Today's POTD looks at the winning pitcher in the Jays first Spring Training Victory of 2011. He's also in the top three list of my favourite Janssens.
Casey Janssen stars as the one-legged man!
The two-legged Janssen pitches against the Chicago White Sox in the eighth inning at the Dome April 15 on Jackie Robinson Day.
Janssen allowed just an infield hit and struck out a batter in his one inning of work as the Jays beat the White Sox 7-3.
Janssen climbs the hill as he prepares to face the Royals in the eighth inning at home April 21.
Janssen stretches his arms as he gets ready to work.
Janssen stands on the rubber.
Janssen induced four groundball outs and struck out a man before giving up a single in his 1 2/3 innings of work. Scott Downs stranded the runner to keep Janssen's ERA at 1.17.
Janssen enters the August 7 slugfest against Tampa Bay at the Dome. Third baseman Edwin Encarnacion shares a chuckle with shortstop Yunel Escobar as Janssen starts to focus.
Janssen came into the game with one out and two men on in the ninth to relieve lefty David Purcey.
Janssen allowed the two inherited runners to score by giving up a double and a walk but he got a ground out and struck out Ben Zobrist for the final two outs of the ball game as the Jays held on for the 17-11 win.
Robert Casey Janssen was taken in the fourth round by the Blue Jays in the fourth round of the 2004 draft out of UCLA. Janssen did not waste a lot of time getting to Toronto. After going 3-1 with a 3.48 earned run average in Auburn in 2004, the 6-foot-4 righty quickly climbed the ladder in the farm system in 2005 with stops in Lansing, Dunedin and New Hampshire, winning 13 of 17 decisions with a 2.18 ERA.
In 2006, Janssen made his major league debut April 27 against the team who selected him in the 49th round of the 2003 draft, the Baltimore Orioles. He gave up three runs (two earned) over four innings as the Jays fell to Kris Benson and the O's 7-5. Janssen's second start came five days later in Baltimore where he faced Benson again. He lasted six innings but gave up five runs as the O's won again, 9-2. His first major league win came in his next start against his hometown team, the Los Angeles Angels. The Orange, California native gave up just one hit and one walk in 7 1/3 innings as the Jays beat the Angels 3-1 at the Dome May 7. After losing his next start to Tampa Bay, Janssen won his next four decisions, including a win over the husband of Anna Benson June 7 at Camden Yards. His next start came five days later against (wait for it!) Benson and the O's and Janssen could not earn a split decision as the O's exacted revenge with a victory at the Dome. Janssen struggled as the season wore on as he lost six of his last seven decisions. His lone victory came June 30 when he spun six shutout innings against Philadelphia at the Dome. Janssen's last appearance of the season came in relief near the end of July and he wound up spending time in Syracuse, where he went 1-5 with a 4.85 ERA. His big league totals were 6-10 with a 5.07 ERA.
In 2007, Janssen moved to the bullpen and became the set-up man by making 70 appearances and posting an ERA of 2.35. He recorded six saves and 24 holds in his 72 2/3 innings of work. He only struck out 39 batters but walked only 20 and surrendered less than a hit an inning by giving up 67 hits. Unfortunately, Janssen suffered a torn labrum in his shoulder and wound up missing the 2008 campaign. He made his way back in 2009 and became a starter once again. His first start was a quality start but resulted in a loss to Atlanta at Turner Field May 23. He earned his first win of the season in his next start by scattering 11 hits and two walks in a seven inning performance against Boston at the Dome May 29. He won his second game of the season by lasting 5 1/3 innings in Texas June 8 but that was sandwiched by losses to the Angels and Marlins at home. Janssen also spent time in th minors by making stops in the GCL, Dunedin, New Hampshire and Las Vegas. From the middle of August, Janssen returned to the bullpen and earned a save and two holds along the way to a 2-4 record with a 5.85 ERA.
The 2010 campaign saw Janssen get the victory in his first three appearances as he earned a win in Texas April 8 and two more W's in Baltimore April 9 and 11 (Kris Benson was nowhere to be found!). April was a month of extremes for Janssen as his ERA ranged from 1.17 to 6.89. He would whittle it down to 3.67 at season's end with a record of 5-2 over 56 appearances. In 68 2/3 innings, he struck out 63 batters and walked just 21 while giving up 74 hits.
The 29 year-old Janssen finds himself competing for a bullpen spot with the Jays in 2011 after the off-season additions of Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch and Octavio Dotel. Janssen hopes his first outing of Spring Training made an impression on new manager John Farrell on Wednesday as he pitched a shutout ninth with a strikeout after giving up a leadoff double. That helped the Jays rally for a 5-4 victory over Tampa Bay 5-4 in Dunedin.
