THORNTON SHOWS HIS STUFF
Starting pitcher has made the most of his chance in Toronto during rookie season
Being a part of one of the best organizations in baseball did Trent Thornton no favours.
Being a part of one of the most tumultuous pitching staffs in the game? More and more it’s looking like the 25-year-old’s ticket to establishing himself in the big leagues.
In a season that has been so much of an adventure for Toronto Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo and pitching coach Pete Walker, Thornton made his 31st appearance of the year in Sunday’s 8-3 loss to the Yankees here in the Bronx.
It wasn’t the best outing of the season for the bespectacled rookie, but it was solid enough as he looks to tie a strong bow on his freshman campaign.
With five more innings (surrendering five hits and four runs following opener Wilmer Font), Thornton’s season total is up to 149.1 innings, by far the heaviest workload on the team.
Considering he was buried in the Houston Astros system this time a year ago, the fiery hurler has clearly made the most of his opportunity in Toronto.
“When I was in Houston I was just looking for that opportunity to get to the big leagues and prove that I can belong,” Thornton said of the Astros organization, which dealt him to the Jays in November for infielder Aledmys Diaz. “When I had an opportunity (with the Jays) in spring training, I had no idea if I would make the team as a starter or a reliever or not at all.
“I just wanted to give it my best shot and prove to them I’ve got what it takes to be a big leaguer. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of that this year.”
With the predictable ups and downs for a rookie, Thornton has done that and more.
He’s been the workhorse of a rotation that was decimated by injuries, under performance and the trade deadline. And given what’s left — albeit with Ryan Borucki and Matt Shoemaker scheduled to return — Thornton would seem to have an excellent shot at a spot on the back end of the rotation next season.
“He’s grown up during the season,” Montoyo said after Thornton’s effort on Sunday. “He knows that if he comes out and relaxes he gets out of trouble.
“I think he’s going to get better and better the more he pitches and the more he knows the league.”
Intense on the mound, Thornton has been dedicated off of it as well. While Walker has helped him a great deal, the rookie has also relied on “the baseball encyclopedia” he calls veteran starter Clay Buchholz.
The result has been a crash course in major league starting, an opportunity that would have seemed years away this time last fall.
“Baseball is a game of failure and with it being my rookie season, you know there are going to be ups and downs,” said Thornton, who has pitched behind an opener in his past three starts as the Jays staff manages his workload. “The guys who are the best in the game have bad ones every once in a while, just not so often.
“So for me, it’s finding that ability to be consistent more times out than not. Baseball is a continual work in progress. You can never learn enough. I want to finish the season off strong and take that forward to next year.”
There have been plenty of teachable moments for Thornton throughout his rookie campaign, starting with his major league debut when he struck out the first four batters he faced against the Tigers. In his first two games alone, the Charlotte, N.C. native had 15 strikeouts, eclipsing Roy Halladay’s club record to start a career.
Then there were the struggles. Early on, he was tipping pitches and there was a stretch were opponents feasted on him. He had a few rough patches, but always battled through them.
Thornton has also proven to be solid at making adjustments, including a notable one that came earlier this month courtesy of his high school coach back home in Charlotte.
“He randomly sent a video of me pitching in high school and said ‘hey man, I thought you’d enjoy this,’” Thornton said.
“I looked at it and saw that my delivery is a little different now. It had a lot more moving parts. In high school it was a little more simple.”
The young right-hander showed it to Walker and off to work they went. He tightened things up and in his three outings prior to Sunday had allowed a combined four earned runs including five no-hit innings vs. the Red Sox.
While few would have expected him to get as much opportunity as he did this season, Thornton believes he was ready to get a break and take advantage.
“I was hoping for it,” Thornton said. “I thought that I put myself in a decent position to have the opportunity to. It’s been an up and down year but I’m trying to end the season on a bright note. I feel like I’ve made a lot of the adjustments that are necessary to be successful.
“I hope to just continue to build off of the positives.”