Jays vet Martin takes on teaching role
KANSAS CITY With catcher Danny Jansen expected to play a big role down the stretch with multiple starts behind the plate, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons says veteran Russ Martin will be asked to help groom the youngster for the big leagues.
Prior to Monday’s debut of pitcher Sean Reid-Foley and Jansen, Martin was involved in the pre-game meeting with the two call-ups and pitching coach Pete Walker. And Martin, who is filling the hole at third base for now, was told that whenever there is a mound meeting involving the new catcher, the coaches want him to have a say. It worked well for ReidFoley when he had to battle his way out of a bases-loaded jam, allowing just one run.
“Russ joined and the only thing he said was ‘let’s go and compete’ and that helped,” Reid-Foley said. “It went a long way.”
JAYS ACQUIRE PITCHER
Almost three weeks after trading reliever Seung-hwan Oh to the Colorado Rockies, the Jays got the throw-in piece to complete the deal on Tuesday.
The Jays acquired fringe righthanded relief prospect Brian Baker from the Colorado Rockies.
The main pieces in the deal were first base prospect Chad Spanberger and second baseman Forrest Wall.
The 23-year-old Baker, who was an 11th-round pick by the Rockies in 2016, is currently with single-A Lancaster of the California League, where he has recorded one save and has a 3.80 earned run average.
QUICK HITS
Gibbons on the warm welcome Tuesday’s starter Ryan Borucki and fellow newcomers Reid-Foley and Jansen have received from veteran teammates so far: “It always helps if the guys that come up are good guys.” … Former Jays reliever John Axford was placed on the DL by the Dodgers on Tuesday with a fractured fibula after taking a ball to the leg in a game against the Rockies … This Sunday in New York could feature a battle of lefties from Illinois at Yankee Stadium. Borucki is due to start for the Jays against his former teammate and mentor J.A. Happ ... The Cleveland Indians lost one of their best pitchers Tuesday when they placed righthander Trevor Bauer on the 10-day disabled list with a small stress fracture in his right leg. Bauer was struck by Jose Abreu’s liner in the seventh inning of Saturday night’s 3-1 win at the Chicago White Sox. Bauer is a top candidate for the AL Cy Young Award. The 27-year-old right-hander is 12-6 with a 2.22 ERA in 25 starts.
With files from The Associated Press