Schneider on Cease starting for AL: 'The decision was Dylan regardless'

PHILADELPHIA -- Dylan Cease will walk to the mound as the American League’s starting pitcher in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, a decision that John Schneider locked in with some 72 hours’ notice.

The only surprise may be that it took the Blue Jays manager so long to decide.

As Schneider unveiled his lineup for the Midsummer Classic, he said the right-hander’s body of work secured the call, even before the Yankees’ Cam Schlittler sent word that he would bypass an opportunity to pitch in the game.

“You’re talking about leading the league in strikeouts, up there in innings pitched, quality starts, WAR,” Schneider said on Monday at Citizens Bank Park. “There was a lot of categories that he was either at the top or second in. I think that's what's tipped it. It was performance.

“Part of it was me seeing it up close every day, but we get to see a lot of guys up close, and I think Dylan's performance made him very deserving of this honor.”

Cease is just the fourth pitcher in Blue Jays history to get the honor after Roy Halladay (2009), David Wells (‘00) and Dave Stieb (‘83, ‘84). He’ll look to build upon his most recent start, eight innings of scoreless, one-hit ball on July 8 at San Francisco.

“This is such a cool experience,” Cease said Monday.

Schneider unveiled his selection on Sunday in San Diego in unique fashion: an art project of sorts inspired by Cease’s paintings, one of which hangs -- very loudly -- on the wall of Schneider’s office in Toronto.

Schneider, pitching coach Pete Walker and members of the Blue Jays’ coaching staff tried to draw some of Cease’s favorite things, like oysters, cats and a ball diamond with his name on the mound.

“Between myself and Pete, we got some ideas flowing,” Schneider said, with a big grin. “Pete was actually the best artist. I think he’s hiding some talents there. He drew one hell of a cat and put a top hat on it.”

Ninety-six games into the season and on the eve of the All-Star break, you’ve got to keep things fresh somehow.

“I liked it. They’re missing a few things, but you know what? I’m being hypercritical,” Cease said. “It was really cool.”

Cease and Schlittler have separated themselves as the two lead dogs in the race for the AL Cy Young Award, so there was obviously going to be a spotlight on this decision.

“If Cam was going to pitch, my decision was still going to be Dylan,” Schneider said. “After careful consideration, obviously, but I informed MLB [Saturday]. We had decided yesterday and didn’t know anything about Cam. We were assuming he was going to be able to pitch. The decision was Dylan regardless.”

Cease leads the AL in FanGraphs WAR (3.7), strikeouts (148) and opponent average (.190). Schlittler paces the AL in ERA (2.05) and WHIP (0.94), and said he’d initially planned to pitch in the All-Star Game before prioritizing rest and recovery.

“I was like, ‘Listen, it’s a long season, and I’ve thrown a lot of innings (118 2/3) so far,’” Schlittler said Monday. “I’ve had a few injuries already, and I just didn’t want to risk the chance of feeling a little bit dragged if I were to go out there on two days’ rest and try to throw 100 miles an hour.”

The stretch run of this season will decide who ultimately takes home the Cy Young Award, but Schlittler said Cease “deserves that” honor in his first All-Star Game, eight seasons into a stellar big league career.

“It’s pretty surreal. I didn’t know what to say,” Cease said. “Everyone was telling me to give a speech, but I was pretty speechless. This is a really cool experience.”

This is what Cease was chasing when he signed that seven-year, $210 million deal with the Blue Jays, or at least this is the direction.

In those early days after signing the biggest free-agent deal in franchise history, Cease sounded so hungry for more, not at all satisfied with what he’d done up to that point with the White Sox and Padres. He recognizes the obvious, which is that he’s been one of the most talented pitchers on the planet, but too often inconsistent from start to start. Now, we’re seeing that tighten up.

“In a lot of ways, those results speak for themselves,” Cease said, but then continued. “To be honest with you, I think there’s a lot more room for consistency. I still had a lot of starts with too many walks, but this is baseball. It’s been a great first half. I just want to keep it rolling.”