Matt Shoemaker 'ready to go' as Blue Jays hurlers endure rough patch

There may finally be some light at the end of the injury tunnel for the struggling Toronto Blue Jays.

Pitching coach Paul Walker says Matt Shoemaker, Nate Pearson and Canadian-born Jordan Romano, all sidelined with various injuries, are close to rejoining the lineup.

Walker says Pearson, who strained his pitching arm last month, will throw an inning or two Monday when the Jays open a four-game home stand against the New York Yankees.

Shoemaker, who tore up his knee last April and sat out the rest of the 2019 season, is "ready to go" and Walker says a decision on when to deploy him will likely come Sunday. He has been sidelined since late August with a lat strain.

Romano, of Markham, Ont., has been out for close to a month with an injured finger and is making progress, Walker says.

The Jays, who are nursing a six-game losing streak, will close out what has so far been a disappointing four-game stand Sunday afternoon against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Flagging fortunes

Newly acquired former Seattle Mariner starter Taijuan Walker is getting the ball against fellow right-hander Adonis Medina, making his major-league debut with the Phillies.

"I think for, I guess, every pitching coach, this year hasn't been easy," Walker said of the abbreviated season, which has tested the ability of teams to work their starting lineups and forced more dependence than usual on a badly depleted bullpen.

"We found a way to be creative and find a way to utilize all the arms we have. And fortunately, you get a couple extra arms down in that bullpen, which helps."

With the post-season just two weeks away, however, the eighth-place Jays are rapidly running out of time to turn around their flagging fortunes and cement their playoff hopes.

"We're going to do everything we can to win some ball games," Walker said. "Obviously this last stretch has been tough, but we're looking forward to finding a way to rectify it today."

In playoff contention

Despite five innings of South Korean ace Hyun Jin Ryu's best efforts, bullpen problems and a shortage of offence kneecapped Toronto Saturday in a 3-1 loss to the Phillies.

Ryu and a fifth-inning solo shot from infielder Travis Shaw were the night's only high points for Toronto, which remains in playoff contention despite their six-game slide.

"We want to keep him as sharp as possible and feeling as good as he can be," Walker said of Ryu, who has been a bright spot in the Jays' pitching lineup.

"He's been a guy who has been able to pitch on four days' rest, and certainly guys had great production on five days' rest, so we take that into account. But obviously, every game is important right now. And we're in a position where, down the stretch, we've got to win the game. So we're going to do everything we can to win ball games."