As a velocity fan, I like Frasor in the pen with Kershner now the long guy. Hermansen gives the Jays a better defensive player for the 4th outfielder but as been suggested before, Berg & Gomez are the same so moving one of them and keeping Pond as a left handed bat would in my opinion be a better move. Douglass had a good game yesterday, probably the reason they won, but I don't see him having a lot of success over the course of an entire season.

I'm actually kinda glad they sent Pond down, he really wasn't doing anything by rotting on the bench, and he can provide a real spark in the Skychiefs lineup while waiting for his shot. A good season for him will either increase his trade value or will make the call-up permanent, and make the Delgado situation a lot more interesting.

As for Berg, I heard that Baltimore had scouts at the Boston series, so moving one of him or Gomez may come sooner than you think...

My take on the moves are as follows:

a) Hermanson was necessary because of the need for another outfielder. It would be nice if the Jays had another outfielder who hit lefthanded so that you could platoon Johnson and return him to his real role as a major league 4th outfielder/lefty masher. What is unfortunate is that Pond had to go down and the Jays kept both Gomez and Berg. The reason being that those two have quaranteed major league contracts. The best roster construction would be to keep Pond. The one piece of upside is that Pond at least should get regular AB's in Syracuse.

b) the Douglass/Frasor move I really do not understand. Douglass filled a legitimate need in the pen which is as the long man. Frasor profiles as another short 1 inning guy. With Hentgen pitching poorly, Lilly having no histroy of pitching deep into games and Towers' propensity for long balls, the long man in the pen will likely be quite valuable for the Jays (see: last night). As a one or two day move this makes sense because Douglass is unusuable after last night for 2-3 days. If this is a longer term move then Kershner probably becomes the long man leaving Capt. Hook with only one lefty option.

Captain Hook, that's a good one. Wonder if Tosca would be willing to wear an eyepatch to the mound. Highliner Fish Sticks would jump all over the advertising for that one :)

Lots of fuss over the 24th and 25th spots on the team!

And I could be wrong here, but doesn't Douglass have to spend 10 days in the minors unless someone gets hurt?

Gitz, yes. Douglass has to spend 10 days in the minors, which means he is eligible for recall on the 24th, the second game of the season in which the Jays need their fifth starter.

http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/tor/downloads/y2004_mediaguide/bluejays_media_guide_2004.pdf
OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT: to assign a player from the
active 25-man roster to a minor league affiliate with the
right of recall. The player remains on the 40-man roster.

RECALL: to add a player from your reserve limit (40-man
roster) to the 25-man roster. This player must serve at least
10 days on option in order to be recalled unless he is
replacing a player placed on the disabled list.

I think that says players have to serve 10 days in the majors. I got it from the Jays Media Guide. (COMN)

Never mind. I didn't see what Craig posted. :)

Gitz, I would agree about the 24th and 25th man comment except that the Jays really on have 2 outfielders who should be playing everyday in the majors so the 4th outfielder is more important for Toronto than some teams and, as mentioned above, the long man in the pen is likely to be a pretty important pitcher (at least early in the year).

Highliner Fish Sticks would jump all over the advertising for that one :)

Obvious Simpsons reference:

A pirate? Now that's not the kind of publicity we want associated with Long John Silver's!

I'm guessing that Douglass was sent down to stretch out with a start or two. If Hentgen's "dead arm" doesn't revive soon (say, in his next start) then he goes on the DL, Towers becomes the temporary #4 and Douglass returns as #5.

The way I see the OF situation, they needed a RH bat to start for Cat vs. tough lefties. Against the best righties, I'd have Cat leading off and Hinske batting second; Reed would still be my RF but could hit lower in the order that way.

Berg is a bit more of a puzzle. He's pretty good insurance in case O-Dog needs a platoon partner or if any infielder gets hurt. However, he is being used sparingly right now, so he doesn't seem to have much value. If 25th man is now between Berg and Pond, I'd rather see Simon getting 4 AB every day in AAA than going stale on the Jays' bench.

This may be a little off topic but how has woody been playing defensively? I know that it was discussed a lot over the offseason whether or not he could handle it, but as far as defensive play this year, what are early season imdications. What affect does his play have on keeping Gomez/Berg, both of them, and sending Pond down. I realize that Pond being sent down may have something to do with the possible injury to Cat from last night, although I haven't heard anything about him. Any news on that either?
Thanks.

If...[Hentgen] goes on the DL, Towers becomes the temporary #4 and Douglass returns as #5.

You're probably right, Coach.

If Hentgen/Towers go down, Adams may be the better choice as the 5th starter, with Douglass returning as the long man out of the pen. Thoughts ?

If 25th man is now between Berg and Pond, I'd rather see Simon getting 4 AB every day in AAA than going stale on the Jays' bench.

I don't think Pond is, or will be, anything more than a good bench player. I don't see what benefit Pond gets from playing in Syracuse.

As I noted in another thread, Berg and Gomez are too similar to carry both players. I never understood why the Jays gave Berg a 2 year contract last year when I couldn't imagine there was much demand for him, and even if there was, I would think there had to be cheap alternatives that could have been dug up from the minors.

And I think if there's an injury Sequea can fill in capably.

BirdWatcher - I'm not sure the Philly fans would agree :) Realistically, I think Adams' success as a starter is limited to about 2-3 months in Chavez Ravine in 2001. Even in that year his OPS+ was 93 and two years ago in Philly as a starter his OPS+ was 87. Contrast that with his last 4 seasons as a reliever in which his OPS+ was never less than 100 and last year was 156. There enough data to have me convinced that as a reliever he's an above average pitcher. As a starter there's less evidence but it suggests that he's below average. I wouldn't advocate a move that would turn an asset into a liabilty.

I heard that Baltimore had scouts at the Boston series

Of course they did. Baltimore was playing Boston next and then Toronto after that, so Baltimore probably had its advance scout at the Boston-Toronto series. Don't read anything into it.

Adams may be the better choice as the 5th starter

It's possible that Adams isn't quite 100% yet after that "500 game tuneup" to remove debris from his elbow. He might be fine physically, but sometimes after surgery it takes a while before you really believe you can air it out again. I'd prefer to see him stop nibbling in relief and start challenging more hitters before trying him in the rotation.

This could also be one of those times when I'm totally out to lunch; if Terry wants the ball and is ready to go five innings, that's a reasonable plan. My "reason" for preferring Douglass at this point is actually more of a hunch. Just to be clear, I'm not giving up on Hentgen, but it's obvious that something has changed for Pat since August and September.

Terrible start for Lilly.. He's made the hitters look sick in getting to 2 strikes, but can't finish them off.

** Rob said...

OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT: to assign a player from the
active 25-man roster to a minor league affiliate with the
right of recall. The player remains on the 40-man roster.

RECALL: to add a player from your reserve limit (40-man
roster) to the 25-man roster. This player must serve at least
10 days on option in order to be recalled unless he is
replacing a player placed on the disabled list.

I think that says players have to serve 10 days in the majors. I got it from the Jays Media Guide. (COMN) **

I think you are "on option" when you are DOWN. So my read on that is you have to be DOWN for 10 days...

For fans getting to the internet a little slow, like myself, I think the way to read the recent moves is to have faith in Ricciardi. He does try to do what is best for the players involved, and builds good will. It seems it is best for Pond to go down rather than not be played by Cito... er, Captain Hook er Tosca. Ricciardi will always try to maximize his flexibility and options. He probably wanted Douglass to go to the minors, however wanted to wait until he could sneak him through, like Justin Miller. They probably want to give Frasor a chance to evaluate him against big leaguers and he may be closing like Lopez was last year. So this is his audition and a chance to take the reins.

Yeah, I didn't really get that. You have to spend 10 days on option, meaning DOWN, but they put it under the "RECALL" heading, meaning UP. I give up. :)