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Yankees Current State Of The Union + The Phil Hughes Question
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Follow @mlbreportsWednesday, May.08/2013
As the Yankees enter May, they do so in second place trailing their rivals, the Boston Red Sox. This is a surprise for many who thought that Boston and New York would struggle in 2013
By Nicholas Rossoletti (Yankees Correspondent/Trade Correspondent): Follow @nross56
As April came to a close and May began, the Yankees found themselves in an all so familiar place. The New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox were atop the American League East. It seems like this struggle between century old rivals has dominated the AL East for the better part of the last 15 years.
This year was supposed to be different as New York and Boston were both expected to cede the division to the Baltimore O’s, Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays, and perhaps that will still be the case, but after five weeks of the season, it certainly seems like the demise of the Yanks and Sox was greatly overstated.
Part of the reason that the Yankees have managed to prove their naysayers incorrect has been their stellar starting pitching. Each of the top four Yankee starters has pitched well to start the season, but as the title of the article suggests, there is one pitcher who has stood out especially in the last several weeks.
His performance leads to this question: Is Phil Hughes finally becoming the pitcher he was always touted to be? Is the 26-year old right hander finally blossoming into a strong 1/2 starter? The numbers, at least early on, scream YES.
The Phil Hughes Question:
Yankees Update: Week 4 – The Injuries Mount Yet They Are Still The Bronx Bombers!
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Follow @mlbreportsWednesday May 1,2013
After a hot start to the 2013 campaign, Francisco Cervelli has broken his hand and added his name to the long list of Yankee injuries in 2013. The man worked his way back to the Majors and won the Yankee starting job out of training camp. Now only time will tell whether Cervelli can return from injury with the same skill that he opened the season.
By Nicholas Rossoletti (Yankees Correspondent/Trade Correspondent): Follow @nross56
The end of April was supposed to signal the beginning of the end of the Yankee injury woes. Upon breaking camp, it was thought that Derek Jeter, Curtis Granderson and Mark Teixeira would all be returning in the next week or two.
Now, it has become clear that the Yankee injury woes are just beginning.
As discussed in last week’s piece, Jeter’s set-back already has extended his time table until the middle of July at the earliest. Big Tex has been unable to meet his time table as well and is not prepared to take live swings yet.
Granderson is the only player on track to return from injury based on the original timeframe. Grandy is slated to return in at some point in May.
Frankie Being Frankie:
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Review of Stadium Journey’s Latest Issue: 4 MLB Ball Parks To See – Top 10 Park Quirks, The 2 Best Parks and Japan
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Follow @mlbreportsWednesday Apr.24/2013
Stadium Journey is both a website and a magazine that thrives in rating and reviewing Sporting Venues around the World. Among those sports is MLB. Co – Founder Paul Swaney informed me that the recent magazine is fully geared to help the avid baseball fan visit their favorite ballpark.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
There is not a bigger marketing in all of baseball than all 30 MLB Parks of the game of baseball. As someone who has dedicated their lives to visiting ballparks the last 7 years, I will pass along information that will help the general masses when it comes to my attention.
One of the people I have met through my baseball travels is Paul Swaney. I am doing this review and talking about this magazine because I endorse it 100% – and no one spends more time in studying the MLB Ballparks than the fine folks at www.stadiumjourney.com
From the Website:
Stadium Journey is a web venture with the goal to become a world-class community resource for sports fans, built around optimizing the experience of attending live sporting events.
About SJ “We provide tips and information through reviews of pro and college sports stadiums. We also rely on fans to provide tips and information about their favorite home stadium, or a first time impression. By sharing our knowledge, we can make every trip to the ballpark, stadium, or arena the very best it can be. Enjoy the journey!” Read the rest of this entry
Yankees Update: Bad News On El Capitan While The Team Keeps Winning
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Follow @mlbreportsWednesday April.24/2013
Derek Jeter. The Yankee Captain. A future Hall of Famer. Last October, Jeter broke his ankle during the American League Championship Series. All off-season, it was reported that Jeter would be ready for Opening Day. After a series of set-backs, it has now become clear that due to a small crack in his ankle, Jeter will not be ready until after the All-Star Break. Can the Yankees survive without their captain? Only time will tell.
By Nicholas Rossoletti (Yankees Correspondent/Trade Correspondent): Follow @nross56
Transitions are rarely easy. People, generally, are creatures of habit and routine. Change is almost always seen as a scary thing for most. Yankee fans are no different. The transition from the old guard is an overwhelming theme to this season for the Yankees.
As Week Three of the Major League season moved along, the Yankees received more bad injury news on their shortstop, Derek Jeter. The Yankee captain suffered a significant setback in his recovery from a broken ankle when it was reported that a small crack had emerged in the same location as the injury.
Reports had indicated that Jeter’s surgery would prevent such a re-occurrence. Obviously, this is not the case, and now, the Yankees will be without their shortstop until at the very least the All-Star break.
Yankee fans’ reaction was obvious as the news broke. For the better part of two decades, Jeter has been the constant in the Yankee lineup, and this injury reminds Yankee fans, again, that the times, they are a changing.
The Captain:
A Night With Mookie Wilson Part 1: The Gala Dinner Speech At Tangle Creek Golf And Country Club
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Mookie Wilson talking as the Keynote Speaker at the Tangle Golf and Country Club Friday April.12/2013, Thornton, Ontario, Canada. MLB Reports was there to listen to the Mets Hall Of Famer speak – and we have a special 2 part series for you surrounding the event – including an exclusive one on one interview we conducted that will be the 2nd part of the 2 part series.
By Jordan Hennessey (Blue Jays Correspondent) Follow @hennej
One night with Mookie Wilson Part 1:
“Speed is the one thing that there’s no answer for. You can kind of contain it but in order to do that, you have to change your game” – Mookie Wilson.
Mookie Wilson is remembered for his speed and enthusiasm on the base baths, but there is more to him than that. I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Mookie Wilson at a Gala for Smith Brothers Baseball Central Sports Facility, a great new Baseball factory in Central Ontario.
The event was held at Tangle Creek Golf and Country Club. Partial proceeds went to Candlelighters Simcoe, in support of parents whose child has been diagnosed with cancer. Needless to say it was a great night for two great causes.
As an added bonus, we got to hear Mookie Wilson talk baseball, life, and his time on Sesame Street hanging out with the count. Which he told like it was yesterday.
To listen and read about the Interview I did with Mookie Wilson: Part 2 of a night with Mookie click here
The Mets and Mookie on Sesame Street
Can The Blue Jays Weather The Jose Reyes Injury?
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Follow @mlbreportsWednesday Apr.17/2013
Anthopoulos is about as prudent a man as you will find. He is all smiles in this press conference, but he knows what is at stake. He has deemed that the “time is now” for the Blue Jays to go for it all, and convinced his bosses to risk hundreds of millions of dollars. If the team he has assembled does not compete, for any reason, he may be out of a job. The team has had a mediocre start at 6 – 7 in the tough AL East – and have lost their prime Leadoff Man for 3 months. Going the extra mile to add depth in the franchise may enable the club to stay in contention until Jose Reyes comes back in July.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Jose Reyes was the best player acquired over the winter by the Toronto Blue Jays. He was supposed to be the Leadoff Hitter, provide speed and flash the glove at the Short Stop position.
The 30 Year Old was doing just that before going down in a heap at Second Base over the weekend stealing a bag.
Incredibly, the guy almost was injured even weeks doing the very same thing just a few weeks back.
Brett Lawrie was activated from the Disabled List last night. The initial plan was to maybe play him at Second Base, with Jose Bautista moving back to Third Base. This would put Maicer Izturis at Shortstop, with relegating Emilio Bonifacio to Right Field.
Jose Reyes Injury:
Toronto Blue Jays: Clubhouse Cohesion, New Faces, And The World Baseball Classic
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Follow @mlbreportsMonday, February 18th, 2013
Melky Cabrera, Jose Reyes and Edwin Encarnacion. 3 of the first 4 hitters in the 2013 Toronto Blue Jays lineup, and all from the Dominican Republic. In their first year as teammates on the Blue Jays, and one of their first spring training practices, have already become a close trio. Dominican slugger Jose Bautista is missing from this photo, but is the 4th piece of this dazzling 1-4 combination.
By Alex Mednick (Baseball Analyst and Toronto Blue Jays Correspondent) Follow @mednickalex
The Toronto Blue Jays had a very well publicized off-season. Many moves were made, including two blockbuster trades, the signing of one of baseball’s best and most controversial contact hitters, and a new (old) manager. A core of the former Blue Jays remained intact, but between the big moves made by GM Alex Anthopoulos this off-season, along with the smaller additions, the Blue Jays have 12 new players on their 25 man roster. These 25 players are expected by many, to hit the gates running, and to at the very least, earn Toronto a spot in the playoffs come October 2013.
Clearly, team chemistry plays are huge part of winning championships. We have seen numerous teams boasting extremely talented rosters have merely moderate success, and we have seen teams loaded with professional journeymen have historic success. Michael Jordan is noted for making the comment, “Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships”.
The 2013 Blue Jays are very unique in that while half of their team is in fact new to Toronto, many of these players have played together and have cultural bonds. The blockbuster trade with the Miami Marlins brought a total of 6 players to Toronto, all of whom, were quite obviously teammates in South Florida. 5 of these players are expected to immediately be impact players in the clubhouse. Another big trade with the Mets brought over three players who will likely contribute to the team to varying degrees, and have already formed close ties amongst each other due to the relationship that exists between a knuckleball pitcher and his battery mate. Right off the bat, we can account for 8 of the 12 new players on the roster who at the very least, already are familiar with each other and are not entering a new city completely unfamiliar with their teammates. The following players might all make their way to the ALL-Star Game at Citi Field this year: R.A. Dickey, Mark Buehrle, Jose Bautista, Jose Reyes and Edwin Encarnacion .
2013 Preview of the Toronto Blue Jays:
MLB Reports Junior Reporter Haley Smilow Interviews ‘Blue Jays Closer’ Casey Janssen
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Follow @mlbreportsSunday January 13th, 2013
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Haley Smilow was a busy reporter last year. So much so, that we couldn’t keep up with her. In her latest interview from last summer, Haley talked to Casey Janssen of the Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Center…. about his favorite Ball Parks to Play in, who he doesn’t like to face, what he does for pre and post game rituals and what he does on the road. Haley pulls no punches in asking the Relief Pitcher about his life in this candid interview. Amongst other topics discussed were: What Janssen does for charity work, what his favorite animal is…. Also whether or not he has forgotten his passport ever when going through International Customs and his favorite sports team. Read the rest of this entry
James Paxton Deserves More Attention
Sunday, December 30th,2012
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Sam Evans (Baseball Writer): Follow @RJA206
James Paxton is one of the most talented Left-Handed pitching prospects currently in the Minor Leagues. However, partially because he went through trouble entering the MLB Draft a few years ago, Paxton seems to be underrated be most of the baseball world. There is a decent chance that Paxton will make his MLB debut in Seattle before the All-Star Break, so he should have a chance to get some of the attention he deserves in 2012. The Mariners are lucky to have Paxton, whether they use him as a trading piece or they decide to keep him. James Paxton has the talent to become a #3 starter in the majors and it won’t be long before the baseball world is much more aware of this.
The Blue Jays New Reality: Building Towers on Shaky Ground
Saturday, November 23rd, 2012
The Blue Jays have made a lot of moves in a short period of time and added a jolt to a fan base which had become numb of 19 years of not competing. People are saying they will win, including Las Vegas odds makers. They certainly look way better on paper than they did two weeks ago and people have a reason to be excited with the direction the franchise is going. They have taken 2 quick steps forward, but what happens when Murphy’s Law strikes and they take 1, or 2 steps back? How good are they then?
Alex Mednick (Baseball Writer and Analyst):
There has been a lot of talk thus far about how the Blue Jays are slotted to be ultra-competitive. And I don’t want to be a “negative-Nancy”, because this hype comes with good reason. I, as a Blue Jays fan, am beyond thrilled with the organization allowing Alex Anthopoulos to pull the trigger and make this kind of off-season happen…there is no doubt that this is what Blue Jays fans have been waiting for over the last 18 years. The Rogers family has shown that they aren’t simply using the Rogers Centre as the world’s largest billboard. They demonstrated that they are committed to take the financial risks necessary to make this team competitive. They said they would spend big $$$ when the “time came”, and they kept their word. The time has definitely come when you have two guys hitting 40 home runs a season in the middle of your lineup. I applaud the Rogers’ and the front office for saying something and sticking to it.
That being said, when I hear things like “we’re not done yet”, and, “the Blue Jays would like to add another front-line starter”, it soothes me and calms my nerves. The truth is, and I don’t want to seem greedy, but I am not content with where the team is now. If the past three seasons have shown us anything it is that over the course of 162-game season, injuries happen. Bottom-line: the roster you start with on opening day, will not be your roster throughout the season. Nobody has a rubber arm and muscles made of Teflon. Murphy’s law is constantly looming over any clubhouse and just waiting to strike. Look at 2012, we lost our 2, 3, and 4 slotted pitchers in 3 consecutive days! Read the rest of this entry
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series
Friday, Nov.16/2012
Note from Chuck Booth: I am attempting to bring the history for each of the 30 MLB Franchises into a 5 part series that will focus on 1. The teams history. 2. The hitters 3. The pitchers. 4. The Teams Payroll going into 2013 and 5.The Ball Park that they play in. (The stadium articles will all be done next summer when I go to all of the parks in under a month again.) Be sure to check my author page with a list of all of my archived articles section here.
Tony Fernandez leads the Blue Jays Franchise for Hits and Games Played ALL-Time. At the age of 37, he flirted with a .400 average for half of the season in 1999. In his first go around with Toronto, he was part of the BlockBuster Trade that saw he and Fred McGriff go to San Diego for Joe Carter and Robbie Alomar at the GM’s Meetings in Dec of 1990. -Photo Courtesy of Sports Illustrated.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I like that this franchise series is right dab smack in the middle of the biggest Franchise trade since Tony Fernandez and Fred McGriff went to San Diego for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter in 1990. A Toronto Blue Jays fan can only hope for the same result that came down afterwards to repeat itself in the next few year. The early days of the Jays hitters (late 1970′s provided some long-term reliable guys,) however it wasn’t until Jesse Barfield won a HR Title and George Bell came home with the 1987 AL MVP, that the rest of the MLB started to take notice on the hitters of this Canadian Team. As soon as the club moved into SKYDOME, the hitters had a field day. Not to say that Exhibition Stadium didn’t aid some homeruns and nice averages in its day, it is just that SKYDOME is a hitter friendly park.
From George Bell and the outstanding other 80′s OF trio of Barfield and Lloyd “The Shaker” Moseby, to Tony Fernandez and Ernie Whitt, these guys all played a huge chunk of their careers with this Canadian Club. Fred McGriff routinely hit towering shots off of the Windows Restaurant and led the AL in HRs during the 1989 Pennant Winning Season. In 1991, when Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar arrived onto the scene, the offense just clicked on all cylinders. Devon White was gracefully stealing bases and striding into runs with those gigantic high knee kicks of his. John Olerud walked right out of College and added one of the best ‘natural’ swings that any of us have ever seen. Veterans Dave Winfield and Paul Molitor bashed their way into Jays hearts with their limited time with the organization en route to back to back World Series Titles in 1992 and 1993. After the Strike/Lockout, the team then saw Shawn Green and Carlos Delgado routinely destroy pitchers and be amongst the league lead in several power categories.
There is a ton more on this article just past these links or by clicking the READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON.
Here are the links for the article series.
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise 1977-1993 Part 1 Of A 7 Part Series Click Here:
Franchise History Part 2 1994-2012: http://mlbreports.com/2012/11/28/jay/
The Hitters: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series:
The Pitchers: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Pitchers Part 4 Of A 7 Part Series
Skydome: An Interview with ‘Rogers Centre Expert’ and “MLB reports Founder” Jonathan Hacohen Part 5 of 7
For Part 6 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll Click here:
For Part 7 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll: A Readers Thoughts, Click Here:
Dissecting The Blockbuster Trade Between The Blue Jays And The Marlins
Wednesday, November.14/2012
Jose Reyes is a .291 Career Hitter and has averaged 55 Steals and 110 Runs Per 162 Games Played. He should have no problem scoring runs with Encarnacion and Joey Bats hitting in the middle of the lineup for Toronto.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I think you can safely say that the off-season has truly begun! I was writing on my computer yesterday when the big trade blew up on twitter. I live in White Rock, British Colombia, Canada, so you can only imagine how excited the whole country of Canada was to talk about baseball on the big media Social Website. Within minutes, it was clear that the Marlins and Jays were talking about a huge deal. There is a remarkable quality that I have admired about Alex Anthopoulos for a few years now. That his organization is pretty tight-lipped about their negotiations with any MLB team, just as it was with the Marlins on Tuesday. I waited a few minutes and then…..WHAM! A Blockbuster trade came right down the PIKE! Here is the trade in case you have been living under a rock for the past 24 hours.
To visit the 2013 Updated Version of the Toronto Blue Jays 2013 Payroll Blog I did click here
To the Blue Jays 2012 Stats:
SS/2B Jose Reyes .287 11 HRs 57 RBI, 86 Runs, 40 SB
SP Josh Johnson 8-14 3.81 ERA 191.1 IP 165 SO
C John Buck .192 12 HRs 41 RBI
2B/ss/3B/ Emilio Bonifacio .258 1 HR 11 RBI, 30 Runs, 25 SB in 244 AB
SP Mark Buehrle 13-13 3.74 ERA 202. IP (12th straight year of 200 IP+)
4 Million Dollars Cash
To the Marlins:
SS Yunel Escobar .253 9 HRs 51 RBI
2B/SS Adeiny Hechavarria .254 2 HRs 10 RBI, 126 AB
C Jeff Mathis .218 8 HRs 27 RBI, 211 AB
SP Henderson Alvarez 9-14 4.85 ERA 187.2 IP
Also Prospects:
SP Justin Nicolino:
RP: Anthony DeSclafini:
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise 1977-1993 Part 1 Of A 7 Part Series
Friday, Nov.09/2012
Note from Chuck Booth: I am attempting to bring the history for each of the 30 MLB Franchises into a 5 part series that will focus on 1. The teams history. 2. The hitters 3. The pitchers. 4. The Teams Payroll going into 2013 and 5.The Ball Park that they play in. (The stadium articles will all be done next summer when I go to all of the parks in under a month again.) Be sure to check my author page with a list of all of my archived articles section here.
The Blue Jays have not qualified for the Playoffs since they won Back to Back World Series in 1992 and 1993. Only Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Toronto have not made a playoffs appearance since the 1994 strike. At the time they were around the top of the MLB Payroll for all teams.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024
In sifting through 35 years of history with the Toronto Blue Jays as a franchise, it is sad that since 1994, only Pittsburgh, Toronto and Kansas City have not made a playoff appearance in the Major Leagues. They have been battling the Red Sox and Yankees powerhouse clubs since the 1994 player strike/1995 Lock-out. This baseball interruption of play was also a deciding factor on the Montreal Expos losing their franchise, however one could say that this has had a profound effect on the other only team North of The Border. The Jays were a model franchise all the way through the 80′s. From 1983-1993, the team carried out 11 straight winning seasons, 5 Pennants and back to back World Series Wins in 1992 and 1993.
Pat Gillick had been with the baseball club from the get go, and after finishing in dead-last for the first 5 years of existence, the Jays rode the backs of several budding stars that were drafted by the man. From the early pitching stars of Jim Clancy and Dave Stieb, to the young outfield that flourished as a core for years in: Lloyd Moseby, George Bell and Jesse Barfield, the team showed that drafting and trading for young players was the way to build an organization. It took until 1985 for the teams first Pennant, barely edging the Yankees by 2 games for the AL East. Playoff disappointment followed from 1985-1991. The team soon would find the promised land as the top team in 1992 and 1993.
Franchise History Part 2 1994-2012: http://mlbreports.com/2012/11/28/jay/
The Hitters: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series
The Pitchers: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Pitchers Part 4 Of A 7 Part Series
Skydome: An Interview with ‘Rogers Centre Expert’ and “MLB reports Founder” Jonathan Hacohen
For Part 6 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll Click here:
For Part 7 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll: A Readers Thoughts, Click Here:
What MLB Park Will Be The Next To Host A WrestleMania?
Wednesday, October.31/2012
Wrestlemania 18 (At SkyDome) was Hulk Hogan vs ‘The Rock.’ Hogan was his heel face character ‘Hollywood’ Hogan from his NWO days in the WCW for the event. The fans of Toronto gave the Hulkster several standing ovations for his entrance and as well for the Match. He was the most popular wrestler in Canada that day. While he lost to Dwayne Johnson in one of his best contests of his career, this match gave the WWE the idea to turn him Baby Face Again. The next week “Hulkamania” was reborn with Red and Yellow.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I have previously mentioned that baseball and wrestling was my entire life as a young kid in the 80′s. To me, nothing was bigger than the World Series every fall or WrestleMania every spring. In 1990, the city of Toronto hosted WrestleMania 6 at the (NEWEST) ballpark in the MLB, “The SkyDome.” Back in the day, the building was considered state of the art. I mean they were the 1st park to carry McDonalds as a fast food joint for a concession, they had luxury suite hotel rooms (in which some people forgot to draw the curtains to in heats of passion) and everything was big league. So when almost 68000 fans packed into SkyDome to watch the 1st ever WrestleMania in Canada (and also an MLB Park), it was an un-believeable atmosphere.
Wrestle Mania 6 The SkyDome–Photo Courtesy of WWE
Now I lived in Calgary at the time, yet I had seen my first MLB Game in 1989 at the SKYDOME. I would have loved to have been in that audience. I watched the events transpire from CCTV (Closed Circuit Television) in a big Restaurant in Calgary. (Yes people, there used to be no black box that you would be able to buy ALL PPV events on.)
HOGAN VS THE ROCK FULL MATCH FROM WRESTLEMANIA 18
Moises Sierra Has a Future in the Majors: A Blue Jays Work in Progress
Sunday August 26th, 2012
Sam Evans: When Toronto Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopoulos traded away both Travis Snider and Eric Thames at the trade deadline, it created an opportunity for unheralded twenty-three year old outfielder Moises Sierra. Sierra has a chance to show Toronto that he should be part of their future in these final couple months of the season. With his 70-grade arm and his ability to produce runs at a solid pace, Sierra could have a job in the majors for years to come. However, Sierra has a lot of work to do to become a candidate for playing time at Rogers Centre in 2013.
Moises Sierra was signed by the Blue Jays out of the Dominican Republic back in 2005. This was before the Blue Jays dominated the scouting world, so Sierra has never been an “Anthopoulos guy”. From 2006 to 2008, Sierra had some rough numbers for different teams, but he showed enough to be promoted from the DSL, in 2006, to earning a starting job in High-A for the 2009 season. Sierra had a 122 wRC+ at High-A in 2009, but he missed most of the 2010 season due to a stress fracture in his leg and a couple of other minor injuries. Read the rest of this entry
John Farrell for Bobby Valentine: The Second Managerial Trade Ever?
Thursday August 23rd, 2012
Bernie Olshansky: After the Red Sox cut ties with longtime manager Terry Francona, there were a few options for his replacement. Among those options were former pitching coach for the 2007 World Series Champion team John Farrell, and high-profile former-manager Bobby Valentine. Both seemed to be good options, and the Red Sox signed Valentine. Farrell won the managerial job with the Blue Jays after the retirement of Cito Gaston (Brian Butterfield, DeMarlo Hale, and Sandy Alomar, Jr. were also rumored to be vying for the position). Each team was poised to finish atop or close to the top of the AL East standings. This wasn’t the case for either team.
First I’ll cover the Red Sox. Their main problem was the lack of production. Adrian Gonzalez—who the Sox acquired to help carry the offense failed to produce at the beginning of the season. At the All Star Break, he had less than ten home runs. Jacoby Ellsbury was injured after only a few games, and the pitching was absolutely awful. Carl Crawford took a while to come back from his wrist and elbow injuries, and recently shut his season down to undergo Tommy John surgery. Jon Lester, the number one starter was up and down, and has had an off-year. Josh Beckett received boos after being accused of playing golf in between starts. There was obviously something wrong. The Red Sox fell out of contention fairly early—something that wasn’t expected. A lot of the criticism fell on the manager. Bobby Valentine was accused of demeaning the players, saying something along the lines of “nice inning, kid” to rookie Will Middlebrooks after he made an error. Another of Valentine’s slip-ups was calling into question Kevin Youkilis’ effort. This ultimately led to Youk being traded to the White Sox, ending his successful Red Sox career. Veterans such as Dustin Pedroia and Adrian Gonzalez didn’t take kindly to this and sent a text to management, spurring a meeting between front office officials and players. The situation in Boston is not good; players are divided into players versus manager and players versus players that support the manager. A change in Boston seems necessary; the pitching coach has already been relieved, and it seems like Bobby Valentine may be next.
A Busch Stadium Book Excerpt from ‘The Fastest Thirty Ballgames’
Friday, Aug.03/2012
Game#25 Day#24
Busch Stadium
St. Louis, MO
Aug.01/2008
I never thought anything was going to equal the previous day. We had arrived back at my brother’s house to spend a quality morning with my nieces and nephew—and Trent’s wife Kristy before returning to the road. It was a quick trip from Philadelphia to St. Louis. It was going to cost us a fortune to all take the shuttle into the Hilton at $17 each-so I got us on the next transportation shuttle bus, and then negotiated a deal with Budget to give me an extra few hours head start on the 24 hour time line airport rule—so I would not have to return after the St. Louis game to pick up the Mini-SUV, which had been the original plan.
Budget was awesome to let me have this deal early. I am a Fast Break member with them-and have/had spent a lot of money with them. We got a Mitsubishi SUV. My brothers thought it was a little small, but for a $65.00 rental that started out in St. Louis and ended up the next day in Minnesota-it was a great deal. Yes we had a five-hour drive from St. Louis to Chicago tomorrow, but we were all tough guys. I once again told them-“welcome to my world.”
That day in St. Louis was myopic. My brother Trent knew a guy at head office St. Louis, and that gentlemen made a few calls and arranged for my dad and I too receive ‘Field Passes’-and to be interviewed by Fox-Sports Midwest. I was almost in disbelief of that option, but it was now going to happen later that day. This experience was even better because none of us had been to new Busch Stadium-so all of us were there for the first time. Overall it was my 29th stadium so I only had “The Ballpark In Arlington” for stadiums left to complete my active 30. Much like Coors, Safeco and AT&T Park, the red-brick around the whole Stadium at Busch Stadium is top-notch. Read the rest of this entry
Toronto Blue Jays: 2012 Trade Deadline Predictions
Friday July 13th, 2012
Alexander McWilliams (MLB reports Intern Candidate): As of yesterday, the Toronto Blue Jays and their fans can completely throw out the idea of trading the surging Edwin Encarnacion at the trade deadline on July 31st. General Manager Alex Anthopoulos locked up the 1st basemen/Designated Hitter to a 3-year deal worth $27 million, with a club option in 2016 worth a reported $10 million. With this deal taking place some 19 days before the trade deadline, what can fans expect to happen with their beloved Blue Jays? Many say they will be sellers, and others say buyers. Buy why can’t they be both?
The Blue Jays have developed, arguably, the best farm system in the MLB ever since Alex Anthopoulos took over as GM. Not only do they possess some of the best pitching prospects, but position players as well. All teams across the league are more than aware of the injuries that Toronto has suffered over the past few months, and could look to exploit said farm system in order to provide an immediate need for the team north of the border. Names such as Justin Upton, Carlos Quentin, Matt Garza, and Cole Hamels are the big names being talked about by a lot of teams these past few months. All are huge impact players which could benefit any team that acquired their services, but at what cost? Read the rest of this entry
Adeiny Hechavarria and his Future with the Blue Jays
Sunday June 17th, 2012
Sam Evans: Adeiny Hechavarria might be the best defensive shortstop in the minor leagues. However, his bat has always been far behind his glove, in terms of development. When the twenty-three year old started to hit at the end of last year, people started to take notice. Now, after over four hundred at bats in the minors, Blue Jays fans are starting to wonder when they’ll get to see this talented shortstop at the major league level.
Hechavarria isn’t exactly the youngest shortstop prospect. Cubs’ shortstop Starlin Castro and Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus are both younger than Hechavarria, who has yet to reach the majors. However, Hechavarria is still one of the younger players in Triple-A.
The Blue Jays signed Hechavarria to a contract that will pay him $10 million, when he was a free agent out of Cuba back in 2010. Back then, Hechavarria was thought of as a light-hitting shortstop, with tremendous potential due to his outstanding defense. The Toronto organization showed they believed Hechavarria could provide just enough value to be worth the big signing bonus they gave him back in 2010. Read the rest of this entry
Can Canada Support a Second Baseball Franchise in Vancouver?
Friday, June.01/2012
Newly renovated BC Place Stadium with $600 Million Dollars in upgrades, re-opened on Sept.30/2011 and features a 100 by 85 retractable roof. The lights also illuminate different colors both inside and outside of the building. The stadium could be converted to meet MLB specifications.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer and @chuckbooth3024 on twitter)- At first look you might not think that Vancouver could support a Major League Baseball franchise, but there are a few things to consider. With a surrounding area population of 2.5 Million, it is one of the biggest cities in the USA or Canada not to have a team. Of course when you are looking at the viability of a franchise submission/or relocation, you must look at the facility that the baseball would be played in. With newly renovated B.C Place Stadium-(see http://www.bcplacestadium.com/,) and its $600 Million Dollar Renovations, it is one of the most impressive structures in North America now.
The building itself is estimated to be worth over a billion dollars. It’s clear, retractable roof, with an incredible look to detail inside the building with 22 inch stadium style seating has all of the modern amenities that a new age fan would want. The facility features several new Skyboxes for corporate suites, and brand new concession stands that would be an extremely good revenue generator. The stadium’s surface is made up of Field Turf, and could be converted to meet baseball specifications. This stadium is a turn-key situation unlike any other in North America when it comes to a baseball ready facility.
Major League Baseball has gained in popularity over the last 20 years in the Lower Mainland with turning out MLB’ers like Larry Walker, Jeff Francis , Ryan Dempster and Brett Lawrie all coming from this area. Also in Canada, you have 3 TV networks that have an all-sports format in www.thescore.ca, www.tsn.ca and www.sportsnet.ca that would gladly love to fill content on their networks by bidding for television rights on a new baseball team in Canada. There are enough talented sports personalities to fill in solid coverage. Read the rest of this entry
