General Blue Jays Thread

polo007 · Post #1921 » by **polo007** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 3:28 pm

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bluerap23 · Post #1922 » by **bluerap23** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 3:31 pm

polo007 wrote:

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Why did they need to pull Ryu off the DL?

Isn’t he going to miss the majority of the upcoming season?

Parataxis · Post #1923 » by **Parataxis** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 4:39 pm

bluerap23 wrote:Why did they need to pull Ryu off the DL?

Isn’t he going to miss the majority of the upcoming season?

IIRC, players aren't allowed to be on the 60 day during the offseason, to prevent teams from gaming the system and putting non-injured players on there to open space.

I do wish they had a long-term injury exception though

polo007 · Post #1924 » by **polo007** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 6:22 pm

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Post #1925 » by **Schad** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 6:48 pm

Fully on board with any and all efforts to trade for Lars Nootbaar because, and I cannot stress this enough, his name is Lars Nootbaar.

polo007 · Post #1926 » by **polo007** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 7:23 pm

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polo007 · Post #1927 » by **polo007** » Sat Nov 12, 2022 10:49 pm

Blue Jays face tough choice behind the plate - MLB.com

It’s a rare and fascinating problem to have, with three starting-calibre options stockpiled at a position that’s thin across baseball. Teams in need of catching have been calling the Blue Jays all year, and Ross Atkins’ cell phone is only getting hotter between this week’s GM Meetings in Las Vegas and December’s Winter Meetings in San Diego.

As the Blue Jays look to make the jump to World Series contender, trading a catcher is their best bet at significantly upgrading the club without necessarily spending big money. This won’t be a matter of options -- they’ll have plenty -- but instead of motivation and finding the right fit.

“Our catching has been interesting to other teams for years,” Atkins said. “It’s another good position to be in, having a decent understanding of where the levels of interest are, specifically who they are on and understanding if that is best for us, to push forward in that area. It’s fun for us to think about all three of them on our team. Whether that’s for all 162 games and the playoffs, we’ll see, but it’s a really good starting point.”

Translation? The Blue Jays know the market. They’re in control here.

We’re talking about three very different catchers, though, which is an important starting point.

Danny Jansen (27): 15 HR, .855 OPS in 72 games
Control: Two years remaining

Main attraction: Jansen’s power surge is real, a result of a change in approach that has allowed him to lean into his identity as a pull hitter. Jansen is the most sensible trade option, but he is also highly valued within the organization for his experience and ability to manage pitchers. He can step in as a full-time starter for a contender right away.

Alejandro Kirk (24): 14 HR, .285 average, .786 OPS in 139 games
Control: Four years remaining

Main attraction: Kirk is a rare offensive talent at catcher and just added an AL Silver Slugger Award to his All-Star season. How he’ll hold up physically into his late 20s and early 30s is a major factor here, but he has made strides defensively and his bat fits in any lineup. Kirk fits best as a 1A with a 1B alongside him.

Gabriel Moreno (22): .319 average, .733 OPS in 25 MLB games
Control: Six years remaining

Main attraction: Moreno was one of baseball’s top prospects entering 2022 and showed flashes of why in his MLB debut, controlling the run game and contributing at the plate. Moreno has the upside of a perennial All-Star, and while his power dipped last season following a delayed start to his year, he’s still dripping with potential and could even have some positional versatility at third base or left field.

There are clearly tiers here. Jansen fits as an immediate plug-and-play piece for a contending team over the next two years. Moreno would be the centerpiece of a big swing and Kirk would be valued toward that end of the spectrum as well. Jansen is the likeliest of the group to be moved, but not overwhelmingly so.

Free agency matters, too. The open market offers Willson Contreras and a handful of other starting options, so the Blue Jays may need to wait for that to play out. Frankly, there’s no rush here.

wamco · Post #1928 » by **wamco** » Sun Nov 13, 2022 1:37 pm

Schad wrote:Fully on board with any and all efforts to trade for Lars Nootbaar because, and I cannot stress this enough, his name is Lars Nootbaar.

Dig even deeper my friend.

Full Name: Lars Taylor-Tatsuji Nootbaar

polo007 · Post #1929 » by **polo007** » Sun Nov 13, 2022 3:52 pm

Bullpen on radar as Blue Jays prepare 'full steam' for start of free agency - Sportsnet.ca

With everyone from the ’22 bullpen set to return except for David Phelps, one or two additional relievers should be enough, as long as they offer enough upside. On that front there’s ample selection.

Suarez, for instance, posted a 2.27 ERA for the San Diego Padres in 2022 thanks to a fastball that averaged 97.9 m.p.h. and an effective change-up. He struck out 31.9 per cent of the hitters he faced, well above the MLB average of 22.1 per cent, and now seems poised to land a multi-year deal.

Now that Edwin Diaz has re-signed with the New York Mets, the top of the relief market features the likes of right-handers Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, Rafael Montero and David Robertson along with left-hander Taylor Rogers. At least two of those relievers — Martin and Robertson — were on the Blue Jays’ radar this summer, but it’s not clear if free-agent talks have taken place.

It stands to reason that the Blue Jays will have interest in Martin, who leads free-agent relievers in FIP (2.18), strikeout rate (32.9 per cent) and walk rate (2.2 per cent). Those numbers mean there’s sure to be plenty of competition for the 36-year-old, who pitched for the Cubs and Dodgers in 2022.

One way or another, there’s some depth to this market should the Blue Jays’ top choices land elsewhere. Of course their best-case scenario includes internal development as well as outside acquisitions and there’s renewed optimism around Nate Pearson, who has pitched nine scoreless innings in the Dominican Winter League, striking out 11 while walking just three.

While the Blue Jays haven’t completely ruled out the possibility that Pearson starts, they’d be equally pleased if he becomes a bulk pitcher who contributes 100 innings, the majority of which likely come out of the bullpen.

“Nate is at a point right now where he wants to be on a major league roster,” Atkins said. “He's excited about his stuff and he's excited about his ability to make an impact. We've seen the benefits of that. So the spectrum of him being a starting pitcher for us versus a relief pitcher has obviously changed over the course of the last three years. I don't think Nate wants to take starting pitching out of the equation, but the likelihood of him impacting us as a reliever has increased over the years.”

Even if all goes well, it'll be months before Pearson gets the chance to prove himself against more advanced competition. In the meantime, the Blue Jays will continue exploring free agency here in Las Vegas. And if they get their wish, those reinforcements might even come sooner than later.