ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – The latest addition to the Toronto Blue Jays bullpen has succeeded against baseball’s best hitters for extended periods. More recently, though, Neil Ramirez has struggled at the MLB level, and that’s why the Blue Jays were able to obtain him in the first place.
Ramirez had an 8.71 ERA in nine relief appearances before the Giants designated him for assignment Sunday. Intrigued nonetheless, the Blue Jays made a waiver claim in the hopes that the 27-year-old can reinforce their bullpen.
Ramirez was at his off-season home in Nashville Thursday when he heard he’d be joining the Blue Jays, a club in need of a turnaround as much as he is.
“I’ve watched this team in the playoffs,” Ramirez said. “Obviously the pieces are here to be a very good team, so my focus is to come in here and help them win.”
[snippet id=3319157]
Ramirez has achieved against MLB hitters before, with a 2.20 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 65.1 innings for the 2014-15 Cubs. He has since bounced around to the Brewers, Twins and Giants without replicating those results, but the Blue Jays are encouraged by his potential.
“We like his arm,” manager John Gibbons said. “We’ll take a look at him.”
A former starter, Ramirez describes himself as a four-pitch pitcher who will complement his fastball with lots of off-speed stuff. He throws his fastball, which averages 92.8 m.p.h., a little more than half of the time, while mixing in a slider once every three pitches or so, throwing curves regularly and using his change-up primarily as a show-me pitch.
“It’s not your typical reliever mix, but I like to use all four,” he said.
A strong spring earned Ramirez a spot in the Giants bullpen, and he did strike out 18 of the 53 hitters he faced with San Francisco. Too often, though, opponents capitalized on mistake pitches. After a brief period of uncertainty in DFA limbo, he’s looking forward to turning his season around with the Blue Jays.
“Absolutely,” he said. “I’m going take the positives from over there, take that here and help these guys win some games.”
[relatedlinks]
STARTERS ON THE MEND
While J.A. Happ hasn’t pitched off a mound yet, he’s feeling “much better,” according to Gibbons.
“MRIs don’t tell you everything, but his looked pretty good,” Gibbons said. “But you’re dealing with a pitcher’s elbow, and you’ve got to take your time.”
There’s no timeline for Happ’s return, but Aaron Sanchez could return to the Blue Jays rotation as soon as next weekend. The Blue Jays slowed down Sanchez’s timeline and will now have him throw a bullpen session Sunday. If all goes well, he could pitch against Gulf Coast League hitters Tuesday and return to face the Seattle Mariners in a week or so.
NOTES
• The Blue Jays are still hopeful that Josh Donaldson (calf) and Troy Tulowitzki (hamstring) will return sometime during their upcoming three-series homestand. Both injured infielders had been working out at the team’s Dunedin, Fla. facility before re-joining their teammates at Tropicana Field.
• Though Joe Smith didn’t join the Blue Jays with a reputation as a strikeout pitcher, he already has 29 swinging strikes, second in the Blue Jays bullpen to Dominic Leone, who has 30. With 20 strikeouts on the season, Smith’s now averaging 12.9 K/9, which would be a career best.
