Ohka chosen as Blue Jays' fourth starter

Tomo Okha has been chosen as the Toronto Blue Jays' fourth starter, and the competition for the fifth spot could go down to the last day. "I think that Ohka has earned the spot in the rotation and I'm not worried about that at this point," said GM J.P. Ricciardi, "Just keep him healthy now."

The final spot will go to either Victor Zambrano, who had his second Tommy John surgery last May while with the Mets, or Josh Towers. Ricciardi said he didn't expect Zambrano would return so quickly. "It's almost like you're waiting for the other shoe to drop. This guy is defying a lot of odds. Medically I keep checking with the trainers and they say no complaints, he's bouncing back real well."

Ohka, who hasn't pitched in the American League since 2001 with Boston, will pitch in a Triple-A game on Friday and is slated to go six or seven innings. Last season with Milwaukee, Ohka was 4-5 with a 4.82 ERA in 18 starts.

Zambrano is scheduled to go at least five innings on Friday against Cleveland while Towers starts the final spring game on Saturday against a Cincinnati split-squad. Towers was 13-12 with a 3.71 ERA two years ago, but struggled last year and finished with an 8.42 ERA an a 2-10 record. John Thomson, originally in the mix for the final two spots in the rotation could start to season on the disabled list, Ricciardi said.
Source: AP