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By Jackson Roberts
Contributing Sports Writer
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Toronto Blue Jays right-hander is not only still a rookie by Major League Baseball standards, but he's also technically a prospect.
Though the world got to know Yesavage on the big stage in the MLB postseason, the 22-year-old technically has just 0.014 years of major league service time. Barring a total surprise, he'll be in the Toronto rotation to start the season, at which point he'll begin his quest to win Rookie of the Year -- and more importantly, to avenge the Jays' loss in the World Series.
Excitement for Yesavage among Blue Jays fans could hardly be higher, but the right-hander recently revealed a tweak to his arsenal that could make him an even tougher matchup for the major league hitters who have already been struggling to figure him out.
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Yesavage told Mark Daniell of the Toronto Star that he's been working on a curveball this offseason, adding to a mix that already included a fastball, splitter, and slider.
“It’s the shortest offseason I’ve ever had,” Yesavage said, per Daniell. “I’m playing around with grips and seeing what feels the most comfortable … I have a funky arm angle, so I’ve got to play around with it.”
The aforementioned arm angle, which measures 65 degrees from horizontal on average, gives the 6-foot-4 Yesavage one of the highest average release points in the majors at 7.09 feet. Last season, only Justin Verlander's was higher among pitchers with at least 200 pitches in the regular season at 7.1 feet.
It's rare for pitchers to succeed, though, with a change-up/splitter as their best secondary offering. Yesavage fits a unique mold, but having two additional secondaries on top of that splitter would be more optimal than one, especially if his curveball can separate from the splitter more than his slider does.
Yesavage has a lot of support in the Toronto rotation with the arrivals of Dylan Cease and Cody Ponce, plus Shane Bieber opting into the last year of his contract. But he showed himself to be so dynamic during the postseason that the Blue Jays still have to be counting on him to live up to some of that hype in his full rookie debut.
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