I think the league is more or less set, just shuffling the Order of wild card teams, which may aswel be random
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Monday, 26 September 2022 03:55 (one year ago) link
1987 turned me into a hand-wringer for life.
― clemenza, Monday, 26 September 2022 05:02 (one year ago) link
Back-door clinch.
I think this team's Achilles heel going into the playoffs is grounding into double plays, something they lead the league in. So many potential rallies killed.
― clemenza, Thursday, 29 September 2022 22:12 (one year ago) link
Shitty base running and admiring their doubles has been their weakness lately. (Also 2/5 of their rotation)
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Friday, 30 September 2022 04:24 (one year ago) link
Looking at the playoff schedule, I thought at first they could get through the first two series with three starters. They can't, unless Manoa and Gausman go on three days' rest for a couple of starts. I guess they just go with Berrios and cross their fingers.
― clemenza, Friday, 30 September 2022 15:14 (one year ago) link
As they point out on broadcasts, he's been significantly better at home this year (mediocre vs. terrible).
― clemenza, Friday, 30 September 2022 15:19 (one year ago) link
yeah, i'm thinking of a similar playoff rotation/pitching conundrum for the Cardinals as well. It's nice to host the Wild Card, I guess, since 3 games are at home. But the lack of days off between the games means that whoever starts Game 1 of the Wild Card probably wouldn't be ready until Game 2 of the Division series (unless they're some kind of legendary beast like Scherzer or whatever)
― Karl Malone, Friday, 30 September 2022 15:29 (one year ago) link
Double Plays Grounded Into
1. Guerrero • TOR - 262. Urshela • MIN - 213. Martinez • BOS - 203. Bichette • TOR - 205. Abreu • CHW - 195. Rosario • CLE - 195. Miranda • MIN - 198. Bregman • HOU - 178. Correa • MIN - 178. Arozarena • TBR 178. Hernandez • TOR 17
― clemenza, Friday, 30 September 2022 19:13 (one year ago) link
I think the best finish--Toronto, Seattle, Tampa Bay--looks very possible right now. We'd get home-field, and wouldn't have to face the Rays in the first round.
― clemenza, Saturday, 1 October 2022 22:31 (one year ago) link
I think the Mariners would have to win two more games than the jays in the next 4 games to flip spots with them, so ya - looking safe-ish
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 2 October 2022 00:36 (one year ago) link
canadians with the win and save today for the first time in jays history
― mookieproof, Sunday, 2 October 2022 23:53 (one year ago) link
If only Russ Martin could have caught the game!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Monday, 3 October 2022 20:35 (one year ago) link
Glad I'm not working today--I want to see this!
https://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/ts/sports/bluejays/2022/10/07/blue-jays-hint-edwin-encarnacion-will-throw-first-pitch-in-game-1-today.html?li_source=LI&li_medium=stcatharinesstandard_sports
― clemenza, Friday, 7 October 2022 15:23 (one year ago) link
I made sure I had no work lined up. Heading over to the Dock Ellis to watch this shortly!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Friday, 7 October 2022 19:26 (one year ago) link
the guy dressed as a parrot with a little edwin on his arm 👌
― francisF, Friday, 7 October 2022 20:00 (one year ago) link
Not unexpected in view of his upbringing, but I really feel that Vladdy has a genuine interest in and knowledge of the game's past (thing's like getting Edwin's autograph).
― clemenza, Friday, 7 October 2022 20:04 (one year ago) link
How perfect a match-up is Gausman/Ray?
― clemenza, Saturday, 8 October 2022 19:18 (one year ago) link
I just had to turn down tickets to the game. Here’s hoping I regret it!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 8 October 2022 19:23 (one year ago) link
The thing that most bothered me about yesterday was Teoscar grounding into that DP on the first pitch he saw. You're down three runs, lead-off man on, is it too much to ask to see one pitch? As I posted, they've been doing that all season long.
― clemenza, Saturday, 8 October 2022 19:31 (one year ago) link
Getting close to save-some-for-tomorrow territory, but it never hurts to empty out the other bullpen.
― clemenza, Saturday, 8 October 2022 22:01 (one year ago) link
Please ignore previous comment. It's like I'd never watched a baseball game before...
― clemenza, Saturday, 8 October 2022 22:26 (one year ago) link
Ninth run by Toronto, everything's fine, I'll nap/listen in front of the TV. First thing I'm aware of is Romano's second strikeout; I look up, bases are loaded; then the bloop.
― clemenza, Saturday, 8 October 2022 23:38 (one year ago) link
This won't be worse than the way 1985, 1987, or 2015 ended--I thought the Jays had the best team in baseball those years; one or two of them, anyway--but it'll be bad.
― clemenza, Sunday, 9 October 2022 00:02 (one year ago) link
Still hasn't really sunk in here. The posts on my FB wall are brief and few.
― clemenza, Sunday, 9 October 2022 02:46 (one year ago) link
I really didn’t get pulling Gausman for mayza at the time and I am so agitated about it now. That and bo who always played SS like there was no outfielders behind him - awful that it caught up to him the way it did. Springer looked really messed up out there.
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 9 October 2022 02:53 (one year ago) link
We need to start a new thread in the spring and bury this one forever.
― clemenza, Sunday, 9 October 2022 03:58 (one year ago) link
Agreed.
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 9 October 2022 04:07 (one year ago) link
we all must bury the past
― Karl Malone, Sunday, 9 October 2022 04:35 (one year ago) link
Has Marcus Stroman stopped tweeting? We should maybe check with him first.
― clemenza, Sunday, 9 October 2022 04:50 (one year ago) link
https://www.mlb.com/news/john-schneider-named-blue-jays-manager
To the extent that another managerial change so soon would probably be difficult, I guess this is good. The Gausman thing lingers, but other than that he's been pretty solid.
― clemenza, Friday, 21 October 2022 15:58 (one year ago) link
Gold Glove for Vladdy. One of the games I saw this year was the one where he almost made three errors the first inning, so I think I got a rather distorted view...Urias in Baltimore must be great to have beaten Chapman.
― clemenza, Tuesday, 1 November 2022 22:14 (one year ago) link
Ya - my money was on Chapman here and not Vlad. He (Vlad) hasn’t been perfect; but he has looked surprisingly good this year!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, 2 November 2022 01:05 (one year ago) link
yeah he pulled off all manner of impressive plays, I watched a lot of Jays this year and he always surprised me with his deftness out there. an uncanny ability to nab foul balls facing backwards, too
― francisF, Wednesday, 2 November 2022 02:26 (one year ago) link
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/11/padres-have-jose-abreu-as-a-top-priority.html
I wonder if Abreu would accept full-time DH? Probably not...I know I'm living in the past, but I think about the Winfield and Molitor signings in '92 and '93. Abreu is so good, and so underpublicized. I realize he's 35, and I know we use the DH as a rotation spot, and I suppose he'd cost a lot, and this and that, and so on and so forth, but I'd sure love to have him for a couple of seasons.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 23 November 2022 03:24 (one year ago) link
If you can't make a big free-agent splash...
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/11/blue-jays-nearing-agreement-to-hire-don-mattingly-as-bench-coach.html
― clemenza, Wednesday, 30 November 2022 04:37 (one year ago) link
I wasn’t expecting that.
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, 30 November 2022 04:47 (one year ago) link
"The Blue Jays were engaged in talks with free agents and continued communicating with fellow major-league clubs, but ultimately remained quiet, having not completed any deals — no signings nor trades — as the third and final day of the meetings wrapped up Wednesday. However, as the front office prepared to end its time in Southern California and fly north, the feeling among the group was the three-day event had nonetheless been a success thanks to what the Blue Jays came away learning."
Not quite sure what that means, but the title of the 2023 Blue Jays thread has to be in there somewhere.
https://theathletic.com/3981259/2022/12/07/toronto-blue-jays-winter-meetings/
(Paywall, probably.)
― clemenza, Saturday, 10 December 2022 16:35 (one year ago) link
Management was listening in.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article/blue-jays-agree-to-deal-with-veteran-outfielder-kevin-kiermaier/
We've got Kevin Pillar back, more or less--on the downside, but probably good enough for our needs.
― clemenza, Saturday, 10 December 2022 19:01 (one year ago) link
Ugh
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 10 December 2022 20:45 (one year ago) link
Really? I'm okay with it, assuming Springer's still fragile. (Obviously I'd much rather have a healthy Springer.)
― clemenza, Sunday, 11 December 2022 02:12 (one year ago) link
I’m more just annoyed that we traded Teo amd this is the best they’ve been able to do to fill the hole in our outfield. I realize there still time etc… just annoyed.
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 11 December 2022 06:38 (one year ago) link
Definitely annoying if you look at this way.
I was curious about Pillar. He was with the Dodgers at some point last year (had no idea). Got to the plate 13 times; Baseball Reference lists his salary at $100,000. The year before that, 2021, he played 124 games with the Mets: 15 HR, .231/.277/.415. He's 33 and a free agent.
Kiermaier's 32, earned over $12M last year, played 63 games: 7 HR, .228/.281/.369.
Sounds like we could have gotten the other Kevin for a tiny fraction of the cost.
― clemenza, Sunday, 11 December 2022 14:37 (one year ago) link
They must be looking at it from an advanced metrics standpoint. KK is averaging 5.6 bWAR per 162 for his career. His issue is health of course.
― omar little, Sunday, 11 December 2022 18:38 (one year ago) link
For sure I would take KK over KP. But this is still not filling the hole left by Teo’s departure. Also kind of think KK is an ass.
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Sunday, 11 December 2022 18:57 (one year ago) link
I'll be happy if we get the 5.6 Kiermaier, but he hasn't had an individual season that high since 2016 (mostly health-related, yes, but I don't know if that'll reverse itself six years later). I think Teoscar was on the decline, and it was good time to move him, and KK is an okay half-measure. But I share Thermo's general frustration in that they should have gotten more for Teoscar.
― clemenza, Sunday, 11 December 2022 19:53 (one year ago) link
As a Cubs fan who has seen the Bryant/Rizzo/Baez/schwarber/Contreras team turned into…what were they turned into again? I need to research things. Anyway I understand.
― omar little, Sunday, 11 December 2022 20:01 (one year ago) link
love the Bassitt signing. thought he was gonna get like 24M for 4 years; so this is pretty fair. then Murphy is traded and Vasquez signs, so if any team wants a bonafide starting C, the Jays are the only game in town now!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Tuesday, 13 December 2022 01:16 (one year ago) link
whoops
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Tuesday, 13 December 2022 01:17 (one year ago) link
This thread will never die.
Closing in on Year 10 in the MLB. Nowhere near finished. All your predictions over time couldn’t have been more wrong. I find strength and calm in continuing to prove myself right each and every year. Criticism only comes from the smallest of minds. All my dreams into action! 🗣️— Marcus Stroman (@STR0) February 14, 2023
― clemenza, Wednesday, 15 February 2023 23:07 (one year ago) link
The very epitome of strength and calm.
― clemenza, Wednesday, 15 February 2023 23:08 (one year ago) link