Eric Lauer is back in John Schneider's bulk plan again, and the Blue Jays lefty has already said he hates this setup.
Toronto will open Sunday's game against the Angels with Spencer Miles, with Lauer expected to cover the bulk innings once Miles is done. That makes this less about a spot start and more about another manager decision Lauer has been forced to swallow.
That part matters because Lauer was blunt the last time this came up. After working behind an opener in Arizona in April, he said, «I hate it,» then added that pitchers are creatures of habit and that the routine throws everything off.
So when Schneider goes right back to the same formula against the Angels, the story is not just Miles getting the ball first. It is Lauer once again being asked to do a job he has already made clear does not fit the way he wants to work.
Schneider's side of it is simple enough. He already said after Lauer's last public pushback that the club is «trying to win,» and Toronto clearly sees some matchup or workload edge in shortening the front end of the game.
Miles also gives them a live early option. The Rule 5 right-hander has a 3.50 ERA in 18.0 innings over 11 relief appearances, so this is not a random dart throw from the bullpen.
The clip attached to the report shows the decision laid out cleanly, with Miles set to open and Lauer lined up behind him rather than taking the mound first himself.
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Lauer's role keeps shifting, and he still doesn't like it
That is where the tension sits. Lauer has started 6 of his 7 appearances this season, logging 31.1 innings with a 6.03 ERA, so this is not a reliever being stretched out for convenience.
He has already seen the Angels once this year, allowing 3 earned runs over 5.0 innings in Anaheim. Now he gets the same opponent again, just without the normal starter's routine he prefers.
That can wear on a pitcher fast, especially one trying to hold onto a real rotation lane while the club keeps toggling him between roles. Lauer may still be useful in this format, but useful and comfortable are not the same thing.
For Miles, this is a trust signal. For Lauer, it feels more like another reminder that Schneider values flexibility over comfort when the rotation is stretched.
And that is why Sunday's pitching plan has more edge than it looks at first glance. The Blue Jays are not just opening with Spencer Miles. They are asking Eric Lauer, once again, to accept a role he has already told them he does not want.
Is John Schneider making the right call by using Eric Lauer behind an opener again?
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