The Blue Jays had plenty of guys step up this year, from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette to veteran ace Max Scherzer. But the real breakout story was rookie Trey Yesavage. Recording a 2.84 ERA with 17 SOs across three World Series games within months of playing Low-A is surely commendable. And thus, although Toronto fell short of a World Series win, Yesavage emerged as one of the biggest positives to build around for the future.

“On the biggest stage, the kid etched himself into baseball lore, dominating MVPs and future Hall of Famers,” The Athletic’s Mitch Bannon said about the rookie. Expectedly, fans can’t wait to see him mowing down opponents right from Opening Day next season. With Scherzer potentially leaving the club, the onus is more on Yesavage. But according to recent comments from GM Ross Atkins, that might not happen, and that means those hopes could end up being a little premature.

“I think he’s in a pretty good position, load-wise,” Atkins said. “We’ll talk through that with him and see if there’s something to manage on the workload standpoint, but it’s more about not resting (on his post-season achievements) and making sure that we’re getting better.”

While we would love to see Yesavage more in the action, in this case, we agree with the Jays’ GM.

Remember Matt Harvey, the pitching phenom who took baseball by storm in the early 2010s? He was electric, posting sub-3 ERAs and looking every bit like the Mets’ next superstar. But after TJ surgery and lingering shoulder problems, he lost his velocity and command, and despite a few comeback attempts, his career fizzled out far too soon.

Now, Trey Yesavage isn’t Matt Harvey, but Ross Atkins and the Blue Jays clearly don’t want history repeating itself. Why?

Take away his brief MLB cameo this season, and you’ve got a 22-year-old who spent most of the year bouncing between Low-A, High-A, and Double-A before getting that big-stage opportunity. Notably, as great as his World Series showing was, he’s still a developing arm. And not someone built yet to handle the grind of 162 games or go deep into starts consistently.

So, when Atkins talks about managing Yesavage carefully, it’s not about holding him back, but protecting him. There’s a good chance we’ll see him start next season back in the minors to control his workload and keep him grounded amid all the new attention.

To fans, it might feel like the team’s underestimating him. But in reality, they’re seemingly thinking long term, making sure their future ace stays healthy and focused for years to come.

Trey Yesavage already got a taste of the MLB grind

Under the bright lights of his World Series heroics, there’s another dark side that Yesavage already experienced. “It’s sad to see that people close to me are being attacked for my performances on the field,” Yesavage said before the ALCS opener against Seattle.

Well, Yesavage hasn’t said exactly which game brought on the wave of online hate, but it’s safe to assume it came during one of his regular-season outings. And while that kind of reaction is totally unacceptable, he’s far from the first young player to face it. Hence, as Ross Atkins pointed out, the rookie still has a lot to learn, and pushing him too fast could end up cutting his big-league career short.

That said, it’s also hard for the Blue Jays to ignore what he brings to the mound.

Remember Game 2 of the ALDS when Yesavage made the Yankees look completely lost against his splitter? He struck out 11 batters over 5 1/3 no-hit innings, one of the best postseason pitching performances in Jays history. In that game, the Yankees swung at 16 splitters that night and missed 11 times!

So now, with a bit more workload management and continued development, Toronto could be looking at its own version of Paul Skenes, a young ace ready to dominate for years.