TORONTO – Dustin McGowan is determined to get to the bottom of the fatigue which plagues him during his starts.
[b]Dave Robinson Super Bowl Jersey[/b] . In-between outings, hell become better acquainted with a treadmill. "Actually Im going to start running a lot more, just see if that helps with endurance," McGowan told TSN.ca on Friday afternoon. If only it was that simple. McGowan is a type 1 diabetic. "I think a lot of it, for me, Im starting to figure out its got something to do with my blood sugar," he said. "Its so high." To put it into context, according to the National Institute of Health, the normal blood glucose level for a non-diabetic should be less than 125 milligrams per deciliter. Once McGowan takes the mound, his readings skyrocket to disconcerting levels. "I get so anxious and stressful and nervous leading up to the game," said McGowan. "Before I go out, Ill be fine, itll be 140, 150 and, without drinking anything or eating anything after I come out of the game, its over 300." In the ongoing effort to find a solution, hes going to take in insulin while hes pitching. "I may start wearing my pump during the game just to see if (the blood sugar) levels out a little bit," he said. McGowans injury history is well documented. He was a mainstay in the Blue Jays starting rotation in 2007, winning 12 games in a breakout season, and appeared poised to live up to the promise his status as a top prospect suggested. After remaining healthy through the first half of the 2008 season, he was forced from a July start with shoulder pain. Three weeks later, McGowans season was over when it was announced he would need surgery to repair his labrum. He had knee surgery in 2009 and a second shoulder procedure in 2010, this time to fix a torn rotator cuff. After returning to the rotation in September 2011 and making five starts at the end of the season, he experienced more shoulder problems in 2012, which led to another surgery. McGowan doesnt blame diabetes for his injuries but he believes the condition has hampered his ability to make hastened returns. "Recovery has been a pain because even when I get a blister or a cut, it takes forever to heal," said McGowan. "I can only imagine after getting my arm sewn back together what it was like. In that way, its been brutal but I dont think its done anything to cause me to get hurt. Its just the healing process takes a little longer." Finally last season, McGowan rejoined the club in June and settled into a relief role in which he posted a 2.45 ERA in 25 appearances. His return to the rotation this year is a testament to his perseverance but also a reflection of the Blue Jays desperation. There were no other immediate options after Ervin Santana spurned the club for the greener pastures of the National League and a contract with the Atlanta Braves. McGowan would like his blood sugar level to be between 150 and 160 milligrams per deciliter while hes pitching. Hes as concerned with the reading dropping too low as he is with disturbing spikes and so hes okay with a slightly higher count than what a non-diabetic would expect. "When youre doing exercises, its supposed to go down," said McGowan. "I think just because of the stressful situations pitching and stuff like that, it just causes it to boot up a little bit." Manager John Gibbons is openly musing about using a six-man starting rotation with the schedule about to get busier. The Jays have one off-day between the start of the next road trip, Tuesday in Kansas City, and Sunday, June 1. There are only four off-days remaining between now and the All-Star Break in mid-July. After admitting hed wondered to himself if a return to the bullpen makes the most sense, McGowan wants to clarify: he wishes to remain in the starting rotation. "Its something Im not going to shy away from," said McGowan. "Im going to do it until they take it out of my hand."
[b]Davante Adams Super Bowl Jersey[/b] . Coming off a 6-0 drubbing at Chelsea on Saturday, Arsenal endured another demoralizing result after rallying for a 2-1 lead -- only to concede a fluke equalizer.
[b]Mason Crosby Super Bowl Jersey[/b] . "Last year didnt go the way we wanted it to, but we need to look at what went well and what didnt go so well. Hopefully this year we will be better," Brendan Gallagher said after practice. This year, the Canadiens have a little more depth to work with by adding players like Daniel Briere, Dale Weise, Mike Weaver, Douglas Murray and arguably, the biggest addition to this playoff roster, Thomas Vanek, who the Canadiens were able to land at the trade deadline.PITTSBURGH -- Yovani Gallardo was pitching so well he just needed one run to get a win. His catcher got him all the support he needed, with some help from an eager fan. Gallardo pitched seven crisp innings, Jonathan Lucroy doubled and scored on Aramis Ramirezs groundout, and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 1-0 on Sunday. "Yo was outstanding," Brewers manager Ron Roenicke said. "Just hung in there and made some great pitches, got better as the game went on." Gallardo (4-4) had a season-high eight strikeouts in his second win in his last three starts. He allowed four hits and walked one. The Pirates had at least one baserunner in five of Gallardos seven innings, but the right-hander got sharper as the game progressed. "I was able to get out of some big situations and make pitches," Gallardo said. "Thats always something positive to go from." Jeff Locke also pitched seven solid innings in a spot start for the Pirates. Locke was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis to start in place of Charlie Morton, who was pushed back a day to Monday. Pittsburgh also put right-hander Gerrit Cole on the 15-day disabled list with shoulder fatigue. Locke (0-1) struck out five and walked one in his second start of the season. The left-hander, who made the All-Star team last season, allowed six runs and eight hits in 5 1-3 innings against San Francisco on May 5. "He gave us everything we could have asked for him to give us today," manager Clint Hurdle said. "And more." Locke said he benefited from being "on the same page" with catcher Russell Martin. "We just knew I was going to pitch my game," he said. "He just put down the right fingers and moved the ball around a little bit." Lucroy sparked the only scoring sequence of the game when he led off the seventh with a liner down the leeft-field line that was grabbed by a fan while it was in play.
[b]Lane Taylor Super Bowl Jersey[/b]. Lucroy was awarded a ground-rule double on the interference. Lucroy went to second on Carlos Gomezs lineout to centre and scored on Ramirezs bouncer to first. The Pirates then loaded the bases with one out in the bottom half. But Gallardo struck out pinch-hitter Jose Tabata and Josh Harrison popped out to second to end the inning. Pittsburgh left 10 runners on base in its 10th loss in 13 games this season against NL Central-leading Milwaukee. Martin and Hurdle also were ejected in the eighth. With two out and Andrew McCutchen on third, Martin looked a called third strike on a curveball from Francisco Rodriguez on the lower-inside edge of the plate. Martin spiked his bat and helmet in the batters box. Hurdle then confronted umpire Ed Hickox about the call and was thrown out. Roenicke said he thought the pitch looked questionable based on the way his catcher reacted to it. "(Lucroy) made that pitch look a little not-as-good-as it probably was," Roenicke said. "Just because he was maybe in between trying to block or decide where the ball was going to end up." Lucroy said he did not think the pitch was a strike. The Pirates then put runners on first and second in the ninth, but Rodriguez got Travis Snider to hit into a fielders choice that advanced Starling Marte to third and retired Harrison for his 19th save. "I ended up making the right pitches to get out of (the jam)," Rodriguez said. "So its definitely a nice win." NOTES: Lucroy had three hits and improved his batting average to .335, third-best in the National League. ... Morton (2-7, 3.31 ERA) got an extra day of rest and will pitch against Chicago on Monday. ... Milwaukee RHP Marco Estrada (5-2, 4.19 ERA) starts when the Brewers begin a three-game series with the Mets on Tuesday. ' ' '
