What's next for Bowden Francis and the Blue Jays?
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The Toronto Blue Jays face tough questions after another poor outing from Bowden Francis.
Francis allowed four runs, two of them on solo shots by Brooks Lee and Christian Vazquez in the fourth, in 3.1 innings, making his 26th career start and 61st career game another troublingly short outing.
There was improvement in terms of limiting damage from the two-homer, seven-run, 1.2-inning mess he delivered last Tuesday at home against the Philadelphia Phillies. But with five walks and five hits allowed versus the Twins, there was still plenty for the Blue Jays to worry about, especially with his rotation spot quickly devolving into a second bullpen day.
The seeming progress he made in a five-shutout, six-inning outing May 27 at Texas now appears to be an outlier as he's managed to go more than five innings only once in his last eight starts.
Between that and the regular bullpen day since Max Scherzer hit the injured list after his first start of the season, it's put a significant strain on the relief corps.
Meanwhile, even as the Blue Jays (35-30) have surged with 19 wins in their last 29 games, they're now 4-9 when Francis starts, and with his next turn due Saturday at Philadelphia, there's added urgency to the question of how sustainable it is to continue starting him.
The lack of palatable alternatives is a factor there, too, although the depth dynamics are beginning to change.
Spencer Turnbull, the May signee whose 35-day option expired, was recalled after the game and will join the Blue Jays in St. Louis for the series against the Cardinals, in a role to be determined (Paxton Schultz was optioned to make room).
The initial thought was to build him up for the rotation, and he got up to 80 pitches Friday in his last rehab start, but his fastball sat just under 90 m.p.h., down from where it's been, and it's possible he begins in the bullpen as he further builds up.
That could push Eric Lauer, who's posted a 2.08 ERA over 26 innings of bulk and starting work, into the rotation for Wednesday, when the bullpen game next comes up. Turnbull could team up with him in a piggyback situation, too.
Another possibility suddenly on the horizon is Canadian lefty Adam Macko, who underwent knee surgery during spring training and joined triple-A Buffalo on Sunday, throwing four no-hit innings with three walks and four strikeouts.
He averaged 93.6 m.p.h. with his fastball, topping out at 96.4, and while he's likely to need some more outings to fully regain his form, the club viewed him as a viable starting option before his injury.
Then there's Scherzer, who threw three innings and 50 pitches in a simulated game at Dunedin, Fla., that included Daulton Varsho, who took the veteran righty deep, said manager John Schneider.
There will be plenty of focus on his recovery as this is the workload threshold where his thumb issues keep flaring up, and the current plan is for him to remain at the complex to throw a side on Tuesday before charting next steps, with Buffalo a possibility to accelerate his path back.
What's next for Bowden Francis and the Blue Jays?
Francis said his focal points between starts include working on his lanes to the plate in his delivery to improve his fastball command in and out, and at the top and bottom of the strike zone, as well as getting more strike-to-ball movement with his secondary offerings.
He's leaned on the support of his teammates and staff, saying there are «a lot of guys behind me that have my back and let me know it's there,» reminding him of how much recent success he's had.
«There are so many ebbs and flows on how it's going to go just watching this game and watching other guys' careers,» said Francis. «There are always tons of peaks and valleys, and I feel like there's value in the valleys. It's frustrating. But I keep learning from these kinds of outings. Hopefully they don't last long, but just keep posting, keep working between the starts, try to find a way.»
Will the Blue Jays be able to get solve this problem or does Bowden Francis need to be sent down to Buffalo?
Tell us what you think in the poll below.
Source: Sportsnet
| POLL | ||
JUIN 8 | 151 ANSWERS What's next for Bowden Francis and the Blue Jays? Will the Blue Jays be able to get solve this problem or does Bowden Francis need to be sent down to Buffalo? | ||
| Blue Jays will figure it out | 37 | 24.5 % |
| Demoted to Buffalo | 102 | 67.5 % |
| Too early to tell | 12 | 7.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
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