OverDrive - Matheson on Yesavage's injury impact, Cease carrying the load and the fourth out play

Episode Date: August 11, 2026

MLB.com Blue Jays Reporter Keegan Matheson joined OverDrive to discuss Trey Yesavage's status for the season, the starting pitching injuries, Dylan Cease's impact and the Cy Young Award race, the strange fourth out play, how the run counted for the Red Sox and more.

Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on Internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.com. Bell.com. Connection is everything. Let's head down to the park. Here's our main man, Keegan Mathisun of MLB.com. Keegan, how we feel this evening?

Doing well, fellas. I like when I get to join just as a guest, you know. I started to get a little anxious. Like, boys, I got to have a take on the Leafs Power Play here. I've got to start scrambling and make some sort of flipping comments about Morgan Riley. But no, I'm here for baseball, fellas. We're doing well. I love it.

It's great to see you. And you're more than capable and more than free to chime in on Gavin McKenna's power play usage this year if you want to. I'm closer to you than Frankie. I love it. 40%. Closer to you than Frankie. Thank you. That's all we needed to hear.

What did we hear about Tray Savage today? and what are we game planning in terms of projecting the rest of his regular season? So he had left knee surgery on his meniscus. We're told it's successful. Aren't most surgeries, I guess, at this point, but successful left knee surgery. The optimistic news, if you want to look at it that ways that the Blue Jays aren't ruling him out yet for the rest of the year, meniscus injuries can really differ, guys. And I feel like we're more used to hearing about meniscus in the NFL.

When you're talking about, are you going to repair it, trim it, which is maybe a more dangerous or risky thing. But we're talking about what sounds like a pretty good outcome. And we spoke about this in studio last week. Like, Yusavage's delivery, it's very vertical. Like, this is not Dillon C's who you'll watch tonight, how he kind of glides down the mound. It's this easy ride. Yosavity up, slam down pitch. There's some jerkiness and some slamming involved.

You need that left knee to be completely healthy. And it's going to take a beating compared to some other pitchers when you compare it to C. So we'll see. I think if the Blue Jays fall out of this, see you next quite easily. But if they make a run, maybe we see him make a bit of a run himself. How much more difficult is it going to be for the Jays to make a run toward the wild card, toward 500 with the rotation as banged up as it is? Man, the pitching is a problem.

Again, we talked about this all-spring training. like they have too many starting pitchers. Even a week ago, we were talking about a six-man rotation. Here we go again. I mean, even yesterday, Jameson Tion came out of the game with a forearm issue. He's on the IEL today. We're back to talking about minor league depth guys. We're talking about Chad Dallas, C.J. Van Eyk.

Lizarro Estrada. It's not where you want to be if you're a serious team trying to push for the postseason. And they need some good stories. And they need someone to come back and get involved in this right now. And they need Dillon C-Stays, like tonight, to be damn near perfect. And he's been that so far lately, but on a Dillon C's East night, like John Schneider said he was walking out with him last night, and he said, how many do you got for me? And Dillan C.S. said, 1.30. So maybe we see 130 pitches from Dillan C's tonight, which is probably not the safest thing either, guys, but this is where they're at. Well, yeah, you're right. And, you know, C's every time he's on the mound, obviously, you know, wins and losses are still a part of the conversation, but we continue to talk about that Cy Young race and how good he's been.

the likelihood that he could end up winning that. But you look at the bullpen, and Rogers was good last night. And Varland, you know, he was in a jam immediately, but he got himself out of it, which was great. But, you know, we've talked about it when you've been co-hosting the show, Keegan. Like the back end of that bullpen, there's a lot of miles on those two arms in particular. And, you know, I don't even know if they're available tonight. You know, they play every single day, and they're going to play every day through Sunday.

but, you know, the importance of cease giving them that much. I know he's being tongue-in-cheek with 130, maybe. But how much more bend is in that back-in-of-the-bullpen before we worry it's going to break? Not much, maybe none. I mean, my God, you're in risky territory. You're red-lining right now. You are red-lining and hoping that you've got a really good engine. And two good guys to bet on.

I mean, Tyler Rogers, I think, can make 90 appearances and be just fine. and Louis Varland guys, like, when I say built different, I don't mean like a stupid Instagram caption, I'm built different. I mean, literally, I think he's just physically built differently. You know, like some guys just have bodies that can hold up to a lot of work. Physiologically, how they are built, they can handle a lot of work. I think Louis Varland is just one of those guys. But still, the human elbow and the human shoulder,

they're already not meant to throw baseballs 100 miles an hour, and they're sure not meant to do it this many times in a row. Mason Fleurdy leads the league in appearances. Braden Fisher's right up there as well. This doesn't last. And if it doesn't bite you this year, it'll bite you next year. You never get out free. You got to cash out when you can.

And man, if Dylan C. can give them eight innings tonight, John Schneider will be hugging that man on the mound, I promise it. How much concern should there be that Okamoto was supposed to return, and now he's going to be scratched from tonight's game with the left knee issue? Yeah, two in a row. Oh, that's a weird one for Okamoto. He fouled a ball off his knee.

And fellas, these are tree trunk legs. Okay, it takes a lot to penetrate the legs of goly leg, Kazima Okamoto. So ideally, it's just one more. We'll see at this point, but he's kind of been grinding a little bit recently as well. When Okamoto was grinding, there are some tough at-bats to watch. The power, when it's there, is absolutely spectacular. But the gaps in between have been rough. The strikeouts can pile up.

So maybe a bit of a mental reset, I expect we'll still see him. the morrow because these have been late scratches but you need power man wherever you can get it you got to steal some ball games here pretty quickly big time uh jays socks tonight so last night last night was a wild scene obviously in the uh you know late into the game last night top of the seventh and there's a scoreboard malfunction two guys take off on a fly ball um there's a play at first not a play at third. It turns into a timing rule. I mean, take us through what you experienced

and how you experienced it live, Keehan, and the explanation from the Ump, because I found that funnier than anything else, you never hear Ups talking freely. You know, they're usually pretty quick. Challenge, strike, ball, out. The Ump last night was like, I don't know what the hell I'm supposed to tell these lunatics

at the Rotter Center because people are freaking out. What did you make? of it and how confused were you compared to Frankie and I? Oh, very. Let's not pretend that I know rule 503, XYZ, 1,2, 3. Okay. Some people are very proud to know that rule. I'm quite proud that I have not wasted any space in my brain with that rule. Okay, I've lived a blessed life for the last 10 years. I'll keep living a blessed life without that rule in my head. It's a confusing one. And like you say, Hasey, like umpires usually talk like lawyers. You choose your words really carefully. when I see the crew chief, Chris Guccione, come on the headset, and he starts with, okay, so what we got here, and I just started the cackle in the press box. So what we've got here, and it's fascinating. Only a few guys have seen this. We even found out that John Schneider had this happen in a single A game in beautiful Lansing, Michigan in 2016.

And today he was like, I have no idea, man. I wipe that from my brain. It's Max Scherzer remembered it because, of course, he has, that dude remembers everything. but it is one of those obscure, very basebally rules and really comes down to the main problem being the scoreboard displaying the wrong number of outs and everyone involved from the base runners and the fielders just not knowing the number of outs. And as the inning ended guys, I'm lifting my head up and down,

writing a story, looking down. The inning ended and I'm thinking, that didn't quite feel right. Something felt a little off there and they started to talk. I thought it would be two minutes. I carried over into day and John Snyder said he asked Ross Athens for a cash advance today just for not getting ejected.

So I'm proud of him, man. Ten minutes on the field, no ejection. Yeah, that was true. He kept his composure. You could tell he was getting, like, the temperature was rising. And especially when he realized, okay, this run is going to score. You know, like, once you could tell the Ump on the second time was explaining it to him and was like it's a timing play, you know, they seem to have a beef that the umpires

kind of brushed them off the first. field and that's why they didn't you know touch third i don't know if there's any truth in that kegan but um in the end i guess you can't laugh about it because they they survived and they won the game right like in a different in another universe yeah they lose that game last night and then it's a completely different situation that would be a mess man but yeah john stider wanted to get into it he was getting that tsn red in the face baby he was almost matching the logo But Chris Guccione even told them, apparently, like, if you want to get mad, go ahead.

Like, it's okay to light me up. And Schneider told him, man, I've got like two relievers. I can't get kicked out right now. Like, we've got to keep this together. So it's something they can laugh about now. Everyone will remember it next time they run into this. But messy, man, like deep in that rule book. And if you start to read the rule book, fellas, it's not a bedtime story.

It is, it's like you're reading the terms and services on your iPhone or something. It's tricky. So they can enjoy it now. But if that had to flip the game, I mean, God, we're talking about that for a week. How much opportunity is there right now for guys? Like we see Charles McAdoo last night, get a home run. I think it's, what, five games in a row for him with a home run going back to AAA.

Like, is there a lot of opportunity for players to step up? And if you're hit, if you hit, you're going to play right now? Hell yeah, man. Get back out there. McAtoe at leadoff. These are things I did not expect to cover this year. But the example I keep using Frankie is, like, treat this like it's your 12-and-under-trade. travel ball team, man. If a kid

got four hits yesterday, play the day. Okay, whoever has the hot hand, outside of, you know, Vladdy and George Springer, they'll keep playing, but whoever's hot, go play. And if you're hot, you're going to bat one or two, like we've seen with Charles McAtoe and Brett Bateman. I like that at this point. Chase the top

end outcome, because if you screw up, if this doesn't work, you are already not in the playoffs, whatever. Doesn't matter if you missed by five games or 12 games. You miss the playoffs, you just miss them. Chase the hot hands. Go after the guy that's swinging a hot bat, go off feel at this point. Going off the numbers hasn't gotten you far, so go off field.

I like that. And it's going to encourage players. That's how you can get some momentum, where once a player gets two-for-four-four-day, you show up the next day knowing that you're going to get a shot to keep it rolling. That's contagious amongst young players. I really like it. Absolutely. Why not?

What are you waiting for, right? What are you saving it for at this point? Jay Sox tonight down at the Rogers Center. great catching up with you kegan enjoy it tonight buddy we'll do it again soon you got it fellas talk soon there he is kegan matheson of mlb.com the newest tracks let's go new music and the next big thing always on the new music first your first place to hear it all because you're going to like it love her want to play it twice playing now i heart new music your digital station for brand new drops fresh vines and

tomorrow's bangers. I think we need something new. Discover IHeart new music. Always fresh, always first. Stream now on the free IHart Radio app.