Success out of gate for Biagini, Jays
Blue Jays swing man Joe Biagini swung into spring training on a high note Friday afternoon at Dunedin Stadium.
The Jays have been working with the big right-hander to pick up the pace between pitches and get rid of a hitch where he would stand on the mound and sort of subtly bounce up and down between pitches. Manager John Gibbons thinks speeding up his delivery will help Biagini gain more consistency.
That seemed to work Friday as the Jays’ projected sixth starter opened Grapefruit League play by pitching two solid innings, surrendering just one hit and striking out two without a walk in a 2-1 Toronto victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
“I thought he threw the ball very well,” Gibbons said. “He was just real deliberate last year, slow working. You never noticed it much as a reliever. I thought he looked much better.”
Biagini said he worked on speeding up and simplifying his delivery in the off-season and was happy with the result.
“Just trying to kind of make things a little bit more streamlined in my motion, especially in my windup,” said Biagini.
“I had a couple of checks in midwindup last year that helped me get into the right posture. But this year I worked on a way that I could do that kind of within the natural setup so I don’t need those movements anymore, and I think that kind of helps. And another thing is just coming set and ready with the ball in my glove, kind of pitch with a little more urgency, keeping things simple so all you think about is the next pitch,” he said.
GRANDY WAS JUST DANDY
Outfielder Curtis Granderson led off the first inning for the Jays with a home run to right centre on a 1-1 hanging curve by Nick Pivetta. It was his first at-bat as a Blue Jay.
“I’m sure he won some fans over in his first at-bat. He’s probably already a legend in Canada,” Gibbons said.
Another newcomer, Aledmys Diaz, made a sparking play at short in the second inning, starting a double-play by fielding a high chopper hit by Will Middlebrooks and tossing it while the ball was still in the glove to Yangervis Solarte covering second.
LEADING OFF THE DEBATE
Last year at spring training, one of the big storylines was who would be the leadoff hitter. Granderson got the call Friday, but while he has speed, he’s also 36.
“(Devon) Travis would be a good one,” said Gibbons. “Other than that, I couldn’t tell ya. We’ll see.”