's Keegan Matheson. "We're excited to be able to compete against them and battle. Every game in the AL East is a battle."

It's just one start, but the Blue Jays should feel very encouraged by what Manoah was able to do in New York and what it might mean for him moving forward.

The week ahead

After an early-season litmus test on the road against the Astros and Yankees, the Blue Jays return to the friendly confines of Rogers Centre for a series with the Chicago White Sox before old friend Teoscar Hernandez and the Seattle Mariners pay a visit for a rematch of last year's wild-card series.