TORONTO — There was a time not too long ago when James Paxton was the best Canadian pitcher in MLB. The Ladner, B.C., native had put together three strong seasons with the Seattle Mariners before a trade sent him to the New York Yankees and had him poised to take an even greater step forward in his career.
Paxton led all Yankees pitchers with 3.5 Wins Above Replacement, per FanGraphs, in his debut season in New York in 2019, but that represented the top of the mountain for the left-hander before a precipitous decline.
He’s made just 29 starts over the past five years while missing time due to a spinal operation, Tommy John surgery, a lat tear and issues with his right hamstring and knee. Those injuries have led to Paxton struggling with inconsistency on the mound and, on the whole, it’s been a series of trials for the 35-year-old as he attempts to push the boulder back up the slope.
That climb continued this weekend at Rogers Centre, with Paxton in town along with the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers. The left-hander didn't pitch in a game during the three-game set against the Blue Jays — he'll start on Monday when the Dodgers visit Arizona — but he did work through a productive bullpen session on Friday afternoon.
"Physically, I feel great right now," Paxton said. "My mechanics are a little messed up, though. We're working on that stuff."
That Paxton is still finding himself is understandable, considering the time he’s missed. He made 19 starts for the Red Sox last season, but his season ended in early September due to right knee inflammation. He signed a one-year, $7-million contract with the Dodgers in late January and slowly ramped up during spring training, making just two starts and logging seven total innings in Cactus League games.
"My family wanted to be on the West Coast this year. The Dodgers called and that was a perfect fit for us," said Paxton. "Great team, obviously, so I thought it was a really great opportunity.
"It's been awesome, man," he continued. "They have a really good staff, really good people. They've been doing a great job with me, helping me kind of put things back together the way that I want to. They're really in it with you."
Paxton worked at length with Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior on Friday to fine-tune his mechanics. He's had trouble generating power during his delivery due to the positioning of his right knee when he lands. Paxton says he's developed a bad habit of directing his energy more toward first base instead of toward the plate, where it should be.
Overall, Paxton's numbers haven't been too bad across his four starts this season. He owns a 2.61 ERA and has allowed 15 hits over 20.2 innings, walking 17 and striking out 11. He isn't content with his stuff, though, and says it's been a grind for the most part. That's been underlined by his 19.1 per cent walk rate, which profiles in the bottom two per cent of the league.
Paxton says his campaign so far has been a test of his ability to compete and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts agrees.
"James just hasn't hit his stride yet," Roberts said. "Really good competitor. Love the teammate. I think that as far as just commanding the baseball, he's got to dial in some mechanical things. And even with that said, he's still put together, on the surface, pretty good season [numbers] so far. But, I think he's going to get ready to go on a good run here."
Paxton also feels like he's turning a corner and is looking forward to testing out his mechanical fixes in his upcoming start against the Diamondbacks. However, considering how far he's come, simply feeling healthy at the moment is somewhat of a victory.
He'll be a free agent again at the end of the season and while that could throw another twist into Paxton's journey, he’s not giving it much thought.
"You know, it's a big time, 'We'll see,'" said Paxton on his consideration of his future. "I don't know what's next for me. I'm just focusing on this season — put my best foot forward trying to help this team win and, ultimately, get to the post-season and win the World Series."
The boulder push continues.
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