2023-01-30

26 Man Roster Challenge: 2023 Edition

Now that we have labour peace and the league has taken the power to run their business as they see fit back from the medical nerds, we decided to blow the dust off this super-fun challenge. The last few years have been a shitshow in terms of an actual schedule for just about everyone, and this roster challenge was no exception. We look forward to a nice, easy, straightforward spring training this season—

*World Baseball Classic has entered the chat*

Ah, right, never mind.

For those who don’t know, the 26-Man Roster Challenge is a super simple game that has but one requirement: Name the 26 baseball players within the Blue Jays organization who will crack the opening day roster.

Sounds easy, right? Well, it really and truly isn’t. If you decide to play, there are 4 ways to submit your ballot:

 

1.            Send us an email: 1bluejaysway(at)gmail.com 

2.            Make a post on your blog, if you have one, and send us a link.

3.            Add your ballot to the comments section of this post, or the reminder(s) we post later.

4.            Twitter ballots will be accepted @1BJW

 

In the event of a tie—and, at this point, it's pretty much a given that there will be a tie—we ask that you also give us a prediction of what you think the spring training record will be for the boys in baby blue. From what we can see, it appears as though your Toronto Blue Jays will attempt to play 33 spring training games this year. We do not see the annual test match/face fucking of the Canadian Junior National Team on the schedule anywhere and, frankly, it should not be. If the spring schedule is changed after the deadline, we will allow contestants who have entered a valid ballot to change their tiebreaker, if they so choose.

Try not to forget that sometimes it rains, and the games are not generally made up if they are cancelled. There is also a chance that if a game goes to extra innings and one team runs out of pitchers, both teams agree that the game ends in a tie.

It is not a requirement that you select a tie breaker—all ballots containing 26 names on it will be considered valid—but it is a very good idea that you do include one. Over the years, we have had numerous stupid-close finishes, and we actually had to break it right down to winning percentage. We have only had two outright winners in 12 years.

Some things to consider:

Your Toronto Blue Jays are a great team with a young core, and the future remains very bright. We can debate the offseason moves all day, and the kneejerk reaction of some fans/media is both predictable and tiresome, but the braintrust read the room and decided being top heavy on offense doesn’t work in a three-game winner-take-all series. Time will tell whether this mix of players is the right combination or not, but Teo and his huge smile will certainly be missed.

A better question: Will the concrete convertible be ready and all freshly painted up in Salty Dog Blue by the start of the season? You would think the folks at MLB would love to take advantage of our roof in MARCH when the season starts, but, suspiciously, our home opener is not scheduled until April 11.

Both Mitch “Pretty Boy” White and Trevor Richards are out of options and need to head north with the team or risk being lost on waivers. Neither are particularly great pitchers, and we are quite sure you all have your opinions on their value to the team, but those two names should on the pitching staff, regardless of role. There could be others on the 40-man, and we will keep our eyes/ears open on all your behalves.

As always, the dreaded minor-league-deal-with-an-invite-to-spring-training needs to be mentioned and considered. It isn’t completely nuts to think one of these dudes comes in, blows the doors off the hinges and wins a job with the squad. Or is it?

The whispers to sign a lefty-killing OF to compliment our suddenly left-handed heavy OF are only getting louder. Do try to keep in mind that short-side platoon players are not highly valued, even good ones, and we should have our pick from quite a few names as training camp carries on. If you do decide to take a player who isn’t signed or is currently on a different MLB team, it is a decent way to differentiate your ballot from all the others and a worthwhile stab at glory.

If you have been keeping a list of potential roster candidates for your ballot at home—we just can’t be the only ones who do this—you will know that there are not many MLB jobs on the line for this team at all. What a time to be alive.

Prizes:

V Dub signed ugly black uniform for all you idiots that think they look cool!

1992 Topps team card set with a Guzman rookie in there


A lock for your luggage that doesn't arrive at destination
 

Good luck to all who decide to join in on the fun this year. We’re still searching for the elusive perfect ballot; it would be swell if this is the year!

Please include a team name and a tiebreaker. Do NOT forget the tiebreaker. The deadline to submit ballots is February 12th @ 11:59PM EST.

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