The Yankees have played Baltimore, KC and Cleveland and have really taken advantage of those teams.

They have optioned Schmidt and Andujar, pretty decent players.

The Jays will DH Kirk against Montgomery and keep Capra on the bench, along with Zimmer and Collins.

Just checking - Yankees vs sub 500 teams hit 252/331/431 (690 PA) so far, Jays 259/324/415 (481 PA). vs 500+ teams: Yankees 234/309/395 (136 PA), Jays 224/278/403 (364 PA) - this suggests a very low scoring 3 games. Remember the Red Sox are well below 500 right now (9-14) which is thanks in part to the Jays :)

Low scoring till Kikuchi steps in. Hope they win the first 2 as game 3 looks ugly on paper at least.

For the 'who would've though' category: Semien has a 30 OPS+ so far, Ray a 86 ERA+ (just 7.7 K/9), Votto a 20 OPS+. I'd say the Jays front office looks very smart/lucky for not getting any of those 3 in the end. But DJ LeMahieu who the Jays wanted bad has a 141 OPS+, of course the Jays signed Springer instead (at least it seemed that way) and he has a 167 OPS+.

I'm sure the 1927 Yankees had stretches of beating up bad teams. Just because the teams they were beating were bad, doesn't mean they weren't still the 1927 Yankees.

This years Yankees aren't the 1927 group or close. They were expected to be really really good though and are. Plus they're presently healthier than the Jays.

I'm sure the 1927 Yankees had stretches of beating up bad teams.

You were just baiting me with that, weren't you?!

Back in 1927, AL teams played 154 games, all of them against the other seven teams in the AL. The two worst teams were the Browns, naturally (59-94) and the Red Sox (51-103). The Yankees played them 44 times all told and did OK, if 39-5 is your idea of OK.

They only got to play them in succession twice. In mid-June, the Yankees took three from the Browns at the Stadium and then went into Fenway and won all five games. And in September they took 3 of 5 in Fenway, came home to the Stadium and took 3 from the Browns - which brought their season record against the Browns to 21-0. But in the finale, on 11 September, George Sisler and Ken Williams each knocked out three hits and Milt Gaston beat Herb Pennock 6-2. Babe Ruth did hit number 50.

So 17 homeruns of vaccine-hesitant Yankees broke down and got jabbed.

And it suddenly got much quieter, as if no one was watching anymore!

Nice job by Stripling there. This Gausman thing might be contagious - Stripling's thrown 76% of his pitches for strikes.

Meanwhile a Leafs fourth line winger just took a stupid five minute major in a scoreless game.

Did that graphic say the 5 AL hitters who have faced the highest average fastball velocity are 2 Jays, Christian Vasquez and then 2 more Jays?

That’s exactly what it said. Probably partially due to the Jays facing the most righties so far, too. Lots of LOB so far. These are the games the Jays lost in prior years but have won so far this year. Hope it continues tonight.

Shoulda kept my trap shut. Hope Chapman is wild again.

<br>this game feels like a missed opportunity and the meatball from Garcia to Stanton. Ugh.

The decision to not pinch-run for Kirk in the 7th will be eating at Charlie tonight.

It shouldn't. I certainly wouldn't have taken Kirk out of the game on the remote chance that Heineman would come up with an extra base hit. Even though he did.

Robinson Cano DFA'd by the Mets. He's still got almost $50 million dollars coming his way.

Ordinarily, a second baseman with more than 2,600 hits, 335 HRs, a .302/.352/.490 slash line, and a couple of Gold Loves would be a pretty automatic first ballot guy. But a couple of PED suspensions will almost certainly keep that from happening.

I agree Magpie. I wouldn’t have pulled Kirk there either. The lineup isn’t hitting right now and is missing a LHH middle of the order bat on a good day. Just have to keep grinding.

I would have pulled Kirk when he reached base. Missing Aroldis Chapman, the Yankee high leverage relievers are right-handed and you can use Collins for Kirk. Charlie was saving Collins for Heineman, but I would have prioritized it differently.

Incidentally, if you are hesitant to pinch-run for Kirk in that situation because of the short bench, it illustrates an important problem with that roster construction.

The Jays had already grounded into 3 DPs, and leaving Kirk in there doesn't make for comfortable ABs for Espinal and Tapia.

I would have pulled Kirk when he reached base.

I always think that there's just no point until the runner reaches second base. (Unless you were planning to have the pinch-runner, either Zimmer or Capra, try to steal second.) Too much risk of losing the guy for nothing on a routine forceout. It was the seventh ininng. Pretty good chance that spot would come up again (it did) and having Zimmer or Capra hitting in a game situation seems inadvisable.

The hope is that Tapia or Espinal can either get Kirk to second base - in which case, sure, pinch run - or at the very least replace him on the bases. But they couldn't get it done, and that brought up Heineman.

Montoyo isn't me though, and already he's pinch run for Kirk twice when he'd led off an inning by reaching base. It was a little later in the game - once in the eighth inning and once in the ninth - and it didn't do any good. Both times the runner was Katoh, and both times he was stranded on second (he got that far via a sac bunt one time and defensive indifference the other.) The one time running for Kirk worked out was when Biggio ran for him after he'd made it to second base with one out. Biggio took third on a groundout and scored on a single.

We differ there, Magpie. Kirk is so slow that the dynamics for a batter with him on first and less than two outs are changed. A ground ball is almost as bad as a strikeout or popup. Sure it might go through, but there's an equal or greater chance of a DP and almost no chance of Kirk advancing on a ground out. In these circumstances, it's hard for a batter to avoid the temptation to uppercut.

Espinal and (especially) Tapia were uppercutting.

A ground ball is almost as bad as a strikeout or popup.

Well, if it results in Espinal or Tapia replacing Kirk at first base, it's almost Mission Accomplished. And if they hit a DP ball, it's not going to matter who was on first unless you can somehow turn back time and put Hal McRae out there.

I only like pinch running right away if you're going to have Zimmer try to steal second right away.

you can use Collins for Kirk. Charlie was saving Collins for Heineman, but I would have prioritized it differently.

I assume you weren't really thinking of having Collins run for Kirk.

I don't agree that the speed of the baserunner has no impact on the chance of turning two. And there's a huge difference between Zimmer on second with one out and Espinal on first with one out.

I imagine that someone has studied the impact of baserunning speed on batter performance with runner on first and less than two out.

Well, the runner's not allowed to mess with the DP anymore. And if the ball's hit sharply enough to turn two, it's not going to matter who the lead runner was. So you're thinking - pinch run, and start the runner?

The DPs have more to do with the Jays not hustling than anything else.
Guerrero runs better than the average MLB player when he hits a ball in the outfield, but doesn't even jog on a grounder. Kirk has several infield hits because he's hustling. 

I don't know if Tapia is doing that on his own or if they changed his swing.

Kirk had good ABs all night, finally hitting a ball hard, and his place in the order came up again in the 9th. That was not a spot to pinch run for your #6 hitter with a 3 man bench, which of course is a problem. Does Zimmer even score on that double? Stanton has a good arm and the ball caromed off the wall in short RF.

It sucks using 4 of your higher leverage relievers and losing the game. That's the problem with not allowing Stripling to face the other team for a 3rd time at 63 pitches having thrown 84 in his previous start. Sometimes it's okay to lose a battle to help win a war, but with 9 relievers the manager is naturally going to try to win the game.

I am not sure that Zimmer scores from first on that double (hell, I'm not sure that Kirk would have scored from second base on that one- he had barely rounded second when Stanton came up throwing).  It's not that- I think that Kirk's presence at first base with less than two out changes the at-bats from Espinal and Tapia.  Anyways, I don't agree with the general proposition that it was important to save Kirk for the ninth to face a RHP rather than to have Collins in that role, as compared with having a pinch-runner.  It is a judgment call, but I think that the calculus has changed significantly in a low-run environment. 

If Espinal and Tapia actually changed their approach because of Kirk on first, which I doubt, then they should be sat down and told that was a very dumb idea that they should never repeat. Hitting in the Majors is tough enough without making silly changes in a key point of the game. I think they just didn't get the job done. No need for mental gymnastics to explain it.

I looked up Moreno and it doesn't look like he has taken off yet at AAA.

Interesting discussion as always and there was a legitimate choice in that situation. I side with leaving Kirk in the game. With the bottom of the line-up up and Kirk on first I defer to the value of leaving his bat in the game. Now, if the bench had a legitimate base stealing threat, that might sway me to pulling Kirk in that situation. Getting the tying run into scoring position before the next ball in play would tip the scales. The reality is that the bench is thin when the line-up is healthy and is translucent right now. Charlie doesn't really have many good options in situations like that.

Sounds like Teoscar might be back Thursday, per mlb.com, after a 2-day conditioning stint. Can't come soon enough - the less we see of games with both Zimmer AND Tapia in the lineup, the better.

It should really help to replace one of Kirk / Tapia in the lineup with Teoscar. Kirk's hitting 570, Tapia 551 (OPS). With Tapia's extra speed, seems basically a wash at this point. Heineman's got a 900+ OPS in extremely SSS, but ideally Collins in for him, Teoscar in for Kirk/Tapia? I guess depending on splits, platoon Kirk/Tapia through the remaining spot?  Can't wait for Jansen to be back as well.

And, hopefully, Biggio gets better soon (no timeline for his return) and starts hitting again. Or we're going to need another bat eventually, or one of Kirk/Tapia to figure things out..

At the end of the day they had 11 men reach base but only got two of them to cross the plate. That’s not going to cut it over the long term.

They’ve been very fortunate to bank these early wins, but to keep winning at a high rate they’re going to need to start hitting at a rate closer to last year’s team

Go back to that graphic zarco and I discussed. Jays have probably faced the toughest pitching in the AL thus far. While shorthanded. Long season.

save Kirk for the ninth to face a RHP rather than to have Collins in that role

But it's not going to be Collins, because he has to bat for Heineman, surely. If you're going all-in with the pinch-runner you also have to go all-in with the pinch-hitter at the same time. Don't you? I mean, you're not going to put the fate of your gambit in Heineman's hands. Which leaves you with Zimmer hitting in Kirk's spot when it comes around again.

For future budgets for the Jays good news - ratings way up

Basically the Jays are just shy of a million viewers per game with 8 of the April games (normally a low rating month) over 1 million. For comparison 2021 saw a big drop for US based teams: It is a confusing setup on that page, and I didn't have luck finding cleaner data but for the Red Sox in 2021 it says they had 84,731 households per game watching. An average household in the US has fewer than 3 people in it (122 million TV households, 330 million people) so lets be generous - a year the Red Sox made the playoffs they averaged no more than 250k per game in viewership, or less than 1/3rd the Jays average. They make roughly $104 million US a year from that. Safe to say the Jays are worth more than that, potentially a LOT more when winning (when losing the Jays were around 100k a game iirc). IF I read the table right on that first article, the Yankees are tops with 200k households watching per game, or roughly 600k viewers - IE: they would need to up viewership by 50% to reach the Jays viewership. Their rights are worth $115 mil a year. The Dodgers, getting $239 mil a year, get 139k households or around 400k viewers a game, so they'd need to double their viewership to come close to the Jays.

Bottom line? The Jays TV rights are worth well over $100 million, and potentially over $200 million US a year to Rogers even if you deeply discount it due to the lower Canadian dollar based on US right fees. Basically the Jays can easily afford any payroll they want as long as viewership stays high. The low attendance at the Yankee game last night is a bad thing, 18,577, but I figure that was in large part due to the Leafs having their first playoff game against it. The good thing is it helps hit the Jays over the head that fans don't give a damn who is in the division as long as the Jays have a shot at winning. Worst mistake of Beeston's time might have been keeping the Jays out of the AL Central - he felt it was important to have the Yankees and Red Sox come to town for the crowds. Instead it is clear winning is what fans want, be it vs the Yankees or the Guardians - who cares, as long as they win. So when radical realignment comes with the next expansion hopefully the Jays move into a division with the Tigers and Cleveland instead of the Red Sox and Yankees.

Zimmer is a legitimate threat to steal a base, but I don't think anyone here is all that aware of it because - as always - they haven't actually seen him doing it. And you can run on Castro (Holmes, not so much.) Hey, maybe if Zimmer pinch runs they go to Holmes quicker to take away the SB. Who knows!

The whole thing, though, is a perfect storm of... well, maybe. I could easily feel differently about it all if it was the ninth inning instead of the seventh. Or if they were on the road instead of at home. Or if they were down by a run instead of tied.

You're right, Zimmer is a better base stealer than I thought. I would feel differently if this had been the 9th (now that the extra inning rules are changed) - the other two scenarios are coin flips to me.

Dexter Fowler has opted out of his minor league deal with the Jays. A lot of minor leaguers had May 1 dates by which they needed to be added to the major league roster.

Magpie, if you have a runner on second, I would just as soon have Heineman as Collins hitting. If not, you either don't get to Heineman because of a DP or CS, or you have a runner on first in which case I would think about it. It's closer than one would think because of Collins' defensive issues.

Collins is striking out over 40% of the time, and is unlikely to hit more than .230 in a season.

There are issues on this team, but some will be cleared up as health comes back for some of the core. Hernandez will make it so Zimmer is on the bench 90%+ of the time, and less time for Tapia. Biggio should be back which will cut down Tapia & Zimmer's time even more. Jansen will remove Heineman from the roster and make it so Collins and Kirk both see less time. Those 3 will put Heineman, Capra, and someone else into the minors. I think it'll be either Tapia or Zimmer being traded/released as there really is no need for both once Hernandez and Biggio are back. Biggio easily fills Tapia's slot (better eye, less speed) so he'd be the one I'd dump. Zimmer's defense is fantastic and that is easier to use in close games than any aspect of Tapia imo.

Pitching is more of a challenge. Ryu returns soon, moving Stripling back to the pen, putting Thornton back in AAA where he belongs. Borucki will send Vasquez back to the minors. And if everyone is healthy I suspect Merryweather goes back to AAA at the end of May when the Jays have to cut to 8 relievers. Very big if.

So by June we should finally see the team we expected. Hopefully Bo is back (he has looked good lately) and Vlad gets hot soon and Kikuchi shows a reason he got a 3 year deal.

if you have a runner on second, I would just as soon have Heineman as Collins hitting.

Yeah, I can see that. In fact, it probably makes more sense to have Collins hit in the actual situation that came up, because a home run is about the only thing that scores Kirk from first base.

Would you think about bunting the runner to second? (Hang on, would anybody around here ever bunt in any circumstances!) Montoyo did play it that way once. The tactic worked (got the runner to second), the overall strategy didn't (he didn't score.) It does seem to me that getting the man to second needs to be a priority with the 7-8-9 hitters coming up.

If only one run is needed, what has a higher probability of scoring that one run. Man on 1st 0 out or man on 2nd one out?

If those are the two options, the team is much better off using Zimmer to pinch run and attempt a steal than to give the other team a free out.

Using historical averages, you are slightly better off having a runner on 1st with 0 outs:
- 0 out, runner on first = 57.3% chance of not scoring + 18.7% chance of scoring only 1 run + 23.9% chance of multiple runs.
- 1 out, runner on second = 58.6% chance of not scoring + 25.1% chance of scoring 1 run + 16.3% chance of multiple runs.

Source: https://gregstoll.com/~gregstoll/baseball/runsperinning.html

Thanks. So a league average hitter or better, don't bunt. Weak hitter who can bunt, then bunt.

Interesting data Cracka. I would have that the delta between your two scenarios would have been higher

Indeed, it does look like having Zimmer pinch-run and attempt a steal was a good option to consider -- as long as his potential success rate is over ~60%.
- Runner on 1st, 0 out = 42.7% chance of scoring.
- Runner on 2nd, 0 out = 62.1% chance of scoring.
- Nobody on, 1 out (ie. caught stealing) = 15.9% chance of scoring.

A stolen base makes increases the odds by 20%. A caught stealing decreases them by 27%. Zimmer has an 85% MLB career success rate. Lots of other factors to consider, but the basic math says to pinch-run & try to steal 2nd.

I'm not in favour of the required telegraphed bunt

I'm not wild about it myself, and I rather think it would be easier to run on Castro than bunt on him.

I didn't realize how fast Zimmer is.  This year and last, he's at 29.4 and 29.6 feet/second.  He was 4th (last year) and 3rd (this year) in all of baseball for players of his age.  He is faster, for instance, than Harrison Bader who is a year younger. 

Also depends on the pitcher.

Got to watch a bit of Tigers vs Dodgers Saturday. 1-1 top of the 7th. 1st 2 Tigers reach. Then Derek Hill. Foul bunt, foul bunt, foul bunt. Is there anything more pathetic in baseball?

Of course the Tigers then score 3 in the inning anyway and win the game because it's baseball.

I agree that the stolen base would be a good option.  Again, it's something that you put in the baserunner's hands as something he can do depending on jump, the expected pitch, the catcher and so on.  Jose Trevino has thrown out 22% of baserunners over his career.  The generic numbers definitely suggest that the conditions would be good for it. 

The bunt and stolen base are generally viewed as one run plays. You do them when you are desperate for a single run, thus why they are still used late in tie games. Also why they were popular in the dead ball era - more errors, so higher chance of getting on via a bunt, plus lower scoring games thus a single run had a LOT more value than in, say, the 90's when PEDs were all over the place. If the new lower scoring environment sticks then stolen bases and bunts might make a comeback as suddenly the cost of an out is reduced (more likely to make an out on any play) and the value of a base is increased (fewer HR = less likely to score from 1st, fewer hits=like likely to have a chain resulting in runs).

Espinal was actually pretty bad at bunting last year, IIRC.

Tapia has responded well all season to criticism, so let’s try again - it’s absolutely ridiculous to see him batting 5th. Bat him 9th or not at all.

Teoscar homered in his first at bat for Dunedin tonight. He fouled out in his second at bat.

Well, Tapia's 1 for 1 to start...

Manoah looks like an ace now, I’m ready to buy in, but that delivery makes me nervous long term.

For hot stretches for pitchers...

• Clemens 1997: 11-0 start, team 11-1 in his first 12 starts
• Halladay 2003: had an 11-0 stretch after a 0-2 start (team 2-4 to start, then that 11-0 stretch).
• Key 1987: 8-0 over 14 starts, team 13-1 over that stretch.
• Stieb 1984: 5-0, team 8-0 in his first 8 starts, 7-10 innings in each start (yes, he threw 10 innings in one facing 40 batters)
• Morris 1992: 8-0 over 10 starts (team 1-1 in the 2 no decisions) but had a 4.18 ERA - allowed 7 runs in one game but they won 16-7.
• Hentgen 1996: 6-0 over 6 starts, lost a game, won 4 more. Got a decision in all of his last 18 starts that season with a stretch of 5 straight complete games (plus 8 IP the game before and the game after) 8 1/3 IP per start over that stretch. Hard to imagine isn't it? Pitch counts of 92 (only one sub 100 on the final day), 137 pitches the max (3 times over 130).
• Manoah 2022: 4-0 in first 4 starts after ending 2021 with 4 straight wins in 4 starts (team won the 4 games before that stretch) so the Jays are 12-0 in Manoah's last 12 starts. Lets hope for lucky 13 today.

Those are the longest winning streaks I could find. Ray had a max of 4 last year.

Everytime I see Tapia hitting I am wondering what he has on the manager. He just isn't a good hitter and never has been. His best OPS+ is 98 (in the freak show 2020 season) and is 80 lifetime. This is who he is. Teoscar coming back should be nice as long as we don't see Tapia DHing.

Important baseball question....Is the Manoah and Kirk combo the beefiest battery in MLB?

Really good Jays fan in the outfield there - catching the Judge HR and then handing it to a kid wearing a Judge jersey. That kid will never forget today, and that Jays fan can feel good about that for a long time - worth far more than any baseball.

Kirk's throwing, receiving and framing have improved by a lot. When you think of all the work he must be putting in, its not a surprise that his hitting is off somewhat.

Teoscar struck out his third AB, then doubled his fourth.

Manoah has made five starts this season, two against the Yankees and one each against Houston, Boston and Oakland. That's about as tough as it gets.

He has a 1.45 ERA and a.84 WHIP.

Is the Manoah and Kirk combo the beefiest battery in MLB?

Somebody had to look, and that somebody would be me, naturally. I'm a simple kind of guy and my measure of beefiness is pretty simple: poundage. And Manoah (285) and Kirk (245) represents 530 pounds of beefiness, which does indeed lead the majors.

Salvador Perez of the Royals is pretty beefy himself, but Keller (255) and Perez (255) provide only 510 pounds of beefiness. Hernandez/Perez in KC comes out at 500. Lance Lynn of the White Sox (270) is the second beefiest pitcher in the majors, but his catcher Grandal is a mere wisp of a fellow at 225, so they come out at 495. So do Ober (260) and Jeffers (235) in Minnesota and Adon (246) and Adams (249) in Washington. (Clearly they use different scales in Washington.)

But yeah, we got the beef.

That's three errors for Bo in his last four games.

Love that our pitchers are all on 90 pitch limits.

And Bo gonna get 40 errors at this rate.

Espinal is a good SS btw.

Wow. Umpiring is soooo bad. 2 runs this inning.

Manoah was starting to give up some hard contact, I don't mind the pull.
I thought the umps could unilaterally review 7th or later? Feels like a close enough call they should have.

Yep, inning should be over 0 runs in but the umpires have handed it to the Yankees with 5 outs.

Merryweather hasn’t fooled anyone since the first series of last year.

Kirk had to appeal that strike 3 swing on Donaldson, even as Donaldson himself was already taking his batting gloves off because he knew it. Fitting for that inning of umpiring.

All true, but expecting your pitching and defence to hold the opposition to 2 runs or less every night isn’t really a winning formula either.

It is May. I am at a meaningless Rockies-Expos game. I am disappointed by what I see on the RF scoreboard, but it is May. However... How many acts are in this movie?

Ugh to this game.I need whatever drugs christaylor is taking.

<br>my posts are just not registering.
Just vanishing.
Not the usual eaten text..
Quick has happened for my last 2 posts. Buy also just submitting and getting kicked back to main screen

Manoah fantastic yet again, he really is fun to watch.

The offense and Bo's defense are the exact opposite of fun to watch. Just awful right now.

I sincerely hope that is the last time we see Merryweather unless he utterly dominates AAA. He's been crushed since he came back at the end of last season. It's past time to stop dreaming on that tiny run at the beginning of last season when he looked good.

It ain't called mile-high for nothing! As for drugs, I'm beer, beer, beer, beer only. On that score -- it's disappointing how sparse non-Coors products are to find at Coors field. I know, I know it is in the name of the field but local CO non-Coors brews can only be found with much patience. This is truly no different from the Fenway and Sam Adams problem (also solved with patience and a quest Cambridge's own 617 Lord Hobo). Glad I choose tonight to not watch mob.tv ob my phone and follow my home (a decade and a half away and Etobicoke is still truly home) nine. It's early and let's hope the run differential concern sorts itself out, fellow travelers.

On the 90 pitch pull, Manoah wasn't going to go 9 innings and the Jays didn't score any more runs.
The bullpen is enlarged for exactly that reason.

In September, it could be a different story. 

Am I the only one who is not sure that Vlad applied the tag? Shulman was insistent that he did but I didn't see it

I sincerely hope that is the last time we see Merryweather unless he utterly dominates AAA. He's been crushed since he came back at the end of last season.

Merrywearher seemed great before they started checking for stickum.

Not one replay I saw felt conclusive. Didn't see the tag, didn't see him miss it. I'm guessing if the original call was out, it would have stood.

Having watched most of the games, I think it's remarkable that the Jays are 15-10. The offense has been very disappointing. In some cases that is to be expected with one of the best hitters on the team being replaced by arguably one of the worst hitters in the league, but the ineptitude all around from the offensive side has been very evident. They could easily be a lot worse right now without the stellar bullpen and most of the rotation. Having Chapman and Espinal in the infield certainly helps in close games on the defensive side as well.

Even when Hernandez comes back, this team needs to add a big bopper in the lineup. The offense should improve, especially when the schedule starts to ease up a bit, but the holes offensively are pretty clear, as is the lack of quality depth on the position player side.

Very true SK. The offense has been weak. More big scores against us than for us. We are winning a lot of close games. Of course the schedule has been hard.

Interesting point about Merryweather and stickum. Of course we don't know for sure but it does seem strange he went from dominant to pumpkin so quickly. A couple ticks off the fastball and a flat slider will do that.

Hopefully Pearson coming back soon gives them more options.

The focus is misdirected at the umps when your SS boots a ball to start the inning, your 1B passes up an easy DP by throwing home, and then the team botches the rundown.

Nice little game from Kirk. He had good ABs again, showed nice hustle, had some great framework, and made a nice throw in an important spot to nail a runner. The Jays should have great depth at C for the next few years.

It's a really bad look that Tapia doesn't run out groundballs, only turning on the jets when the fielder bobbles the ball.

Merryweather is the #9 reliever in the pen right now, maybe #10. At this point I'd be very shocked if he sticks around when rosters shrink again on May 29th. Whenever your 9th best reliever is coming in one should not expect good things to happen.

Cimber just had a bad day mixed with an assortment of bad defense and bad luck umpiring (2 calls could've gone the Jays way but didn't) Redoing the inning with Bo getting the out or the umpires calling the guy out and you still get the Yankees scoring 2 before the throw home - out (was error), double, K, double, single (2 runs in by now no matter what, 3 in reality), with 2 out Vlad just steps on the bag and ends it there, game still close. But given the Jays never scored odds are they would've lost anyways but used their top relievers instead of Thornton & Vasquez.

I guess that is the good thing - outside of Cimber the good guys in the pen are rested for today for Kikuchi (so probably needed). I'd be tempted to send Thornton down and call up Hatch/Kay/Frances or someone else in case innings are needed.

Yes. Tapia not running hard on ground balls isn't only a bad look, but it can cost them. For a player on the margins, it may be the difference in a DFA decision.

Tapia being on the big league roster, much less playing everyday, is mind boggling to me. The Jays could have released him before the season began, and sold the trade as being for the $5M savings that comes in 2023, and I think most would have accepted that. Or they could have used him strictly as a 4th OF and used Hernandez's injury to either play Biggio more or bring somebody up who may have had some upside. They had Palacios on the 40 man roster who Steamer projects as a better hitter than Tapia (and Zimmer) already, and they designated him for no real reason (unless I missed it). They have Samad Taylor who is doing well in the minors and is young with an intriguing set of skills (power, speed, walks). I'd much rather see that than hoping Tapia BABIP's his way to being a 85 wRC+ player. At least with Grichuk he would resemble an above average big league player for 6-8 weeks every year. I don't think Tapia has that in him.

There's no doubt in my mind that when Teoscar gets back, the DH spot will be cycled in order to get Tapia into the lineup, so there's still some work to do in order to make this lineup suitable for a deep playoff run.

Hmm. One or both of the following will have to happen to avoid a Yankee sweep tonight- a Kikuchi we haven't seen yet, or a lineup that can actually drive in base runners. No doubt the hitters seeing a lot of top flight pitchers has probably had an impact, but we are a month in and this lineup should be running out of excuses.

One thing that might be hard with free public stats (and impossibility of knowing what if) would be seeing where those blown ump calls fall with the RISP situation. I bet it hasnèt helped, but no idea if its been significant.
Just feels like were close to another bullpen implosion from overwork because of getting a bit lucky during this injury streak.
Kikuchi needs to put up some innings, and hopefully Hernandez coming back helps the offense a bit. But theres a feeling it could get out of hand quickly.

Derek Holland must have watched the Jays middle relief last night. Just signed a minors deal.

According to the Bisons transactions, Casey Lawrence has been called up. I assume Andrew Vasquez is being bumped, but thats an assume.

It is Vasquez going down but to make room Gosuke Katoh has been DFA'd.

Gosuke Katoh has been DFA'ed so that 34-year-old Casey Lawrence can join the team as a mop-up reliever. I'm surprised that they cut bait on Katoh so quickly - I thought we'd see him up and down a few times this season as the 4th bench guy. Perhaps he's going to stick around on a minor league deal and this just allows for a needed roster spot.

More than once I've seen a slow ground ball and the fielder looked like he bobbled it and I thought 'great Tapia will get on via error' but instead he is only 3/4 of the way there. I think we now know why he has never been able to stick as a regular. He doesn't hit that well and even when given a golden opportunity he won't do the little things needed to stick - such as running out the ball, not swinging for the fences, etc. With his skill set bunts along the 3B line should be a key part of his toolkit - that is something you can learn vs home runs which either you have the raw skill or not for.

It is insane that Kirk has more infield hits than Tapia. Absolutely insane. IMO that tells you everything about the two players. Kirk is having trouble making solid contact so he focuses on just making any contact, then puts all he has into running (always fun to watch). Tapia has trouble making solid contact so he swings harder and won't run hard on ground balls. Ugh.

When Hernandez returns IMO it is time to end the Tapia experiment. From April 19th to now Tapia has been in every game, once coming in late, once pulled before it was over. He has 'hit' 224/246/310 over that stretch. He needs to grow up and figure out he has no power and needs to go the other way, take walks, bunt, you name it. But this is his 7th year in the majors and if he hasn't figured that out yet, he isn't about to. The fact he has hit into as many double plays as bases stolen tells us a lot about him (3 each). Zimmer somehow has been worse (067/125/167). FanGraphs has Zimmer at +0.9 runs on defense, Tapia -3.4 (dead last on the Jays). Bo is -1.3, Vlad -1.5, Gurriel -1.5 but all 3 at least have shown good enough bats in the past to make you shrug your shoulders at it, but Tapia has nothing to cover his nightmare defense. Surprisingly #1 is Hernandez at 1.5, then Chapman at 1.4 (no shock), Espinal 1.3 (again, no shock), and Kirk at 1.1 (mild surprise), then Zimmer, followed by Heineman, Katoh, and Jansen at 0.1 to 0.3. Negatives are Springer, Collins, Biggio (0.8 to 0.9), then the guys I mentioned earlier while all others are at 0.0

So given all of that I'd say Tapia has to be next on the 'see ya' list, Heineman is happy for every day he gets (once Jansen is back he goes down). For offense we get Springer #1 (8.90) then Vlad 4.9, Jansen 3.8, Hernandez 2.6, Epsinal & Gurriel are both in the 1's, with Heineman, Katoh, and Chapman above 0.1. Sub 0's are (closest to 0 to worst) Capra, Kirk, Bo, Biggio, Tapia, Zimmer. If I was Fowler I'd have been asking for a release too if I was not given a shot while Tapia keeps getting playing time.

Ugh. Poor choice in removing Katoh from the 40 man while keeping Tapia at all. Katoh in fewer chances, had more walks (3 vs 2), and far far fewer K's (1 vs 14). I'd play Katoh over Tapia anytime. I get that Katoh is more likely than most to clear waivers but for his sake I'd be happy if he gets claimed by someone and given a shot in the majors again right away. He does everything possible to get that shot (has been learning to catch and to pitch for emergency situations for example) and never seems to stop working hard out there. Tapia rarely appears to be putting much effort in (I'm sure he is but his lack of hustle that has been noticed by many here suggests he is taking it for granted the Jays will keep him around).

Fun thing at MLB.com - rank the movies. My #1 in the end was Bull Durham (seen it many times) with The Natural #2. For 3/4 I had League of their Own & Bad News Bears. Really wanted to put Eight Men Out higher but it was against 42 (also an excellent movie) in round 1. Lots of very good movies there, and lots more that deserved to be on the list.

Checking the franchise encyclopedia...

The Blue Jays & Chewbacca were both Wookies in 1977.

Congratulations to Dusty Baker for 2000 wins!

in the end was Bull Durham (seen it many times)

Agreed. I would have liked Bang the Drum Slowly for a runner-up. Not even listed? Come on, Robert DeNiro was... DeNiro!

I'll be the bold one and say that I still think Tapia will improve. He's definitely hitting the ball harder and has more line drives. I wish he could take a few more walks, and I think he's swing is too off balance to beat out as many infield hits than you'd think (watch him try to get his feet under him after he makes contact), I think that's way more of an issue than any hustle or lack thereof. He is just a little overexposed out there playing every day, though. I'd still cut Zimmer in a heartbeat over him.

Would be more telling if Cortes threw right, but no Tapia tonight.

I'm ambivalent in the sense that I think both are, at best, 5th OFs and the difference is pretty marginal, but I think there is no, none, zero, de nada, evidence that Tapia is a better player than Zimmer. I acknowledge that Tapia looks like a much better player, its just that looks can be deceiving.

Tapia career 1500 ABs - .2 bWAR; .9f WAR and 77 wrc+
Zimmer career 900 ABs - 2.5 bWAR; 2.4 fWAR and 75 wrc+

I say that, recognizing that there are giant, gaping holes in Zimmer's swing. But Zimmer can actually play defence and run the base paths (which is what a 5th OF might actually contribute on a contending team), whereas Tapia can't.

<br>so listening to this game, it kinda feels like Kikuchi needs a modified Nuke Laloosh treatment to trust his stuff and get out of his head. At least show him Bull Dirham.

no, none, zero, de nada, evidence that Tapia is a better player than Zimmer.

Zimmer has things that does very well indeed (unfortunately, hitting is not one of them.) If there's anything Tapia does well, I haven't seen it yet.

Well done Kikuchi. Hopeful a sign of things to come.

We got ‘em all the way - so long as the pitching and defence holds em to under two runs:)

Kidding aside, Mayza better stay healthy - he feels pretty irreplaceable on the current roster.

Chapman is such a good thrower that when I saw the ball was hit to him I thought that's the game. Then when I saw the throw I couldn't believe it, good grab by Vladdy.

It wouldn't be a bold stance if it was backed by years of historical data, ha ha! But checking Baseball savant this year Zimmer has run a 40% K rate, xBA of .115 and xWOBA of .170. Tapia is 17% K rate, xBA of .297 and xWOBA of .329 (and trending up). Zimmer's a guy I can live with if rosters are expanded and you only see him as a late inning pinch runner or defensive sub, but that's a waste of a roster spot in May, IMO. Either way, the real answer is coming off the IL for Cleveland.
Anyway, at least we broke up the stupid Yankees win streak.

Agreed, Gerry. That Chapman throw was very weird. What a great pick by Vlad in a huge spot. That tweener hop is difficult and he was pretty determined to get it, even if it meant pinning it to his chest. Glad it went on his glove. Big win.

little over 2 weeks we play 3 with the Reds. Worst hitting and the highest ERA in baseball. Lost 18-4 tonight. Record now 3-21. Rowdy I'm assuming with a career night 4-6, 2B, 2 HR, 8 RBI.

Just saw that Rowdy 8-RBI headline. Would look MIGHTY good in our DH spot right now (OPS of 800+ the last 2 years after the trade).
OTOH, Trevor Richards has been pretty good for us as well..

I like Bull Durham but Major League was also a good baseball movie. Every time I see a pitcher uncork a really wild pitch, which Kikuchi did last night, I think of Bob Uecker intoning, " Juuust a little outside" as Charlie Sheen's character beans the passing mascot.

A bit like that throw that Semien made to lose a game out of the blue on the final out.

Great game overall. It was like the force was guiding the ball out of the reach of Bo and into Espinal's glove.
Evil Empire down.

Not only was Kikuchi great, his pitching line exactly matched Manoah's the day before: 6 IP, 3 hits, 1 run (earned), 1 walk, 7 Ks, 1 home run.

Kikuchi has had a particularly rough schedule - NYY, Bos, Hou, Hou, NYY. If the rotation stays on turn he'll face the Yankees again next Tuesday. I think they should bump him to Thursday against Tampa, which would line up Berríos and Gausman on regular rest for the 2 games in New York.

Friday against Tampa, that is. Monday and Thursday are both off days.

“ Chapman is such a good thrower that when I saw the ball was hit to him I thought that's the game. Then when I saw the throw I couldn't believe it, good grab by Vladdy”

I saw that throw as purposely bounced to beat the fast runner.

Chapman makes that throw on a line normally.
You bounce to avoid lobbing the ball.

Major League and Bull Durham had tons of fantastic moments - some of the best involving wild pitchers thus easy to mix into any game (the catcher telling Nuke to hit the mascot with a warmup pitch then telling the hitter I have no idea where it is going for example). I remember the quotes Nuke gives to the report when he is called up at the end of the movie and how he was taught to say the dumb things athletes always say regardless of how they really feel - my favorite part of the real interviews is watching Vlad sneak up on the guy being interviewed and dumping the bucket on him.

The quote that's popped in my mind during games is Dottie Hinson's "High fastballs. Can't him 'em. Can't lay off 'em."

my favorite part of the real interviews is watching Vlad sneak up on the guy

I'd suggest the word interviews should be in quotes. If I happen to watch, and stay on for that part, I usually shut it down pretty quickly. I have a low inanity threshold. Last time it was one of those 2 Sportsnet guys (Nicholson Smith or Zwelling... I get them mixed up) asking Springer about the crowd, "How much do they get the team pumped up?" or some such drivel. I'm not expecting probing, but surely nothing is better than what all of these on-field types come up with.

And while I'm in the old grumpy mode, I admit that even though I don't watch these things too often, the water bucket thing is getting pretty tired for me. I wouldn't suggest they're sneaking up on the lucky interviewee, when it happens every single time.

/rant

More it is the timing - how quickly can they get him and can he get away. I'd like them to get the reporter one of these times instead to be honest - now that would be a lot funnier. Or 2 guys with 2 buckets. C'mon players - be creative. Fill one with red liquid so the guys uniform turns pink when you dump it on him.

With a bench on a team fighting for a title I like to see guys who have skills the regulars don't. High end speed, high end defense, extremely good at making contact, or a power bat but just can't play the field. You need some calling card to justify being put into games. There is a need for guys who can do everything but normally those are everyday guys. Backups normally have massive holes in their game (often the bat or their ability to field). So for the current team my question is what does each guy bring?

• Bradley Zimmer: 73 career OPS+ so it ain't the bat. For him it is nearly 100% fielding (gold glover in CF, +11 runs lifetime). Plus some speed on the bases (negative baserunning this year, but +9.4 lifetime). He has only been in 279 games so far in his career.
• Gosuke Katoh: back in AAA but can take a walk, decent baserunner, can bunt, can play anywhere (literally - has been working on catching and pitching for emergencies)
• Tyler Heineman: defense first catcher who hasn't been bad with the bat so far but I think we all expect that to fall apart quickly.
• Vinny Capra: a RH version of Katoh basically.
• Zack Collins: LH bat who can catch when needed.
• Cavan Biggio: amazing eye, not bad on defense, good baserunner, plays almost everywhere.
• Raimel Tapia: Dead last on the team in runs for defense (-3.3), 2nd last for offense (-3.0), and 2nd best for baserunning (+1.3). If he was only used to run he would have value but he has been put out there every bloody game since Hernandez got hurt.
• Kirk: was a bat first catcher with power, but his defense skyrocketed this year and his bat has been making contact but not powerful contact. Very odd. Much like happened with Jansen when he came up as a bat first catcher.

I think that covers the backups so far this year. So 5 can be kept once Hernandez and Jansen are back (13 pitcher max after May 29th). Which 5? I'd vote for Kirk (backup C can DH if needed), Biggio (covers everywhere but SS/CF/C), Zimmer (can sub in CF when needed late or run for a catcher), Collins (3rd C LH DH I'd have him work out a lot at 1B to backup Vlad), and 1 more slot. Do you want speed (Tapia), or utility (Katoh or Capra)? I'd go for utility and use Capra since Collins, Zimmer, & Biggio are LH. Tapia I'd just release and eat whatever his salary is this year. FYI: Grichuk still has nice numbers, but his last 8 games turned back into himself (242/265/333 with a 350 BABIP so that might drop further).

+1 to John L. Can't remember the last post-game interview I watched. Not a big fan of drivel, inanity or tomfoolery. Old guy.

Get off my screen?

Glad it was Judge homer that the Yankee fan got the ball for. He’s a class act.

Now if only we could sign him.

Get off my screen?

Hey, I'm entitled. Part of my Old Guy Rights! Though I'm good with tomfoolery, inane or otherwise. Enjoy watching the Jays' joking around with each other. For me, not necessarily the exact same bucket joke every single time, but I'd much rather watch them have fun than listen to professional broadcasters embarrass themselves every single time.

Last rant for now. Time for my nap.

Yes Mike,and it's actually quite amazing just how quickly it does get off my screen.

Immediate post-game for me is usually boxscore checking around the league, although the way games have gone this year, it's usually been preceded by a round of self-defibrilation.

Judge would be insane to sign this winter. Via MLB Trade Rumors the Yankees last offer was seven-years, $213.5MM or $30.5 mil a year. Next year is Judge's age 31 season so any deal would be for his decline years therefor a big risk on injuries/drop off in quality. Only twice he has played 140+ games in a season, in 2020 he only played half the season. But when healthy he is a 150 OPS+ guy. There just aren't too many of those that you can get at any price. Vlad did that in 2021 and so far in 2020, but Judge is a career 152 guy. Bautista only cracked that level 3 times (2010, 2011, and 2014), Encarnación twice (2012, 2014). Just 15 times has a player done that in a single season for the Jays - Olerud, Bautista (3), Delgado (3), Vlad, McGriff (3), Donaldson (2), Encarnacion (2). I expect a second for Vlad this year. Springer is currently there. It is a high standard. Is it worth a $250 mil risk? Maybe but you'd know he'd be giving you a few bad years if you signed him for 8/$280 (age 31-38 - $35 mil per) which I figure is the minimum the Jays would need to spend to get him. At his age he wants the years and the bucks for what is probably going to be his last big contract. His 3 year ZIPs projections are 5.5 WAR 2022, then 4.8, 4.2 for his first 2 years on any new deal. I'd guess an 8 year would go 4.8-4.2-3.6-3.0-2.4-1.8-1.2-0.6 based on that = 21.6 WAR so basically worth around $200 million give or take. Not worth the $250+ I see as the minimum to get him to even think about leaving NY, or the $280 I figure it would take. I fully expect the Mets to make a full push to get him next winter (very rich owner who wants to make a splash). The Jays will talk with his agent just to do the old due diligence but nothing will come of it.

The Mikey defibrillator is a little too close to home for my liking, hypobole.

Keith Law has his Big Board- top 100 draft-eligibles- over at the Athletic. It's very position player heavy, with centerfielders and SS/2B/3B types predominately. Many of the pitchers have had recent TJ.

You’re right John. I forgot he was that old. Nice in theory but a no go with the needed extensions.

Speaking of which, If Hernandez hits when back and spurs the lineup, his extension cost will be going up