C’s Alumni Update – Case Now Looks To Solve Double-A

Andrew Case made the 100th appearance of his minor league career with the Dunedin Blue Jays recently.

2014-2015 Vancouver Canadians righthander Andrew Case reached two big milestones over the past week. He appeared in his 100th game by pitching a scoreless ninth inning for the Dunedin Blue Jays against the Daytona Tortugas May 12. His 101st appearance will be his first in Double-A as the 24 year-old from Saint John, New Brunswick was promoted to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats after serving as the D-Jays stopper.

Case leaves Dunedin with four straight scoreless appearances and a shutout string of 7-2/3 innings. He closed four of five save opportunities and won three of four decisions with a 4.42 earned run average.

Though his ERA is on the high side thanks in part of a home run rate of 1.4 per nine innings, Case’s peripheral stats are solid with a 17-3 K/BB total over 18-1/3 innings. FanGraphs, shows he’s keeping the ball down as evidenced by a groundball rate of just above 55 percent and he is limiting hard contact with a line drive rate of just over 12 percent.

Andrew Case saved 12 games over his two years with the C’s, 10 of them in 2015.

Case is trying to continue the momentum from a truncated season in 2016 that saw him receive a 50-game suspension for failing a drug test, or more specifically, being unable to take it thanks to travel costs.

Case finally got to pitch for the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays on July 2 by tossing two scoreless innings.  He was sent up to Lansing three days later, getting his second crack at full-season ball where had 10 saves in 11 opportunities with a 2.28 ERA over 23-2/3 innings. The Midwest League hit just .225 against him, an 80-point improvement from his first Lansing stint in 2015. He got a chance to further his development by going to Australia for winter ball action with the Canberra Cavalry.

Case told JaysProspects.com earlier this year that he enjoys pitching with the game on the line.

“I love pitching in high leverage situations. Those opportunities really get me going and it feels great because the boys have complete trust in me to get the job done. My mindset moving forward is just to keep that going and help the boys win.”

Case is said to have a three-pitch mix of a sinker, slider and changeup ranging from the low 80’s to the low 90’s.

Andrew Case earned his first professional save on July 13, 2014 against the Everett AquaSox.

Case began his pro career with the C’s in 2014 where he posted a 2.45 ERA in 44 innings, mostly in the bullpen save for his one and only start. He was bumped up to Lansing in 2015 where he went 2-2 with a 3.32 ERA before going back down to Vancouver where he saved 10 games and recorded an ERA of 2.95.

Case was able to embark on a journey to the pros when he was signed by the Blue Jays in October of 2013 after his performance in the first annual Tournament 12 in Toronto. The Lethbridge Community College product put himself on the map with a seven-inning no hitter in the tournament semi-final for his Maritimes club.

It would only be fitting for things to come full circle for Case and make his return to Toronto as a member of the Blue Jays. His promotion to Double-A indicates that day could soon arrive.