THE CANADIAN PRESS
TORONTO — Shaun Marcum was dressing at his clubhouse stall in one of the quiet moments before the Toronto Blue Jays began their migration toward the field. One of the first articles of clothing he pulled on was a team-issued T-shirt emblazoned with the slogan, "We will not be outworked."
It seemed particularly fitting for the 28-year-old right-hander because, almost a month into the season, no pitcher in baseball had worked as long as he had without earning a win. Marcum is four starts into his run as Toronto ace, and will still be looking for his first win when he takes the mound for his scheduled start against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday.
He is 0-1 so far, a record due more to a lack of timely run support than anything he has done on the mound. Marcum has only issued four walks over 27 innings of work, registering 23 strikeouts while posting a 4.00 earned-run average.
"I’ve said it 1,000 times — and I’ll say it to the day I die — I’ve never been a guy that cares about personal wins or anything like that," he said Monday. "This isn’t an individual sport, it’s a team sport, and that’s all I’m really concerned about."
Marcum was not the only big-name pitcher held without a win heading into Monday’s batch of games. Kansas City Royals ace Zack Greinke, the American League’s defending Cy Young Award winner, was 0-2 through his first four starts, including a no-decision in a win over the Blue Jays last week.
Jake Peavy, who won the National League Cy Young Award three years ago, entered the week with an 0-1 record, completed with an unsightly 7.66 ERA with the Chicago White Sox.
"Baseball’s a weird game," Marcum said. "I could go out and give up 10 runs and get a win. But sometimes, you go out and give up one or two and get a loss."
He carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning against Texas on opening day, but left without a decision in a 5-4 loss. He allowed two runs in the first inning of his next start, in Baltimore, but left with another no decision, even after the Blue Jays rallied to a win. His first loss came at the end his third start, against the Los Angeles Angels.
"He can throw four or five pitches for strikes at any time," Blue Jays pitching coach Bruce Walton said. "He keeps you off-balance and he forces contact. He’s never really going to throw up big strikeout numbers, but he’s a guy who uses his pitches to his advantage and gets the game deep — in 100 pitches, he can go eight innings."
Marcum is scheduled to face right-hander Clay Buchholz (1-2) when the Blue Jays host the Red Sox in the second game of their three-game series on Tuesday. The man he replaced as Toronto’s ace, Roy Halladay, was a dominant 4-0 with a 0.82 ERA heading into his start with the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night.
"It’s hard to replace Doc, but he’s certainly pitched well enough to win a ballgame," Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said. "If he just keeps doing those things, he’s going to win some."
