Pardon me if you’ve covered this in the past, but what are your thoughts on Josh Harrison? I can see his versatility and leadership as qualities Atkins and Montoyo would love. I like him as a player as well but what do the numbers show?
Springer is great, maybe too great for CF. Should we be looking for a plus defender for CF to keep Springer in the lineup. Pache, KK, Robles... Devon White type or yelp, Pillar? Can Dasan Brown be that player?
Hey Andrew - I haven't heard much (any) commentary on Bo's platoon splits. He murdered lefties to the tune of .950 OPS / 157 OPS+ But his production against righties was more solid than great: .790 OPS / 117 OPS+. Is this of any concern when we try project his ceiling? Any idea what his minor league splits look like?
Hi Stoeten, I just bought a membership because I wanted to ask a dumb question. Also because you just have the best fucking Jays material. I met you once in the 500's and man, not all heroes wear capes.
The Rogers coup takes another wild twist, it turns out Ed & Ghislaine have some sordid past (or something else crazier than a butt dial). Rogers stupidly divests itself of the Jays as a result. Who is your new dream owner(s) and why?
Zero alcohol was consumed in the forming of this question.
How important is it to get more lefty bats? Is it a priority? I guess if Jays were in on Seager says yes. Take on somebody else's problem? Shugo for Grichuk? Moose? Could Didi look ok at 3rd and backup Bo? Or big bucks for DH Freeman?
What needs to happen for the Jays to plan on playing Vlad at 3rd base more than 2 innings per season and how would the FO try to justify such a terrible decision?
If you had to pick between adding a second baseman or third baseman, which would you pick? This is heavily tied to who is available and what the Jays have to work with (Biggio, Espinal, Smith) but do you lean either way at a push? Happy new year and keep up the great work, it was a real joy in 2021
Was just reading your colleague Nick Ashborne's column on the production and value offered by the average fifth starter and the proposition that the Jays might just be doing okay in that department with Ross Stripling. I think though the question, rather than being if we have an average one - I mean we're shooting higher than that this year right? RIGHT? - should be, what does a fifth starter look like on a championship team? If Stripling isn't that and would be more valuable in a depth role, who could you see the Jays targeting to round out the starting staff and help to bring home some hardware?
How many statues of the Rogers family will the new stadium renovations include? (kidding, kidding)
Honest question - do the Jays need to do anything to draw fans back to the ballpark? The lockout's sapping a lot of the excitement for the club, and we lost our slugging second baseman (chicks dig the long ball after all).
Recently on twitter you mentioned you were meh on the prospect of signing Michael Conforto, and I have to say I’m a bit surprised. To me, Conforto is the perfect kind of lineup-diversifying bat the jays would do well to add. Last year, by far his worst in the majors, he still managed a .340 OBP en route to being a (very slightly) above-league-average hitter despite a below-career-average BABIP. In each of the four prior seasons, he posted OBP and wRC+ numbers that ranged from strong to elite and was an average-ish defender (though admittedly trending down). On the negative side, I understand questions about priorities and available at bats with the roster as it currently stands, and if he really is seeking a long term contract, then meh indeed. But if he could be tempted by a higher AAV 3 year deal or a lucrative one year prove it deal, (and his addition is coupled with or makes a LGJ/Teo move easier) sign me the hell up for the high OBP lefty with pretty good power numbers, right?
Thanks, as always, for continuing to attempt to churn out content in the dead zone, and Happy New Years. Cheers to you and yours.
Really appreciate you and have been following you around since the DJF/Getting Blanked days. You’re my favourite sports writer.
I’m interested in Seiya Suzuki as a well rounded bat. patience driven approach, OBP, power, etc.
He seems to get good defensive reviews in the corner outfields (just won another gold glove in Japan) so - even if that’s overselling his defensive impact - he should be an upgrade on Gurriel/Teo.
Bowden lists Suzuki as OF/INF, but I have seen no reference to his INF viability anywhere else. Have you?
Has the ship sailed on bringing Gurriel Jr. back into the infield mix? There is an obvious hole on the infield and I don’t recall seeing this discussed this off-season. It seems like his skill set could make 3rd base his best defensive position…
I’m trying to piece together what the Jays rotation may look like. Obviously we’ve got Gausman and Berrios as 1/2, Ryu and Manoah as 3/4, leaving Pearson/Stripling/TBD as #5/Depth. Obviously you want to give Gausman and Berrios the ball as often as possible. The others however seem like they may benefit from some extra rest as Ryu fell off last year as the season wore on, Manoah has never pitched a full MLB season, Pearson has barely pitched and Stripling is what he is. Is there some way to create a sort of 6 man rotation that keeps 1/2 on regular rest but the others have flexibility built in to skip starts or piggyback with each other in order to maintain a higher performance level throughout the whole year? It’s far from traditional I know but seems like the Jays are open to experimenting from time to time. While I’m dreaming signing a pitcher like Kikuchi who fell off a bit at the end of last season who may also benefit from an adjusted schedule would fit into a weird plan like this perfectly although he’s probably going to be too expensive if/when this lockout nonsense ends.
It's all 'Jose Ramirez and Matt Chapman' this and 'Oakland starters that' -- give me an outside the box trade target for the Jays at 3B, RP and 2B (please haha). Not necessarily a star, just some plain ol' good fits.
Pardon me if you’ve covered this in the past, but what are your thoughts on Josh Harrison? I can see his versatility and leadership as qualities Atkins and Montoyo would love. I like him as a player as well but what do the numbers show?
Springer is great, maybe too great for CF. Should we be looking for a plus defender for CF to keep Springer in the lineup. Pache, KK, Robles... Devon White type or yelp, Pillar? Can Dasan Brown be that player?
Hey Andrew - I haven't heard much (any) commentary on Bo's platoon splits. He murdered lefties to the tune of .950 OPS / 157 OPS+ But his production against righties was more solid than great: .790 OPS / 117 OPS+. Is this of any concern when we try project his ceiling? Any idea what his minor league splits look like?
Hi Stoeten, I just bought a membership because I wanted to ask a dumb question. Also because you just have the best fucking Jays material. I met you once in the 500's and man, not all heroes wear capes.
The Rogers coup takes another wild twist, it turns out Ed & Ghislaine have some sordid past (or something else crazier than a butt dial). Rogers stupidly divests itself of the Jays as a result. Who is your new dream owner(s) and why?
Zero alcohol was consumed in the forming of this question.
How important is it to get more lefty bats? Is it a priority? I guess if Jays were in on Seager says yes. Take on somebody else's problem? Shugo for Grichuk? Moose? Could Didi look ok at 3rd and backup Bo? Or big bucks for DH Freeman?
What needs to happen for the Jays to plan on playing Vlad at 3rd base more than 2 innings per season and how would the FO try to justify such a terrible decision?
If you had to pick between adding a second baseman or third baseman, which would you pick? This is heavily tied to who is available and what the Jays have to work with (Biggio, Espinal, Smith) but do you lean either way at a push? Happy new year and keep up the great work, it was a real joy in 2021
Was just reading your colleague Nick Ashborne's column on the production and value offered by the average fifth starter and the proposition that the Jays might just be doing okay in that department with Ross Stripling. I think though the question, rather than being if we have an average one - I mean we're shooting higher than that this year right? RIGHT? - should be, what does a fifth starter look like on a championship team? If Stripling isn't that and would be more valuable in a depth role, who could you see the Jays targeting to round out the starting staff and help to bring home some hardware?
How many statues of the Rogers family will the new stadium renovations include? (kidding, kidding)
Honest question - do the Jays need to do anything to draw fans back to the ballpark? The lockout's sapping a lot of the excitement for the club, and we lost our slugging second baseman (chicks dig the long ball after all).
Recently on twitter you mentioned you were meh on the prospect of signing Michael Conforto, and I have to say I’m a bit surprised. To me, Conforto is the perfect kind of lineup-diversifying bat the jays would do well to add. Last year, by far his worst in the majors, he still managed a .340 OBP en route to being a (very slightly) above-league-average hitter despite a below-career-average BABIP. In each of the four prior seasons, he posted OBP and wRC+ numbers that ranged from strong to elite and was an average-ish defender (though admittedly trending down). On the negative side, I understand questions about priorities and available at bats with the roster as it currently stands, and if he really is seeking a long term contract, then meh indeed. But if he could be tempted by a higher AAV 3 year deal or a lucrative one year prove it deal, (and his addition is coupled with or makes a LGJ/Teo move easier) sign me the hell up for the high OBP lefty with pretty good power numbers, right?
Thanks, as always, for continuing to attempt to churn out content in the dead zone, and Happy New Years. Cheers to you and yours.
Hey Stoets,
Really appreciate you and have been following you around since the DJF/Getting Blanked days. You’re my favourite sports writer.
I’m interested in Seiya Suzuki as a well rounded bat. patience driven approach, OBP, power, etc.
He seems to get good defensive reviews in the corner outfields (just won another gold glove in Japan) so - even if that’s overselling his defensive impact - he should be an upgrade on Gurriel/Teo.
Bowden lists Suzuki as OF/INF, but I have seen no reference to his INF viability anywhere else. Have you?
Has the ship sailed on bringing Gurriel Jr. back into the infield mix? There is an obvious hole on the infield and I don’t recall seeing this discussed this off-season. It seems like his skill set could make 3rd base his best defensive position…
Thanks for all you do!
I’m trying to piece together what the Jays rotation may look like. Obviously we’ve got Gausman and Berrios as 1/2, Ryu and Manoah as 3/4, leaving Pearson/Stripling/TBD as #5/Depth. Obviously you want to give Gausman and Berrios the ball as often as possible. The others however seem like they may benefit from some extra rest as Ryu fell off last year as the season wore on, Manoah has never pitched a full MLB season, Pearson has barely pitched and Stripling is what he is. Is there some way to create a sort of 6 man rotation that keeps 1/2 on regular rest but the others have flexibility built in to skip starts or piggyback with each other in order to maintain a higher performance level throughout the whole year? It’s far from traditional I know but seems like the Jays are open to experimenting from time to time. While I’m dreaming signing a pitcher like Kikuchi who fell off a bit at the end of last season who may also benefit from an adjusted schedule would fit into a weird plan like this perfectly although he’s probably going to be too expensive if/when this lockout nonsense ends.
It's all 'Jose Ramirez and Matt Chapman' this and 'Oakland starters that' -- give me an outside the box trade target for the Jays at 3B, RP and 2B (please haha). Not necessarily a star, just some plain ol' good fits.
Am I wrong to think that I want Bryant to play for the Jays? If I'm not wrong, what are the chances, you think, this happens?