2018 starting rotation

[G-Snarls]

How would you start the season?

 

Assume everyone is uninjured opening day

 

Who goes to the pen

[G-Snarls]

I'd go

 

1. Sanchez

2. Happ

3. Stroman

4. Estrada

5. Garcia

 

Biagini in the pen as 6th starter/swing man/long relief guy

[jays4life19]

Stroman

Happ

Sanchez

Estrada

Garcia

[Dick_Pole]

This should not be a very long thread. I really don't see much debate to be had here. Though I appreciate G-Snarls' attempt at getting a conversation going by putting Stroman at #3.

[Fiddlehead]

I suspect it’ll be Stroman, Happ, Sanchez, Estrada, Garcia....... the question is, who is 6,7,8? Does Biagini want to start in Buffalo or just be a set-up man?

[Bobthe4th]

I'd go

 

1. Sanchez

2. Happ

3. Stroman

4. Estrada

5. Garcia

 

Biagini in the pen as 6th starter/swing man/long relief guy

 

I’m worried Sanchez’s blister will affect his season again, if he’s fully fit it makes a massive difference and I agree he’d be the number 1 starter.

 

However, Stroman deserves to be the opening day starter this season based on last year.

[Dr. Dinger]

It's pretty obvious that Stroman is our opening day guy and nominal ace. He's not a true ace, but he's a legit #2 with some remaining upside. Everyone should be extremely skeptical and pessimistic about Sanchez.

[SaskJaysFan_2]

Has Stroman been named as the starting day pitcher? In an interview is seems like he has been.

 

But what is Sanchez blows the doors of ST? It's possible.

[LGBJ29]

Has Stroman been named as the starting day pitcher? In an interview is seems like he has been.

 

But what is Sanchez blows the doors of ST? It's possible.

 

They know what they have in Sanchez, a bunch of solid 2-3 IP spring starts wont shift that view. My guess is they'll be wary of his inning count after so many blister problems last season, and a strict inning count the season before. I wouldn't expect him to be slotted above #3

[bones10]

Can they please just open with Biagini in the pen, its incredibly shallow as is.

[Brownie19]

I love how everyone just assumes Biagini is going to be an above average reliever again. It's FAR from a guarantee.

 

His numbers weren't that bad as a starter last year (FIP 4.36, xFIP 4.23, 7.16 K/9, 3.07 BB/9)

[G-Snarls]

Has Stroman been named as the starting day pitcher? In an interview is seems like he has been.

 

But what is Sanchez blows the doors of ST? It's possible.

 

That's what I'm thinking

 

If Sanchez's finger is 100% and he blows everyone away all spring I can see Gibby giving him the nod

 

Obviously no way to predict

 

And yes, Stroman was our best starter start to finish last year

[G-Snarls]

If Sanchez is healthy it's a pretty solid rotation. No for sure legit ace but none of the 5 are worse than most teams' #3 guys.

[jays4life19]

That's what I'm thinking

 

If Sanchez's finger is 100% and he blows everyone away all spring I can see Gibby giving him the nod

 

Obviously no way to predict

 

And yes, Stroman was our best starter start to finish last year

 

Can't honestly see any scenario where Sanchez is the opening day starter. I would say everyone outside of Garcia has a better chance.

[Ray]

If Sanchez is healthy it's a pretty solid rotation. No for sure legit ace but none of the 5 are worse than most teams' #3 guys.

 

I’ll take a strong rotation top to bottom over a top heavy one. Having an ace is obviously nice, but 4 #2 starters like we have gives us a chance to win more games. Aces are overrated if you don’t have a good supporting cast behind them.

[saskjayfan]

I would rather biagini in the bullpen borucki first up if there is an injury

[AledmysDiaz]

I think Biagini will start the season in Buffalo, this front office will not deter from that. They still might sign another relief arm,

[polar bear]

I'd go

 

1. Sanchez

2. Happ

3. Stroman

4. Estrada

5. Garcia

 

Biagini in the pen as 6th starter/swing man/long relief guy

Putting probably too much faith in Mister Blister I would guess.

[glory]

It definitely sounds like the front office wants Biagini in AAA with Gibby wanting him in the pen. Makes more sense to have him in AAA. Finding a reliever is a lot easier than finding a depth starter, even if you don't think he is much of a starter. Not like he's a lights out reliever either.

[Shart]

Petty much guaranteed Sanchez's blisters show up again this season. If they do, he's a career reliever. Boras will be unhappy.

[Pendleton]

Petty much guaranteed Sanchez's blisters show up again this season. If they do, he's a career reliever. Boras will be unhappy.

 

Cool story Gbill, but no one cares.

[Terminator]

It definitely sounds like the front office wants Biagini in AAA with Gibby wanting him in the pen. Makes more sense to have him in AAA. Finding a reliever is a lot easier than finding a depth starter, even if you don't think he is much of a starter. Not like he's a lights out reliever either.

 

Yeah we had that discussion a while back. I thought AAA was the way to go but I let everyone talk me into him being in the bullpen. I don't think it's a huge deal either way.

[Dick_Pole]

I really don't get wanting to start Biagini in AAA instead of the pen. Unless the team has some moves in mind where this makes sense by April. We will see how Spring Training pans out.

[Terminator]

I really don't get wanting to start Biagini in AAA instead of the pen. Unless the team has some moves in mind where this makes sense by April. We will see how Spring Training pans out.

 

The reason it makes sense is because there is a 99% chance that he'll be needed in the rotation at some point. Does moving him from a starter in ST to the bullpen at the start of the season and then back to the rotation again have an adverse affect on him? If it doesn't then he should be in the bullpen to start the year.

[glory]

I really don't get wanting to start Biagini in AAA instead of the pen. Unless the team has some moves in mind where this makes sense by April. We will see how Spring Training pans out.

 

Can't expect the starting 5 to stay healthy all season, and bouncing between roles might impact performance negatively. Keeping him in one role won't guarantee success, but at least they'd have him stretched out and ready to go in case he is needed.

 

Put someone like Guerrieri in Biagini's bullpen spot and I doubt we even notice the difference. Relievers can come out of no where and turn to s*** very quickly. Rather Biagini develop into a back end starter.

[Dick_Pole]

Biagini is a 27 year old non-prospect for a team on the fringes of contention that needs BP depth. If you need him that damn badly as a starter you make him toss 3 innings the first couple of games and stretch him out on the fly in the MLB. You don't stash him at AAA for a rainy day. I'd rather give that role to Borucki.

 

The only way this team competes is if the four starters who were here in 2016 put up another 2016-like performance in terms of health and consistency. If Biagini is needed as a starter, there is a significantly greater chance that the season is lost anyways. Therefore, you organize the roster to maximize your shot at contention right now, which is having him in the pen. Unless things drastically change after Spring Training with additions to the roster or surprise performances/disappointments.

[z3r0s]

this is exactly how I feel DP. I have no idea why they think its important to keep him as a starter. You can always do it next year or at the tail end of this year if we are out of it.

[Terminator]

Biagini is a 27 year old non-prospect for a team on the fringes of contention that needs BP depth. If you need him that damn badly as a starter you make him toss 3 innings the first couple of games and stretch him out on the fly in the MLB. You don't stash him at AAA for a rainy day. I'd rather give that role to Borucki.

 

The only way this team competes is if the four starters who were here in 2016 put up another 2016-like performance in terms of health and consistency. If Biagini is needed as a starter, there is a significantly greater chance that the season is lost anyways. Therefore, you organize the roster to maximize your shot at contention right now, which is having him in the pen. Unless things drastically change after Spring Training with additions to the roster or surprise performances/disappointments.

 

This makes plenty of sense to me but for the "rainy day" and "if he's needed the season might be lost anyway" talk. Every team in the league will use more than 5 starters. I think the average team uses 10 each year. It's not saving him for a rainy day it's better preparing him for the inevitable day when he's needed to start games.

 

But again, I don't know that yo-yoing him between the rotation and the bullpen actually hurts his performance. It definitely could but I'm not sure how you could even measure that effectively. I believe that last year he couldn't even throw out of the windup after remaining in the bullpen for a while. There's probably things they can tweak that will help him be more flexible.

[Shart]

Biagini is a headcase but I like the idea of keeping him round as a swingman. Unless of course we can trade Morales or an OF for a better wingman.

[glory]

You keep Biagini in AAA because there's a pretty good chance you'll need a starter during the season (if not in April), and the other depth options have barely pitched above A+. Having him stretched out and working on his repertoire as a starter seems a hell of a lot smarter than restricting to a 7th inning role where he'll throw an inning at a time, and then having to stretch him out slowly after that. If he was out of options, then that's a different story, but he's not. We also saw how his performance suffered last season when he kept changing roles. He couldn't get outs as a reliever after his starting stint.

 

The Jays still have time to sign someone to pitch out of the pen (Oh!). They also have a s*** ton of options who might be able to win spots out of spring training. We are not looking to replace Osuna, we are looking to replace a rule 5 pick with one good year out of the pen two years ago. Wouldn't shock me at all if some of the internal options or minor league signings can come in and take his spot in the pen.

 

If AAA had more starting options then I would agree to just keep him in long relief and stretch him out when needed. But depth is a huge issue for this team, and even though I agree the only chance this team has to contend is if 4 of the 5 starters stay healthy, that doesn't mean you short change the depth.