Charlie Montoyo already has two boys of his own. But sometimes he has to be dad to grown men as well. Our father, who art in the dugout. A reasoning dad, an understanding dad, a dad who responds to temper tantrums with a calming hand on the shoulder. Thus did the Blue Jays skipper cool out Marcus Stroman after removing the starter from Saturday afternoon’s game at the Rogers Centre. Which, naturally, the pitcher did not like. And made that manifestly evident by blowing his top and flinging a couple of F-bombs. Meh, as both manager and player would insist afterwards, it was no big deal. Except the no big deal was captured by TV cameras and Stroman’s hissy fit was audible to fans in close proximity. “Actually, I like it,” Montoyo professed later about Stroman’s outburst and palpable unhappiness at being removed after giving up three singles and a third run to Chicago in what became a 7-2 White Sox victory. “I like it when pitchers get upset when I take them out. That’s what I want. I don’t want the guy to be happy giving me the ball.” Stroman, who took his sixth loss of the season on the chin — despite sturdy efforts in most of his nine starts and a 3.12 ERA — was clearly dismayed when Montoyo went out to the hill, summoning Derek Law from the bullpen. Whatever words were exchanged — and the right-hander covered his mouth with his glove for part of it — Stroman’s body English screamed, ah c’mon. Some 10 feet from the dugout steps, his jawing was turned toward pitching coach Pete Walker. As everybody knows, the occasionally volatile 28-year-old is a fierce competitor who wears his heart on his sleeve. Why the fury — and the aforementioned F-fusillade — was directed at Walker is puzzling. There was speculation Stroman had been promised the inning by Walker. Circumstances had changed, however. Displeased, Stroman stomped down to the dugout, then returned with his jersey pulled out and ranted some more, Walker giving him a whole lot of space. By that point, Montoyo had joined the, um, conversation and was obviously trying to settle Stroman down. “We were discussing why I took him out, our reasoning and stuff,’’ Montoyo told reporters afterwards. “And that everything was fine. From what I hear, when I was on the mound he had a discussion with Pete.” A rather benign account of what had just happened. “And then Pete talked to me about it. We told him why we took him out of the game. And then after that, I went inside and we talked some more.” The manager said to Stroman: “I told you, some time this year I’m going to take you out and you will be angry with me. “That’s part of the game, believe me. It’s all good.” Montoyo’s decision was certainly justifiable. “They were swinging the bat pretty good in that inning, I could tell. But you know, honestly, I really appreciate when guys get upset. I don’t want people to be happy when I take them out of games.’’ It was in fact mostly a fart in a mitten. Not a bad thing for a player to crack open his sentiments in the heat of the moment, though probably advisable to do it beyond prying eyes and ears. But Stroman was rather revisionist about the episode when subjected to a media third degree, which was also appropriate, the questions. Not like anybody in the scrum was smacking him upside the head for childish behaviour. He flat-out denied getting in your face with Walker, who, frankly, loves Stroman. “I wasn’t angry with Pete at all. The only thing I was angry about was coming out of the game and that’s it. Everybody around me knows that. And we cleared it up right after the inning. Nobody’s even slightly upset.” Stroman veered toward sarcasm to rationalize his conduct. “I want to be the guy with the ball, always. The last thing I have in my head when a manager comes to get me is, yes, I can’t wait to get out of this game. Please let somebody else face the next guy. Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... “It’s the last place my mind, my mentality, will ever be. Charlie knows that. Charlie respects that a lot out of me. He told me at the beginning of the season that he loves the fact that I always have the ball. So, that wasn’t a disagreement, that was just my upset coming out.” With runners at first and third, Yolmer Sanchez at the plate — he’d homered in the third — Stroman liked the matchup, had faith in his sinker. “I knew he probably was either going to bunt or I could get him on the ground. So I was just frustrated. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that.” Agreed. Sanchez actually reached first on a Law error, RBI on the sac bunt, run charged to Stroman. Regrets for the eruption, Marcus? None. “Like I said, the last place that I’ll ever be is thankful to come out of a game. My teammates, the organization, everybody honours that. It was a minor disagreement that I’m sure you guys will try to play into a bigger issue. Me and Charlie spoke right after the inning and it was cleared right then and there. It’s a reach for you all to reach for that. There’s nothing there.” This is reporter, reaching. Nothing there would also describe the run support Stroman has had in his outings — which is to say, pitifully few, eight through eight starts until Saturday, and when Randal Grichuk finally put Toronto on the board with a leadoff home run in the seventh, his team-leading seventh jack, Stroman was already in the showers. All fine and dandy OK? Nothing to see here, move along. Last thing Montoyo said to Stroman, once serenity had descended, was to ask whether his mom Adlin was indeed going to throw out the ceremonial pitch on Mother’s Day, a nice little team tradition.<doc-sep>Marcus Stroman had a bumpy exit from Saturday's start. (Nathan Denette/The Canadian Press via AP) TORONTO — When Marcus Stroman takes the mound his goal is to finish baseball games. That goal is anachronistic in an era where complete games are scarce, but it’s his mindset nonetheless. That’s why Stroman usually isn’t happy to see his manager come from the dugout to remove him. He certainly wasn’t pleased on Saturday in the midst of a loss to the White Sox. Marcus Stroman gets yanked, has nothing but confidence in his bullpen pic.twitter.com/TiysLA5xpP — Ben Porter (@Ben13Porter) May 11, 2019 The right-hander got into it with manager Charlie Montoyo when he was lifted in the seventh inning, a heated discussion that continued with pitching coach Pete Walker as he left the field. “I’m never happy to be leaving a game,” Stroman said of the dust up. “My teammates and my coaches honour that. I want to be the guy with the ball always. The last thing I ever have in my head when a manager comes to get me is ‘Yes, I can’t wait to get out of this game please let somebody else face the next guy.’ That’s the last place my mind will ever be.” Although the starter was undoubtedly more expressive in his frustration than usual, it wasn’t anything that either party has an issue with going forward. “It was a minor disagreement that I’m sure [the media] will try to play into a bigger issue,” Stroman said. “Me and Charlie spoke right after the inning and it was cleared right then and there.” Montoyo concurs with Stroman’s assessment, and says if anything the incident improves his opinion of his starter. “Actually, I like it, I like when pitchers get upset when they come out,” he said. “That’s what I want. I don’t want guys who are happy giving me the ball.” According to Montoyo, he, Walker, and Stroman hashed things out, talked about their reasoning and that was it. That was that. In all of this it’s worth noting that everyone involve would be heavily incentivized to say everything was fine and kill the story on the vine - regardless of whether that was the case. Story continues Even so, smart money is on Stroman and Montoyo being just fine, even if there was a brief window on Saturday where they weren’t. More Blue Jays coverage from Yahoo Sports Canada<doc-sep>In the seventh inning of Saturday's White Sox-Blue Jays tilt in Toronto (CHW 7, TOR 2), Jays right-handed starter Marcus Stroman gave up a pair of singles followed by a line-out and then followed by another single. At that point, Stroman's Jays were down 3-0 with runners on the corners, and manager Charlie Montoyo made his way to the mound for a pitching change. Stroman, as you're about to see, was none too pleased: By the time Stroman made it to the dugout, he'd apparently not calmed down: Pete Walker is Toronto's pitching coach. By contemporary standards, that's not really a quick hook. Stroman worked 6 1/3 innings and allowed eight hits and four runs, three of which were earned. Stroman was also at 97 pitches when Montoyo made his move. Considering that he'd allowed three hits in the frame and another well-struck ball that was turned into an out, it seems like Stroman may have overreacted just a bit. That said, it's hard to blame a big-league pitcher -- "bred" to be competitive in the extreme -- for wanting to finish his work. As a right-hander listed at 5-foot-7, Stroman no doubt has an extra coating of that competitive streak, and that's almost always a good thing. He's also enjoying a quality season thus far (3.12 ERA after Saturday's outing), so he's probably got a great deal of confidence at the moment. In any event, manager and moundsman have probably already put this behind them.<doc-sep>Marcus Stroman wasn't pleased to see manager Charlie Montoyo heading to the mound on Saturday. Stroman (1-6) went 6 1/3 innings, allowing eight hits and three earned runs and striking out four batters to earn a quality start for the Blue Jays. But his performance was marred by a lack of run support and he was left frustrated by the timing of the decision to remove him from the game in what turned into a 7-2 win for the Chicago White Sox. "I'm never happy to be leaving the game. My teammates, my coaches, everybody knows that. I want to be the guy with the ball always," said Stroman (1-6). "The last thing I've ever had in my head when a coach or manager comes to get me is 'yes, I can't wait to get out of this game."' With runners on first and third and one out in the seventh, Stroman exchanged words with Montoyo as the Blue Jays (16-23) manager headed to the mound. Stroman also appeared to have a heated discussion with pitching coach Pete Walker in the dugout as he finished the day with 97 pitches, 61 of them for strikes. WATCH | Blue Jays squander solid outing by Stroman: Game Wrap: Blue Jay bats silenced by White Sox Sports 1:49 The Toronto Blue Jays dropped game two against the Chicago White Sox, losing by a 7-2 final score. 1:49 "I like it when pitchers get upset when I take them out. I don't want them to be happy or hear 'please take me out,"' Montoyo said about the reaction from Stroman. "That's what I like about this group. Even the position players. When they aren't playing, they get mad at me. Which I love it. That's all good." Stroman, never one to hide his emotion, was unapologetic about how he conducted himself and said that him and Montoyo worked it out before the game was complete. "No, not at all," Stroman said when asked if he could have handled things differently. "It was a minor disagreement that I'm sure you guys [the media] will try to play into a bigger issue. But, like I said, me and Charlie spoke right after the inning and it was clear right then and there." Lack of run support for Stroman Toronto had just three hits and no runs when the Blue Jays pulled Stroman. Making his ninth appearance this season, Stroman has received a total of eight runs in support. Yolmer Sanchez had a home run and had a pair of RBI's and Charlie Tilson also drove in two runs for the White Sox (17-21), who snapped a three-game losing streak. Ivan Nova (2-3) pitched six-plus innings and allowed one run on five hits. He allowed three walks and struck out three batters. The White Sox opened the scoring in the third inning when Sanchez unloaded on a 1-1 fastball over the left-field wall for a 1-0 lead. The struggles for Stroman would continue when Yoan Moncada hit an RBI single to make it 2-0. The runner, Leury Garcia, was able to score on the play after Stroman allowed him to reach third base on a failed pick-off attempt at first base. Law of averages Chicago added to its lead in the seventh frame. Nicky Delmonico hit an RBI single which made it 3-0 Chicago. That was the last batter Stroman would face before he was pulled in favour of relief pitcher Derek Law. Immediately after the change, Sanchez would collect his second RBI when he'd attempt a safety squeeze. Law was unable to handle the bunt by Sanchez and Tilson scored for a 4-0 lead. Law was charged with an error on the play. Toronto would respond later in the seventh when Randal Grichuk hit a solo homer to cut Chicago's lead to 4-1. It was Grichuk's team-leading seventh home run of the season. In the eighth inning, Tilson hit a two-run double for a 6-1 Chicago lead. In the ninth, James McCann hit a ground-rule double to put the White Sox up 7-1. Freddy Galvis had an RBI ground out later in the inning for the Jays.<doc-sep>
Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Marcus Stroman was removed from Saturday's game against the Chicago White Sox with one out in the seventh inning, and he wasn't happy about it. After allowing three singles in the inning, manager Charlie Montoyo came to the mound to give him the hook in favor of reliever Derek Law, and Stroman didn't mask his displeasure with the move. Marcus Stroman gets yanked, has nothing but confidence in his bullpen pic.twitter.com/TiysLA5xpP — Ben Porter (@Ben13Porter) May 11, 2019 Stroman also voiced his frustration in the dugout, as he had "some choice words" for pitching coach Pete Walker, according to Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com. Following the game, Stroman chalked up his fury to his overall competitiveness on the diamond. "The last thing I ever have in my head when a manager comes to get me is, 'Yes! I can't wait to get out of this game. Please let someone else face the next guy,'" he said, according to Chisholm. As for Montoyo, he wants his pitchers to get fired up when he makes the call to the 'pen. "I like it when pitchers get upset when I take them out," he said. "That's what I want. I don't want a guy to be happy. That's one thing I like about this group, even the position players, when they're not playing, they get mad at me, which I love it." Stroman quickly quelled any suggestion that there was any lingering disappointment in being lifted, saying it's all water under the bridge between him and his coaches. "No, not at all," Stroman said, according to The Canadian Press. "It was a minor disagreement that I’m sure you guys (the media) will try to play into a bigger issue. But, like I said, me and Charlie spoke right after the inning and it was clear right then and there." The 28-year-old has had a generally effective season on the mound, even though the wins haven't followed. He wound up allowing four runs (three earned) in 6 1/3 innings on 97 pitches Saturday, bringing his ERA to 3.12 while also putting him in danger of dropping to 1-6 in nine starts. As well as Stroman's pitched overall this season, he's received next to no run support from the Blue Jays' offense. The team scored a total of 18 runs over his first eight starts and hadn't plated a run at the time of his exit Saturday, though Randal Grichuk hit a solo home run in the bottom of the seventh. It's been an eventful year for Stroman, as the six-year veteran has been the subject of trade rumors since before the season even started. Saturday was the first time he's shown any sign of frustration on the field, however.