Moderator: JaysRule15
ItsDanger wrote:Freeman has played 3B before but I don't recall how good he was there. I like Vladdy at 1B. Seager would have made more sense but not at that price. Or switch Vladdy back to 3B?
Blue Jays 'agressive' but 'discplined' in free agency
Well if this doesn’t tide you over until the end of a wintry lockout, I don’t know what will: Jeff Passan of ESPN reported that the Toronto Blue Jays were very much players in the Corey Seager market, although at the end they were not willing to match the Texas Rangers’ 10-year, $325-million offer.
The immediate reaction, of course, is to put two and two together and assume that means they’d be players in the Carlos Correa market once the new collective bargaining agreement is in place. My guess is they have contacted Correa’s people as well as Freddie Freeman’s, but I don’t know where that leads. I do know from talking to folks familiar with the Blue Jays approach this off-season -- including an agent whose client didn’t sign with them -- that the Jays have been described as being “aggressive” yet “disciplined.” They held firm when Robbie Ray wanted extra money to balance out tax differences and considering Texas has no state income tax, my guess is their willingness to be creative had its limits.
“They’re not cheap, they value players in the same way other big markets value them,” the agent told me. “But they stick to that valuation.”
What has become apparent from talking to people in the industry is that the Blue Jays have been very comfortable selling themselves as a destination for free agents: the city, the lineup, the whole thing. It will be interesting to see how far this “you’re missing out on something special if you don’t sign with us,” message resonates when the off-season resumes. But, man, what a change from the way business used to be done.
People who know Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker believe that he is interested in becoming a manager eventually -- as he should, frankly -- so my guess is the New York Mets job isn’t the last one he will be linked to, either by reporters putting out his name or teams interviewing him. There used to be a predisposition against hiring former pitchers or pitching coaches as managers, but given the way coaching staffs are now constituted and workloads are distributed, that bias will more and more be overcome by a comfort with and ability to communicate the use of technology and analytics. I’m not certain the Mets job is the one I’d choose as a candidate for managerial training wheels, is all.
Toronto Blue Jays
Grade: B
Free agents: RHP Kevin Gausman, 5 years/$110 million; RHP Yimi García, 2 years/$11 million
Waiver claims: RHP Shaun Anderson from Padres
Extensions: RHP José Berríos, 7 years/$131 million
The Blue Jays lost Robbie Ray to the Mariners in free agency, but their pivot to right-hander Kevin Gausman should lead to similar production at the top of the rotation. Gausman, 30, went 14-6 for the Giants last season with a 2.81 ERA and a 1.042 WHIP in 33 starts. The seven-year, $131 million extension to right-hander José Berríos was the Blue Jays’ best move of the offseason and it assures them a strong rotation for the next several years. They did lose Marcus Semien to the Rangers in free agency, which is a huge blow on the field and in the clubhouse. The Blue Jays now seek to balance their lineup with a left-handed hitter or a switch hitter, and it will be interesting to see which direction they go to land one. They pursued the left-handed hitting Corey Seager before he signed with the Rangers, and don’t be surprised if they sign his brother Kyle Seager, another left-handed hitter, to play third base.
polo007 wrote:
4. Toronto Blue Jays
Biggest need: Bat to replace Marcus Semien
Potential targets: Carlos Correa, Trevor Story, Seiya Suzuki, Matt Chapman, Kyle Seager, Josh Harrison, Freddie Freeman
The Blue Jays have a lot of moving parts -- they would like to trade one of the four catchers on their 40-man roster (not prospect Gabriel Moreno), they've been rumored to be shopping Randal Grichuk, and they likely will add another starter to fill out the rotation. The biggest priority, however, should be replacing Semien. They have flexibility here:
• They could sign one of the shortstops and move Bo Bichette, who ranked in just the sixth percentile among shortstops in Statcast's Outs Above Average metric, to second base.
• They could go after a third baseman -- Chapman in a trade, Seager as a free agent -- and let Santiago Espinal and Cavan Biggio handle second base. Seager would provide a lefty bat in Toronto's righty-heavy lineup.
• They could sign Harrison to play second base.
• Or maybe they go in a completely different direction. The Blue Jays have reportedly been interested in Freeman and Suzuki, which does suggest they're looking for another big bat. Freeman feels like an awkward fit with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first base, but maybe the Jays would move the slimmed down Guerrero back to third (it seems way too early in his career to make him a permanent DH).
What they should do: Sign Correa. Toronto's current payroll via Cot's Contracts is $159 million. They should be operating closer to the Yankees and Red Sox. Dumping Grichuk's $10.3 million would help in that area. Realistically, with George Springer, Jose Berrios and Kevin Gausman on $100 million-plus deals and Guerrero and Bichette coming up in the future, Correa might be too pricey for the Blue Jays' comfort level. In that case, Seager can plug in at third base for a year and they can use their farm system depth to acquire one of the Cincinnati or Oakland starters.
2. Toronto Blue Jays
Midterm grade: A
Beginning pennants: 888 | Current pennants: 1,191
Change: 303 | Wins baseline: 91.7
What's changed: The Blue Jays' initial glimpse did not include Kevin Gausman in their rotation. Now it does. The Jays also added a key bullpen arm in Yimi Garcia.
What's left to do: It's really all gravy from here. Like every team, Toronto needs to add pitching depth, particularly in the rotation. Some might see a closer as a need, though I like Jordan Romano in that role just fine. Mostly Toronto can just keep probing the top of the remaining free-agent list for that one additional splash that could put them over the top in the tough AL East.
A Nov. 30 Business Insider report by Bradford William Davis, based upon research from astrophysicist Meredith Wills, found there were two kinds of baseballs in play in 2021: a new ball and the previous variant. But MLB reportedly didn't bother to tell teams or players about this, at least not in clear terms. The new ball is slightly lighter, designed to travel a shorter distance when hit in the air - one to two feet less on a 375-foot fly ball, MLB said.
raf1995 wrote:I just don’t think he has that kind of potential. I think we will regret not trading him for a haul in a few years when he’s a mid-tier starter with nice playmaking and defense and a shaky jumper.
