seasons since, averaging 191 innings in the two full seaso

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- The New York Jets will be without Eric Decker this weekend -- and maybe for a while longer.The star wide receiver has a partially torn rotator cuff that will sideline him for at least Sundays game against the Seattle Seahawks. Coach Todd Bowles announced Friday that Decker will be week to week with the right shoulder injury.Decker was injured against Buffalo on Sept. 15, but the shoulder worsened last Sunday during the Jets loss at Kansas City . He said after the game that the shoulder was sore, but an MRI revealed that it was worse than that.I fell on it the second game against Buffalo and Ive had issues with my shoulder for a while now, Decker said in the Jets locker room. It doesnt mean you cant play through it. Youve just got to see whats going on and its just something that, at this point, is kind of week to week and well see if I make some progression.Decker did not participate in practice all week. He didnt even take part in stretching with his teammates until Friday.Decker, who has nine catches for a team-leading 194 yards and two touchdowns, said there was no precise moment he realized the injury had gotten worse against the Chiefs. He began to notice something was wrong when he was trying to push off or separate from defenders.Ive had previous injuries to my shoulder, he said. When I fell, I thought it was my AC joint, but to get the diagnosis, it kind of is what it is and something that kind of (stinks) at this point because its early in the season. I felt like this was going to be a year where I could avoid injuries, but thats something Ive got to deal with.For now, Decker hopes to avoid surgery during the season.Yeah, for sure, he said. Thats why, at this point, well see how much strength and range of motion I get back.The receiver is uncertain, however, whether the injury will eventually require surgery.Thats something that, down the road, well have that discussion when needed, he said. Right now, my focus is to do what I can as far as rehab and see where Im at.With Decker sidelined, the Jets receiving corps is a bit banged up. Brandon Marshall is practicing and playing through knee and foot ailments, and rookie Jalin Marshall is out for a few weeks with a torn labrum.Quincy Enunwa, who leads New York with 17 receptions, will likely see an increased role, as could undrafted rookie Robby Anderson, whose 264 yards receiving in the preseason was tops in the NFL.Enunwa was a sixth-round draft pick in 2014 who has worked his way from the practice squad as a rookie to being the Jets No. 3 receiver.Ive been kind of blessed to get a few targets these past three weeks and Ive handled them well, he said. If more targets come, then more targets come. I think with the work that I put in during the offseason, Im prepared for whatever comes.Anderson starred at Temple and became one of the standouts of training camp this summer by consistently making plays.My mindset because I was undrafted, that put a chip on my shoulder, he said. I didnt come here to just say that I was a Jet. I came here to potentially become a starter and thats what I worked hard for over the summer.If he fills in at Deckers spot, he could see a lot of Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman -- a scenario that doesnt faze him.I mean, I go against (Darrelle) Revis every day, so Im not really too worried, Anderson said. I have a lot of respect for (Sherman), but Im not worried about whos in front of me. Im out there to do my job.The Jets re-signed Jeremy Ross earlier this week, and they also have seventh-round draft pick Charone Peake as healthy receivers. Although New York tight ends have no receptions yet, the team could also quickly get Austin Seferian-Jenkins , who was claimed off waivers from Tampa Bay on Monday, involved in the passing game.Luckily, we have so many talented receivers behind me, Decker and B-Marsh that if somebody goes down, we still have guys that dont think the stage is too big for them, Enunwa said. Im excited to see what theyre capable of.Game notes LT Ryan Clady is questionable with a shoulder ailment, but Bowles said he will play Sunday. ... LG James Carpenter was excused from practice for personal reasons. ... Bowles was asked if he has seen anything this week that makes him expect a rebound performance from Ryan Fitzpatrick, who threw six interceptions last week. Yeah, he cant play any worse, Bowles said. You cant coach it any worse. Theres no way to go but up.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL Cheap Jacksonville Jaguars Jerseys . The team also announced Tuesday that the Braves will wear a commemorative patch on the right sleeve during the season. The patch, shaped like home plate, carries the number 715, Aarons autograph and a "40th Anniversary" banner. Jaguars Jerseys China . The Dutchmans tenure got off to a poor start when referee Guido Winkmann awarded a penalty within two minutes for Niklas Starks clumsy challenge on Alexandru Maxim. http://www.cheapjaguarsjerseysauthentic.com/ . Luis Suarezs double powered Liverpool to a 4-0 victory over Fulham, and Southampton easily overcame Hull 4-1 to continue the south coast clubs impressive start to the season. Liverpool and Southampton sent Chelsea down to fourth place as the west London club was held to 2-2 at home. Wholesale Jaguars Jerseys . Catch all the action on TSN2 at 11pm et/8pm pt. The nine-time Big 12 champion Jayhawks are positioning themselves for another title, as they have run out to a flawless 6-0 mark in conference play thus far. Cheap Jaguars Jerseys Authentic . It was the second consecutive win for the Pacers (2-5), who lost their first five preseason games. Jeff Teague led the Hawks (1-5) with 17 points and eight assists and Al Horford had 12 points and seven rebounds. Mike Scott scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half. This isnt The Shutdown. (You can Google Stephen Strasburg for more details.) This isnt The Return of the Dark Knights MCL. (Terry Collins and Matt Harvey could fill you in on that rocking plot synopsis.)But in its own way, what we have here is another chapter in the same confusing story. The subject this time is Aaron Sanchez, 24-year-old shooting star for the surging Toronto Blue Jays. Now its him and his team facing the same array of impossible questions as his innings mount, his teammates set their sights on October and the trade deadline looms. Uh-oh!The good news: Sanchez leads the American League in ERA (at 2.72) in his dazzling, breakout season. The bad news: Hes one inning short of his career high, 133.1, set in 2014 during a season spent at Double-A, Triple-A and Toronto.What happens next is ... Uhhh, who the heck knows?The Blue Jays have talked since spring training about moving him to the bullpen at some point. So theyve known for months this crossroad was coming. What they didnt know was that they could be contemplating a move that no team has ever made.According to the Elias Sports Bureau, no starting pitcher with a sub-3.00 ERA at least 20 starts into a season has ever turned around to make at least 10 appearances out of the bullpen. So no wonder, now that the Blue Jays monstrous moment of decision is approaching, we still find ourselves asking:How will this affect their deadline dealings? How will they juggle the chance to win with their commitment to keeping a great young pitcher healthy? And whatever they do, how will they sell it to their fans, their clubhouse and the rest of their sport -- all of whom are watching closely?My job is to go out there and start games until Im told not to, Sanchez told me earlier this month.Were hoping, as players, that it kind of gets re-evaluated, the friendly neighborhood MVP, Josh Donaldson, said that same day.Nothing has changed, Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said this week. The whole time, what weve been trying to balance is whats best for the team and whats best for Aaron, and to weigh that against a lot of alternatives.Hmmm. The storylines sound familiar? Now before we sort through all these questions, theres something you need to keep in mind: Nobody knows the right answer.Medical science doesnt know. No GM, no manager, no pitching coach, no doctor, no pitcher really knows. And whatever happens -- to Aaron Sanchez, to his team, to the front office that will make a call that could change the face of its season --nobody will ever be able to say if it was the right decision or the wrong decision. Well all play the what-if game. But well never know.Got that? Cool. Now lets tackle the big questions:How will it affect the deadline?Too bad its not last year. Last year at this time, the Blue Jays solved their rotation problems by making a franchise-changing deal for David Price. So if they could just pluck an ace out of the sky again this July and plug him into Sanchezs spot in the rotation, boy, would they save themselves a lot of second-guessing. Not to mention first-guessing.Except theres no sign theyre on the verge of trading for, say, Chris Sale. So Plan B is to trade for, well, pitching -- probably a starter, possibly a reliever. But Atkins is adamant that he cant let the Sanchez decision weigh too heavily into whatever deals his team makes in the next few days.Asked if his preference is to acquire a starter, the GM replied: Our preference is to acquire the best piece that can make our team better. But our preference is also to acquire the best piece at the best price.I do think that starting pitching is going to be harder to find, he went on. But even if it would be our preference to have that, were not going to let Aaron Sanchez factor into that decision.Nevertheless, other clubs report that the Blue Jays have been one of the most aggressive teams in hunting for a starter in recent days. Theyve been linked with all sorts of names, ranging from the usual suspects (Rich Hill, Andrew Cashner) to some youd never see coming (CC Sabathia?). One name to keep an eye on is Philadelphias Jeremy Hellickson, who at least could provide reasonably dependable innings, for a return they could probably afford.What options are on the table?Life is complicated. Baseball is complicated. And this decision is complicated. It might not involve a pitcher coming off Tommy John surgery. But its just as complicated, simply because of Sanchezs innings history (109.2 in 2013 if you include the Arizona Fall League; 133.1 in 2014; and 109.1 last year, if you include the postseason). Hes on pace to pitch 205 this season -- without even factoring in October. So what should his team do?When the Nationals were weighing how to handle Strasburg in 2012, they considered exactly one scenario: Operation Shutdown. But the Blue Jays are viewing their version of that decision as more of a multiple-choice quiz.So they could ...Pick a point in August and move Sanchez to a late-inning bullpen role.(Still likely.)Let him keep starting every fifth day and pull the plug on his season once he begins to show signs of fatigue.(Not happening.)Keep him in the rotation but look for ways to stagger his workload, give him extra rest and/or occasionally skip a start.(Very much on the drawing board.)Another, less orthodox plan that Atkins described, simply, as something more creative.(Youve got us.)And when will they make this call? Sometime after the deadline, Atkins said, when they know exactly what their options are for potential rotation replacements, bullpen alternatives or some combination of both. So the options will be clearer then. Unfortunately, there will never be a perfect answer.Will Sanchez get a vote?This wont be Aaron Sanchezs decision. A year ago, it felt as if the Mets were waiting for Harvey to announce, I want to start, before they could all move forward. It wont work that way in Toronto.Sanchez will be part of the conversation, Atkins said. But so will his manager, pitching coach, medical staff, front office and sports science department.That conversation hasnt happened yet. And when I interviewed Sanchez a couple of weeks ago, he said he had asked pitching coach Pete Walker about this once all sseason -- then shut it out of his mind.dddddddddddd.I told him, I dont want to know, Sanchez said. I said, I dont want it to be a distraction. Just let me control what I can control and do what I need to do, and when youre ready to talk about it, then well sit down and discuss it. I said, If you dont have it in your minds any time soon, then dont even bother me.But its obvious the powers that be will be ready to talk about it sooner rather than later. And when they do, their first question will be: Tell us honestly how youre feeling.I feel great, Sanchez said two weeks ago. Ive felt great all year. My bodys responded well. Even with the amount of innings Ive been logging and as fast as Ive logged them, I dont see myself falling off any time soon.Asked if he had any sort of innings limit in his head, Sanchez gave an enlightened, 21st century answer.I try not to look at that, he said. I try to gauge more off of how my body [feels]. ... I think my body will tell me when I need to stop.And if he and his team are waiting for his body to tell them when hes feeling fatigued, they have plenty of data that indicates that point hasnt arrived yet. His average month-by-month fastball velocity, according to Pitchf/x and Brooks Baseball, has stayed remarkably consistent:April: 95.34 mphMay: 95.05 mphJune: 95.89 mphJuly: 95.26 mphWeve wondered for years when teams would start using more sophisticated data than innings pitched to make decisions like this. It has finally happened. Atkins has said repeatedly that the Blue Jays will use as many facets of todays technology as possible to look for signs of fatigue. So we can all stop counting innings.Why is that? Because not all innings are created equal. Because this is a guy who is so efficient that only 10 starters in baseball use fewer pitches per inning than he does (15.0). And because, if you look at a stat ESPN defines as stressful innings (30 pitches or more in an inning), Sanchez has had only four of them all season.So if you see that Sanchez is 12th in baseball in innings pitched, you might say, Hoo boy. But if you check out pitches thrown and see he ranks just 31st, feel free to say, Never mind.Will his teammates get a vote?It was almost exactly a year ago that the Blue Jays shot a lightning bolt through their franchise with the trades for Price and Troy Tulowitzki. Whats hard not to wonder now is this: If they abruptly hook their best pitcher from their rotation in the next couple of weeks, could that decision have the reverse effect?Asked how big a topic this is in their clubhouse, Donaldson said: We dont talk about it. We refuse to talk about it, because hes been one of our best starting pitchers.So Im going to pretend that its not there, because this guy, honestly, has been ... the real deal.The MVP is well aware that when a team plays deep into October, every player pays a price. Every player pushes his body beyond the point of fatigue. So do Sanchezs teammates understand that there is a balancing act here between whats best for this players long-term future and whats best for this team? Sure they do. But is that something these players are worrying about as they look at the standings? You know the answer.To answer your question, no, Donaldson said. We dont make those decisions. All of us have our own personal beliefs on how that should go. And Im not going to sit here and say one is right or one is wrong, because honestly, hes a young guy.And you want this guy to be around forever. And sometimes you have to pick your poison. But my personal belief is this: that the way he is going out there and starting is going to tell you whether or not hes getting tired or starting to wear down. And to this point, he hasnt shown any sign of fatigue.But it isnt just this clubhouse that is watching. The whole sport is watching. And if the Blue Jays take their prospective Game 1 starting pitcher out of their rotation, there are going to be people on other clubs who will view that decision as Strasburg-esque.When youre talking about winning it all, said one NL executive, youd better have three legit guys in your rotation, starting with that No. 1. And if the Blue Jays take Aaron Sanchez out of their rotation, theyre not that team.That execs feelings mirror the sentiments of so many of his peers: This team has to find a way to have Aaron Sanchez in its rotation in September and October.They have to be creative to do that, the exec said. They have to skip some starts and adjust off days ... but they cant go deep without him in their rotation. He has really been That Guy.So where is this headed?We seriously doubt the Blue Jays are about to trade for Chris Sale. But that doesnt mean they shouldnt be looking closely at Chris Sale -- not to deal for him, but to learn from him.Not so long ago, Sale was the Chicago White Soxs best pitching prospect. But he wasnt pitching a lot of innings because, like Sanchez, he began his big-league career in the bullpen. So look at how his innings jumped after he moved into the rotation:Age 22 (2011): 71Age 23 (2012): 192Age 24 (2013): 214.1He has made 77 starts in the 2? seasons since, averaging 191 innings in the two full seasons. He did miss a few starts in 2014 with a flexor muscle strain, but has shown no aftereffects after a month on the disabled list that year.So Sales innings jump was far more pronounced than the one Sanchez could be about to make -- from 133.1 to 109.1 to wherever he ends up this year. The Toronto Blue Jays sure do have a lot to think about.Their GM isnt ready to say precisely what theyre about to do. He just promises theyll be as transparent about the process as any team in this position has ever been.Well work hard to ask a lot of people for their opinions, Atkins said. Well gather information. Well give feedback. And well explain the rationale behind all our options.Theres one thing they almost certainly wont be able to do in the days leading up to this trade deadline. And Ross Atkins is already resigned to it.No matter what kind of deal we make, he said, it would be very difficult to upgrade on Aaron Sanchez. ' ' '