BA article Stroman

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http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/yeoman-work-stroman-jays/

 

Yeoman Work For Stroman

 

Best Player: After a failed experiment in the big league bullpen, righthander Marcus Stroman settled into a spot in the Blue Jays’ rotation. He went 2-2, 1.69 in five April starts at Triple-A Buffalo to earn an early callup to work as a reliever. Stroman struggled initially, logging a 12.79 ERA in five relief appearances, prompting a return to the Buffalo rotation.

 

Stroman yielded seven runs over nine innings during his next two starts with the Bisons, but he got the call back to Toronto to join the rotation, regardless. He held the Royals to five hits and one run in six innings to earn the victory in his first major league start on May 31 and went 3-2, 2.48 through his first six starts.

 

The 22nd overall pick in 2009 out of Duke, Stroman uses his curveball effectively to go with a fastball that can reach 95 mph with movement.

 

Biggest leap forward: Tooled-up center fielder Dalton Pompey surged in April, hitting .354/.434/.485 in 25 games at high Class A Dunedin. Though he cooled somewhat in June, the 21-year-old still hit .316/.398/.466 through 63 games.

 

Pompey, a 16th-round pick in 2010 out of high school in Mississauga, Ontario, had hit six homers with 34 RBIs and 26 stolen bases in 28 attempts. The switch-hitter entered the season ranked No. 17 among Toronto prospects and has begun to turn his tools into skills.

 

Biggest disappointment: After an encouraging 2013 campaign, third baseman Andy Burns started this season slowly, batting .200/.261/.294 in April at Double-A New Hampshire. Despite improvement in June, the 23-year-old batted just .224/.303/.347 with six homers and 13 steals through 66 games. The righthanded hitter showed an intriguing blend of power and speed in 2013, when he hit .288/.346/.470 with 15 homers, 34 doubles and 33 stolen bases.

 

JAYS CHATTER

 

Buffalo lefthander Sean Nolin, who had gone 2-4, 3.70 in 10 starts, hit the disabled list on June 18 for the second time this season with a left groin strain.

 

Righthander Frank Viola III, son of the 1988 American League Cy Young Award winner of the same name, returned to the mound after a seven-year absence due to injuries and personal struggles. The 30-year-old knuckleballer went 2-2, 3.86 with 13 strikeouts and 15 walks at low Class A Lansing in his first action since pitching in the White Sox system in 2007.

Edited July 4, 2014 by ace3113