In his address, Ricciardi touched on a number of issues

Lots of nuggets at the end of the Rutsey article, although none are too surprising.

http://me.woot.net
Ganter's interview with Faulds was exactly what I wanted to hear about. We definitely know that the on-air folks were kept in the dark about Cerutti's death until after the game ended now.

Faulds comes across as a really good guy in the interview. He sounds like somebody I'd like to work with: really concerned about his co-worker, able to read into his abscence, and really professional. That article is a must-read.

The Jays Want It All. Maybe the Queen herself will step in and hand over enough cash to re-sign Carlos Delgado.

I just wanted to say that the Twins are going to meet the Cardinals in the World Series. I haven't been able to fequent the site much lately, so I've missed out on most playoff predictions and such - I just want that prediction to go on the record. Thank you.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/minors/04league20s/eas.html
COMN for the Eastern League's top 20 prospects. 3 Fishercats make it but not Chacin!

BA has the top 20 Eastern League prospects up--Hill was 14, League 15, and Rosario 20. Chacin just missed the top 20. Chat will go at 2:00.

As well, the AFL gets underway today I belive, for all those keeping tabs on the minor leagues.

BA calls Chacin a crafty lefty, a term normally associated with soft throwers which he most certainly is not.

BA calls Chacin a crafty lefty, a term normally associated with soft throwers which he most certainly is not.

It's not wrong to call him a crafty lefty, though.

I would probably disagree with some of BA's rankings -- I can't see Ryan Howard at #9 -- but ordering prospects 1 through 20 is a highly subjective task, and the Eastern League has some really fine prospects. The detailed reviews of the Fisher Cats are quite interesting -- it's premium content, so I won't repeat it, but they're effusive in their praise of Hill, more so than I would have expected. Though they like the raw stuff League and Rosario bring, they're still concerned about command, which is fair; Rosario is a long-time BA favourite, so it speaks volumes that they have him at #20. They see Chacin more as a #4 or #5 starter in the majors, which is interesting; there's not yet enough evidence to indicate one way or another, but the caution is wise. Overall, I can't really argue with anything on their list.

I don't know. Howard is at 8, not 9, and there are only three position players in front of him. Wright is obvious, and obviously #1. Jason Kubel is certainly ahead of Howard in my view as well.

The other guy is Curtis Granderson. Is he really ahead of Howard? No denying that Granderson has talent, has a big defensive edge over Howard, and is 16 months younger. He's outperformed Howard at each age bracket so far. I don't think having him ahead is unreasonable (though I wouldn't put him ahead myself).

Does it make sense to rank four pitchers, at the AA level, ahead of players like Granderson and Howard? Tough call. Matt Cain is 19. Sure, if you can guarantee me that his arm will stay healthy, I'd like him. I wouldn't like him as the #3 prospect, but I'd like him a lot. I like Hinckley and Floyd, but I have a tough time ranking them ahead of Ryan Howard. But I can see an argument for doing so.

Is Gibbons really "the least interesting manager in Blue Jays history"? It's not as though there's a huge field. Tim Johnson was probably the most interesting, which isn't necessarily something to aspire to. Buck was a good guy and Fregosi blew his top now and then, but Cito was always a pretty dull guy.

Craig, Howard is listed as #8 on the front-page summary but ranks #9 in the actual Top 20, a glitch that will probably be fixed soon. My problem with Howard is his age; he turns 25 next month. His raw power is impressive, but I'm worried by his relatively few non-HR XBH: just 18 doubles and 1 triple, compared to 37 homers. But in any event, a ranking tilt in favour of position prospects over pitchers is probably sensible.

I don't have a problem with Howard's ranking either. He hits enough homers per strikeout to be a viable major league slugger.

I'd rank Aaron Hill a fair bit higher. Larry Broadway, who is ranked ahead of Hill, is a first baseman who turns 24 in December and hit .270/.362/.451. Hill's obviously a better prospect than Broadway, and arguably ahead of a couple of the pitchers.

Pitching is by its' nature subjective. I happen to think that Vermilyea and Chacin are more likely to succeed than Rosario and League, but you can make cases for everybody.

All in all, the list is reasonable.

the least interesting manager in Blue Jays history

Least interesting to who? Steve Simmons? I could care less how interesting the manager is. Buck was allegedly a "fan-friendly" choice and we all know how well that went. Gibbons has to do only one thing to be a good choice - win.

Former Jays reliever Victor Cruz has died in the Dominican Republic. He was just 47.

How does this make us believe more in the Blue Jays? How does this bring us back to the park? How does the least interesting manager in Blue Jays history make a disinterested public interested again?

I like Gibbons just fine, but I was kind of hoping the Jays would consider interviewing somoeone like Larry Dierker.

(a) would Dierker have been really expensive?

(b) is Dierker a good teacher, or is he more of a strategy kind of guy that you hire when a team is more experienced and a better bet to make the playoffs?

Did anyone ever determine if the quoted "53 million" payroll was confirmed for next year, or is just a case of phantom Marty York.

I'd like to point out that nobody actually got today's song of the day.

I apologize for going to the Queen well once again. I had an apointment first thing this morning and was in a huge rush to get this done. So I picked the song which was running through my head, which more often than not was sung by Freddie Mercury.

What a completely bizarre article by Steve Simmons. I have absolutely no idea what his point is; I'm not sure if he's trying to related the Jays hiring to Cerutti's passing and somehow suggest one should have affected the other. Just really strange.

Well it's not really surprising there is such gloom and doom in all of these articles given this season. And the Jays did make some questionable moves though none that were nearly as crippling as all the man games lost for the important players on the team. Is it too much to ask a supposed expert in his field like Bob Elliot to check how Josh Phelps got to the Indians? He was not put on waivers. He was traded. Pretty big detail there and the article mentions Phelps on waivers twice. He must have been thinking back to when Tony Batista was put on waivers. Elliot also didn't seem to be paying attention when Frasor was walking egg shells even when successful and was terrible in the second half. There was no way he could have stayed closer this year.

Three guys make the Eastern League prospect list with Chacin just missing and Banks' rough start and Vermilyea's tools eliminating them from consideration. The Jays are going to have plenty of depth for the fourth and fifth spots of the rotation as well as middle relief roles. If they can get a true #2 to slide between Doc and Lilly they're in pretty good shape.

Rosario as the potential to be that #2 if he can finally stay healthy. I wholeheartedly agree with BA that League should remain a starter and perfect his control and secondary pitches. He could be unstoppable at that point. Even if that means he doesn't make the team until late in 2005...complete his training and between him and Rosario you might push Lilly and Bush to #4 and #5 which gives you a real rotation to contend with in two years. By which time McGowan, Banks, Vermilyea, Purcey, Jackson, and others may be ready as well.

I hope they don't limit League to short relief in hope of a short term fix for the pen. He's just 21 and has got the stuff to rival Doc and he needs a bit more development and time to fill out and get stronger. Yeah you do need great arms in the bullpen as well but I don't think you sacrifice a quality #2 starter for that. If they keep him in long relief and allow him 2 to 4 innings per appearance so he faces enough guys to work on his secondary pitches then I don't mind him learning at the major league level. He could get even more reps in AAA though as a full time starter going through a lineup 3 or 4 times a game.

He was not put on waivers

Actually, I think Elliot is right. Phelps was pleased on waivers and taken by Cleveland. The Jays and Indians worked out a deal, otherwise the Jays would have pulled Phelps off of waivers.

From what I've heard Elliot has his facts straight.

Didn't Wayne H. get the song reference?

Nope.

Any doubts I might have had about the Gibbons hiring have been firmly and definitively put to bed by Steve Simmons. If he's against it, consider me absolutely in favour of it.

Former Jays reliever Victor Cruz has died in the Dominican Republic. He was just 47.

I'm certainly sorry to hear that, too. RIP, Victor.

Is Gibbons really "the least interesting manager in Blue Jays history"? Cito was always a pretty dull guy.

- You know what I find interesting? The Playoffs.

I dont see what Cito having been given one of the best teams in baseball to work with has to do with a comparisson to Boomhauer.

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/mlb/events/afl/y2004/index.jsp
As well, the AFL gets underway today I belive, for all those keeping tabs on the minor leagues.

The Peoria Saguaros squad lost its opening game 2-1; there's no boxscore currently available, so there's no more information than that yet (no Jays prospects pitched). COMN for MLB's AFL home page.

Also, thanks to BA, here are the start dates for the other fall and winter leagues:

Mexican League -- Oct. 11
Venezuelan League -- Oct. 14
Dominican League -- Oct. 22
Puerto Rican League -- Nov. 16

I agree that League should be given a chance to develop his other pitchers before making him a reliever for life, but at the same time, the bullpen has been so bad that if he can contribute in the bigs there next season it might be foolish not to use him.

I'd like to say that this is quite the Breakthru for me but alas I stopped following Her Majesty the Queen in the early 80's so I had to look up what the Queen may have published since then on the internet.

I had the Queen reference.

Did I have the wrong song? Maybe I should have googled it. :)

I agree that League should be given a chance to develop his other pitchers before making him a reliever for life, but at the same time, the bullpen has been so bad that if he can contribute in the bigs there next season it might be foolish not to use him.

How bad the major league bullpen has been should have zero bearing on whether League becomes a reliever. The fact that the Jays have not won the World Series for 11 years shouldn't have any bearing on how they shape their roster for 2005. League has the ability to be a front line starter given a bit more time. I will trade some short term bullpen difficulties in '05 if it means League can be a #2 calibre starter in '06. And if his control really develops there's little reason he can't be a #1. Ditto Rosario.

Brandon's appearance as a middle reliever could make a big difference at the big league level for the Jays but it will also hamper the development of his secondary pitches, especially his changeup. If his changeup catches up to his slider he will be a complete pitcher with weapons to use against both lefties and righties. We've seen even his his brief big league time that he is much more susceptable to lefties.

I'm sure the Jays used the same logic when they rushed Escobar to the big leagues as a 21 year old short reliever despite the fact that he still had things to work on to make him a complete pitcher beyond raw stuff. Rushing League to win a few extra games doesn't make sense to me.

Just think, League and Rosario following Halladay, Lilly, and Bush in 2006. That's the foundation of a winner assuming your offence comes around. Big picture.

Isn't Lilly a free agent after 2005?

Isn't Lilly a free agent after 2005?

His contract is up but the Jays will still hold his arbitration rights I believe.

3 Fishercats make it but not Chacin!

Don't mean to be a wet blanket, but Chacin has lots to prove to me before I annote him the next "guy"... I mean, he might very well be the next "guy", just that "guy" could be Vince Horsman

He's had two good starts which could easily be atributed to adrenaline and/or being unknown... I'd like to see him polish his craft in AAA for a season... we don't need him next year anyway... we need him in 06-07

Lilly is a FA after 2006.

His contract is up but the Jays will still hold his arbitration rights I believe.

Lilly came into 2004 with 3.1 years of service, even assuming full years in 2004 and 2005, I assume there is still one more year before he'd be arbration eligible and he'd be a long way from a Super 2.

Everybody on that list has a lot to prove (seeing as they spent at least part of the year in AA).

Lilly came into 2004 with 3.1 years of service, even assuming full years in 2004 and 2005, I assume there is still one more year before he'd be arbration eligible and he'd be a long way from a Super 2.

DOH! brain cramp..
I mean, he'd be ARBITRATION ELIGIBLE, but not a Free Agent and Super 2 doesn't even come into play... sorry about that, two thoughts got scrambled rather badly there...

Lilly came into 2004 with 3.1 years of service, even assuming full years in 2004 and 2005, I assume there is still one more year before he'd be arbration eligible and he'd be a long way from a Super 2.

Ok my mistake, I admit to not being especially learned when it comes to mlb contract details. So what happens then to players in this situation? No arbitration rights, no contract, but the Jays still hold his rights? If that is the case then what sort of contract can we reasonably expect him to get (assuming he's not traded first)?

Oh. So I was right? Well that would be a first....

I didn't anoint Chacin anything. I was just surprised that a guy who had dominated AA for 2 months didn't make the AA top 20 list. Lists are nice points of discussion but I don't want to leave the impression they should be taken too seriously.

Oh. So I was right?

Yep, sorry about crushing the discussion point

RichI agree that League should be given a chance to develop his other pitchers before making him a reliever for life, but at the same time, the bullpen has been so bad that if he can contribute in the bigs there next season it might be foolish not to use him.

R BillieHow bad the major league bullpen has been should have zero bearing on whether League becomes a reliever. The fact that the Jays have not won the World Series for 11 years shouldn't have any bearing on how they shape their roster for 2005. League has the ability to be a front line starter given a bit more time.

I agree with you R Billie, BUT... in the past starters used to come up and work out of the Pen for a year before being handed the reins... I'm thinking that might be a good thing to go back to, even as a Swing man or Long Relief... get some lower pressure experience...

If anyone knows the SPSS stats program, I would appreciate if you could drop me a line. I'm having a dickens of a time trying to figure this thing out on my own to organize the Pinch Hit I'm working on. And yes, I should be working on school work instead but....meh, what are ya gonna do?

To the Cabal , there is no cabal.

Very Important:

Check the John Cerutti thread as John Cerutti nephews girlfriend LB has set up a special email account to send messages to the Ceruitti
family.

She has also asked how the total thread can be sent to them ?

Jeff Geauvreau

Having a youngster pitch in long relief is not the worst idea. Off the top of my head Jimmy Key, David Wells and Woody Williams started that way. It used to be far more common.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/columnists/askba.html
COMN for BA's 2005 draft order, with the Jays picking sixth. They should have a shot at college players Jeff Clement, C, Tyler Greene, SS, or Wade Townsend, P.

Townsend, Baltimore's 2004 No. 1 pick would sure look nice in a Jays uniform. Perhaps as the closer they really could use.

I was just surprised that a guy who had dominated AA for 2 months didn't make the AA top 20 list.

BA's lists are based on their perceived ceilings of the players. They feel Chacin is a 4 or 5 starter.

Hey, I made the Ask BA section!

Interesting. From the BA draft story:

Teams will pick in reverse order of their 2004 records, and in the case of ties the club with the worst record in 2003 will choose first.

The Brewers and Jays tied for 5th-worst record in baseball, but because the Brew Crew stunk worse in 2003, they get the higher pick. With Gord Ash no doubt having major input into Milwaukee's choice, it's going to be really interesting to see who's available when the Jays' turn comes up. The Brewers have taken high-schoolers with 5 of their last 6 first-round draft picks.

In his last two seasons as a starter-reliever at Rice, Wade Townsend went 23-2 and struck out 312 batters in 239 innings. Walked 91, though.

I wrote an article (that's yet to be posted on the site) about an early look at the 2005 draft. In it I had 6 players the Jays might be interested in prior to seeing BA's list that they put in their Ask BA section.

Looking at the 8 college players in BA's current top 10 there's 4 common players between their list and mine, 4 that I didn't have, and 2 that I have that they don't.

I'll revise it a bit and take a look at those 10 college players and post it on the site sometime next week.

Based on what I've looked at so far I'm fairly confident that the Jays will have their choice of a few top players when pick #6 comes along.

Cito having been given one of the best teams in baseball

Gaston actually took over a team with a 12-24 record. While they were coming off an 87 win season, they were actually three games under .500 at the beginning of September. They closed with a rush (22-7) and made the final record look a whole lot better than most of the season had been.

Brandon's appearance as a middle reliever could make a big difference at the big league level for the Jays but it will also hamper the development of his secondary pitches, especially his changeup.

I agree, and I think the Escobar parallel is valid. League may be capable of filling a certain ML role right now; with additional seasoning, he may be capable of filling a much more important role down the road. If that doesn't work, then make him a reliever. You don't run up his service clock while you're finding out...

I'm not sure that the 1997 Blue Jays actually planned to rush Escobar to the majors. I think it was like Peterson this year. They needed an arm, they called up a kid, expecting him to get in a game or two and then go back to AA. But Escobar pulled a Juan Guzman, and pitched too well to be sent out.

Phelps was pleased on waivers and taken by Cleveland.

Phelps was traded after the deadline, so he had to go through waivers to be traded. Technically, Elliott is correct. But he's still blowing it out an orifice - practically everybody in MLB gets put on waivers just to see if there are any nibbles. It means absolutely nothing. Elliott was implying that they lost Phelps the same way Gord Ash lost Tony Batista.

Jays had a slow start but Cito was still given one of the best teams in the leauge, certainly nothing comparable to was Boomhauer has to work with.

Elliott also wrote:

Buck Martinez managed the Jays for 215 games under Ricciardi

Anyone else remember Ricciardi being the GM during the 2001 season?

Jays had a slow start but Cito was still given one of the best teams in the leauge, certainly nothing comparable to was Boomhauer has to work with.

I shouldn't disagree - I don't really - but the 1989 Blue Jays were not exactly a great team. Obviously, they weren't nearly as bad as they looked at the start of the year. The lineup wasn't too great, but they had one outstanding hitter (Fred McGriff). While they had just one starter who was better than .500, they really did have an outstanding bullpen. It was possibly the team's biggest single strength, although Jimy Williams had everyone in the pen messed up and pitching badly, even Henke.

No, you're right, it wasn't a great team (the early fading of Bell, Barfield and Moseby took care of that). But, the pitching was great. The rotation with Stieb, Key and Cerutti on top was very good, and the bullpen was even better. Cito, like Phil Garner this year, simply took over the mess that Jimy left and kept a steady hand on the tiller. It's not managerial brilliance, but sometimes that's all it takes.

They were still a very solid team, but I think I implying that Cito Gaston is a more interesting coach than Boomhauer because Cito "induces winning" when Boomhauer is working with the AAAA Jays is pretty unfair.

The rotation with Stieb, Key and Cerutti on top was very good

Were Stieb/Key/Cerutti better than Halladay/Lilly/Batista? I'm not sure they were.

However, Gibbons only got 50 games so far.

Wouldn't Santana be a positive example of a pitcher paying his dues in the bullpen, before becoming a starter? Don't tell Gleeman, he might cry at that bad memories.

If they use League as a long man or a 2-3 inning setup guy that's fine. As long as he's working on things to polish his repetoire and not just running his mid-90's sinker up there at every opportunity. That's the approach the Twins took with Santana though Santana already had killer out pitches at the time.

I still can't help but think that it might be a better use of his service time to polish that stuff in AAA for three or four months as a starter and maybe bring him up in the second half as a long man to limit his innings. I mean he's just 22 next year. I don't see a particular need to rush him in the big scheme of things.

Gaston is a more interesting coach than Boomhauer

Actually, who knows what the hell Simmons is talking about anyway? What does he mean by interesting?

Were Stieb/Key/Cerutti better than Halladay/Lilly/Batista? I'm not sure they were.

However, Gibbons only got 50 games so far.

Interesting question. At full strength, I think Gibbons has been dealt the stronger hand. But Gibbons only got three starts out of Halladay, two of which were on limited pitch counts, and Batista was struggling mightily, presumably because he was hurt, before being shuffled to the closer role. We shall see next year, hopefully.

Wouldn't Santana be a positive example of a pitcher paying his dues in the bullpen, before becoming a starter? Don't tell Gleeman...

Yes he is. It still made Gleeman crazy because of how long it took Gardenhire to get Santana into the rotation. After scuffling around in 2000 and 2001, Santana put up a 2.99 ERA in 108.1 IPT in 2002 (27 games, 14 starts) and still spent the first hafl of 2003 in the bullpen.

Jeff, just a quick note to let you know that if there were a Cabal, it would be currently discussing your much-appreciated notice of the request in the John Cerutti thread. Thanks, and we're working on something right now.

Halliday spent a successful year in the bullpen too. League's service clock is a concern, but is he better served by starting against Triple A hitters or throwing long relief in the bigs? It's a tough call, though it's made easier if the brass suspect his future is in the pen anyway.

I think that after the horror that was this season the club owes it to its fans to fill the big league roster with players who can contribute positively at the big league level now. I don't expect the Jays to make the playoffs in 2005, but I'd be far more inclined to tune in to watch League pitch the 7th inning than Kerry Ligtenberg. If next year's bullpen is effective without him, then fine, send him down for the whole season. The fact that the Jays have had a woeful bullpen in each of JP's 3 seasons does not fill me with optimism that League won't be a big help there next summer. I hope I'm wrong.

Were Stieb/Key/Cerutti better than Halladay/Lilly/Batista? I'm not sure they were.

One of the things that complicates it is that SkyDome, while generally a hitter's park, seems to make life a little bit harder on LH pitchers (and easier on RH hitters) - if John Cerutti had followed Jimmy Key to Yankee Stadium, it probably would have had a similar positive impact on his performance.

I like the current Halladay better than the 1989-90 Stieb and Key gets an edge over Lilly. But overall, I think you have to go with Batista over Cerutti. As good as he was in 1989, it's a little out of context from the rest of his career.

If you're comparing point-in-time (1989 vs. 2004), Stieb/Key/Cerutti were better simply because they were healthy and on track. If you're talking career, Stieb/Key/Cerutti were significantly better. Stieb was a great pitcher in the 80s and Key had just short of a HOF career.

Given the choice between Key going into 1990 and Halladay going into 2005, I'd think long and hard. Key was a great healthy pitcher. Halladay is a little better, but whether his arm will be good in 2005 is an open question.

I cannot imagine what it would be like to have the Jays in the playoffs. On FOX or on ESPN it just would be really strange to see a full SkyDome and a major American network covering it.

Oh and Steve Simmons?

What the hell is this idiot doing writing about baseball. Not only does the article lack a point, or anything relevant for that matter, it implies that JP is laughing at the failures of the Blue Jays. Steve, for god sakes, keep your negative mouth and your pen silent. It get's really irritating to Jays fans when you repeatledly bash the franchise and try to convince the average sports fan in Canada that the Jays have no hope. Sure, JP has made some questionable moves, no one is denying that he has made mistakes. However, what was the alternative? Dave Dumbrowski? You cannot tell me that the Jays would have made the playoffs under that guy. At least we have a core of guys that can get us to the playoffs and beyond with an inferior payroll. And WHEN we get there, morons like Steve Simmons are gonna have some splainin' to do. Go Jays, Screw You Steve Simmons!!

Phelps leading the team at that time in RBIs when he was put on waivers.

It's already been covered, but Phelps' RBI lead at the time was, I believe, a grand total of three over Hinske. And he was an offensive hole -- an OBP of .296. And his G/F ratio with Toronto?
2002 0.97
2003 1.37
2004 2.03
That is way too many groundballs. And it's going the wrong way.

And WHEN we get there, morons like Steve Simmons are gonna have some splainin' to do.

No, they'll just say that this Jays playoff team isn't as ethnically diverse as the last Jays playoff team, and Ricciardi's reign is a real mess. Gillick and Cito should come back, Molitor and Whitt should be co-managers, and Raul Mondesi's hustle and leadership is what they need, and what Ricciardi traded away for nothing. And give those scouts their jobs back!!

I know nothing of journalism. Now observing the articles of most Blue Jay writers, I think I'm far and away the most qualified to write articles about the baseball writers in this city should that post become available.

From the Bob Elliot article:

Every team has injuries. [The Angles and Yankees had injuries]

Both the Angels and the Yankees are in the playoffs.

Raise your hand if you know what else the Yanks and Angels have in common. Go on now, raise them! Don't be shy!

Oh common now....he didn't really say THAT did he? He can't make a living off of being THAT dumb.

De Los Santos got hurt. How can you blame JP for a guy getting hurt? That just ridicolous. Sure he wasn't all that good in the 7 times he got in before he got hurt, but 7 appearances does not a season make.

I'm just glad I don't live over there so I don't have to listen to these guys all the time. What the hell is their problem, anyways? I know it has nothing to do with JP, or the Blue Jays, because IIRC, they're the same way with the Leafs.

It would sure be easy being a sportswriter if all you had to do was bash the living hell out of the home team's GM every single day.

Okay, now for my bashing of Bob Elliot

Bob Elliot who do you think you are? You are NOT objective, you are NOT fair, and you take every mistake by JP and bash him. I'll repeat--JP has made some bad moves. But so has Billy Beane so has Theo Epstein so has Stoneman, so has EVERYONE ELSE. JP's few mistakes have been magnified because WE HAD ONE BAD FREAKIN SEASON. With everyone healthy, we could have at least won 85 games or more. Sorry Bob, last time I checked, you moron, THE YANKEES AND ANGELS HAVE MONEY!!! They don't make every SINGLE move based around their payroll like the Jays. So Mr GM Bob Elliot. Instead of repeatedly bashing JP, and his team at SkyDome, why don't you write a fair column about replacements for Delgado, or maybe about what we need TO MAKE THIS CLUB BETTER! Bob, for some people, you may be a fair, knowlegeable, and first class columnist. To me and a lot of REAL baseball fans, you are nothing but a dillusional madman, hell bent on making the Blue Jays shaky situtation even worse.

I think that after the horror that was this season the club owes it to its fans to fill the big league roster with players who can contribute positively at the big league level now. I don't expect the Jays to make the playoffs in 2005, but I'd be far more inclined to tune in to watch League pitch the 7th inning than Kerry Ligtenberg. If next year's bullpen is effective without him, then fine, send him down for the whole season. The fact that the Jays have had a woeful bullpen in each of JP's 3 seasons does not fill me with optimism that League won't be a big help there next summer. I hope I'm wrong.

Again, while I sympathise with the desire to see League pitch meaning innings for the big league team next year, I would rather do what's best for the player and the organisation in the long run and not our personal enjoyment for the coming year.

He can still learn as a big leaguer in a relief role but special attention has to be paid that he is using all his pitches, especially the offspeed. That probably means he would be used sparingly in high leverage situations because he'll be experimenting and learning.

I was laughing at Sawkiw yesterday: "I like the move of Erstad to first base, look at his range on this foul popup that Adam Kennedy had all the way. Never mind that he was basically the worst-hitting 1B in the AL this year, look at him run!"

Speaking of Sockyou, I wonder if he will be the Jays colour guy next year. I figure it's between him or Candiotti taking over full time. I think Candiotti works at ESPN though, so maybe he can't take the full-time work.

Or maybe it'll be someone completely different.

Halliday spent a successful year in the bullpen too.

Halladay started 18 of 36 appearances (149 innings) as a 22 year old and 13 of 19 appearances at age 23 (67 innings, 10+ era). His secondary numbers in both years were terrible and it wasn't until he went back to the minors and re-invented himself from the ground up that he became effective. How much those first two season helped him other than to point out he needed to make huge changes is hard to say. He was eligible that much earlier for arbitration and free agency though and that certainly affects the Jays' present day situation.

In other words, looking back at 1999 for Halladay and 1997 for Escobar, how did their pitching at the big league level for the entertainment of fans really help the team long term? I don't think it helped much and may have hurt in the long run.

Sorry if this has already been mentioned somewhere but when did they decide to not alternate picks between AL and NL. We got screwed because they did that in the early 80's and again this year(Well not screwed, but still unlucky)

Sorry if this has already been mentioned somewhere but when did they decide to not alternate picks between AL and NL. We got screwed because they did that in the early 80's and again this year(Well not screwed, but still unlucky)

I think this is the first year they stopped doing that. Could be wrong though.

I mentioned this somewhere before, but I really wish that the draft could somehow be held in the offseason like the other sports.

Well we're at it, I wish I could fly.

Watching the playoffs on Sportsnet, I've noticed Sawkiw has been doing a really great job working the booth, mostly because he has something unique to say and doesn't have to repeat whatever they've been saying in the booth. It's a little soon to be thinking about it, and I mean nothing harsh or rude by it with respect to past events, but the booth might be a good place for Sawkiw next year.

It still doesn't feel like it with the tragic events of Sunday, but I just realized, the season is really over. Wow.

Does anyone know what happened to Victor Cruz's career? He ended up with a 3.09 era. I think I heard that he ate himself out of a career. I could be wrong. How did he die? Another young one at 47.

He can't make a living off of being THAT dumbc

Oh, you'd be suprised.

Well if that quote was true, call me surprised.

I feel bad commenting about Cerutti's successor. It's really not important at the time. But I must state for the record that should Warren Sakwiw get the job, I will be forced to mute each and every game.

If not Candiotti, there must be SOMEONE out there...heck, how about Wilner. There have been combos of two play-by-play guys before, right?

Here's a particularly interesting comment from the Eastern League chat wrap today:

Q: david from Okla. City asks:
With the expos moving to DC will there be a youth movement to elevate some of the talent for Harrisburg?

A: Alan Matthews: Who knows. Depends on who's running the club. Chances are, the Expos will still be under MLB's control, and therefore could be a club that features a number of rookies and younger players. One thing is probable, Broadway is worked in as the everyday first baseman over Nick Johnson and Mike Hinckley tempts the big league staff to break camp next spring with him in the major league rotation. He's a bright spot for an organization that lost Clint Everts and Shawn Hill to arm injuries this year.

If this comes to pass then the Jays definately have to be right on top of getting Nick Johnson. Combine him with a reliable veteran bat and the Jays are in decent shape at 1B/DH.

I'm a Nick Johnson fan but I'm concerned he's missed 188 games in the past 3 years, mostly due to injuries.

I'd be shocked if the Jays didn't go after Nick Johnson if he were to be non-tendered (which I've seen Gammons suggest at one point as well). Whether they sign him is a different story, because it's tough to predict what other teams would be interested.

At this point in his career, anyway, Nick Johnson is overrated. He hasn't proven that he can stay healthy for any period of time and when he has been healthy for short bursts, he hasn't produced 1B-type numbers.
At this point, the Jays can't really afford to keep taking flyers on people, especially when they have below average third base production and below average power in RF and LF. And they're not getting it at 2B, SS, DH, or C either. Johnson is not a power hitter, and the Jays desperately need some power production.

Nick Johnson has an isolated power of .163 for his career.

Vernon Wells has an isolated power of .197 for his career.

Last year during Vernon's career season to date his ISO was .233 with a .359 obp and .550 slg (.909 ops). 42 walks, 80 strikeouts, 49 doubles, 33 homers in 678 at bats.

Nick Johnson's career season to date his ISO was .188 with a .422 obp and .472 slg (.894 ops). 70 walks, 57 strikeouts, 19 doubles, 14 homeruns in 324 at bats. That's 25 homerun, 30 double power with a very high onbase and relatively few strikeouts. I'll take a potential .900 ops firstbaseman even if he hits only 20-25 homeruns.

Johnson's a pure hitter with enough power to make him very worthwhile. Yes he has had health problems but if he didn't have health problems he wouldn't be available at a reasonable price. I'm not asking that the Jays rely on him solely. You combine him with a solid DH like Palmeiro or Gonzalez and you have a shot at decent production out of 1B/DH. Heck, the Jays could probably afford to make an $8 million bid on a Magglio Ordonez and still have enough money left over to sign Johnson and get a couple of pitchers.

The Jays HAVE to take risks on players on the downside living up to expectations. They can't afford players who have actually been healthy and productive because they will be outbid for anyone half decent. That's the only reason they have Catalanatto. The fact that many teams might overlook Johnson because he doesn't have 40 homerun power or a lot of luck in the health department is precisely what makes him a good target for the Jays.

JP has already said the offence will have to be built around pure hitting and not power because they won't be able to afford the big boppers. Magglio isn't coming here because there are too many teams like the Red Sox, Seattle, and LA who can bid a lot more. Ditto Delgado, Sexson, and any other big power options.

So you have to mix and match...bring in Johnson and hope he rebounds. Bring in Palmeiro and team him at 1B or DH with someone who wears out lefthanded pitching. Platoon Cat and Johnson in left field. Hope that you can put together a cheap platoon at catcher until Quiroz is ready as both a hitter and a fielder. The Jays have to piece together an offence creatively and they aren't going to get it done through brute force short of ripping someone off in a trade.

Nice post RBille.

The problem is that Nick Johnson and Frank Catalanotto fill the same niche. Left-handed hitters on the left end of the defensive spectrum who are susceptible to injury. Both would be better DHing. I'd personally rather have Johnson than Cat, but the Jays are already committed to Cat. Going with Cat in a platoon in left and Johnson in a platoon at first is begging for the same-injury related issues that we saw this year.

Except Nick plays a pretty good first base. Crozier looks like he needs a lot more time before he's ready and there is simply no one else even close to taking over.

Ben Broussard and Travis Hafner have an even more similar profile, but that didn't hurt the Indians offence.

I'd like to see the Jays inquire about Dan Johnson of the Oakland system and Ryan Howard would be a pretty good guy to try out at first base/DH.

Basically, what I'm saying is that the best thing the Jays could do is to go out and find their own version of Travis Hafner - a guy who's blocked behind other players, no longer a youngster, but can mash.

Liberatibg talented trapped minor leaguers is the kind of thing I expected J.P. to be able to do more successfully than he has shown so far.

I don't think he's tried very hard to liberate any trapped minor leaguers lately because he figured the Jays had the young hitters already. Hinske was basically a trapped minor leaguer but unfortunately his rookie year might just be his best major league season. I think this is a good lesson about signing young players long term after just one good season. In the case of Wells it probably helped because he had a pretty big year after the contract. Hinske has gone backwards though and will only justify the money if he performs at his rookie level.

The problem now is that you're not looking for trapped minor leaguers to compliment a solid offensive core. You're looking for an offensive core. So while you might get decent bang for the buck out of a younger guy, you still have to give yourself some projectable major league veterans to carry the load as Delgado did.

Try to get a Howard or a Pickering or a Johnson or whoever. But you also have to get a veteran or two who can supply a big chunk of what Delgado provided.

I'm thinking that someone like Howard or Johnson could provide 40-80% of the offence Delgado can. If you want a veteran who can do that, 4-6 million a year and a multi-year deal will be how much you'd have to pay. Howard or Johnson will work at the minimum. The savings might allow you to get a pricey outfielder or first baseman. Remember, right now we have two 1B/DH vacancies.

I wouldn't advocate acquiring guys like this if the Jays had ANYONE in the organisation who can give you plus offence at either DH or 1B going into 2005. We've got nobody - Vito is at least two years away and JFG has been a big flop so far.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/j/johnsho01.shtml
Howard or Johnson will work at the minimum

And at 44, Howard Johnson would work for even less!

("Do you want to change your name to Homer Junior? The kids could call you HoJu!")