DUNEDIN — It was cold. Not Toronto cold, but cold enough that a running fastball out near the end of the bat would unleash a hive of bees on a hitter’s hands.
With the mercury hovering around 14 degrees C, it was not the kind of day when the Blue Jays were looking forward to facing live batting practice for the first time.
“It was a tough day to hit off pitchers,” manager Cito Gaston said.
“There was a lot of looking going on.”
Ricky Romero, all amped up to get to face his first hitters of the spring, was the first pitcher to the mound. For the first couple of hitters, the only sound was Romero’s pitches smacking the catcher’s glove.
Romero is a rarity in the Toronto camp where a couple of dozen pitchers are trying to pitch their way onto the team. The only way Romero doesn’t break camp with the Jays is if he pitches his way off the team.
As a rookie last season, Romero made the club with a late flourish, winning a starter’s job in his last outing of the spring. He turned that opportunity into a 13-win season and was voted Toronto’s rookie of the year.
Now he’s back, just as motivated to take his game to the next level as he was last year.
“The biggest thing is to keep working,” he said. “You’ve got to stay dedicated and have that desire to keep getting better. I look at those three D’s: Discipline, dedication and desire.
“It comes down to who wants it more. I feel like I’m hungry out there and I want to get better.”
Romero’s goal in camp is to improve his command to the point where he can throw quality strikes at will. It’s a function of both mechanics and mental discipline.
“Biggest thing I’m focused on is throwing strikes,” he said. “I have to slow my whole body down mechanically. I tend to get excited and rush and typically I come in every spring and get off to a slow start.”
Last season, he and then pitching coach Brad Arnsberg made a mechanical breakthrough that allowed Romero to keep his body square to the plate through his motion.
He still works on several drills that keep his body in line.
For Romero, though, the biggest difference this year is the knowledge that he has kicked the door down on a big-league career.
“Mentally, it makes a huge difference to have that confidence in your ability and to know that you belong,” he said.
With Roy Halladay gone and veterans Shaun Marcum and Dustin McGowan both coming off injuries, there is the very real possibility that Romero could be Toronto’s opening day starter.
“It’s not something that I’ve thought about,” said Romero. “It would be an awesome experience but it’s going to take 25 guys to pull us through.”
Gaston doesn’t dismiss the idea though he would prefer a more experienced so-called “ace.”
“That No. 1 guy is always facing the best pitcher on the other team,” said Gaston. “Not to say Ricky can’t do that but he’s still young.”
ken.fidlin@sunmedia.ca
