2012 Toronto Blue Jays Thread

[Champ Kind]

Wow, what a trade.  I love opening up TSN.ca and seeing this front-and-centre.  Sargaent Rob, you're dead on, this is going to be one of the fastest teams in all of baseball.  Hope they hire and aggressive manager, but depending if Gose makes the team (left field?) you've got 4 guys who will likely steal 40+ bases (Reyes, Davis, Gose, Bonifacio) and 2 more with 20+ (Lawrie and Izturis).

I still think the team needs a big bat.  Assuming EE is penciled in at first base, a quality bat at DH or left field is still needed.  Looks like Arencibia is going to be trade fodder.

But realistically speaking, starting pitching and the bullpen look to be quite strong, the infield is fast, flexible, and at the very least better than average defensively.  And assuming Joey Bats comes back strong and Rasmus can at least maintain a 25 HR - 80RBI pace, then this team is going to be dramatically better next year.

 

[maplesyrup]

I'm wondering If Rasmus could be dealt. Put Boni in left, Gose in center, and you still have Davis as your 4th.

 

[Joe S.]

JP Morosi speculates that the Jays should again reach out to Bobby Cox for the managerial job. Apparently they contacted him earlier and he said no, but this was before the trade. Could the promise of contending for a playoff spot lure Cox back to Toronto? It's still a huge long-shot.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/bobby-cox-toronto-blue-jays-could-blockbuster-trade-lure-him-out-of-retirement-111312

Bobby Cox? Isn't he in his late 80s?

 

[Kin]

Wow, what a trade.  I love opening up TSN.ca and seeing this front-and-centre.  Sargaent Rob, you're dead on, this is going to be one of the fastest teams in all of baseball.  Hope they hire and aggressive manager, but depending if Gose makes the team (left field?) you've got 4 guys who will likely steal 40+ bases (Reyes, Davis, Gose, Bonifacio) and 2 more with 20+ (Lawrie and Izturis).

Realistically a maximum of three of the first group will play everyday and I think one is more likely. Davis really shouldn't be getting regular at-bats and isn't very good defensively. Gose, I think, needs at least another year of minor league pitching. Bonifacio is a good ballplayer but if the team has an abundance of speed I don't know if he's going to hit enough to justify being an everyday LF.

I think the line-up, as of right now, looks like this

Reyes
Lawrie
Bautista
Encarnacion
Rasmus
Whatever happens at DH/1B
Whatever happens at Catcher
Whatever happens in LF
Izturis/Bonifacio at 2B

At this point I think the Jays are going to need to go find someone at DH and in Left who can actually hit.

 

[Andy007]

JP Morosi speculates that the Jays should again reach out to Bobby Cox for the managerial job. Apparently they contacted him earlier and he said no, but this was before the trade. Could the promise of contending for a playoff spot lure Cox back to Toronto? It's still a huge long-shot.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/bobby-cox-toronto-blue-jays-could-blockbuster-trade-lure-him-out-of-retirement-111312

Bobby Cox? Isn't he in his late 80s?

71

 

[Andy007]

I'm wondering If Rasmus could be dealt. Put Boni in left, Gose in center, and you still have Davis as your 4th.

I don't see that point of that as that would make the outfield, where there is already a hole in left, that much worse.

Now if you want to sign Swisher as a FA or acquire Upton in a trade then that's another story.

 

[Kin]

JP Morosi speculates that the Jays should again reach out to Bobby Cox for the managerial job. Apparently they contacted him earlier and he said no, but this was before the trade. Could the promise of contending for a playoff spot lure Cox back to Toronto? It's still a huge long-shot.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/bobby-cox-toronto-blue-jays-could-blockbuster-trade-lure-him-out-of-retirement-111312

Bobby Cox? Isn't he in his late 80s?

71

I don't see how Bobby Cox is even that much of a get. He won a bunch of division titles behind the best rotation in the history of baseball but could only manage one world series win in a strike shortened year. Even if he is all there it's not like he's got a great history of being a tactical manager.  John Schuerholz was the genius in Atlanta.

 

[Deebo]

JP Morosi speculates that the Jays should again reach out to Bobby Cox for the managerial job. Apparently they contacted him earlier and he said no, but this was before the trade. Could the promise of contending for a playoff spot lure Cox back to Toronto? It's still a huge long-shot.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/bobby-cox-toronto-blue-jays-could-blockbuster-trade-lure-him-out-of-retirement-111312

Bobby Cox? Isn't he in his late 80s?

71

I don't see how Bobby Cox is even that much of a get. He won a bunch of division titles behind the best rotation in the history of baseball but could only manage one world series win in a strike shortened year. Even if he is all there it's not like he's got a great history of being a tactical manager.  John Schuerholz was the genius in Atlanta.

I didn't realize the strike carried over into the 1995 season.

 

[Kin]

I didn't realize the strike carried over into the 1995 season.

See? I don't just entertain, I educate.

 

[Corn Flake]

I don't see how Bobby Cox is even that much of a get. He won a bunch of division titles behind the best rotation in the history of baseball but could only manage one world series win in a strike shortened year. Even if he is all there it's not like he's got a great history of being a tactical manager.  John Schuerholz was the genius in Atlanta.

I agree.  Cox just feels like a throwback idea and he's really past his time. A more "modern era" Manager with a reasonable amount of experience and who isn't quite as surly with well.... everyone... would be a far better idea I think. 

Ego management is going to be a big part of the new Manager's job, especially after this deal.  It was a challenge before and it will be even more now. I'm guessing AA believes that Behrule and Buck are going to help out in that regard, but keeping the Lawries and the like from acting like idiots on the basepaths, staring down/yelling at umpires or otherwise is a big job.

 

[bustaheims]

At this point I think the Jays are going to need to go find someone at DH and in Left who can actually hit.

Preferably a left-handed power hitter like, I don't know, Josh Hamilton. 8)

 

[L K]

Yeah, Davis really shouldn't get more than 200 at bats IMO.  He probably could been a pinch runner nearly every game though. 

What I do like is that they have some versatility in the lineup for defensive match ups.  They still could desperately use a power bat to augment 1B/DH/LF but I like the versatility that AA put in place with a deep rotation and a few guys who aren't bad bench bats.

 

[Corn Flake]

At this point I think the Jays are going to need to go find someone at DH and in Left who can actually hit.

Preferably a left-handed power hitter like, I don't know, Josh Hamilton. 8)

At least now, AA can make that phone call and not hear laughter on the other end.

 

[Kin]

A couple of food for thought splits:

Buehrle vs. the Red Sox: 118 IP 4.64 ERA, 1.47 WHIP
Buehrle vs. the Yankees: 67.2 IP, 6.38 ERA, 1.68 WHIP
Buehrle vs. the Orioles: 114 IP, 2.83 ERA, 1.19 WHIP
Buehrle vs. the Rays: 96.2 IP, 4.17 ERA, 1.252 WHIP

I don't know what, if anything should be taken from that. It doesn't look good vs. the Yankees/Red Sox but they did tend to have very good lineups during Buehrle's career. Slightly more promising, I think, are Buehrle's career numbers in the dome:

43.1 IP, 2.91 ERA, 1.04 WHIP.

 

[Kin]

Preferably a left-handed power hitter like, I don't know, Josh Hamilton. 8)

Or, if you I think adding the 15-25 million per that Hamilton is likely to get is a little much given all the money Rogers added yesterday, a guy like Lance Berkman would be a good, hopefully cheap option there. Either way, I agree that a left-handed bat should be the goal now. That or bullpen insurance.

 

[maplesyrup]

I'm wondering If Rasmus could be dealt. Put Boni in left, Gose in center, and you still have Davis as your 4th.

I don't see that point of that as that would make the outfield, where there is already a hole in left, that much worse.

Now if you want to sign Swisher as a FA or acquire Upton in a trade then that's another story.

I guess it depends how Boni works out but at the same time, I completely forgot about Sierra too. He didn't blow me away but I liked what I saw. Either way, there's a fair bit of flexibility here.

 

[GhostofPotvin29]

Jays look good on paper: http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/the-blue-jays-nowcompetitive-on-paper/

 

[maplesyrup]

Shi Davidi ‏@ShiDavidi
Bodog odds to win World Series for Jays before trade 35/1, after trade 14/1. For Marlins, from 40/1 to 100/1

Wish I got some money in at 35.

 

[Kin]

A very prescient article from ESPN last year:

Fish Story

 

[ontariojames]

It should also be noted, and I'm surprised I haven't seen anyone point this out on here or in the media that I've read, that Johnson looked close to his old self in the second half of the season and had a horrible start to the season and had an ERA of 4.83 after his first 11 games and still finished with an ERA of 3.8.