GDT (2/4) | Blue Jays (14-13) @ Athletics (18-12) | May 4 — 9:40 PM

[Orgfiller]

I dunno. He always sucked, but he was able to run into a few every now and again. I haven't been watching closely enough to know where his holes are, but the league certainly seems to have figured out where to pitch him.

 

If the Jays are serious about competing, they're going to have to do something about the catching. I don't think Kirk's the answer either.

 

Jansen came into the league as a good hitting catcher with average defense. He raked in the minors in '17 and '18 at age appropriate levels for a catcher and then hit well in a brief stint in the majors.

 

He spent the offseason working to improve his defense to elite levels and has never recovered as a hitter. There were signs he wasn't quite that bad in 2020 as his xwOBA was 52 points higher than his actual so there was hope he could yet turn it around. This year though his batted ball profile went to s*** and he's not hitting the ball with any authority, which is extremely concerning. The only positives remaining is he walks a fair bit and doesn't swing and miss a ton for how bad he's been. But when he makes contact it is pathetic right now.

 

Why would Kirk not be the answer? Have you seen him hit?

[Jays24]

Well, everyone can switch to the Raptors game now and hear Jack repeatedly say that Gillespie is "amphibious".

 

I questioned my own knowledge of the English language when I heard that. Had to Google it just because Jack kept saying it lol.

[WryNGinger]

I remember a month or so ago thinking that I missed watching the Jays play. I was so naïve back then...

 

This season has been a combination of mind-f*** and tire-fire. One second it's "roll the dice for an E on the left side defense" and the next it's "which pitcher is injured"... I never wanted to see Reece in a BJ's uniform again but here we are... There are honestly no line up combinations on paper right now that I have confidence in.

[King]

It's almost like some of you forgot about the ups and downs of a 162 game season.

[WryNGinger]

It's exactly like that but more cringy. You've got to admit that there has been some "injury/error/odd circumstance" outlier s*** going on this year. I feel like I am watching my Canucks some days.

 

I think we all deserve a nice win streak that is injury free.

[JFD]

It's exactly like that but more cringy. You've got to admit that there has been some "injury/error/odd circumstance" outlier s*** going on this year. I feel like I am watching my Canucks some days.

 

I think we all deserve a nice win streak that is injury free.

 

Both teams have a Pearson but that's where the similarities end fortunately.

[Spanky99]

I dunno. He always sucked, but he was able to run into a few every now and again. I haven't been watching closely enough to know where his holes are, but the league certainly seems to have figured out where to pitch him.

 

If the Jays are serious about competing, they're going to have to do something about the catching. I don't think Kirk's the answer either.

 

How so?

[Spanky99]

Kirk got injured at possibly the worst possible time for this year

 

Ftfy

[Stangstag]

It's almost like some of you forgot about the ups and downs of a 162 game season.

 

It’s insane to see the day-to-day overreacting across threads. The team is .500, they’re doing alright so far all things considered

[Laika]

It’s insane to see the day-to-day overreacting across threads. The team is .500, they’re doing alright so far all things considered

 

It has just been a volatile season. Lots of little disappointments and emotional victories so far. One day you are thinking, "Jesus, with Vlad and Bo playing like this, Springer coming back, the pen looking good, and guys like Ray and Matz turning a corner this team is looking very nice!"

 

... and then the next day Merryweather is hurt again, Kirk is out for two months, Springer is not actually healthy, Pearson has arm trouble again, Biggio has been exposed as the fraud Keith Law always knew he was, Gurriel looks like a replacement level player, Teoscar gets Covid, Ryu strains his ass, etc.

 

Most teams are going through similar things. This is going to be a more volatile season than the typical 162 game slate because of weird Covid s*** and probably more injuries than normal.

 

But we could see some good volatility too like aggressive prospect promotions. We've got Manoah, SWR, Moreno, Groshans, Martin, Otto Lopez, Joey Murray, Chavez Young all in AAA/AA. Any of them could debut this year in the right circumstance.

[Brownie19]

I don't think Kirk's the answer either.

 

Kirk posts a 140 wRC+ in his first 71 PA's after spending 0 days above A ball and this guy is convinced he isn't the answer.

[G-Snarls]

Goddammit we need to salvage the series with a win tonight

[TwistedLogic]

Goddammit we need to salvage the series with a win tonight

 

It's actually a four game series, I made a mistake in the titling of these threads. Can you change the "GDT (1/3)" thread title to "GDT (1/4)" and the same for this thread from 2/3 to 2/4?

 

I knew this was a four game series too, not sure why I wrote 1/3 in the first place. Must have copied the title from the previous series and forgot to change that bit.

[G-Snarls]

It's actually a four game series, I made a mistake in the titling of these threads. Can you change the "GDT (1/3)" thread title to "GDT (1/4)" and the same for this thread from 2/3 to 2/4?

 

I knew this was a four game series too, not sure why I wrote 1/3 in the first place. Must have copied the title from the previous series and forgot to change that bit.

 

Will do

[wilko]

Does everyone want to sign Matz to a multi year deal still?

[Jgarza868899]

Does everyone want to sign Matz to a multi year deal still?

Need to see more..... hoping the last two starts are just a bump in the road.

[Spanky99]

Cole Irvin is one of the best up and coming young pitchers in the game. We could have trouble scoring tonight.

 

You are correct!

[Jays24]

Need to see more..... hoping the last two starts are just a bump in the road.

 

Or were the first couple of starts the bump in the road and he's back to who he's been? Lol

[THANOS]

Does everyone want to sign Matz to a multi year deal still?

 

Would rather do this for Ray. The stuff is better and the upside is higher.

[Olerud363]

It's almost like some of you forgot about the ups and downs of a 162 game season.

 

Who knows how longer Springer and Kirk will be gone, but losing two guys basically the day after 2 homer games, on back to back nights was super weird and annoying.