That 1.32 ERA doesn't look right, but that's what Baseball Cube says. It looks more like 2.12 (or so) when you eyeball it.

No matter. Great pickup by the Jays.

the ERA is obviously wrong looking at the stats

i think it is 2.55 ERA still a good trade

That's what I got too, Steve. I changed it above.

Looks like a good deal. If we lose Davis Romero tomorrow (rule 5 draft) at least we'll have one little bitty righty.

Well done JP.

I'm not ready to plan the parade just yet but when you consider the fact Cash was probably going to be in Syracuse for the season, I like this deal.

And I would like to wish Kevin Cash the best of luck with the Rays.

I remember all the coaches raving about him in Spring Training about how he really worked hard in the off-season to improve his hitting. Cash is a class act and hopefully he develops into a regular MLB'er with Tampa Bay.

What a great deal! This is truly something for nothing. I guess Tampa didn't like finishing out of the cellar.

Outstanding move by JP. I thought Harper would be a good return for Cash, and Gaudin is obviously a step up from him. A very young pitcher with a killer slide for a backup catcher who can't hit is a great deal. Gaudin will get a good look in spring training I think, but I wouldn't be suprised to see him start in Syracuse and up with the Jays in early June or so.

Also, I forsee a mention tomorrow in Griffin's colum of Gaudin's age and the fact he's already pitched in the majors, followed by a snarky comment that he's a pitcher the Blue Jays would never drafted because he came out of high school.

Didn't I read that Cash went to high school in Tampa or nearby? It should be nice for him to go in as a hometown kid and maybe draw in some fans.

Good luck, Kevin!

I also wish Cash the best in Tampa and have also heard nothing but positive things about his attitude.

However, am I alone in being dissapointed with his defence last year, throwing arm aside? Maybe it was due to his age and inexperience behind the plate, but I recall several situations where Cash looked lazy trying to block pitchers and at least one instance where he failed to block the plate on a close play at home, something Zaun did excellently all season long. He's still quite new to catching, but I was left with that impression many times this year after watching him behind the plate.

Also, I forsee a mention tomorrow in Griffin's colum of Gaudin's age and the fact he's already pitched in the majors, followed by a snarky comment that he's a pitcher the Blue Jays would never drafted because he came out of high school.

That'd be a really dumb thing to write. Gaudin was a 34th round draft pick. It's not like JP hasn't drafted high school pitchers late in the draft.

(I'm well aware. Under JP we usually begin the high schoolers around round 19 or 20. But writing dumb things hasn't stopped him before, has it?)

Heheheheh. Of course not, Thomas. :)

April 6th, 2004.

Anyone hear any confirmation on the Koskie deal? Sportsnet said, it's all but done...

http://www.RaysBaseball.com
This is another terrible trade by our GM, LaMar. Gaudin has a tough time with LHB, where his sweeping slider isn't as effective, and his change isn't major-league ready yet. But he has great poise on the mound, his slider is extremely tough on RHB, his fastball has enough riding action on it, and of course he is so young he could be real special - more than just a set-up guy. Our GM is too dumb to look past the speed gun and his height to realize he's a 21 year old with better than a k per inning in AAA. Good luck with him.

It's a great trade. However, Gaudin hasn't really had substantial success beyond single A. The Rays basically skipped the rest of his baseball education in 2003 after he succeeded in single A Bakersfield, and threw 19 outstanding innings in double A. The Rays treated him like the Jays of the early 90s treated Brad Cornett and a few others.

He should start the season in triple A, and earn his promotions in the same way that the other Jay pitching prospects will. In the meanwhile, this will surely allow JP to include a pitching prospect in a trade for a first baseman. Like I said, great trade.

I probably valued Cash more than most around here - his poor batting line was in limited ABs, and he, IIRC, took time to adjust each time he climed a level.

But given that I never would have imagined the Jays getting someone that seems to be as good as Gaudin.

It'll be interesting to read the quotes from JP & Co on his role.

I could see Gaudin beginning the year in AAA, perhaps as a starter.

Thanks for the report Jay.

Ricciardi said that Gaudin would get a look in Spring Training, but they see him at AAA to start the year. He's a two pitch pitcher (fastball, slider, mediocre change). I would use him as a starter in AAA to get some innings, and bring him up as a reliever. His stuff isn't as good as League's, so I would keep League as a starter and hope Gaudin can become the home grown closer that Ricciardi wants.

http://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article.jsp?content=20041212_185830_4604
With Koskie looking like he will join the Jays and play 3rd, I wonder how Hinske feels about moving across the diamond (assuming he doesn't get traded) after he worked hard and improved his defence last season.

I wonder if this means negotiations with Zaun have been going well? Can't see the team rushing Quiroz, what other veteran backstoppers are out there?

It's not like working on his defense at 3b is all for naught if Hinske were to move to 1b.

Are we ready for tomorrow's headline?

Poor Jays Lose Cash for 2005

http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/the-meat-market-catchers/
Gotta stop being lazy (comm)for Gleemans potential catching free agent options.

"It's not like working on his defense at 3b is all for naught if Hinske were to move to 1b."

I'm talking about more in terms of him having to switch defensive positions. I'm sure Hinske would rather play 3B than 1B. Assuming Koskie is coming here, it's obvious JP isn't that high on Hinske.

With Koskie looking like he will join the Jays and play 3rd, I wonder how Hinske feels about moving across the diamond (assuming he doesn't get traded) after he worked hard and improved his defence last season.

I wouldn't mind, especially if it means you're getting a very, very solid right side of the field, and an exceptional defender at third in Koskie. Between Hudson, Koskie, Adams and Hinske, it'd be a much tougher sell to get the ball out of the infield, and that's without factoring in that great outfield.

Assuming Koskie is coming here, it's obvious JP isn't that high on Hinske.

I hardly think that at all, it's just a hell of a lot easier to fill the position this way than trying to fill the position from a dedicated 1B, who seem to be few in number and very high in price.

Hinske should thank God every day that he signed that massive contract. It is the only reason he's in the majors today.

That'd be a really dumb thing to write. Gaudin was a 34th round draft pick. It's not like JP hasn't drafted high school pitchers late in the draft.

Yes, it would be a dumb thing to write. Brace yourself.

The Rays basically skipped the rest of his baseball education in 2003 after he succeeded in single A Bakersfield, and threw 19 outstanding innings in double A.

The Jays would be smart to put him back on the "educational" path. If he develops that change, we're talking about a starter with some potential. As it stands, we're talking about a reliever with some major-league usability.

Worst case scenario = a very effective 21 yr old reliever in Syracuse.

What a nice little deal.

I'm not so sure it was a good trade, especially for the next season, when this Gaudin guy will likely be developing in Triple A. The Jays are going to need to rely alot on their running game next season (which I reckon will be really good, Adams, Rios, Wells, Johnson, the Cat, and Hudson all have really good speed). For the 19 games we play against the Rays, I imagine they'll have Cash as catcher for most of them, therefore shutting down our only real weapon.

For the 19 games we play against the Rays, I imagine they'll have Cash as catcher for most of them, therefore shutting down our only real weapon.

I will gladly take the one or two baserunners he may gun down if it means having his feeble bat in their lineup.

For the 19 games we play against the Rays, I imagine they'll have Cash as catcher for most of them, therefore shutting down our only real weapon.

I don't think Cash is going to take Toby Hall's job away.

If the running game is the Jays' only real weapon, the season is already over. It won't be, so it's not.

Awesome, awesome trade. Every time I start doubting J.P., he pulls off something like this and my confidence is renewed for another long stretch. Bravo.

Good trade. I like Gaudin's chances of becoming an effective reliever, and I like the addition to the pitching depth at the top of the system. He should definitely start the season in Syracuse to work on his changeup.

All the best to Kevin Cash. As a guy who was signed as a non-drafted free agent, he's already a huge success story.

I wonder if this means negotiations with Zaun have been going well?

The Jays are very much in a win-win situation with Zaun. If he re-signs, he's a good man to keep the spot warm for Quiroz. If he signs elsewhere, the Jays get 'B' compensation, which is a first-round or sandwich pick.

I'm not sure if I'd call Cat and his career 39 stolen bases in 714 games with a 66% success ratio as someone with good speed. He's probably not worse than average, but I wouldn't say good.

With no disrespect to Cash (the person), any deal which sees the Jays receive either a serviceable major leaguer or prospect is a good one in my eyes. Cash (the ballplayer) has demonstrated little to no ability to hit major league pitching.

I see this trade more of a "win - win" deal. It's clear how the Jays come out on the up and up but Tampa is getting exactly what they want, an excellent defensive catcher to back up Toby Hall. Cash won't be getting 250 ABs with the D-Rays next year barring an injury to Hall.

Cash works hard, he just wasn't working out in Toronto. Just like some people said above, I say best of luck to Cash in Tampa. I hope the fans appreciate having a "hometown boy" in their lineup.

It looks like a solid prospect for T.O., meaning we are a better ballclub for it. Cash would potentially have languished as a 2nd backup to our proposed Myers / Zaun tandem, especially when you consider Quiroz could be showing up soon. As a perrenial Jays optimist, I hope that our newest Jay is as good as he looks on paper.

It appears Koskie is going to be blue jay. JP got one of his men on his wish list...lets hope he gets the second in clemente.

"Jays Cash-out with nice return"

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-bluejays-koskie&prov=ap&type=lgns
COMN --- Three years, 17 mil. I don't know what the first year offers, but I suspect it will be somewhere around five mil. I don't see how Clement figures into the math.

I'm thinking too far ahead, though. Welcome aboard Corey. He's a solid pick-up regardless of what becomes of Hinske.

What about Doug Mirabelli....If Zaun doesn't come back from what i have seen of Mirabelli he could be a very underrated hitter playing behind Varitek!! Whats his price!!

He's already re-signed with Boston.

Well, I'd WAY rather have a 32 year old Koskie making about 5.7 MM/year [17 over 3] than a 38 year old Castilla making 3.1 MM over 2.

Good Move.

I'd like Hinske to at least have a shot at playing first as well, if he bounces back, then we are WAY further ahead than trading him now at his lowest...this has been said before, I know.

http://www.aarongleeman.com
Enjoy Koskie, fellas. I think this stinks.

I agree with the general consensus: getting an actual pitching prospect for Cash is a great deal, since Cash wasn't really in the Jays' plans.

As for Koskie: I'm pleased, of course (assuming he passes his physical, and the signing actually happens). He's missed a few games over the last couple of years due to injury, so he'll fit right in in Toronto. :-)

I'm pretty certain Toby Hall is going to be non-tendered. Just call it a hunch.

Will this make Cash the starter? I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Koskie signing puts Jays at 39? on the 40 man roster. Leaves one spot for the Rule 5 today...

Best. Trade. Ever.

Since I would have been very pleased with Colome, Sosa or Harper at closer to market value (I think they're all arb-eligible) I'm absolutely delighted with Gaudin. Thanks to Jay Bradley for confirming that even from Florida, this looks like an absolute steal.

My first awareness of Gaudin was that Gammons just loved him.

June 2001: Chad Gaudin, RHP, Crescent City (Louisiana) Baptist HS: He's 5-9, 155 pounds, pitched for one of the smallest high schools in one of the most fascinating states, but 203 strikeouts in 89 innings is good enough for me to want to watch him.

Nov. 2001: How about these numbers from a Pedro Martinezesque 32nd-round pick of the Devil Rays named Chad Gaudin, out of Harahan, La. In 38 innings in the instructional league, the 5-10 right-hander did not allow a run.

It was actually the 34th round, but that's part of Petey's charm. John Sickels also had positive things to say in this mailbag from last March:

I agree that Gaudin hasn't received the attention he deserves, probably because he is a Devil Ray.

The possibility does exist that the Rays suspect an arm problem, but even if Chad gets hurt, the Jays can afford to wait a year or two for a deal like this to pay dividends. More likely, it's just another wheel falling off that Tampa development machine. Brandon Backe would be their ace, but they traded him for Geoff Blum.

Kudos to J.P. for the heist.

I'm pretty certain Toby Hall is going to be non-tendered. Just call it a hunch.

I second that. I originally figured Cash would be the backup, but then I looked up Hall's numbers - he's been pretty bad for the past couple years, and I don't believe his defence is that hot.

This, though, brings up another interesting possibility: Should the Jays take a chance on Hall if he is non-tendered? While, as I say, he hasn't done a whole lot in the majors, he was pretty hot stuff in the minors. Is it worth a shot to see if the Jays can help him re-capture his swing?

Should the Jays take a chance on Hall if he is non-tendered? While, as I say, he hasn't done a whole lot in the majors, he was pretty hot stuff in the minors. Is it worth a shot to see if the Jays can help him re-capture his swing

Wouldn't that just make Hall another "former Phenom"?? LOL

Actually I think it comes down to what is the plan for Quiroz... Assuming we want him playing every day, is Myers the backup catcher??? Is Zaun going to sign??? ... if we need a short term catcher I don't mind signing a "Hall" cheap, and see if his value goes up... its a better decision than Santiago, or Miller, or Sandy Alomar...

Excellent deal. I liked Cash, but he was just too much of an offensive liability to be an everyday player, and didn't exactly appear to be improving in that department. A catcher with good defense but .173 career ML AVG, who probably wasn't going to play much anyways, for a young pitcher with potential is a very good deal for the Jays, any way you look at it.

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/news/mlb_news.jsp?ymd=20041213&content_id=921867&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp
Well, he's not going home after all. Kevin Cash was traded to Arizona for the DBacks' first pick in the Rule 5 draft. COMN.

That makes sense. Cash belongs in the NL, maybe he'll be the next millionaire catcher who doesn't deserve it, along the lines of Ausmus and Matheny...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/splits3?statsId=7199&type=pitching
Gaudin is a little righthander with a slider that's hard on righties but that lefthanders pound like there's no tomorrow

Don't you think that's a little premature, and a little overstated? Gaudin's a 21 year old who has faced major league lefthanded hitters 129 times and has surrendered precisely 0 homers to them. COMN. His overall numbers against lefties are .333/.406/.426. Not great definitely, but not so bad that one could not see him being a very effective pitcher after a year of seasoning in triple A.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=rule5profiles&prov=st&type=lgns
Kevin Cash may not have been traded again. According to SportsTicker, it was "cash considerations" going to Arizona.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=sickels_john
Well, first off, John Sickels and others report that it's not Cash, but cash, that is headed to Arizona for Garcia. COMN.

So, if that remains, it's Cash for Gaudin. I'll take Gaudin every day of the week.

Good move by Tampa Bay.

JKCL, are you really Bob Elliott?

they extracted that value in Cash

Damn, they're brilliant. They must have "played" Houston for Geoff Blum and are still chortling that it only cost them Backe. They flipped Joe Kennedy for Mark Hendrickson. They apparently want to get older and less talented, as long as they're taller!

Perhaps you should comment on David Bloom's blog, Ya Gotta Believe and explain to Tampa fans how lucky they are. Or drop by Jim Wisinski's site, Z-Rays, because he doesn't get it either:

Any optimism we may have had, any hope we had that Lamar might have learned to evaluate major league talent has gone out the window. Every hope for intelligence this offseason came crashing down with one stupid trade that has brought us all back to reality.

Look, I respect Tim Wilken and I like Kevin Cash. But you're a troll.

JKCL did you piss off the guys in management in a previous life? Coach just called you a troll & Craig B once called you a whiney bitch.
I think the trade involved two teams moving spare parts and will not make or break the season for either one.

Hey, Dean, thanks for opening up old wounds.

If it's no big deal, then don't take the time to respond. You come off being the bigger man, and you don't waste your time writing creative fiction about Coach.

http://www.battersbox.ca/archives/00002588.shtml
Sure thing. For those of you who want to see the same roundtable, since JKCL didn't provide a link, COMN. Here's his first statement from that roundtable:

There's no way to put a positive spin on the season, which was indeed disastrous and is certainly irredeemable. It may even have "set this team back two years" in terms of winning over large numbers of fans, but I don't believe it will affect their play in 2005 and 2006 ... I may be in the minority around here for believing in clubhouse chemistry, hitting being contagious and other so-called intangibles, but those things are as real as a fastball between the shoulder blades -- they can hurt just as much, only it's harder to shake off the effects.

Yep, that's clearly "worshipping JP Ricciardi, and posting embarrassing adulation about him." Say what you will, I will not comment further on this matter. It's not worth any more of my time.

I've been on the JP bandwagon as long as anyone but I have to say that this offseason is testing how long I remain. I'm not impressed with the Koskie deal. If this is a precursor to the dumping of Hinske (to another team or on the side of the road) then the move is defensible. However, if JP can't find someone to take Hinske's contract and then find a serviceable 1B, I'll be hard pressed to keep standing up for JP.

By the way, am I the only one who thinks the Jays don't need another SP? Halladay, Lilly, Bush, Batista, and Towers looks like a pretty good staff to me---especially with Chacin waiting in the wings. I'm now realizing that I've been pushing for Clement not because I like Clement or think the Jays need him, but because it would be nice for the Jays to get someone they want.

http://www.millennialsrising.com
It just occurred to me that Chad Gaudin could be, with his first pitch, the first member of the Millennial Generation (COMN) to play for the Jays. But I looked it up at Baseball Reference and found that Brandon League beat him to it.

Cesar Izturis was the first Blue Jays player born in the 1980's. On a similar note, Roy Halladay was the first Blue Jays player to be born after the team first took the field in April 1977.

To answer your next question, no, I'm not sure why I happen to know these things. :-)

Actually, JKCL, the genuine quote,

Anyone who truly believes that the 2004 standings are an accurate portrayal of the Jays' talent level or management acumen has his own agenda and isn't going to listen to reason.

is worlds different from

"anyone who doubts the acumen of the front office has an axe to grind",

especially when taken in context. It's not the blanket statement you're implying that it is.

Judging from his misrepresentation of what Coach wrote, it seems that JKCL has some sort of axe to grind. Not in relation to J.P., but in relation to our very own K.W.