Adam finding his way after multiple procedures

TORONTO -- If there’s anyone who can empathize with the physical and emotional feeling of an elbow surgery, it’s Jason Adam.

The same day the Blue Jays announced that Canadian reliever John Axford would be out for the season after undergoing a procedure to remove a bone spur in his right elbow, left-hander Ryan Borucki returned to Toronto after having the same surgery by the same surgeon, Dr. James Andrews. It all brought about an air of familiarity for Adam.

“Injuries stink,” Adam said. “They’re an unfortunate part of the game. They’re tough. We feel like we’re supposed to play baseball, so when that’s taken away from us it can be pretty hard. Obviously, I empathize with those guys … but we have a great medical staff, great doctors, and surgeons are so refined now at least we don’t have to worry as much about never being able to play again.”

The 28-year-old right-hander was acquired by the Blue Jays in March from the Royals in exchange for cash considerations. But before Adam made his way to Toronto, he battled his way through four surgeries on his throwing elbow, along with the feeling that he might not ever make his way back to the mound.

Adam’s first surgery, performed by the team doctor of the Twins, was to stabilize a stress fracture. The second was because of an infection, and the screws came out. The third was a scope to clean up the insides of the elbow, and the fourth saw another screw inserted, along with stem cells from his hip. Dr. Andrews performed the latter three surgeries.

As Adam continued to work his way back and fight for his time on the mound, he was continually discouraged by his throwing arm.

“Each surgery, after I came out thinking, 'Now we’re good,' and then every time I started to throw, the same pain came back,” he said. "I’d go a couple outings and boom, I’d feel the fracture. Same pain. But the emotional pain was worse after [surgeries No.] 3 and 4.”

After working his way back from a lat strain sustained earlier this season, Adam has pitched in five games for the Blue Jays. He owns a 1.29 ERA, and he has allowed just one run on three hits over 6 2/3 innings with three walks and five strikeouts for Toronto. Two of those strikeouts came in Saturday afternoon's 5-4 win over the Yankees.

“It’s a blast,” Adam said. “There’s nothing competitive like the big leagues. So just to get here and to have the chance to compete, there’s a lot of excitement. I look around this team and there’s a lot to be excited about. We should finish pretty strong. Obviously, our performance will be the true judge, but it’s just fun getting to compete at the Major League level every day.”

Axford undergoes season-ending surgery

Axford’s surgery put an end to an already long season of rehab. The 36-year-old right-hander signed with the Blue Jays as a free agent during the offseason, after doing the same last year in a season that saw him post a 4.41 ERA over 45 appearances and 51 innings with 50 strikeouts for Toronto before being traded to the Dodgers.

The native of Port Dover, Ont., experienced elbow issues during Spring Training this year and was released by the Blue Jays in order to rework his contract. He signed a Minor League deal two days later. Axford's rehab attempt saw him return to the mound for one inning in the Gulf Coast League before his procedure.

Paxton honoured in Toronto

James Paxton received a warm welcome in his latest trip to his home country.

Ahead of the series opener on Thursday, the Yankees’ 30-year-old left-hander was honoured by the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame for his accomplishments through the 2018 season, in which he went 11-6 with a 3.76 ERA and 208 strikeouts -- second most by a Canadian southpaw in a big league season -- over 160 1/3 innings for the Mariners.

For his accomplishments, Paxton received the Tip O’Neill Award, presented annually to the Canadian player judged to have excelled in individual achievement and team contribution while adhering to baseball’s highest ideals.

“I am extremely honoured to have been named the Tip O’Neill Award winner,” Paxton said. “I am proud to be representing Canada in Major League Baseball and try to do so to the best of my ability. I will continue to give everything I have to be the best baseball player and person I can be.”