Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos took in the Vancouver Canadians-Tri City Dust Devils game Sunday and met with reporters before the game. He touched on a number of topics:
On the possibility of former C's pitchers Justin Nicolino and Noah Syndergaard returning here from Lansing to help the C's in the post-season: "We haven't talked about that. This [Vancouver)]team has made a nice little run. It's one of those things where this team has played so well and made a run. I guess we'll re-evaluate that."
On the state of the Jays' minor league organization, rated one of the best in baseball: "We're very pleased. I'm very pleased for the staff. My name will get thrown around but there's not a lot of accolades for the staff down there, working hard, getting these kids better. The farm system has been great this year."
On fourth-round June draft pick Tom Robson of Ladner: "From what I understand he's really wanted to be a Blue Jay. His work ethic and makeup is off the charts. He even helped out before he was signed with some of the camps, which is pretty telling of the type of character he has. He wasn't drafted because of his [Canadian] passport. That just happens to be a nice bonus. He has a world of ability."
On the current Blue Jays: "It's a very young team. We're still going to be going through some growing pains, but I think the fans are getting excited because they know these guys have a high ceiling, a lot of upside and a chance to be with the club a long time. That's what we're trying to do, have this thing timed right, get everybody together for a certain period of time and then when we do need to make changes or trades we have enough talent at the minor level to make those changes. And then the final piece is to supplement in free agency."
On adding more Canadian content: "Some people just assume you get a Canadian player and that will fill the stadium. We've seen it in the past, if you get a Canadian player who has the ability to be a star or an impact player, that's what it comes down to. Our fans have embraced players who weren't Canadian who are stars. I don't know that the passport really matters that much. I think [Langley rookie] Brett Lawrie, whether he was Dominican or Venezuelan, would still be a fan favourite because of the way he plays the game. I think the fact that you can take even more pride that he's Canadian is great. But I think it's the type of player, high energy, speed, power, hardnosed. Being Canadian just adds to it."
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