As noted in the Twins thread, the Jays have made a wholly expected move and waived Ken Huckaby, replacing him with outfielder Reed Johnson. This move will not be met with howls of outrage from most BB denizens, this one included.
Huck calls a fine game and frames more pitches than the centerfield camera, but the rest of his defensive game is questionable at best, and his hitting is atrocious. In truth, his fate was sealed when Greg Myers, a superior version of Huckaby, came on board. If no other team claims him -- and I'd be rather surprised if one did -- then Huckaby could well fulfill his expected destiny of tutoring future backstop Kevin Cash at Syracuse. But if not, Ken can thank JP for placing him on that happy merry-go-round of established veteran backup catchers that rotate from team to team till retirement and a minor-league coaching job. Don't expect to see Ken Huckaby in a Blue Jays uniform again.
Reed Johnson's promotion comes, some might say, 11 games too late. Frank Catalanotto tries hard, but a BB reader put it best when he described Frank's right-field demeanour as "deer in the headlights." More than a few preventable runs have scored these last few games because Catalanotto hasn't exactly gotten the hang of right field, especially on turf. His bat is far too valuable to leave on the bench, but his glove is too dangerous to leave in the field, especially in the later innings. Moreover, the Jays need a legitimate outfielder to spell Stewart and Wells, neither of whom have had a day off yet.
Johnson, for his part, is your prototypical fourth outfielder. He can run (42 steals at AA Tennessee in 2001), he's got a decent batting eye, and he can hit a little, though his 2002 season was wrecked by a wrist injury. Most important, he can catch the ball, and he should become an eighth-inning fixture in right field. He once won a "Most Hustling Player" award, so he'll probably become a fan favourite after making a diving catch in the corner or sliding into third on a triple. I'll say it again: funny how "hustle" awards invariably go to short white guys.
At one level, of course, this is an extremely minor transaction, third catcher exchanged for fourth outfielder. But this also looks like a general manager saying to his field boss, "Okay, we tried it your way. Now we're doing it mine." It might also send a message to Roy Halladay that he's not quite in Greg Maddux's league yet in terms of designating roster spots for personal receivers. Ricciardi is not a three-catchers kind of guy, and it's still amazing to me that he started the year with Dave Berg as his fourth OF. That imbalance has been rectified, and fast; JP is not a man long on patience. Whether he'll pull the trigger on bullpen changes as quickly remains to be seen.
Huck calls a fine game and frames more pitches than the centerfield camera, but the rest of his defensive game is questionable at best, and his hitting is atrocious. In truth, his fate was sealed when Greg Myers, a superior version of Huckaby, came on board. If no other team claims him -- and I'd be rather surprised if one did -- then Huckaby could well fulfill his expected destiny of tutoring future backstop Kevin Cash at Syracuse. But if not, Ken can thank JP for placing him on that happy merry-go-round of established veteran backup catchers that rotate from team to team till retirement and a minor-league coaching job. Don't expect to see Ken Huckaby in a Blue Jays uniform again.
Reed Johnson's promotion comes, some might say, 11 games too late. Frank Catalanotto tries hard, but a BB reader put it best when he described Frank's right-field demeanour as "deer in the headlights." More than a few preventable runs have scored these last few games because Catalanotto hasn't exactly gotten the hang of right field, especially on turf. His bat is far too valuable to leave on the bench, but his glove is too dangerous to leave in the field, especially in the later innings. Moreover, the Jays need a legitimate outfielder to spell Stewart and Wells, neither of whom have had a day off yet.
Johnson, for his part, is your prototypical fourth outfielder. He can run (42 steals at AA Tennessee in 2001), he's got a decent batting eye, and he can hit a little, though his 2002 season was wrecked by a wrist injury. Most important, he can catch the ball, and he should become an eighth-inning fixture in right field. He once won a "Most Hustling Player" award, so he'll probably become a fan favourite after making a diving catch in the corner or sliding into third on a triple. I'll say it again: funny how "hustle" awards invariably go to short white guys.
At one level, of course, this is an extremely minor transaction, third catcher exchanged for fourth outfielder. But this also looks like a general manager saying to his field boss, "Okay, we tried it your way. Now we're doing it mine." It might also send a message to Roy Halladay that he's not quite in Greg Maddux's league yet in terms of designating roster spots for personal receivers. Ricciardi is not a three-catchers kind of guy, and it's still amazing to me that he started the year with Dave Berg as his fourth OF. That imbalance has been rectified, and fast; JP is not a man long on patience. Whether he'll pull the trigger on bullpen changes as quickly remains to be seen.
