DUNEDIN, Florida – Could it be? With the Blue Jays failure to land Ervin Santana and the continuing spring struggles, to varying degrees, of Esmil Rogers, Todd Redmond and J.A. Happ, Ricky Romeros name is being brought up on an increasing basis. Its getting lumped in with that large group competing for a job in the starting rotation. Manager John Gibbons was effusive about Romeros Wednesday performance, in which the former ace lefthander allowed one run over four innings of work. "All hes got to do is get it in the zone," said Gibbons. "That ball is moving every which way too. Its tough to square him up. If he gets in the zone, he makes them swing, you add that great changeup on top of that, thats where hes had his success. Where he ran into trouble he was just scattering it. He was walking guys, things like that. Hes getting in the zone now and thats the key." Baby steps, though. Romero did walk two batters and hit another. He was the beneficiary of a beautifully turned double play and of an outfield assist on a base hit by Jose Bautista, who threw out a runner at third. If Romero was to land the starting job, at this moment it seems remote, the Jays would likely begin the season with an eight-man bullpen. The fact Romero isnt on the 40-man roster works against him, performance over the last two seasons aside, but he is owed at least $15.6-million over the remaining term on his contract and the Jays would love to get some value for it. Romero has simplified his approach. "Like Ive told Kratz and Thole, the guys who have caught me the last two times, just set up down the middle and stuff will move," he said. "I feel like Im getting that movement back with the changeup and the sinker. There are going to be times when I come out of my delivery a little bit but I think the good thing now is that Im realizing when Im coming out of it. Its just slowing myself back down and my delivery is going to be key, just finding that rhythm." One noticeable difference from last season: when Romero talks about feeling good, feeling confident, his eyes and his body language emit the same. That hasnt been the case. "I definitely feel like its in the right direction and how can you not," said Romero. "Everything Ive been through, this feels good. Im not going to get ahead of myself or anything like that but its taking it day by day and working. I think if I do that, just continue to work, work, and see the little wins each and every day and remain positive I think Im going to be just fine. The rest will take care of itself." Its a long road back to being the 15-game winner from 2011 and Romero may never regain his All-Star form. But hes trying. His manager hopes the crisis of confidence is a thing of the past. "Some guys never rebound from it," said manager John Gibbons. "What hes done here this spring, we noticed it, first started noticing it, just warming up in the bullpen, just throwing their sides and in BP, before we even started playing games, he looked different. Were all pulling for him here." McGowan feeling better Dustin McGowan threw two scoreless innings in Thursdays 7-5 loss to the Astros. It was his first game action in 10 days thanks to a stomach bug. It was the same illness that affected Sergio Santos earlier this month. "I lost eight (pounds,) exactly, too," said McGowan. "I think its the eight pound flu or whatever it was. Next time Sergio needs to stay home." After years of battling shoulder problems, McGowan made 25 appearances out of the bullpen last season, posting a 2.45 ERA while striking out, essentially, one hitter per inning pitched. Hes stretching out this spring, longing to be a starter once more. He felt no side effects from his sickness-induced layoff. "I felt good," said McGowan. "For me, thats the most important thing is feeling good. Pitches are starting to come around and location is starting to get better so its a positive outing today for me." McGowan seems to understand the unlikelihood that hell end up in the rotation, admitting "Its hard to say in my head Im going to be a starter but thats where I want to be." Still, hell continue to try to pitch deeper into games. "Ill keep going this path but if Im at four innings by the end of spring, if they want me in the bullpen thats easy to transfer right into," he said. "If you throw one or two, youre ready for it easily." Has he gained the eight pounds back he lost while sick? "You dont see this," joked McGowan, pointing to his stomach. "Ive got it." Brett Cecil Cardinals Jersey . Yup, he definitely needed this one. Craig homered twice and had three RBIs Wednesday night to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 7-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Craig went 4 for 5 and Yadier Molina added three hits for the Cardinals, who salvaged the final game of a three-game set in hopes of staying within shouting distance of front-running Milwaukee in the NL Central. Matt Wieters Jersey . LOUIS -- Russell Martin wanted a better fate for his starting pitcher and helped deliver a happier ending. https://www.cheapcardinalsonline.com/244...-cardinals.html. -- James Harden scored 31 points, including 25 in the second half, and the Houston Rockets dug out of a double-digit, first-half hole to beat the Orlando Magic 101-89 on Wednesday night. Jose Martinez Cardinals Jersey . He was with the New York Jets in 2011 when the NFL locked out their players after they failed to agree on a new contract. Willy went undrafted but was given a look by four NFL teams before heading north. Ken Boyer Cardinals Jersey . His apology came before a pregame ceremony in which the team honoured its 2004 team that won Bostons first World Series championship since 1918. "I realize that I behaved bad in Boston," Ramirez said.VANCOUVER -- The Vancouver Canucks are expanding the duties of senior management team member Stan Smyl. He was named director of player development Thursday, the NHL team said in a release. Smyl will also continue to serve as senior adviser to general manager Mike Gillis. "Stan has been a cornerstone of our franchise as a player, coach and member of our management team for over 30 years," Gillis said in a release. "We are thrilled to expand his role to have him work closely with our prospects. Stan embodies hard work and has shown an unwavering commitment to excellence. "We look forward to having him instil these qualities in our prospects as they develop on and off tthe ice.dddddddddddd" Smyl has spent his entire professional hockey career with the Canucks organization, first as a player then as a coach before becoming a member of the senior management team. He was named collegiate scouting director in June 2008 and became the senior adviser to the GM a few months later. In his new role, Smyl will be responsible for working with the clubs young players to assist them with their continued growth as professionals. During his NHL playing career, Smyl established team records for games played (896), goals (262), assists (411) and points (673). He served as team captain from 1982-1990 and had his No. 12 retired by the team in 1991. ' ' '
