Yearly Archives: 2017
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 4, 2017
Stephen Dunn – Getty Images Sports
Curt Schilling and I may not see eye to eye on many things. But I do think his Hall of Fame candidacy should be debated and his politics should stay out of it.
Opinions versus stats are debated on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS & JOSE BAUTISTA: ASSUMPTIONS ARE NOT SAFE
WHEN IT COMES TO A REUNION BETWEEN JOSE BAUTISTA AND THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS, IT IS NOT SAFE TO ASSUME IT IS INEVITABLE.
At this point, the Toronto Blue Jays have few options to fill their outfield vacancies. To be more accurate, they have few options to fill the outfield holes beyond the current “in house” options. That means that, as things currently stand, the club will have to figure out how to fill out the lineup card using a mixture of Ezequiel Carrera, Melvin Upton Jr. and/or Dalton Pompey. Obviously, this is less than ideal.
As it turns out, Jose Bautista appears to have even fewer options. He remains on the market and appears to have seen his list of suitors shrinking more and more. Whether it is due to his asking price, his age, his ‘down year’, or his perceived “attitude problem”, or a combination of the above, he is still waiting for a deal. We’ve heard that he could be willing to take a one year deal at this point…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
TORONTO BLUE JAYS MANAGER, JOHN GIBBONS: HOW HOT IS HIS SEAT?
JANUARY 1 HAS PASSED AND THAT USED TO MEAN ANOTHER YEAR FOR TORONTO BLUE JAYS MANAGER, JOHN GIBBONS. NOW, EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT.
Over the last few seasons, we’d be watching semi-closely as the calendar flipped to a new year. Doing so would trigger a clause in the contract of Toronto Blue Jays manager, John Gibbons. In a stroke of genius, Gibby, would be rewarded for not being fired. If he were still employed by the club on Jan 1, an extra year would be added to his contract, giving him 2 more years of pay.
Under new management, that clause has been removed from his deal. The removal of that clause would see him get a small raise to make up for the lack of security. And, before anyone could blame Mark Shapiro for this, Gibby told everyone that it was something he approached former GM, Alex Anthopoulos about. It is easy to see why the new deal would benefit both parties. For Gibby, it allows him to pursue other options should he feel the need; he is not locked in to staying with Toronto year after year. For the club, it also allows them to shift gears should they feel the need…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
Korean Infielder Jae-Gyun Hwang Linked to Giants
The latest news involving your San Francisco Giants is that they’re linked to Korean infielder Jae-Gyun Hwang. It’s being reported that the Giants are showing continued interest. I’m not sure what the need is for him with Eduardo Nunez at 3rd, Brandon Crawford at short and Joe Panik at 2nd.
The Greatest Detroit Tiger By Position: Third Base
Moving on in our exploration of the greatest Detroit Tiger at each position, we cover third base today. To date, I’ve covered off on the Tigers best catcher, first baseman, and second baseman, with first base being the toughest choice so far.
My only stipulation for being eligible for consideration is playing the position of discussion for a majority of games as a Tigers for at least five years. That leaves us with seven players that qualify and they are Aurelio Rodriguez, Don Wert, Brandon Inge, Tom Brookens, Pinky Higgins, George Kell, and Marv Owen. Not making the cut any further is Don Wert, Aurelio Rodriguez, and Marv Owen. This definitely is the weakest position so far, but let’s take a look…
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 3, 2017
While at the Pacific Pinball Museum, I thought about some of the most dramatic foul balls of all time.
Some of them could have changed the course of baseball history.
Bounce here and bounce there on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
It Shouldn’t Be Surprising That J.D. Martinez Is Still on the Detroit Tigers
Talking a big game and actually backing it up with action are two very different things. Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila has certainly learned that lesson throughout this offseason.
Almost immediately following the conclusion of Detroit’s regular season schedule, Avila was clear that “changes are coming” in the way the organization conducts its business. Also, since they have been working “way above” their financial means for a while, the goal was to start getting younger.
Obviously, that meant being open to potential trades for just about anybody to clear some payroll. The selling started by shipping Cameron Maybin to the Los Angeles Angels, and then… things halted.
Detroit’s biggest stars – Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander – saw their names briefly pop up in the rumor mill, but they died down quickly. One available player who seemed all but traded was J.D. Martinez, and it wasn’t hard to see why.
But here were are, with the holidays over and 2017 officially upon us, and he’s still a member of the Tigers. It doesn’t look like he’s leaving anytime soon, either.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 2, 2017
Scott Olson/Getty Images North America
Will 2017 be remembered as a year for a team’s accomplishments? Or will it be part of a chain of success?
And will the 2017 be a rematch of Cleveland and the Cubs?
Discussing lots of legacies in this Episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Hot Stove Week in Review Dec 26- Jan 1
I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year’s. We just had a very slow week to the Hot Stove season. Things will really need to pick up in the next two weeks as we are only 43 days until Pitchers and Catchers start to report. Lots of free agent sluggers are still left without teams and I’m willing to bet a few teams are still looking into the trade market.
Read the Hot Stove Week in Review Dec 26 – Jan 1 via 9 Inning Know It All
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 1, 2017
Happy New Year and it is time for The Sunday Request.
@sullybaseball What fan base is suffering the most going into 2017?
— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylor1138) December 2, 2016
For a question like this, I could not just make idle speculation. I needed to create a new statistic.
So, as demonstrated in this new Video Podcast, I created THE SUFFERING INDEX, designed to quantify numerically and mathematically which fan base is suffering the most.
But even these calculations found a few gray areas.
Wake up to a new year of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
2017 Baseball’s Breakout Players at Each Position
C- J.T. Realmuto (Miami Marlins): Realmuto had a great year in 2016, but I expect him to maintain, if not improve in 2017. At only 25 years old, Realmuto has plenty of room for growth, but he is moving in the right direction. He has a rare combination of on base potential, speed, and power at the catching position. While I am a little worried about his .357 BABIP in 2016, his 8.8% HR/FB ratio tells me he could really tap into his power potential moving forward. There are plenty of decent offensive players in the Marlins lineup in 2017, so Realmuto should have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs or score himself. While he isn’t the most exciting breakout player, the catching position is a tough position to get excited about except for the top 3-5 players.
Projection: .290 BA, .340 OBP, 15 home runs, 65 runs, 65 RBIs, 13 stolen bases
Other Potential Breakout: Tom Murphy
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE REST OF THE ARTICLE
TORONTO BLUE JAYS RUMOR: CLUB INTERESTED IN BRETT GARDNER
ONE RUMOR HAS THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS INTERESTED IN MOVING ON FROM JOSE BAUTISTA & TRADING FOR BRETT GARDNER, WHICH JAYS FROM THE COUCH DEBUNKS.
Well, here we go! A new year and some not so new tricks. Apparently, when it comes to the baseball offseason, there is no point in setting resolutions. The same old stuff keeps happening, year after year. This time around, the Toronto Blue Jays may find themselves in the middle of a rumor…again. Though, this one seems a little weak.
According to Ashley Varela of NBC Sports, Toronto is not interested in Jose Bautista anymore because they’ve moved on to coveting Yankees outfielder, Brett Gardner…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot
Later this month the newest class of the Baseball Hall of Fame will be announced via the voting of the Baseball Writers’ Association of American (BBWAA). The ballot is packed with big names, and although I personally don’t have an official vote, I still wanted to get in on the fun. So, keeping in mind that each voter can choose up to 10 inductees, here is who I would cast my lot for if I had the opportunity.
MLB Reports 
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