TORONTO -- Nearly 1,000 days have passed since the Blue Jays dealt former American League MVP Josh Donaldson to Cleveland for a player to be named later. On Opening Day, we saw why the Blue Jays were willing to play the long game.

Julian Merryweather found himself in a save situation right away, entering with a 3-2 lead and a runner on second in the bottom of the 10th inning at Yankee Stadium. He took a deep breath, let the nerves turn into adrenaline and blew through one of the most dominant innings you’ll see from a Blue Jays pitcher this season, striking out the side.

Merryweather isn’t the closer -- this bullpen by committee doesn’t really have one -- but the job landed on his lap Thursday. That’s the beauty of this for the Blue Jays, who were able to burn through top bullpen arms like Jordan Romano, Rafael Dolis, Tyler Chatwood and David Phelps but still able to keep the pedal to the floor in the 10th.

“We know we’re going to play a big role in closing out ballgames,” Merryweather said. “Our offense is going to hit and our starters are going to keep us in it. We’ve got some good arms that are going to eat some innings. Then, our job is to close the door. As a bullpen, we have a pretty strong mentality that we’re going to go out and be aggressive and try to be the best bullpen out there.”

The first six pitches really captured Merryweather’s ceiling. He started by freezing Aaron Hicks with an 0-2 changeup for a strikeout, then he opened up Giancarlo Stanton with back-to-back sliders around 87 mph. Stanton, having just seen those sliders and what the changeup did to Hicks, got an 0-2 fastball up and in, which he swung right through.

Merryweather was one strike away from an immaculate inning with Gleyber Torres up, but threw his lone ball of the inning before blowing a high 99.1 mph fastball, his hardest pitch of the day, by Torres to seal the win.

For the past few seasons, as Merryweather recovered from Tommy John surgery and slowly made his return to the mound, this was the upside the Blue Jays were betting on. There were flashes of it in 2020, when he debuted out of the bullpen with a 4.15 ERA over 13 innings, but Merryweather is set to fully arrive now.

Being linked to the Donaldson deal is a tough backdrop for Merryweather. No relief pitcher can live up to being dealt for a franchise icon, but that’s in the past. If Merryweather can stay healthy -- that “if” being the main character in this story all along -- the 29 year old has a chance to be one of the most important relievers on this roster.

Injury updates
• George Springer (left oblique strain) is progressing well and general manager Ross Atkins says there’s a “real chance” he’s at 100% by the time his 10-day IL stint expires. He’ll continue to be evaluated day to day.

• Robbie Ray (left elbow contusion) is throwing at “100% aggression,” Atkins said. The Blue Jays would like to get him back to the 80-pitch range comfortably, and they’ll have a clearer timeline after he throws off a mound soon.

• No. 1 prospect Nate Pearson (right adductor strain) is expected to throw off a mound Friday. He’s further off, given that he’ll still need to build up after missing time in camp, but the Blue Jays are encouraged by his progress.

• Thomas Hatch (right elbow impingement) is throwing again after a brief shutdown and not feeling any pain or symptoms. His timeline should be clearer over the coming days.

Player vaccination process
By the time the Blue Jays return to Florida for their home opener April 8, the state’s COVID-19 vaccination rollout will be open to those 18 and older, allowing that process to begin for players. Some staff, including manager Charlie Montoyo, have started to receive vaccinations based on their age range. Atkins said that the organization has been sharing videos and information from medical experts regarding the vaccine with players.

Clubs were informed on Monday that MLB and the MLBPA have agreed to relax certain health and safety protocols contained in the 2021 Operations Manual for fully vaccinated Tier 1 Individuals and for clubs where 85% of their Tier 1 Individuals are fully vaccinated. As part of that memo, players and staff were again strongly encouraged to receive one of the approved COVID-19 vaccines when eligible.