Jays Off-Season Plan

[Test of Wills]

This is my off-season plan for the Toronto Blue Jays...

Firstly, we need to fire J.P Ricciardi, he in my IMO has done a horrific job here in his tenure as he has made some questionable decisions from drafting Rick Romero before Tulowitzki and Pelfrey to signing Vernon Wells to a lucrative deal. He is not the solution for the long-term...

We then need to hire a very smart GM that has some experience in the league... That new GM should decide whether to keep Cito Gaston or to hire a new manager himself... I say keep him as he is great with young players like Rios and Lind..

1) We should make it clean and clear that this team needs to start to rebuild....

2) Let AJ Burnett walk away as a free agent...
Burnett is inconsistent as he throws a 2-3 hitter one game and gets blown out the next start, he has also made it clear he wants to go to a city where baseball is day and night...AJ is also a unhealthy pitcher as he is always getting minor injuries and he isn't necessarily young as he is in his prime...As of that I say we let him walk and move forward..

3) Tell Roy Halladay we're in rebuilding mode and if he wants to be traded then do so...
I say we trade Roy Halladay to the Dodgers for Clayton Kershaw,James Loney,Josh Bell and 2 other prospects...

4) Sign Jon Garland and Rafael Furcal...

5) Let Thigpen and Diaz fight out the backup catcher position...

Open Season with a lineup of:

SS Furcal
LF Lind
RF Rios
CF Wells
1B Loney
3B Rolen
C Barajas
2B Hill

Garland
McGowan
Marcum
Kershaw
Purcey

[arrpy]

Not bad, I really like your ideas.

[Raptors90102]

How are we in a rebuilding mode when we're keeping Wells? Why just trade Halladay?

I'd rather promote prospects from within the organization instead of trading our best player (Doc) for prospects to stay stuck somewhere in the middle of rebuilding and competing. Snider, Cecil, Arencibia, Cooper, Diaz, Campbell, Dopirak all look good for next year. I'd rather take a flyer on these guys and plug a couple in the lineup than trade Halladay away.

Here's what I'd do.

1- Let Burnett walk as he'll be looking for a bumper deal and a better city. We can use the first pick and a sandwich pick we get in return to continue our good drafting from the past couple of years.

2- Get Mr. Rogers to pony up some money and sign a power bat at the DH spot. We need a power cleanup guy badly.

3- We can't depend on Rolen and his injury history. Perhaps we could use Snider and Rolen in a platoon situation? I don't know how well Snider can play 3B.

4- Trade overbay + Fraser + Thigpen + Pick(s) for a legit upgrade at 1B with better power numbers. I don't know whats available out there but I'd explore the possibility of getting someone with legit pop and power numbers to play the 1st base.

5- I'd like to keep Inglett, Johnny Mac, Stairs, Barajas and Scutaro on the roster.

I'd go with this lineup:

RF Rios
1B --- trade for one ---
2B Hill
CF Wells
DH --- ? ---
LF Lind
3B Rolen
C Barajas
SS Johnny Mac

Halladay
McGowan
Marcum
Purcey
Richmond / Cecil / Listch / Another FA pitcher?

Also, McGowan cannot be rlied upon, coming back from surgeory, who knows how fit or effective he will be. Add to it the fact that Jensen won't be ready either and our rotation with Burnett loses a lot of firepower. I am not a big fan of Garland to be honest with you. He seems to be close to what AJ is in terms of potentail wins and losses totals and he will cost an upwards of 10 mill per anyways. I'd rather pay AJ a couple of more millions and keep him instead of going after Garland. Just my opinion.

Platoon guys:
Scutaro
Stairs
Inglett
Snider
Diaz / Anercibia

Bullpen:
Downs
League
Carlson
BJ
Tallet
Accardo
Camp

[evilRyu]

yeah, i was also a bit confused.. if we tell halladay we are rebuilding, and then sign Garland AND Furcal to contracts, that wouldn't be rebuilding at all, more like reloading.

that proposed lineup looks awesome, but i really don't know if we can attain those quality players mentioned.

Also, what's the status of overbay's contract? do you plan on having him as a bench player?

[jalenrose#5]

Here's how you go about doing it...

Our Current Roster (*Indicates Upcoming FA)

C Barajas*/Zaun*
1B Overbay
2B Inglett
SS Scutaro/McDonald/Eckstein*
3B Rolen (INJ)
LF Lind/Wilkerson*
CF Wells
RF Rios/Mench*

DH Stairs*/(Thomas*(contract is gone))

SP Doc, AJ**, Marcum, McGowan(INJ), Litsch, Purcey
RP Camp, Carlson, Frasor, Tallet, Downs, League, Ryan

INJ: 2B/SS Hill, SP/RP Janssen, RP Accardo

Now Holes in this lineup include....

-Power from the Corner Infielders
-DH Power Bat
-A reliable batting and fielding shortstop
-Some outfield Depth
-A leadoff batter

With the Impending FA's, the best way to fill them is like this...

-Can't fill the 1B/3B power bat here. I think Overbay and Rolen are better hitters than they've shown. I think having a power bat in the lineup will make them better hitters. Two of the best fielding guys at their positions.

-The DH power bat will filled via FA. Guys I'd go after are Pat Burrell and Adam Dunn. We don't necessarily need a good average hitter...but i'd like one who has a HIGH OPS.

-The shortstop position in the Jays farm system is very weak aside from Justin Jackson, who is at least 3 years away. If I was the GM, I'd be throwing the nuts, the legumes, or whatever at Rafael Furcal. He can bat at the top of the order, steals, hits for power and has great range. He's make the Jays instant contenders.

-OF depth can be filled via free agency as well. Guys I'd look at are Travis Snider of course, Jay Payton, Corey Patterson and Juan Rivera. Payton's a little older, but i'm just looking for a reliable guy to bat the odd time.

-Lastly, with the emergence of Joe Inglett and the steady play of Scotty Campbell, I really think the Jays should look into dealing Aaron Hill. I really don't have a deal off the top of my head...I just want to think about it.

-Also, Brian Tallet or BJ Ryan have to go. We have 4 lefties in the pen...a lefty in the pen is a luxury, many teams would kill to have 3....we have 4.

-Guys I'd resign: Rod Barajas

Roster 2009

C Barajas/Jeroloman
1B Overbay
2B Hill/Inglett
SS Furcal/McDonald
3B Rolen/Scutaro
LF Lind
CF Wells
RF Rios

DH Burrell (would absolutely rock the Rogers Center)

SP: Halladay, McGowan, Marcum, Janssen, Purcey/Romero/Litsch/Cecil

RP: Camp, Carlson, Frasor, Accardo, Downs, League, Ryan

[TR50]

If we were playing Sider, only one thing i'd want for him, let him play as a full time guy...unless he is really really raw and needs to go down. I wouldn't want him sitting watching...sure give him more frequent days off but i'd want him to be an everyday guy.

[brwnman]

Outlook on the Upcoming Off-Season (Additions and Subtractions)

This is how I view it. We have 4 positions where we can use an upgrade and have an ability to get it. Our outfield is set. We need an upgrade DH (Magglio would fill that, Manny is another option, Burrell to a lesser extent; Also got guys like Milton Bradley [big injury risk], Giambi, Floyd, and Ibanez). Then lets turn our attention to the 2 corner spots. It's about faith.

Overbay can really pass, because he is still in his prime, and he admitted that his hand is still bothering him, but he's getting through it. Also, he gets on base the most, so I am not sure you want to trade the player who gets out the least and plus, he has a reasonable contract.

Then, we move on to Scott Rolen. Personally, I think we need to get rid of him, but the problem is, that there aren't any third basemen that are worth getting on the FA market, so anything coming should be via a trade. Scott Rolen might be a guy who the Jays will say, let him come back healthy next year as he was battling injuries all year this season. I don't know how much I buy that, because he really hasn't hit in a while and his injury isn't going away. (One name that might have some interest, but he is another injury risk - Garciaparra).

Lets move on to the catcher position. The better player in Zaun is getting benched, because pitchers love Barajas and he can throw behind the plate. The right move would be a platoon, but that would never happen so going into next year, we are looking at Barajas' option being picked up and Diaz being the backup most likely. There isn't much at that position either in the FA market, so here we might have to stay status quo.

Now, the revolving door of SS. It's gonna revolve once more for next year. This depends a lot on Aaron Hill's health. Worst-case scenario, the jays are thinking moving Aaron to SS and Inglett and Scutaro manning second base. Personally, I don't like it. You need a full-time player there. Also, if you're gonna put Aaron Hill at SS, then there is the perfect guy at second base waiting for us, that wants us to call him - the O' DOG. Orlando Hudson was turning the corner as a hitter in Toronto, and well he has become a very very solid hitter in the NL for the Diamondbacks. Having Hudson and Hill healthy up the middle is the best Toronto could hope for and they would really be perfect and I wouldn't touch that for the next 3-4 years.

Let's say the Jays want Aaron Hill to be at second base and he is healthy, and they just go shop for a SS, there are a couple of options. Edgar Renteria and Rafael Furcal. Furcal has been injured, but when healthy, I really like him as a lead-off hitter, he is a sparkplug. Renteria is just a NL hitter I guess. He has been a monstear in the NL and in the AL, he has struggled both times. I thought he was done in Boston, but then he rebounded with two very solid seasons. After that, it goes back to the trade market for the Jays. One guy that keeps coming up is Young, but asking price might be Marcum/McGowan plus couple of other prospects, which is not feasible for the Jays. They can afford to lose Purcey or Cecil and a couple of bullpen guys, because they have replacement, but Marcum and McGowan are key for the future.

Realistically, I think the Jays are two bats (or two major upgrades of the four positions mentioned) and a relatively healthy season away from contending. Jays do have some money coming for next year. Most likely for only one bat and the other one will require some creativity. My preferences are Manny Ramirez and Michael Young when it comes to our additions. With a healthy Hill, Overbay, Rolen and Wells and also having Rios and Lind to round out our regulars is enough to contend in my opinion. My preference at catcher would be a platoon but with Zaun pretty much not coming back, we have to hope we get enough hitting out of Barajas and Diaz to make it through. On the pitching side, as much as the Jays need A.J. back, there is a very very good chance he won't be back, but our top 3 with Halladay, Marcum and McGowan is solid and our bullpen is as good as any. To round out the starters, as it stands now, it is Litsch and Purcey. However, from knowing J.P. and really the whole Jays brass, they will add a starter. A guy who is once again on the market and will catch the Jays' eye is Matt Clement. He is available and Arnsberg's affection might bring him over like we did with A.J. a few years back and Clement will be affordable. There are some intriguing names that either won't be affordable or won't be interested (Pedro, Dempster, Maddux, Penny, Prior, Wolf).

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- My response to someone saying that we need a FA pitcher regardless, because with Litsch and Purcey in the back of the rotation, it's too shaky.

As for pitching, I would definitely like another veteran starter. A.J. Burnett has probably most likely priced himself out of our range and I would rather have that money go to the bats anyways. Matt Clement is probably a good gamble. Mark Prior is intriguing but he hasn't shown that he can be healthy for a while now, but an incentive laden contract might not be a bad gamble either. I am not too fond of Wolf. Maddux is solid, but I think he is getting up there in age, also he likes pitching in the NL West. Pedro is probably not gonna come over. Dempster just earned himself a huge contract after the year he is having. Penny is having a horrible year, but teams will take a chance on him, it was only a year ago that he started in the All-star game...

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So i just pretty much copied and pasted my thoughts from ish to here. We're too close to trade Halladay, we are not a rebuilding team, more like re-tooling. Garland will cost us more than to just go within the system, also, it's better if we do it within the system so we can spend our dough on hitting. The ideas posted above are realistic ideas to ideas that have been mentioned to the bluejays before.

[Relentless88]

Sign Paul Lo Duca to split time with Rod. Throw money at Furcal. Bring in Snider to DH. Sign Joe Crede to play first, if we move Overbay. Eckstein, Wilkerson, Mench all walk.

SS - Rafael Furcal
1B - Joe Crede
2B - Aaron Hill
3B - Scott Rolen
DH - Travis Snider
RF - Alex Rios
CF - Vernon Wells
LF - Adam Lind
C - Rod Barajas

Bench: Joe Inglett, Marco Scutaro, Matt Stairs, Paul Lo Duca, Johnny Mac.

Burnett opts out, we get 2 first round picks. Halladay, Marcum, and McGowan fill 3 spots of the rotation. Sign Derek Lowe, or any cheaper but solid replacement for Burnett. 5th spot goes to either Litsch/Purcey/Janssen. Maybe Randy Wolf who will be really cheap and gets a lot of Ks.

Roy Halladay
Derek Lowe
Shaun Marcum
Dustin McGowan
Listch/Purcey/Janssen/???

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Like we say every year before a new season, this team will make the playoffs.

[Raptor04]

I did something similar to this under the topic "Looking Ahead: Jays Roster". But here's my fresh idea:

1. Let AJ walk. Receive 2 compensation picks

2. Sign Pat Burrell. Like said before, he would rock the Rogers Centre and he's exactly the power bat we need.

3. Pick up Barajas team option

4. Trade Overbay, McGowan, Frasor and a future pick for a star pitcher (maybe someone like Aaron Harang from the Cincinatti Reds since they're rebuilding).

5. Promote Arencibia and Brett Cecil from the Minors

BATTING ORDER:

1. Aaron Hill (2B)
2. Adam Lind (LF)
3. Alex Rios (RF)
4. Vernon Wells (CF)
5. Pat Burrell (DH)
6. Scott Rolen (3B)
7. Rod Barajas (C)
8. Travis Snider (1B)
9. John McDonald (SS)

-Arencibia (C)
-Scutaro (everything but CF and C)
-Inglett (everything but CF, C and 1B)
-(TBN FA)

PITCHING-

SP- Roy Halladay
SP- (Star Pitcher TBN)
SP- Shaun Marcum
SP- Jesse Litsch
SP- David Purcey

RP- Brian Tallet
RP- Jesse Carlson
RP- Jeremy Accardo
RP- Scott Downs
RP- Casey Janssen
CP- BJ Ryan

Our team is set. This is a very realistic plan because we don't have to increase our payroll to make this happen. In terms of hitting, our players have a better approach from the beginning of the season under Cito Gaston. All of Lind, Rios, Wells and Burrel of 25+ homerun seasons and 90+ RBI seasons. Hill is a good contact hitter so I put him as our leadoff guy. Barajas and Rolen have hit before in their careers but are moreso in the lineup for defensive purposes. Speaking of which, our defense is really good with Hill, McDonald, Rolen, Rios, Wells and Barajas all great defenders. In terms of pitching, we have 3 lock down pitchers in Halladay, (TBN) and Marcum. Litsch and Purcey have the talent and are more than capable of keeping us in ballgames with an improved offense.

Thoughts?