Thornton is still penciled into the No. 5 starter spot when the regular season begins.
The right-hander hadn't been overly impressive when spring training was put on pause, posting a 4.22 ERA and 6:5 K:BB through 10.2 innings, but Thornton's main competition for the job, Shun Yamaguchi, had served up five homers in nine innings to all but take himself out of the running. Depending on when MLB is able to resume, Thornton's biggest threat to his rotation spot could end up coming from top prospect Nate Pearson if the Jays decide they need their best options available in the majors.