Toronto’s Trey Yesavage, who rose through 4 minor league levels in 2025, to start Game 2 of ALDS

TORONTO (AP) — Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage, who began the 2025 season in the low minors, will start Game 2 of their AL Division Series against the New York Yankees.

Manager John Schneider made the announcement before Saturday’s series opener. The right-hander will be opposed by Yankees left-hander Max Fried on Sunday.

Yesavage called it “awesome” to get the news.

“I was beyond floored,” he said.

Yesavage, 22, was selected by Toronto with the No. 20 pick in last year’s amateur draft. He rose through four minor league levels this season before joining the Blue Jays and going 1-0 in three September starts.

“I’ve experienced a lot this year,” Yesavage said. “This is my fifth team I’ve been with. I’ve met the entire organization. But being here in this spot, I couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”

Schneider said right-hander Shane Bieber, the 2020 AL Cy Young winner with Cleveland, will start Game 3 at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night. Carlos Rodón is expected to start that game for New York.

Schneider said he preferred to start Yesavage at home and give Bieber the road start.

“With the way that we use Trey it keeps him available later in the series as well in any kind of role we need,” Schneider said.

Yesavage didn’t pitch more than five innings in any of his three Toronto starts, and only once pitched six innings in 25 minor league appearances this season, all but three of them starts.

Known for his elite split-finger fastball, Yesavage set a Blue Jays record by striking out nine Rays batters in his big league debut. He faced Tampa Bay twice and Kansas City once, but the Yankees haven’t seen him in person.

“So far I only know a little bit about him, that he’s good,” New York manager Aaron Boone said. “The split is real. I’ve heard he’s a guy that’s kind of unfazed by being up here in big spots.”

Blue Jays outfielder George Springer agreed that Yesavage has shown maturity for a rookie.

“He’s outwardly calm and that perception for him, it does a lot for us,” Springer said. “You would expect somebody to appear nervous, but he doesn’t. That just shows who he is as a player, who he is as a human being.”

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