AL East: Most Underrated Player From Each Team

The Blue Jays have had an up-and-down start to this season, following their impressive World Series appearance last year. They have had insanely poor injury luck so far, losing several players who were supposed to be key contributors. Their starting centerfielder (George Springer), rightfielder (Anthony Santander), third baseman (Addison Barger), and Catcher (Alejandro Kirk) have all missed time. They also have a whole rotation worth of starters hit this injured list: Max Scherzer, Dylan Cease, Trey Yesavage, Shane Bieber, and Jose Berrios. With all these injuries, they still find themselves around .500 in large part to newly promoted closer Louis Varland.

With Mason Miller rightfully getting a ton of attention from the media, Varland’s incredibly good season has been overlooked. There is a strong case that up to this point, his season has been better than Miller’s. He has the lowest ERA in the league (0.27), the 7th highest reliever K% (35.0%), and the most WAR for a reliever (2.0). He also leads the Blue Jays in WAR, meaning that he has been the most impactful player on his team as a reliever. This rarely ever happens and is a testament to just how good Varland has been to start the season. He should be getting some of the praise Miller has been getting as one of the best relievers in baseball.