What’s next for Nate Pearson?

It’s safe to say that the start to Nate Pearson’s big-league career hasn’t gone as planned.

After a great debut in Washington in which he tossed five shutout frames against the defending World Series champions, Pearson has struggled in three consecutive starts. Most notably, his command has been all over the grid, as he’s walked 12 batters across 16 1/3 innings.

Pearson is obviously aware of what the issue is here. Rather than attacking hitters with his elite stuff, he’s trying too hard to paint the zone and aim his pitches for strikes. In his effort to ensure he’s not all over the place, Pearson ends up grooving pitches into the middle of the zone that big-league hitters can feast on.

On Wednesday, the Blue Jays placed Pearson on the 10-day Injured List with elbow tightness. Though Ross Atkins had a somewhat ominous quote, stating that the organization isn’t “initially overly concerned,” it seems this might be a case of Right Arm Shittyness where the Jays are pulling Pearson back to give him a breather to collect himself after some struggles.

It’s certainly surprising to see Pearson struggling with command issues. Last season in the minors, over the course of 101 2/3 innings, Pearson only walked 27 batters. Obviously minor-league hitters aren’t as disciplined as big-leaguers, but Pearson wouldn’t have had that kind of success without the fundamental ability to command his pitches.

For comparison, Aaron Sanchez was always a guy with amazing stuff who everyone said would be great if he could put it all together and figure out how to command the zone. In 2014, the year he got called up, Sanchez walked 57 batters over 100 1/3 innings in the minors.

So, unlike with Sanchez, a guy who always struggled with command in the minors but compensated due to his elite stuff, Pearson has always been a strike-thrower through his time coming up the system.

What’s the issue then? Is it a mental thing, as Pearson is overthinking handling big-league hitting? Is there something actually physically wrong with his arm? Given the fact he’s still been able to toss the ball 99 miles-per-hour and toss a wipeout slider, I would lean towards this being a case of the former.

It’s certainly not time to worry about Pearson yet. It’s been four starts. One was really good, one was OK, and two have been bad. As much as his amazing showing in spring training made him look like a ready-to-step-in ace, it’s important to remember that he’s still a rookie.

Going from the minors to the major is the most difficult step in baseball. There’s a learning curve and there will be struggles along the way.

So, what’s next for Pearson? How do the Blue Jays get their most important pitcher on track?

Dan Shulman and Buck Martinez spoke on the broadcast on Wednesday about the possibility of using Pearson out of the bullpen when he returns. That would allow the Blue Jays to have more control over the situations he’s put into to help him rebuild his confidence. Rather than worrying about putting together a five- or six-inning start, Pearson could take the mound for an inning or two and focus on rearing back and blowing hitters away.

Obviously, nobody wants him to be a reliever long-term, but that might be the best play for helping Pearson find his footing. This, of course, is assuming Pearson’s command issues are in his head and there isn’t something *gulp* wrong with his arm.