TORONTO – Between offering a soft-landing testing ground for the latest iteration of Yusei Kikuchi and the potential to showcase possible deadline targets, the Detroit Tigers sure make an intriguing weekend guest for the Toronto Blue Jays.
Five innings of one-run ball from the lefty in his return from the injured list – helping drive a 5-3 victory Thursday night – certainly provided plenty to digest. Using a fastball sitting at 94.7 m.p.h., a refined slider featuring four inches of vertical break above his season average and a more fluid delivery, Kikuchi resembled the best version of himself.
He coolly worked around Robbie Grossman’s leadoff double in the first, shrugged off Willi Castro’s two-out solo shot in the second and stranded Grossman’s one-out walk in the third. He struck out five and was efficient in needing just 67 pitches before handing the reins over to the bullpen, and for a front office deciding how to best bolster the roster before the Aug. 2 trade deadline, perhaps he showed enough to think Kikuchi may be turning the corner.
“This is going to be one of those bounce-back outings for me," Kikuchi said through interpreter Kevin Ando afterwards. “Definitely felt great start to end tonight. I think I could ride this wave and hopefully, it continues for many outings to come.”
At the same time, there’s a danger in making definitive decisions based on his performance Thursday, especially when volatility has been a Kikuchi trademark this season. Good or bad, the Blue Jays appeared to be intent on giving him some run and perhaps they saw enough to sway their shopping plans.
“You don't want to make it a knee-jerk reaction after one outing or something like that,” is how interim manager John Schneider put it before the game. “We trust the work that he's put in, the adjustments that he's made. … I think we have a little bit of room for some runway and there's always time to make a quick adjustment if you need to. We obviously like him. We’ve invested in him and we trust that he's going to go out and perform.”
Even if that’s indeed the case, there’s a worthwhile debate to be had over where the Blue Jays should push their prospect capital. The market for an elite starter like Luis Castillo may be about to move after the Cincinnati Reds began their sell-off Thursday night by sending outfielder Tyler Naquin and minor-league reliever Phillip Diehl to the New York Mets. Chasing the righty offers both an obvious and immediate talent boost or the rotation while also keeping him from the New York Yankees.
Naquin was a potential fit for the Blue Jays, as well, and reason to augment the outfield came in the eighth inning when George Springer hit a fly ball to right, grabbed his troublesome right elbow and left the game. Afterwards, Schneider said the all-star centre-fielder “is feeling good, he really is,” described his “little bit of elbow discomfort” as being “a little worse than it is right now” and added that he’ll be re-evaluated Friday.
Given how last week Springer said he’s, “going to have to fight through stuff all year,” perhaps the Blue Jays should make a push for Ian Happ, a switch-hitter who’s played all around the diamond, including 240 career games in centre.
Then there’s the bullpen and in that regard, the Tigers are a particularly interesting trade partner with a handful of interesting relief arms, from a long-term piece like closer Gregory Soto or Will Vest, to shorter-term arms like Joe Jimenez or rental Michael Fulmer.
Of that group, Jimenez may be the best fit, as his 28.8 per cent differential between his strikeout and walk rates is 10th among relievers. That’s a metric the Blue Jays emphasize in their player development – ideally due as much to a low walk rate as a high strikeout rate – and anything in the 25-30 per cent range is considered elite for a reliever.
Chris Martin (Chicago Cubs, 26 per cent), Joe Mantiply (Arizona Diamondbacks, 23.5 per cent), A.J. Puk (Oakland Athletics, 21.3 per cent) and Anthony Bass (Miami Marlins, 21.2 per cent) are other potential targets who fit that mould.
A reminder of how much elite relief is needed came as the Blue Jays tried to lock down the 3-1 lead Kikuchi handed the bullpen.
After Matt Chapman’s second homer of the night opened a 4-1 edge in the sixth, Tim Mayza gave up a solo shot in the seventh to Jonathan Schoop while Yimi Garcia flirted with disaster in the eighth. A miscommunication between Bo Bichette and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. on a Grossman flare to the outfield helped load the bases with none out, but Garcia managed to hold the damage to one run on an Eric Haase sacrifice fly before Jordan Romano escaped the jam.
A Danny Jansen sacrifice fly in the bottom of the eighth restored some breathing room before Romano closed things out on a 10th win in the past 12 Blue Jays outings.
While they are looking to add, the Tigers are open for business, something manager A.J. Hinch acknowledged before the game. As the deadline nears, he conceded that, “I’m getting a few more questions (from players) today than I’ve gotten leading up to today.”
“It all comes back to winning and losing,” he added. “When you’re on a winning side, I’m sure Toronto is curious who they’re going to be getting. I’m just trying to make sure our guys realize we put ourselves in this situation. We have to deal with the consequences of the stress, the anxiousness, the curiosity and the reality that if I was on the outside and had a contending club, I would have a few pieces here that I would want, too. I’ve been on some winning teams and our guys can help. …
“It’s no secret when you’re on an expiring contract, when you’re an attractive bullpen piece, those are the two characteristics that often get traded.”
In other words, while the sell-offs have started elsewhere, theirs is coming and across the diamond from them this weekend are the Blue Jays, a team waiting to pounce both on and off the field.
