Toronto Blue Jays: Ryan Tepera must find motivation in arbitration loss

Ryan Tepera is arguably underrated and after losing his arbitration case, will now have even more reason to prove himself to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019.

There is an argument that Ryan Tepera is underrated/taken for granted by the Toronto Blue Jays organisation. After events on Friday, the pitcher himself may also now feel this is the case.

As reported by the Associated Press via Sportsnet, Tepera lost his salary arbitration case. As a result, he was awarded $1.525 million instead of the $1.8 million he had requested.

The decision was made by arbitrators Mark Burstein, Edna Francis and Howard Edelman, after they heard the arguments on Wednesday. It will be interesting to see how Tepera responds to the outcome of the case.

This was the first time the 31-year-old was arbitration eligible. He has two more years of arbitration eligibility.

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While Tepera was awarded $275,000 less than he was looking for, he still did well for himself. Consider that last year he earned $574,700, meaning he will see a payrise of nearly $1 million in 2019.

Regardless, Tepera may still feel frustrated by Friday’s outcome, as he has one eye on the future. The likelihood is that when he becomes a free agent after the 2021 season, his chance to make big money will be compromised by his age.

The Houston, Texas native proved to be an invaluable member of the Blue Jays’ bullpen last season, as they continually leaned on him. He recorded 64.2 innings in 68 appearances, recording a 3.62 ERA, 4.17 FIP and 1.222 WHIP.

Despite being a reliable reliever, Tepera’s ERA was actually the highest of his four-year career in the Majors. Along with missed time due to right elbow inflammation, you imagine this was used as part of the Blue Jays’ argument against paying him $1.8 million this coming season.

Despite this setback, it is now up to Tepera to use it as motivation this coming year. If he can perform better — or at least to a comparable level — it will put him in line for another bump in his pay for 2020.

In order to achieve this, the 2009 19th round draft pick will rely primarily on three pitches. As per Brooks Baseball, these include his cutter (90 mph), fourseam fastball (95 mph) and sinker (96 mph).

Tepera’s cutter is particularly effective, as it generates an extremely high number of swings and misses compared to other pitchers. Although rarely used, he does also possess a slider (84 mph) and change (90 mph) in his arsenal.

Helping the 6 foot 2, 195 pounds righty moving forward, he proved in 2018 that he can be used as a closer when called upon. As well as 19 holds, he also recorded seven saves.

With the Blue Jays now in full rebuild mode, they will need to rely on players such as Tepera to help them remain competitive. As such, it’s up to him to now take advantage of this and prove his worth, both figuratively and literally.

How do you rate Tepera’s four years with the Toronto Blue Jays? What kind of production are you predicting for him during the 2019 season? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.