David Purcey has all the tools to be a quality Major League starter.
He's got the size (6-foot-6, 239), lineage (first round draft choice of Toronto in 2004) and a decent fastball that he can blow by batters with alarming frequency. He struck out 10 Cleveland Indian hitters back in April.
Trouble with Purcey is his control.
In that same game against the Indians, he also walked six, a problem that has plagued him as he tries to establish himself as a member in the Blue Jays rotation.
And that won't happen until he cuts down on the walks.
If there's anything that Toronto manager Cito Gaston can't stand is when his pitchers continually issue walks.
He's moaned about it all season and it came up again on Monday night after Purcey enjoyed a decent outing, allowing one run off four hits over 7.2-innings during a 9-2 pasting of the Orioles.
Purcey also issued four walks in the game.
On the season, Purcey's walk to innings-pitched ratio averages out to six walks per game.
That's high. Roy Halladay's walk ratio is 1.3 per nine innings while rookie Ricky Romero clocks in a 4.1.
Earlier this season Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi suggested that the team just might have to put up with Purcey's walks, that it's just the type of pitcher he is.
Gaston begs to differ.
"I hope not," he said. "On this level you get hurt [by walking batters]. If you're going to get beat get beat with somebody hitting the ball off you, not walking."
