Toronto.BlueJays.MLB.com

By Spencer Fordin / MLB.com

Carlos Tosca's coaching staff has been working hard already this spring. (AP)

One of his notable gems was about pitching prospect Jason Arnold, who gained some weight in the offseason. Patterson said that Arnold looked good, both on the mound and in his uniform.

"I'm glad he did my offseason program. I told him to eat a pizza for lunch and two for dinner," he said, laughing. "He did, and it's awesome. He's put some weight on, and he threw the ball very well."

On Sunday, the Jays had to take care of one practical matter before they started pitching: Introductions. Before they crouched behind the plate, the backstops walked out to shake hands with the hurlers. After that, the first official bullpen sessions began, with every pitcher watched intently. With the most important part of his work day unfolding in front of him, Patterson inexplicably found his mind wandering.

"Even in the minor leagues, coming up, you teach guys to go from the stretch first. In the game, we've got to make our most important pitches from the stretch," he said. "And what does everyone normally do? The windup. They went from the stretch the whole time, and I'm thinking: These guys are awesome. Then I remembered: Everyone's from the bullpen."

Indeed, most of Toronto's projected relief staff was on the mound at the same time. Toronto had six relievers working side-by-side in the first group, and Patterson said he liked what he saw. He said that Justin Speier and Kerry Ligtenberg stood out among the newcomers, and that Aquilino Lopez is ahead of just about everyone.

"I'm trying to pull the reins on him, because he pitched winter ball," Patterson said. "He's out there throwing splits and sliders. He's ready to pitch tomorrow, but I'm saying: Take it easy. I'm going to have to hold him back soon."

Francisco Rosario, who missed all of last season after Tommy John surgery, also impressed Patterson. Rosario popped the glove repeatedly with impressive accuracy and velocity. In fact, he was so good that Patterson strained himself for an apt analogy.

"When you say Rosario, my first impression is Wow. The ball just jumps out of his hand. He's almost like a young Gil Patterson," he said, smiling. "It's amazing, almost like a bullwhip. Very impressive. That was great to see from him."

Catching on: Joe Breeden, Toronto's new bench coach, got to work with the complete group of catchers on Sunday. After the bullpen sessions, he articulated his approach, as it relates to setup and fundamentals.

"The one thing Joe brings is he's broken down every phase of the catching technique," said Toronto manager Carlos Tosca. "He really wants the player to be aware of what his feet are doing and what his hands are doing. The reason that he did a lot of talking today was because it was his first time to share his philosophy."