Weekly Round Up: It's been a while.....

Yeah so whatever. My e-mail account and Twitter feed are cluttered. It's downright silly at this point. Plus, it's not like I plan to stop looking for new sexy cowgirls on line anytime soon.

What I have done is turned in my BBA membership card, turned off sitemeter and remembered why I started up this bitch in the first place. It's not about pages views. It's not about making money. And it's certainly not about writing out everything that happens, as it happens, everyday.

What is it about you ask?

That's simple. A place where we are all free to discuss Blue Jays baseball. That and I need somewhere to keep all this shit together. An outlet if you will.

Anyways, a long overdue round up for y'all.

Consider this your required reading.

Consider this your required listening.

Consider this your required viewing. There were a couple of honorable mentions.

Courtesy of Jim Callis:

Every year, there's usually at least one prospect who gets caught in Top 10 limbo, and this year it's Lawrie. He would have been our No. 1 Brewers prospect, but he got traded to the Blue Jays for Shaun Marcum before our Milwaukee Top 10 came out—and after our Toronto Top 10 was published. So Lawrie won't make a Top 10 in our magazine or on our website, though he will appear in the 2011 Prospect Handbook.
Here's the scouting report that would have appeared with our Brewers Top 10 had Lawrie stayed put:
The Brewers put Lawrie on the fast track in 2010 by assigning him to Double-A Huntsville at age 20, making him the second-youngest regular in the Southern League. Very confident to the point of cockiness, he was anything but intimidated and got better as the season progressed and he adjusted to the higher level of competition. He led the league in runs (90), hits (158), triples (16) and total bases (250). Lawrie has very strong hands and a quick bat, allowing him to wait on pitches and drive the ball to all fields. He's not a prolific home run hitter but piles up extra-base hits by shooting the ball into the gaps. Lawrie needs to balance his aggressiveness with more plate discipline, however. Though he stole 30 bases, he was caught 13 times and his speed is just average. Lawrie has smoothed out some of his rough edges in the field but still must work on making his hands softer, as evidenced by the 25 errors he committed in 131 games at second base in 2010. He has solid arm strength but may not have the first-step quickness to remain at second. He won't have to be a Gold Glove defender because his bat will get him to the big leagues and keep him there. If he has to move to an outfield corner, he'll still provide enough offense to profile as a quality regular.
Lawrie will rank No. 2 on our Blue Jays list, between righthanders Drabek and Deck McGuire. I don't think Lawrie will stay at second base and think his big league home will be right field. He should join Toronto at some point in 2012.

So there. Even if Lawrie does turn out to be a corner OF, he is still suppose to profile as above average there. Currently, he slides right in at number 2 on the BA list of best prospects in the system.

Courtesy of The Wall Street Journal:

J.P. Ricciardi came to the Mets in November after eight years as the Toronto Blue Jays' general manager—eight years of running a team that only once finished higher than third in Major League Baseball's best division.
So now that Mr. Ricciardi is a special assistant to Mets general manager Sandy Alderson, the prospect of having to wrench supremacy in the National League East away from the Philadelphia Phillies doesn't fill him with much apprehension.
"The AL East always had two or three teams coming at you," he said by phone recently. "After having done it so many years against the Yankees and the Red Sox and Tampa being good through that cycle, I'll take my chances. Even though the Phillies are really good, I'll take my chances over here."

Pussy.

Courtesy of You Don't Know Dick:

The comfort that Wells has found later in life has come from the fact he realizes that he is not worth what he is being paid, but, in fact who is?
“I think the most important thing about getting contracts like this is you get to go out and do so many different things in the community,” Wells admitted.
“You get to go out and impact lives. The way I feel about it, I was blessed with that contract to go out and do things. Everybody would say I’m not worth the money and I would totally agree that I’m not worth that contract, but I don’t think there is anybody . . . but I know what I can do with that contract will far outdo what that contract’s worth.”
Jays fans, understandably, only care about results on the field.

In other news, winter is cold and the CN Tower is really tall.

Courtesy of Jeremy Sandler:

In less than a week, the Toronto Blue Jays should know if a 14-year streak is going to continue.
The club has not gone to an arbitration hearing with a player since reliever Bill Risley in 1997. But the Jays have a major league-high nine players eligible this season and a team-imposed deadline of Tuesday to clear them from the books.
Toronto’s timeline shrunk last year when general manager Alex Anthopoulos said the team would not negotiate after salary figures were officially submitted for arbitration. That policy is expected to continue this season.

By my calculation the team imposed deadline or "file-to-go" strategy if my memory serves correctly is on Tuesday around mid day. I predict a flurry of signings in the next 24 hours or so to keep us happy.

Courtesy of Jeff Caplan:

Lance Berkman, a career National League outfielder and first baseman with the Houston Astros, agreed to be traded last season to the New York Yankees. He knew he wouldn't play first base for the Yanks. That is property of Mark Teixeira. Berkman went to the Bronx Bombers to serve solely as DH and perhaps a game here or there at first.
When New York came to town late in the regular season, Berkman -- who is 34, the same age as Young -- talked about what it's like to hit and then not trot out to your position.
"At the time, I had never not played every day and I didn’t realize how much I appreciate being out there and playing defense," Berkman said. "That’s one of the byproducts of this trade is it’s made me realize I love to play defense and play it every day. I knew I liked defense, but to me the game is so much easier from a rhythm standpoint, from a timing standpoint when you know you’re going to be in there and when you get to go out there and play the field."
Pretty strong words.

I thought I would include this one for all you E5 will be a great DH types out there to consider. You know who you are.

Courtesy of Cathal Kelly:

Good Lord, we need to move on. How about we try the Blue Jays.
“It seems to me like they’ve got everything in place. It feels like, to me, like they’ve got it right and they shouldn’t touch it now. They feel me to like a bow and arrow, like they’re ready to launch.”
Are we talking playoffs?
“I’m not going to push it.”

A psychic’s look at your Toronto Blue Jays future fortunes. Yeah. Right.

Courtesy of Chris Jaffe:

According to Baseball-Reference.com, the Toronto Blue Jays have lost 2,709 games in franchise history. There have been more important losses, more heart-rending losses, and more memorable losses, but none of losses were quite as lamely filtered away as one that came 10,000 days ago today.
After nine innings, they battled the Orioles to a 4-4 tie in Baltimore’s Memorial Stadium. The top of the tenth got off to a great start for the visiting Blue Jays, as Cliff Johnson led off the frame with a go-ahead homer. Jays led, 5-4. As an added bonus, Barry Bonnell followed that up with a single. Things were going great.
They were about to go stupid.

A great reminder on one of the reasons why teams like to carry an extra lefty in the pen. Keeping guys close at first base late in a tight game is a weapon that far too many managers don't use nearly enough.

Courtesy of Roto Professor:

The Closer: Octavio Dotel
He became the front-runner for the job once he signed his free agent contract, but he is far from a lock to maintain it all year long. In fact, it is arguable that he is even the best man for the job.
Dotel pitched for three different teams in 2010 (Pirates, Dodgers & Rockies), compiling a 4.08 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. He certainly still is a strikeout artist, posting a strikeout rate of at least 10.55 each of the past four seasons. However his fastball, which is a pitch he throws over 80% of the time, has been losing a little bit of zip in recent years:

• 2007 – 93.5 mph
• 2008 – 92.5 mph
• 2009 – 92.6 mph
• 2010 – 91.7 mph

That certainly makes you wonder if he will be able to sustain the lofty strikeout rates or if a regression could be in order.
Another question is his control. He’s never posted good control numbers (career BB/9 of 4.09), but he has been even worse over the past two years with walk rates of 5.20 and 4.50. Throw in his struggles against lefties (they hit .301 against him in 2010 while his strikeout rate was just 7.66 and walk rate was 7.25) and there should be major concerns with his ability to shut down games (in the AL East he’ll have to face batters like Mark Teixeira, David Ortiz, Adrian Gonzalez and others).

In fact, it's over 85% if you include the cutter, which clocks in at a cool 89.7 MPH. I have to think the guts of this article is bogus. It's basically saying Dotel throws a slider and a fastball. That's it. A cut fastball, regardless of the fact it has the word fastball in it, in my opinion, is another pitch altogether. It has to be thrown slower and thus moves more than a fastball.

A more appropriate statement to make regarding Dotel's velo in "recent years" would be: Since 2007 he has thrown the fastball almost 60% of the time and it comes in between 92 and 93 MPH. He mixes in a cutter and a slider.

Unfortunately all the shit about lefties is accurate.

All that said, I'm looking forward to watching him break some bats for us this year and try to remind yourself during one of the inevitable meltdowns this upcoming season that shitty bullpens do make the game of baseball more interesting.

Courtesy of R.J. Anderson:

Offenses driven behind low on-base percentages and high slugging percentages have existed throughout the history of the league (with league context being key in defining what a high slugging percentage defines). But recent seasons have led to a proliferation of these offenses. Perhaps we should take to calling them the Joe Carter offenses in honor of the Blue Jays’ legend with a slugging percentage of gold and an on-base percentage of tinfoil. I fully understand that even if the Jays returned the same lineup they would be unlikely to replicate their 2010 feats. Still, I wanted to know how the teams alongside the Jays fared in the year thereafter.

This is a must read.

Courtesy of R.J. Anderson:

What Bautista’s season means is simple and complicated. Bautista owned 59 career home runs in more than 2,000 plate appearances entering the 2010 season. He then added 54 jacks in 683 plate appearances. A journeyman becoming the most feared batter in baseball in the blink of a winter is an unpleasant thought because history provides little comfort. Keep Bautista’s lack of a 20 home run season in mind as you read the accomplishments of the other players to hit 50-plus in a single season.

This too.

Courtesy of TSN:

With the Toronto Blue Jays being better than expected last season, fans of the club hope that the Jays can contend in the AL East in 2011, but what should they expect in 2011 from Jose Bautista, who led the majors with a surprising 54 home runs last season?
In order to help Jays' fans get a glimpse of what could be, we're collecting different projection systems' results so fans of Canada's lone MLB team can see what others are expecting the Jays to do.

Some projection systems go head to head. Interesting to note the differences.

Courtesy of Matt Klaassen:

2. Edwin Encarnacion, July 4, -.224 WPA. The Jays were playing the Yankees on Independence Day when Encarnacion came up to the plate in the tenth with runners on first and second, no one out, and the score tied at six. He bunted into the air to the third baseman and Adam Lind got thrown out at second. The Jays went on to lose in the bottom of the inning.

As a manager, it's not really fair to ask your player to do something in a game you know he can't do. In extra innings against the Yankees? That is just plane stupid.

Courtesy of Scott Carson:

Now, there's a new sheriff in town and his name is John Farrell. While he's a former pitcher and pitching coach by nature, he's been around the game long enough to have a strong opinion on what direction he would like his team to take at the plate. Based upon his introduction to the Toronto media and subsequent comments at the winter meetings, you Cito-bashers out there -- and I know there are more than just a handful of you -- must be enjoying the fact that the Jays will be bringing a lot more 'small ball' into the mix.

Sounds like anyone you might know?

Weekly Round Up: Oct. 4 - 10

Consider this your required viewing for the week.

Consider this your required listening for the week.

Courtesy of Patrick Rishe:

The criteria for the ‘most efficient’ teams is combining low ‘cost per win’ with at least 87 wins (5 games above .500).  Hence, the 5 most efficient teams from the 2010 MLB season are:
1)  San Diego Padres (90 wins…$419,656 per win)
2)  Texas Rangers      (90 wins…$612,404 per win)
3)  Tampa Bay Rays  (96 wins…$748,688 per win)
4)  Cincinnati Reds   (91 wins…$795,072 per win)
5)  Atlanta Braves     (91 wins…$927,284 per win).
Honorable mention goes to the Toronto Blue Jays, the Minnesota Twins and the Colorado Rockies.  The Blue Jays won 85 games in the incredibly tough American League East while paying $737,088 in payroll per win.

Forbes doesn't fuck around.

Courtesy of Shi Davidi:

"I'm not sitting up there in our office with our baseball operations team saying, 'OK we won 85 games, if we make these six moves that will equate to 10 wins,"' Anthopoulos said Monday during a lengthy chat with the team's beat writers. "It's not that easy. I've heard stories and talked to teams where they've done simulations and there are just too many variables, you're dealing with human beings.
"If the focus is on making the team better and continuing to look for value whenever you can get it to build that team, at some point the wins will continue to pile up and we'll get to the point in-season, that hopefully we're going to look to add a piece. Then when you get to that playoff area, that's when you make a big splash."

A very close second place on the required reading for the week. Take a moment and check it out.

Courtesy of Steve Simmons:

A Blue Jays insider indicated that Gillick was asked to film a clip for Cito, but never got back to the Jays to arrange a time or a place.
It has been well-documented that Gillick did not truly want to hire Gaston as manager in 1989 and wanted to fire him following the playoff loss to Minnesota in 1990. But each time, situations and his partnership with Paul Beeston changed the equation. Over his amazing career, Gillick hired managers in Baltimore, Seattle and Philadelphia after leaving Toronto, but did not offer positions to Gaston with any of those teams.

I was wondering why Stand Pat wasn't in the house for The Cito's love in.

Courtesy of CBS Sports:

2011 PREDICTION

With Tampa Bay slashing payroll, the opportunity is there for Toronto to make a play for third -- and they'll try to do just that, but figure to fall just short, just like 2010. Poor Toronto -- if they weren't in the AL East, it'd be a near-lock to make the postseason.

I have heard that one once or twice before.....

Courtesy of Robert Macleod:

The Blue Jays will audition designated hitter Adam Lind at first base during spring training but other than that, unless Anthopoulos swings some sort of a trade, it is quite possible Overbay will be their man.
“He’s a free agent, just like John Buck and Scott Downs and Jason Frasor,” Anthopoulos said of Overbay. “Lyle has started out slow and has really bounced back. He’s played his usual Gold Glove defence at first base. And he has a good on-base percentage. The batting average is down for him but I think it’s tough when you dig yourself the hole that he dug himself.
“Realizing all those things and factoring all that in I like Lyle, I always have. I think the organization does. It’s all about what the off-season brings, what trades will present themselves, what other free agents are out there.”
Anthopoulos said he has no idea how the experiment with Lind might work out.

If anyone out there has a good reason why we should re-sign Lyle - at any price - please enlighten me. I just don't get it.

Courtesy of Robert Macleod:

Anthopoulos said the Blue Jays cannot be counted on to crank out as many home runs next season, so it is imperative they locate a new bat or two to add more balance to the attack.
Anthopoulos will also have his work cut out for him with at least 15 Blue Jays eligible for arbitration, including Jose Bautista, who led the majors with 54 home runs. It will be daunting trying to arrive at a new contract with a player who had never hit 16 before in one season, and Anthopoulos said it will be important to keep things in perspective.

Boy Wonder has a massive to do list. I'm thinking the "file-to-go" strategy gets used this offseason. Maybe more than once.

Naturally Doc threw a no hitter in his first playoff game. Fuck me..... 

Weekly Round Up: Aug. 30 - Sept. 5

Consider this your required reading for the week. A detailed look at J-Bau's career.

Consider this your required viewing for the week. A little soft toss with J-Bau.

Please note: Bobby Elliott had a massive week. We will be leading off the Round Up with some of his gems.

Courtesy of Bob Elliott:

“I’m progressing with (batting instructor) Justin Mashore, learning the strike zone,” Gose says. “I may have a three strikeout game, but I’m not swinging at pitches in the dirt. I don’t want to say I have it figured out — you never have it figured out — but I’m improving.”
Gose is hitting .262 with 20 doubles, 13 triples, seven homers and 26 RBIs in 130 games.
A year ago, in spring training a reporter from Lakewood, N.J., asked how many bases he’d steal. He said he’d lead the team and break the club record (59). Gose swiped 76 to lead all of minor-league baseball.
This spring, he told the same reporter he’d swipe 100. He’s stolen 45 bases but has been thrown out 32 times.
“I struggled at the start, getting my reads, ran on bad counts, second-guessed myself and lost confidence,” Gose says. “I was asking myself the question: ‘Am I really what I think I am?’ But those comments make me look big-headed which I’m not. I made myself look bad.”

An exclusive interview with OF prospect Anthony Gose. Seems like he grew up in a tough environment. Nice to see him giving back to the people that helped him get out. 

Courtesy of Bob Elliott:

The decision to move 25 games to the new Sporstnet One station was not made at 1 Blue Jays Way, but rather at 1 Mount Pleasant Rd., in either a Rogers or Sportsnet ivory tower.
While Rogers battles Bell/Shaw/Cogeco, complete with marketing campaigns, the Jays are taking the heat, as well.
“I understand the fans’ complaints. This is short-term pain,” said Jays president Paul Beeston from Toronto. “Last year, we had 145 games televised. This year, we will have 162. Down the road, fans will not lose games to the Memorial Cup, the NBA or anything else.”

For the record: We here at 1BlueJaysWay did not have anything to do with the decision to move the games in question to a channel that most of you do not have access to. Moving right along.....

Courtesy of Bob Elliott:

“Man, his swing is quick,” said Don Zimmer, the Rays' senior adviser, who broke into pro ball in 1949. “Have I seen him? Hah, seen too much of him. He’ll swing at a ball once in a while, but for the most part he’s disciplined. He looks like he’s headed for 50.
“I hopes he gets there — as long as he doesn’t hit any against us.”

I wonder if The Cito will be getting asked these types of questions when he moves into his "consulting" role?

Courtesy of Bob Elliott:

The end of the season marks the start of 2011. Who plays third base for the Blue Jays next season?
Who plays first?
And what happens to Aaron Hill?
Aaron Hill, the 2010 media guide cover boy, who led all second basemen with 36 homers last year? That Aaron Hill?
Hill’s four-year, $12-million US deal, signed in 2008 runs until the end of 2011.
Yet, the Jays have a decision to make on Hill between the end of the season and the next opening day.
Do they pick up Hill’s three option years from 2012-14 which total $26 million?
Do they give him the thumbs-up March 21 during spring training when he turns 29?
Do they decline to pick up his option years and then, according to contract language at the end of 2011, exercise the 2012-13 options, making Hill a free agent in 2014.
Either way, Hill will be with the Jays next season.
How happy will their infielder be if the Jays decide to not pick up a long-term commitment?
Of course, even if the Jays decline the option years, they could revisit the matter with agent Casey Close if Hill’s 2011 is more like 2009.

Bob pulls out the crystal ball and tries to predict the future. 

Courtesy of Bob Elliott:

RICKY ROMERO: “He never gets cheated. What do you mean someone took that answer? In a word, his swing is overpowering. If I faced him I’d be careful, stay away, away with a sinker and breaking ball, then bust him inside with a fastball. I’d get him out — tell him that.”

Quick interviews with J-Bau's teammates. Ricky had the best answer hands down.

Courtesy of Mark Zwolinski:

“You know, fans in the Dominican didn’t follow the Blue Jays that much a few years ago because they didn’t have many Dominican players, but now they have (Edwin) Encarnacion and Jose . . . the fans pay attention,” George Bell says in a telephone interview from the Dominican.
“They love what Jose is doing. They’ve always had the older guys like (Albert) Pujols, and Pedro Martinez, but Jose is running away with the home-run lead and he’s close to breaking (Bell’s Jays record). A lot of people are talking about it here.”
Bell is watching Bautista too. The two are very similar as players — power hitting, right-handed hitters with a home run swing destined for the record books.

Former AL MVP George Bell weighs in on the possibility of J-Bau breaking his 20+ year team record.

Courtesy of Todd Dewey:

After spending most of last season in Las Vegas, the former Blue Jays closer pined for a fresh start with another team.
But after speaking with new Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos, he avoided arbitration and agreed to a one-year, $1.08 million contract for this season.
"I was lied to a lot last year, where I was told one thing and something else ended up happening," Accardo said. "That didn't sit well with me, but I turned (over) a (new) leaf and we talked and he told me everything's going to change, and really things haven't changed."

Jeremy Accardo is clearly fucking pissed. Although I think he is able to get Major League hitters out, I have to believe the hissy fit last year when he threw his Jays hat in the garbage, seriously hurt his chances of doing it for your Toronto Blue Jays. He is out of options and has 1 year left of arbitration. Should be an interesting case if the brain trust sticks to the "file-to-go" strategy. You have to think that no offer will be accepted by the Accardo camp. 

Courtesy of You Don't Know Dick: 

If the Jays lose all three veterans in the ’pen, they have enough bodies to make up for it. They could bring back Shawn Camp, Casey Janssen, David Purcey, Jesse Carlson and Josh Roenicke, and move Marc Rzepczynski into Brian Tallet’s role. Or they could keep Tallet. And what of Jeremy Accardo? Furthermore, the off-season free-agent market is always flooded with relievers. No problem. With a younger, less consistent bullpen in 2011, the Jays may be a better team with a worse record. But hey, nobody said rebuilding was going to be easy.

Dick takes a look at the potential bullpen for 2011. Based on the names above, who do you give the ball to in the 9th inning of a tight game?

Courtesy of You Don't Know Dick:

Q: Hi Richard, About a year ago the rumours of a dysfunctional Blue Jays clubhouse came to light. Now a year later it appears that by all accounts the chemistry is great. To what, or to whom, do you attribute this year's harmony? Is it safe to assume last year's culprits are no longer with the club?
Thanks, Tim Wood, Toronto
A: It was not a rumour. The poisonous fumes floating through the Jays' clubhouse on that final weekend in Baltimore were absolutely toxic. Vernon Wells on the Friday said, “I'm not sure that it can be fixed.” This in reference to a potential public airing of player concerns with Cito Gaston and Paul Beeston in attendance. Gaston to this day does not want to believe it was ever true, claiming it was simply an exaggeration by the media. That's total bullspit. It was real. But when push came to shove and the key returning players – Wells, and Aaron Hill and the non-returning players Rod Barajas and Roy Halladay -- met with Beeston and Gaston, the players wimped out and backed down.
Why the dysfunction in the first place?

I normally don't venture into Dick's mailbag, only because I wish to remain sane. But I gotta say, this is the most insightful thing I have ever read as it pertains to the train wreck in Baltimore last season.

Courtesy of Chris Jaffe:

Twenty years ago today, on September 2, 1990, Dave Stieb finally did it. After years of painful teasing, he finally threw a complete game no-hitter. Rarely had a pitcher gone such torture to achieve this goal.
Prior to that day, Stieb had five separate complete game one-hitters. As an added bonus: all five one-hitters had come in a fairly rapid sequence, in a 15-month sequence from May 1988 to August 1989.

Rock solid piece on Blue Jay hero Dave Stieb.  Must read and a close second for the required reading of the week. 

Courtesy of Baseball America:

2010 AFL Rosters

Your Toronto Blue Jays will be sending the following players to the Arizona Fall League:

• Adeiny Hechavarria
• Michael McDade
• Eric Thames
• Matthew Daly
• Alan Farina
• Danny Farquhar

Here is what our boy Jesse had to say about the news:

Nice crew to send over there.  Especially rewarding for Daly.  Not much surprise for Thames or Hechavarria.

I should also point out that Hech will be reunited with his childhood buddy and Red Sox SS prospect Jose Iglesias. One thing to watch is who gets the bulk of the innings at SS.

Weekly Round Up : Jan. 25 - 31

 

A must read authored by bullpen hopeful Dirk Hayhurst.  Rock solid stuff.  

“When you have a passion for something, it’s easy to find the time to do it well,” I once heard him say.  How do you replace that kind of leader?  A year of baseball in Toronto minus the Doctor.....I still can't talk about it yet.  I really can't.

Paxton Affair Update:

The good Canadian boy filed his appeal as expected on Wednesday.  His lawyer, Rick Johnson, is certainly earning his $300 an hour wage on this one.  Check out these quotes.

"They're engaged in extortion," Johnson said. "They won't let you play – even though you're eligible to play – until you talk to somebody they can't make you talk to."

"What is happening to James is a travesty, but this case has larger ramifications for the 360,000 or so student-athletes who ... have been misinformed that they have no rights and must submit to NCAA Gestapo tactics under the direction and approval of their colleges and universities," said Johnson in an interview with the Kentucky Herald on Wednesday.

He claims the NCAA can't annul Paxton's eligibility without direct evidence he has broken a rule, and that UK can't force a meeting with outside investigators.  Wow.  This guy actually believes this stuff.  I got some direct evidence for ya Rick.

On Thursday it was reported, his appeal was granted.  The court agreed that its next available three-judge motions panel available after Feb. 8 would consider Paxton's request. UK has until Feb. 8 to file a response to the request.

In the past I have used the terms clusterfuck and shitshow separately to describe this craziness.  But I'm starting to wonder if it is actually possible to have a shitshow clusterfuck.  Or would it be clusterfuck shitshow?  Either way, I think this thing is headed in that general direction.  I'm starting to see why Beeston walked away from this one.  

Courtesy of CBS Sports fantasy news: 

Blue Jays add more spring invitees	Updated 1/27/2010
News: The Blue Jays added the following farmhands to the non-roster spring training invites list: 1B David Cooper, 2B Brad Emaus, C Matthew Liuzza and pitchers Zachary Stewart and Daniel Farquhar. They also extended invites to: catchers Kyle Phillips and Brian Jeroloman.	Analysis: Cooper, Emaus, Stewart and Farquhar are potential sleepers in long-term keeper leagues. We don't expect any of these players to make the major leagues roster out of spring training, though. Ignore them on Draft Day.

Early in the week we added a trio of catchers to offset the not so small army of pitchers that will be in camp.  Liuzza, Phillips and Jeroloman are going to be squatting in the Florida heat quite a bit.  Tough on the legs/knees and seems more like punishment for doing something wrong but somebody has got to do it.

Courtesy of You Don't Know Dick Griffin @ The Star:

He got a whopping 2 comments on this one!  And one of those comments was a total diss.  Who is this Chris Stedron fellow and where will he be sitting on opening day?  I'm not really one to talk but he is a "professional" and I am sitting in my basement.  Just saying.

Apparently Boy Wonder has quickly learned the number one management responsibility: DELEGATING.  He decided to hand off the entire arbitration file to his assistants.  And he sold it to them by saying that they would get "experience" at it.  Genius. 

"He could do it in his sleep," LaCava said. "But he wanted us to try our hand in it. At the end of the day we all got some great experience and we got fair deals with all the players that were good for the player and good for the organization. That's what he wanted."

I'm guessing he did this to create another layer between the agents and him.  Due to his "file-to-go" strategy deadline, I'll bet he wanted to be able to enter the negotiations at the last minute if need be.  So he sends in the troops to handle the numbers while he sits back quietly and waits for issues to arise.  Nothing comes up, everybody signs the deals, high fives all around.  More Genius. 

Courtesy of Rotoworld:  

RHP Jesse Litsch is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Febuary 3.  Great news.  He had the major surgery on June 12 of last year.  Along with newly acquired RHP Shawn Hill, they will lead the second (hopefully) or third (probably) wave of starting pitchers for your Toronto Blue Jays this season around mid to late June.   You know what comes to mind whenever I think about our five man rotation.  Two words: Cannon Fodder

 

Baseball Prospectus predicts 73 wins.  Is that gonna be 7 pitchers with ten each or what?

Look on the bright side, if the Nationals can't sign consensus 1st overall draft pick Bryce Harper this year, we may get a shot at him if we suck a little more!  Speaking of which, I think all of us are going to have to start scouting the draft class of 2011.  We should have a very high pick and consequently get very nice player.  I'm going to look into this more.....    

Courtesy of Fangraphs: 

The organization received compensatory picks for the three players that did not sign in ‘09, but the club loses some leverage; if the players they choose in those positions in ‘10 do not sign, then the club does not receive compensation in 2011 and you can bet the players’ advisers will be all over that.

This article belittles the brain trust with respect to their drafting.  New guy gets a pass on this for now.  But if I may say this: PLEASE draft some high school players.  Especially early.  Will you do it if I say pretty please. 

Courtesy of CBS Sports fantasy news: 

Breakout: Edwin Encarnacion, 3B

Considering Encarnacion was clearly on the rise when he hit 26 homers in 2008, the Reds and Fantasy owners pulled the plug on him awfully quickly last year. Of course he struggled: He had a bone floating around in his left wrist. The Reds eventually discovered the problem, but by then, the damage was done, at least as far as his batting average went. Little do most people know he rebounded to hit .274 with seven home runs over his final 95 at-bats, picking up where he left off in '08. He has improved his walk rate over the last couple years and only needs to improve his consistency to become a potential 30-homer guy. Why not in his age-27 season? He'll probably go undrafted in mixed leagues, but you'll want to keep your eye on him out of the gate.

I have a vested interest in E5 for the 2010 season.  I got him for a mere 3 bucks in my AL fantasy keeper league.  I'm just not sure what to do with him.  I wonder how his face is doing?  Even more than that, I wonder how his left wrist is doing?  You remember he had surgery on it late October.  Baltimore-based hand specialist Dr. Tom Graham shaved a large bone spur off the hamate bone in Encarnacion's ailing wrist.  Sounds painful.     

 

As predicted we are being overrun by lists.  They are everywhere.  I jumped on the grenade and read them  all for you.  This is my favorite.  Fangraphs put this piece out almost three months ago before we traded Doc.  Consider it prerequisite reading for the list:

FanGraphs’ Top 10 Prospects:
(2009 Draft Picks/International Signees Not Included)

This is a tough system to rank beyond the Top 3 because the organization had such a down year in ‘09 with a lot of prospects (hopefully temporarily) wiping out. On the plus side, there are quite a few talented players who are one good season away from shooting up the depth chart. The loss of Roy Halladay was a huge blow to the organization, as well as baseball in Canada, but the trade did infuse some much-needed talent.

1. Brett Wallace, 3B/1B, Triple-A
DOB: August 1986 Bats: L Throws: R
Signed: 2008 1st round – Arizona State University (St. Louis)
MLB ETA: Mid-2010 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
Wallace is the guy that was always destined to be a Blue Jay. The club drafted him out of high school in ‘05 even though he was an almost impossible signing due to his commitment to Arizona State. The club then had hoped to grab him in the ‘08 draft, but St. Louis got to him first. Finally, the club nabbed him in a deal with Oakland (for Michael Taylor, who was obtained in the Roy Halladay deal). Wallace had a busy year in ‘09 and played with three different minor league teams in double-A and triple-A. Overall on the year, he hit .293/.365/.458, which is not bad at all considering it was his first full season and he had a lot of change to deal with. The left-handed hitter fared very well against southpaws with an .897 OPS. Wallace projects to be a 20+ home run hitter with the ability to hit .280-.300. However, he needs to get a little more loft on the ball if he’s going to be a consistent power hitter. His walk rate took a bit of a hit with the promotion to triple-A (6.5%) compared to his double-A rate (11.7%), so he could stand to make some improvements in that area.

2. Kyle Drabek, RHP, Double-A
DOB: December 1987 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2006 1st round – Texas HS (Philadelphia)
MLB ETA: Mid-2010 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
Repertoire: 89-96 mph fastball, plus curveball, change-up
Drabek had an excellent ‘09 season while returning from Tommy John surgery. He began the year in high-A ball and allowed 49 hits in 61.2 innings of work. His walk rate was solid at 2.77 BB/9 and he did not allow a home run, despite an average ground-ball rate. His strikeout rate was a nifty 10.80. Moved up to double-A, Drabek’s FIP rose from 1.82 to 3.83 but his walk rate was still good at 2.90 BB/9. His strikeout rate dropped to 7.10 K/9. He gave up nine homers in double-A, as his HR/9 rate increased to 0.84 and his ground-ball rate dropped a little below average. Overall, he allowed 141 hits in 158.0 innings of work. The right-hander will probably begin the year back in double-A where he can hopefully improve his worm-burning numbers before moving up to the hitter’s haven that is Las Vegas. Drabek has the potential to be a No. 1 or 2 starter.

3. Zach Stewart, RHP, Double-A
DOB: September 1986 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2008 3rd round – Texas Tech University (Cincinnati)
MLB ETA: Mid-2010 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
Repertoire: 88-93 mph fastball, slider, change-up
The club’s No. 1 prospect before the Halladay trade, Stewart is more suited to this position on a team’s Top 10 list. The right-hander has good stuff but the jury is still out on if he’s a starter or reliever. Toronto seems committed to him as a starter, which makes sense considering the bullpen depth that the club has at this point. Stewart pitched for four teams and at three levels in ‘09. He began the year in high-A ball and posted a 2.63 FIP in seven starts. Moved up to double-A, he posted a 2.77 FIP in another seven starts. Jumped to triple-A with the Reds, he moved to the bullpen and had a 3.42 FIP in nine appearances before moving to Toronto where he had a 3.42 FIP in 11 games. His control dipped with each promotion, going from 1.70 to 2.43 to 4.90, so he clearly has some more work to do. On the plus side, his strikeout rate rose from 6.80 to 7.54 to 10.52. Along with his excellent K-rate, Stewart produces a lot of ground-balls (53% in ‘09). If he can sharpen his change-up, he could be a solid No. 3 starter.

4. J.P. Arencibia, C, Triple-A
DOB: January 1986 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2007 1st round – University of Tennessee
MLB ETA: Mid-2011 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
It was an ugly year for Arencibia, who balked at making adjustments to his approach at the plate, which led to a dismal walk rate of just 5.2% (although it was an improvement over ‘08). Arencibia had a breakout year in ‘08 by hitting 27 homers and driving in 105 runs between high-A and double-A. However, his wOBA dropped from .402 in high-A to .348 in double-A… and it continued to slide in ‘09, down to .316. His strikeout rate has gone from 18.5 to 21.0 to 24.5% during that same span. His BABIP also bottomed out in ‘09 at .269, as his triple-slash line was just .236/.284/.444 in 466 triple-A at-bats. It was bad timing for Arencibia, who likely would have been in line for the starting gig in Toronto in 2010, if he had had even an average year at triple-A. On the positive side, Arencibia has made huge strides on defense and now projects to be an average-to-above-average MLB catcher. Unless his hitting improves, though, he could be relegated to platoon work or a back-up gig on a championship-caliber team.

5. Moises Sierra, OF, Double-A
DOB: September 1988 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2005 non-drafted international free agent (Dominican Republic)
MLB ETA: Late-2011 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
With one of the strongest outfield arms in all of minor league baseball, Sierra made huge strides at the plate in ‘09. Just 21, he hit .286/.360/.393 in 405 at-bats at high-A ball. His walk rate has improved each of the past three seasons and it was 7.4% in ‘09. His strikeout rate has dropped each year and it was just 16.3% in high-A, as Sierra is obviously becoming more confident at the plate. He also improved his base running in ‘09 and stole 10 bases in 12 tries after being successful just 12 times in 23 tries in ‘08. On the negative side, his power has yet to develop, although he has the potential to hit for power. His ISO rate has dropped each of the past three seasons from .154 to .118 to .106. The club was obviously happy with Sierra’s performance in ‘09, which included a wOBA of .353, and he received a late-season promotion to double-A. After appearing in just nine games at that level last season, Sierra should return there for 2010. He is a breakout candidate for the new season.

6. Brad Mills, LHP, Triple-A
DOB: March 1985 Bats: L Throws: L
Signed: 2007 4th round – University of Arizona
MLB ETA: Mid-2010 40-Man Roster: Yes Options: 2
Repertoire: 86-90 mph fastball, plus change-up, curveball
Mills almost made the club out of spring training in ‘09 – after an excellent ‘08 season – and his value skyrocketed early in the year. Unfortunately, he had some ups-and-downs at triple-A and also battled injuries, which has caused him to fall out of favor with a lot of prospect watchers. Despite his “off year,” Mills still posted a 3.80 FIP at triple-A and showed acceptable control with a walk rate of 3.74 BB/9 and a good, but not great, strikeout rate at 7.68 K/9. Given two starts in the Majors, Mills tried to nibble and lacked confidence in his fastball and curveball, both of which had negative values in a small sample size (7.2 innings). If healthy in 2010, Mills should open the year back in triple-A but he could be one of the first pitchers called up.

7. Travis D’Arnaud, C, Low-A
DOB: February 1989 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2007 supplemental 1st round pick (Philadelphia)
MLB ETA: Late-2012 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
D’Arnaud could be ranked higher on this list but I’m taking the conservative approach as he played at low-A in ‘09. Like Wallace, the club had tried to acquire this catcher via the draft but he was nabbed with the 37th overall pick by the Phillies. Toronto, picking 38th, ended up with Brett Cecil (a nice compensation). D’Arnaud, who turns 21 shortly, hit .255/.319/.419 in 482 at-bats in low-A ball last year (His numbers were depressed by a .279 BABIP). He showed good power potential with 38 doubles and 13 homers (.164 ISO). The catcher also had a pretty good approach at the plate with a walk rate of 7.6% and a strikeout rate of 15.6%. He has a good defensive reputation but he threw out just 23% of base stealers. The system suddenly has good depth at the catching position with the likes or Arencibia, D’Arnaud, and Carlos Perez.

8. Henderson Alvarez, RHP, Low-A
DOB: April 1990 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2006 non-drafted international free agent (Venezuela)
MLB ETA: Mid-2013 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
Repertoire: 88-93 mph fastball, plus change-up, slider
Alvarez is an exciting prospect because his fastball has been gaining velocity over the past two seasons and now sits comfortably in the low 90s, and it has excellent sink. That good downward movement resulted in a ground-ball rate of 51.4% at low-A in ‘09. The right-hander gave up just one homer in 124.1 innings of work, while also posting a 2.43 FIP as a teenager. He also showed excellent control for his age with a walk rate of 1.38 BB/9. Still learning how to set up hitters, Alvarez’ strikeout rate was just 6.66 K/9 but his breaking ball has strikeout potential. He’ll move up to High-A ball in 2010 at the age just 20.

9. Carlos Perez, C, Rookie
DOB: October 1990 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2008 non-drafted international free agent (Venezuela)
MLB ETA: Late-2013 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
The organization has not had much luck handing out large contracts to big-named international free agents, but Perez joins Alvarez and Sierra as one of the Jays’ best under-the-radar Latin signings. The catcher is solid defensive (albeit it with the usual youthful development needs), and he’s also becoming quite a force at the plate thanks to his solid batting eye. Perez, 19, made his North American debut in ‘09 at rookie ball and hit .291/.364/.433 in 141 at-bats. After walking more than he struck out in the Dominican Summer League in ‘08, he posted a respectable walk rate of 9.8% in the Gulf Coast League. He also showed some line-drive pop (.142 ISO) and he is more athletic than most catchers.

10. Danny Farquhar, RHP, Double-A
DOB: February 1987 Bats: R Throws: R
Signed: 2008 10th round – University of Louisiana-Lafayette
MLB ETA: Late-2010 40-Man Roster: No Options: 3
Repertoire: 88-94 mph fastball, cutter, slider, curveball, change-up
There are a number of other prospects that could have slid in here such as Gustavo Pierre, Tyler Pastornicky, Justin Jackson – interestingly enough all shortstops – because the system has so many sleepers in it right now (but few “can’t miss” names). Tim Collins was also an option here, but he projects to be a left-handed reliever, so his ceiling is a little lower than Farquhar who could develop into an eighth-inning guy, if not a closer. The right-hander comes at hitters from a variety of arm angles and can reach the low-90s from a sidearm slot. Perhaps because he throws so many different pitches – and with so many angles – Farquhar’s control has suffered and he posted a walk rate of 5.91 BB/9 in double-A. That obviously has to improve before he’ll have much success in the Majors. Despite that fact, he posted a 10.05 K/9 rate and allowed just one homer and 31 hits in 45.2 innings at the double-A level.

I want to thank all of you that voted in our first poll.  We asked you if you thought Rogers is trying to sell the team.  The "for sure" side stormed out to a huge early lead but eventually got caught by the "no way's".  It ended up being a draw.  Well not exactly.  I voted twice for yes by accident.  So the no's won it and I hope you guys are right because I don't want to watch some untrustworthy American buy my team and threaten to move it to Vegas.

Mission Accomplished

I will give credit where credit is due.  Boy Wonder managed to sign all of his arbitration eligible players before his self imposed deadline of Tuesday January 19.  I was skeptical of his tactics but I guess if you are going to make a change in the way your organization does business, why not do it when none of your stars are involved?  I wonder how the "file-to-go" strategy will hold up next off season when cornerstone Adam Lind becomes salary arbitration eligible for the first time.

"For the most part, two things get deals done, deadlines and having some type of momentum," said Anthopoulos. "The policy we put in place, all it did and all it was designed to do was encourage more dialogue."

He inked projected top of the rotation RHP Shaun Marcum first which tells me he values him the most.  Marcum, 28, signed for $850,000 over double what he made in 2009.  He failed to throw a pitch in the majors last season due to major arm surgery.

"We just had a mini camp down in Florida and everyone said he looked very good," Anthopoulos said. "Right now, we'll continue to evaluate him going into the spring. We'll see how he looks in the spring, but so far the reports have been good."

Then he was able to reach one year agreements with all the remaining players: 
RHP Jason Frasor ($2.65 million US), Shawn Camp ($1.15 million), Jeremy Accardo ($1.08 million) and Casey Janssen ($700,000) all singed on the dotted line.

I am happy to report The Wolverine will be back making bats miss for the reasonable sum of $2 million even.  Nice to see him rewarded for his efforts last season.  He strikes me as a throwback player.  The kinda guy you can count on to do whatever the fuck you need that day.  I think he may have hit the wall last year around July but in all fairness he pitched 161 of his career 370 innings in 2009.  Perhaps he needs to stay in the pen full time where he is more effective.
"I'm going to come in prepared and ready to pitch anywhere from 60 innings to 160-200," Tallet said at the end of the season. "All I have to do is prepare myself mentally and physically to accept whatever role they're willing to give me."
Boy Wonder counter with:  "The fact that he's able to do both roles brings value to us."


Quickly:

The list of shitty minor league free agents added two more names to it.  These types of moves are required when you fail to draft well as an organization over a prolonged period of time. 
"With all these guys we are signing," said Anthopoulos, "we're hoping to catch lightning in a bottle."
And that boys and girls, in my opinion, should be the slogan for your 2010 Toronto Blue Jays.  Problem is we play 162 games in this bitch and unfortunately for us, the cream does tend to rise to the top.

Weekly Round Up : Jan. 11 - 17

We added four more warm bodies to the list of shitty minor league free agents that I gave you all for Christmas last year.  Hey wait a minute.....it looks like a totally different list now!  Back when I gave it to you, the only names on it were: Lance Broadway, Raul Chavez and Joey Gathright.  Fast forward a mere three weeks and the new list contains the names of five of the top prospects in the organization?  Wow, my present is getting better with each passing day.  That is the best type of gift you can either give or receive.

Courtesy of CBSSports Fantasy News:

Blue Jays hand out spring invites	Updated 1/14/2010
News: The Toronto Blue Jays invited the following players to spring training camp: outfielders Jorge Padilla, Chris Lubanski, Adam Loewen and Joey Gathright; infielders Brett Wallace and Jesus Merchan; catchers J.P. Arencibia, Travis d'Arnaud, Brian Jeroloman, Raul Chavez and Kyle Phillips; and pitchers Kyle Drabek, Lance Broadway, Willie Collazo, Zach Jackson, Chad Jenkins and Rommie Lewis.	Analysis: Kyle Drabek, acquired in the Roy Halladay deal, is an elite pitching prospect who can be drafted and stashed in AL-only and long-term keeper leagues. Wallace is one of the better slugger prospects in the minor leagues to start the season, while Arencibia and d'Arnaud are keeper catching prospects. We fully expect these players to begin the year in the minors and hold little in the way of normal value on opening day.

  

Baseball America's Top 10 Prospects list:

1. Kyle Drabek, RHP
2. Brett Wallace, 3B
3. Zach Stewart, RHP
4. J.P. Arencibia, C
5. Travis D'Arnaud, C
6. Chad Jenkins, RHP
7. David Cooper, 1B
8. Henderson Alvarez, RHP
9. Jake Marisnick, OF
10. Josh Roenicke, RHP

Baseball Prospectus Top 15 Prospects list:

Five-Star Prospects:
1. Kyle Drabek, RHP
2. Brett Wallace, 1B
Three-Star Prospects:
3. Travis d'Arnaud, C
4. Chad Jenkins, RHP
5. J.P. Arencibia, C
6. Zach Stewart, RHP
7. Carlos Perez, C
8. Jake Marisnick, OF
9. Henderson Alvarez, RHP
10. Tim Collins, LHP
Two-Star Prospects:
 11. Gustavo Pierre, SS
Four More:
12. Brian Dopirak, 1B: A former top Cub prospect, Dopirak fell off the map, but he’s slugged .549 since coming to Toronto and could have a career as a professional hitter.
13. Josh Roenicke, RHP: He’s a reliever who has outstanding velocity, but is still a prospect in his late 20s due to no dependable breaking ball.
14. Brad Mills, LHP: Mills is a pure finesse arm, but he’s so good at it that he could have big-league value.
15. David Cooper, 1B: Cooper is a 2008 first-rounder who flopped at Double-A. He needs to rebound or be quickly forgotten.

The Rolen trade J.P. managed to pull off last year at the deadline looks pretty good now doesn't it?  I'm still not ready to talk about the Halladay trade.  I remain wallowing in the destructive belief that the return for The Doctor could never, ever be enough.  Maybe in time.....

Quickly: 

According to MLBastian: Boy Wonder has decided to make a big change in the way the organization deals with salary arbitration.  He has implemented a "file-to-go" strategy.  If the club has not reached an agreement with its arbitration eligible players between now and Tuesday January 19th, they will go to an arbitration hearing rather than continue negotiations till mid February.

"I made a change this year," Anthopoulos said. "The thought was really it's hopefully to encourage more dialogue in negotiations with the goal of continuing to avoid arbitration and continuing to try to get deals done and maybe bring both parties to the table a little bit sooner."

Analysis:

Alex, with all due respect sir, I'm not sure how this one is going to work out for you.  Almost half of our major league pitching staff is going to have to be signed in the next four days.  Completely unnecessary change and a very unrealistic deadline.  What teams should be trying to do right now is avoid the entire salary arbitration process like the plague.  The system is set up in such a way to do just that.  If it does go all the way to a hearing, the brain trust are going to have to go on the record saying that (insert player) is not worth (insert dollar figure).  The only logical way to convey this argument is to basically talk smack about the players skills/abilities/numbers/production/character/attitude/potential etc.  Not the types of things an employee would want to be hearing from their current employer.  Especially when there are 29 other soon to be available employers.

Prediction:

Jeremy Accardo is going to salary arbitration.  He's still pissed.  You heard it here first. 

More Quickly:

Your Toronto Blue Jays will be in attendance to watch the Ben Sheets show next week on Tuesday at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.  Shortly thereafter, we will continue to watch him sign a contract with the Evil Empire.