Batter's Box Interactive Magazine - You May Be Hearing More Linkin Park In The Ninth!

You May Be Hearing More Linkin Park In The Ninth!

I wanna heal, I wanna feel like I’m close to something real
I wanna find something I’ve wanted all along
Somewhere I belong.

It's not a lock that it'll be B.J. Ryan charging out of the Rogers Centre bullpen in the ninth to the dulcet tones of Slipknot. Concerns about the big lefty's lack of velocity this spring means he may be sharing the closer's role with fellow southpaw Scott Downs.

UPDATE: 03/31 @ 6:30 P.M. - Jeremy Accardo and Joe Inglett have been demoted to Las Vegas.

The Beej had another rocky outing in Monday's 3-1 loss to the Yankees in Dunedin. He gave up a run on a triple and double and struck out one in the eighth inning. Meantime, Downs pitched a clean ninth. Jason Frasor wound up with the loss by giving up the winning run in the seventh on three hits.

Startingwise, despite a few too many free passes, lefty David Purcey had a solid six innings in which he issued five walks but allowed just a run on two hits and plunked a batter (Hideki Matsui). One, plunking a Yankee is not the worst thing in the world and two, it doesn't count against your WHIP! Purcey lowered his spring ERA to 1.54.

At the plate, Marco Scutaro had an RBI double in the sixth off Andy Pettitte to score Michael Barrett. Adam Lind had a two night afternoon and John McDonald was 1-for-1 at the dish when he replaced Scutaro late in the game. The struggles continue for Kevin Millar, who's hitting .182 this spring and Lyle Overbay is not much better with a .212 mark. Travis Snider was 0-for-3 but is still batting .362. Scott Rolen has also had a nice Grapefruit League session with a .321 average but he was thrown out at third by new Yankees center fielder Brett Gardner.

Tonight, rookie lefty Brad Mills will pitch against Philadelphia in Clearwater against Brett Myers in a 7:05 EDT start. Mills and righty Scott Richmond are dueling for the final spot in the rotation. The winner will join Roy Halladay, Jesse Litsch, David Purcey and Ricky Romero in the starting five.

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In other TDIB notes........

*The Tigers have released 499 home run hitter Gary Sheffield.

* Phillies ace Cole Hamels will miss Opening Day with a sore elbow.

* Brewers closer Trevor Hoffman is on the 15-day DL with a pulled oblique muscle.

* Some guy named Larry from Atlanta signed a new deal, hooray.

Posted by #2JBrumfield on Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 12:32 PM EDT.

You May Be Hearing More Linkin Park In The Ninth! | 31 comments | Create New Account

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

Maldoff - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 02:28 PM EDT (#197646) #

Ken Rosenthal thinks the Jays will trade Roy Halladay by the trade dealine in July:

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/9399468/These-things-will-happen-this-season

AWeb - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 03:02 PM EDT (#197647) #

Saying the Jays will get off to a poor start isn't exactly a sure thing...the Jays don't play a division game in April, and don't play Tampa until the end of June (so prepare for a long summer stretch of a lot of Tampa games...ugh). It's sort of a given that the East is the best division at this point, I think, so trading Halladay might be tougher to swallow than Rosenthal suspects.

Pistol - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 03:22 PM EDT (#197648) #

Even if the Jays start off slow and are out of it in May I can't see them trading Halladay. They're not going to get a sufficient deal to get both the salary relief and young players. The team isn't going to get in a spot, with Rogers as owner, that they need to dump salaries.

Mike Green - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 03:34 PM EDT (#197649) #

I don't see a Halladay trade as very likely. He's signed through 2010, and even if the club is out of it early in 2009, they may very reasonably feel that they do have a chance with Halladay, Litsch, Purcey, Marcum, McGowan and Cecil all ready to go from the outset in 2010.

The only reasonable basis for a trade is if players of equal or more value are coming back the other way.

Ryan Day - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 03:38 PM EDT (#197650) #

Unless Halladay explicitly states he won't sign an extension, I don't expect the Jays to trade him. Next offseason will be all about getting a new deal done, and if that doesn't work out a trade might happen.

John Northey - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 03:50 PM EDT (#197651) #

With the kids this year in the rotation (Romero, maybe Mills, could see Cecil and others by mid-season) I'd have to think the Jays want Halladay around as a second coach/mentor to the kids as well as being the rock in the rotation to keep things sane for the bullpen. As others are saying, unless someone gives a silly offer for Halladay I don't see a trade happening. Well, unless the dollar drops to $0.50 US and the Jays go the Expos route that is.

damos - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:02 PM EDT (#197653) #

As per the Globe, Accardo = Demoted!

JustinD - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:22 PM EDT (#197655) #

Article says that the bullpen is all set at 7 now meaning we are going with (in no order) 1) Ryan 2) Downs 3) Tallet 4) Carlson 5) Frasor 6) Camp and 7) League. So it looks like Ryan is not going to start the season in extended spring training or on the DL barring another move.

And Blair blogs that Riccardi has said no way to Sheff.

John Northey - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:35 PM EDT (#197656) #

Heh. No shock on Sheff. He would be interesting, but given he cliff dived last year and is over 40 iirc then there really isn't any need for him. I'm sure someone will give him a shot at 500 although having someone at 499 forever would be kind of cool from a stats POV.

92-93 - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:39 PM EDT (#197657) #

It's really not fair to call him a cliff diver. He was hitting on a bum shoulder all of 2008, and still outproduced Millar. I have a hard time believing a healthy Sheffield isn't > Millar.

westcoast dude - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:46 PM EDT (#197658) #

John Northey, you may be interested to know that James Sinclair, the dean of gold analysts, is bullish on the Canadian dollar, and says 1.60-1.70 is his long term target. For that to happen, we need crude oil back to $145 US, and that's a prediction, widely seconded, for 2010. Back to baseball, Accardo was throwing meatballs and he has an option, so I'm glad to see the demotion. Shef would have been big trouble, we're talking middle aged crazy with the Lamborghini convertible. I know where that trip leads.

John Northey - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 04:49 PM EDT (#197659) #

I'd prefer neither Millar or Sheffield myself. Sheff's last 3 years though read like the end of a career. Injured 107 OPS+, healthy 120 OPS+, injured 90 OPS+ and now entering his age 40 season. Someone will give him a shot and who knows, he might recover. But betting on a 40 year old to recover from an injury to a level of production that is good enough for a DH, especially when he has a rep for being difficult, is just not a good bet.

Millar last year was at 87 for OPS+ at age 36. So he is 3 years younger, still mobile enough to play 1B (LF in an emergency), and has a rep as a good clubhouse guy. Not a guy I'd go after, but probably not that much worse a bet all things considered than Sheffield is at this point.

92-93 - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 05:09 PM EDT (#197660) #

John, when discussing that bench spot, I think it's prudent to be looking at ceilings. Millar at his best can be an average major league hitter; Sheff could very well be the best hitter on the team.

ayjackson - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 07:36 PM EDT (#197661) #

Who's predicted $145 oil in 2010? Westcoast dude or some formerly reputable analyst?

SheldonL - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 08:29 PM EDT (#197664) #

I can't believe that we're trusting Shawn Camp ahead of Accardo and Wolfe. Yes, Accardo didn't pitch well but it's spring training, you're not gonna have your A game until May really.

As for Rosenthal, I think he's way off... he's usually the first to break news but as far as this prediction goes, he's nuts.

In 2010, Halladay is going to be leading a rotation featuring at the very least Marcum, Litsch and McGowan. Each are quality number 2 pitchers, so we already have a really strong rotation.
Moreover, we've got David Purcey, Ricky Romero, Brad Mills, Casey Janssen and Bret Cecil who are going to get 2009 to showcase what they've got.
A lot of people seem to think that Cecil's the real deal.
And Purcey and Romero have the pedigree and stuff to be real wildcards; they could turn out to be quality number 2 pitchers as well.
So conceivably, Ricciardi's gonna have some serious trade chips because only one of those guys can be our #5 pitcher in 2010.
That can only net us a quality hitter and thereby make our team a hell of a lot better. I can't see Halladay walking away from that.
He doesn't seem to be the kind of guy that chases the big contract even though his talents would easily net one (must drive his agent nuts!).

For these reasons, I'm excited to see our young pitchers in 2009!
Where are those Ricciardi haters now?

Gerry - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 09:30 PM EDT (#197665) #

Brad Mills did not do well tonight, 11 hits and 7 runs in 5.1 innings. Scott Richmond, the door is open.

Jdog - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 10:39 PM EDT (#197666) #

My comments and questions:

The Jays offense looks to be in midseason form (1 run again)
The Bullpen looks to be falling back down to earth
Has Jesse Carlson's glass slipper fallen off?
How long will Cito keep Snider at the bottom of the order
If the bullpen is average or below, things could get ugly

westcoast dude - Tuesday, March 31 2009 @ 11:42 PM EDT (#197667) #

Who's predicting $145 oil in 2010...

You'll never hear it from the talking heads on MSNBC, but then they were wrong about practically everything in the past two years,including the GE meltdown and downgrade (I wonder why?). However, Matt Simmons, author of Twilight in the Desert was sounding extremely bullish last time he was interviewed by Jim Puplava on financialsense. com. If I missed something on TV it's because we don't have one, we get by with four computers. I'm not infallible, I lost money in the third quarter, too.

Mylegacy - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 01:31 AM EDT (#197668) #

Several thingies...

Mills: not quite ready for prime time. Camp: I want him in the tent. Richmond: OK stuff - mature 29 year old - ready for another look-see. Wells: Overbay's hand took forever to get better then he gets three hernias at the same time this past winter- three - yikes. Now our non-German VW gets his broken wrist acting up - yikes - I just hope he doesn't get pregnant.

Westcoast Dude - lost some money have you? Me I'm down $33,000 since September and that's the good news. Early March I was down over $41,000. As to "oil at $145" and the Loonie predicted to be bouncing bullishly - that stuff's above my pay grade. However, for oil to hit $145 - without the speculators messing with the works - that would take some "demand" and I don't see a lot of that happening in the next year or so - just sayin'.

Ron - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 03:10 AM EDT (#197672) #

So Joe Inglett has been sent to Vegas and McDonald will be with the Jays. This makes zero sense. McDonald's defense was average at best last season and his bat is worthless. Inglett is a solid player who would provide a much needed lefty bat off the bench. The current regime has no problems with sunk costs so McDonald should be a goner.

christaylor - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 03:54 AM EDT (#197676) #

Mylegacy: bang on with Mills and Richmond... all I had were stats and I could only keep shaking my head at them in disbelief, but with the Phils doing what they do, this is old news now.

As for Oil, Canada has more Oil than Saudi Arabia (anyone who was in school in the 1990s can look it up)... however, I am sure that National Geographic article ticked off more than a few people who are/were invested in that.

As for Loonies -- dollars and cents. No big deal. North America will have its Euro someday, heck, Harper or Iggy might even be the one to sign the agreement. That's politics, the stuff that people decide and I no longer concern myself with because I've learned (now that I'm an official card-carrying member of the Liberal party) "people are people" (so what can you do)... although, yes, I am old enough to vague the recall the Depeche Mode song (for all you "children of the 1980s" ought there.

At any rate, bed time is fast approaching and my time here is short. So I say to all, a g'night. (Don't worry, I am not or anything; I merely have an MD's appointment in the morning... and I can not sleep. Isn't that the way things always go?

Spicol - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 09:34 AM EDT (#197681) #

Free Joe Inglett!

ayjackson - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 09:46 AM EDT (#197682) #

I don't listen to talking heads on MSNBC. I do listen to industry analysts. $145 oil is a fairly baseless prediction. It's no more relevant than any other price that oil has previously traded at, and only slightly more relevant than any price oil has never previously traded at. Most analysts predict WTI to average around $70 in 2010. There's certainly a belief that it could rebound quickly, given the elastic nature of the price of that marginal barrel of oil, but no one is betting on it (unless they're trying to sell a book).

Pistol - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 12:06 PM EDT (#197696) #

So Joe Inglett has been sent to Vegas and McDonald will be with the Jays. This makes zero sense.

I'd prefer Inglett to Millar. To me Millar is redundant with Bautista on the team.

McDonald at least brings a skill (glove) that's an upgrade. Millar's biggest skill relative to his teammates is being a clown.

John Northey - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 12:11 PM EDT (#197698) #

Well, once the economy gets going we should see oil jump back to the $150+ a barrel level fairly quickly (I'd expect in 2011 depending on the timing of recovery). Why? We have hit peak oil (where no more can be pulled from the ground than currently, and the cost of extraction continues to climb) and if India and China grow (as they still were doing a month ago iirc) we'll see an increase in gasoline usage. GM most likely will abandon their electric car (again) thus reducing the odds of reduced fuel consumption, especially when mixed with US buyers being encouraged to buy GM/Ford/Chrysler right now, mixed with 'low' gas prices.

How does this affect baseball? The Canadian dollar should grow as oil does, leading to the Jays being in good financial shape come 2012-2014 thus mixing in kids today makes tons of sense as you want them peaking during that stretch along with the final years for Wells/Rios/Hill under their current contracts. Plus you want a high impact player this draft if at all possible as they could reach the majors by the end of that window (thus explaining the looser purse strings for the draft).

Ron - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 01:41 PM EDT (#197706) #

I'd prefer Inglett to Millar. To me Millar is redundant with Bautista on the team.

McDonald at least brings a skill (glove) that's an upgrade. Millar's biggest skill relative to his teammates is being a clown.

I also prefer Inglett to Millar. But if I was in charge, Inglett would basically have Bautista's job (for a team crying poor, spending 2.4 million on Bautista is borderline insane) and Millar would remain on the bench. McDonald wouldn't even be on my 25 man roster. An old average defender with a sinkhole bat has no value on my ballclub.

John Northey - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 01:54 PM EDT (#197708) #

McDonald is an example of why you don't give more than a one year deal to a late 20's/early 30's defense only player. They are easily replaced and if their one skill goes down at all they are useless. McDonald will be released at some point in 2009 I'm sure. Still, Inglett is only in AAA so it won't be hard to get him back if/when needed. Now, if Inglett was released in favour or McDonald or Bautista then I'd be annoyed.

SheldonL - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 07:03 PM EDT (#197736) #

I agree that Johnny-Mac is going to be dumped at some point this year, but don't diss the guy's defense. He is remarkable, stats mean nothing... watch him on the field!

ayjackson - Wednesday, April 01 2009 @ 09:20 PM EDT (#197737) #

Anybody basing JMac's defensive ability on available metrics for last season is foolish. We're talking about a seriously limited sample size. It would be convenient to write off JMac's defence, so we don't have to discuss his value any more, but basing an evaluation of his play on a few hundred innings is not the way to go.

Ron - Thursday, April 02 2009 @ 12:06 AM EDT (#197743) #

I like to evaluate defense by looking at stats and with my own two eyes. I watched almost every inning the Jays played last season. McDonald played roughly 500 innings and his defense was average at best. He bobbled a few routine grounders and missed balls that he usually scooped up the previous season. Last year was his age 34 season. It’s not a surprising to see a player take a hit with the glove and the bat at that age.

Nobody will ever convince me McDonald deserves a roster spot over Inglett.

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