'Unsung hero' Stripling delivers the goods again

ARLINGTON -- Raise your hands. Who predicted that Ross Stripling would have a legitimate case for the Blue Jays’ 2022 MVP when camp opened in Dunedin, Fla., seven months ago?

If you did, you’re alone.

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What Stripling has done this season is remarkable, and the value of his performance stretches well beyond his spot in the rotation. Friday’s 4-3 win over the Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington looked like so many of the others, giving the Blue Jays six efficient innings of two-run ball.

“He’s been unbelievable,” said interim manager John Schneider. “He’s just really, really valuable. This was his 100th game started and his 100th game out of the bullpen. You really can’t say enough about what he’s done stepping into this rotation. He’s been awesome.”

The bullpen made this one more interesting than it needed to be, and the Blue Jays’ bats didn’t help by squandering a half-dozen opportunities. But Danny Jansen finally broke it open in the ninth with an RBI single to seal the win. He has been no stranger to big moments lately.

“This is fun. This is the baseball you have to go through,” Jansen said. “We’re right there in the standings. It’s time now just to play each other and see what happens. That’s our thought, is to take each game one at a time. We know how important they are, but we’re not putting pressure on each other.”

Every fifth day, those games feel more winnable with Stripling on the mound:

Chasing a career year at 32
Back in 2018, Stripling split time between the Dodgers’ rotation and bullpen with a 3.02 ERA, just 0.01 points lower than his mark exiting Friday’s win. He was named an All-Star that year and posted a higher strikeout rate, but at 113 innings now, he’s set to blow past his 122-inning total from four years ago.

Stripling has now gone at least six innings in each of his last five starts, fully embracing the fact that he’s being depended on every five days by a postseason club. There’s no other shoe that’s waiting to drop.

At this rate, the Blue Jays could be facing a very unlikely conversation in the early days of October. Can you trust José Berríos, he of the 5.23 ERA and seven-year, $131 million contract, in a potential Game 3, or are they more comfortable with the safer bet for five innings in Stripling? What a difference seven months can make.

The big picture
Go back to look at the Blue Jays’ individual stats in 2012, ‘17 or ‘19. Pick a year, and you’ll find a handful of starting pitchers you won’t remember. That’s what Stripling has saved you from watching this season.

“He’s been outstanding,” said pitching coach Pete Walker. “He’s kind of the unsung hero. You look at the staff and what he’s done and brought to this staff as a whole, he’s given us an opportunity to win every night. He’s mixing his pitches extremely well. Any time he gets into the sixth or seventh inning like that, you know it shortens up the game.”

When Stripling moved into the rotation for Hyun-Jin Ryu -- first temporarily and then permanently on June 2 after the Korean left-hander underwent Tommy John surgery -- he immediately solidified the No. 5 spot. He soon earned the No. 4 role, though, with Yusei Kikuchi and eventually Mitch White struggling behind him. There have been bullpen games and spot starters, but without the safety net of Stripling, the Blue Jays would have needed to dig one level deeper.

For Toronto, that’s not exactly a crowded place. The Blue Jays’ upper Minors pitching depth has either underperformed, been injured or been traded. Thanks to Stripling, though, you haven’t needed to see many of them forced up in 2022.

Timing is everything
Stripling is a pending free agent, and he’ll be one of the most interesting players on the entire market. As organizations begin to actively value swingmen who can bounce between the bullpen and rotation, arms like Stripling will see more suitors, but many will see him as a strict starter.

With each outing, and each game that keeps his ERA close to dipping below that magic number of 3.00, Stripling is only helping himself. He’s helping the Blue Jays along the way, of course, but he’s no longer a rubber arm chewing through low-leverage innings. Stripling’s stage will only get bigger from here, and he has earned it.