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MILWAUKEE – As radio talk shows, beat reporters and analysts do daily disseminations on the state of the Blue Jays, breaking down the decline of the starting rotation, discussing the lack of power offence and opining on whether veteran players should have voiced displeasure after a quiet trade deadline, three of the ballclubs young pitchers go to work each day looking to be part of the solution. Theyre not in a position to comment on the problems, they havent earned their stripes, but Marcus Stroman, Drew Hutchison and Aaron Sanchez are living the ups and downs – mostly downs – of the pennant race with the rest of their more seasoned mates. "It sucks the way its been so far, just kind of how it turned out, just how weve kind of been stumbling lately," said Stroman. "The whole groups pretty confident. You couldnt tell we were in a losing streak just by the attitude of the group. Just looking forward to hopefully turning it around and giving it a real push this year." Stromans done his part, pitching to a 3.12 ERA over 14 starts. While hes struggled in two of his last three outings, there have been many more when hes been dominant. As questions abound about the state of the clubhouse with the season in an apparent free fall, Stroman said the same veteran players hes come to rely on for advice (including Mark Buehrle and Jose Bautista) continue to have a positive effect on his young career. "Regardless of how the teams doing we still have the veteran presence on the team, you still have everyone who is more than willing to help you out and show you the ropes and do everything in their power to educate you further on being a professional and also on your game and pitching," said Stroman. "Every single day has been a learning experience for me regardless." Hutchison is working his first full season in the big leagues, having gone down to Tommy John Surgery in June, 2012 and spending last season in rehabilitation. Hes been inconsistent, struggling to a 5.79 ERA over his last 15 starts since entering his May 26 outing against Tampa Bay with a 3.45 ERA. There are periodic glimpses of the pitcher the Jays expect Hutchison to become and its impossible to know how much of his struggles are related to inexperience and how much are simply bumps in the road common to pitchers coming off elbow ligament replacement. The 23-year-old carries himself beyond his years, concerned that if the 2014 Jays season continues its current trend it will be one looked back upon with regret. "You dont know how many opportunities youre going to get to be this close or to have the opportunity that we have," said Hutchison. "Struggling like we have, its tough but you just have to stick to your process and stay to what youve done thats made you successful and believe that youre going to push through it and get better." Aaron Sanchez, who at 22 years old is the youngest of the group, is getting his feet wet as a reliever. Hes proven to be a reliable, late-inning, right-handed arm for manager John Gibbons. Like Hutchison, hes not interested in talking about whether a young player can gain from losing, at least not while the team has a mathematical chance at the postseason. "Coming up as a 22-year-old in a pennant race, trying to win the division, trying to win the wild card, I think you can take a lot from that down the road, especially if you go through this kind of situation again later on in my career," said Sanchez. "Yeah, definitely, but at the same time youre not just hear to soak it up. Youre here to win," said Hutchison. "Yes, in certain ways but in other ways its not happy to be here, happy to have the opportunity mindset because were here to win. Were here to get the job done." The business of preparing for each start, in Stromans and Hutchisons cases, doesnt change. Sanchez has developed a routine hes comfortable with out of the bullpen. Expect Sanchez to join the starting rotation next season. "Being a creature of habit you get used to your process and what you do that makes you prepared and feel ready to go," said Hutchison. "You just stick to that and try to block everything else out. When things are going well you do the same thing also." The Jays head home off a 9-5 win on Wednesday in Milwaukee, a victory to conclude a 2-6 road trip. Up next is a nine-game homestand against three divisional opponents. It begins on Friday night against the Tampa Bay Rays. Stroman will make the start. "Im ready. Im ready," he said. Stroman still believes that 2014 can be salvaged. "If any teams capable of putting together a run, its us," said Stroman. "The guys that we have on this team are unbelievable. Unbelievable talent as well as personality-wise and if we get hot well definitely get hot and open up some eyes so 100-percent faith and confidence in this team to get the job done." . -- The court fight over NFL concussions should heat up soon as a judge in Philadelphia weighs the fairness of the proposed $765 million settlement. . Interestingly, the culprits were not rookies, but well paid, experienced pros. The first gaffe came in the 24th minute of arguably the biggest early season MLS game in history between Seattle and Toronto. Sounder newcomer Marco Pappa, (with over 100 MLS games, and 39 Guatemalan Caps to his name) attempted a back pass to one of his central defenders. . Others describe it as taking the parrot for a walk. . Terry came from Boston along with Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce but has appeared in just 35 games after a knee injury, averaging 4.5 points on 36 per cent shooting. Evans was a favourite of fans but not coach Jason Kidd, who used him in just 30 of their 51 games. . Alina Fodorova of Ukraine took third place. Broersen based her gold-medal performance on great high jumping, and finished with 4,830 points, while Theisen-Eaton, from Humboldt, Sask., set a national record of 4,768.Wide receiver Sidney Rice and defensive end Red Bryant were released by the Seattle Seahawks on Friday, giving the Super Bowl champions additional salary cap space as free agency approaches. Seattle made the expected roster moves official eight days before teams can start speaking with potential free agents. Bryant had spent his entire career with the Seahawks after being a fourth-round draft pick in 2008, while Rice signed as a free agent before the 2011 season. According to the leagues transaction report, Rice was released with a "failed physical" designation. Both were due hefty salaries in 2014 that didnt necessarily match the production they had shown on the field. Rice had struggled with injuries with the Seahawks and was lost for the 2013 season after Week 8 with a knee injury. Bryant was a unique player as a 300-pound defensive end for the Seahawks, but his playing time had diminished. Seattle should save more than $12 million in salary cap space with the moves. Rice was due $8.5 million in base salary for 2014 and Bryant $4.5 million. "We want to thank both Red and Sidney for their effort, commitment and contribution to the Seattle Seahawks over the last few years," Seattle general manager John Schneider said in a statement. "These are extremely tough decisions, but we wanted to give them a head start on free agency. We wish them well in the future." Both moves were expected to happen and are likely the first in a sseries that will change the makeup of the Super Bowl champions.dddddddddddd Bryant was one of just four players left from before the arrival of Schneider and head coach Pete Carroll. He was given a new contract during the 2012 off-season, but the emergence of Michael Bennett -- one of Seattles top free agent priorities -- appeared to make Bryant expendable. The only players still remaining from the pre-Carroll era are centre Max Unger, defensive tackle Brandon Mebane and punter Jon Ryan. Bryant was also a captain and vocal leader of Seattles league-best defence. He could be an attractive option in free agency for a team seeking a defensive end that can hold the edge in defending the run in a 3-4 defence. Rice had not matched the production that came with his big contract, mostly because of injuries. Rice played in 33 games with 31 starts with 97 receptions for 1,463 yards and 12 touchdowns. But his 2011 season was cut short by a concussion and he was unable to finish the 2013 season after suffering an ACL tear in his knee and being placed on injured reserve. Rice led Seattle in receptions (50) and yards receiving (748) during the 2012 season, one of just two seasons in his career that hes played in all 16 regular-season games. Rice tweeted a goodbye to Seattle fans shortly after his release became official: "The amount of love I have for the .12thman and the (at)Seahawks organization! Thanks for a wonderful experience!" ' ' '
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