Blue Jays' Chris Bassitt talks about six-man rotation and doing whatever it takes to win
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Toronto Blue Jays veteran Chris Bassitt talks about the upcoming weeks ahead and the role he is willing to play for what's best for the team going forward.
Chris Bassitt, who, as John Schneider likes to say, does weird well.
He pitches through sinus infections, neck spasms, downpours, heat waves, his wife's labor.
He's fiercely proud of his ability to outwit a lineup three times over, but not too proud to pitch out of the bullpen should his team need him to, as he did on the final day before the all-star break.
Chris Bassitt ties his season high with 10 Ks in a 2-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday. 5.2 IP | 6 H | 2 ER | 2 BB | 10 K | 107 Pitches
Chris Bassitt's biggest concern is to the help the rotation remain fluid even if he has to work out of the pen
Last season, he lobbied to start the final game of Toronto's losing campaign so the club's bullpen didn't have to cover it, before being talked out of it.
Bassitt says his primary concern is how the club will find the sweet spot of rest vs. rust for its starters with four off days over the next two-and-a-half weeks.
It's possible that will include Bassitt assuming the "available out of the 'pen" role that Lauer is this weekend.
«There's a give and take. It's something that we're going to have to go through and figure out,» he said. «It's just the timing of it. There's so many different intricacies with timing. I don't think anything's set in stone. I think everything is completely different day by day. So, it's just a matter of how all six of us are feeling. I think it's a matter of how much rest is too much rest. I think it's a matter of how the bullpen is handling everything. So, there's just a lot. There's a lot to go into it.»
As a pitcher who relies more on deception and guile to overwhelm hitters than stuff to overpower them, Bassitt's an imperfect fit for a bullpen role.
But he's adaptable enough to make it work for a spell while filling in any gaps between Scherzer, Gausman, and Bieber down the stretch.
How he helps the team come the post-season remains to be seen, particularly if Scherzer, Gausman, and Bieber are all rolling.
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