Whose Baseball Team Is This? (2009 Blue Jays Thread)

Those "what if?" scenarios might be reasonable if we were dealing with an ordinary manager, but Cito Gaston has a long history of not knowing the first thing about breaking in young players. Longoria's age isn't the point -- he's just one example among plenty that if you've got a top prospect on the big club then you PLAY THEM and stick with them and that's how they become stars. The fact that the team is hitting well at the moment is also not the point -- this is about the big picture, and nobody thinks about that when the team can do no wrong because whatever they're doing now is presumably "working". But the Jays' management is supposed to be thinking about the big picture, which means this: Bautista shouldn't be playing in place of Snider. EVER.

The Jays have been hedging their bets with their young stars for the past 15 years and that's a big reason why the team has been mediocre for so long. They pulled exactly the same crap with Lind last year and they're doing it again with Snider.

So like what the fuck did Scutaro and Hill eat/drink/rub on themselves/inject this offseason.

heart.

Goat placenta

He should give some of it to Michael Barrett, who for a big strong stud just has one freaky injury after another. Landed on his shoulder last night, looks like weeks, or surgery.

the blue jays current injured rotation:

1. McGowan
2. Marcum
3. Litsch
4. Romero
5. Janssen

Cl. Ryan

lets play a game: match the injury to the player above!

A. right forearm strain
B. sore back
C. sore right shoulder
D. right shoulder surgery
E. right elbow surgery
F. sneeze

Whoa, "sneeze" isn't a joke!

i'm not nearly creative enough to come up with that on my own!

Rod Barajas led off the 11th with a base hit off Brian Bass (0-1). After Travis Snider popped his bunt attempt to the mound, Barajas took second on Marco Scutaro’s sacrifice and scored on Hill’s single to right-center.

OK, they won the game, but seriously, WTF? Why does Cito bunt TWICE in extra innings with the team's hottest hitters coming up? Is it because Snider is a rookie, so of course rookies should bunt?

Of course these questions are rhetorical because we know that Cito is a moron who will fuck this team ten times over before the season is up, unless he's blessed with Bob Brenly-style dumb luck.

calm down, calm down.
do you remember what happened with Snyders' earlier at bat? also with a runner on first? hint: it rhymes with "stubbleplay". he'd also pulled off a successful bunt earlier.

i was also going "wtf" with the double sac bunts tho - what's the point of getting a runner to second if you're giving up two outs? i'm more or less playing devils advocate because your Gaston hate-on is so ott!

i was at the game on friday night - you missed a good one man. when you gonna be back?

lol at this: it rhymes with "stubbleplay"

A strategy might fail once, but that doesn't mean it was the wrong move to make! Bunting is a poor strategic play in most situations.

I'll be visiting for at least a couple of weeks starting from Aug 7. This time I won't have a gf to tote around S. Ontario (at least, that's how things stand at the moment!) so that frees up a lot more time for baseball!

Maybe he was trying to ensure that Snider didn't hit into a DP so the player with the most hits in baseball could come up with a runner is scoring position.

The second bunt is same line of thinking.

i never liked Shawn Camp.

more like Shawn Can't - amirite?!

What the hell happened last night. Dude has a no hitter going into the 7th and both bullpens collapse like a barrell of collapsing monkeys.

ya - sending League (as much as i love him) out there for a second inning was obv a mistake.
just like Shawn Camp.

How many years have the Jays waited for League to turn into something even remotely resembling a decent major league pitcher? Time to give up on this guy, I think.

I mean, whatever great upside he used to have is obviously long gone, and the Jays have been assembling great bullpens out of scrap parts for a few years now (Brad Arnsberg rulz), so my tolerance for League has run pretty thin.

wtf?

Brandon League, mouthbreather

aw :(

Jamie Campbell: "Brett Cecil has a great spiked curveball"
Rance Mullinicks: "I've never heard of a spiked curveball"
JC: "A.J. Burnett threw one" (and came up about a thousand times last season when his fingernail broke)
RM: "All I know is that A.J. Burnett has the best one"
me: ***mutes TV, puts on radio***

Anyone have mlb.tv? The streaming radio has a longer delay than tv!

At times like this, there's only one thing to say.

John Cerutti RIP.

all i got going is radio. /nümorbs

so going to tuesday's game, btw!

lol thinking abt going to see a couple of games when im in town @ the end of the month. my friend told hed only take me if i dont jinx it. should be v. interesting to see how the next few weeks go

work is so slow right now. i want tonights game to start RIGHT NOW!

halliday will have a <100 pitch CG tonite for sure.

wow - i was a run off predicting the score too! over 43,000 asses in the stands!

this was a rape

Halladay (7-1) walked none and struck out five to win his fourth straight start and improve to 16-5 in 33 career games against New York. He has an ERA of 2.77 against the Yankees, his best against any AL opponent.

This is amazing, btw.

what is amazing is no FB outs until the 9th inning and eve then Wells had to come IN to get it.

^wow - did not notice that!

http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/blogs/2009/05/13/toth_halladay_triano/

Oh MAN I really dislike Roy Halladay now.

wkiw those dudes dressed as umpires behind home plate

^^should be on dumbass media.

should be on dumbass media Hall of Fame

http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/blogs/2009/05/13/toth_halladay_triano/

Oh MAN I really dislike Roy Halladay now.

― Tito Linndrum (Andy K), Wednesday, May 13, 2009 6:37 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^that article is pointless

i like how every comment is at least a paragraph of "wtf are you thinking?!"

According to BP's playoff odds report, the Jays have a 77% chance of making the playoffs, as of today.

Whatever, it's only the middle of May, but still: WOWOWYESYESYES

sweet!

I think those Odds Reports are awfully dicey til August.

The simulations are based purely on third-order winning %age, which is definitely skewed when the contenders' schedules differ so much this early in the season (i.e. Jays haven't played many games against other AL East teams).

More significantly, the Jays are currently six games up on the wildcard, which isn't tiny, even in May. Unfortunately, the wildcard will almost certainly come out of the AL East this year, so again it always comes back to intra-division games.

so going into the Boston series it is impossible for the J's to drop out of 1st place plating them. even if they get swept they will still be in first! :D

that does not mean it is ok to get swept tho.

so someone had to pay for that Boston series.

those people are: Travis Snyder, Brett Cecil & Robby Ray. rip

it is now official - come back player of the year: Aaron Hill.

Bill K. (Long Beach, CA)

So if the Jays had done this in 2006, do you think you'd still be there?

Klaw (1:25 PM)

I'll put it this way: I left in 2006 because I could not work for Ricciardi any longer. What would have happened after that is anyone's guess.

i always forget law used to be a J.

so to speak.

o_o

Eddie (Milwaukee)

What was Steve Phillips thinking? Almost trading a 19 year old David Wright for Jose Cruz Jr.? Ridiculous.

Klaw
(1:42 PM)

I've been asked about that trade rumor for three years but never answered while Ricciardi was still GM. The offer was made, though; I was there when the call came in. It was the first time I'd heard of Wright, since I wasn't with Toronto in 2001 nor had I followed the draft when Wright was in it. JP's reaction was, "I'm not trading a major league player for some guy in the Sally League." And that was pretty much that. We had a chance to trade Cruz after that for Rafael Soriano, but JP refused to do it unless Seattle included Clint Nageotte, who, at the time, was a pretty hot prospect. It's weird; I can't remember some things that happened last week but I remember those conversations (over seven years ago now) like they just took place.

:|

AA speaks: http://www.fan590.com/media.jsp?content=20091107_151806_11860

no huge revelations there and he said alot of thing that you'd likely hear from most GMs. his "plan" sounds fine and i guess we'll have to wait quite a few years to get an idea if he pulled it off or not. he at least seems heaps less douchy than JP.

and apparently working on swapping Overbay for Chris Snyder?!

ElAngelo (New York, NY): What team has the worst "best" prospect?

Kevin Goldstein: I think it's going to be Toronto.

WE'RE #1! WE'RE #1! WE'RE #1!

You'll also be getting Jason Giambi if Ben Reiter at SI is right...

sweet jesus. (i assume they're referring to Snyder above?)

Does Snider still count as a prospect? (i.e. he already has big league playing time in parts of two seasons)

if the rumours are anything to go by - the next few weeks are going to be pretty nuts for the J's:

• Halladay going to either the Dodgers, BoSox, Yanks or Angels (hello bidding war between Boston and NY!)
• moving Overbay... somewhere
• signing a new new catcher
• aquiring a new SS (not named John MacDonald) since it looks like Scutaro is gone
• maybe moving one of our late inning bullpen arms

i know i shouldn't put too much weight behind rumours and speculation, but it looks like at least 3 of those things will be happening for sure. will be a much different team in '10 - with 1B, SS, C, closer and our #1 starter all up in the air.

You're after Torrealba, I read. I think it'd be a decent move for everyone.

Torrealba is a career back-up catcher, why on earth anyone would be "after" him esp now as he approaches his mid-30s is kinda O_o.

you're looking at a team that gave Rod Barajas 449 plate appearances last year.

trading halladay to the yanks or bosox...is it a pre-emptive strike, taking advantage of what may be inevitable? or is it resigning oneself to being totally non-competitive for the next 5-7 years? both?

a little of both i suppose. it sounds as if he's gone no matter what after '10 - so why not get what you can since the Js aren't expecting to be competitive anytime soon. and lets face it - the best way to raise the price is with a dice-k-esque yanks/bosox bidding war.

well then. new SS is Alex Gonzalez?!
oh well for 2.75m i can't get too bent out of shape.

Signing a mediocre shortstop named Alex Gonzalez? I thought this GM had new ideas?

i read that he was offered 3 mil from Boston, but took the J's offer because the BoSox were waiting to hear from other guys before they finalized anything. which pretty much means they will be taking Scutaro now - which means the J's will be getting a pick from the the Sox.
rather convoluted but interesting nonetheless!

not that i love these deals or anything. but i don't hate em either.

jays best hope is still to find a shaman kid possessed by the ghost of ty cobb