DUNEDIN, Fla. – Carlos Delgado started in left field the last time John Axford was in Toronto for a Blue Jays home opener.
Back on April 4, 1994, Delgado was a powerful prospect with an uncertain positional future. He went deep that day, the first of eight homers he’d hit in April, and among the 50,484 fans watching at SkyDome was 11-year-old Blue Jays fan John Axford.
Twenty-four years later, Axford’s chances of witnessing another home opener look better than ever. If the next two weeks go according to plan, he’ll break camp with the Blue Jays as a member of their bullpen.
"I’ve seen everything to this point that I need to see," manager John Gibbons said Tuesday.
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So far this spring, Axford has pitched effectively, with seven strikeouts in 4.2 innings and just two walks and three hits allowed. He’s throwing hard, still up around the 95 m.p.h. he averaged last year, and feeling strong.
The 34-year-old has been relying more heavily on his two-seam fastball this spring, and Gibbons has been impressed by how consistently he’s stayed in the strike zone compared to years past.
"There was times he could scatter it," Gibbons said. "That hasn’t happened at all this spring, and that’s encouraging. I know he feels good, and he still throws really, really hard. He should be pitching in the big-leagues, no doubt."
Data via Brooks Baseball
With an endorsement that strong from Gibbons, it’d be a surprise if Axford doesn’t break camp with the Blue Jays. Assuming he makes the team he’ll likely join Roberto Osuna, Seung-hwan Oh, Ryan Tepera, Danny Barnes and Aaron Loup in the Toronto bullpen with one more relief job up for grabs.
"If you look at how our roster’s configured as far as position players, we almost really need to be seven guys down there," Gibbons said.
Though an eighth reliever would provide Gibbons with an additional safety net on days a starter makes an early exit, it would compromise the team’s bench depth. Instead, the Blue Jays can start with a scaled-down bullpen and cycle in fresh arms from triple-A Buffalo as needed.
"Our rotation’s good enough that we should only need seven," Gibbons said.
Luis Santos has emerged as one candidate to fill out the bullpen given his ability to pitch multiple innings if needed. In six total innings this spring, the right-hander has struck out six while allowing zero hits and just one walk. One rival scout noted that Santos hasn’t tested his breaking stuff all that much, but with an effective 95 m.p.h. fastball, he hasn’t yet had to.
Other candidates for the bullpen include non-roster invitees Tyler Clippard, Al Alburquerque and Craig Breslow plus optionable left-hander Tim Mayza. To this point in the spring, Axford has distinguished himself among that group. Aside from testing himself in back-to-back outings, he’s essentially ready to go.
"I’ve felt good, relaxed, calm out there on the mound," he said.
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Axford’s coming off a tough 2017 season that saw him miss extended time with a shoulder injury then post a 6.43 ERA with 17 walks in 21 innings for the Oakland Athletics, but he says that shoulder issue is now behind him.
Though Axford knows there are no guarantees until the roster’s announced, he’s now allowing himself to think ahead a little. In recent years, he has heard about the Blue Jays’ home opener from his sister, who lives in Toronto and keeps him posted on the atmosphere at Rogers Centre.
"For me, as a Canadian, to see that (energy) even if you’re playing for another organization at the time, it was always cool to hear those things," he said.
Now he has a real shot at experiencing another Blue Jays opening day first-hand, this time as a player.
"As clichéd as it sounds, it’s kind of a dream come true," Axford said. "I’m sure it’ll be a special thing if that ever comes to be."
