Replacement of reeling Jays’ rookies continues
Then there were three.
Much fanfare accompanied the inclusion of six rookies on the Toronto Blue Jays opening-day roster. All six were hyped for key roles. But over the first three days of May, three of those players have been demoted to Triple-A Buffalo as the floundering Jays search for stability, especially in the pitching department.
The latest moves came after Sunday’s embarrassing 10-7 loss in Cleveland. Miguel Castro, the 20-year-old who emerged as the club’s closer early in April, was sent to Triple-A Buffalo, along with pitcher Scott Copeland, who had been with the club for just two days.
Castro’s demotion came one day after Dalton Pompey, 22, was demoted after starting the season as the regular centre-fielder. On Friday, starter Daniel Norris, also 22, was sent down.
“We’ve got to iron some things out and get better, no question about that,” manager John Gibbons told reporters after his staff blew a 6-1 lead in Cleveland. The Jays sit last in the American League East with a 12-14 record, four games out of first place.
Castro, who didn’t not allow a run over his first six outings, gave up the final two Cleveland runs. In his past seven appearances, covering six innings, he has allowed six runs and 12 hits.
The Jays recalled relievers Chad Jenkins and Steve Delabar from Buffalo. Both will be assigned to the overworked relief corps, although Jenkins had been starting for the Bisons.
The remaining rookies are second baseman Devon Travis, 24, who hit a grand slam Sunday and has emerged as the team’s most consistent hitter over the first month; starter Aaron Sanchez, 22, who has shown flashes of brilliance while battling serious command problems; and reliever Roberto Osuna, 20, who has a 1.38 ERA over nine relief appearances.
The bullpen’s revolving door has been spinning over the past four days as the Jays plucked reinforcements from Buffalo. On a 3-7 road trip, they saw a starter survive the sixth inning only once, a trend that effectively wore out one reliever after another.
On Sunday, Drew Hutchison failed to get through the fifth inning for the fourth time in six starts this season. Hutchison’s 7.47 ERA is the worst among American League starters. Mark Buehrle’s 6.75 is second worst.
Meanwhile, the offence averaged five runs per game on the trip to Tampa, Boston and Cleveland.
The Jays open a six-game homestand against the Yankees on Monday night. Toronto’s starter will be R.A. Dickey, who has worked at least six innings in four of his five outings.
Norris left for Buffalo with a 3.86 ERA, still the lowest among Jays’ starters, but he was averaging 19 pitches per inning and lasted only three innings on Thursday in Cleveland. The Jays were concerned about his high pitch counts, and about his tendency to obsess on his mistakes and battle his emotions on the mound. They hope he can regroup quickly in Buffalo and return to the majors.
Pompey, the Mississauga native, was struggling at the plate and occasionally on defence. He had moved to left field after losing his original job to Kevin Pillar and was batting .193 while striking out in 24 per cent of his plate appearances. Pompey’s body language often reflected a crisis of confidence, and the Jays hope he too can recover quickly in Buffalo.
For Castro, the major leagues seemed to be too much, too soon. He and Osuna were spring sensations, and Castro took his success into the first two weeks of the season. But soon batters started to sit on his fastball and his command was not precise enough to avoid hard contact.
Castro appeared in 12 of the Jays’ first 26 games. He pitched in backto-back games only twice, but relief work was new for him. In the minors, he appeared in 39 games, starting 30. And he had never pitched above Class A before opening this season in the majors.
The Jays still project him as a starter, but they put him in the bullpen because he filled a need. That need remains. It is second only to the club’s need for better work from the starters.