#T.J. Zeuch | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

highbuttonsports · 3 years

Text

Teoscar Hernandez(timeincapp.com)

The Cavalry’s Coming

The injury bug that has hit the Toronto Blue Jays in 2021 is well documented. It’s a rash of injuries that has infected the team since Spring Training and been a major contributor to their underwhelming start. Frankly, I am getting tired of writing about it myself. Hope is on the horizon though, over the next week the long list in the infirmary should be cut in half. At one point a week ago, there were 11 regulars on the shelf that had immediately tested the depth of the roster in all areas. Out of the lineup was George Springer (yet to play) and Teoscar Hernandez (out since April 9th with COVID). Out of the starting rotation was Nate Pearson (yet to play), T.J. Zeuch (IL on April 20th), and Ross Stripling (IL on April 15th). And out of the bullpen was Kirby Yates (will miss all of 2021), Jordan Romano (IL on April 15th, but returned on April 25th), Julian Merryweather (IL on April 14th), David Phelps (IL on April 14th, but returned April 21st), Tyler Chatwood (IL on April 9th, but returned April 23rd), and Thomas Hatch (yet to play). That’s quite the formidable list and a good chunk of impact players to have out at the same time. Injures and how they are managed are a big part of every team’s success level. Every team is going to go through them at one point or another during the season. For the Jays though, this amount of injures so early in the year seems to have been a little extra. It really makes how they have fared record wise (11-12) pretty remarkable. To be a game below .500, tied for 2nd in the division, and in a 3-way tie for 8th in the American League, with all the injures they have had bodes very well for what’s to come.

The mass exodus off the injured list started a week ago with the return of middle reliever David Phelps. He has been extremely valuable so far sporting an ERA of 1.08 in 8.1 innings with 10 K’s while providing a veteran presence in a bullpen that is laden with younger, inexperienced arms. Another of the experienced arms returned a couple days later in Tyler Chatwood. Even though he has been a starter for the most part of his career, he has been great out of the pen. He has yet to allow a run this season in 6.1 innings with 9 K’s. Through attrition he may see a start or 2 down the road, but his transition to full time reliever has been seamless. It’s good to have that fall back option should the rotation really get decimated down the road. The last of the key relievers to return was Jordan Romano. Although he has had a rough season so far (4.91 ERA and 2.25 WHIP), he is viewed as a critical late inning arm. He was given the chance to take the closer’s job when Yates was ruled our for the year, but with an ailing elbow and inconsistent control he was passed first by Julien Merryweather then Rafael Dolis. With both he and Julien on the IL, Dolis has taken hold of the closer’s job and as long as he keeps nailing them down, he is likely to hold it for the foreseeable future. Getting those 3 back has been much needed for a bullpen that has seen more work than hoped in the early going, though they have performed better than expected as the best pen in the MLB. They have pitched the 6th most innings at 92.1, but have a miniscule 2.24 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, while holding the opposition to a .205 BAA. Unfortunately, with Merryweather and Hatch, they are both not expected to return soon. Especially tough is being without early season revelation Merryweather. He had looked every part a closer, but with an oblique injury chances are he wont return to late May/early June. Aside from his, hopefully this number 1 group can stay healthy and this effective as the season moves forward because there is no doubt their greatness has been the biggest factor the team being able to hold up like they have.

As much relief that has been given to the bullpen, the starting rotation will have to persevere that much more. Not only are Pearson, Zeuch, and Stripling expected to miss more time, but now ace, Hyun Jin Ryu, left his last start with a glute strain. The hope was he wouldn’t miss a start, but yesterday he was placed on the 10-day IL which guarantees he will miss at least 1 start. The hopes are he will be good to go for the series in Oakland starting on Monday. That is a big ol’ pain in the butt to an already banged up staff. There is no way to replace an elite starter like Ryu. With neither Pearson, Zeuch, or Stripling ready to take Hyun Jin’s turn it will be interesting to see how the Jays manage their pitchers. Maybe they will be forced into more opener scenarios or maybe they give one of their young prospects like Alek Manoah an early season look. The minor league season is still a week away from starting so it could be a good opportunity to get his feet wet. Neither of those is a long-term solution this season. That comes in the closest of the 3 arms that is expected to return in Pearson. He has been throwing simulated games at the training facility as he tries to build up the arm strength to throw 5 plus innings. Optimistically, he will return in a week or so and can hold up from here on out. That would be a massive boost as Nate possesses top of the rotation potential and stuff. The only thing holding him back to this point in his young career is health. His hasn’t pitched much the past couple seasons so his workload and performance will be monitored closely. Adding his right arm to an all-lefty trio of Ryu, Matz, and Ray will make those 3 even tougher as it will give opposing teams a much different look in a series. Then the further those 4 can push the Blue Jays into contention the more likely GM Ross Atkins will be compelled to add another big arm through trade (Max Scherzer anyone?).

The most exciting and impactful returns definitely come in the starting lineup. As in Toronto’s big off season free agent signing George Springer. He finally made his long-awaited debut atop the Jays batting order last night. This was extremely surprising considering it was reported he was feeling a bit sore after playing back-to-back 9 inning games for the first time Sunday and Monday. He is going to start out as DH and most likely get some rest days along the way as he gets eased into full time duty. Having Springer in the lead off spot gives the order a whole new dynamic. We are talking about a career .270 BAA hitter who as recent as the last full season in 2019 put up monster numbers. Springer crushed 39 homeruns with 96 RBI’s and Runs respectively. Last night he went 0 for 4, but looked comfortable and showed no ill effects from his previous injuries. With Teoscar, his return should be right around the corner. With an off day today, before beginning a 3-game series against Atlanta, it would not be shocking to see him return on Friday. At this point, it’s simply a matter of Hernandez saying he feels recovered energy wise and ready to go. It cannot be overstated how important those 2 are to the ability of Toronto to take that next step into serious contender. They will add dangerous depth to the batting order while playing solid (Teoscar), if not great (George,) defence to the outfield. Between those 2, Lourdes Gurriel, and Randal Grichuk the Jays have a group of outfielders rival anyone’s when it comes to depth. In Springer’s absence all Grichuk has done is provide great defence and a productive bat in the middle of the order. Randal is hitting .289 with 4 homeruns, and 16 RBI’s in 22 games. It’s hard to say what the exact plan will be for the outfield when Springer returns, but no doubt Manager Charlie Montoyo will be finding ways to get Grich in the lineup as much as possible. Perhaps given how Lourdes has struggled to begin the season, Teoscar will see time in left with Randall sliding over to right. Regardless of how it shakes out, the batting order will finally be complete and for the first time we will get a look at the formidable lineup that was envisioned the day George Springer’s name was put to paper.

Having added the bullpen arms back that they have, and with the pending returns to their rotation and lineup, the Toronto Blue Jays will finally have as close to the Opening Day roster that was projected back in the Spring. It’s a roster that has the ability to compete with any team in baseball. Whether that comes to fruition or not depends on how long they can all stay together on the field. To this point they have proven their resilience, now it’s time to show everyone how serious they are. Time to show the league just how good they really are!

*stats courtesy of MLB.com and Sportsnet.ca

By: Jaymee Kitchenham

#major league baseball #baseball #toronto blue jays #blue jays #toronto

0 notes

felixvictorino · 3 years

Text

Ohtani pega jonrón y remolca cuatro; Angelinos apalean a Azulejos

Shohei Ohtani conectó un jonrón e impulsó cuatro carreras, Andrew Heaney trabajó seis entradas en blanco y los Angelinos de Los Ángeles apabullaron el viernes 7-1 a los Azulejos de Toronto. Ohtani completó una segunda entrada de cuatro anotaciones con un doble productor de tres carreras que cayó en la parte más recóndita entre los jardines derecho y central, a un lanzamiento de T.J. Zeuch. Su…

View On WordPress

0 notes

jumpynews · 5 years

Photo

Blue Jays prospect T.J. Zeuch throws no-hitter for triple-A Buffalo http://jumpynews.blogspot.com/2019/08/blue-jays-prospect-tj-zeuch-throws-no.html

#Baseball News #Jumpy News #MLB News #News

0 notes

your-dietician · 3 years

Text

Fantasy Baseball Picks: Top DraftKings MLB DFS Targets, Values for June 17

New Post has been published on https://tattlepress.com/mlb/fantasy-baseball-picks-top-draftkings-mlb-dfs-targets-values-for-june-17/

Fantasy Baseball Picks: Top DraftKings MLB DFS Targets, Values for June 17

The sun is shining, the skies are blue and the umpires are terrible. How could you ask for better conditions to play a little baseball? Tonight’s featured slate on DraftKings is made up of eight games and it all gets underway at 7:07 p.m. ET in Buffalo, New York.

Let’s go position-by-position and break down who you should be targeting for your lineups.

For up-to-the-minute news, analysis and lineups, download the DK Live app. You also can follow DK Live on Twitter @dklive.

PITCHER

Stud

Shohei Ohtani, Los Angeles Angels vs. Detroit Tigers, $8,100 – Ohtani can sometimes limit his own upside with his command issues — a 9.8% walk rate doesn’t mix well with a starter who’s already usually throwing fewer than 90 pitches — however it’s hard to argue with the raw results. Ohtani owns a 2.85 ERA and a 3.39 xFIP through 47.1 innings of work. He’s struck out 34.0% of the batters he’s faced and he’s managed to exceed 30.0 DKFP twice in his last five outings. That’s some pretty impressive stuff from an asset priced this close to $8K, especially one that’s also regularly hitting bombs of his own. Meanwhile, the Tigers have actually been hitting decently so far in June, but the team does own the AL’s second-highest strikeout rate within that span (26.4%). Detroit remains a very generous DFS matchup.

Value

Charlie Morton, Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis Cardinals, $7,200 – Morton has been frustratingly inconsistent all season long, but here’s what we know about the RHP. First and foremost, Morton has struck out 10.23 batters per nine through his 13 starts, showcasing an elite level of swing-and-miss ability. On top of that, Morton’s ERA estimators are far kinder than his actual ERA of 4.50, as the 37-year-old’s FIP (3.77) and xFIP (3.47) are roughly a full-run lower. There’s also the matter of the struggling Cardinals. In general, it’s always been best to attack this lineup with a right-handed pitcher, but St. Louis is having its issues with pretty much everybody so far in June. In the month, the Cardinals sport a lowly 78 wRC+ and a .115 ISO that’s the lowest mark in all of baseball. Look for Morton to take advantage.

CATCHER

Stud

Gary Sanchez, New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays, $4,800 – Sanchez has certainly been enjoying the month of June, as the backstop has slashed .302/.333/.674 with a 168 wRC+ in his 45 plate appearances since the calendar turned. I doubt that success with come to an end this evening with the Jays sending T.J. Zeuch ($6,200) to the mound in an emergency start. For those who don’t remember the former first-round pick’s cup of coffee in April, Zeuch pitched to an 11.72 xERA over four appearances. Yikes.

Value

Tom Murphy, Seattle Mariners vs. Tampa Bay Rays, $3,400 – Murphy has consistently preferred to face left-handed pitching throughout his career, and nothing about the trend has changed so far in 2021. In 67 plate appearances within the split, Murphy owns a .276 ISO and a 124 wRC+. For some perspective, against RHPs, the catcher has just a .456 OPS. So, maybe Rich Hill ($9,200) isn’t exactly an ideal matchup, but given his handedness, he’ll do.

Refer a friend and get $20 DK Dollars! Head to the DraftKings Playbook Promo page for more details!

FIRST BASE

Stud

Jared Walsh, Los Angeles Angels vs. Detroit Tigers, $5,000 – This is an interesting spot. I’m not totally above having some Matt Manning ($4,700) exposure in tournaments; but at the same time, he is a 23-year-old kid making his first-career MLB start and he’s pitched to a 8.07 ERA in Triple-A so far this season. Walsh is slashing an insane .340/.418/.648 with a 188 wRC+ against right-handed pitchers in 2021. Between Manning and a shaky Tigers bullpen, he should be in line for a huge performance this evening.

Value

Editor’s Note: Yankees 1B Chris Gittens is not in the lineup for tonight’s game vs. the Blue Jays.

Chris Gittens, New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays, $2,400 – It’s unclear if Gittens will be in the Yankees starting lineup this evening, but I can’t think of a better matchup for the slugger than Zeuch. Gittens’ biggest flaw is his contact rate, yet that shouldn’t be an issue against Toronto’s lanky starter, as Zeuch has struck out just six of the 57 batters he’s faced so far this season. The RHP is also conceding a .700 slugging percentages to opponents, so you don’t really have to squint to see how Gittens’ massive raw power could play into tonight’s contest.

SECOND BASE

Stud

Marcus Semien, Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees, $5,100 – The Jays and the Yankees both have implied team totals of well over five runs on Thursday, which means getting any piece of this game is a good idea. To be fair, though, Semien’s a perfectly fine play in a vacuum. Toronto’s leadoff man is slashing .333/.395/.614 with a 173 wRC+ since the beginning of May, while Michael King ($6,300) sports a 5.30 xERA and has struggled mightily as a starter. Semien also leads the Blue Jays in stolen bases (9), so he can truly attack an opponent in so many different ways.

Value

Dylan Moore, Seattle Mariners vs. Tampa Bay Rays, $3,000 – Again, I’m not suggesting that you full-on stack against Hill, but if you need to save some salary on a small slate, you could do worse than cherry-picking some Mariners’ bats. Dylan Moore has been hitting well since coming off the IL, he possesses a career .208 ISO against LHPs and he’s usually batting in the middle of Seattle’s lineup when the team is facing a lefty. That’s a pretty nice combination of factors.

THIRD BASE

Stud

Austin Riley, Atlanta Braves vs. St. Louis Cardinals, $4,700 – Regression has not been kind to John Gant ($7,500). The right-hander had been consistently outperforming his ERA estimators all season long coming into June, but his last two starts have been a train wreck. Gant’s surrendered 12 earned runs in 5.2 innings, mainly the result of three home runs and an embarrassing 0.38 K/BB ratio. For 2021 as a whole, Gant’s 6.15 xERA stands as an ugly reminder that the 28-year-old simply isn’t all that good. Riley, who owns a .268 ISO and 147 wRC+ when hitting at home, should be able to do some serious damage this evening.

Value

Cavan Biggio, Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees, $3,700 – It’s only a sample of 20 plate appearances, but Biggio has looked very comfortable at the dish since returning from the IL last week. To wit, the LHB is hitting .412 in that span with five extra-base hits and an eye-popping .647 ISO. To put that in perspective, in Biggio’s first 151 PAs of 2021, he was only able to muster seven extra-base knocks. In an opposite-hand matchup with King, Biggio is certainly viable on Thursday.

SHORTSTOP

Stud

Bo Bichette, Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees, $5,600 – Bichette has the capacity to be a streaky hitter, which could mean good things for anyone with the capital to roster him this evening. In fact, in 63 plate appearances in June, Bichette is slashing .356/.397/.576 with a 166 wRC+. More recently, the shortstop has 17 hits and a 1.086 OPS in his last 10 games. Basically, the man is on fire and I severely doubt that King has the stuff to combat Bichette’s amazing current form.

Value

Jose Iglesias, Los Angeles Angels vs. Detroit Tigers, $3,700 – With Anthony Rendon ($5,000; triceps) out of the lineup on Wednesday, Iglesias was asked to bat third for the Angels. Actually, for the past week, the shortstop has primarily been hitting out of the five-hole. Is it sad that lineup positioning is the best rationale I have for liking Iglesias on Thursday? Sort of, especially with the infielder’s 2020 campaign looking more and more like an aberration. However, Los Angeles has the second-highest non-Coors implied run total on tonight’s slate. If Iglesias is batting in the top-half at a price below $4K, I’m going to have some shares.

OUTFIELD

Stud

Aaron Judge, New York Yankees at Toronto Blue Jays, $5,400 – I’ve never been a huge fan of using BvP stats, but the fact that Judge has two home runs off of Zeuch in just eight career at-bats makes a lot of sense. Judge has the second-highest expected wOBA in baseball (.439) and a whopping 19.4% of his batted ball events this season have been barrels. As mentioned above, Zeuch is a contact-oriented pitcher, yet contact is not the result you want if you’re a pitcher when Judge is in the batter’s box.

Value

Dominic Smith, New York Mets vs. Chicago Cubs, $3,800 – Smith had been entrenched in a pretty disastrous slump the past few weeks, but things appear to be turning around. To wit, Smith has a pair of home runs in his past three games, and now he’ll get an amazing matchup against Kyle Hendricks ($8,800). The RHP has been awful as of late, conceded eight home runs in his past four outings. Actually, for the season as a whole, Hendricks sports a 5.44 xERA, while he’s surrendered a massive .422 wOBA to the 141 LHBs he’s faced. Hendricks is broken and Smith should reap the rewards.

Set your DraftKings fantasy baseball lineups here: MLB $250K Bat Flip [$50K to 1st]

Put your knowledge to the test. Sign up for DraftKings and experience the game inside the game.

I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and user (my username is theglt13) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.

If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL).

Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER(NJ/WV/PA/MI), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (NH/CO), 1-800-BETS OFF(IA), 1-888-532-3500 (VA) or call/text TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN).

21+ (18+ NH). CO/IL/IN/IA/NH/NJ/PA/TN/VA/WV/MI only. Eligibility restrictions apply. See draftkings.com/sportsbook for full terms and conditions.

Source link

0 notes

niallodonohoe · 3 years

Text

C's Recap - Zeuch, Case & Davis Lead Peoria To Arizona Fall League Championship

C’s Recap – Zeuch, Case & Davis Lead Peoria To Arizona Fall League Championship

2016 Vancouver Canadians righthander T.J. Zeuch was the winning pitcher in the 2017 Arizona Fall League championship game. Six former Vancouver Canadians are getting a championship ring as their Peoria Javelinas upended the Mesa Solar Sox 8-2 in the Arizona Fall League final at Scottsdale Stadium Saturday. 2016 C’s pitcher T.J. Zeuch got the start for the Javelinas and he was greeted by three…

View On WordPress

#Andrew Case #Arizona Fall League #Danny Young #Jackson McClelland #Jim Callis #Jonathan Davis #Lourdes Gourriel Jr.#Max Pentecost #Mesa Solar Sox #Michael Chavis #Peoria Javelinas #Ronald Acuna #Scottsdale Stadium #T.J. Zeuch

0 notes

funnythingshere0-blog · 6 years

Text

Decisions need to be made if Jays' downward trend continues

New Post has been published on https://funnythingshere.xyz/decisions-need-to-be-made-if-jays-downward-trend-continues/

Decisions need to be made if Jays' downward trend continues

TORONTO — The time for bigger-picture evaluations is looming for the Toronto Blue Jays and at the tail end of the season’s second month, they are trending the wrong way.

Drawing conclusions from a team’s best or worst stretches is always a risky venture because small samples can distort perceptions. The 1-6 homestand capped by Thursday’s 8-1 loss to the Los Angeles Angels, a run of games which included two dispiriting bullpen implosions, certainly qualifies among the latter and showcased some of the Blue Jays’ more worrying troubles.

Bad weeks happen, even for the best of clubs.

“We’re not putting complete games together,” said star third baseman Josh Donaldson. “That’s a recipe for not having success.”

But taking a step further back, it’s reasonable to start wondering whether April or May is the better barometer of where this team is headed, the kind of judgments front offices will begin making more definitively once the June 4-6 draft is completed.

The Blue Jays, now 23-27 overall, are 10-21 since they were last a season-best seven games over .500 on April 20, following an 8-5 win over the Yankees. They’re 7-15 in May. Their rotation has yet to collectively be the foundational strength it was supposed to be, and is missing a pillar until Marcus Stroman returns from the disabled list. The lineup isn’t deep enough to out-hit those struggles. A handful of position player injuries have left them exposed and as a result, remarkably, they aren’t carrying a natural shortstop on the roster.

Save for Teoscar Hernandez, they haven’t gotten the kind of internal boost they’ve needed from the prospects to see some big-league time.

“We were really swinging the bats in April, the bullpen was lights out in April and some things corrected a little bit like you figured it was going to,” said manager John Gibbons. “We haven’t had the consistency of starting pitching we expect and eventually will have. Lump them all together, that’s what happens sometimes.”

Even more troubling is that after dropping two of three to the Angels, the Blue Jays are a cumulative 9-14 so far against the Halos, Yankees, Red Sox, Mariners and Cleveland, all American League clubs considered post-season contenders. The Blue Jays have a winning record against just one of those teams — 2-1 versus Cleveland — and they’ve yet to face the stacked Astros, who may be even better than they were a year ago when they won the World Series.

It’s-still-early caveats aside, there’s a developing gap in the standings.

“We have to try to stay as positive as possible,” said Donaldson. “At the same time, we have to look in the mirror at the end of the night and say, ‘What do I have to do to get better?’ I know everyone in here is working their tail off and we’re going to try to address the issues as much as possible and try to go out there and do a better job.”

There’s no time to waste, which is why the coming stretch — starting with a nine-game road trip to Philadelphia, Boston and Detroit that opens Friday against the Phillies — really matters for the Blue Jays.

If the players emerge from their current rut and look more like the April group than the May group, they can earn more run, at least to the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline if not longer, and merit consideration for augmentation.

“We’re better than this, we really are,” said Marco Estrada, who allowed four runs on seven hits and two walks over 4.1 innings in the finale. “Whether people believe it or not, I don’t really care because I know we are better.

“I know I’m much better. I’m not pitching like it right now. And I will get better.”

If he and others don’t, however — and dates with the Yankees, Orioles, Nationals, Braves, Angels, Astros and Tigers follow the road trip — it behooves the Blue Jays to get a jump on exploring the trade market for ways to retool a rotation set only to return Stroman and Aaron Sanchez for 2019.

Jaime Garcia, who’ll come off the disabled list to start Saturday in Philadelphia, has a $10-million club option that at the moment looks unappealing. There are also no sure-fire prospects in the system that at the moment could be confidently pencilled into next season’s staff.

Ryan Borucki and Sean Reid-Foley (promoted to triple-A on Thursday and rocked for eight runs on eight hits and two walks over 2.1 innings in his debut) are the likeliest options at Buffalo, while Canadian Jordan Romano and 2016 first-rounder T.J. Zeuch are at double-A New Hampshire and could make rapid progress.

Still, that’s a tough way to fill out three fifths of the starting rotation and with the Blue Jays down 319,937 fans from 2017 through their first 28 home dates, you’d logically think they’ll have less payroll to work with next year, unless things change.

That’s one reason why the Joe Biagini starter experiment has gotten so much run, why someone like Sam Gaviglio is more than just a depth piece and someone like the currently-suspended Thomas Pannone matters.

And it’s also why the Blue Jays need to be decisive in June if they don’t get on a real run and don’t believe in the group they have.

There are reasons to think the club can improve, particularly since Donaldson, Justin Smoak, Kendrys Morales and Russell Martin, to name a few players, are capable of so much more at the plate, and the rotation should be far better than it’s shown.

As Donaldson put it: “It’s not that we can’t be, we just need to be better. We’re not doing it as a collective group right now. We have the capability to do it — if we didn’t have the capability it would be one thing — but we have the capability to do it, we just have to go out there and do it.”

On the flip side, if the front office doesn’t envision a sufficient correction — they’d need to play .600 baseball (67-45) the rest of the way to finish with 90 wins — it’s better to try turning pending free-agent assets like Donaldson, Estrada, J.A. Happ, Curtis Granderson and their relievers into some legitimate rotation options for next year.

Dealing them earlier could, potentially, allow them to charge a bit of a premium for an extended period of control, something Blue Jays president and CEO Mark Shapiro did with CC Sabathia in Cleveland, sending him to Milwaukee on July 7, 2008 for a package that included Michael Brantley.

Such a sell-off would hurt, badly, but to this point many of the assumptions made about what would lead to 2018 success haven’t happened for the Blue Jays. Time remains for them to rally and factor into the wild-card chase, but if they don’t show something very soon, the team may ultimately be better off jump-starting a reset that’s long lurked in the background.

0 notes

highbuttonsports · 3 years

Text

George Springer and Teoscar Hernandez (2021)(theathletic.com)

The Early Bird Special

During the course of the marathon that is the 162 game MLB season, there are a multitude of issues that every team has to deal with. How each team handles and overcomes those issues plays a significant role in determining their fates. From injuries to hitting slumps to blown saves to everything in between, they all pose varying degrees of threats to the end result. The Toronto Blue Jays have faced more than their fair share of those hurdles in the first few weeks of the season. Through their first 16 games they sit at an underwhelming 7-9, but that’s pretty good considering all the adversity they have had to fight through already. The most challenging obstacle to Toronto’s success has been injuries. Currently there are 9 players on the injured list (plus Biggio and Phelps who are day-to-day) that were expected to be full time contributors. Sure, injuries are part of the game, every team goes through them, and nobody wants to use them as an excuse, but the fact is the Jays have seen their lineup, rotation, and bullpen all decimated by injury.

Out of the batting order are George Springer, Teoscar Hernandez, and Cavan Biggio. That’s 3 of the top 6 bats all out of the order. There isn’t a team in baseball that wouldn’t be negatively affected by that. It’s no wonder they have been one of the worst teams in baseball at hitting with runners in scoring position (27th out of 30 with a paltry .192 BA and .534 OPS). It makes the fact they are 3rd best in the AL in run differential at +9 even more surprising. Hopefully all 3 of those guys will be back sooner than later and we will finally get to see what the lineup is capable of. For George Springer, the big offseason addition hasn’t played a single game yet. He injured his oblique in spring training and then strained his quad while rehabbing the oblique strain. He has been taking BP regularly and running as GM Ross Atkins said on Sunday that he’s “Not quite at 100 percent with all of it, but getting live [batting practice] reps here in the coming hours and days," Atkins said. "He's had good defensive action. He's had plenty of reps in the batting cage and he's running again, so I think it's a matter of us being disciplined to the process.” What that means for the exact date of his return is unknown, but they will certainly be careful with their new high-priced talent so he is ready to stay on the field once he does return. As for Teoscar, he has been out since April 9th due to testing positive for and having symptoms from COVID-19. He is symptom free now thankfully and once he clears protocol in the next 4 days while testing negative, he should be back. With Biggio, he is day-to-day with hand soreness having missed the past 3 games. X-rays were negative so the hope is he will avoid a stint on the IL. For an offence that was expected to be one of the better ones in the entire league, it has been a struggle that has maybe caused the hitters that are healthy to put extra pressure on themselves to perform. Semien, Biggio, Gurriel, and Tellez are all batting .205 or under in the early going. Small sample sure, but between the missing players and slow starts, the runs have not been as fruitful as they were expected to be. It has given younger players like Josh Palacios, Jonathan Davis, and Santiago Espinal more of an opportunity, but those are not the players needed for the order to be at it’s best.

Since the hitting hasn’t been producing as expected, that has put added focus on the starting rotation. Hyun Jin Ryu has been his dominant self and Steven Matz has been equally as impressive, but beyond that things haven’t gone very well. The rotation is still missing Nate Pearson (who hasn’t pitched yet) and then his fill in, Ross Stripling, went down himself. Pearson has been out all year recovering from a groin strain. His potential is immense though, so Toronto is going to be careful not to push him back. He will start throwing live bp this week with simulated games the next step after that. Best bet is an early may return which puts the depth of the starting pitching that was in question coming into the year even more into focus. The next in line duo of T.J. Zeuch and Anthony Kay have simply not been good enough. Zeuch has a 6.75 ERA and 1.92 WHIP through 4 games and 2 starts. Kay has a 10.80 ERA and 1.80 WHIP in 1 start. On the bright side, the Jays did get back Robbie Ray to help stabilize things. After 2 typically volatile starts, he holds a 1.80 ERA, but that comes with his troubling 1.60 WHIP. If he could ever harness his great arm and gain command of his pitches Robbie could be the one of the better pitchers in the AL. Until then getting through 5 innings is going to be difficult for Robbie and further tax a bullpen that has been stretched thin already.

Even though the bullpen has seen it’s share of injuries, it has been a bright spot for the Jays. There are 5 relievers currently on the IL with David Phelps day-to-day after taking a line drive off his back. Of those 5 though, 3 were lined up to pitch the 7th, 8th, and 9th in Julian Merryweather, Jordan Romano, and Kirby Yates. Yates is out for the season with Tommy John which opened up the closer’s role coming in. Merryweather was amazing in his 4 appearances while nailing down his 2 save chances. With and electric 100 mph fastball he had 7 strikeouts in 4 innings while looking every part of a major league closer. Unfortunately, he went down on the 14th with an oblique injury that is rumoured to be a long-term issue. That means likely 4-6 weeks. His loss looks like it will be a big one, but that would be mitigated by Romano returning from his arm injury as soon as his 10 days are up on Saturday. All indications are that will be the case. Even with those 3 out (plus Chatwood, Hatch, and Phelps) the bullpen has been spectacular. The Jays have the best bullpen in all of baseball! As a group, they have a stingy 2.24 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 61 K’s in 64.1 innings, while holding the opposition to a .221 BA. Most surprising out of the pen has been unexpected guys stepping up. Lesser-known arms such as Joel Payamps, Tim Mayza, and Anthony Castro have been fantastic in giving up 1 run in 14.2 innings combined. With the impending return of Romano, Chatwood (should be activated before Tuesday’s game), and Phelps (once his contusion is healed enough to pitch, he’ll be back), reinforcements are on the way for a group of relivers that has seen more work than the team was hoping they would get. The Jays definitely don’t want the bullpen to be worn down too much too early. Relievers will be even more critical due to the innings limits/concerns of the starters after last season’s shortened season.

It has been a trying first few weeks for the Blue Jays, especially when it comes to managing through all the injuries. They haven’t been just depth injuries either. They are injuries to key cogs for a team with playoff aspirations. Optimistically though, they do provide opportunities for younger players to step up as well as providing an opportunity to the team to test themselves when things get tough. Sure, it’s not ideal so early in the season, but the lessons learned now will serve the team well as the season progresses. As the dog days of summer roll around the Jays will be battle tested. That goes a long way for a mostly young roster that isn’t used to being in a position of having winning expectations. That’s where a guy like Springer comes in handy. Not only is he an established star, but he has been there and done that. So, as much as there are positives to being tested, it will be a welcome sight when the Springer and the boys can finally all come together.

*all stats and quotes courtesy of ESPN.com

By: Jaymee Kitchenham

#major league baseball #baseball #blue jays #toronto blue jays

0 notes

flauntpage · 7 years

Text

Blue Jays Mailbag: Pillar Leading Off, Biagini's Role, and 6-Man Rotations

This article originally appeared on VICE Sports Canada.

Andrew Stoeten answers your questions in our Blue Jays Mailbag, which runs weekly at VICE Sports. You can send him questions at [email protected], and follow him on Twitter.

The Blue Jays salvaged one of three against the White Sox over the weekend, but spent a good 90 percent of the series looking mostly awful. Does this mean it's time to panic? To crack each other's heads open and feast on the goo inside?

In a word: yes. In five more words: if you're a garbage clown.

Ahhh, we have fun, don't we? But seriously, the Jays are spinning their wheels, fans are starting to get restless, and this is the backdrop for... well... for at least a couple questions in this week's Blue Jays mailbag. So let's do it to it!

If you have a Blue Jays question you'd like me to tackle for next week, be sure to send it to [email protected]. As always, I have not read any of Griff's answers.

Hey Stoeten, Do you think the Jays will consider using a 6-man rotation again when Sanchez returns, perhaps skipping the odd Biagini start to keep him fresh? Matt

I absolutely don't!

I know that the team went to six starters last year, but those were pretty severe circumstances. Aaron Sanchez needed his innings rolled back, the Jays needed to see what they had in Francisco Liriano, and Marco Estrada's back was giving him problems and it seemed he could use the extra rest. Because of that, and because there was no obvious odd man out, the Jays went with it, but Marco Estrada seemed to be particularly out of sync in shifting to five days of rest between starts, instead of the usual four, and the experiment as a whole was hardly a shining example of why teams need to go to a six-man rotation more regularly.

Not only are pitchers thrown off by the disruption to their routine, but there are obvious structural problems with the whole concept. Roster numbers are finite, so to go to a six-man rotation means a club needs to take either an arm out of its bullpen or a bat off its bench. There is also the simple math of it, with respect to the number of starts that go to each pitcher: 162 games divided by five starters is 32.4 starts each, and divided between six is 27 starts each. Do you really want to take away five or six starts each from your top two starters just so you can have a sixth in the rotation? With all the other problems that come with the idea? (Hint: you don't!)

Of course, you're not talking about the Jays doing this for a full season, and their rotation's strength is that there really isn't one guy who stands out ahead of the others, so I suppose it could make more sense for them than most, but then the big question becomes, why???

What is the point of keeping Joe Biagini in the rotation once everybody else is healthy?

Biagini has shown that he's a viable rotation option for this club—despite his most recent start, which was awful—and that's great for them going forward. But, for me, if he's the sixth guy he's the sixth guy, and he goes straight back to the bullpen once Aaron Sanchez is ready. He still has a lot of value there, and while I've encountered the odd six-man-rotation stan who pretends it would somehow be reckless or impossible to have to ramp Biagini's innings back up a second time this season, were they to shift him back to the bullpen now and then need him in the rotation later, uh… no.

Photo by Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

Biagini worked as a starter all spring, then went to the bullpen, then easily made the transition back into the rotation. I don't think it's ideal to keep doing this to a guy, but not because of any worries about arm health. It's just probably not putting him in the best position to succeed.

But Biagini's here for the long haul. He's due to hit arbitration for the first time after next season, and the Jays will hold his rights for three more years after that. And, by the looks of it, next year he'll likely be a full-fledged member of the rotation—a cheap and halfway decent replacement for the losses of Marco Estrada and Francisco Liriano to free agency (though we all hope they re-sign Estrada, I'm sure, even though he's been awful lately, too). He'll be fine. He will, in fact, probably be even better in the bullpen, where he was unexpectedly a weapon for the club last year, and continued to thrive through the start of this season.

Why are we aiming to take starts away from better starters, and to remove a reliever or a bench bat from the roster, just to keep him starting games, exactly? It doesn't make a lot of sense. And the thing about six-man rotation schemes, which come up literally every single season, they almost never make sense.

---

Hey Stoeten Loving the new mailbag, although I do miss the contrast between your answers and Griffins.

My question today is why does the MLB draft suck so hard. War times notwithstanding the MLB draft is the suckiest draft that ever did suck. I can recite 7 of the top 10 projected picks for the upcoming NBA draft from memory, I've already read 3 NFL mock drafts and yet I can't remember who the Twins took with the first overall pick on Monday and I'm way more into baseball than those other two sports. Why doesn't MLB have the draft in November and allow teams to trade picks and market this thing like the other major sports.

Cheers Chris Mc

I'm all for making drastic changes to the draft—abolishing it would be a good start!—but… uh… I don't really see how holding it after the season or allowing teams to trade picks (which is definitely a major change I'd be on board for) is going to change the fact that nobody knows who the fuck these guys getting picked are.

It's easy to say this here in Canada, but NCAA baseball is pretty faceless, and niche enough in its own right, and yet the top three picks in this year's MLB draft were from high school—not a whole lot of exposure there, unless you're someone like a Bryce Harper. Add to the exposure problem the fact that baseball greatness takes time to reveal itself—there is no equivalent of a McDonald's All-American Game or a World Junior Hockey Championships (though a mini tournament of California, versus Texas, versus Florida, versus everybody else might be interesting!), where the best of the best can impress upon the world just how much physically better they are than their peers.

And not only is the problem that draftees are unknown now, it's that they're going to remain unknown for years. Four of the top six players taken in the 2016 NHL draft were regulars for their teams as rookies. The number in the NBA is even higher than that (only four first rounders didn't suit up in the NBA—three of whom stayed in Europe, the other being injured top pick Ben Simmons). None of MLB's 2016 first-round picks reached the big leagues in their draft year, only five of the players picked in the first round of 2015 draft have made it to the majors (Swanson, Bregman, Benintendi, Fulmer, and Happ), and only 13 of the first 41 picks from 2014 have done so. Even fewer have established themselves as regulars.

Many won't ever establish themselves as regulars, and that's a problem, too. At least in terms of making the draft exciting. I mean, the Blue Jays are hardly atypical, and yet look at the wasteland that makes up most of their first round (and supplemental round) picks since 2010: T.J. Zeuch, Jon Harris, Jeff Hoffman, Max Pentecost, Phil Bickford, D.J. Davis, Marcus Stroman, Matt Smoral, Mitch Nay, Tyler Gonzales, Tyler Beede, Jacob Anderson, Joe Musgrove, Dwight Smith, Kevin Comer. Obviously in the supplemental round of 2010 they did extremely well (Sanchez, Syndergaard, and to a much, much lesser extent, Wojciechowski), but before that they took Deck McGuire! Take out the big three from that draft, as well as Marcus Stroman, and you get a total of 44 games of big league experience from the rest of that list!

Makes for some real scintillating stuff on draft night, eh?

So, I guess what I would say is that the draft is what it is. The league does a pretty good job of trying to make it as much of an event as it can be, and the rest of the world does the sensible thing and collectively shrugs its shoulders. It's just different, is all.

---

How long do you run Kevin Pillar in the leadoff spot? Is there a better option? Numbers since May 1st are not good. BaseballBats

is there anyone else who could conceivably leadoff ahead of pillar? Steve

Why does Bats still bat third for the Jays?? Blake

I don't know that Kevin Pillar would have ever been my leadoff hitter, to be honest. I think it's best not to get too hung up on the silly traditional ideas of what a leadoff guy is supposed to be (or, honestly, to worry about lineup order much, if at all), so I'm entirely fine with having someone like Jose Bautista at the top of the Jays' lineup right now. Or, at least, I would be if his numbers weren't in the shitter at the moment, too.

Photo by John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

But the thing about Bautista—good lord, never "Bats"—is that at least he still takes walks. The ZiPS projection system has Pillar with a .307 OBP for the rest of the season, because despite the encouraging signs we saw at the start of the season, it's most likely that's who Pillar is. Bautista, despite being at just .337 now—a number powered by the terrific May that is bookended by miserable months in April and June (so far)—is projected for .360 the rest of the way. Projections aren't everything, but I still think Bautista gives the Jays their best chance to have someone on base for Josh Donaldson, which is obviously the position that they want to be in.

I don't particularly like the idea of a home run hitter (which Bautista still sort of is) being guaranteed one plate appearance per game with nobody on ahead of him, not to mention hitting behind the dregs of the lineup, but without Devon Travis and Ezequiel Carrera, there really isn't anybody who looks a whole lot better there. And I think it's fair to be thinking about moving him out of the third spot in the order, even though it's a bit of an eye-roll-worthy reaction to the team scuffling a bit lately. (There are good hitters here, it's OK to relax a bit).

But another dimension of me not really caring too much about this stuff is that I'd totally be fine if they rode the hot hands of Dwight Smith and Steve Pearce, and had Smith leadoff against right-handers and Pearce against lefties. WHY NOT?

The other thing is that we shouldn't be too careless about where we mark the beginning of Pillar's decline. For me, he was entirely fine through the start of May, and it was really the 0-for-4 in Atlanta, and the accompanying suspension for using a homophobic slur, that seems to be the point where things went south for him. Since "that game" he's slashed a pitiful .168/.226/.271 (29 wRC+), but that was only just May 17.

Asking a hitter "what have you done for me lately?" is almost always a mistake, in my view, because no hitter is his last 10 or 20 or 30 or even 60 games. That's not to excuse guys for being shitty, it's to say that just because a guy has been shitty for a while doesn't mean that he is shitty.

It hasn't been a great couple of weeks, and that's especially frustrating because the Blue Jays' opponents seemed ripe for the picking, but it's funny how quickly Blue Jays fans, even after watching two straight ALCS seasons, are ready to throw up their hands and declare the team awful sometimes. Speaking of...

---

Do the Jays have an overabundance of dumb Twitter fans? Or are they just what I am exposed to, sure seems like a lot of pissbabies online Dave

Did this team change it's goal from making the playoffs to causing fans to vomit uncontrollably? TJ

Morales and a prospect for Eddie E. It makes precious little sense but fuck it I'm mad online DMChristop

I included that last one because I just… I don't even know where to begin with a thing like that. What I do know is that, no, the Jays don't have an overabundance of dumb Twitter fans. Quite the opposite, I find—or, at least, I've found after several years of muting and blocking the truly ridiculous ones. Like... go look at how other fan bases interact online, or just people in general. We're living in the age of trash, my man. And Twitter has replaced comments sections as the place where self-awareness and humility are put on hold so people can just vent whatever dumb, negative garbage comes into their heads and try to pass it off as wit. (Not that I'd know anything about all that *COUGH*).

This isn't to slag TJ or DMChristop, who obviously had their tongues firmly in cheek when they sent these questions this way, it's more to say: yes, Twitter is exasperating, and no, it's not just your experience with it, it's everybody's.

Here's another thing I know, though: a team that loses 45 percent of its games wins 89 of 162 and makes the playoffs. We all can relax a little with the "they've been bad for two weeks so they're bad!" or "this guy's been bad for a month so he's bad!" stuff. Twitter is great for amplifying people who see things that are bad and can identify them as bad and think that doing so is providing some kind of a service. "Gotta hit the cut-off man there!" "Shouldn't have sent that runner home!" "He's gotta make that catch!" "This lineup isn't hitting!" Yeah, thanks Connie fucking Mack.

Sometimes it's best to just put the phone down and walk away and try to enjoy the game for itself. At least 45 percent of the time, by my reckoning.

Blue Jays Mailbag: Pillar Leading Off, Biagini's Role, and 6-Man Rotations published first on http://ift.tt/2pLTmlv

0 notes