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SARASOTA, Fla. — The Toronto Blue Jays aren’t even halfway through spring training, and they’re already striking out with multiple injuries.
Marcus Stroman, the Jays’ promising second-year starting pitcher, tore his ACL on Tuesday, putting Toronto’s rotation in a less-than ideal position in the rough-and-tumble AL East just one month before Opening Day.
But the Jays faced the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday not one man short but two. Newly acquired outfielder Michael Saunders torn his meniscus back in February when he stepped on a sprinkler head during practice.
Jays infielder Jonathan Diaz, who played for the Boston Red Sox during their 2013 World Series championship season, knows replacing Stroman and Saunders won’t be an easy feat.
“We’re taking it day by day,” Diaz said before Wednesday’s game. “We’re trying to do the best we can to cover for those guys because they’re irreplaceable.”
Diaz said although the back-to-back injuries are tough blows, the team has been trying to stay positive.
“You know, Saunders and Stroman are two pretty big guys for the team, so you know we’re just taking it in stride,” he said. “Hopefully some guys can step up and fill out those roles.”
Jays manager John Gibbons said it’s very likely those players could be rookies — at least for Stroman’s position. When asked about who would replace the 23-year-old on the mound, Gibbons said: “Aaron Sanchez was a big debate coming into spring training to see if he was going to be in the rotation or in the bullpen. We picked up (Marco) Estrada from Milwaukee, so he’s a candidate, and we’ve also got this young kid, Daniel Norris, 21 years old, coming up from the minor leagues. He’s got a chance to make it.”
Gibbons acknowledged that moving inexperienced players into a starting rotation is risky, but he said he believes in his veteran players to lead the way.
“Sometimes you hear it’s tough to win with young players, but we have such a core group of veterans, I think they’ll be able to cover those guys pretty well,” he said.
Losing two star players within weeks of each other can shake a team, but the Jays are determined not to let that happen.
“You know, as a team, you have to keep striving in the right direction,” outfielder Chris Colabello said. “You can’t let things like that affect you, so you have to keep moving on. We wish those guys a quick recovery, but you have to do the best you can without them.”
Thumbnail photo via Tommy Gilligan/USA Today Sports Images
