Dickey, Buehrle get nod for Monday intrasquad game

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- R.A. Dickey and Mark Buehrle will take the mound when the Blue Jays hold an intrasquad game on Monday morning in advance of the Grapefruit League season.

Dickey will start for Team Blue while Buehrle suits up for Team Gray. Each starter is expected to throw one inning and the Blue Jays will use the seven-inning exhibition to ease their pitchers into game situations. First pitch is scheduled for approximately 11:30 a.m. ET and will be open to the public.

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Drew Hutchison, Brett Cecil, Jeff Francis, Juan Oramas, Preston Guilmet and Matt West also will throw an inning each for Team Blue. Aaron Loup, Chad Jenkins, Daniel Norris, Roberto Osuna, Scott Copeland and Jayson Aquino will pitch for Team Gray.

"Fast, slow, you never really know how springs are going to be but they're all in shape that's the key," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "Pitchers will now face some competition, game situations and they're all building towards something. Control and all of that stuff is not going to be pinpoint, yet. Hitters, it's all timing, they've all been hitting and they're all in shape."

The Blue Jays will open their Grapefruit League season on Tuesday afternoon here in Dunedin against the Pirates. Aaron Sanchez starts in the opener and will be followed later this week by Marcus Stroman, Norris, Dickey and Buehrle.

The start and games mark an end to workout days but Toronto will still spend its mornings working on drills as work on the fundamental aspects of the game will continue throughout the month.

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"Every year, early on, you'll come out, stretch, get loose, run team fundamentals," Gibbons said. "Go into individual work, batting practice and they use this backfield over here for individual stuff. The first couple of weeks of Spring Training is usually a fundamental a day, and then you kind of gauge things or kind of back things off towards the end, depending on what you need."