Manager Charlie Montoyo said Thornton will start the Blue Jays' Grapefruit League opener Saturday versus the Yankees, Kaitlyn McGrath of The Athletic reports.
Thornton is only expected to cover an inning or two before turning the game over to the bullpen. As a rookie in 2019, Thornton supplied a 4.84 ERA and 8.7 K/9 across 154.1 innings while holding down a rotation spot all season. He won't be guaranteed a starting job to begin 2020, however, as Toronto beefed up its pitching staff this offseason with more seasoned rotation options in Hyun-Jin Ryu, Tanner Roark and Chase Anderson. Japanese newcomer Shun Yamaguchi is also vying for a back-end spot in the Jays' rotation.