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Cease has been shut down after the Blue Jays were officially eliminated from playoff contention following a loss to the Orioles in the front-end of Wednesday’s doubleheader. The 30-year-old upper-echelon fantasy starter was unlikely to pitch again this season after undergoing an MRI that revealed shoulder inflammation earlier this week. The positive news is that he won’t require surgery and should be a full-go for spring training. He wraps up an impressive Blue Jays debut with a stellar 2.40 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 239/78 K/BB ratio across 169 innings over 29 starts. He’ll be a top-10 starter off the board in most fantasy drafts next spring.

Cease added that he’s been diagnosed with shoulder inflammation after undergoing an MRI over the weekend following Friday’s lackluster start against the Rangers. The 30-year-old upper-echelon fantasy starter added that they’re still determining whether he’ll make another start this season, but he doesn’t believe the issue will impact his availability for next year. That’s the encouraging news. It seems highly unlikely that he’ll take the ball again this season with Toronto sitting three games out of the final AL Wild Card playoff spot entering the final week of the season.

The results of that exam are not yet known, but Cease will not make his scheduled start against the Orioles in Baltimore on Wednesday. Blue Jays’ skipper John Schneider did not rule out the chance that he pitches over the season’s final weekend against the Reds. Cease has been complaining of fatigue in his shoulder, the result of carrying a heavy load for the Jays’ pitching staff this season.

The Blue Jays really needed this game with Cease on the hill and a playoff spot within shouting distance, but it simply didn’t happen. The metaphorical floodgates opened up in the fourth inning after a throwing error by shortstop Ernie Clement led to three unearned runs crossing the plate before the frame was over. Cease finished with only three strikeouts and issued a season-high six walks in the ugly outing. He’ll close out the regular season with a road tilt against the division-rival Orioles on Wednesday.

Cease’s average fastball velocity wasn’t any better than last time — checking in at 94.8 mph — but he struck out nine and managed to keep the Orioles off the board until an RBI single from Pete Alonso in the fifth. Perhaps most impressively, he worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the first inning by striking out three straight batters. Cease has regained the AL strikeout lead (238 after today) and lowered his ERA to 2.38 today, but Cam Schlitter (1.95 ERA after today) isn’t going to be hard to beat for the AL Cy Young Award.

Cease’s velocity bounced back some last time out in a strong outing against the Guardians, but he averaged a season-low 94.9 mph with his fastball tonight. His previous low was 95.2 mph from his Aug. 28 outing. He averaged 97.6 mph through 18 starts, but his high mark in nine starts since is 96.2 mph. It seems like it could be a real concern for the Jays if they make it to the postseason, though they have to get there first and tonight’s loss doesn’t help. Cease figures to make his next start Saturday or Sunday versus the Orioles.

Pitching with a huge lead after the second inning, Cease cruised to his 10th win of the season here. It was more of an old school outing for Cease though as he leaned heavily on his fastball and slider without throwing many changeups. That pitch was all over the place, about five ticks slower than its season average, and a few floated on him so it made sense that he went away from it. Nevertheless, Cease left this start with a 2.25 ERA as he continues to work towards his first Cy Young award. He has a two-start week coming up first against the Athletics in Sacramento and then back home for a meeting with the Orioles.

In July and August, Cease has allowed just 11 earned runs in 10 starts while striking out 89 batters in 73 innings. This effort could only lower his ERA from 2.37 to 2.33. The 30-year-old has lived up to his big contract this season and should finish quite high in the Cy Young balloting. He draws the Guardians next week in another no-thought-required start for fantasy managers.

Cease walked five batters and managed to keep a no-hit bid alive until Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled on his 106th pitch of the contest with two outs in the seventh inning. He finished with eight strikeouts in his second consecutive outing against New York. The 30-year-old All-Star righty has allowed three earned runs or fewer in nine consecutive starts since July 3. He’ll carry a stellar 2.37 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 209/64 K/BB ratio across 144 1/3 innings into a face off against the struggling Mariners in his next start on Friday.

Cease allowed two hits and three walks. He became the first American League pitcher to reach 200 strikeouts this season, a mark he has hit in six consecutive campaigns. The last two pitchers to accomplish that feat were Max Scherzer and Chris Sale. Cease has been on a roll, and the AL Cy Young race between him and Cam Schlittler is getting tight. Up next is a rematch against the Yankees, this time in the Bronx.

With his velocity down some once again, Cease was probably one batter away from getting pulled in the fourth in a rare off night tonight, but he did get through five with seven strikeouts. The Red Sox simply didn’t make him pay enough for walking four and giving up two homers. Cease will take on the Yankees on Sunday.

Louis Varland gave up a game-tying homer in the ninth. Cease has allowed four earned runs and struck out 56 in six starts since the beginning of July, and he’s nearly caught Cam Schlittler for the AL ERA lead (2.28 vs. 2.26). He’s first in the AL and second in the majors with his 184 strikeouts. His next start will come against the same Red Sox team he pitched a one-hitter against on two weeks ago.

Run support was hard to come by for both pitchers in this one, as Cease and Cardinals pitcher Kyle Leahy combined to allow just two earned runs on the night. Cease’s lone earned run came in the fifth inning when Jordan Walker singled to bring home Nathan Church to put the Cardinals up 1-0, but he was bailed out of the loss in the sixth inning thanks to a Kazuma Okamoto double that brought home Vladdy Jr. to tie the game at 1-1. Were it not for a three-run outing against the Rays, Cease’s numbers for July would have been even more impressive than the 3-1 record he posted with a 1.00 ERA and 0.72 WHIP. He’ll look to continue his recent run of dominance in his next start, which is scheduled for Wednesday on the the road against the Astros.

On the second anniversary of Cease’s no-hitter for the Padres in 2024, it looked like he’d be on the verge of history once again as he held the Red Sox without a hit through five innings before Andruw Monasterio led off the sixth with a double. It was the only hit he’d allow on the day as he went the distance in this one, recording the last six outs all via the strikeout to collect a dozen.

Cease was tagged for seven hits, including solo homers by Victor Mesa Jr. and Cedric Mullins. He finished with seven strikeouts and only issued one walk. A whopping three errors, including one by Cease himself, led to only one of the additional three runs being earned in this one. It was a rare clunker for the 30-year-old since he had allowed two earned runs or fewer in five of his previous six starts since returning from the injured list on June 9. He’ll wrap up a two-start week with a road matchup against the suddenly red-hot Red Sox on Sunday.

Cease took the ball for the American League and delivered an impressive performance in his first Midsummer Classic. He struck out Kyle Schwarber with a nasty slider before blowing a 98-mph fastball past Juan Soto. It was Freddie Freeman who extended the inning with a nine-pitch walk, but Cease rebounded to strike out CJ Abrams and escape the frame completely unscathed. The 30-year-old righty wrapped up a phenomenal first half in his Blue Jays debut with a 2.56 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 148/44 K/BB ratio over 98 1/3 innings. He’s performed like a bona fide fantasy ace and will open the second half with a home start this weekend against his former club, the upstart White Sox.

Cease has been outstanding in 2026 in his first year with the Blue Jays with a 2.56 ERA and 148 strikeouts, albeit with an unlucky 6-4 record. He’ll likely go an inning — maybe two — before giving way to the plethora of quality arms in the AL “bullpen.”

Cease was at 106 pitches after seven, but he clearly wanted to continue, and after a nine-pitch eighth, he was allowed to start the ninth. He wound up throwing just three pitches then, the last of which was a clean single from Heliot Ramos. Tyler Walker replaced him and preserved the shutout against his former club. Cease, who pitched a no-hitter for the Padres in 2024, struck out 11 and walked three. He has six 10-strikeout games this season and 31 for his career. The first-time All-Star closes out the first half 6-4 with a 2.56 ERA. He’s second in the majors with 148 strikeouts and seventh in ERA.

Jeff Hoffman and Louis Varland finished up the four-hitter. Cease allowed three hits and walked one in his fourth scoreless start this season. He’s second in the majors with 137 strikeouts and 11th with a 2.79 ERA. He’s given up five homers, which is tied with Ranger Suarez for the lowest total among qualified starters. Although Cease finished second in the AL Cy Young balloting in 2022 and fourth in the NL balloting in 2026, the All-Star nod he’s sure to pick up on Saturday will be the first of his career.

Cease had trouble finding the zone in the first inning against the Rangers. It cost him, with a run scoring on a base hit after two free passes. He settled down for three quiet innings before running into more trouble in the fifth. Cease walked a batter and allowed a run in on two hits with two outs in the inning. He couldn’t make it out of the frame, ending his day at 107 pitches. Both inherited runners would come in to score, adding two more runs to his line. He struck out 10 to help limit the damage. The 30-year-old right-hander will look to bounce back when he takes a 3.02 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, and a 128/40 K/BB ratio across 83 1/3 innings into a start against the Mariners in Seattle on Friday.