vladimir guerrero.

I've got my tickets for fridays game!

(xpost) If not for the Leafs, he would have been up Tuesday; I agree with their decision there, both economically (no way it would have sold out with the Leafs playing a game 7) and as a matter of fairness to fans.

i don't think the leafs had anything to do with it. they'd been saying for a while they wanted him playing a full series before getting called up, which didn't happen over the weekend because of rain.

call up biggio too tbh

yes. my suspicion is it will happen once they are clear of the super-two whatever it is with him.

It’s official. He’s up Friday.

Mike Fiers made his MLB debut in 2011, the same year Vlad Guerrero Sr. retired.

Now he’ll become the first pitcher Vlad Jr. faces in the big leagues on Friday.

— Faizal Khamisa (@SNFaizalKhamisa) April 24, 2019

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D49POxjVUAAswAb.jpg

The range of names here is amusing: from Lou Gehrig to Nick Swisher, and everybody in between.

https://www.mlb.com/news/vladimir-guerrero-jr-projections-10-years-c303459710

if you asked me a week ago to name the teams of this guy and Tatis Jr, I couldn't have done it

Lot of talk on the radio tonight: how much notice will fans get, will the debut be a sell-out, is this the most anticipated debut of any Toronto athlete ever (any sport), etc. If there's enough notice, I might just try to buy a couple of cheap seats immediately and figure out who else can go later.
― clemenza, Friday, April 12, 2019

70,000 for the three games (29/21/19). I don't know why I too thought they might sell out Friday (or Saturday). As Mike Wilner pointed out, they didn't draw for Clemens in '97 and '98, having two historically great seasons--when they contend it's a zoo, when they don't it's half-empty, and it doesn't matter who's on the field.

Which is typical for most teams, and halfway between the few that draw no matter what, and the few that have trouble filling seats even when they contend.

Getting the day off tonight. No concern at all, although with so much scrutiny, you don't want a slow start to take on a life of its own.

Finally a multi-hit game today (2-2). It's been ugly--here's hoping Mendoza Land's in the mirror within a week or two.

home run derby bound!

Is it normal for them to invite rando non-all stars?

What's the record for lowest amount of HRs (or lowest SLG) to be invited to the HR derby?

ffs you people hate fun and/or 20-year-olds

would you rather have ketel marte and renato nunez

ffs you people hate fun and/or 20-year-olds

come join me on the Soto thread...

would you rather have ketel marte and renato nunez

BlueJays rookies ranked by ISO:

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&lg=all&qual=y&type=8&season=2019&month=0&season1=2019&ind=2&team=14&rost=0&age=0&filter=&players=0&startdate=2019-01-01&enddate=2019-12-31&sort=10,d

Mookie otm I hope Senior throws

tbh the entire home run derby should be keith law pitching to jeff mcneil

i just want to point out that Cavan Biggio has a 18.6% walk rate.

Waiting, waiting, waiting...The notion that the HR Derby would get him going, that didn't happen. I realize that he's 20 and that this whole season could be a write-off and it really wouldn't matter. I'm just a little surprised by how much of a flat-line his season has been.

what's the book on him?

Scouting, you mean? Basically, I think, that he was one of the best pure hitters in ages, but that he could stand to lose a few pounds.

This was posted today:

http://jaysjournal.com/2019/07/18/blue-jays-arguing-vladimir-guerrero-jr-reset-demotion/

I'd be more inclined to let him work things out.

pic.twitter.com/o614UMDzfP

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 18, 2019

i mean what are his weaknesses? have pitchers "figured him out"?

He tore apart Triple-AAA pitching...I guess that's possible, but I've gotta believe it's just a case of him figuring out them. There's a Jays analyst, Kevin Barker--who drives me up the wall most of the time--who a couple of weeks ago was saying that pitchers are exploiting Guerrero's long swing, and that Vlad (he contrasted this with Gurriel, Jr.) isn't making any adjustments.

so they are, so to speak, "smokin him inside"?

Nice--and then frustrated Jays fans pound some Labatt's.

i think you hit the main point early on, clemenza: "I realize that he's 20"

check mike trout's rookie season stats, etc

i don't see any point in sending him down to learn stuff. he already crushed AAA. it's not like the jays are going anywhere this year (sorry) - so take advantage of this season to give him plenty of time to work on things at the big league level, imo

he has never, in a baseball sense, faced adversity before or been forced to make adjustments. this is the only level that can teach him anything

it's not like the jays are going anywhere this year (sorry)

I take great umbrage at you writing off the Jays so cavalierly.

No argument with anything above. He does need to lose a few pounds, though. You're not supposed to have the body of a 30-year-old Prince Fielder unless you're 30 and Prince Fielder.

He's not embarrassing himself out there, he's just not tearing it up. he's mediocre, though actually just a bit above replacement level. Karl otm w/r/t Mike Trout's first taste of MLB pitching.

First grand slam tonight. (Jays set a record for most grand slams from rookies.)

Vladdy notches his 1st career grand slam. This tshirt was made for him by a friend.
Translator Tito LeBron tells me it says “the man with power.” pic.twitter.com/dltXme8zsp

— Hazel Mae (@thehazelmae) July 21, 2019

Possible that he presses a bit at home:

Home - 5 HR, .256/.337/.430
Away - 10 HR, .308/.374/.522

Rogers is pretty neutral as a park.

Last 30 games for Vlad Guerrero Jr.
.380/.446/.676, 13 BB, 17K, 7 HR, 1.122 OPS#BlueJays

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) August 23, 2019

I thought the dome was a hitters park?

Dude has been on fire since Bichette came up.

Baseball Reference has:

Multi-year: Batting - 97, Pitching - 98
One-year: Batting - 100, Pitching - 101

Seems pretty neutral...but I might not be interpreting that right.

he seems to have figured out how to hit at home - 267 wRC+, .563 wOBA, 1.389 OPS!!

when will he receive the clemenza seal of approval tho

Hey--I'm happy! My issue all along was his seeming indifference to his weight. He did something about it, came back in much better shape, and--no coincidence, surely--he's the hitter we'd heard so much about.

i'm starting to think this guy might be good

it's weird, just knowing a guy by his stats. i've barely seen him play. not at all this year, not last year, only a bit during 2019. he's graded at 80/80 on raw power, but then you'd look at his minor league stats and see 13 HRs in 2017, 20 or so in 2018, ok. but not he's on pace for 45+ this year, while hitting .333, on base 44% of the time. O_O OK!

sorry, weird typos. i guess it's just cool to see him realize his power potential. it probably also helps, in a way, to be swinging against guys throwing 95+. solid contact against fast throwers = longballs

also, theoretically there's this thing with athletes "filling" out in their early 20s and getting stronger. personally, i have found that my body is like a coughed bird skeleton, but these are pro athletes so

maybe i’m cynical but i always chalked up the “filling out” to young athletes meeting “trainers” with very specific cutting edge uh nutritional regimes that dance on the edge of legality