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Summer Camp Notes: Pete Walker raves about bullpen arms, Julian Merryweather day-to-day, Austin Martin arrives at third base, and more!
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Photo credit: Wikimedia commons
Cam Lewis
Jul 15, 2020, 12:00 EDTUpdated: Jul 15, 2020, 13:10 EDT
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For the first time since March, there was a Blue Jays game on TV yesterday.
It was the Blue Jays vs the Blue Jays, as Team Bo took on Team Grichuk in an intrasquad scrimmage, but the game was televised on Sportsnet with live commentary, multiple cameras, and a score bug that made it feel real. It was an incredibly refreshing sight to behold.
Jacob Waguespack, who’s one of the names in the mix for Toronto’s fifth starting pitcher role, got the start for team Grichuk and things didn’t go well for him. He hung a breaking ball that Bo Bichette absolutely launched over the left-field wall…
Shortly after that, Waguespack surrendered a pair of singles and a walk before Reese McGuire jacked (lol) a ball to right for a grand slam. The homer featured Sportnet insert crowd noises and the Blue Jays’ well-known home run horn to make it seem like it was from a real game…
That big first-inning explosion would be enough for Team Bo, as they cruised to a 6-4 victory. On the other side of the mound, veteran Matt Shoemaker went four-and-two-thirds, scattering four earned runs while striking out six batters.
And, finally, a defensive gem from Cavan Biggio, Santiago Espinal, and Vladdy, the first baseman…
Some other notes from camp over the past few days…
Pete Walker raves about the bullpen
Somewhat quietly, it looks like the Jays have started to put together a strong bullpen. They haven’t signed any big-name free agents, but, instead, they’ve grabbed some high-upside arms from the bargain bin and seem to have a group loaded with potential.
Ken Giles, of course, will be the team’s closer, but Charlie Montoyo and Pete Walker will have plenty of options to help them get to Giles in the ninth inning. Walker said that this group is one of the best he’s had with the team, singling out the hard-throwing Rafael Dolis and Jordan Romano specifically.
“This is certainly one of the best groups I’ve had. Some of the young talent we have is incredible. There’s a lot of power arms in the bullpen, which is very appealing to us all when we’re talking about high-leverage situations late in the game.”
“Dolis looks outstanding. The fact we were able to get a closer in Japan for a few years with 30-plus saves a year, he knows how to finish a game. His demeanor is impressive. His power to his sink, and he pitches up in the zone as well, a nasty split. He’s got some weapons to pitch in this league and pitch effectively late.”
“Romano right now is showing plus power with a devastating slider. I know we saw him last year [pitch well] for a little bit, then he physically had some issues which kept him from seeing those elite numbers velocity wise, but he looks outstanding right now. He could end up being a big part of this bullpen.”
Wilmer Font to the Injured List, Julian Merryweather day-to-day
Wilmer Font and Julian Merryweather, a couple more names in the bullpen equation, are dealing with injuries right now.
Font has been placed on the IL with an unspecified injury, but there hasn’t been an update beyond that. Merryweather, the oft-injured return from the Josh Donaldson trade in 2018, has a strained oblique and is considered to be day-to-day.
This seems like a make or break year for Merryweather. He missed all of 2018 due to injury and was limited to just 12 innings in 2019 between the minors and the Arizona Fall League. Hopefully, he can get himself healthy and find himself a role in Toronto’s bullpen.
Another name that’s kind of fallen off the grid is Sean-Reid Foley. When discussing the battle for Toronto’s final rotation spots, you hear Ryan Borucki, Thomas Hatch, Jacob Waguespack, and Anthony Kay, but Reid-Foley’s name hasn’t come up. The plan back in spring was to stretch him out and use him as a starter, but it’s interesting that his name doesn’t seem to be in the mix for a rotation gig.
Austin Martin arrives at camp playing third base
Shortly after signing his $7-million deal with the Blue Jays, Austin Martin arrived in Toronto, posing for this incredible picture in which he’s holding a Russell Martin bat. There’s still time to select No. 55!
The Jays have their first-round pick practicing at third base right off the hop, which would certainly result in some speculation given that the organization just moved Vlad Jr. from third to first the other day. Did moving Vlad across the diamond have anything to do with Martin?
As fun as it is to speculate about Martin playing for the Blue Jays this season, it seems very, very unlikely that’s the case. Martin was predominantly a third-baseman in college, so they’re probably starting him off where he’s most comfortable. We’ll eventually see Martin move around the field, surely into centre to see if that’s a fit, as he works out at the Jays’ off-site minor league camp this year.
Speaking of Vlad, he didn’t look out of place at all at first during the intrasquad game. Former MLBer Wil Middlebrooks, who himself played both third and first, spoke on TSN’s Overdrive about Vlad switching positions and why he believes that it’ll work out nicely…
And, finally, Cavan Biggio spoke highly about how he and his teammates view themselves heading into this 60-game sprint.
“Everybody in that locker room knows that we’re a better team than most people think we are,” Biggio said. “I think we have a lot of guys that are going to take a lot of steps forward this year, and a lot of guys that are underrated.”
Get hyped!

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