Gibbons not to blame for Jays' struggles

Steve Phillips

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Coming off their first playoff appearance since 1993, the Toronto Blue Jays carried high expectations into the season. 

Out of the gate, they have struggled, especially offensively and with their bullpen, and are currently fighting to stay out of the AL East basement. When expectations are not being fulfilled the manager’s seat gets hot and the media and fans start to speculate about change. It’s easier to change the manager than it is to change the players. Typically a manager whose team advanced to the league championship series the preceding year is spared such debate.

John Gibbons hasn’t been so lucky.  

This is a byproduct of new bosses in the front office. Team president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins inherited Gibbons, which many assume means they are looking to cut and run at the first sign of trouble. 

You know what they say about assuming.

Shapiro and Atkins have been vocal in their support of their manager. Atkins told Jon Morosi of MLB Network that he supports Gibbons and sees him as “absolutely part of the solution.”   Shapiro told me the same thing.  They understand that Gibby didn’t go from being a good manager for Donaldson, Bautista, Encarnacion and Martin last year, but not this year.

The players are responsible for their performance.  Sure the bullpen has been awful, but it was Shapiro and Atkins that acquired Drew Storen. Plus, who blames Gibbons for using Brett Cecil as much as he did early in the season? The guy had a 38-inning scoreless streak. The bullpen is tricky even in the best seasons. Gibbons showed the ability to develop a bullpen last season; he has a chance to do it again.  

I think the only way Gibbons and his staff would be in trouble is if the bosses don’t like the process. If the players are not prepared properly to compete, that would be on Gibbons. If he were to make radical ridiculous decisions they may find a reason for a change. In the long run, the results are the responsibility of the manager. But in the short term the results are on the players.  

Gibbons is safe for the year. If the chatter continues it would behoove Shapiro to nip it in the bud. Make a definitive statement that Gibbons will be the manager for the entire season no matter what. That would send a clear and concise message to the players that this year is all on them and not their manager.

What do the Mets do with Matt Harvey? 

Managers are faced with dozens of decisions every day. How about the spot Mets’ manager Terry Collins finds himself in with his ace, Matt Harvey? Harvey is in the midst of the worst season of his young career, posting a 3-7 record with a 6.08 ERA and 1.69 WHIP over his first 10 starts in 2016. There have been numerous calls for the Mets to skip his spot in the rotation. Some say trade him, while other are screaming to send him to the minors.

The fans have started to turn on Harvey. Even teammate, David Wright, publicly stated that he needs to be more accountable after the righty skipped out on the media after his last start in Washington.  

The dramatic response to Harvey’s woes stem from his demand to be treated like a superstar before earning full superstar status. He wants to be seen courtside at Knicks games. He wants to date the super models. He didn’t want to rehab his arm after Tommy John surgery at the Mets spring training facility in Port St. Lucie. He wanted to be around the “action” in New York. He wants to control when he pitches and when he comes out of games. He taught us how to treat him.  

He is scuffling so much that fans and the media are angry because they were supposed to get more. He told us he was great and he has been anything but great. In addition to his struggles, his body language is that of a victim. He looks like he feels sorry for himself. That doesn’t play very well in New York. When fans feel like they care more than the player, they turn on the player. 

Harvey’s velocity is down several miles per hour. He lacks command on his secondary pitches. His changeup just floats. The first time through the lineup opponents are hitting .250 against him; the second time they are hitting .289; the third time they are hitting an unreal .514. This is evidence of insufficient secondary pitches and a loss of velocity during the game. He looks like he just can’t finish his pitches.  

Earlier in the year, Harvey complained that his mechanics were a mess. I believe this has led to him obsessing about how his body and arm move and not focusing on the hitters.  He is competing against himself and not the Nats or Cubs or Braves.

The dictionary definition of insanity is “doing the same thing over and over, expecting to get a different result.” The Mets debated skipping Harvey’s next start after his poor outing against the Nationals at CitiField. Harvey talked himself into getting his next start again against the Nats in Washington. Then, after his poor start on Tuesday, Collins sounded like it was time to take a step back. But on Wednesday the Mets announced Harvey will make his next start on Tuesday against the White Sox. That is insanity.

Harvey needs a change of scenery. Not a trade to another team, but rather a step away from the spotlight so he can start anew. If I were running the Mets, I would confer with the team doctor and Harvey and find a way to diagnose him with arm fatigue and place him on the disabled list. I would not let him throw off the mound for 10 days. This would allow him to regain arm strength, since some part of his struggles may stem from his heavy workload last year coming off of Tommy John surgery.  

He also needs to clear his mind. I would have him study video of himself from 2013 and last year - nothing but the good stuff. Then, I would have him throw a side session and really focus on finishing his pitches. Then, I would send him on a rehab start for three innings against Single-A ball players.  After that, I would have him throw a five-inning rehab start against Double-A players. Then, I would have him face Triple-A players and pitch seven innings. If all goes well I would bring him back to New York and activate him from the DL.  

If Harvey were to balk at my plan, I would be more aggressive. I would option him to the minor leagues and tell him that he has to earn his way back. There are no scholarships in baseball. It is about performance. If you don’t get it done, then someone else will. The game waits for no one. Not even Matt Harvey.

I would also tell him that if he ever pulls a stunt again where he ducks the media, he will be sent to the minors. If he is going to stand there and accept all of the praise when things go well, he needs to be a stand-up guy when things don’t.

Julio Urias is the real deal

Baseball is a copycat game. If something works for one organization others do the same. If something doesn’t quite work, other clubs learn from that as well. We have seen a heightened sense of awareness around the game in protecting young pitchers from heavy workloads. It really started with the Nationals and Stephen Strasburg a few years ago. We watched the Mets manage their young guns last season.

On Friday night, the Los Angeles Dodgers will start 19-year-old prospect Julio Urias, a pitcher that they have protected since signing him almost four years ago. The organization has not allowed him to throw more than 87 2/3 innings since bringing him on board. The plan is to eventually move him into the bullpen and not let him throw more than 100 innings in 2016.  

This kid is the real deal. He has poise and maturity well beyond his years. He has the stuff and moxie to be a star. He is the future of the Dodgers. Clearly, the future is now. I am not surprised that the Dodgers are going to be very, very careful with him. He has a chance to be a staff ace. That means that he can pitch like a $30 million-a-year pitcher while making $500,000. That is value.

Urias is not a young man to the Dodgers; he is an asset that needs to be protected. Baseball is a business. This young lefty is money and I fully support protecting money.

This sounds somewhat cold and callous, but it is reality.  

Every pitcher has only so many bullets in his arm. The Dodgers have tried to develop this youngster while being efficient. Why waste pitches in the minors that can be saved for the big leagues?  

Pitchers get injured because of poor mechanics and/or fatigue. One can pitch with bad mechanics but he is likely to get fatigued more quickly. Once fatigued he is more prone to injury because of the pressures put on the arm by the bad mechanics. Fatigue can lead to injury in pitchers with the best mechanics. The arm is not built to throw a baseball.  Plus young pitchers need to gradually learn how to throw more innings.  Huge jumps in innings pitched have been documented to lead to injuries. 

General managers don’t just want to just get the most innings possible from their pitchers, they want to get the most possible productive healthy innings a pitcher can handle. This means that all pitchers need to be monitored and protected when necessary. It’s most critical with very young pitchers and very old pitchers.  

Fans may not like it and the media may criticize it. Old-school baseball guys think this generation is soft. It doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks, clubs need to do what is necessary to protect their assets.  

I can’t wait to watch Urias pitch against the Mets and Jacob deGrom on Friday. I hope I get to see these two matchup for the next 15 years.  

Some Random Thoughts:

- The Kansas City Royals got some awful news on Thursday that 3B Mike Moustakas has a torn ACL suffered in a collision last week with left fielder Alex Gordon, who broke his wrist as well. The Royals generally avoided major injuries last year on their way to a World Series championship. This is going to make the road to repeating very difficult.  

- Rougned Odor was successful in his appeal of his eight-game suspension for his role in the brawl with the Jays and Jose Bautista. The MLB reduced his suspension to seven games. I have no idea why. What could he have said to minimize his role in the fight?  “Bautista called me a name?” “He gave me a dirty look?” “At least I didn’t hit him with the ball I rifled at his head?” “I know I swung at Donaldson too, but I missed?” It’s a baffling decision by MLB.

- Jose Bautista had his appeal heard on Thursday as well.  Doesn’t the MLB have to reduce Bautista’s suspension too?  

- Jackie Bradley Jr.’s hitting streak came to an end on Thursday. What an amazing run for the young man. I give him a ton of credit because he dealt with adversity and went back to the minors and worked hard to improve. Not only did he improve his performance but he also improved his attitude. Matt Harvey can learn something from the Red Sox centre fielder. By the way, no one will ever break Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak.  

- The Red Sox retired Wade Boggs #26 on Thursday. I still think of Boggs as a Red Sox star. I know he won a World Series with the Yankees, but I still remember him most playing at Fenway. Did Boggs really have to wear his Yankee World Series ring to the ceremony though?  

- Nomar Mazara sure looks like the leading candidate to win the AL Rookie of the Year. His 491-foot bomb on Wednesday was impressive.  He reminds me of Daryl Strawberry from back in his early Mets days.  

- We talk a lot about Matt Harvey and Jacob deGrom with the Mets but Noah Syndergaard is their real ace, and young lefty Steve Matz is their No. 2.  Matz is 7-1 with a 2.36 ERA this year. In fact he is 11-1 with a 2.32 ERA so far in his career. He throws an easy 95 mph with an awesome breaking ball and deceptive changeup. Plus, he can hit.

Steve Phillips was general manager of the New York Mets from 1997 through 2003, helping lead the club to a National League championship in 2000 and its first World Series appearance since 1986. His analysis appears each week on TSN.ca, TSN Radio and SportsCentre.