Liriano yanked after 1/3 of an inning in shortest career start

It's the side of Francisco Liriano that the Toronto Blue Jays didn't want to see.

The 33-year-old left-hander lasted only 1/3 of an inning against the Tampa Bay Rays, surrendering five earned runs and walking four batters in the shortest start of his 11-year career.

The Blue Jays' decision to start catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia instead of Russell Martin raised some eyebrows, as Martin and Liriano are familiar with one another from their days with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

As shown here, however, Liriano's control and not who started behind the plate seemed to be the reason the left-hander hit the showers early.

Liriano entered his first start of 2017 on a high note after wowing the club with his performance in spring training where he combined to a 2.00 ERA in five starts with 29 strikeouts and a 0.89 WHIP.

The veteran starter was acquired by the Blue Jays last season from the Pirates at the trade deadline for right-hander Drew Hutchison. Liriano performed to a 5.46 ERA in the National League in 2016 but fared much better after the trade to Toronto with a 2.92 ERA and 52 strikeouts in eight regular-season starts.