Gausman 'good to go' whenever needed in WC Series

TORONTO -- Every little thing is magnified in October, so one of the most important factors as the Blue Jays open up the AL Wild Card round against the Mariners is a small cut on Kevin Gausman’s right middle finger.

Gausman left his last start of the regular season after just three innings when that cut opened up, which gave fans a scare at the time, but he and the Blue Jays were quick to downplay it. While this cut is different than the blisters Gausman deals with -- and pitches through -- almost constantly, no alarm bells were sounding.

They still aren’t on the eve of postseason baseball returning to Rogers Centre for Game 1, as Gausman checks off one final box.

“He’s doing great. We don’t expect it to limit him,” general manager Ross Atkins said. “We’re really encouraged by his recovery. We would like to see how things go in the bullpen today and we have not locked him in.”

The postseason isn’t exactly a time for oversharing. Teams play these decisions close to the chest, and interim manager John Schneider wasn’t tipping, either.

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“We’re about halfway down that road,” Schneider said. “I think the factors that go in will be matchups, and the fact that we have a lot of flexibility and depth is a great thing. We’ve talked through a couple of different scenarios going forward. We’ll continue to work through that today, later tonight and tomorrow.”

Gausman, on the other hand, doesn’t sound concerned in the least.

"It's fine. The finger's fine,” Gausman said. “I’ll be good to go whenever they tell me to. That's one thing about the postseason, you've just got to be ready for whenever that is."

All this considered, the worst-case scenario here might just be a push back to Game 3 for Gausman. The only wrinkle in this is that Gausman typically doesn’t throw his trademark splitter in bullpen sessions, saving that pitch -- and the healthy skin on his middle finger -- for game situations, so it may be hard to truly simulate an outing.

This is where a favorite term of Toronto's front office comes in: scenario planning. The Blue Jays will have a Plan A in Gausman, then a Plan B and Plan C. Somewhere in an office at Rogers Centre, there might be a file folder titled “Plan Z.” Nothing is going to catch them by surprise at this point.

“We have the benefit and luxury of having a lot of people who work here and a really passionate staff who enjoys that and embraces it,” Atkins said. “We get as micro as you can go. What are all of the possible scenarios?”

Toronto’s options beyond Gausman could make or break this series, regardless of which game they’re needed in. With Robbie Ray scheduled in Game 2 for the Mariners and Logan Gilbert in Game 3, one of Ross Stripling or José Berríos will need to go toe-to-toe with an extremely talented pitcher.

Stripling has earned that inside edge with a remarkable season after stepping into the rotation for Hyun Jin Ryu, posting a 3.01 ERA over 134 1/3 innings. Berríos pitched to a 5.23 ERA, highest among qualified starters, and while he’s had plenty of moments where he’s looked like his old self, the short outings in between are a serious risk to take in a best-of-three series.

Manoah's moment awaits
Friday afternoon at 4:07 p.m. ET is the moment Alek Manoah’s baseball career has been building towards. The big man, built for the postseason, said Thursday that “pressure is just something you put in your tires,” and he plans on embracing every ounce of energy in Rogers Centre for Game 1.

Manoah joked that he’d probably spend the next month playing for free, given how many tickets he’s secured for family. He’s trying to treat this one just like any other, though, and when asked what he likes about his team specifically, Manoah was more introspective.

“This team hasn’t budged,” he said. “This team hasn’t felt that pressure. We come in day in, day out and work as hard as we can. We do everything we can and be brothers for one another. We control what we can control, and I truly believe that for a team that’s been through a ton off stuff, and hasn’t played their best baseball but still won 92 games, it’s pretty amazing to be a part of it. Now, we’re playing our best baseball. It’s perfect timing.”

That’s all that matters in October, timing, and the Blue Jays couldn’t be more confident in their Game 1 starter.