The Toronto Blue Jays have been snakebit by injuries this season, struggling to regain the momentum they enjoyed during a run all the way to Game 7 of the World Series last year.
The team has lost players across the roster, including catcher Alejandro Kirk and switch-hitting slugger Anthony Santander. But the pitching staff has been particularly decimated, with Dylan Cease hitting the injured list this week alongside Shane Bieber, Max Scherzer, Cody Ponce and Jose Berrios.
That has left the team surprisingly shorthanded in the rotation, particularly after it cut ties with swingman Eric Lauer, who posted a 6.69 ERA in 36 and one-third innings for the team this season after playing a key role in its run last year.
Former Toronto Blue Jays Pitcher Eric Lauer Traded To Los Angeles Dodgers After Issues With Role
The Blue Jays’ decision to trade Lauer to the Los Angeles Dodgers might have further thinned their pitching stable, but it seemed like their hand was forced after Lauer shared his feelings about following an opener rather than taking on the role of a more traditional starter.
“It’s definitely different,” Lauer told reporters after following an opener last month, per Sportsnet. “To be real blunt, I hate it. I can’t stand it.”
Lauer later clarified that he felt those comments were overblown and that he cleared the air with the team’s pitching coach and manager John Schneider shortly after making them. But now that his time with the Blue Jays has officially concluded and he is preparing to make his first start for the Dodgers, Lauer revealed that his role with his former team was affecting his ability to perform on the mound.
“But in hindsight … he started ‘feeling like I was looking over my shoulder’ regarding his role on the team,” the California Post’s Jack Harris reported on Tuesday.
“It started to get in my mind a little more than I would like to admit it did,” Lauer added, according to Harris.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Eric Lauer Reveals Mental Problems With Toronto Blue Jays Role
As Lauer looks to establish a role with the defending champions this season, he is in line for a traditional starter’s role. But if he’s unable to solve the issues that plagued him on the mound for the Blue Jays this season, it seems that he’ll be on the outside of the Dodgers’ starting rotation looking in when it gets back to full strength.
“For now, Lauer is simply a placeholder with Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell out injured,” Harris wrote. “He still feels like he knows who he is as a pitcher. Tuesday night will offer a new chance to prove it.”