Skip to content

Why Stroman's struggles are more mental than physical

Steve Russell / Toronto Star / Getty / theScore

Marcus Stroman continued to labor through his season-long slump Sunday in a pitching matchup he probably could have learned something from.

After all, the young Blue Jays right-hander was facing White Sox ace Chris Sale, the All-Star lefty who’s readjusted himself into the American League’s best pitcher this season.

On the surface, the two pitchers couldn't be more different. Sale towers over most opposing hitters at 6-foot-6; Stroman stands just 5-foot-8. Sale throws from the left side, Stroman the right, and the former tops out a few miles an hour higher with his fastball.

But the new, pitch-to-contact Sale is still very much the hurler Stroman would like to become (obviously), in that they both prefer efficiency over missing bats with their swing-through stuff. Sale, of course, didn't fully buy into his new approach until this year, his age-27 season, so forgive the younger Stroman if he isn't quite on that Cy Young level yet.

We brought in theScore MLB insider and former three-time All-Star outfielder Vernon Wells to weigh in on Stroman’s struggles, expectations, and the things he needs to do to get back on track:

Biggest difference from last year

VW: There's tremendous value in the amount of times a hitter gets to face a particular pitcher, and teams are finally making the adjustments. Stroman's now more than 250 innings into his major-league career, so the opposition has a solid sample size to study from - and I don't just mean pitch recognition or understanding simple strengths and weaknesses. The more a hitter opposes a pitcher, the more they understand their approach in unique situations. Knowing how Stroman might favor a certain pitch with runners on base, or where his secondary stuff tends to break out of the stretch with a left-handed batter at the plate, gives a significant amount of comfort level to the hitter. Half the battle happens before the pitch is even thrown.

Career Splits IP ERA H/9 K/9 BB/9 HR/FB
2014-15 157.2 3.31 8.3 7.4 1.9 7.4%
2016 101.1 5.33 10.0 6.3 2.8 14.7%

Doing what he does best

VW: Once Stroman centers himself, gets his swagger back, and starts working back in the zone, he'll be fine. There are periods you have to grow through - especially as a young pitcher - where the league makes its adjustment and you have to do the same. I don't think his stuff is diminished and I don't think his confidence is, either. I just think teams are doing a better job than he is in adjusting to his maturity as a pitcher. He's not a guy that looks to strike batters out, he's a guy that looks to attack the zone. When hitters know that, they're going to be more aggressive in counts and give themselves a chance to hit. Stroman's one those guys who you don't want to fall behind against too many times because he's got good enough stuff to strike you out.

Tune out those expectations

VW: In today's game, people are so quick to anoint the next great one based on a small window of success that it's easy for the player to buy into that before they've fully developed. The process Stroman's going through right now is important for his maturity as a pitcher, and it's these moments that will shape how he handles adversity later in his career. You need to be able to respect that process as a player, and understand that everything on the periphery when it comes to being the next Cy Young or ace of the staff is just white noise that won't help you throw strikes or miss bats. As long as he can differentiate his results from those expectations - whether good or bad - he and the Blue Jays have nothing to worry about.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox