MEMORIES OF MARK: The thought struck John Gibbons before the season-opener Sunday that the last time the Blue Jays were at Tropicana Field, they started Mark Buehrle on short rest with the aim of getting the veteran lefty the two innings he needed for a 15th straight season of 200.
Buehrle didn’t make it out of the first, allowing eight unearned runs in two-thirds of an inning, to finish the season at 198.2 frames. The 37-year-old became a free agent at the end of last season and while he hasn’t officially retired, Gibbons said Buehrle planned to buy an RV and do some travelling with his family this summer.
"I talked to him a couple times during spring training, we plugged him in on FaceTime when we had our orientation meeting on the first day of spring," said Gibbons. "They had him up on the board, he had one of those big stocking caps on, a big ole beard, he ripped into a few of his buddies real good. He’s got to miss it a little bit but he doesn’t let on. He’s having a great time."
As for why Buehrle hasn’t filed retirement papers yet, Gibbons said, "He told me, ‘They keep writing stories about me, so I’m going to screw with them, man.’"