We have no idea when the season is going to start, but when it does, one thing is certain: the Toronto Blue Jays starting rotation will not be throwing very hard. Average fastball velocity has continued to rise every season. Per Baseball Savant, the average fastball velocity across the league was 92.6 miles per hour,…
I saw this thread on Twitter last week about Randal Grichuk and how good he was in 2018. I forgot how good Grichuk was in 2018 after returning from injury. Man, if he could just get back to being that guy… — bk (@_bkuhn_) February 5, 2020 It’s easy to forget in that lost 2018…
Last month Statcast unveiled their new defensive metric Outs Above Average. With that came some interesting numbers on the Blue Jays infield. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to no one’s surprise was at the very bottom of the list. What did surprise was how well Cavan Biggio ranked coming in among the top 30 and top five…
There has been plenty of talk this off-season about the Blue Jays catching tandem of Danny Jansen and Reese McGuire. The Blue Jays were rumoured to be interested in Yasmani Grandal leading to speculation that one of the back-stops could be moved via trade. Adding to that was the fact that the Blue Jays have…
The Blue Jays have themselves an ace. By signing Hyun-Jin Ryu the Blue Jays are making a statement that they are ready to start contending with their young core of position players. Adding a pitcher like Ryu is substantial. He is fresh off a season where he led the league in ERA at 2.32 and…
Travis Shaw was one of the better players in baseball from 2017-18. He put up 7.1 fWAR which made him the 39th most valuable position player over those two seasons, sandwiched between George Springer, Michael Conforto and Buster Posey and Mitch Haniger. His 119 wRC+ again placed him among the top 45 hitters in the…
This week the Blue Jays added another pitcher, signing Shun Yamaguchi to a two year deal worth just over $6M. Yamaguchi, 32, has spent the entirety of his 14 year career pitching in Japan in the NPB. This offseason the Blue Jays front office has stressed they want versatility and flexibility. Yamaguchi brings that, having…
It wasn’t the flashiest signing but the Blue Jays inking of Tanner Roark for 2 years $24M, brings durability and consistency to a rotation that is sorely lacking that. Roark was worth 2.0 WAR last season, split between the Reds and Athletics. Steamer, the projection system hosted at Fangraphs, projects him to worth a similar…
The Blue Jays made a minor league signing yesterday, inking pitcher James Dykstra. Now normally minor league signings don’t generate much buzz. The Blue Jays have already signed a couple players to minor league deals already including A.J. Cole. What makes Dykstra different is this: I want to send a huge thank you to @PitchingNinja!!…
Part one of this Rule 5 draft preview profiled pitchers who could be ready to step in and contribute in the majors next season. Those pitchers all had one elite skill whether that be spin rate or high velocity. This post is going to feature pitchers who maybe aren’t quite ready to be contributors in…
I have to admit something. I am a sucker for the Rule 5 Draft. I love the idea of adding players to your Major League team so essentially free. The Blue Jays have been wildly successful at selecting players in the Rule 5 Draft and then keeping them on the big league roster for a…
#BlueJays expected to add RHP Thomas Hatch (return for David Phelps) by Wednesday. Other candidates: Santiago Espinal (return for Steve Pearce), Josh Palacios (OF who posted .787 OPS at AA this year) & Forrest Wall (part of return for Seung-hwan Oh) — Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) November 18, 2019 One of the most intriguing Rule…
