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Kevin Gausman believes Blue Jays' desperate need for reliable starting pitching starts with him
Kevin Gausman believes Blue Jays' desperate need for reliable starting pitching starts with him

Toronto Sun

timea day ago

  • Sport
  • Toronto Sun

Kevin Gausman believes Blue Jays' desperate need for reliable starting pitching starts with him

'June has been really ugly for me ... To be honest, I feel like everybody kind of did their jobs this series and I didn't.' Get the latest from Rob Longley straight to your inbox Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman reacts after hitting Minnesota Twins' Ty France with a pitch. AP Photo How desperate are the Blue Jays for reliable, healthy, go-deep-into-games starting pitching? This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Despite the impressive recent success and surge by the team, a June run that has vaulted them into contention for the AL East division title, the concern is high and seemingly getting higher with each turn through the rotation. The question marks go beyond that of the struggles of Bowden Francis, the ongoing (but potentially almost resolved) health of Max Scherzer's thumb and the lingering saga of the Blue Jays sometimes-twice-weekly bullpen day. No, the concern now extends to a would-be ace of the Toronto rotation, veteran Kevin Gausman. The always-transparent right-hander has been the first to admit that June has been a near disaster for him and acknowledges that he needs to be better. 'June has been really ugly for me,' Gausman said after an ugly outing on Thursday in which he allowed seven runs and two homers and was chased by the Arizona Diamondbacks after just 4.1 dodgy innings. 'To be honest, I feel like everybody kind of did their jobs this series and I didn't. (The team) is playing really good right now and going for a sweep (against the D'Backs) and I go out there and do that. I'm pretty frustrated.' Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Location has been an issue during those struggles and has resulted in him allowing opponents to get into favourable counts too easily. 'Like a lot of people, when Kevin's ahead (in the count), Kevin's elite,' manager John Schneider said after watching his starter surrender a season-high seven earned runs. 'Not getting there has just been tough for him.' Who knows what is causing Gausman to regress, as three of his past four starts have gone five innings or less and he has been nowhere near his best. But it isn't a stretch to suggest that the wear and tear on the pitching staff eventually was going to take its toll on at least one of the big three starters — Gausman, Chris Bassitt and Jose Berrios. The workload foisted on that threesome for parts of the past three seasons has been formidable and, for the most part, handled with good health and solid form. But regressing to a four-man rotation at various points in that run unsurprisingly can come with a cost. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. For the most part, the Jays have survived the latest challenge of being a man down, a reality that has dragged on all season. The latest example is scheduled for Friday where Spencer Turnbull is set to get the start in a planned bullpen day for the first date of a three-game weekend series against the miserable Chicago White Sox. In the broader picture, the overriding and mitigating good news is that, at 40-34, the Jays are comfortably in a playoff position and, with a shored-up rotation at some point between now and the trade deadline, have a realistic opportunity to run down the New York Yankees for the division title. In just over three weeks, the Jays have trimmed the gap from eight games to three, a welcome run that has energized the clubhouse and a just reward for better overall play. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. With an offence suddenly humming, the Jays have won 14 of their past 20 to completely alter the outlook of a middling first two months of the season. To make good on that burst, the Jays will need continued production at the plate, especially some of the might displayed by the top of the order over the past week. They'll need the return to health of should-be good pieces such as Daulton Varsho, Anthony Santander and Yimi Garcia. And they'll need to play with greater consistency as the races heat up. Most of all, though, if the Jays are going to realize the talent on the roster and make this season special, they're going to need an improved rotation. The prospect of an elite Scherzer arriving for the second half of the season is a tantalizing possibility and the addition of a reliable starter at next month's trade deadline almost feels like a necessity. It's also not a reach to note that a back-to-form Gausman could be key to it all. It's a challenge acknowledged and essentially embraced by Gausman himself. 'I feel like if I can get back to who I am, that's the next step for this team,' Gausman said. 'I hope to be a big part of it. Right now, I feel like I'm not doing my end.' Toronto & GTA MMA Columnists World NHL

First place in AL East is new Blue Jays target even after falling flat in series finale against D'Backs
First place in AL East is new Blue Jays target even after falling flat in series finale against D'Backs

Toronto Sun

time2 days ago

  • Sport
  • Toronto Sun

First place in AL East is new Blue Jays target even after falling flat in series finale against D'Backs

Get the latest from Rob Longley straight to your inbox Blue Jays' Bo Bichette tags Pavin Smith of the Arizona Diamondbacks out at second base stealing during the ninth inning at the Rogers Centre on June 19, 2025 in Toronto. Photo by MARK BLINCH / GETTY IMAGES There are any number of motivational checkpoints in a 162-game season to help contending teams ride the inevitable swings of the odyssey, both high and low. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account When a three-plus weeks of solid baseball allows you to wake up in late June just two games out of the division lead, that would be one of them. That was the position the Blue Jays found themselves in prior to a flat Thursday matinee against the Arizona Diamondbacks that resulted in a mostly lopsided and deflating 9-5 loss. Sure, it wasn't pretty but at least the home side took the three-game series 2-1, cooling a team that had arrived on a give-game heater. Baseball players are generally better equipped at riding out highs and lows than other sports — in part in the name of retaining some sanity giving the length of the season. So dropping a game against the D'Backs shouldn't destroy momentum, especially with the opportunity presented by a three-game weekend series against the Chicago White Sox, the worst team in the American League, right around the corner. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. With the New York Yankees defeating the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, the Jays slipped to three games in arrears of the division leaders. But with a big four-game home series against the Yankees starting on June 30, for the first time in 2025 the prospect of chasing the division lead has a whiff of believability. 'There is so much season left but, yeah, you look up and want so see yourself where you envision yourself,' manager John Schneider said prior to Thursday's lopsided affair played out before 33,978 at the open-roofed Rogers Centre. 'There's the wildcard and that's great, but the goal every year is to try to win the division. 'A lot (of season) to go but nice to look up and say we're playing well and where we are in terms of games back.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The unsightliness of Thursday aside, the Jays have still won 14 of their past 20 games and with a record of 40-34 have distanced themselves from that annoying dalliance with .500 that consumed the first two months of the season. 'I remember at the start of the month when I said you kind of want to put your best foot forward before you get into July and the dog days and the trade deadline and all that stuff,' Schneider said. 'I think it's nice that we have done that, and it kind of keeps the carrot at the end of the stick, right there, even though it's a long way to go.' The Jays couldn't get much of anything going on Thursday, early on the offence reduced to just two hits through the first seven innings, both of them Alejandro Kirk home runs. An eighth inning mini-rally — started by a Jonatan Clase homer — added three to bring the final score closer to respectability. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman reacts against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the fifth inning at Rogers Centre on June 19, 2025 in Toronto. MARK BLINCH/GETTY IMAGES NO GAS FOR GAUS? It's not a stretch to suggest that if the Jays are going to make a meaningful push for a division title, they're going to need stout starting pitching in general and a strong Kevin Gausman specifically. On Thursday, they got a dull one from the veteran right hander who was chased after 4.1 after the D'Backs rocked him for seven hits (two of them homers), four walks and seven earned runs. As an outlier, that kind of outing happens. But in three of his past four starts now, Gausman has pitched five innings or less and seen his ERA climb to 4.60. Read More TO THE MAX? This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The more wear and tear that piles up on the Jays starters — not to mention the holes in the rotation that have needed patching for too long now — the more the urgency heightens for a Max Scherzer return to action. Schneider said that following Scherzer's excellent 75-pitch, eight-strikeout for the Buffalo Bisons on Wednesday, the righty will throw a bullpen session here, likely on Saturday. 'Just like everything we've said with Max, it's kind of just a day at a time,' Schneider said. 'If that goes well, we'll see if he needs another (rehab start) or if he's good to go.' If it's the latter, that could set up a start on Tuesday in Cleveland against the Guardians. News NHL Editorial Cartoons MMA Soccer

Blue Jays blast D'backs as Max Scherzer's long-awaited return could be as soon as next week
Blue Jays blast D'backs as Max Scherzer's long-awaited return could be as soon as next week

Toronto Sun

time3 days ago

  • Sport
  • Toronto Sun

Blue Jays blast D'backs as Max Scherzer's long-awaited return could be as soon as next week

Get the latest from Rob Longley straight to your inbox Ketel Marte of the Arizona Diamondbacks tosses away his bat after striking out in the fifth inning against Jays lefty Eric Lauer at the Rogers Centre on June 18, 2025 in Toronto. Photo by Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images The boxscore will show that Eric Lauer made his fourth start of the season Wednesday night at the Rogers Centre, allowing one earned run over five-plus innings in a blowout 8-1 Blue Jays win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account With due respect to the lefty's latest handiwork, however, the Jays are hoping and intending that Wednesday's outing was just keeping the rubber in that spot of the rotation warm for the long-awaited return of it's big off-season pitching acquisition, Max Scherzer. With that in mind, as the Jays breezed to their second in a row over the D'Backs, the bigger development in the zoomed-out view of their season unfolded down in Worcester, Mass., where Scherzer was brilliant in what surely had the feel of his final rehab start with the Jays' triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons. The 40-year-old veteran reached his intended pitch limit of 75 and did so by striking out eight Red Sox hitters over 4.1 scoreless innings. Assuming everything is OK with Scherzer's bothersome thumb, returning to a big league mound for just his second start with the Jays next Tuesday in Cleveland is a real possibility. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Having the name, having the competitiveness, having the stuff,' Jays manager John Schneider said when asked prior to Wednesday's game what Scherzer could bring to his team. 'It would be huge just to have him, knowing that you have that calibre of pitcher waiting on your staff every fifth day would be a nice shot in the arm.' It would be much more than that, of course. The Jays rotation has been in tatters over the past month, held together by overusing the bullpen at times and sticking with struggling Bowden Francis. That's why Lauer's effort was so critical on Wednesday, causing minimal strain on a bullpen that will be asked to cover multiple innings here on Friday against the Chicago White Sox. In fact, Lauer has been so reliable for the Jays that, down the road, he could slide into the other black hole of the rotation. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Bigger things first, though. When you have a three-time Cy Young Award winner and two-time World Series champion ready to contribute, you tend to get a little bit excited if you are the Blue Jays. 'That would be good,' Schneider said with a smile and no further explanation when next Tuesday was raised as a possibility for Scherzer, who hasn't pitched in the bigs since a three-inning outing on March 29. 'That would line up nicely.' It would also give the Jays the boost that they need at a time of the season when wear and tear starts to hit pitching staffs around baseball. And as easy as it is to forget, given that Scherzer has spent 70 games on the injured list with that wonky thumb, the Jays paid him $15.5 million US on a one-year deal for a reason. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Prior to Wednesday's win, the Jays' 14th in their past 19 to move their record to 40-33, Schneider was asked what it was like to be on the other side when Scherzer's name came up as a probable pitcher for the opposition. 'It sucked,' the manager said. 'You know what you were getting into. You know that it's a future Hall of Famer that knows how to pitch. And whether he's got 94 (miles per hour on his fastball) or 98 in the tank that night, he knows what he's doing.' Down in Worcester, Scherzer certainly appeared to be accelerating on the right track, with a fastball hovering around 94 miles per hour and confounding triple-A hitters. 'He always thinks his stuff is ready,' Schneider said. 'I think it's more the physical part, how he's feeling tonight, tomorrow and the days in between. He thinks he could strike everybody out right now.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Doing it for the Blue Jays and doing so soon could be one of the biggest developments of a season headed in the right direction for the better part of the past month. HOME COOKIN' On Wednesday, the Jays picked up where they left off in Tuesday's dramatic ninth-inning comeback victory, when leadoff hitter Bo Bichette launched his 10th homer of the season in the first, a 418-foot blast to centre field. They broke it open in the sixth when back-to-back doubles from Addison Barger and Vlad Guerrero Jr. (and how are those bats back-to-back working for you?) were part of a three-run burst to increase the lead to 5-1 before a crowd of 27,635. Barger continued his torrid play at the plate with a pair of doubles and a single. Of his 46 base hits this season, 24 have been for extra bases. In taking the first two against the D'Backs for a rousing start to a six-game home stand, the Jays have now won 11 of their past 12 Rogers Centre contests. That three-game weekend sweep at the hands of the Phillies in Philadelphia is the Jays' only series loss in their previous seven. NHL Canada Soccer Columnists Canada

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