When the Toronto Blue Jays signed veteran right-hander Gavin Floyd in February, he was one of the players battling it out for the final starting pitching job.
Ultimately he was beat out by Aaron Sanchez and while not being named a starter “definitely wasn’t what I wanted to hear,” he believes he has adjusted well to his role in the bullpen.
The 33-year-old has pitched 11.2 innings with the Blue Jays this season, allowing seven hits, three runs and striking out 13.
Floyd, who was a quality starter for years with the Chicago White Sox, said he sees a bit of himself in the 23-year-old Sanchez.
“I like watching him. I really do and maybe there are some things that I can relate to,” Floyd told Baseball Central on Sportsnet 590 The Fan Thursday. “He has a great electric fastball. His breaking ball is a good pitch and he has a pretty good splitter, changeup whatever it is.”
Sanchez has impressed in his first season as a starter after bulking up in the off-season. He’s 2-1 with a 2.82 ERA and team high 34 strikeouts in six starts.
“I think to see him grow and what’s really cool is sometimes when he’s not finding it or he got hit a little bit, just the resilience he has, to continue to pound the zone and make pitches and make adjustments,” Floyd added.
“I think that’s what I’ve been really impressed about. He’s been making those adjustments and continue to be relentless and making the guys put it on the ground and getting double plays and ground balls.
“He has that stuff to get guys [to ground out] no matter if he’s 2-0 or 3-0 or whatever. He has a special ability with his fastball to make that happen.”
