Blue Jays (Yesavage) vs Rays (TBD): 9/15/25, 7:35pm

[Grant77]

6 hours ago, Vancouverite said:

At what point do jays look at giving Bassit and Berrios a game or two coming out of bull pen? So its not completely foreign come playoff time.

At this point neither is probably starting a game in ALDS. Than ALCS and WS if we make it there its 4 starters max.

No matter how anyone performs i dont see a world where Gausman Bieber and Scherzer aren't our starters

You have to at least talk about Bassitt if the start is at home.

[jaysblue]

8 minutes ago, max silver said:

Bo is going to be returning from a knee injury of an unknown severity. He's done everything you could ask for with the bat but he was in the midst of an awful defensive season due to limited mobility in the field. He could be forced to change positions for next season and with him coming off of yet another leg issue I suspect he might be forced to take a short term deal to prove he's healthy.

It's possible, but I think a team will pay for that bat despite his defensive liability. But who knows. If he rejects a couple multi-year deals early in the offseason, it's possible his market dries up and he has to settle for a one-year deal before ST. 

Maybe he has to settle for a Cody Bellinger type contract, with a bunch of player options attached. They both are kind of similar FA cases when you think about it. 

[Nexii]

1 hour ago, Grant77 said:

You have to at least talk about Bassitt if the start is at home.

Bassitt has been too good to leave off. He's been their second best starter by the stats. Very underrated IMO

I think I'd go Gausman, Bieber, Yesavage, Bassitt if the postseason started today

[Ryu In My House]

I am still stunned we got Fisher for Cavan Biggio. Fisher really could be a big part of this bullpen for a long time. Just, wow.

[glory]

2 hours ago, max silver said:

Bo is going to be returning from a knee injury of an unknown severity. He's done everything you could ask for with the bat but he was in the midst of an awful defensive season due to limited mobility in the field. He could be forced to change positions for next season and with him coming off of yet another leg issue I suspect he might be forced to take a short term deal to prove he's healthy.

I tend to agree. I thought the market was going to be tougher on Bo than people thought before the injury (big spending teams don’t need SS’s other than the Dodgers who will likely aim higher for someone like Tucker). With a knee injury on top of the other caveats (bad defense, declining athleticism/speed, etc), I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he’s back with the Jays on some type of 1+1 deal. At that point the Jays would have no reason to accommodate his ego so hopefully if that happens they put him somewhere other than SS.

But on a straight long term deal, I would move on. 

[Terminator]

1 hour ago, Nexii said:

Bassitt has been too good to leave off. He's been their second best starter by the stats. Very underrated IMO

I think I'd go Gausman, Bieber, Yesavage, Bassitt if the postseason started today

Yeah Scherzer and Bassitt is probably a tough call right now

Sounds weird but Scherzer could probably come out of the pen more effectively 

[Vancouverite]

8 hours ago, John_Havok said:

Use the Bo money on Tucker?

Or...SP like Woodruff, Bieber etc. Wouldn't need as long of a term obviously but can probably get SP plus something else for the money Bo was gonna be asking for (probably not getting..but asking)

I agree with you, allocation wise if I can give same money to either Bo or Tucker id chose Tucker

[Omar]

7 minutes ago, Vancouverite said:

I agree with you, allocation wise if I can give same money to either Bo or Tucker id chose Tucker

Tucker is going to cost a bundle. Would get more money than Bo at this point.  

[Vancouverite]

7 minutes ago, Omar said:

Tucker is going to cost a bundle. Would get more money than Bo at this point.  

Personally not so sure on that

Bo is a career 800+ OPS shortstop. Projects as .300+ , 20+ HR, .800+ OPS bat at shortstop and is only 27

Someone is going to give him stupid money.

[Omar]

Tucker will be looking for a career finishing contract (7 years+).  Bo may accept a pillow contract if his knee is still suspect.  Either way Tucker will be looking for a big payday.  ~ 350-400 big ones. 

[Omar]

8 minutes ago, Omar said:

Tucker will be looking for a career finishing contract (7 years+).  Bo may accept a pillow contract if his knee is still suspect.  Either way Tucker will be looking for a big payday.  ~ 350-400 big ones. 

Looks like my $400M estimate may have been a tad low...

"Tucker is expected to be the highest paid free agent in this class. Most analysts believe he will get somewhere between $500 million and $650 million based on the recent contracts of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with the Blue Jays ($500 million) and Juan Soto with the Mets ($765 million). Tucker can impact a game in so many ways with his five tools: hitting, power, defense, arm strength and speed. He has made four straight All-Star teams and is putting together another strong season, batting .265/.377/.457 with 18 homers and 24 steals in 26 attempts. The Cubs would love to retain him, but the open market will determine where he’ll land and he’ll be the biggest prize in free agency."

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/chicago-cubs/news/cubs-kyle-tucker-650-million-contract-update-no-1-free-agent/4a4719de8597ed0015b970be

 

[Laika]

2 hours ago, Ryu In My House said:

I am still stunned we got Fisher for Cavan Biggio. Fisher really could be a big part of this bullpen for a long time. Just, wow.

I love his stuff. Very unique. 

• Nasty slider with great control of it + what seems to be unique movement 
• Good curveball with nice depth to differentiate it as a pitch
• Fastball with enough velo to work if used appropriately 

The combination of Stuff and command of the slider puts it up there as maybe a top 10 or 20 slider in baseball? Perhaps

[Grant77]

34 minutes ago, Omar said:

Looks like my $400M estimate may have been a tad low...

"Tucker is expected to be the highest paid free agent in this class. Most analysts believe he will get somewhere between $500 million and $650 million based on the recent contracts of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with the Blue Jays ($500 million) and Juan Soto with the Mets ($765 million). Tucker can impact a game in so many ways with his five tools: hitting, power, defense, arm strength and speed. He has made four straight All-Star teams and is putting together another strong season, batting .265/.377/.457 with 18 homers and 24 steals in 26 attempts. The Cubs would love to retain him, but the open market will determine where he’ll land and he’ll be the biggest prize in free agency."

https://www.sportingnews.com/us/mlb/chicago-cubs/news/cubs-kyle-tucker-650-million-contract-update-no-1-free-agent/4a4719de8597ed0015b970be

 

Tucker has completely disappeared since the calendar turned to July. Recently, he was below a 100 wRC+ during that stretch. I'd be very hesitant to invest kind of money in him and would definitely rather have Bo for half of the price,

 

Outside of Tucker's monster 2024, they have been comparable hitters, while Bo plays a harder position and is younger.

[Brownie19]

11 hours ago, bronson44 said:

Yeah they showed a 52.8% whiff rate for Yesavage and Strasburg was at like 45% and Skenes 3rd at 35%

I saw that and I read is as it was the highest whiff% every by a Blue Jay and they compared it to some other notable starters.  I don't think that was suggesting Trey at 53% was #1 ever, while Stras and Skenes were 2nd and 3rd all-time.  But I could be wrong. The graphic was a bit confusing.

[Brownie19]

1 hour ago, Vancouverite said:

Personally not so sure on that

Bo is a career 800+ OPS shortstop. Projects as .300+ , 20+ HR, .800+ OPS bat at shortstop and is only 27

Someone is going to give him stupid money.

I doubt any team sees Bo as a shortstop moving forward.  I mean maybe for the 2026 season, but he needs a new position, which will reduce his value.

[G-Snarls]

4 hours ago, Nexii said:

Bassitt has been too good to leave off. He's been their second best starter by the stats. Very underrated IMO

I think I'd go Gausman, Bieber, Yesavage, Bassitt if the postseason started today

I like those 4 too but I just can't leave out Max F'n Scherzer from my post season rotation 

[John_Havok]

1 hour ago, Grant77 said:

Tucker has completely disappeared since the calendar turned to July. Recently, he was below a 100 wRC+ during that stretch. I'd be very hesitant to invest kind of money in him and would definitely rather have Bo for half of the price,

 

Outside of Tucker's monster 2024, they have been comparable hitters, while Bo plays a harder position and is younger.

Tucker was playing through a hairline hand fracture at the time. Definitely a contributing factor. 

Most recently .... a dreaded strained left calf. 

[Grant77]

28 minutes ago, John_Havok said:

Tucker was playing through a hairline hand fracture at the time. Definitely a contributing factor. 

Most recently .... a dreaded strained left calf. 

Hand fractures are awful for hitters. I remember something like that essentially derailing Eric Hinske's Blue Jays career.

If we're discounting Bo for this current injury then I would think the same applies to Tucker, who is at least equally as injury prone. I just can't see him getting a contract that exceeds 500 million.

[John_Havok]

2 hours ago, Grant77 said:

Hand fractures are awful for hitters. I remember something like that essentially derailing Eric Hinske's Blue Jays career.

If we're discounting Bo for this current injury then I would think the same applies to Tucker, who is at least equally as injury prone. I just can't see him getting a contract that exceeds 500 million.

the two injuries and situations aren't created equally though. 

we know Bo had major issues with his calf, doesn't mean Tucker's will be the same. 

Hairline fractures heal. 

Bo's current knee issue (2nd opinion not having yet been released) could be a situation requiring offseason surgery if he plays through it and it gets worse, depending on the grade of the sprain. That's certainly a bigger concern to a guy who's mobility is already pretty crappy for a MIF

Edit: now that second opinion is minor, I think the bigger concern on Bo is his lack of defense, but I don't think there's a long term injury concern on Tucker at all. I doubt either injury impact their FA suitors overly much. 

[max silver]

5 hours ago, Vancouverite said:

Personally not so sure on that

Bo is a career 800+ OPS shortstop. Projects as .300+ , 20+ HR, .800+ OPS bat at shortstop and is only 27

Someone is going to give him stupid money.

Bo was an 800+ OPS short stop, I find it really unlikely that anyone is going to be willing to pay him short stop money at this point. I've mentioned that he could need to take a short term show me deal to prove he's healthy and can be an effective defender as well, whether that's a defensive bounceback season at short stop or as part of a move to elsewhere on the infield. 

[jaysblue]

You need to see more of Yesavage before you write him into a Playoff rotation spot lol. As an arm out of the BP, sure no worries. Would actually prefer him in a BP role given the volatility of some of the Jays BP arms as of late. 

As for Bassitt/Scherzer it's close. Obviously whoever is pitching better and based on matchups. Would only trust Bassitt in a home start. Regardless, both are likely to be on a short leash of 4-5 innings anyways. 

A lot can still change from now till the ALDS

[Nexii]

7 hours ago, Terminator said:

Yeah Scherzer and Bassitt is probably a tough call right now

Sounds weird but Scherzer could probably come out of the pen more effectively 

Yea we get 9 bullpen for postseason roster? That's quite a few slots... it's not like the back end of our bullpen is that amazing. Little, Fisher, Nance, Varland are locks IMO. After them, I'd take Lauer, Scherzer, Berrios over the rest of our relief corps. Last two slots I'd say Dominguez and Y-Rod. 

I hope we can get in the mindset of just taking the best, not the most likeable or veteran

[Omar]

57 minutes ago, Nexii said:

Yea we get 9 bullpen for postseason roster? That's quite a few slots... it's not like the back end of our bullpen is that amazing. Little, Fisher, Nance, Varland are locks IMO. After them, I'd take Lauer, Scherzer, Berrios over the rest of our relief corps. Last two slots I'd say Dominguez and Y-Rod. 

I hope we can get in the mindset of just taking the best, not the most likeable or veteran

You have Little as a lock over  Dominguez and Yrod?

[max silver]

3 minutes ago, Omar said:

You have Little as a lock over  Dominguez and Yrod?

Little is the team's best/only leverage lefty and it appears as though he's turned the corner since adding the cutter back into his arsenal. Hoffman is obviously going to feature in the post season bullpen as well.

[Omar]

24 minutes ago, max silver said:

Little is the team's best/only leverage lefty and it appears as though he's turned the corner since adding the cutter back into his arsenal. Hoffman is obviously going to feature in the post season bullpen as well.

If Little is a lock over Dominguez then someone hasn't been watching games the last month. He is there for expedience cause there isn't anyone better right now. 

[Brownie19]

29 minutes ago, Omar said:

If Little is a lock over Dominguez then someone hasn't been watching games the last month. He is there for expedience cause there isn't anyone better right now. 

Little hasn't given up a run in his last 6 appearances.  Some only 1 out, but it's a step in the right direction...

Only scored on twice in his past 18 appearances...

[Spanky__99]

[max silver]

1 hour ago, Omar said:

If Little is a lock over Dominguez then someone hasn't been watching games the last month. He is there for expedience cause there isn't anyone better right now. 

They are both easy locks for the pen at this point.