Toronto Blue Jays: Sean Reid-Foley learns valuable lesson
Despite getting hit hard by the New York Yankees, Sean Reid-Foley should be taking each experience with the Toronto Blue Jays in stride.
There’s only so much a player can learn playing in the minor leagues, which is why the Toronto Blue Jays have been slowly integrating some of their top prospects. It started with Teoscar Hernandez last season, Ryan Borucki earlier this season and now Danny Jansen and Sean Reid-Foley.
There are going to bumps in the road along the way for these prospects and against the New York Yankees on Saturday, Reid-Foley learned a lesson that he should embrace even if it was a tough one. Over 4.1 innings, he allowed eight runs, six earned on seven hits and three walks, while striking out six.
The benefit of the Blue Jays’ situation right now is that wins aren’t the priority, so young players can just go out and play their game, make mistakes and learn from it. It appears that’s the message to Reid-Foley, as he told Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.
"“Just compete, focus on pitch to pitch, stop looking ahead, things like that,” Reid-Foley said of John Gibbons’ message. “He really wanted to make sure I was in the moment and going with what was working in that moment.”"
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While Gibbons is not expected to make it past this season, his value at this point is his approach with players, because a bad experience can impact their mentality.
At this point, the focus for the Blue Jays should be on Reid-Foley’s command, which has been an issue for him in the past. Maybe seeing Giancarlo Stanton launch a fastball with authority is one that should make him rethink his approach.
Of course, he’s not the only one who will need to make some adjustment to their game. Jansen made a throwing error, but he’s also shown promise with the bat and Hernandez continues to be an adventure in the outfield.
Next. John Gibbons will see out season as manager. dark
At this point, the Blue Jays are in a spot where they’ll take the mistakes if these young players can find a way to reach their potential. They know what they have with their veteran players, so why not give the prospects a chance to experience the major leagues?