Official Spring Training 2022 thread.

[StringerBell]

Some tough luck for Pearson in his last inning...wonder what the expectation is for him this season. Long inning relief or back end of bullpen?

[LBJKB24MJ23]

Some tough luck for Pearson in his last inning...wonder what the expectation is for him this season. Long inning relief or back end of bullpen?

6th starter potentially i believe. they said they will go with maybe a 6 starter rotation to begin the season etc.

[polo007]

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[Raider917]

who is martinez comparable to at the major league level.

[StringerBell]

Some tough luck for Pearson in his last inning...wonder what the expectation is for him this season. Long inning relief or back end of bullpen?

6th starter potentially i believe. they said they will go with maybe a 6 starter rotation to begin the season etc.

That's interesting, didn't know about them considering a 6 man rotation.

[LBJKB24MJ23]

Some tough luck for Pearson in his last inning...wonder what the expectation is for him this season. Long inning relief or back end of bullpen?

6th starter potentially i believe. they said they will go with maybe a 6 starter rotation to begin the season etc.

That's interesting, didn't know about them considering a 6 man rotation.

just for April.

[polo007]

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[vaff87]

who is martinez comparable to at the major league level.

Maybe like a right handed Rafael Devers or Austin Riley? I would say an average fielding 3B with a strong arm, hits the ball hard with 30-40 HR power. Walk and strikeout rates are probably TBD. But if I were to guess, probably around an average walk rate and little bit worse than average strikeout rate.

[Raider917]

who is martinez comparable to at the major league level.

Maybe like a right handed Rafael Devers or Austin Riley? I would say an average fielding 3B with a strong arm, hits the ball hard with 30-40 HR power. Walk and strikeout rates are probably TBD. But if I were to guess, probably around an average walk rate and little bit worse than average strikeout rate.

but he is a few seasons away? is this bichette not accepting the last offer something to worry about?

[vaff87]

who is martinez comparable to at the major league level.

Maybe like a right handed Rafael Devers or Austin Riley? I would say an average fielding 3B with a strong arm, hits the ball hard with 30-40 HR power. Walk and strikeout rates are probably TBD. But if I were to guess, probably around an average walk rate and little bit worse than average strikeout rate.

but he is a few seasons away? is this bichette not accepting the last offer something to worry about?

Well, he’s 20. He doesn’t turn 21 until November. I’m assuming he starts this year in Hi-A and moves to AA mid-season. At that point, we’ll see how he does there. If he does well there, he’ll probably start next season at AAA. And then he’s just one step away from the majors.

It was only arbitration, right? That’s not important imo. Just means an arbitrator will decide how much he makes this season.

[polo007]

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[GoRapstheoriginal]

A BELATED JAYS WIN! JAYS WIN! WOOHOO! HOORAY! ! ! !

[polo007]

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[polo007]

Blue Jays notebook: Pete Walker apologizes after DUI - TSN.ca

PROSPECT NOTES

- Adrian Hernandez’s changeup is wowing, as expected. Considering he threw it 54 per cent of the time last season as he breezed through three levels of the minor leagues and ended up in Double-A, everybody knows it’s coming — even spring training hitters with just a basic scouting report — but the pitch is still getting some goofy swings with hitters way out in front of the 80-mph offering.

- I always have a few regrets about my yearly top 50 prospects list in spring training when guys show up throwing harder than expected or made some winter adjustment that nobody really knew about. Connor Cooke, a 10th-round pick last summer out of Louisiana-Lafayette, is that guy this year. The 6-foot-1, 203-pound right-hander is touching 98 mph this spring and the fastball data has everyone excited to see him in game action after he threw just five innings in his pro debut, likely at Low-A Dunedin. There’s a chance he’s one of the more interesting starting pitching prospects in the system by this time next year if things go like some think they could.

- No. 4 prospect Jordan Groshans is expected to miss at least a couple weeks after suffering an oblique injury on a swing.

- Addison Barger had a big time confidence builder on Friday, homering off stud right-hander Kevin Gausman in an intrasquad game. Barger hammered a flat fastball a long, long way to right field. Barger’s power is real, but there’s a lot of swing and miss, too. Barger struck out 32.9 per cent of the time last year at Low-A.

- Yosver Zulueta continues to be mysterious, but the Cuban right-hander is healthy and once again showing a lively fastball in the 96-99 mph range. Coming off a torn ACL that he suffered covering first base in his very first start last spring, Zulueta is still absolutely a name to track in the early going.

- After a couple years of elbow troubles, including Tommy John surgery, Eric Pardinho is healthy and throwing bullpens once again. Nobody really knows what to expect, but he could move quickly if the stuff looks anything like it did a few years ago.

- I spent a good portion of one afternoon this week watching a game between Jays and New York Yankees on the backfields at the player development complex, and Estiven Machado was the reason why. Machado, whose season ended with a torn hamstring last year, spent a whole lot of time stretching his legs pre-game, before going out as the second baseman and walking twice and singling up the middle. He’s a breakout candidate.

- Joey Murray was throwing to hitters the other day, showing a fastball from 88-90 mph. I also checked out the spin rate, and it was back above 2,600 rpm after an elbow sprain in 2021.

- Catcher Victor Mesia, who sits at No. 27 on my list, is the name that keeps popping up when I ask about breakout potential with the bat.

- Rikelbin De Castro made a dazzling, big-league play at shortstop in a backfields game against the Yankees. He came in on a ball and made a Tony Fernandez-style play that was pretty to watch.

- The Adrian Pinto acquisition in the Randal Grichuk trade was driven by analytical modelling. He apparently stood out in a big way for at least one of the Jays’ number-crunchers after posting a .360/.486/.543 slash line. Making his 17 per cent walk rate doubly impressive is the fact the Dominican Summer League strike zone is about the size of a football field because the umpires want to get the heck out of there.

- After dealing with visa issues, No. 1 prospect Gabriel Moreno arrived in Jays camp and spent the first couple of days quietly going about his work. Moreno, whose English improves every time I see him and it’s now at the point where he’s very comfortable in casual conversation, said the Jays were trying to give his body a bit of a rest in winter ball, which is why he only saw time as the DH. The visa issues and late start won’t impact Moreno’s season much as he heads to Triple-A Buffalo to start knocking down the door to the big leagues.

[polo007]

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[Schad]

The guys in the truck 100% waited until Castellanos was at the plate for Buck to read the Jays' response to Walker's DUI in the hopes that it'd be a deep drive to left field, didn't they.

[polo007]

Toronto Blue Jays assign 15 players to Minor League Spring Training - TSN.ca

The Toronto Blue Jays have assigned 15 players to Minor League Spring Training. All players remain eligible to play in Grapefruit League games as needed.

Optioned:

• C/RP Hagen Danner

• P Bowden Francis

• RP Thomas Hatch

• INF Leonardo Jimenez

• P Anthony Kay

• INF Otto Lopez

• C Gabriel Moreno

• OF Josh Palacios

Reassigned:

• C/OF Chris Bec

• P Max Castillo

• RP Adrian Hernandez

• P Casey Lawrence

• SS Orelvis Martinez

• RP Fitz Stadler

• OF Chavez Young

The Blue Jays have 47 players remaining in Major League Camp, including 27 pitchers and 17 non-roster invitees.

The Jays are set to open the season on April 8, as they host the Texas Rangers.

[Parataxis]

The Blue Jays have 47 players remaining in Major League Camp, including 27 pitchers and 17 non-roster invitees.

Umm, does this mean something other than what it appears to mean? That adds up to 44 players in their Major League Camp who are either pitchers or non-roster invitees.

Which leaves only 3 rostered position players?

Unless they're counting non-roster pitchers twice?

[Lateral Quicks]

I like what Bird is doing this spring as much as the next guy, but his bat would have to prove above average to keep him on the roster over another guy with more positional versatility. Maybe he's a luxury we can afford early when the rosters are temporarily expanded.

[polo007]

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