HIRE A COACHING STAFF
Now that Gibbons has been brought back into the fold to lead the revamped lineup, he’ll soon have to make decisions on who will join his coaching staff. He said Tuesday he’s hoping to name his staff “within the next week or two.”
Torey Lovullo and Brian Butterfield, the Jays’ first and third base coaches the last two seasons, followed Farrell to Boston so there are at least two vacancies. It’s also unclear whether Gibbons will bring back hitting coach Dwayne Murphy, pitching coach Bruce Walton, associate coach Luis Rivera and bench coach Don Wakamatsu, who were all hired by Farrell.
Walton, who has been with the Jays since 2002, was the bullpen coach during Gibbons’ first go-round in Toronto, so he is certainly familiar to the incoming skipper. But Brad Arnsberg, the man Gibbons hired to be his pitching coach in Toronto in 2005 and served throughout his initial tenure, is available as a potential replacement. Mickey Brantley, another former member of Gibbons’ staff, is also available as a potential base coach or as a replacement for Murphy.
Sal Fasano, who last year managed the Jays’ Double-A affiliate in New Hampshire, could be due for a promotion to the big-league coaching staff. Lastly, Chad Mottola, a highly regarded hitting coach who last year served in Triple-A Las Vegas, could be added to Gibbons’ staff as Murphy’s replacement or as his associate.
ADD ANOTHER STARTING PITCHER
Even after adding a pair of veteran starters in right-hander Josh Johnson and lefty Mark Buehrle, Anthopoulos said Tuesday that the Jays are still interested in adding depth to their starting rotation.
“I like the five guys that we have right now,” Anthopoulos said, referring to Johnson, Buehrle, Brandon Morrow, Ricky Romero and J.A. Happ. “But we don’t have a lot of depth behind those guys.”
The latest rumours have the Jays potentially interested in 2012 Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey, if they can sign the knuckleballer to an extension. The Jays could also target one of the second-tier free-agent starters, who include Edwin Jackson and Anibal Sanchez.
DEAL WITH THE CATCHING LOGJAM
The Jays currently have four catchers on their 40-man roster: starter J.P. Arencibia, the recently acquired John Buck, waiver claim Bobby Wilson, and Travis d’Arnaud, the organization’s top prospect who is expected to make his major-league debut at some point this season.
But on Tuesday, Anthopoulos suggested he was in no rush to deal any of his backstops. Arencibia will start, Buck is the backup, and d’Arnaud and Wilson will begin the year in the minors.
D’Arnaud, MVP of the Double-A Eastern League in 2011, missed the second half of last season with a knee injury and has yet to play a full year in Triple-A.
“We just want to see him get back, hopefully have a good spring training, go down to the minor leagues, get his swing back and we’ll worry about him hopefully when he’s having a great year down there and he can make our decision hard,” Anthopoulos said Tuesday.
It’s a sensible plan to start the season, but the Arencibia-d’Arnaud quandary will come to a head at some point this year because there simply isn’t room for both of them. With a thin off-season catching market, the time to strike a deal may be now.
In response to his name being mentioned in various online rumours, Arencibia tweeted three words earlier this month: “Not going anywhere.”
The Jays actually have a fifth catcher on the 40-man roster, A.J. Jimenez, but the 22-year-old prospect is likely to repeat Double-A New Hampshire this season after missing most of last year after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm.
SIGN OR TRADE FOR ANOTHER BAT
Last week’s Cabrera signing filled the biggest hole in the Jays’ lineup, but there remains something of a question mark at the designated hitter slot, where Adam Lind remains the best choice.
Ideally, Lind would platoon as DH, seeing only right-handed pitching while occasionally giving Edwin Encarnacion a day off from first base. Throughout his career, Lind has hit .282 vs. right-handed pitching, compared to .220 vs. lefties. There is potentially one more spot on the Jays’ bench, which could be filled by a right-handed bat to balance Lind.
http://www.thestar.com/sports/baseball/article/1291215--what-s-left-on-the-blue-jays-off-season-to-do-list
