Ahoy hoy, everyone! We’ve finally made it. Spring is in swing, and actual games of baseball are inching ever closer. The Jays roster seems to be mostly set, but there are still plenty of questions about what they may yet do to augment it, or how they’re going to get the most of the players they already have in the organization.
Are the Mariners/Jays/Rockies all early adopters of some new market inefficiency that I'm not seeing where actively destroying brand equity benefits the club? Not that cutting the radio broadcast is on the same level as those two shitshows but it's certainly not a PR boon for the club. Is this a "fans don't pay for radio so telecom giant no likey" or a "Rogers can't see the nuts & gum match made in heaven that is Baseball & Radio?"
This forum suits your style better than the Athletic, hope this is a positive for you, always enjoy reading your writing.
Understanding that you don't know but would it be your guess the no games on radio thing is just a one year thing to save some money and Wagner will be back in 2022 teamed with some ex-player as the analyst? What would you bet on?
Also
I'm all for the pre-season prognostication & columns talking about who's in and who's out of the line-ups, how there are too many OF's or who's gonna DH, etc but in the end IMO, this stuff all ends up sorting itself out via injury or performance right? Like, let's all calm down about Rowdy & Grichuk because in the end, everyone will get plenty of bats in a 162 season. Tell me I'm wrong!
Understanding that we haven’t had Spring games yet, as of right now let’s say you’re Charlie - what’s your Game 1 batting order against Cole? How about vs lefties? Cheers and thanks for all the great writing!
Hey Andrew, So with the Jays just Tim and Sid,-ing the radio broadcast, I'm starting to get a little bit discouraged. I wonder if Jerry Howarth saw this coming down the line. How will this even work? Will TV broadcasters announce who's at the plate, who's working in the bullpen, what the count is? I don't think they do very often - they let the graphics in the screen tell some of those details where we need to know them if we're listening to radio. And what goes on with the MLB app? I guess the only reason to subscribe if you're a Toronto fan is for the convenience definitely not the quality of the radio broadcast.
One of the only things I miss about finding your work here vs. at your previous site is the lack of an easy way to access a "speak text" feature on the go. Obviously there are ways I could figure out how to make that happen for myself via plugins and the like, but that got me thinking: Audible books are pretty great, especially when they are read by the author. And so, especially while the podcast is on hiatus, Batflip Audio would get me audio versions of your posts in my inbox that I can listen while doing the dishes. That would be much nicer than text-to-speech, and nice subscriber perk to boot.
Not so much a question as a comment. I am very much enjoying the sense of internal competition the Jays have now. After Ryu, if a SP wants to start, well, pitch better than everyone else and you can, or someone else will. There are 10 arguable starting players for 9 spots in the batting lineup, so if you want to be in there, have a strong approach at the plate with results. If you want to field at a certain position, play it well enough, or someone else will. Want to be a high leverage reliever? Like the starters, pitch the best, because there are options. Want to get paid? Stay on the field and perform, because someone even younger is coming for your job. It's friendly competition, but competition. I haven't always gotten that sense to the same degree with previous teams.
Hello Stoets! I want to start by telling you that I’ve been a big fan of your work since DJF and you continue to be my favorite Jays writer, so I’m so glad you’ve found a good home. It seems as if there has been positive feedback from some of the young players about the alternative training site from last year. Do you see the Jays trying to incorporate some of that type of player development moving forward? I feel like some players would benefit from facing major league quality competition in a controlled environment with the ability for the player development staff to provide real time feedback.
Hi Andrew. I was thinking of Tatis’ recent contract extension and what it means for baseball players in general. I have heard Arden Zwelling mention many times that “rising tides lift all boats”. But is this actually true? Seems to me that if you are an elite player, sure. Maybe it does. But does this analogy hold true for all players?
So when I get the email with your post in it, I can obviously read it there, but does it help you in any way if I also load it on the web? Or does that matter? I know nothing of these things but want you to benefit the most from your posts.
Wouldn't it be cool to hear the players during the game instead of the piped in fan noise? You may need to bleep a lot of stuff... but it would be interesting. It would help the fans get to know the players at another level. Let's do this before baseball returns to normal.
I have nothing against Charlie, but I wonder if you could comment on the pros and cons of keeping him as manager moving forward? We hear a lot about the respect he garnered as a coach, but has that translated through to his managerial role?
Hi Andrew! I am a big fan of your work and I've really enjoyed The Batflip. You have been my voice of the Jays for a long time. Some of the line-up projections, I've read, have Semien low in the batting order like in the 7 spot. I have a feeling that Springer and Semien should be given the prime spots in the batting order and that the kids should have to slug their way into key positions. What am I missing?
What do you have for the over under on number of months before radio advertisers demand a real broadcast team? Stay healthy!
You were ahead of the curve declaring that cheap light lagers are actually good. What trends should alcohol drinkers be looking out for in 2021?
Are the Mariners/Jays/Rockies all early adopters of some new market inefficiency that I'm not seeing where actively destroying brand equity benefits the club? Not that cutting the radio broadcast is on the same level as those two shitshows but it's certainly not a PR boon for the club. Is this a "fans don't pay for radio so telecom giant no likey" or a "Rogers can't see the nuts & gum match made in heaven that is Baseball & Radio?"
This forum suits your style better than the Athletic, hope this is a positive for you, always enjoy reading your writing.
Understanding that you don't know but would it be your guess the no games on radio thing is just a one year thing to save some money and Wagner will be back in 2022 teamed with some ex-player as the analyst? What would you bet on?
Also
I'm all for the pre-season prognostication & columns talking about who's in and who's out of the line-ups, how there are too many OF's or who's gonna DH, etc but in the end IMO, this stuff all ends up sorting itself out via injury or performance right? Like, let's all calm down about Rowdy & Grichuk because in the end, everyone will get plenty of bats in a 162 season. Tell me I'm wrong!
In 2017, you tweeted (twote? it's twote, right?) that the Rogers Cente-Aramark deal expires in 2021. Which is this year! So, heard anything else? https://mobile.twitter.com/andrewstoeten/status/908013293520003072
Hi Andrew,
Understanding that we haven’t had Spring games yet, as of right now let’s say you’re Charlie - what’s your Game 1 batting order against Cole? How about vs lefties? Cheers and thanks for all the great writing!
Hey Andrew, So with the Jays just Tim and Sid,-ing the radio broadcast, I'm starting to get a little bit discouraged. I wonder if Jerry Howarth saw this coming down the line. How will this even work? Will TV broadcasters announce who's at the plate, who's working in the bullpen, what the count is? I don't think they do very often - they let the graphics in the screen tell some of those details where we need to know them if we're listening to radio. And what goes on with the MLB app? I guess the only reason to subscribe if you're a Toronto fan is for the convenience definitely not the quality of the radio broadcast.
Hey Andrew, do you think Biggio hits enough to be successful playing third base?
Not a mailbag question, more of a wish.
One of the only things I miss about finding your work here vs. at your previous site is the lack of an easy way to access a "speak text" feature on the go. Obviously there are ways I could figure out how to make that happen for myself via plugins and the like, but that got me thinking: Audible books are pretty great, especially when they are read by the author. And so, especially while the podcast is on hiatus, Batflip Audio would get me audio versions of your posts in my inbox that I can listen while doing the dishes. That would be much nicer than text-to-speech, and nice subscriber perk to boot.
Not so much a question as a comment. I am very much enjoying the sense of internal competition the Jays have now. After Ryu, if a SP wants to start, well, pitch better than everyone else and you can, or someone else will. There are 10 arguable starting players for 9 spots in the batting lineup, so if you want to be in there, have a strong approach at the plate with results. If you want to field at a certain position, play it well enough, or someone else will. Want to be a high leverage reliever? Like the starters, pitch the best, because there are options. Want to get paid? Stay on the field and perform, because someone even younger is coming for your job. It's friendly competition, but competition. I haven't always gotten that sense to the same degree with previous teams.
Hello Stoets! I want to start by telling you that I’ve been a big fan of your work since DJF and you continue to be my favorite Jays writer, so I’m so glad you’ve found a good home. It seems as if there has been positive feedback from some of the young players about the alternative training site from last year. Do you see the Jays trying to incorporate some of that type of player development moving forward? I feel like some players would benefit from facing major league quality competition in a controlled environment with the ability for the player development staff to provide real time feedback.
Hi Andrew. I was thinking of Tatis’ recent contract extension and what it means for baseball players in general. I have heard Arden Zwelling mention many times that “rising tides lift all boats”. But is this actually true? Seems to me that if you are an elite player, sure. Maybe it does. But does this analogy hold true for all players?
So when I get the email with your post in it, I can obviously read it there, but does it help you in any way if I also load it on the web? Or does that matter? I know nothing of these things but want you to benefit the most from your posts.
Wouldn't it be cool to hear the players during the game instead of the piped in fan noise? You may need to bleep a lot of stuff... but it would be interesting. It would help the fans get to know the players at another level. Let's do this before baseball returns to normal.
I have nothing against Charlie, but I wonder if you could comment on the pros and cons of keeping him as manager moving forward? We hear a lot about the respect he garnered as a coach, but has that translated through to his managerial role?
Hi Andrew! I am a big fan of your work and I've really enjoyed The Batflip. You have been my voice of the Jays for a long time. Some of the line-up projections, I've read, have Semien low in the batting order like in the 7 spot. I have a feeling that Springer and Semien should be given the prime spots in the batting order and that the kids should have to slug their way into key positions. What am I missing?