General Blue Jays Discussion Thread (2024)

[Spanky99]

I haven't received my marching orders from Captain Spanky yet, but I presume that Team Not Panicking is in an official HOLD position when it comes to Vlad stocks.

 

You all can write him off if you want, but he's got a 118 wRC+ right now and if he had one hot week he'd shoot up to the 140+ range where we all want him to be.

 

Generational superstar is looking less likely, but I have a feeling that Team Not Panicking will be once again feeling good about our position in light of all this non-tender talk.

 

lol... 137

[Jays24]

Blue Jays option struggling Swanson to Triple-A

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2919529

 

Green activated and Swanson demoted. There was no reason to call up Swanson until he showed he was ready in AAA and now we wasted a third of his season

[Laika]

Interesting. Makes sense.

[L54]

Yikes

[Eat My Shatkins]

Effing relievers....

[max silver]

Blue Jays option struggling Swanson to Triple-A

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2919529

 

Green activated and Swanson demoted. There was no reason to call up Swanson until he showed he was ready in AAA and now we wasted a third of his season

 

That was the most logical demotion of anyone in the pen given Swanson's extended struggles.

[Stangstag]

Blue Jays option struggling Swanson to Triple-A

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2919529

 

Green activated and Swanson demoted. There was no reason to call up Swanson until he showed he was ready in AAA and now we wasted a third of his season

 

Wow they f***ing did it

[Barrelsandbombs]

Wow they f***ing did it

 

Swanson was only 15 days away from reaching 5 years of service time too, so good timing because then Swanson could have said no to being optioned

[jaysblue]

Blue Jays option struggling Swanson to Triple-A

https://www.thescore.com/mlb/news/2919529

 

Green activated and Swanson demoted. There was no reason to call up Swanson until he showed he was ready in AAA and now we wasted a third of his season

 

Still an amazing trade!

[Stangstag]

Still an amazing trade!

 

Anything we get from Swanson going forward is gravy.

[Spanky99]

Still an amazing trade!

 

Is this some sort of dunk or something?

[max silver]

Is this some sort of dunk or something?

 

Just more weaksauce strawman type arguments from BJMB's most insufferable poster.

[Brownie19]

Is this some sort of dunk or something?

Pretty pathetic. Swanson's dealt with his 4 year old son being hit by a car and seriously hurt this spring, then an elbow strain. We shouldn't be overly surprised he's struggled this year.

 

Embarrassing to suggest the trade was poor after we got Swanson, KK and Macko for Teo and his salary last year. It was a slam dunk move overall.

[Orgfiller]

IKF is smoking Vladdy and Bo in ISO lol

[Stangstag]

IKF is smoking Vladdy and Bo in ISO lol

 

So is a 35 yr old Kevin Pillar

[Carlos Danger]

Swanson's dealt with his 4 year old son being hit by a car and seriously hurt this spring, then an elbow strain. We shouldn't be overly surprised he's struggled this year.

 

This is exactly correct. Hence why I wonder WTF this team is doing sometimes. After Babe Schneider hit a game winning HR in Houston the previous night, he was benched. After Clement was on a heater early season and benched, the reason given was putting guys in situations they can have success, or setting them up for success.

 

Then, after a short ST and very short rehab where Swanson had not performed well, they call him up and his first game action of the year is a high leverage situation against the New York Yankees.

 

Then, they call up poor Adison Barger and stick him in LF for his first time in his first MLB game. Not a position he was even playing in the minors.

 

Shortly thereafter, we have a key situation with runners on base late in the game and we could either tie or go ahead in a close game. They leave Volgebach in to face a lefty when we had JT on the bench along with other RHH, (back when JT was on tear, and we don't PH.

 

I can go on with these examples.

 

So from one side of their mouth the Jays talk about putting guys in situations for success, and the other hand they f*** over Swanson, Barger and Volgelbach, et all the Team and the fans.

 

Plus leaving Springer in the leadoff spot for 1/4 of the season, I just don't know WTF is going on with the asset management and this team.

 

Don't let 2 Ws against the CWS and a AA pitcher and an emergency sub from the minors fool you.

Edited May 29, 2024 by Carlos Danger

[jaysblue]

This is exactly correct. Hence why I wonder WTF this team is doing sometimes. After Babe Schneider hit a game winning HR in Houston the previous night, he was benched. After Clement was on a heater early season and benched, the reason given was putting guys in situations they can have success, or setting them up for success.

 

Then, after a short ST and very short rehab where Swanson had not performed well, they call him up and his first game action of the year is a high leverage situation against the New York Yankees.

 

Then, they call up poor Adison Barger and stick him in LF for his first time in his first MLB game. Not a position he was even playing in the minors.

 

Shortly thereafter, we have a key situation with runners on base late in the game and we could either tie or go ahead in a close game. They leave Volgebach in to face a lefty when we had JT on the bench along with other RHH, (back when JT was on tear, and we don't PH.

 

I can go on with these examples.

 

So from one side of their mouth the Jays talk about putting guys in situations for success, and the other hand they f*** over Swanson, Barger and Volgelbach, et all the Team and the fans.

 

Plus leaving Springer in the leadoff spot for 1/4 of the season, I just don't know WTF is going on with the asset management and this team.

 

Don't let 2 Ws against the CWS and a AA pitcher and an emergency sub from the minors full you.

 

The Atkins cult gets excited and fooled after the Jays win 2 games against the White Sox. Brownie has come out of hiding.

[Olerud363]

IKF is smoking Vladdy and Bo in ISO lol

 

Vladdy is close to going on a homerun tear. He's close. Close. Just missed that one. Close. He's close.

 

I also find it funny that despite 'no power bro', and his defense and baserunning still being terrible Vladdy is on pace for 3 WAR.

 

A 1b men who could hit .290, walk, hit 10 homers, play defense, run the bases well, is probably 5 WAR in this offensive environment.

 

That player rarely exists anymore, but used to, Keith Hernandez, Grace, Olerud, Scott Hatteburg for 1 year.

[BTS]

The Atkins cult gets excited and fooled after the Jays win 2 games against the White Sox. Brownie has come out of hiding.

 

You popping in to every thread to mock people for being happy about a win or trying to dunk on someone for liking a transaction is getting really f***ing tired. Every thread is the same rehashed nonsense at this point. Like, it's getting close to ban-worthy.

[Laika]

You popping in to every thread to mock people for being happy about a win or trying to dunk on someone for liking a transaction is getting really f***ing tired. Every thread is the same rehashed nonsense at this point. Like, it's getting close to ban-worthy.

 

Yeah it's complete bad-faith nonsense and not even remotely entertaining or funny

[AMS528]

Vladdy is close to going on a homerun tear. He's close. Close. Just missed that one. Close. He's close.

 

I also find it funny that despite 'no power bro', and his defense and baserunning still being terrible Vladdy is on pace for 3 WAR.

 

A 1b men who could hit .290, walk, hit 10 homers, play defense, run the bases well, is probably 5 WAR in this offensive environment.

 

That player rarely exists anymore, but used to, Keith Hernandez, Grace, Olerud, Scott Hatteburg for 1 year.

 

Vlad could at least run the bases better than he does. He is legitimately at 50th percentile sprint speed this year, he's just a terrible baserunner anyways cause he has no instincts for it I guess.

 

It's so incredibly frustrating that everything about Vlad indicates a player that could be great. He has enough speed to be a decent baserunner. He has the athleticism to be a decent 1B. He hits the ball hard as hell and should be hitting plenty of HRs. He can take walks. He should be putting up 5-6 WAR seasons consistently.

 

If he even managed to fix one of those things his value would be solid. It will be the most frustrating thing if winds up going elsewhere and figuring out how to put it together.

[Eat My Shatkins]

Vlad could at least run the bases better than he does. He is legitimately at 50th percentile sprint speed this year, he's just a terrible baserunner anyways cause he has no instincts for it I guess.

 

It's so incredibly frustrating that everything about Vlad indicates a player that could be great. He has enough speed to be a decent baserunner. He has the athleticism to be a decent 1B. He hits the ball hard as hell and should be hitting plenty of HRs. He can take walks. He should be putting up 5-6 WAR seasons consistently.

 

If he even managed to fix one of those things his value would be solid. It will be the most frustrating thing if winds up going elsewhere and figuring out how to put it together.

 

Low IQ

[max silver]

Vlad could at least run the bases better than he does. He is legitimately at 50th percentile sprint speed this year, he's just a terrible baserunner anyways cause he has no instincts for it I guess.

 

It's so incredibly frustrating that everything about Vlad indicates a player that could be great. He has enough speed to be a decent baserunner. He has the athleticism to be a decent 1B. He hits the ball hard as hell and should be hitting plenty of HRs. He can take walks. He should be putting up 5-6 WAR seasons consistently.

 

If he even managed to fix one of those things his value would be solid. It will be the most frustrating thing if winds up going elsewhere and figuring out how to put it together.

 

One thing that's nice about this year's version of Vlad is that he's been producing a ton of value despite the lack of home runs. Over the last 30 days he's produced a 181 wRC+/1.1 FWAR which would correlate to a 6+ win season.

[Laika]

The positive way to think about Vlad is just that he happened to be overrated as a prospect because scouts are a bit dumb.

 

He smashes the ball but has never been a guy who lifts the ball. You can see that in his swing plane, and you probably could back in the minors if you are a great scout.

 

So the present outcome is very in line with his physical talents and that's fine! Just pretend that when he was a prospect he was a top 25 guy and not a #1 guy. Pretend that this was his scouting report:

 

HIT: 70

RAW POWER: 70

GAME POWER: 60

SPEED: 40 (future 30)

DEFENSE: 30

ARM: 50

 

There is immense pressure on the bat here. Despite a good arm, he has no chance to stick at third base. This is a first baseman who will not contribute on the bases. He does have a chance to be a plus first baseman given his decent general athleticism.

 

The hit tool is precocious and the raw power is tantalizing but the game power is not necessarily going to be elite unless he makes mechanical changes; he has a flat swing and an up-the-middle approach designed to hit for average and at certain points up the minor league ladder his groundball rates have hinted at a tendency to pound the ball into the ground. His approach at the plate is good but a plus plus hit tool can sometimes mask pitch selection issues that will be exposed at the highest level.

 

The absolute upside is a Hall of Fame hitter in the mold of Miguel Cabrera or Albert Pujols, but those are 99th percentile outcomes that require mechanical adjustments. There are good outcomes that look more like a right handed Harold Baines. And there is some level of bust risk here, or at least risk that he will be a below average hitter, since the defense and baserunning values are non-existent the level of game power is questionable

[BTS]

The positive way to think about Vlad is just that he happened to be overrated as a prospect because scouts are a bit dumb.

 

He smashes the ball but has never been a guy who lifts the ball. You can see that in his swing plane, and you probably could back in the minors if you are a great scout.

 

So the present outcome is very in line with his physical talents and that's fine! Just pretend that when he was a prospect he was a top 25 guy and not a #1 guy. Pretend that this was his scouting report:

 

Wow, who was this for? It perfectly describes Vlad

[BTS]

I realize now that you wrote that

[Brownie19]

I realize now that you wrote that

 

Vlad is essentially Yandy Diaz

[Eat My Shatkins]

Vlad is essentially Yandy Diaz

 

A way over paid Yandy Diaz.

[Brownie19]

Vlad could at least run the bases better than he does. He is legitimately at 50th percentile sprint speed this year, he's just a terrible baserunner anyways cause he has no instincts for it I guess.

 

It's so incredibly frustrating that everything about Vlad indicates a player that could be great. He has enough speed to be a decent baserunner. He has the athleticism to be a decent 1B. He hits the ball hard as hell and should be hitting plenty of HRs. He can take walks. He should be putting up 5-6 WAR seasons consistently.

 

If he even managed to fix one of those things his value would be solid. It will be the most frustrating thing if winds up going elsewhere and figuring out how to put it together.

 

It's a shame he doesn't do the little things well. You look at a guy like Freddie Freeman - GREAT hitter! But what's so nice about Freeman is that he's seemingly always been a very good base runner despite below average speed and he plays a good 1st base defensively. Freeman elevates his game by doing the little things well and it's going to land him in the HOF one day. Vlad has the physical abilities to be a Freddie Freeman type player, but his lack of baseball IQ holds him back.

[Eat My Shatkins]

It's a shame he doesn't do the little things well. You look at a guy like Freddie Freeman - GREAT hitter! But what's so nice about Freeman is that he's seemingly always been a very good base runner despite below average speed and he plays a good 1st base defensively. Freeman elevates his game by doing the little things well and it's going to land him in the HOF one day. Vlad has the physical abilities to be a Freddie Freeman type player, but his lack of baseball IQ holds him back.

 

Freeman = high IQ

Vladdy = low IQ

 

With Vladdys raw talent, if he had Freemans brain he'd be 2022 Vlad every year.