TORONTO — If one thing’s certain about this shortened MLB season, it’s that we’re going to see some pretty weird stats. An everyday player could finish the year with a single-digit walk total. Another could hit .350. Cy Young winners probably won’t reach 90 innings. There might not be a 20 home-run hitter. We almost certainly won’t see a player collect 20 stolen bases, nor a closer reach 20 saves.
Hot streaks will make seasons; deep funks will submarine others. What’s a small sample when the entire sample’s this small?
Consider a guy like Teoscar Hernandez. His career’s been extremely volatile. But over his final 60 games of 2019, Hernandez put up a .952 OPS with 18 homers and 30 extra-base hits. Marcus Semien, DJ LeMahieu, and Xander Bogaerts finished third through fifth in American League MVP voting last season. And none of them had a .952 OPS.
Or what about Lourdes Gurriel Jr.? The free-swinging Toronto Blue Jays outfielder who can get the barrel of his bat to pitches all over the zone and was an 82nd percentile hard-hit rate batter in 2019? Say he starts seeing the ball well, gets some pitches to hit, and puts them in play at extremely high rates of speed?
Something crazy could happen. This 60-game season will provide an interesting opportunity for players capable of putting up big numbers in short timeframes like Hernandez and Gurriel. The volatility of their results swings two ways. You could get the valley, in which they’re chasing, making outs, and putting up 0-for’s. Or you could get the peak — when the guy can’t miss.
“You don’t want to take that aggressiveness away from him. That’s how he does it and he does pretty well like that, so I don’t want to take that away from him,” Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said of Gurriel’s approach. “I think the older he gets, he’s going to be more selective. But right now, the way he swings the bat, I think it works for him.”
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Gurriel’s 2019 was certainly erratic. He began the season as Toronto’s every day second baseman but struggles at the plate and a baffling inability to make consistent throws to first led to a mid-April demotion to triple-A Buffalo. There, Gurriel feasted on minor-league pitching, putting up 26 hits — half of them for extra bases — over his first 19 games. But the mental roadblock impeding his throwing mechanics on the infield remained, and by mid-May, he started playing left field.
Suddenly, something clicked. Gurriel wasn’t only getting by at a position he hadn’t played since he was a 22-year-old in the Cuban National Series — he was thriving. He forced his way back to Toronto, went deep in his first three games, and never looked back. From the day he returned through Aug. 8, he hit .295/.344/.591 with 35 extra-base hits in 66 games. And he piled up nine outfield assists in that span, good enough to lead all MLB left fielders for the season.
That early August end point is significant as it’s the day Gurriel strained his quad legging out an infield single. That sidelined him until mid-September, when he returned and went 5-for-12 in his first three games. But more calamity awaited two days later when Gurriel came down with appendicitis and had his appendix removed, ending his season.
It’s been the story of Gurriel’s young career — bursts of tantalizing productivity interrupted by injury, generally of the soft tissue variety. In 2018, he tied an American League record with 11 consecutive multi-hit games the same day he sprained his left ankle and knee sliding into second base. Later that season, amidst a 10-game stretch in which he had a dozen hits including four home runs, Gurriel strained his hamstring and sat out the rest of the year.
Piece together Gurriel’s last two years and you get a rather impressive full-season sample of .279/.310/.499 with 31 home runs over 149 games. Of course, baseball doesn’t work like that. Health is a big-league skill — perhaps the most important one because a player can’t take advantage of any other attributes without it.
“For all athletes, injuries are one of the more difficult things,” Gurriel said. “But this is a new year — fresh. I’m turning the page.
“It’s a big responsibility that Charlie’s giving me this year — just like last year. But I’m very prepared for this year. I worked very hard in the off-season. And I think the lineup is going to be great this year.”
Montoyo envisions Gurriel batting third in his lineup most days, behind Bo Bichette and Cavan Biggio, and ahead of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Travis Shaw. And considering he’s one of the best conditioned athletes on the team, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Gurriel play practically every day. Last season, he missed only two of Toronto’s 68 games from his mid-May recall through to his quad injury in August.
Remember, at 26, Gurriel is still on the upward trajectory of his career. He’s by no means a finished product, and every game he gets is an opportunity to continue improving. For a variety of reasons, Gurriel has played only 316 games since he defected from Cuba along with his brother, Yulieski, in early 2016. By way of comparison, Yulieski’s played nearly 500 since that point, plus 44 more in the post-season with the Houston Astros.
“I think the main thing that Gurriel needs right now is at-bats,” Montoyo said. “More games. Keep playing. That’s why I didn’t want to lose this year. I think our young kids need to keep playing so they can develop experience and know how to play in the big leagues. That’s why I think it’s good for us to be playing this year. We’re one of the teams that were going to be affected by not playing this year so I’m glad we’re playing. It’s going to be good for the kids.”
Ben Nicholson-Smith is Sportsnet’s baseball editor. Arden Zwelling is a senior writer. Together, they bring you the most in-depth Blue Jays podcast in the league, covering off all the latest news with opinion and analysis, as well as interviews with other insiders and team members.
Pearson and Borucki get their work in
The Blue Jays took a day off from intrasquad scrimmages Thursday, opting instead to run a series of live at-bats between pitchers and hitters.
All eyes were on Nate Pearson, as they are whenever the top Blue Jays prospect is on the mound. And he delivered with another dominant outing against big-league hitters. Pearson struck out six of the 11 batters he faced, walking two (Billy McKinney and Derek Fisher), getting a pair of soft groundballs, and allowing a line drive single to Hernandez.
Through his first two outings of camp, Pearson has continued to flash the front-of-the-rotation potential that made him the talk of spring training four months ago. The next step for him will be an outing next week in Boston when the Blue Jays go to Fenway Park for a pair of exhibition contests with the Red Sox.
“It’s the way the schedule works,” Montoyo said, when asked why Pearson was selected to pitch in one of those two games. “And, also, it’d be good to see him pitch in Boston. That’s not a secret.”
Meanwhile, Ryan Borucki threw somewhere between three and four innings, depending on how you were scoring an afternoon with no defenders in the field. He generated plenty of groundball contact as he continues to refine his approach and grow accustomed to a new pitch mix.
The Blue Jays shortened Borucki’s slider into a cutter during the MLB shutdown, making these live reps particularly useful as the 26-year-old learns how to play the new pitch off his fastball in service of setting up his swing-and-miss changeup. He’s also pitching with 15 less pounds of his frame, after losing some weight over the last few months in order to feel better on the mound.
“I always pitched in to hitters, but I feel like I’ll pitch more in to righties especially and just throw the cutter off of that,” Borucki said. “I just think it’ s going to open up a lot of opportunities for me to throw those changeups, throw those arm-side, and get a lot of grounders. I think overall that cutter is just going to make my stuff better.”
Borucki will be budgeted for 75 pitches in his next outing, which suggests the Blue Jays plan to keep him stretched out as a starter going forward. This team has a rotation spot up for grabs, of course, as Chase Anderson isn’t expected to be over an oblique injury in time for the opening week of the season. And Borucki’s firmly in the mix.
Even if Borucki doesn’t win that rotation job — Anthony Kay may be just a hair ahead of him as things currently stand — the club could still carry him to begin the season as an emergency bulk arm in the bullpen. He could possibly piggyback off a starter if needed. Or he could go to the club’s Alternate Training Site when the season begins to stay ready for a spot start down the line.
“I’ll do any role, to be honest. I just want to help out as much as I can,” he said. “I felt like I could’ve thrown seven, eight innings today. I felt that good. It’s just so nice to just pitch a game and not worry about my arm hurting.”
The back end trio of Toronto’s bullpen — Ken Giles, Anthony Bass, and Rafael Dolis — each got an inning of work in Thursday, as well. Intrasquad games will resume Friday night, with Trent Thornton looking to get stretched out to five innings, while TJ Zeuch and Shun Yamaguchi take the mound for the opposition.
LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A top official of the Pakistan Cricket Board declined Friday to confirm media reports that India has decided against playing any games in host Pakistan during next year’s Champions Trophy.
“My view is if there’s any problems, they (India) should tell us in writing,” PCB chairman Mohsin Naqvi told reporters in Lahore. “I’ll share that with the media as well as with the government as soon as I get such a letter.”
Indian media reported Friday that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has communicated its concerns to all the Champions Trophy stakeholders, including the PCB, over the Feb. 19-March 9 tournament and would not play in arch-rival Pakistan.
The Times of India said that “Dubai is a strong candidate to host the fixtures involving the Men in Blue” for the 50-over tournament.
Such a solution would see Pakistan having to travel to a neutral venue to play India in a group match, with another potential meeting later in the tournament if both teams advanced from their group. The final is scheduled for March 9 in Pakistan with the specific venue not yet decided.
“Our stance is clear,” Naqvi said. “They need to give us in writing any objections they may have. Until now, no discussion of the hybrid model has happened, nor are we prepared to accept one.”
Political tensions have stopped bilateral cricket between the two nations since 2008 and they have competed in only multi-nation tournaments, including ICC World Cups.
“Cricket should be free of politics,” Naqvi said. “Any sport should not be entangled with politics. Our preparations for the Champions Trophy will continue unabated, and this will be a successful event.”
The PCB has already spent millions of dollars on the upgrade of stadiums in Karachi, Lahore and Rawalpindi which are due to host 15 Champions Trophy games. Naqvi hoped all the three stadiums will be ready over the next two months.
“Almost every country wants the Champions Trophy to be played here (in Pakistan),” Naqvi said. “I don’t think anyone should make this a political matter, and I don’t expect they will. I expect the tournament will be held at the home of the official hosts.”
Eight countries – Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, England, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Afghanistan – are due to compete in the tournament, the schedule of which is yet to be announced by the International Cricket Council.
“Normally the ICC announces the schedule of any major tournament 100 days before the event, and I hope they will announce it very soon,” Naqvi said.
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – Ottawa‘s Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe of New Zealand are through to the doubles final at the WTA Finals after a 7-6 (7), 6-1 victory over Nicole Melichar-Martinez of the United States and Australia’s Ellen Perez in semifinal action Friday.
Dabrowski and Routliffe won a hard-fought first set against serve when Routliffe’s quick reaction at the net to defend a Perez shot gave the duo set point, causing Perez to throw down her racket in frustration.
The second seeds then cruised through the second set, winning match point on serve when Melichar-Martinez couldn’t handle Routliffe’s shot.
The showdown was a rematch of last year’s semifinal, which Melichar-Martinez and Perez won in a super tiebreak.
Dabrowski and Routliffe will face the winner of a match between Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend, and Hao-Ching Chan and Veronika Kudermetova in the final on Saturday.
Dabrowski is aiming to become the first Canadian to win a WTA Finals title.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
Inter Milan winger Tajon Buchanan, recovered from a broken leg suffered in training at this summer’s Copa America, is back in Jesse Marsch’s Canada squad for the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinal against Suriname.
The 25-year-old from Brampton, Ont., underwent surgery July 3 to repair a fractured tibia in Texas.
Canada, ranked 35th in the world, plays No. 136 Suriname on Nov. 15 in Paramaribo. The second leg of the aggregate series is four days later at Toronto’s BMO Field.
There is also a return for veteran winger Junior Hoilett, who last played for Canada in June in a 4-0 loss to the Netherlands in Marsch’s debut at the Canadian helm. The 34-year-old from Brampton, now with Scotland’s Hibernian, has 15 goals in 63 senior appearances for Canada.
Midfielder Ismael Kone, recovered from an ankle injury sustained on club duty with France’s Marseille, also returns. He missed Canada’s last three matches since the fourth-place Copa America loss to Uruguay in July.
But Canada will be without centre back Derek Cornelius, who exited Marseille’s win Sunday over Nantes on a stretcher after suffering an apparent rib injury.
The Canadian men will prepare for Suriname next week at a camp in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
“We are looking forward to getting the group together again with the mindset that there is a trophy on the line,” Marsch said in a statement. “We want to end 2024 the right way with two excellent performances against a competitive Suriname squad and continue building on our tremendous growth this past summer.”
The quarterfinal winners advance to the Nations League Finals at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif., with the two semifinals scheduled for March 20 and the final and third-place playoff March 23, and qualify for the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Thirteen of the 23 players on the Canadian roster are 25 or younger, with 19-year-old defender Jamie Knight-Lebel, currently playing for England’s Crewe Alexandra on loan from Bristol City, the youngest.
Bayern Munich star Alphonso Davies captains the side with Stephen Eustaquio, Jonathan Osorio, Richie Laryea, Alistair Johnston and Kamal Miller adding veteran support.
Jonathan David, Cyle Larin and Theo Bair are joined in attack by Minnesota United’s Tani Oluwaseyi.
Niko Sigur, a 21-year-old midfielder with Croatia’s Hadjuk Split, continues in the squad after making his debut in the September friendly against Mexico.
Suriname made it to the Nations League quarterfinals by finishing second to Costa Rica in Group A of the Nations League, ahead of No. 104 Guatemala, No. 161 Guyana and unranked Martinique and Guadeloupe.
“A good team,” Osorio said of Suriname. “These games are always tricky and they’re not easy at all … Suriname is a (former) Dutch colony and they’ll have Dutch players playing at high levels.”
“They won’t be someone we overlook at all,” added the Toronto FC captain, who has 81 Canada caps to his credit.
Located on the northeast coast of South America between Guyana and French Guiana, Suriname was granted independence in 1975 by the Netherlands.
Canada has faced Suriname twice before, both in World Cup qualifying play, winning 4-0 in suburban Chicago in June 2021 and 2-1 in Mexico City in October 1977.
The Canadian men, along with Mexico, the United States and Panama, received a bye into the final eight of the CONCACAF Nations League.
Canada, No. 2 in the CONCACAF rankings, drew Suriname as the best-placed runner-up from League A play.
Canada lost to Jamaica in last year’s Nations League quarterfinal, ousted on the away-goals rule after the series ended in a 4-4 draw. The Canadians lost 2-0 to the U.S. in the final of the 2022-23 tournament and finished fifth in 2019-20.
Canada defeated Panama 2-1 last time out, in an Oct. 15 friendly in Toronto.
Goalkeepers Maxime Crepeau and Jonathan Sirois, defenders Joel Waterman, Laryea and Miller and Osorio took part in a pre-camp this week in Toronto for North America-based players.
Canada Roster
Goalkeepers: Maxime Crepeau, Portland Timbers (MLS); Jonathan Sirois, CF Montreal (MLS); Dayne St. Clair, Minnesota United FC (MLS).
Defenders: Moise Bombito, OGC Nice (France); Alphonso Davies, Bayern Munich (Germany); Richie Laryea, Toronto FC (MLS); Alistair Johnston, Celtic (Scotland); Jamie Knight-Lebel. Crewe Alexandra, on loan from Bristol City (England); Kamal Miller, Portland Timbers (MLS); Joel Waterman, CF Montreal (MLS).
Midfielders: Ali Ahmed. Vancouver Whitecaps (MLS); Tajon Buchanan, Inter Milan (Italy); Mathieu Choiniere, Grasshopper Zurich (Switzerland); Stephen Eustaquio, FC Porto (Portugal); Junior Hoilett, Hibernian FC (Scotland); Ismael Kone, Olympique Marseille (France); Jonathan Osorio, Toronto FC (MLS); Jacob Shaffelburg, Nashville SC (MLS); Niko Sigur, Hadjuk Split (Croatia).
Forwards: Theo Bair, AJ Auxerre (France); Jonathan David, LOSC Lille (France); Cyle Larin, RCD Mallorca (Spain); Tani Oluwaseyi, Minnesota United (MLS).
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.
