DUNEDIN, FLA. - The Blue Jays are either clutching at straws or are on to something.

They hope it’s the latter.

This spring, Ricky Romero has struggled each and every time out and through seven spring starts he has a 7.27 ERA and has allowed 11 hits and walked seven through 8.2 innings.

In his sides of late, though, the Jays have worked on Romero’s mechanics and are attempting to straighten out a problem that has surfaced in the past — throwing across his body. It occurs when he lands a bit to the right with his lead right foot, which results in improper mechanics.

Romero’s next start is Thursday but instead of pitching against the Tampa Bay Rays in Port Charlotte, he will throw in a minor-league game right here.

“He and Pete Walker (the Jays pitching coach) have been working on a couple of mechanical changes, his delivery, get him straighter to home plate,” manager John Gibbons said Tuesday morning. “He’ll be working on that.”

So what exactly is Walker trying to do?

“A lot of times he throws across his body,” Gibbons said. “We’re trying to iron it out so it’s more of a straight shot to home plate. Sometimes the guys that throw across their body, they have trouble commanding the ball. They scatter it a little bit and leave it (the ball) arm side (for Romero, that would mean missing on the left or outside portion of the plate to a right-handed hitter). This way it will get him a more natural, free-and-easy delivery.