Hill named AL's Comeback Player

Forgot to include his silent backstabbing of Cito Gaston—you know the manager who supported/promoted/praised him all year long. It's lovely when a player hints at clubhouse problems, slags his manager, and then backtracks when his overly-glorified name gets caught up in media reports. Gotta love the guy. Pure balls. Just don't let your ego go all Halladay on you.

inthebullpen-As a fan, I'm sure you realize there's always friction or problems in every MLB clubhouse which isn't a surprise when you put 25 guys with huge egos and big wallets together for over 200 days straight.
As fans, we will never really know and don't need to know what happened in the Jays clubhouse. What happened, who did what to whom doesn't matter.
Time to move on and look forward to the off season and what it brings.

gsjays: I am happy that you find my occasional rants interesting. I do my best to be entertaining. :-) That said, it seems that your main reason for hiring Antho - rather than someone with a proven record - is because all but three teams in the American League have hired inexperienced general managers. At such a pivotal time in this franchise's history, the last thing that we need to be is fashionable! How many of these "young studs" guided their teams to play-off berths? Granted, Theo has done a good job in Boston, but what about the others? Despite your glowing review of Theo, the truth is, he is unproven.
Here is something to think about. Antho was asked outright on sportsnet whether or not he will be seeking to sign Halladay to an extension. His answer was, "I don't know. I don't make decisions like that. I have to see what the payroll is and then decide what direction in which to move." So, here we have a GM who has agreed to a job without a job description or understanding of what the main goal is. On the one hand, he may be required to delve into free agency and construct a competitive club. On the other hand, he may be required to strip the payroll down to 75 million or lower! Could you imagine any other GM with a proven track record accepting this job without knowing what the job entailed? Antho is so "bush league" that he signed on the dotted line just so he could have job! Who cares what it involves, says Antho. Sign me up -- I will do whatever you want me to do and go in any direction you wish (no doubt including bending over). Come on, gsjays, this signing has bush league written all over it. Remember, it does not matter how good Antho may or may not be at his job. What the Jays should be selling is hope and optimism based on past success. You completely missed my point about Burke and Coangello. The issue is not whether or not the leafs make the play-offs. The point is that Burke has enough status to make people excited about hockey. Quite frankly, I think that he made a huge mistake on the Kessel signing. However, he as people excited about hockey once again, because he has a presence and a plan that people can see. Nobody even knows who Antho is. Again, he may be brilliant, but this is a franchise that requires visibility. People need to see someone in charge whom they know, trust, and respect. Antho may turn out to be that person, but not at this time, and not on this watch. You may remember that the last GM of the leafs was yet-another can't miss prospect, like Antho. We missed. Boy, did we miss! Cheers!

Burt-For Christ sakes give the guy a break. He's been on the job what-3 days and you want a detailed plan of action from him. lol Just remember JP was not supposed to be fired until Monday. The other point, is why would he, at this point, ever outline his entire plan in public? Do you really want more of the JP method of doing things-all through the press or do you want a professional run organization? GM's develop a plan and present to ownership for approval-just like every other business.

I would have answered the Halladay question the same way. How do you expect him to answer that question before understanding what his payroll budget latitude and club direction is??????

Oh-you might want to check out Andrew Friedman who was a business analyst at Bear Sterns until he joined the TB Rays in 2004. In 2005 at the tender age of 28 he became General Manager. Duh-I think they've done quite well ever since.

You might also want to check out a guy by the name of Brian Cashman who joined the Yanks as an intern, or in other words the same way Alex did with the Expos. He grew in the organization and at the tender age of 31 became GM of the Yankees, with no prior GM experience.

So to answer your question young inexperienced GM guns in the AL east from either Boston, NY or TB have done very well, in the AL east for quite some time . You also conveniently forget that Pat Gillick, probably the best GM in baseball history had no GM experience before he became GM in Toronto at 39.

You talk about selling hope and hype, not about establishing a real direction for the franchise and putting a winning team on the field. You under estimate Toronto baseball fans, they do understand this team isn't a contender and needs player, money and time to get there. Like why are you in such a panic???????
What is important to hear from Alex, when he's ready to say it, is club direction not hype. We've had enough BS, hype and lies with no real direction for the last 8 years.

By the way, this is a Blue Jays site, post that crap on the Leafs and Raptors someplace else.

Burt-since I let you have your rant here's mine and the changes I'd like to see happen to this franchise.

The very first thing is to take a long look at minor league player development, because what JP put into place, in my view, is a disaster and needs to go through a wholesale make over all.
Fact is, watch the Twins play as I am tonight. They play consistent fundamental baseball. They make few errors, they move runners along, the outfielders continually hit the cut off men, they really have no star pitchers but their guys execute and throw strikes. They traded one of the best starters in baseball in Santana and were back knocking at the door in no time.

Our guys arriving in the majors most times don't know how to bunt, don't know how to hit a cut off man, don't have the proper footwork to either make the play or the throw after, don't know how or are willing to sacrifice themselves to move runners over, and clearly don't hit with risp.
As an example of our ineptitude, We have 3 highly touted prospects in Dunedin, Ahrens, Jackson and Tolisano that we invested close to 4 million in signing bonuses, have been pros now for 3 years and still committed 57 errors between the 3 of them while hitting .213, .215, and .237 this season. Why are they committing so many errors when they've been pros for 3 years????Whats wrong with that picture??? Did we draft wrong or do we not have the right quality of coaches or both?
How is it, our most highly prized prospect, Travis Snider who's been in the minors since 2006 didn't know how to hit a cutoff man or when to do it? Why is it he only played left field in the minors, why not both corner outfield positions?

We can have the best scouting and sign the highest grade prospects there is, but if we don't have the right player development group-particularity in the lower minors, we are wasting our money. There needs to be a serious investment made here in money and personnel to get the right coaches and teach the right fundamentals of baseball to these kids before they hit Dunedin or New Hampshire.

In addition, we need to have the right signing bonus budget and forget about slot rules like everyone else does. Draft the best high ceiling kids we can and sign them. In Latin America and other non draft areas, invest heavily into scouts, loosen up the purse strings and instead of allocating $750k for bonus money to sign these kids, select the best we can find and budget accordingly-like $5-10 million. Let's find the next Felix Hernandez.

Bottom line is I am not one who wants to see the payroll jump to that media driven figure of $120 million, because that's not what we need to do first. We need to fix our minor league system first and throw whatever amount of money and other resources at it, it needs and develop our own players and do it properly. We also need to draft differently and get back to drafting the highest ceiling prospects we can, not just safe money ball college guys with limited upside like we have been.

That being said, we might have a diamond in the rough in Edwin Encarnacion. The problem is no one ever taught him how to properly throw a baseball, so he makes all kinds of throwing errors.
Are we asking him to report a month early and spend a month teaching him the right way to throw??? He could be a real find, he's got a good glove-all kinds of power, young and low cost.
All it takes is probably one month of training-make it part of his contract or bonus him-and maybe bonus Johnny Mac to do the training-like why wouldn't we do that??????????????

Let's quit the whining about being in the wrong division ( cause that's only an excuse and won't change), or we don't have the budget ( neither does Minnesota), or what the new whine of the day is.
Let's put a plan in place to fix it our minor league player development, scout and draft better instead and everything else will fall into place.

DIVISION SERIES SCHEDULE BY DAY & TIME EDT
Wed - Oct. 7 - NLDS "A" - Gm 1 - COL @ PHI - 2:37 p.m. - TBS
Wed - Oct. 7 - ALDS "A" - Gm 1 - MIN @ NYY - 6:07 p.m. - TBS
Wed - Oct. 7 - NLDS "B" - Gm 1 - STL @ LAD - 9:37 p.m. - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Thu - Oct. 8 - NLDS "A" - Gm 2 - COL @ PHI - 2:37 p.m. - TBS
Thu - Oct. 8 - NLDS "B" - Gm 2 - STL @ LAD - 6:07 p.m. - TBS
Thu - Oct. 8 - ALDS "B" - Gm 1 - BOS @ LAA - 9:37 p.m. - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Fri - Oct. 9 - ALDS "A" - Gm 2 - MIN @ NYY - 6:07 p.m. - TBS
Fri - Oct. 9 - ALDS "B" - Gm 2 - BOS @ LAA - 9:37 p.m. - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sat - Oct. 10 - NLDS "B" - Gm 3 - LAD @ STL - 6:07 p.m. - TBS
Sat - Oct. 10 - NLDS "A" - Gm 3 - PHI @ COL - 9:37 p.m. - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sun - Oct. 11 - ALDS "B" - Gm 3 - LAA @ BOS - TBD - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - ALDS "A" - Gm 3 - NYY @ MIN - TBD - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - NLDS "B" - Gm 4* - LAD @ STL - TBD - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - NLDS "A" - Gm 4* - PHI @ COL - TBD - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mon - Oct. 12 - ALDS "B" - Gm 4* - LAA @ BOS - TBD - TBS
Mon - Oct. 12 - ALDS "A" - Gm 4* - NYY @ MIN - TBD - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tue - Oct. 13 - NLDS "A" - Gm 5* - COL @ PHI - TBD - TBS
Tue - Oct. 13 - NLDS "B" - Gm 5* - STL @ LAD - TBD - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Wed - Oct. 14 - ALDS "A" - Gm 5* - MIN @ NYY - TBD - TBS
Wed - Oct. 14 - ALDS "B" - Gm 5* - BOS @ LAA - TBD - TBS
* if necessary

gsjays: I am simply expressing my view, like you. As you state, he has only been on the job 3 days. Yet, that did not stop you from giving him a "glowing review," nor did it stop me from categorizing him as "bush league." We all have our own views and opinions. I normally enjoy what you have to say, although I do not always agree with it. Please afford me the same courtesy. Again, Cheers!

Burt-Didn't mean to upset you and I apologize if I did. I just don't think there's any need to post here on the Leafs and Raptors and I thought you were getting a bit carried away on your bashing of Alex, specifically because all of our major competitors have went down the same identical path we're going. I'm not sure I gave him a 'glowing report", I just tried to point out what I think his strengths are by comparison to a new guy joining the system.
That being said, I did listen to his interview with Bob McCown last evening. Man, Alex can talk a mile a minute, no question. But, I do like his enthusiasm and commitment and think he will do a good job. One think is for certain, no one could do as bad of a job as Riccardi, at least Alex will ask and listen for other opinions..

No problem! Let's hope there are lots of moves this winter, so that we have something worthwhile to discuss!

DIVISION SERIES SCHEDULE BY DAY & TIME EDT
Fri - Oct. 9 - ALDS "A" - Gm 2 - MIN @ NYY - 6:07 PM - TBS
Fri - Oct. 9 - ALDS "B" - Gm 2 - BOS @ LAA - 9:37 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sat - Oct. 10 - NLDS "B" - Gm 3 - LAD @ STL - 6:07 PM - TBS
Sat - Oct. 10 - NLDS "A" - Gm 3 - PHI @ COL - 9:37 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Sun - Oct. 11 - ALDS "B" - Gm 3 - LAA @ BOS - 12:07 PM - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - NLDS "B" - Gm 4* - LAD @ STL - 3:37 PM - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - ALDS "A" - Gm 3 - NYY @ MIN - 7:07 PM - TBS
Sun - Oct. 11 - NLDS "A" - Gm 4 - PHI @ COL - 10:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mon - Oct. 12 - ALDS "A" - Gm 4* - NYY @ MIN - 5:07 PM - TBS
Mon - Oct. 12 - ALDS "B" - Gm 4* - LAA @ BOS - 8:37 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tue - Oct. 13 - NLDS "A" - Gm 5* - COL @ PHI - 6:07 PM - TBS
Tue - Oct. 13 - NLDS "B" - Gm 5* - STL @ LAD - 9:37 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Wed - Oct. 14 - ALDS "A" - Gm 5* - MIN @ NYY - 6:07 PM - TBS
Wed - Oct. 14 - ALDS "B" - Gm 5* - BOS @ LAA - 9:37 PM - TBS
* if necessary

Excellent decision by Alex to move out Dick Scott. Our minor league player development has been a disaster, Scott was in charge of it, so moving him out is good news for Blue Jays fans.

Who would have thought the Dodgers would sweep the Cards, certainly I didn't. Imagine the hype if the Dodgers play the Yanks with Torre and Ramirez coming back to Yankee Stadium.

From MLB Rumors:

The Brewers are telling teams they don't plan to trade Prince Fielder. They hope to get pitching back in trades for shortstop J.J. Hardy and possibly third base prospect Mat Gamel, a .302 hitter in five minor league systems who has been made expendable by the emergence of Casey McGehee, claimed on waivers from the Cubs last fall.
Chicago Tribune

They can keep Hardy, he's showing all kinds of post juice syndrome to me, but Gamel is a real nice prospect. I still like a Halladay for Gamel and Alcides Escobar trade. What a pick up by the Brewers getting McGehee on waivers. He would have looked great here.

DIVISION SERIES SCHEDULE BY DAY & TIME EDT
Mon - Oct. 12 - NLDS "A" - Gm 4 - PHI @ COL - 6:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Wed - Oct. 14 - NLDS "A" - Gm 5* - COL @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
* if necessary

REVISED
DIVISION SERIES SCHEDULE BY DAY & TIME EDT
Mon - Oct. 12 - NLDS "A" - Gm 4 - PHI @ COL - 6:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
Tue - Oct. 13 - NLDS "A" - Gm 5* - COL @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
* if necessary

League Championship Series by Date & Time EDT
NLCS Gm 1 - Thu - Oct. 15 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 1 - Fri - Oct. 16 - LAA @ NYY - 7:57 PM - FOX
NLCS Gm 2 - Fri - Oct. 16 - PHI @ LAD - 4:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 2 - Sat - Oct. 17 - LAA @ NYY - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 3 - Sun - Oct. 18 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 4 - Mon - Oct. 19 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
ALCS Gm 3 - Mon - Oct. 19 - NYY @ LAA - 4:13 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 4 - Tue - Oct. 20 - NYY @ LAA - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 5* - Wed - Oct. 21 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 5* - Thu - Oct. 22 - NYY @ LAA - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 6* - Fri - Oct. 23 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 6* - Sat - Oct. 24 - LAA @ NYY - 4:13 PM - FOX
NLCS Gm 7* - Sat - Oct. 24 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 7* - Sun - Oct. 25 - LAA @ NYY - 8:20 PM - FOX
*if necessary

REVISED
League Championship Series by Date & Time EDT
NLCS Gm 1 - Thu - Oct. 15 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 2 - Fri - Oct. 16 - PHI @ LAD - 4:07 PM - TBS
ALCS Gm 1 - Fri - Oct. 16 - LAA @ NYY - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 2 - Sat - Oct. 17 - LAA @ NYY - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 3 - Sun - Oct. 18 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 3 - Mon - Oct. 19 - NYY @ LAA - 4:13 PM - FOX
NLCS Gm 4 - Mon - Oct. 19 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 4 - Tue - Oct. 20 - NYY @ LAA - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 5* - Wed - Oct. 21 - LAD @ PHI - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 5* - Thu - Oct. 22 - NYY @ LAA - 7:57 PM - FOX
- - - - - - - - - - - -
NLCS Gm 6* - Fri - Oct. 23 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 6* - Sat - Oct. 24 - LAA @ NYY - 4:13 PM - FOX
NLCS Gm 7* - Sat - Oct. 24 - PHI @ LAD - 8:07 PM - TBS
- - - - - - - - - - - -
ALCS Gm 7* - Sun - Oct. 25 - LAA @ NYY - 8:20 PM - FOX
*if necessary

Thanks, Bob for keeping us all updated.

I find it hilarious that The Toronto Star are suggesting we sign Jason Bay as the solution to all our problems. Sign him and compete or at least sign him to bring fans to the games next year. Yep, Bay's gonna win 30 games all by himself and fill the stadium. lol

While I have the utmost respect for Jason bay and the career he's had, I seriously question why'd we ever sign him. Bay turns 32 next year, is coming off of a career season and really wants to stay in Boston. The only way he'd come here is if we over pay in both annual dollars and years to the contract. Doesn't that sound like another Rios-Wells contract to everyone, it sure does to me.
In addition, Bay isn't that much better of an outfielder than Lind and imo, isn't as good as Snider already is. His poor defense isn't all that noticeable in Fenway, but it sure would be here.
Plus, if he's signed, then Lind is delegated to DH for the length of the Bay contract which would likely be all his career.
In addition, we lose Ruiz's bat in the lineup and Ruiz might in fact be as good or possibly even better hitter than Bay, since he hits for higher average. I still think Ruiz is our obvious 4th hole hitter-let's try him there in spring training and save $15 mill per year for 3-5 years which is likely what Bay would want to come here.

In addition, signing Bay sends the wrong message to the fan base. The message being sent if he's signed is more of the same we've had for 8 years, false promises, BS free agent signings and lies. We are not going to compete next year and 99.99% of all fans already know that, so don't play the JP BS game and suggest we might by signing Jason Bay.

Ales, you've made some impressive first steps to putting this franchise on solid footing. I love the investments in scouting and player development which his exactly how most real fans think the team should be built.
Keep moving in this direction Alex-just make sure the budget for draftee signing jumps dramatically, so you can truly draft and sign the very best prospects you can.
Also, lets hire the very best coaches we can get in all minor league levels, hopefully some under performers can be turned around with better coaching.
Stay the course you're on, don't let the press or some loud fans convince you to do anything else. Just lay out your plan and tell us the truth. Fans will find the truth so refreshing, you will be pleasantly surprised at the attendance-it will go up.

I agree. Sometimes I wonder why people (like Perkins) would write such an obviously stupid article? It is almost like they throw it out there simply to stir the pot, agitate readers, and force the GM into believing no one in Toronto is willing to wait to rebuild. I hope Antho does not bite, otherwise, he will be out the door in a year.

Just read thread. I'm with GS on giving Antho a chance. If Beeston sees something in him, why not trust him. Beeston is not bush league. And also, to call Antho bush league for accepting the job? Why wouldn't he accept the job. It's a wonderful opportunity. Baseball GM? That's a dream come true. He may not be proven, but he does have some experience, and knows the organization, and I'm sure, will surround himself with knowledgeable people, who will feed him with info/recommendations.

GS, I agree with most of what you said, with the exception of your mention of the Twins. If the Twins played in the AL East, their record would be close to that of the Orioles. Also their W-L record this year is the same as the 08 Jays. Did they make the playoffs? Not even close. Not a fair comparison. The Twins are not a very good team. They're just in the right division and got a streaky at the right time. I'm not saying that the AL East should be used as an excuse. The Jays have just as good a market as the Red Sox (Boston is the size of Ottawa). The Jays just need to build a better foundation, then fine tune their holes with a few strategic FA's. If they field a more competitive team consistently, people will come out to the games, revenue will be generated and they will be able to spend upwards of 130-140 M, along with the Red Sox, if necessary.

Oh, and you're bang on about Bay. That'd be a bad move. Too long, too risky. Not the right way to go for the Jays right now. Lind, Snider, Wells, Ruiz/Dopirak (or maybe a FA, such as Thome for 1 year) are fine for OF/DH.

Hi Rene,
There really is no need to re-hash this, but my point about Antho being bush league had to do with the fact that a seasoned GM, with a proven track record, would not accept a job without knowing what the job entailed. Of course, for people without experience in the position (e.g., Antho) it is a great opportunity, so why not take it.

On a different note, let's not get too carried away with Beeston. His past record was tremendous. However, it was under his current watch that the Halladay fiasco took place and the club house -- as we later learned -- was torn apart through internal strife. We cannot blame this all on JP. As president, it is Beeston's job to know. I hope that he has made the right decision regarding Antho and his own successor.

Burt-I'm not sure the club house issue was much of an issue. As you know, all club houses have issues-specifically when the teams losing. I think if JP hadn't informed Ken Rosenthal, it would have been solved like every other clubhouse issue is, quietly and behind closed doors.

But, you gotta admit, the first moves by Alex have been the right ones. Check out ( under roster-office directory) how many bodies we now have in the scouting department ( I counted 40). Quietly, without fan fare, it's been built into a real MLB scouting department-not the 6-8 guys we had under JP with strong representation in Latin America. Big difference.

I agree that a strong scouting staff is the way to go. However, the only issue that really matters at the end of the day is signing the players we draft. It is unlikely that we will draft a pitcher with anymore upside than Paxton (whom we failed to sign this past draft) at this year's draft. We have to sign these guys. Yes, some will fail to live up to the hype. However, it is the ones that do live up to the hype that will make us successful in the long run. I just hope that the money that we are putting into a large scouting staff does not come at the expense of low-ball offers to the young players that we draft. Where a large scouting staff helps is coming up with a gem here or there in the later rounds. The first and second rounders (which you do not need a huge scouting staff to identify) must be signed.

I wonder if Bobby Abreau now regrets turning down the Angels offer of $8.0 mill per year for two years considering how badly he's performed in the playoffs?

The Riviera Spitter.
Here's a video with a close up of Riviera in the last game against LA. If you stop the video between .05 and .06 you can actually see him spit. You will note almost 60% of the viewers of the video believe he spit on the ball as well.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/20/rivera-spitball-video-did_n_327599.html

I certainly like Roy, but I am not sure if he would have done as well for Philly as Cliff Lee? I wonder if Boston will make a run for Roy. (Note: I am assuming that regardless of what the Jays decide to do or not do, Roy will be gone one way or another.)

For the ones who didn't hear the interview today, Tony Viner, President and CEO, Rogers Media was interviewed by Bob McCown on the fan 590. The interview is posted on the fan 590 website at www.fan590.com.
The interview was very positive for Jays fans and can be summed up in one sentence from Tony- "We are 100% committed to winning and the sooner the better." This commitment appears to come from the very top of the Rogers Empire, so salary caps, etc. don't really seem to be an issue, the big issue is winning.

Rogers get it. They understand the real value of the Yanks is the Yes network-now valued at $4 billion. Rogers Sportsnet, owned by Rogers is also the main broadcaster of Jays games, so the more valuable the Jays content is, the more valuable Sportsnet becomes. The main driving goal of Ted Rogers and his companies was to build corporate value and Rogers today, probably also understand their brand name is on the building.

What this means, is salary and budget flexibility to match plans presented by Jays management. The so called $120-$130 mill. media generated number or any number isn't the issue and probably a lot more than that is available if the situation calls for it.

That being said, the big emphasis Alex is putting on scouting, player development and people management is exactly what needs to be done to build the franchise on a long term basis, something I'm sure that will be enthusiastically embraced by Rogers, because it builds more value.
As a result, I really don't see any reclamation type free agents signed in the immediate future. On the other hand, what it does mean is as smaller market clubs try to dump salary on players like Carl Crawford, Alex Gonzalez and others, Alex can pick up the phone and be a serious contender. It also means that when a real high quality free agent enters the market who can help this team over the long term, we can now contend for their services. So I expect it to be a very interesting off season.

This is good, gsjays, as long as we don't keep Roy. He is, as he said, likely to try free agency. If we trade Roy and get something for him, great. But let's not pretend this team - free agents or not - is going to contend anytime soon!

Burt-I agree, I think we're likely 2-3 years away from seriously contending and that's assuming minimal mistakes along the way. I am not and never have been one who wants to see this mythical media generated $120 mill in salary for 2010, believing that solves the problems, because in fact it might do the reverse. The free agent market is pretty sparse this year from what I can see. What is good though, is seeing the team develop a plan to build the franchise back, probably the first plan this team has had for 10-12 years-maybe longer.
I expect 3 years from now, as fans, we'll be a lot happier with the prospects we have in the minors than we are right now. In addition, when they do need the serious coin, it will be there from Rogers. Ya gotta like that.

On the other hand, one never knows who'll be dumping whom over the winter or before the trade deadline. Revenue for MLB is down a lot, much more than just the announced attendance numbers. The big drop is in corporate sponsorships and ad revenue for each team. GM for the Jays as a perfect example or better yet Bank of America wanting to renegotiate their deal with the NFL.
I'd expect most teams ad revenue is down 30-40% and I wouldn't expect it to come back any time soon.
In addition, because the Yanks now own their own stadium, they will no longer be sharing anywhere near the revenue they did previously and maybe none at all.
Some teams like Miami, San Diego and TB have already started to dump payroll and will get a lot more serious about it going into 2010. I expect a number of others will follow and at this point, who can project what's available for just picking up salary.
Crawford is a prime examples of that. There is no way TB is going to hang onto Crawford who's scheduled to make $10 mill next year when they have a ready made replacement in AAA who costs them MLB minimum. So as I said, it could be a very interesting off season and trade deadline in Blue Jay land.

Jordan has just stated that Cito does not want Lind and Snider in the field for defensive reasons. Thus, there is no room for Ruiz. This thinking is so short-sighted. Do the Jays actually think that LIND is going to stay around once free agency looms? He has said on the record over and over again that he feels like he is not in the game. He takes his 4 swings then goes home. Cito -- treat players with respect. Lind is only going to develop as a fielder by playing in the field. If necessary, move him to 1st base, but Jordan also reports that they do not want to do that. I am sorry, but we need Cito out and we need a manager that is going to develop our young stars so that they reach maximum potential. This team finished 20+ games out, and Cito is worried about Lind dropping the ball 5 or 10 times, or failing to reach the cut-off man? When your team finishes that far back, you use the next few years to develop at the major-league level. You do not focus on finishing 15 games out the following year. Let the kids play. They are hungry, anxious, and far more entertaining than the every-day stew served up Cito last year.

PEORIA, Ariz. -- It was a learning experience for the Nationals' Stephen Strasburg on Thursday at Peoria Stadium. In his second Arizona Fall League start for the Phoenix Desert Dogs, the No. 1 pick in the nation plummeted to earth.

Strasburg allowed eight earned runs and seven hits, including three homers (one a grand slam), in a 9-6 loss to the Peoria Javelinas. It was his first look at that kind of disaster. Take note that he gave up only 16 earned runs in 15 college starts this season for San Diego State, for which he was 13-1 with a 1.32 ERA during his junior year.

In his two AFL starts, he's 1-1 with a 10.50 ERA. Welcome to professional baseball.

From The Toronto Sun:

ANAHEIM -- The Blue Jays have asked for and received permission to talk to a member of the Philadelphia Phillies front office. Pat Gillick, the Phillies' senior advisor? Nope.

The Jays will add a Canadian scout leading into the 2010 draft and one of the three scouts new Jays scouting director Andrew Tinnish will interview is Montrealer Alex Agostino.

Agostino scouted and signed Georgetown right-hander Shawn Hill when he worked for the Montreal Expos. Hill was a sixth-round choice in 2000. Agostino worked for the Florida Marlins after the Expos.

Another candidate is former Jays left-hander Denis Boucher, of Lachine, Que. who scouted for the Washington Nationals until recently.

The identity of the third scout to receive an interview remains a mystery. Agostino drafted and signed eventual major-leaguers Pierre-Luc LaForest, of Hull, Que. in the 16th round in 1995 and Montreal lefty Eric Cyr, in the 35th round in 1996.

He also drafted an infielder named Russell Martin in the 35th round but Martin didn't sign, chosing to attend Chipola College. Martin later was selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers, who converted him to catching.