Matz's success good sign: 'Put up zeros'

TORONTO -- By this point of the season, you can see who Steven Matz is. The peaks and valleys have found their middle ground, and the full picture is exactly what the Blue Jays hoped for when they acquired him back in January.

In Sunday’s loss to the Tigers -- another heartbreaker that wasted a strong start -- Matz gave the Blue Jays six innings of one-run ball, surrendering only Miguel Cabrera’s 500th career home run. That brought his ERA down to 3.94 (its first time below 4.00 since late April), which works just fine for the No. 5 starter behind Robbie Ray, Hyun Jin Ryu, José Berríos and Alek Manoah.

Sunday’s experience was a familiar one for Toronto's starter, though. Just two days prior, Ray had been brilliant in the series opener, striking out 11 over eight innings of one-run ball -- but he also took the loss.

“I always go out and do my own thing. The goal every time I’m out there is just to put up zeros,” Matz said. “The last time I pitched, in Seattle, I think they scored seven runs for me, so it’s not too much in the back of my mind. Our lineup has been amazing all year. For me, I just have to keep putting up zeros.”

The narrative around Matz has changed, frankly, because expectations have changed. Through his first four starts of the season, Matz went 4-0 with a 2.31 ERA, and it looked like he’d broken through. At that point, we didn’t yet know that Ray would pitch like an ace through the season, and Manoah was still in the Minors. Berríos was still in Minnesota, too, so high hopes were thrust upon Matz. Over his next five starts, he struggled to a 6.93 ERA.

Now that Matz is expected to be a solid No. 4 or No. 5 starter, though, everything lines up much better. The Blue Jays need their starters to steal games at this point, given how poorly the lineup is hitting, but that won’t last forever. Once the lineup is clicking as it should with George Springer back atop the order, steady outings like Matz has been producing will result in wins more often than not.

Next steps for Springer
George Springer took some live batting practice against Joakim Soria prior to Monday’s game against the White Sox after doing some running in the field. Soria is working his way back from right middle finger inflammation and should return shortly, which will be welcome news for the bullpen.

Springer, who also hit in the cage on Monday, is feeling good for this point in his progression from a left knee sprain, and the Blue Jays will continue to evaluate him day to day. The club doesn’t expect that the injury will be a long-term issue, but as we learned with his two quad strains that led to IL stints earlier this season, it’s difficult to project timelines until Springer is closer to his return.

Biggio dealing with arm injury
Cavan Biggio injured his arm diving for a ball while playing for Triple-A Buffalo on Friday and will have imaging done on his left elbow. The Blue Jays will know more once they have those results, but this is another tough blow for Biggio, who has rarely been at 100% health this season and battled through a .215 average with a .666 OPS in the Majors.

This means more Kevin Smith, the No. 10 prospect who’s earned a look thanks to a great season in Triple-A. It also means more Santiago Espinal and Breyvic Valera, and if the Blue Jays have a need beyond that group, they could go back to No. 6 prospect Otto Lopez, the young infielder who hits for average and just had a quick cup of coffee with Toronto.

Big Nate watch
No. 2 prospect Nate Pearson threw another one-inning rehab outing on Sunday in Triple-A, allowing a solo home run and a walk on 18 pitches. Getting Pearson up into the 30- to 40-pitch range over two innings would be ideal, but he shouldn’t be far from a crack at the MLB bullpen.

Toronto needs this. Pearson flashed his incredible potential in last year’s AL Wild Card Game against the Rays, striking out five over just two innings, and that’s the exact type of role the Blue Jays could benefit from now. The idea of going from Ray, Berríos or Ryu to Pearson and then Jordan Romano is awfully attractive if the big right-hander can make it work in the Majors.