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DETROIT -- David Purcey was back for another kick at the can.
The enigmatic left-hander, the Jays top pick in the 2004 free-agent draft, has been both the biggest tease and biggest disappointment in the Jays organization now that they've cut Alex Rios loose.
Even though Purcey will be 28 next April, the Jays haven't given up hope the 6-foot-5 lefty will one day blossom, that the light will finally come on and shine bright.
Last night the lights dimmed on the Jays as they blew a 5-2 lead in the ninth to drop a 6-5 decision to the Tigers in the 10th.
Two crucial errors by shortstop Marco Scutaro led to the loss. In the ninth, he missed a routine ground ball allowing leadoff hitter Curtis Granderson to reach. Two batters later, pinch-hitter Aubrey Huff drilled a three-run shot off Jason Frasor to tie it 5-5.
Then in the 10th with runners at first and second, Alex Avila hit a grounder to first baseman Lyle Overbay. It appeared that Scutaro, who was covering second, was screened by the runner on Overbay's throw and the ball hit his glove and rolled away, allowing Brandon Inge to score the winning run.
"What do they want me say, I missed the ball," was all that Scutaro would say.
The loss put a damper on a pretty good outing by Purcey.
Purcey, who hadn't pitched since his last start for triple-A Las Vegas on Sept. 4, didn't get off to the best start as leadoff hitter Ryan Raburn homered on his fourth pitch. After that, Purcey settled down.
The Jays looked as if they had this one won for Purcey after a five-run sixth, highlighted by Adam Lind's three-run shot, put them up 5-2. But then came the Scutaro errors.
When the season opened back in April, Purcey was a member of the starting rotation and remained there for just four starts. He didn't win a game, lost two and had a 7.01 ERA, which resulted in him being shipped to Vegas to get things straightened out.
OWNED THE RAYS
Purcey first arrived on the major-league scene last year where in 12 starts he went 3-6 with a 5.54 ERA. That's not a lot to hang your hat on.
But two of his starts were simply fantastic and both came against the division-winning Tampa Bay Rays.
On Aug. 27 of '08 at Tampa, Purcey lost 1-0 allowing the one run on five hits over eight innings. He didn't walk a batter and struck out 11.
To show that start wasn't a fluke, he hooked up against Tampa at the Rogers Centre on Sept. 7 and this time came out on top, 1-0. Over eight innings, he blanked the Rays on six hits, walked three and struck out seven.
Those performances got the Jays brass hyperventilating over what might be coming down the pipe.
"Although it's a small sample, he did some things at the major-league level (in 2008) that you think that are just too good to be random," said Tony La Cava, the Jays assistant GM said. "There's double-figure strikeout games that stand out as something that some really good pitchers never do over their careers, let alone twice in a short period of time."
Overall, Purcey was pleased with his outing -- 52/3 innings, five hits, two earned runs.
"At the beginning of the game I had a little rust, hadn't pitched in 10 days," he said. "Once I settled in a little bit I felt pretty comfortable."
MIKE.RUTSEY@SUNMEDIA.CA