Blue Jays Discussion: Off-season Edition II - Winter Meeting Madness

[canucksfan]

This team has always been front of the line when it comes to the Caribbean and South American markets. Goes all the way back to Gillick and Epy Guerrero, although I seem to recall there was a period there (Ricciardi era?) where we decided to pull our scouts and development people out. I think it pissed off a lot of agents and baseball people from there, especially in the Dominican. NIce to see we're investing in these players again now. Maybe the only other team that has a longer history in those areas is the Dodgers.

Ricciardi's regime didn't sign any international prospect which was incredibly stupid. The developmental system also sucked. Worst Jays GM

 

[Dr.Funk]

 

[The Iceman]

To me the question is will someone sign him and i think the answer is yes. Not will someone sign him and release him or will he stay in the league multiple years. To me its the first hurdle, will someone sign him and you said no. I think someone will.

I dont really see a trend. Russell happened in 2019. Osuna in 2018.

The trend proves if you are good enough, you will get signed;
-Aroldis Chapman (traded for 3 times in 2016 and signed $86M with the Yankees in 2016 and again in 2019 $48M)
-Jose Reyes, wasnt particularly good in 2016 but the Mets gave him contracts in 2016, 2017 and 2018 after he was suspended
-Familia suspended in 2017 and was traded for 2018, signed a 3 year deal after the 2018 season and signed 1 year contracts for 2021 and 2022
-Steven Wright got suspended in 2018 and came back that season. Got a contract extension in 2019
-Odubel Herrera got suspended in 2019, didnt play in 2020 but the Phillies re-signed him twice in 2021 and 2022
-Julio Urias was put on admin leave on May 14, 2019 for domestic battery. Dodgers reinstated him 7 days later. On August 17th he was suspended for 20 games. Since then he has played 2020, 2021 and 2022.
-Domingo German was suspended for the end of 2019, all of 2020 and half of 2021 and he is still active

The allegations against Russell came out publicly on June 7, 2017 - i bet they were know privately before then. He played the rest of the 2017 season. He started the season in 2018 and more allegations came out in September of 2018 where he was put on admin leave and then suspended for 40 game. He played his first game on May 8, 2019 and played the rest of the season. I agree, without the allegations he is likely still in the league but he isnt in Bauer's tier. His last season was 2019 where he put up 0.6 WAR. He still played games after allegations in 2017, investigations in 2018 and suspensions for 2018-19. That was when he was a 2-3 WAR player. His last year in 2019 he was a 0.6 WAR player not worth the risk. If he were a 3-4 WAR player, he is still in the majors.

Osuna got back in right away. And thats the point, prove he is still elite and he will get to stick around. Moment he wasnt elite, the league tossed him aside. I bet after time passes and he keep putting up numbers, he will sign with an MLB team in less than 3 years. When he proved to be a 2 WAR closer they kept him, when he got hurt they released him.

List of Major League Baseball players suspended for domestic violence - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Virtually every active player on this list after Osuna and Russell got back in the majors, including Osuna and Russell.

Fun fact.

Osuna is still just 27 years old...2 years younger than Romano

 

[canucksfan]

 

[aight]

Ricciardi's regime didn't sign any international prospect which was incredibly stupid. The developmental system also sucked. Worst Jays GM

Yes, but does Atkins look like a pimp? No? No.

 

[phillipmike]

 

[phillipmike]

Here are the Top 10 LHP prospects for 2023

MLB Pipeline will reveal its 2023 Top 100 Prospects list at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, Jan. 26, with a one-hour show on MLB Network and MLB.com. Leading up to the release of the Top 100, we'll examine baseball's top 10 prospects at each position. While just four left-handed pitchers

www.mlb.com

1. Kyle Harrison, Giants (2023)
2. Ricky Tiedemann, Blue Jays (2024)
3. Ken Waldichuk, Athletics (2023)
4. DL Hall, Orioles (2023)
5. Dax Fulton, Marlins (2024)
6. Jordan Wicks, Cubs (2023)
7. Matthew Liberatore, Cardinals (2023)
8. Jake Eder, Marlins (2024)
9. Brandon Barriera, Blue Jays (2026)
10. Blake Walston, D-backs (2023)
Complete list »

Top tools​

Fastball: Harrison, Tiedemann, Waldichuk, Hall (65)
All four of these lefties have well above-average fastballs that stand out in different ways. Harrison had a crazy 41 percent swing-and-miss rate with his heater in Double-A, working from 92-97 mph with riding action and a flat approach angle from a low three-quarters arm slot. Tiedemann has the best sink of the group, Waldichuk has the best carry up in the strike zone and Hall has the most consistent velocity (averaging 96.6 mph and topping out at 100).

Changeup: Tiedemann, Wicks (70)
Tiedemann was a revelation in his 2022 pro debut, thanks in large part to his mid-80s changeup that tumbles and fades. Wicks has similar action and a little less velocity on his cambio, which scouts regarded as the best in the 2021 Draft.

Control: Wicks, Barriera (55)
Wicks has a low-effort delivery and repeats it well, averaging 2.7 walks per nine innings while reaching Double-A in his first full pro season last year. The 23rd overall selection in the 2022 Draft, Barriera likes to attack hitters with three solid pitchers and is more advanced than most high schoolers.

Highest Floor: Tiedemann
Tiedemann has less track record than Harrison but a similarly devastating arsenal with better control and command at this point. The Blue Jays handled him extremely carefully in his first full pro season, so it remains to be seen how his stuff will hold up with a full workload.

Highest Riser: Tiedemann
Heading into 2022, Tiedemann was a third-round pick out of Golden West (Calif.) JC who had yet to pitch in pro ball. Now he's challenging Harrison for the title of baseball's best left-handed pitching prospect after logging a 2.17 ERA, .149 opponent average and 117 strikeouts in 78 2/3 innings while rising from Single-A to Double-A.

 

[phillipmike]

 

[phillipmike]

 

[Hoverhand]

Choosing to ignore the wall being raised and embracing the news that they're moving it in to about 320. Was hoping we'd get something closer to the Yankee short porch (314) so that both fanbases could unite against Pitcher Park Propagandists but this will have to do.

 

[Eyedea]

Raised walls might hurt Vladdy and Kirky though

 

[theaub]

Hopefully they made it deeper somewhere too so we can have our own 'should have hit that last year BOZO' meme

 

[Hoverhand]

Hopefully they made it deeper somewhere too so we can have our own 'should have hit that last year BOZO' meme

We cannot stoop to the Ori*les level.

Look what they did to my beautiful AL East! Both corners under 330 in Toronto, Red Sox 302 to right and the Green monster, Yankee stadium 314 to right, Tampa 315 to left. So precious, so pure. The Orioles decided to go the other way.

We were the "sure this hitter is struggling but let's bring him here!" division! This division killed pitching careers for fun! It made Brett Gardner look like a power hitter!

All 5 parks should be bandboxes

 

[TheBeastCoast]

What the Orioles did is so obnoxious looking to. Like if you are going to do that at least attempt to make it look natural and not just destroy the aesthetic of one of the best parks in baseball.

 

[Discoverer]

Hopefully they made it deeper somewhere too so we can have our own 'should have hit that last year BOZO' meme

I thought I remembered reading that CF was going to be deeper, but I can't find anything about it now, so... no idea, but that would go well with the two new elite CF defenders they've brought in.

 

[TheBeastCoast]

I thought I remembered reading that CF was going to be deeper, but I can't find anything about it now, so... no idea, but that would go well with the two new elite CF defenders they've brought in.

Based off the renders it looks like it might be deeper but a lower wall in CF. Could be wrong on that though.

 

[weems]

 

[Eyedea]

Kiermaier’s 100% jumping over that CF wall

 

[phillipmike]

 

[phillipmike]

 

[trellaine201]

Good if he can put it together.

 

[dredeye]

I honestly don’t like that the bullpens come out and it really seems unnecessary. Like even in the finished product pictures it’s just a useless grass area

 

[Eyedea]

I honestly don’t like that the bullpens come out and it really seems unnecessary. Like even in the finished product pictures it’s just a useless grass area

I can definitely appreciate the uniqueness of it as they stray further and further away from the cookie cutter multipurpose dome it once was. Rogers Centre and Kauffman Stadium were the only parks with symmetrical dimensions and a uniform wall height. Royals are getting a new park in about a decade, best we can do is upgrade ours.

 

[phillipmike]

 

[dredeye]

That's a cool story but sad for Tellez