Blue Jays Discussion: Joe Panik: the hero we deserve

[trellaine201]

Stroman in the middle of a dispute in the mets game with the diamondback players. Surprise surprise.

 

[Clark4Ever]

Vladdy is really coming into his own.

 

[lebdafor norris]

Vladdy and Semien now top 1 and top 2 respectively in Fangraphs WAR rating among AL batters, initially I was wondering which version of Semien the Jays were going to get and so far, it looks as if they have gotten the 7.6fWAR, MVP candidate version.

 

[Canada4Gold]

Canada beats Cuba to guarantee they advance to the next round. They'll only carry their game against Venezuela tomorrow to the next round so these next 3 games will decide whether they make the olympics, make the final qualifier or finish 4th and get nothing.

Meanwhile the USA will also advance and their game tomorrow is against the last place team in their group so it won't matter. I would guess SWR is up soon but with the game tomorrow not mattering for them I wonder if he starts that or if they wait.

 

[Killer Orcas]

Can we re-hire Gibby for a 3rd stint?

Is Cito around rather have him for a 3rd stint.

 

[hockeywiz542]

 

[SDig14]

I was interested in going after Story, but seems like we may have an easier time extending Semien and going after a bona-fide everyday 3B instead. That and adding to the rotation and bullpen has to be priority throughout the rest of this season and next off-season.

 

[lebdafor norris]

10 players who are showing they're for real


Maybe i shouldnt have said trade him last year. @Discoverer

I'm kinda surprise at the season Gausman is having, this kinda reminded me of when Gausman was suppose to be the Orioles' answer to the Jays future Ace, Marcus Stroman.

 

[canucksfan]

It was nice having somewhat of a home game. Fans were rarely cheering for the Jays in Dunedin.

 

[Bjindaho]

Some interesting stats:
Vlad is statistically the 3rd best 1B of qualified 1B

Semien is top 10

Bo is mid-pack

Biggio is not good. Espinal would be by far the best defensive 3B in baseball if he played more. Panik is by far the worst (to put it in perspective, he is only marginally better at playing 3B than Vlad was in 2019 (-1.3 Def in 86 innings vs -14.6 in 824.1).

In the OF, Randall is currently the 8th best RF, but also our best CF (Davis isn't great)

Teo is 21st best RF, but very good in LF in limited time. Gurriel is 7th best defensively with the worst range in baseball, but being very good at getting to balls in his range, a spectacular arm , and the ability to make gold star plays (getting to balls that his range suggests he should not be able to)

On top of his hitting issues, Danny has been one of the worst defensive catchers due to framing issues. Reese has actually been our best catcher in every aspect.

 

[Bjindaho]

Summing that up Espinal not hitting is a slight upgrade over Panik at 3b. If he starts hitting, this becomes about as bad as if we were playing Tellez instead of Vladdy.

Edit: it would be reasonable to expect Espinal's BB rate to go up (and possibly his K rate).

 

[Bjindaho]

There don't appear to be home/road splits, but Dunedin was arguably the hardest LF to play in baseball, since Lourdes couldn't see anything off the bat.

 

[phillipmike]

Nine Low-Hype Prospects Who Are Getting Close to the Majors

Gabriel Moreno, C, Toronto Blue Jays

This one is a long shot (though at 93rd on the Top 100, not too long), but I just really like the player, and catcher has been an offensive black hole in Toronto for years. Moreno is a bit on the small side, but he’s an athletic backstop with a plus arm, a feel for contact, and sneaky power. After finishing the 2019 season with a strong showing for Low-A Lansing, Double-A has yet to challenge him, as he’s flirted with .400 average for much of the early campaign. With just over 700 plate appearances in his professional career, it’s fair to say Moreno needs more time to bake in the development oven, but desperation can quicken teams’ decisions in that department and when it comes to the Blue Jays and the catcher position, desperate doesn’t even begin to describe their long-term problems there.

 

[phillipmike]

Major League Leaderboards » 2021 » Batters » Dashboard | FanGraphs Baseball

Vladdy is 0.5 fWAR above 2nd and Semien has passed Acuna and Bryant to move up to 4th. A good night or 2 and we can have the 2 top fWAR players in the league.

 

[Discoverer]

Major League Leaderboards » 2021 » Batters » Dashboard | FanGraphs Baseball
View attachment 442228

Vladdy is 0.5 fWAR above 2nd and Semien has passed Acuna and Bryant to move up to 4th. A good night or 2 and we can have the 2 top fWAR players in the league.

I guess for now we'll have to settle for the top 2 in the AL.

 

[Bjindaho]

Just looking at possible internal roster moves, if the org ever had the balls to dfa Panik, Kevin Smith is quietly closing in on a point where he should be given an opportunity at 3B in the big.

Also, Moreno likely needs to play in AAA, though that might need a trade to happen and a Riley Adams call-up (a deal around Jansen and Matt Boyd could work)

 

[BlueForever75]

3B is definitely a hole. But the question becomes do we want to plug that hole with someone long term when we have players like Groshans and Smith that may be capable to fill the void in the next year?

I definitely would attempt to resign Semien long term. He is the answer at 2B long term.

The Jays really should focus on trying to find another bonafide starter and reliever. Those are the missing pieces we really need right now to put us over the top.

Springer will be like a late season acquisition that will provide plenty more offence and defense for this team. But adding someone to Ryu, Matz, Ray and Manoah in the rotation would be huge. Not to mention adding another power arm in the bullpen will help as well.

I am not worried at all with offence or defense as it stands today, and after Springer comes back.

 

[Cloned]

When is Springer supposed to be back (for good this time) anyways?

 

[jetsforever]

Not a bad May

 

[Puckstuff]

It's unbelievable we got Semien for free and the mets had to give up the farm, term and 300+ million for Lindor.

Semien has literally been better then Lindor for more then 250 games now and not just a little bit better a lot better

 

[Bjindaho]

It's unbelievable we got Semien for free and the mets had to give up the farm, term and 300+ million for Lindor.

Semien has literally been better then Lindor for more then 250 games now and not just a little bit better a lot better

And he's eligible for a qualifying offer

 

[The Nemesis]

When is Springer supposed to be back (for good this time) anyways?

 

[Bjindaho]

The takeaway from the above is that Reese needs to play more,

Davis should be sent down (and if Palacios is a good fielder, he should be called up. If not spend something on someone who can play of well but isn't necessarily a starter)

Panik is not a mlb calibre player. He is arguably the worst defensive player in baseball at his 2nd best position and below average at his best while not being very good at hitting. Espinal is the ideal utility player if you think his upside with the bat is limited, and the short term solution at 3rd would be to try Kevin Smith (or acquire a 3B).

 

[The Nemesis]

The takeaway from the above is that Reese needs to play more,

He needs to grab this opportunity with both hands. And giving that he's only OPSing to the tune of .522 he also needs to work on his stroke. Because he can't be out there trying to constantly jerk it to the parking lot when his bat is as limp as it usually is.

 

[Bjindaho]

My wishlist is Michael A Taylor, Josh Donaldson, Jacob Stallings, Raisal Iglesias and Matt Boyd

Edit: if we were willing to consider moving Pearson, I'd be all in on Jose Ramirez