Blue Jays GDT: 2023 v1 | Fri, Apr 7 | @ LAA | 9:30pm ET/6:30pm PT | Bassitt vs Sandoval

[fancy lad]

I just noticed and maybe it's just a coincidence. But there isn't any Black American players on the Jays roster, probably the only team in the majors?
Has to be a coincidence, I'm sure that's the case, I certainly hope so!

I have totally noticed this. Obvious coincidence given that the team is improved in most categories from last year, but i did find it strange.

As a kid so many of my favorite players were guys like Barfield, Moseby, Bell, Carter, Devon White.

But then again differentiating between black American players and black Latin players, we're really splitting hairs. The jays are still a pretty diverse group - which is good.

 

[Bjindaho]

I have totally noticed this. Obvious coincidence given that the team is improved in most categories from last year, but i did find it strange.

As a kid so many of my favorite players were guys like Barfield, Moseby, Bell, Carter, Devon White.

But then again differentiating between black American players and black Latin players, we're really splitting hairs. The jays are still a pretty diverse group - which is good.

We have Americans on our roster. Both Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are American territories.

 

[Discoverer]

I have totally noticed this. Obvious coincidence given that the team is improved in most categories from last year, but i did find it strange.

As a kid so many of my favorite players were guys like Barfield, Moseby, Bell, Carter, Devon White.

But then again differentiating between black American players and black Latin players, we're really splitting hairs. The jays are still a pretty diverse group - which is good.

A good case in support of your last point: George Bell is Dominican.

We have Americans on our roster. Both Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are American territories.

This is news to me.

 

[Bjindaho]

A good case in support of your last point: George Bell is Dominican.



This is news to me.

That shows me for not looking that up. That being said, Berrios is Puerto Rican.

 

[shaner8989]

Who cares what race the players are. Give me the best team possible don’t care if they’re all white all black all Asian. Stop with the race bs

 

[red devil]

We have Americans on our roster. Both Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic are American territories.

Puerto Rico is a territory of the US but the Dominican Republic is an independent country.

 

[Woodman19]

Is somebody really suggesting to build a team by meeting a diversity quota checklist? We have added players everywhere from around the world (and finally starting to add players from Asia under this front office) I think they will take someone from Mars if they are good enough to play. Go to a politics forum if you want to bitch about ethnic makeup of team building.

 

[fancy lad]

for the record i don't think anyone is complaining about the make up of the team. I certainly was not.

It was just pointing out an observation.

 

[hockeywiz542]

John Schneider: Yusei Kikuchi ‘awesome’ in first outing | TSN

Yusei Kikuchi got his 2023 season off to a nice start Tuesday night in Kansas City, limiting the Royals to one run in five innings as the Toronto Blue Jays snapped a three-game losing streak. Manager John Schneider told reporters after the game he was impressed with the left-hander's outing.

www.tsn.ca

Yusei Kikuchi got his 2023 season off to a nice start Tuesday night in Kansas City, limiting the Royals to one run in five innings as the Toronto Blue Jays snapped a three-game losing streak.

Manager John Schneider said he was encouraged the left-hander was able to carry a strong spring training into the regular season as he aims to rebound from a disappointing 2022 campaign.

“Awesome job by [Kikuchi],” Schneider told reporters. “Efficient with his pitch count. [He was] around the zone. A few less strikeouts than we saw in the spring, but it was an outstanding job.”

Kikuchi was lights out in the lead-up to the regular season, pitching to a 0.87 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 20.2 innings pitched over seven spring appearances. He limited the Royals to just three hits while only walking one and striking out two.

Before Kikuchi’s outing Tuesday, Toronto's starters had an ERA of 10.80 and a league-worst opponents’ batting average of .409.

“I think I threw well overall,” Kikuchi said to reporters through an interpreter. “I felt pretty good for it to be the first start of the season. We obviously had a plan, but we didn't want to overthink it. We wanted to find what was working today.”

Coming off an All-Star season with the Seattle Mariners in 2021, Kikuchi inked a three-year, $36 million deal with the Jays two off-seasons ago. He struggled mightily in his debut campaign north of the border, posting a 5.25 ERA as a starter before being removed from the rotation in August.

Blue Jays reliever Adam Cimber told Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun after Tuesday’s win he saw a change in Kikuchi from the beginning of camp.

“You could tell he was a different animal this spring. His stuff is way too nasty. He had a chip on his shoulder, and he just walked around different. I think everybody knew that he meant business,” Cimber told the Sun.

 

[GoonieFace]

Weird statement

Agreed, this kind of stuff will never go away if people keep bringing it up and making comments about it

 

[nilan30]

Agreed, this kind of stuff will never go away if people keep bringing it up and making comments about it

Why should it go away? I don't think the poster was offering an opinion on it. Just making an observation. No different than saying I noticed there are fewer Canadians in the NHL than there were 30 years ago.

 

[GoonieFace]

Why should it go away? I don't think the poster was offering an opinion on it. Just making an observation. No different than saying I noticed there are fewer Canadians in the NHL than there were 30 years ago.

Usually bringing up something like that is insinuating something, like it’s done on purpose. We are all just human beings and should be seen as such, but that’s another issue, back to baseball

 

[Beaumaris]

Noted platinum glove defender Vladimir Guerrero Jr

He’s been excellent

 

[Eyedea]

George Springer is Afro-Panamanian from his father's side, is a 3rd gen American, and both his father and grandfather were NAACP presidents of their local branch. George Springer Sr. was an African American history teacher and a civil rights activist.

 

[Beaumaris]

Usually bringing up something like that is insinuating something, like it’s done on purpose. We are all just human beings and should be seen as such, but that’s another issue, back to baseball

Nonsense.

 

[red devil]

 

[shaner8989]

Belt again. I have a feeling we won’t be seeing any of him real soon. Completely washed. Prove me wrong

 

[hockeywiz542]

 

[dredeye]

Less than a year ago they picked up Jackie Bradley Jr. after he was let go by Boston. Pretty sure this management has nothing against black players.

Didn’t this same ridiculousness come up with AA. That he brought in all Latin and white players and moved out black players

 

[Seath The Scaleless]

This is the only game on the schedule tonight. Seems like a first for the Jays

 

[Eyedea]

Didn’t this same ridiculousness come up with AA. That he brought in all Latin and white players and moved out black players

Not sure about that. Eric Thames, Corey Patterson, Rajai Davis, Devon Travis, Anthony Gose, Russell Martin, Ben Revere, Dalton Pompey, DeWayne Wise, John Mayberry, Fred Lewis, Marcus Stroman, David Price, Darren Oliver, and LaTroy Hawkins. All of them played on the Jays during the 2010-2015 seasons.

 

[The Nemesis]

Didn’t this same ridiculousness come up with AA. That he brought in all Latin and white players and moved out black players

Are you thinking of that time during, I think, the Ricciardi era where there was a newspaper article about the "Toronto White Jays" because there was a span where there were almost no non-white players on the team?

To the point of the original comment: It's been widely noted that African-American (and probably African-Canadian too) participation in baseball at the youth and developmental level is down significantly from where it was 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago. The reasons are likely varied and complex and well outside of the scope of baseball discussion and include both benign and malignant factors (ie discrimination/racism)

 

[canucksfan]

Didn’t this same ridiculousness come up with AA. That he brought in all Latin and white players and moved out black players

It was JP I believe

 

[nilan30]

Not sure about that. Eric Thames, Corey Patterson, Rajai Davis, Devon White, Anthony Gose, Russell Martin, Ben Revere, Dalton Pompey, DeWayne Wise, John Mayberry, Fred Lewis, Marcus Stroman, David Price, Darren Oliver, and LaTroy Hawkins. All of them played on the Jays during the 2010-2015 seasons.

Devon White?

 

[Eyedea]

Devon White?

I was just mentioning guys during AA’s tenure