KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With three weeks and 18 games to go, the leverage on each day only keeps rising for the Toronto Blue Jays, who have both challenges in their rotation and room to be creative in trying to optimize for the crucial stretch ahead.
A 6-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals on a scorching 35 C afternoon Sunday sent them west to Sacramento for a three-game set against the Athletics at 4-2 on this nine-game road trip, with ace Dylan Cease and Jose Soriano slated for the opening two contests there.
Barring the unexpected, that should make Michael Lorenzen available to either work in bulk behind an opener or start Wednesday’s series finale, one of three remaining TBA spots on the Blue Jays schedule if they remain on turn in the rotation. There are also three turns left for Spencer Arrighetti, who started the finale at Kauffman Stadium and allowed a three-run homer to Vinnie Pasquantino in the first and a two-run shot to Salvador Perez in the third among his six runs in 4.2 innings.
Three straight Thursdays off, however, give the Blue Jays an opportunity to play with their rotation, especially if Cease, Soriano and Max Scherzer can sacrifice an extra day of rest or two between now and the finish line.
There’s some risk in asking even more of them, as Cease and Soriano are already at 156.1 and 156 innings this season while Scherzer is 42 and has only found steady health over his last eight starts after two stints on the injured list. Still, in the wake of the Jameson Taillon injury, with few alternatives and Sept. 20 likely the earliest Trey Yesavage could return, even with an aggressive push, the Blue Jays need to find ways to concentrate innings in their most trusted arms.
“We've been talking about it for a little bit, and there are definitely a couple routes to take, and I think it really depends on the efficiency of definitely Dylan and Jose and Max and how they can recover and how they can come back,” said manager John Schneider. “There will probably be a couple games where you may have to get a little bit creative, not a bullpen game per se, but try to grasp some matchups that you like. But a lot will be dictated by what those three do.”
At 72-72, the Blue Jays are one game back of the 73-71 Cleveland Guardians, 3-2 winners in 10 innings over Detroit, and one game up on the Texas Rangers (71-73), who beat Tampa Bay 8-6, in the race for the American League’s third wild card. Still, with what looks like a favourable schedule, the math looks good for the Blue Jays if they take care of their business.
What role Arrighetti plays in the coming weeks is a significant question, especially since each start affects not only the game at hand, but also bullpen usage in the days ahead, which is essential with the rotation so thin right now.
In his fourth outing since returning from the injured list, Arrighetti did well to grind through command troubles and contact and pitch into the fifth inning, getting up to 91 pitches. But he walked three and gave up multiple homers for just the fourth time this season, the early runs burying the offence while Randy Dobnak allowed only Josh Smith’s solo shot.
Though both homers allowed came on sinkers, Arrighetti pointed to issues commanding his breaking balls as the main issue Sunday, exacerbated by elements he described as “definitely heavy.”
“I grew up playing baseball on turf in Houston, Texas, and that was the hottest field I've ever felt during a game, it was tough to keep the hand dry,” he continued. “The spin wasn't really coming out the way that I wanted it to. A lot of the execution was really, really subpar. Just not my best in any way, really, and it was a grind to get to pitch count today, for sure. … There's really nothing to be happy about after a game like that. But at least I can put some stock into the fact that I was able get punched in the mouth and keep going.”
A focal point for him will be locating his curveball, his most-used pitch this season at 34 per cent, and a sweeper he throws 12 per cent of the time, but that he leaned up a bit more against the Royals. He said when he’s right, he establishes the pitches in the zone for strikes and then expands for chase later, and getting back to that is vital, especially with clear need in the rotation right now.
He joked that “I might be cursed, honestly, it seems like everywhere I go, the starting pitchers just end up on the IL, which is crazy, obviously,” as the Houston Astros have also been ravaged by injuries. But he later added that “this is a great opportunity for me to show the team that I'm capable of helping us be in a position to win games when I turn the ball over, which I haven't really done yet. I'm just kind of trying to keep my focus on that.”
The Blue Jays, meanwhile, are focused on getting the most from all of their pitchers.
Yesavage, slated to throw another side Monday ahead of a two-up live batting practice Thursday in Dunedin, Fla., is the closest to returning. Assuming all goes to plan, he could pitch in a rehab game Sept. 15 and then return to offer some bulk as soon as Sept. 20 at Texas, although that’s also a lot to ask of a pitcher returning from knee surgery.
Schneider said his progress is “part of the puzzle” as they map out their pitching over the final three weeks, but first they’ll have to “see how he comes out of being off the mound again (Monday) and how the live goes, get him into a game and go from there.”
“Hopefully he keeps responding well to getting off the mound,” he continued. “We’d love to have him be an option for us.”
The circumstances the Blue Jays find themselves in may very well demand as much, from him and others, as the pressures dial up in their push for the post-season.
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