Stroman clears air after comments on arb defeat

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Marcus Stroman is attempting to clear the air after he made some pointed remarks about the Blue Jays' approach to his arbitration case.
Stroman revealed on Thursday afternoon that Toronto prevailed in his arbitration case. An independent arbiter ruled in the Blue Jays' favor by awarding Stroman a $6.5 million salary for the upcoming season instead of the $6.9 million he was looking for.

When Stroman made the announcement on Twitter in a since-deleted tweet, he added: "The negative things that were said against me, by my own team, will never leave my mind."
The comments created a stir on Twitter, and approximately one hour later, Stroman attempted to clarify his previous remarks.
"Just being real," Stroman wrote. "Not mad at all. I'm aware of the business. Just opens your eyes going through the arbitration process. Second time going through it. Still love my team and the entire country of Canada. More upset that I had to fly to AZ and miss my Monday workout. Lol."

The danger of any arbitration case is that it will create friction between the player and his team. Often the tension can be overstated, and it almost always remains very professional. But in this case, at least initially, Stroman appeared to have taken offense to Toronto's tactics during his hearing.
Stroman declined to speak with the Toronto media Thursday afternoon, and he instead sent word through a team spokesman that he would talk later in the week. Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins was asked to respond, and he did his best to remain diplomatic when addressing the situation.
"Arbitration is a tough process," Atkins said. "What I can tell you is that we remain objective in arbitration, and we also use outside resources. It impacts players in different ways. I think a lot about Marcus and his ability to impact a baseball game, and his ability to be a starting pitcher. His ability to adjust and adapt his pitches is remarkable. His athleticism is remarkable. We'll focus mostly on how he can be the best pitcher he can be."
This marked the second time in several months that Stroman and Toronto's front office appeared to clash on social media. During the offseason, after infielder Ryan Goins was non-tendered by the club, Stroman tweeted, "Crazy. Can't believe my brother @rgoins17 is gone. Even worse when you find out through Twitter! #communication."
That tweet did not sit well with the Blue Jays' front office, but if Atkins was bothered by the latest development, he wasn't letting it show. Atkins said he has not spoken to Stroman about the tweet, but he anticipated sitting down with him -- like he does with all players -- later in camp.
Stroman is coming off a season in which he went 13-9 with a 3.09 ERA, which ranked fourth in the American League. He also surpassed 200 innings for the second consecutive year, and he likely will start Opening Day for the Blue Jays. He's becoming one of the faces of the franchise. But Atkins thinks everything will be smoothed over.
"Our only concern is how we can help him prepare on a daily basis to be the best Toronto Blue Jay, the best Major League Baseball player," Atkins said. "Everything we factor in, for sure. The human being, not just the pitcher. The teammate. The member of the organization. It's all factored in."