Former San Diego Padres ace Dylan Cease made his first start of the spring yesterday for the Toronto Blue Jays, and Cease attained his initial goal of making a good impression, hitting 98 mph on the radar gun while striking out three hitters and allowing a hit, a walk and a run in 1-2/3 innings for work. His opponent was the Philadelphia Phillies, and the start was reported on by Keegan Matheson of MLB.com.
“You always want to make a good, strong first impression,” said Cease, who allowed one run, one hit and one walk and notched three strikeouts over 1 2/3 innings. “This isn’t as important as a regular-season game, but I definitely wanted to make a good impression.”
He probably left one on Phillies star Bryce Harper, who struck out swinging on a Cease fastball that clocked in at 97.5. The outing gave Phillies fans an idea of what Padres fans have known for years, which is that Cease has Cy Young potential that made him worth a seven-year deal for $210 million.
Cease had his ups and downs in San Diego, but the Blue Jays are chasing the upper end of the right-hander’s potential. He knows consistency is his biggest issue, and the lack of it kept Cease on a short leash during his sole start against the Chicago Cubs in the Wild Card round, as the pitcher was pulled early due to fears that he might blow up again in a big moment.
For Blue Jays manager John Schneider, Cease’s delivery Is the key factor there.
“Delivery is a big thing for him,” John Schneider said. “Staying in his delivery is a big thing. The really good outings and seasons you’ve seen from him, that has been on point very consistently.”
The trick will be keeping him there. Cease indicated that his delivery was at about 80 percent of where he wants it to be, and he also said he’s “really optimistic.”
“This is about fine-tuning and finding the feel in high intensity. For instance, maybe you bounce a couple breaking pitches and go, ‘OK, I need to aim that higher,’ and you take a mental note of that,” Cease said. “You just figure out what creates the best shapes and the best command.”
Cease is still baffling hitters with his elite slider, and according to Greenspan he’s been toying with a changeup as well. Schneider also cited Toronto’s high-level infield defense as another factor that could help Cease get that Cy Young award, although Cease is more of a fly-ball pitcher who occasionally gets taken out because he tends to live up in the zone. The Padres passed on paying him, probably due to their financial situation, but so far it looks like the Blue Jays could get their money’s worth.