Oh so good in debut as Jays reliever
Veteran reliever slotted as setup man for closer Osuna, writes
DUNEDIN As a younger player in his native South Korea, Seung Hwan Oh was the ultimate closer, hence his nickname back then, “The Final Boss.”
The Blue Jays won’t necessarily be looking for exactly that from the 35-year-old right-hander. But if Oh has anywhere near the shutdown stuff he did in St. Louis two years ago, look out.
On Wednesday, Oh finally got an opportunity to pitch for his new team after spending two nights in Toronto finalizing his visa issues.
And Oh boy was the longawaited debut impressive. He tossed just seven pitches — all of them strikes — for a threeup, three-down inning of work against the Philadelphia Phillies. Oh got a popout, a groundout and a three-pitch strikeout.
“(Wednesday) was my first outing so I don’t want to say how it’s going to go for the season, but the live ( batting practice) and bullpen sessions helped me a lot to get to this stage to get ready for the season,” Oh said through translator Eugene Koo. “More than the results, I felt pretty good out there.”
Small sample size, but the Jays have to be feeling enthused about it as well. Pegged to be a setup man for closer Roberto Osuna, Oh showed he could be well on his way to doing just that.
“I tried everything possible to get up to speed with everybody else so we’ll see,” said Oh, who was one of the best relievers in baseball two years ago.
Besides an eighth-inning setup role, Oh could also emerge as insurance for Osuna. Pitching for the Cards in 2016, Oh had a 1.92 ERA in 76 appearances and finished sixth in rookie of the year voting.
“It’s been a long time waiting I know that,” Gibbons said, of the visa troubles that kept Oh from game action until Wednesday. “We’ll make sure he gets enough (work) and he should be good to go.”
In his 11 years in Asia, Oh had a 1.81 ERA and 357 saves, which earned him a shot at North American ball. In his two years here, Oh has recorded 39 saves.
He was released by the Texas Rangers in February after failing a physical and was promptly scooped up by the Jays.
OUTFIELD RELIEF
The longer Randal Grichuk was sidelined with a rib injury, the more the door opened for Teoscar Hernandez to be the team’s opening day right fielder.
But for the first time since March 9, Grichuk appeared in the lineup Wednesday and professed himself fit and ready to prepare for the start of the season.
“I felt pretty decent when I got hurt so I feel like I will have plenty of time,” said Grichuk, who was sidelined by a rib/oblique injury. “I should be able to play in five games which will be enough to get ready for the season.”
Grichuk certainly didn’t appear to feel any pain during batting practice nor in fielding drills. He made it a full day’s work as well, staying in for the duration of the 7-7 tie with the Phillies while going 0-for-4 at the plate.
Acquired from the Cardinals, Grichuk said he could have returned earlier but was encouraged by the Jays training staff to wait until he was pain free.
“When I still felt a little bit (of pain) they said let’s just push it back,” Grichuk said. “I’d rather miss a couple more in spring than a lot of time in the season.”
STROMAN SHRUGS IT OFF
Marcus Stroman’s first outing against major league hitters this spring wasn’t exactly smooth sailing, but the right-handed starter felt the most important business was accomplished.
Stroman gave up five hits in 2.2 innings of work Wednesday — and one earned run, a home run to Rhys Hoskins.
“Just a matter of getting my body right. My arm felt great,” Stroman said of what he accomplished in his second live pitching session since recovering from shoulder inflammation.
Stroman, who reached his planned pitch count of 54, will finish his spring work on Monday in Montreal with a target of 70.
“From there I’ll be ready for the season,” he said. “It’s just a matter of getting out there one more time and I’ll be ready to go.”