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The New York Mets and the Buffalo Bisons will be joined at the hip for the next two years, the Syracuse Chiefs officially said good-bye to the Jays by signing a two year deal with Washington and the New Orleans Zephyrs will hook up with the Florida Marlins for the next two seasons.  Where does that leave the Jays?  It's the place where Molly Sims, Nikki Cox and Vanessa Marcil used to work.  Sing it now, "A little less conversation, a little more action........"

Update:  The Blue Jays director of player development Dick Scott was at the home of the team's new AAA affiliate to announce their new deal.



Whether they like it or not, the Toronto Blue Jays had to sign a player development contract with the Las Vegas 51's, whose owners are planning to change the club's nickname for 2009.   Considering Toronto's dismal performance at the AAA level over the last few years, it's not surprising they will find themselves with a less than desirable affiliate when it comes to location.  By rights, Syracuse could have tossed the Jays out on its ear two years ago but the Chiefs 4,000 stockholders surprisingly voted to keep the Jays around until 2008.  If the Chiefs had waited until the end of the 2006 season, they could've had the Mets after Norfolk decided to leave them.   Granted, injuries with the parent club did not help the last two years but the Jays only have themselves to blame for not doing enough to help Syracuse and that is a big reason why their top affiliate will be outside New York State until at least 2010.

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Impossibles - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 02:14 PM EDT (#192687) #

Found a LV link on the story:  http://www.lvrj.com/news/28908439.html

They say they are passed the deadline to order merchandice, so no name change for next year.  Man that logo is weak, it looks like it was drawn on MS Paint.

I wonder how much the Las Vegas lifestyle effects the players.  No shortage of distractions there.  Players might enjoy being sent down.

braden - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 02:19 PM EDT (#192688) #

The DH rule could lead to higher-scoring games and, in turn, provide 51s fans with free shrimp cocktails.

See!  It's not so bad!

Kieran - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 02:34 PM EDT (#192692) #
Likewise, the Syracuse (N.Y.) Chiefs recently ended their 31-year partnership with the Blue Jays, reportedly because the team earned only five playoff berths while enduring 23 losing seasons over the past decade, including a 69-73 finish this year.

How did Syracuse manage 23 losing seasons in a decade?

Pistol - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 02:36 PM EDT (#192693) #
There's a really good analogy for this situation that I haven't just found yet.  All I can think of is being the loser in musical chairs.

Could have been worse - it could have been New Orleans where the travel would have been a bear.

And now, I really look forward to Gerry's AAA reports!

John Northey - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 02:40 PM EDT (#192694) #
Wow, I knew the Jays did poorly in Syracuse but...
Likewise, the Syracuse (N.Y.) Chiefs recently ended their 31-year partnership with the Blue Jays, reportedly because the team earned only five playoff berths while enduring 23 losing seasons over the past decade, including a 69-73 finish this year.

Wow, 23 losing seasons in just the past decade? Now _that_ is really playing bad.
Excalabur - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 03:45 PM EDT (#192704) #
New ownership can't hurt: the new owner looks like he wants to shake things up a bit.  The Las Vegas travel schedule is also pretty good: Reno, Fresno, and Sacramento are in their division, and all are pretty nearby, assuming that the PCL doesn't muck up the divisions because Tucson moved to Reno. 

But man, playing in the desert heat must suck on getaway day, huh? 

We'll see how badly the long flight up to the big leagues, and also from AA to AAA affects the prospects, though.  Looking at park factors, run scoring is about 5% higher in Vegas than the field in Syracuse, so everyone'll have to remember that when we look at stats next year. 

Final thought: if the 51s really change their name for '09, will that be four names in four years for the AAA affiliate? (SkyChiefs, Chiefs, 51s, _____)

lexomatic - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 05:10 PM EDT (#192706) #
But man, playing in the desert heat must suck on getaway day, huh?
also the adjustment up from new hampshire and then up to toronto will be a pain.. probably not a huge deal but a pain.
John Northey - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 05:49 PM EDT (#192709) #
Hmm. Wonder if we'll see more prospects left in AA then called up rather than the AA-AAA-majors route. Making the AAA team more of a AAAA team - full of vets but few rookies. Might make sense, depending on situation.

The stat shift will suck for all of us though as Syracuse was a fairly good park to translate into major league stats. Ah well. More challenges for the pitchers, confidence for the hitters, headaches for the analysts.
Mike Green - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 08:28 PM EDT (#192715) #
And now, I really look forward to Gerry's AAA reports!

Practice with me:

I will not begin a minor league update with "Las Vegas rolled a 7 in the 2nd inning."
I will not begin a minor league update with "Las Vegas rolled a 7 in the 2nd inning."...

Good. 

Bob McCown used a "high school dance" analogy for this situation, with the last guy and the last girl looking at each other and thinking "how did I end up with her/him?"
jamesq - Monday, September 22 2008 @ 11:11 PM EDT (#192718) #
As per Mike's post above, I can see it all coming, first the cliches:

let's "roll the dice" on......
what he did in vegas, really did stay in vegas...
he really did lose his shirt

On the other hand, I can also see the following occur:

"Honey, I've always wanted to do this....I'm going on a little trip with the boys to check out some minor league jay games next weekend...is that ok?  where you ask...hmm...where is that farm team now, they just moved....I think it's, aahhhh vegas, yeah, that's it..vegas" .




 

#2JBrumfield - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 01:06 AM EDT (#192721) #
The CBS affiliate in Las Vegas has video on the Jays affiliation with the 51's.  I guess Jesse Litsch will need a new uniform number for next season based on the uniform presented to the Vegas brass by Dick Scott.  :)
Matthew E - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 12:42 PM EDT (#192736) #
When they are ready to rename the team, how about:

The Crime Scene Investigators
The Craps
The Elvis Impersonators
Rogers' Eleven
The Strips

Let's see, what's a good Xtreme! '90s-style name like the ThunderStixx or whatever they think they call themselves... Oh, I know:

The GambleBatzz

Matthew E - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 12:44 PM EDT (#192737) #
Or, no!

They should call them the Broken Dreams! It must happen.

rtcaino - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 01:09 PM EDT (#192739) #
Fear and Roving in Las Vegas
By Dane Johnson
vw_fan17 - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 01:36 PM EDT (#192740) #
New ownership can't hurt: the new owner looks like he wants to shake things up a bit.  The Las Vegas travel schedule is also pretty good: Reno, Fresno, and Sacramento are in their division, and all are pretty nearby, assuming that the PCL doesn't muck up the divisions because Tucson moved to Reno.

Hmm.. Just might have to check 'em out in Sacramento sometime.. We have friends there. It's about 2 hours drive from Fremont. Weekends only, of course..

Vegas too, but it's a 5+ hour drive, and we're kinda tired of Vegas. It's fun to see all the casino's once or twice, but.. We're not really into nightlife (esp. now with 1.5 kids), the smoke gets annoying sooner rather than later, etc..
Mike Green - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 02:55 PM EDT (#192745) #
The Free Passes? The Tumblin' Dice?  The Mobsters?

The Macon Whoopees still win.

ayjackson - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 02:58 PM EDT (#192746) #
Justin Jackson came in at 14 and Kevin Ahrens at 19 on Baseball America's MWL Top 20.
Mike Green - Tuesday, September 23 2008 @ 04:16 PM EDT (#192751) #
The placement of Jackson and Kozma at #14 and #15 is interesting.  BA is heavily invested in tools.  An evaluator more concerned with a balance between tools and skills, such as John Sickels, would probably rate Kozma ahead due to his superior strike zone control.  I'd be happy to have both.
MatO - Wednesday, September 24 2008 @ 09:45 AM EDT (#192770) #

BA is heavily invested in tools

No kidding when Tim Collins doesn't make the top 20.

Mike Green - Wednesday, September 24 2008 @ 09:53 AM EDT (#192771) #
True, MatO. You know what they say about short people:

They got little baby legs
That stand so low
You got to pick 'em up
Just to say hello


Glevin - Wednesday, September 24 2008 @ 01:49 PM EDT (#192780) #
"BA is heavily invested in tools.  An evaluator more concerned with a balance between tools and skills, such as John Sickels, would probably rate Kozma ahead due to his superior strike zone control. "

I think in A ball, tools still play the most important part of scouting, especially with pitchers. I remember the Tigers had a pitching prospect (name escapes me) who won 20+ games with an absurd ERA in A ball and the Tigers the next year moved him to relief because he was getting guys out in ways he never would get more advanced hitters out. He never made the majors as far as I know. This is really fairly common in the lower minors and not uncommon even higher up. Kerry Wood had a 4.66 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP in AA before he was called up and dominated the majors. (He had one start in AAA). He was thought of as an awesome prospect because of his stuff even if his stats were mediocre.
robertdudek - Wednesday, September 24 2008 @ 04:44 PM EDT (#192786) #
Kerry Wood had a 4.66 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP in AA before he was called up and dominated the majors. (He had one start in AAA). He was thought of as an awesome prospect because of his stuff even if his stats were mediocre.

Factual correction: he had a total of 11 starts in AAA (1 in 1998 and 10 in 1997).

Wood was very young, if you'll remember (he turned 20 during that year - 1997). ERA and WHIP are generally not the stats you look at for minor league pitchers. What you are most interested in is strikeouts and walks. In 94 IP he had 106 strikeouts and 79 walks in AA (58 IP, 80 K, 52 W in AAA). There is no pitcher on earth who is going to be dominant walking that many people. It was obvious to most observers that, as he matured and harnessed his great stuff, his ERA would improve.

That is exactly what happened - he improved his walk rate (85 W in 166.7 IP)  in 1998 in his rookie year and his ERA also improved.
#2JBrumfield - Thursday, September 25 2008 @ 12:48 AM EDT (#192799) #
The Las Vegas 51's have released its 2009 schedule, featuring Cosmo the mascot.  Ain't he cute?
vw_fan17 - Thursday, September 25 2008 @ 12:41 PM EDT (#192822) #
The Las Vegas 51's have released its 2009 schedule, featuring Cosmo the mascot.  Ain't he cute?

Well, if I'm reading it right (gray away, blue home - seems to be what most teams do, although no legend on this page that I can see), then no games in Sac after June 1. Sucks, because my wife is a teacher, so sometime between June 20 and Aug 20 would have been good timing. Ah well..
ayjackson - Friday, September 26 2008 @ 10:09 AM EDT (#192849) #
Snider #3, Arencibia #8 and Cecil #17 in the Eastern League Top 20 Prospects, allegedly.
Mike Green - Friday, September 26 2008 @ 11:41 AM EDT (#192856) #
Personally, I think the difference between Cecil and Arencibia as prospects is very, very large, and the advantage isn't Arencibia's.
ayjackson - Friday, September 26 2008 @ 02:09 PM EDT (#192864) #
I must say I was shocked too.  I don't know if that speaks to BA's affection for Arencibia or ambivalence to Cecil.  I firmly have Cecil as our number two prospect and I have Cooper above Arencibia, despite JP's positional advantage.
John Northey - Friday, September 26 2008 @ 05:16 PM EDT (#192873) #
The top 20 for the Eastern League does seem a bit odd.

Snider listed at #3 despite making the majors this year at 20 while #1 Matt Wieters is 22 and in AA. While Wieters is a catcher, he DH'ed a lot so I would suspect a position change is likely. He did hit the crap out of the ball though - 365/460/625 in AA over 208 AB's - and in his first pro season. Baltimore does have a keeper there.

#2 is Chris Tillman, a 20 year old pitcher for Baltimore with 154 K's in 135 2/3 IP vs 65 BB and 10 HR (3.18 ERA).

Wow, Baltimore might be closer to making the AL East a complete killer division with no team below 500 very soon.
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