'La Makina' keeps chugging along, finishes another strong season

TORONTO -- José Berríos is, once again, who he has always been.

He’s Ol’ Reliable, a pitcher who nearly lulls you to sleep with his consistency. He’s the man they call La Makina, the machine that just keeps chugging forward, over and over again.

Friday’s dreadful 15-5 loss to the Marlins at Rogers Centre was the rare outlier, an ugly outing that, in its own strange way, highlighted just how good Berríos has been for the Blue Jays down the stretch. Berríos entered Friday's start -- during which he permitted six runs with three walks in three innings -- having allowed just nine earned runs over his last eight starts (53 2/3 IP), good for a 1.51 ERA over that span, so the unexpected stumble on the way out the door isn’t much to worry about.

Berríos’ numbers finish in the familiar spots, a 3.60 ERA next to his 192 1/3 innings. That workload ranks him seventh in baseball this season behind only Seth Lugo, Logan Webb, Logan Gilbert, Corbin Burnes, Aaron Nola and Zack Wheeler. That’s one fine table to be seated at.

Consistency always carries an air of mystery, though. Breakout seasons are easier to define because you can typically point to a “big thing” that changes, whether that be a new pitch, a velocity spike or a swing change. Ask manager John Schneider if anything has looked different about Berríos this season, though -- anything that really separates this year from all the others -- and he’s stumped.

“You know what … not really? And I think that’s a good thing,” Schneider explained. “We’ve just come to expect this from him. I always go back to the way he takes care of himself and how durable he is. There’s not really anything [that stands out]. He’s just right there in a really good, consistent way.”

If anything, the finer points of his delivery and his fastball location -- which abandoned him during an uncharacteristic 2022 season -- are as good as they’ve ever been. There’s been no grand revelation, though. In 2024, we just saw classic Berríos.

“He’s good for a reason, so this is a good ‘no answer’ to have,” Schneider added with a laugh.

Berríos finishes the season with a career-high 16 wins, which is an accomplishment given the bullpen that often pitched behind him. That group has been one of the worst we’ve seen in years in Toronto, particularly since the Trade Deadline sent this organization scouring the waiver wire on a weekly basis. Toronto’s relievers gave up nine runs behind Berríos on Friday and the eye test matched the box score. They didn’t get a scoreless inning until the ninth from … Tyler Heineman, the backup catcher.

Berríos has kept the bad days, like Friday, to a minimum. The bullpen needs a complete and total rebuild this winter, but the rotation is sticking around for 2025 and Berríos’ value to that group stretches beyond his own outings.

“Him, Kevin [Gausman] and Chris [Bassitt] all provide a level of ‘been there, done that,’” Schneider said. “It’s helped Bowden [Francis]. It’s helped Yariel [Rodríguez] in big ways. His overall professional presence has been really, really good for those two guys, Bowden and Yariel specifically, along with Kevin and Chris, too. He’s been there and he’s done that. It’s been really beneficial here.”

Even with the season now behind him, there’s something about Berríos that never turns off. By the time you read this, he’s probably in the middle of another workout, watching another video, checking next year’s schedule and mapping out lineups for week one. He’s happy, but never satisfied.

“I’ve been feeling strong and healthy with freedom to home plate,” Berríos said. “It’s hard when you lose and you know you’re not going anywhere with a postseason spot, but I need to work. No matter what, we have to continue to focus and compete. I think I need to work on that. Other than that, I feel great with my pitches on the mound, and I had a lot of good games during the year.”

Those who follow Berríos quickly find the right path. It’s unfortunate, though, that this season from Berríos, like Gausman two days ago, ends with a whimper, well out of the playoff picture. They’re pitchers who belong in October, but too many parts of this Blue Jays roster have gotten in the way.

“He should be really proud of the things he did on and off the field,” Schneider said. “Both as a pitcher who took the ball every five days, but also in the clubhouse and what he’s done with his teammates.”