19 Comments

Joey Votto? Joey Votto!

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Love what you do, buddy. So, how does the FO fix the general malaise around a team that, in a vacuum, had an fairly successful season? (I would call making the playoffs a successful season. *ducks*)

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this is mostly vibes-based, to be clear, and my glib answer to my own silly question is, "hit more dingers"

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Thanks for the great coverage of a difficult season to watch Andrew. While Shapiro did his best to clean up the mess Atkins made as his year end presser, I can’t help but believe there will be lingering damage for the team. The manager has been thrown under the bus by the GM and we know many players were unhappy about front office/analytics communication throughout, and certainly at the end of the season. I attended 102 games this season, and never got the sense this team jelled or functioned as a cohesive group. Jon Morosi has said he’s “not convinced all is well” within the Blue Jays organization and I have to agree. Do you think the appearance of being so dysfunctional will hamper the ability of the Blue Jays to attract free agents (I know it’s a weak class) during an off-season where some serious deficiencies need to be addressed, or is it really just about the money?

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How do I (slash we all) reconnect with my/our love of baseball? This season did not "spark joy" but baseball has brought a lot to my life over the years. I tried to lean in to the great pitching, which was nice, but even that was hard to enjoy as it felt like gem after gem was wasted by lousy run support. I had more fun watching the 2017 team get repeatedly shelled than I did this year...

I'm sure you were frustrated, too. Beyond this being your livelihood, what are you doing/thinking about to stay positive?

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This was the season where even my old friend alcohol stopped doing the trick...

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I felt exactly the same way! I wasn't even that connected to the wildcard series because I knew what the outcome would be. This season really did suck a lot of joy out of baseball for us.

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I'd very much like to see if Davis Schneider can become one of the hitters this team needs. Was there any pattern to what the pitchers began throwing him when he stopped being the hitting wonder of his debut? Do you think he could be just one adjustment away, or did you see multiple issues?

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As always, Stoet, you’re writing for me through this meat grinder of a year. Thanks for that. This is the best $65 I spend on baseball all year.

It would appear as though the jays are set next year for pitching - both starters and relievers. I believe Jordan Hicks is the only reliever hitting free agency and Ryu the only starter. Maybe they could add to their starter depth. I think we all know where they need to improve. With that said, I want you to make a trade that would give the jays back the offence they need. You could make a trade taking back a horrible contract in order to get the piece we need. Or use prospect capital. I’ll leave that to you. Looking forward to reading you thoughts. - Steve D.

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How great or not great is James Click, how sad or not sad should we be that Atkins is still running the show instead of Click and how scared or not scared should we be about Click getting a GM job elsewhere?

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Hello Andrew,

This season felt like shit and I have no shortage of admiration for your ability to persevere through it.

To satisfy my depraved lizard-brain, can you concoct *any* Vlad trade scenario that makes the Jays better in 2024?

Thanks!

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Trade him for Gabe Marino

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What team wouldn't want two Gold Glove finalists who can't hit?!?

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Hi Andrew,

Thanks for being a calming voice throughout the most frustrating Jays season I can remember (which is saying something).

I assume the Jays will give Chapman a QO, but he’ll end up walking. That leads me to two questions:

1. Given the presence of a few intriguing infield prospects who probably aren’t quite ready, is Chapman accepting the QO the best possible outcome for figuring out 3B this offseason.

2. If he leaves and that hole needs to be filled, who might be some intriguing external options? A trade for Ryan McMahon or Brendan Donovan? Sign Jaimer Candelario? Would it be totally batshit to offer something for Anthony Rendon (with some money retained by LAA) and give him a lot of time at DH? I’m not terribly inspired by any of those options, but maybe you see a few other paths that I’m not thinking of.

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Hi Andrew! Thanks for another fantastic season of coverage, even though the Jays season was anything but. I hope you’re well, and gearing up for an interesting offseason.

In my opinion, this Jays team has lacked the impact left handed hitters so many championship teams possess. The Astros had Alvarez/Tucker, the Braves had Freeman/Albies, the Dodgers had Seager/Muncy, and the Nationals had Soto/Eaton. While I’ll note this is not the only reasons these teams won, it’s notable to me that in the history of the sport, a game changing lefty or two have featured on most World Series teams.

Having said that, Ohtani, Soto & Bellinger appear to be the big fish this off-season. Considering the front office has some mending to do with the fan base, and money to play with, which of these players would you target and for how much (financially or trade)? Soto had been my pick since the Padres appear to be vulnerable, but would his defense hurt the Jays? Would Ohtani’s contract hurt more? Is Bellinger worth the Springer contract?

Just looking for your thoughts and amazing insight!

Take care, and enjoy the decent weather while it lasts! - Andre

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Somebody must have addressed this somewhere, but I haven't seen it.

Aside from skill evaluation issues, last year's big off-season moves mostly shipped out Latinos for white guys. Breaking up the Barrio wasn't just a metaphor for seeking a more businesslike, old school attitude in the dugout and on the field. Might this have an impact on the decisions of any Hispanic players the Jays might try to sign or *cough* extend?

This could just be a coincidence given the catcher surplus and elapsing control times, but it seemed strange to me that the Dbacks would insist on getting Gurriel to complete a trade they would objectively 'win' just by swapping Varsho for Morneo. Lourdes wasn't worth a lot as trade chip, but including him there looked more like 'voluntary throw-in' than 'key piece.'

Love your work, Andrew. I've subscribed from the start and never regretted it.

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I appreciate your work this season Andrew. Great stuff. True voice of reason stuff.

Am I crazy to think that 2023 was a weird blip, and the bats could actually improve next season? Vlad, Varsho, Kirk, George can't all forget how to hit, right? I'm one of the fans that was patient, expected them to figure it out eventually, and truly believed that they were just about to break out. Also was a fan who was relieved that it was finally over, once they played the same dogshit/bad luck/no room for error bullshit baseball in the 2 WC games.

The postseason has shown us that no matter who the GM is, well-constructed teams can lose 2, 3 in a row. I don't need Ross' head on a stick, they DID build a great team on paper. Maybe have Shapiro write the script for him- for god's sake don't put a mic in front of him.

My main concern is filling the hole left at 3rd if Chappy's gone.

The expectations were so high going in to the season, much of the talent is still there. I believe they have a serious run in them if they can get out of their own way and hit.

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Thanks for providing coverage for the grindiest 89 win season MLB history, your content definitely made it easier to stick through! Was this past season just bad luck? If you could run it back in 2024 with the exact same team, would you?

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I asked this a few posts ago, but wasn't expecting a reply so now I can ask this properly. Contrary to popular opinion, Ross Atkins is an intelligent person. He surely must have realised that his comments about the Berrios removal and game planning in general would be perceived as throwing Schneider under the bus. So why was he so blatant about doing that? Is he so opaque that he couldn't see the shit storm it would create? Amongst all the discussion about it - I haven't seen anyone ask why he would do it. Did it just come out spontaneously? Is he in fact, not that smart? Thoughts?

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