When dealing with B.J. Ryan, have the Jays learned nothing from the Victor Zambrano project?
According to greater baseball minds than ours, this was supposed to be the weekend that Jays' closer B.J. Ryan was supposed to toe the rubber against real, live Major League talent in a Grapefuit League game. That would have made it 47 weeks since he underwent 'Tommy John' surgery after a bad back in spring training last season mysteriously moved up into his arm and ligament replacement surgery was needed.
I find it comical that some people think that Ryan has suffered a setback in his return to active duty as the last line of defence in the Blue Jays bullpen. What's the rush here? Did they not learn anything from the Victor Zambrano experiment last year?
So what if Ryan isn't good to go until the middle of April, heck, even the first week in May? That would get him a lot closer to the full year that most experts in the field of ligament replacement believe is needed for pitcher to return to full active status. And, especially, when you factor in the fact that Ryan has one of the most violent, herky-jerkiest deliveries in all of baseball.
A lot of money has been invested in the 32-year old left-hander. His first season was one of the best by a closer in the history of the franchise. 1.37 ERA, 38 saves in 42 opportunities, 10.7 strikeouts per 9 innings. Year number two was a total write off. Five appearances, two blown saves, and a 12.46 ERA. For whatever reason, they kept running him out there despite the fact that something was clearly wrong. For reasons only known to J.P. Ricciardi, mistruths were spoken by the General Manager in regards to what exactly was wrong with Ryan.
So less than a year removed from the surgery to rebuild his pitching elbow, Ryan has made baby-steps toward returning to his rightful place in the 'pen. He's had bullpen sessions, pitched batting practice and participated in simulated games. All things pointed to pitching an inning this weekend until a visit from Dr. Timothy Kremchek, the doctor who performed the surgery, who told the Jays it might be best for all involved to knock back Ryan's return to active duty by, at least, a couple of days. Does this mean he might not ready to open the season with the team, only time will tell.
But it's not like they don't have an alternative if Ryan isn't 100 percent ready. Jeremy Accardo stepped into the closer’s role in Ryan's absence last season and picked up 30 saves in 35 opportunities and his 2.14 ERA was fifth-best among all Major League closers with at least 30 save opportunities. Accardo has clearly shown that he can handle the job. And it's not like the Jays don't have depth in the bullpen to handle Ryan being eased back into the closer’s role. Casey Janssen, who excelled in the set-up role last season, has been ticketed join the rotation this season. That would mean that with Accardo starting the season as closer, Brian Wolfe or a rejuvenated Brandon League would pitch the eighth inning in the meantime.
Is it ideal and according to the plans laid out this off-season? No, but this earlier in the baseball season, a little patience might go a long way.
THESE KIDS AREN'T ALRIGHT
Speaking of having a little patience, I'm really enjoying the lack of it being shown by some of the good young players who are in the early stages of their fledgling careers. I'm speaking specifically about Nick Markakis of the Orioles, Prince Fielder of the Brewers and Cole Hamels of the Phillies, who all feel like they've been "dissed" because the team decided to renew their contracts for minimal raises, all within the team's right to do so due the players' lack of service time. All three remind me of the kids that come out of college into out TV industry and expect to be a vice-president by next Thursday. It's just not the way that the world works. Good things come to those that wait, but that's not good enough in the fast food, remote control society that we now inhabit. To these three young players, I say take a deep breath, go out and do your job like we all know you can and I guarantee that by this time next year, they'll all be receiving the 1,000 percent raise that Ryan Howard got from the Phillies and the arbitrator in his third year in the Majors. Until then, your employers did nothing wrong and played within the rules your players association agreed to with the owners.
