Any thoughts of the Jays pursuing Ian Kinsler in the offseason? I'm okay with Pillar/Gose as the 3rd and 4th outfielders next season but Kinsler would be a great get since the Rangers have Profar and Andrus. Would it take a lot to get him? Probably but with that contract, not as much as one would think.

I think that the Jays should go for defence at second, not offence.  I'd explore what the Nationals want for Espinosa. 

If its Defense that you want, Ryan Goins has shown so far he can handle the position.

Reyes has obviously lost a lot of speed since the injury.  There is no way that he gets thrown out at second easily on that line drive down the right-field line in his former healthy state.  He looked like he was running through quicksand.

Morneau to the Pirates for Alex Pressley. 

Goins stays in to face the LOOGY. Luck, luck, luck. Should've been a GIDP. Why no DeRosa batting there?

Taking out a .400 hitter is inconceivable!

Gibbons isn't exacty a master tactician. His strengths lay elsewhere.

I think Gibby's very good at these kinds of tactics. Much better than the last guy.

 Ned Yost's blood pressure peaked right there.  Getz was in pretty easily...Sometimes you eat the bear, sometimes the bear eats you.

Great throw by Arencibia but yeah, Getz was safe.

Dickey seems to have finally solved the puzzle of pitching at Rogers Centre. Over the past 3 starts, his ERA at home is 2.53 and he's pitching far better than before. More importantly, he's been posting good numbers overall since late June, both home and away, holding the opposition to an OPS of well below .690 in the past 13 games. (And he's been very durable: I believe he's currently the league leader in terms of innings pitched.)

I think the Jays have figured out 2 of their 5 starters for 2014. Now they just need to find 3 more starters from a very large group that includes Morrow, Happ, Drabek, Hutchison, Nolin, Stroman, Romero, Redmond, Rogers and the inevitable acquisitions from free agency or trades. That will be a much easier job if Morrow recovers strongly from injury and if Drabek can continue to pitch as well as he has in recent weeks. There's probably no classic "ace" or "number one" among the pitchers on the Jays roster, but there's enough depth (and adjustments by Dickey and Buehrle) to think that the rotation could be a lot better in 2014.

It may not be popular, but I don't see why Johnson wouldn't be on the list. I believe there is a better than zero chance he is a Jay next season.

It's good to see Dickey pitching better at home, even if the sample size is small (also, his last three home starts - those cited by China Fan - have come against the 6th-, 10th- and 11th-best offences in the AL). I like Dickey and am happy he's in the rotation, but I would like to see some sustained success before concluding that he can be effective in the RC.

Solid performance by RA today. He's a competitor.

I was thinking while watching Lawrie make his highlight du' jour that it is hard to find fault with those that scoff at the reliability of defensive metrics and the resulting player valuation using those models. Brett Lawrie, average defender just doesn't seem to pass the sniff test and I find it increasingly difficult to find any value in a statistical model that is used to value a players contribution but whose results cannot reliably be taken at face value with anything less than three years worth of evidence.

"....I don't see why Johnson wouldn't be on the list...."

I agree that this is possible. But since the Jays don't control him next year (and he doesn't return to the Jays unless they reach an agreement or make him a qualifying offer), I was subconsciously putting him in the category of "potential free-agent acquisitions." I think his future will depend on which other pitchers might be available on the open market.

Old friend John McDonald to the Red Sox...no idea why they'd need him with expanded rosters coming, but it's McDonald's 4th team this year ( Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Boston...) if he gets in a game. Is that a possible record? It's definitely a record for a position player hitting under .100 (?!?). And it would the 2nd time he managed that feat.

Maybe Boston is angling to get McDonald into the organization as a coach after this season.

Maybe Boston is angling to get McDonald into the organization as a coach after this season.

CraigB asked me earlier this year whether I thought Brett Lawrie could play shortstop.  I mumbled something about risk of injury but acknowledged that it was a better fit for his skills than second base.  With Reyes hobbling and Magpie rightly pointing out that his skills are more suited to third base than second base, my thoughts have returned to the question of Brett Lawrie, shortstop.  I do know that I feel a lot better about Lawrie jumping over a sliding baserunner at the bag and throwing than him doing a blind pivot with a runner bearing down. 

In theory, I can see how the move could lead to a better defence, with a better matching of skills to positional needs.  In practice, it sure would be nice to have Butterfield around if you were going to try it. 

Can we please just leave Lawrie where he's at his best, at 3B? If you want to move Reyes send him to 2B and find a SS.

The Blue Jays have a player who played for four teams in a season. When he's not on the DL, he hits in the heart of their order.

four teams in a season

The list, as compiled in 2008.

Eric Thames has been DFAed, again.

If the Jays were serious about fielding a strong lineup 1-8, ideally with two-way players, as the team's main competitors are now doing, they could acquire someone like Iglesias to hit ninth and play a dazzling SS.

I've always respected Dombrowski - he seems to make consistently good decisions for the Tigers (we'll see how the Verlander and Fielder contracts look in a couple of years, though). Since the trade, Iglesias has continued to hold his own, hitting 294/348/365 and playing outstanding defence. Detroit is on top yet again, this time with a 80-56 (.588) record.

Of course, Iglesias is now off the market, so the Jays would have to target someone else.

A.A. will go after Starting Pitching as his first priority. Equal priority will be 2nd Base. I can't tell from the current 2nd Base crop to guess at who A.A.'s after, but a few on that list were never mentioned in Trade speculation in July. That's who A.A. might be after. I also don't know which pitcher A.A.'s after but there are some that he might better that were also not mentioned.

Melky Cabrera will be back next year in Left. Unless traded, Jose Bautista and Colby Rasmus will return in Right and Center. 4th OF is unknown. The only other Question Mark, other than then Bench is Catcher. I think A.A. understands J.P. Arencibia is not the Catcher for this team, but I don't know who's his replacement.

Until they put in grass, it will be harder to succeed.

IMO Dickey & Buehrle have been solid #3 SPs 200IP and an era of 3.80-4.00 will make them a #2 IMO. Some Bauxites may think that they deserve a #2 ranking, if so please explain.They have been healthy which is a major factor.

If healthy IMO JJ & Morrow easily project as the same #3 maybe #2. I do not trust my own judgement but I will still say that AA did OK in the SP acquisition department. JJ 84Ip, Morrow 54IP and J Happ 63IP hurt us very badly. E Rogers & T Redmond did more than I expected. I mean that they were unknowns to me as SPs. I think Drabek was rushed, especially if he burned an option, his last one. However if there are no plans for him to be a starter then I guess it is OK. He cannot hurt as the 7th or 8th guy in the pen. I hoped that both Hutch & Drabek would play just a bit this year so that their recovery for 2014 has the best chance for success.
C Jenkins was injured this year & so pitched very little in the minors. With rehab assignments not counting, I believe he did not use up an option. Too bad S Nolin did use up an option. M Stroman looks like he may be ready for the Jays rotation in 2014.
I believe that Morrow & JA Happ still have 1 option left.

So the 2014 rotation looks something like this to me. I see 4 experienced SPs, with Dickey, Buehrle & Morrow having the background of being quite good if healthy. JA Happ while being experienced can easily be beaten out by someone that can put up Romero 09,10,11 numbers. Everyone else I mentioned can be depth for 5-12/13 SPs if needed. To get to 13 Romero, Deck M & Mark Walden.

I also feel that those last 3 need not lose hope of getting an opportunity due to the long list. It could just be a couple of months for a teams pitching to fall apart.

Dickey & Buehrle have been solid #3 SPs 200IP and an era of 3.80-4.00 will make them a #2 IMO.

That's exactly what Buehrle's done, but most AL teams have at least two starters who've had better years. Off this year's performance Buehrle would quite literally be anything from a team's best starter to a team's fifth best starter. And all points in between.

Best - Houston, Toronto
2nd best - Oakland, Minnesota
3rd best - Baltimore, New York, Cleveland, Kansas City, Seattle, Boston (tie)
4th best - Chicago, Texas, Los Angeles
5th best - Detroit, Tampa Bay

This was quick and dirty, using ERA+ and a 15 start minimum. And I was surprised to see that only Colon on the Oakland staff looking better than Buehrle. And that team will be playing in October. But there are indeed very big Park Factors at work, and it does make sense. The Rogers Centre has been an exceptionally good hitter's park this year, and Oakland Alameda has been, as usual, a wonderful place to pitch.

Depressing stat of the day:

Bonifacio (Toronto / 282 PA): 218/258/321 / -0.1 bWAR

Bonifacio (KC / 74 PA): 297/384/406 / 0.8 bWAR

Welcome to the Aaron Hill club? I'm not sure exactly what this means (it is a small sample), but it doesn't look great on Toronto.

perhaps the team should stop washing the uniforms with that kryptonite infused detergent?

The only thing that doesn't look good on Toronto is this case is believing Bonifacio was the answer at second in the first place. Even terrible players have hot stretches.

So, do you consider 641 PA (plus his last 74 PA) a "hot stretch"? Because that's how many PA of 107 OPS+ baseball (along with 40 steals) Bonifacio delivered in 2011.

we're pining for Bonifacio now? because he's been able to get "hot" and post a .746ops in 19gms for the Royals? seriously?

So that was weird. Santos hits for himself, then is immediately replaced by Delabar. Was it just a gesture to give him his first MLB plate appearance? After all those years in the minor leagues as a shortstop?

I suppose it was a fairly meaningless game, but still, one would have thought that Gibbons would be playing for the win, not giving favors to pitchers.

"So, do you consider 641 PA (plus his last 74 PA) a "hot stretch"? Because that's how many PA of 107 OPS+ baseball (along with 40 steals) Bonifacio delivered in 2011.

Is this a rhetorical question or do I really need to point out the absolute ineptitude the now 31 year old second baseman has displayed in the other 70% of his MLB career? I would have thought there would be enough to hate about this Jays season without reaching to manufacture more.

Excellent game by Esmil Rogers today. Looking at his season record as a starter: he pitched quite strongly in his first 10 starts (3.38 ERA) and then had three terrible games where he allowed 20 earned runs, and then he has pitched very well again in two of his last three starts. His xFIP is now standing at 4.00 for the season. Is there any chance that those three terrible starts in mid-season were an anomaly? It would be good to add another name to the rotation depth for 2014.

I suppose, realistically, Rogers might fit the model of another swingman, Carlos Villanueva, who continued that role for the Cubs this year after doing the same thing for the Jays last year. Useful guy to have around, anyway.

The remainder of the September call-ups have been announced: Drabek, Romero, Perez, Jeffress, Nickeas.

Seems to confirm that Drabek is well ahead of Hutchison in their recovery from injury. Nice reward to Drabek, Perez and Romero for a lot of struggle and hard work this year.

Stroman and Nolin don't get promoted, but they had good seasons and are well-positioned for 2014.

It's too bad that AJ Jimenez picked up that injury near the end of the season; it would have been good to see him getting a taste of the majors.

Several moves will have to be made to get them all on the 40-man roster.

It's not a question of "pining" for Bonifacio, it's about figuring out where it went so horribly wrong. He was a useful player before coming to Toronto - maybe not a starter, but at least worth having around as a pinch-runner supreme. In Toronto, he was unspeakably awful; he flailed about wildly at the plate, and didn't even run much on the rare occasions he got on base.

And now that he's in KC, he's back to (at least) being useful again. He's stolen 11 bases in 18 games,vs only 12 in 94 games in Toronto, where he was also caught 6 times. He has a respectable approach at the plate.

Was he hurt? He missed time in 2012 with a thumb injury, which can obviously throw a hitter off; were the Jays simply unable to gauge his recovery time, both that he wasn't ready at the beginning of the year, but is now? Were the coaches trying to make changes to his approach that backfired horrifically?

Obviously, one can draw connections to Aaron Hill, who suddenly seemed to understand what the strike zone was for as soon as he left Toronto.

I wonder if Santos' AB had anything to do with being drafted by Arizona in the first round; dreams and such.

Santos getting a PA might be due to a number of factors...
1) There was no one on base, one out, 2 run lead in the 8th - might have been Gibbons deciding to hold off on PH as there are few on the bench and he didn't want to burn one of them at this point, this situation
2) Santos was a SS in the minors so he has a better bat (most likely) than any other pitcher on the staff
3) vs a RHP the options were Kawasaki, DeRosa, Lind, and Davis. DeRosa would be saved for when a LHP is there, Davis is your speedy pinch runner, Lind your HR threat, and Kawasaki...well...he is a nice guy who can take a walk or provide a bunt when needed. The situation didn't really fit any of their skill sets with the possible exception of Kawaski.

So basically if a PH was used it would've been Kawaski and I suspect the spread between him and Santos was viewed as not enough to justify burning one of your few bench options when extra innings were possible at that point.

For the first few months of the season, Bonifacio was bunting exceptionally poorly.  It is to management's discredit that they kept sending him out there.  Whether the bunting problem was a residual of his thumb injury or simply putting in a poor effort, he should not have been in the lineup as regularly as he was. 

A couple of other comments...Bonifacio is 28 years old (not 31).  Hill's issue was somewhat different.  In 2010-11 in TO, his W/K numbers weren't horrible.  What happened was that he stopped hitting line drives in 2010 and his average plummetted; in 2011, he starting hitting line drives again but lost power.  He put those two things together in Arizona, and it seems to me that it was mostly about a subtle timing mechanism in his swing.

So before call ups we had 14 pitchers, now we have another 4 added to that.  18 pitchers, of whom 13 will be in the pen.  Yikes.  Yet the two guys I thought would be locks aren't up - Hutchison and Nolin.  A thin bench remains so with a total of 4 bench guys now when the DH is in use with Nickeas joining the usual suspects in Thole, Kawasaki, Davis, DeRosa.  IE: the offense, even in September, has fewer players than the average ML team had in the 1980's when 15 man offense, 10 man pitching staffs were the norm.

So, what hitter would I have added? Only 2 guys were on the 40 man roster and not called up/DL'ed and those are Jimenez (too soon) and Mauro Gomez who has been 'reassigned' - he is a RH hitting 1B/3B who hit 249/322/521 in Buffalo.  His OPS was slightly higher than Luis Jimenez (282/349/493) but he was 1B/DH.  I'd probably have looked at rewarding Gomez and using him as a PH during September but can see why the Jays didn't bother.  Once Bautista and/or Rasmus come back it wouldn't matter anyways I guess.

It's interesting that the Jays have had Hill, Escobar, KJ, Aviles and Bonifacio all pass through the organization over the last few years, but they still can't put together a decent middle infield. Reyes, owed a ton of money over the next four years, now appears to have a bad ankle, which may or may not be 100% in 2014, and the Jays still don't have a second baseman (unless you think Goins is the answer - his minor-league stats suggest that he's not).

The more I think about it, the more I like the Iglesias acquisition for Detroit. Dombrowski recently said they expect him to be their SS for "years to come." He's a true shortstop, he plays brilliant defense, and he seems to be able to do enough offensively to stay in the lineup. And he's going to be cheap for a while. Nice move.

The Jays have also had their hands on d'Arnaud and Mathis, and Martin was available as a free agent (cheaply) last off-season, yet the team is fielding Arencibia as its starting catcher. It's an unfortunate situation.

A couple of other comments...Bonifacio is 28 years old (not 31). Hill's issue was somewhat different.

And so he is, not sure what I was looking at. As for the Hill and Bonifacio issues being somewhat different, do cuttlefish get awarded for the biggest understatements of the month?

It's interesting that the Jays have had Hill, Escobar, KJ, Aviles and Bonifacio all pass through the organization over the last few years, but they still can't put together a decent middle infield.

Ah man, this is silly.  Hill's issues have been well articulated, and Escobar was dumped by the Braves (for similar reasons to the Jays)... clearly, a poorly run organization, by your logic?  And why bother including KJ, Aviles and Bonifacio on your list at all, unless we are going to simply cherry pick 'good' seasons?  Cripes, you included Boni and he was our 2B for months.  Unless you don't like Reyes at SS?  I'm sure there are plenty of GMs that would be happy to have him. 

Given the Tigers situation I liked the Iglesias acquisition as well greenfrog. I think it remains to be seen whether he can actually do enough offensively to stay in the lineup long term given his results this year are entirely BABIP driven and beyond anything he showed in the minors. The best thing for the Tigers though is that they don't need him to start next year. Peralta returns next season and Iglesias is at worst excellent depth and might be the best defensive player in the AL - although Brendan Ryan might have have something to say about that.