Yates has completed his rehab process following August elbow surgery and has already thrown a series of bullpens, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.
If the Blue Jays are getting the same guy Yates was before last season, when he threw just 4.1 innings with a 12.46 ERA before being shut down due to bone chips in his elbow, they could be getting the best reliever in the league. From 2018 to 2019, no qualified reliever came within half a run of his 1.67 ERA, while he also topped that group in FIP (1.93). He comes with plenty of risk due to his surgery and the fact that he's heading into his age-34 season, but the fact that he's already advanced to bullpen sessions is certainly a good sign.