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Brandon Morrow: 2014 Toronto Blue Jays Year in Review
By Jeff Morten
So much of what we regard as potential drives teams to make certain decisions. If the potential looks great then a player is going to get more leeway in hopes that he will fulfill this potential. It buys time and earns some pretty good dollars for this player.
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Recent Blue Jay Dustin McGowan was one of those. He gets hurt and hurt and hurt but because when he isn’t his fastball zips to the plate at 95 mph it is maddening to think you may not be there to see this potential fulfilled (read more on this in Ryan Mueller’s article from a few days ago).
This brings us to the latest of these players: Brandon Morrow. I remember the pure joy felt in Blue Jays land when we trade erratic reliever Brandon League to get a former 2006 top 5 draft pick with a huge arm. Seattle had whittled away with him as a starter then reliever then starter then closer…they played around with him so much he didn’t know how to prepare for games anymore.
When the Blue Jays grabbed him they made him a starter. Period. As the years and the dollars have gone it is easy to see that we are again looking at a pitcher with unfulfilled potential. Like the complete game 17 K 1 hit performance a few seasons ago. That is the Morrow the Blue Jays wanted and craved. Unfortunately injuries have derailed him almost every season and he has become lost potential.
THE GOOD
Hmmmmm….well his arm didn’t fall off after he went on the DL. He managed to come back and look pretty good out of the bullpen. He struck out almost a batter an inning. He displayed flashes again of what could be. Perhaps he auditioned himself for the role of closer next year…if he isn’t sent packing that is. Ummmmm…he has a great beard. I do love me that beard…jealous of it really.
THE BAD
Morrow is just a winds breath away from cracking another bone in his fragile body. Will he ever put it together? He is still only 30 so there is a chance. The chance will not be with Toronto though. His K:BB was 30:18. His WHIP overall was 1.65. Should the Jays pick fork out $10M dollars for the off-chance that he could be the closer they are likely going to need? No.
THE FUTURE
There is no future here with the Blue Jays. They will buy him out at $1M and perhaps offer him an incentive laden 1yr contract to see if he could be the closer they lack. Clearly though there will be another team that will give him a chance to be a starter (Colorado? Baltimore?). He is the epitome of unfulfilled potential and it would be nice to see him put it all together for a couple seasons and go out on his terms….not the doctor way.