Kevin Gausman showed positive signs in his first start of preseason camp despite a 4-3 loss for the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The 33-year-old right-hander struck out seven players in three innings, allowing just three hits and no walks. He threw 52 pitches.
“I found I had control and velocity. Time management was good. I checked several boxes,” he said after the meeting.
Gausman was sidelined earlier this spring with a shoulder injury and muscle fatigue. Jose Berrios was chosen to take the mound in Thursday’s opening game against the Tampa Bay Rays.
Gausman was 12-9 with a 3.19 ERA with 237 strikeouts – a major league high in 2023 – in 185 innings. He finished third in the voting for the Cy Young Trophy.
In the loss, Kevin Kiermaier had a hit and scored a run on a double by Cavan Biggio in the first inning.
Damiano Palmegiani tied the score at 2-2 in the fifth inning with a solo home run. The latter reduced the score to 4-3 in the eighth on a single from Daniel Vogelbach.
2024-03-25 21:19:00
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