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TORONTO – Dustin McGowan badly wants to succeed in whats likely his last chance to be a regular big league starting pitcher. Jim Plunkett Jersey . He badly wants to erase the doubts about the health of his three times surgically-repaired right shoulder. He wants, once and for all, to eliminate the too-good-to-be-true cloud that hovers over his unlikely story. After yet another all-too-brief outing, four innings plus three batters in Wednesday nights 10-8 loss to the Orioles, McGowan admitted that hes wearing out sooner than hed like. "Maybe a little bit," said McGowan when asked if he feels fatigued. "I do seem at 60 pitches, I kind of seem to be falling backwards a little bit, I guess you could say. But I feel good, my arm feels great, its just sometimes it seems like the ball is not coming out quite right after 60, 65 pitches." Theres some positive in there with that negative. His arm, he insists, is healthy. Hes pleased with how he feels when hes pitching. Hes encouraged with his bounce back in the days after an outing. The problem, it seems, relates to a lack of stamina. "The body just feels like it runs out of steam a little bit," said McGowan. "I shouldnt be feeling that, I should be at the point where I can go 90-100, especially the way my arm feels. It feels great." Pressed further, McGowan didnt deny hes had thoughts about giving up his starters spot and returning to the bullpen. "You think about that, but right now Im planning on being a starter and Ive got to get past that hurdle sometime," he said. His unlikely return to the rotation aside, its important to put McGowans issues in context. While hed openly mused about taking one more shot at being a starter as far back as last September, and general manager Alex Anthopoulos was supportive of McGowans winter efforts to stretch out, there wasnt a realistic expectation hed be leaving the bullpen. McGowan found a home there last season, posting a 2.45 ERA in 25 appearances and showing the stuff of a late-inning, high leverage, shut down reliever. Then this year, toward the end of spring training, the Blue Jays fell just short in the pursuit of free agent right-hander Ervin Santana. There was a spot to fill behind R.A. Dickey, Drew Hutchison, Mark Buehrle and Brandon Morrow. J.A. Happ dealt with back inflammation and pancaked with four awful Grapefruit League starts, resulting in a season-starting stint on the disabled list. Marcus Stroman was inconsistent and started the year with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons. Aaron Sanchez, whose repertoire has Blue Jays personnel frothing, is working at Double-A New Hampshire and his innings are being monitored early in the season. Esmil Rogers and Todd Redmond are best suited for long relief, which left McGowan as the best option. This despite the fact he suffered through a bout with a nasty stomach virus in early March, which docked about a week off his spring training schedule and pushed back efforts to get him multiple-inning appearances. "It could be," said McGowan of whether his shorter than expected spring has caught up with him. "We sped it up a lot, usually you wouldnt increase that much that fast, but we had to and we did it. Ive just got to find a way. Theres a way, Ive just got to get it past that hurdle." Whats still unclear is how long the Blue Jays are willing to give him. Stroman is off to a fine start with the Bisons, posting a 2.18 ERA, 1.355 WHIP and 26 strikeouts against six walks in three starts. His time is coming. So is Sanchezs, eventually. Could it be sooner rather than later? A Relievers Approach The Blue Jays entered Wednesdays action a Top-10 team in relief innings pitched. Relievers have hurled 67 2/3 innings so far this season, getting on average about 10 outs per game. The bullpen is its own world, made up of pitchers who take different approaches to getting ready and staying fresh in case theyre called on to appear in games on consecutive days. Take Brett Cecil, a closer during his sophomore year at the University of Maryland in 2006. By the time he debuted in the big leagues in 2009, he was a starter. Cecil won a career-high 15 games in 2010, then had a mysterious drop in velocity on his fastball, struggled, and has since revived his career as a left-handed relief specialist. "Its just kind of an everyday thing about how I feel," said Cecil of a days preparation. "Whether Im off that day, whether Im going to throw that day; it just all depends on the night before, the two nights before, what Ive done. If I need to stretch, I stretch. If I need to lift, I go lift." Cecil is being careful early in the season after experiencing elbow pain late last year. He made a career-high 60 appearances before being shut down in mid-September. The games he could handle but as a former starter, Cecil was learning how to prepare for relief work. Hes got a better handle on the demands this season. "I wasnt sure how to police myself being a reliever so the days that I felt like throwing a flat ground, I would throw a flat ground," said Cecil. "Did I really need it? No." Cecil believes its easier on the arm to be a starter. You pitch every fifth day, working through a rest, treatment, throwing regimen in-between starts. In relief, you could pitch on back-to-back days and then sit for a number of games. There are periods of consistent work, every other day. Its unpredictable. If a reliever has a two-pitch outing, like Cecil did on Friday night in Cleveland, it counts as a days work so when he throws again on Saturday, as he did against the Indians, hes not available for Sunday. "Thats one of those things that people dont see," said Cecil. "We as bullpen guys dont get a chance to gradually warm up. Its, youve got to get on the mound and throw and youve got to get hot in a very short amount of time. It puts a lot of stress on the arm." Closer Sergio Santos didnt appear in Tuesday nights win over the Orioles but with the game tied 3-3 in the bottom of the eighth, he was warming up to pitch the ninth. Its not an appearance in Santos stats line but it is a day of work. "I had two days off plus an off day so it was technically three days off," said Santos. "It was fine for me to get off the mound and I threw maybe eight to 10 pitches. Just something to where I was sharp enough that if the inning were to end, Id be able to go out and do my job and if it didnt, then it was just a day of a little bit more than a flat ground." Santos is less concerned about a day like Tuesday in April but come July and August, the dog days of summer, relievers become more concerned with "saving their bullets." That is, throw when needed and to stay ready; just dont throw any more than whats required. Bullpen coach Bob Stanley charts pitches thrown and keeps track of each relievers throwing schedule. Guys have different warmup routines. Santos likes eight to 12 pitches off the mound before entering a game. Cecil likes 15 to 20, throwing the final five at maximum capacity. If hes rushed, hell factor in the eight pitches he gets on the game mound. "Some guys warm up with an intensity that matches almost the game and can be harder," said Santos. "Some guys take it a little lighter when theyre warming up." Sio Moore Jersey .B. -- Canadas Rachel Homan had ideal preparation for the playoffs at the Ford World Curling Championships with a pair of hard-fought wins over tenacious opponents Thursday. Custom Raiders Jersey . -- Garret Sparks made 31 saves as the Toronto Marlies beat the Grand Rapids Griffins 3-1 in American Hockey League play Tuesday.With the Olympic Games wrapping up in Sochi, the debate about who should carry the Canadian flag into the Closing Ceremony can begin. Its been a successful Games for Canada, which will finish near the top of the medal standings again. From repeat gold medal winners to multiple medal winners to undefeated teams to acts that define the Olympic spirit, there are many solid candidates who could be considered to receive the honour. Who do you think should carry the flag for Canada on Sunday? Four years ago, Alexandre Bilodeau made history by winning Canadas first Olympic gold medal on home soil. He followed that up by defending his title in moguls this year. He is set to retire at seasons end so this would be a fitting way to honour his accomplishments. Bobsledders Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse also won gold in Vancouver, a first in the womens event, and earned their way back to the top of the podium again in Sochi. Jennifer Jones and her rink from Winnipeg didnt lose a game in womens curling, going 9-0 in the round robin before beating Great Britain and Sweden in the playoffs. Canada has shown well in curling since its inception into the Olympics as an official sport in 1998 but has yet to have a flag bearer from the sport. "Were going to have that little OR — Olympic record — next to our name forever," Jones said after the final game. "Its one of those records that can only be tied and never broken. Well always be remembered." Speed skater Denny Morrison has been the lone Canadian athlete to win multiple medals in individual disciplines, taking the silver in the 1,000m event and bronze in the 1,500m. However, if not for the unselfish act of teammate Gilmore Junio, Morrison may have come up empty in Sochi. Junio stepped aside to llet Morrison race the 1,000m event and the move paid off for Canada. Dave Casper Jersey. Morrison then went on to win his bronze medal but it all started with Junio putting the team before himself. "People talk about it as being a huge sacrifice, but I dont see it that way," Junio said. "It was such an easy decision. It was such a simple decision for me. It was about giving Canada a chance to win a medal." It was actually Morrison who started a campaign on Twitter to have Junio carry the flag. "@cdnhappygilmore for Closing Ceremonies flag bearer! This guy showing everything that is Canadian pride and Olympic Pride. #ThankYouGilmore," Morrison tweeted as the #GilForFlagBearer campaign gained popularity. Along the same lines, theres Justin Wadsworth, the cross-country skiing coach who ran onto the course to help a Russian skier who had broken a ski. "I wanted him to have dignity as he crossed the finish line," Wadsworth said. That is the essence of good sportsmanship. The Dufour-Lapointe sisters captured Canadians attention on the first day of competition with Justine winning the gold and Chloe the silver in moguls skiing. And then theres hockey. Forward Marie-Philip Poulin and goaltender Shannon Szabados were key players in Team Canadas march to gold, especially in Thursdays riveting come-from-behind overtime victory. And what if the mens team were to follow suit on Sunday? Should Sidney Crosby or Carey Price warrant some consideration? There are many great candidates who have stood out among the throng of superb athletes in Sochi these past two weeks. But only one individual can carry the flag. Who do you think should have the honour of carrying Canadas colours into the stadium on Sunday? As always, its Your! Call. cheap jerseys ' ' ' |
