TheHurl

Interesting of the notes from Opening day, just a 10 inning 1 hitter with no walks and 17k's between the two of them.

Shapiro has done everything he is supposed to do. Costs are better controlled. He got the Dunedin deal done and he's acknowledged that the Dome is not a destination and needs to be more fan friendly. Whether a PR move or not the increasing of pay and putting additional amenities in every minor league park, puts Toronto in a leadership position which they haven't been in anything for many years. They traditionally (for the last 30 years or so) have been near the last to make moves like this. They appear to be anticipating trends in non baseball situations and listening to the fanbase (the everything is $5 concession on each level comes to mind). Most importantly he is not the guy that we all thought he was who interferes in baseball operations. Atkins has shed payroll down (I'm going to guess that projected revenue is also well down) and has flexibility in the coming years. He's got some higher ceiling guys but nothing is a sure thing as far as success goes. The trend of paying the guys you have bodes well for the team in my opinion. I don't know the 3 year plan for payroll, and I'm sure it's tied to projected revenue but Jays fans will not be happy if this team is still on the Rays level in as short as 2 years. The bad or at least potential bad: The Jays are trying to do things differently right now. Not that much different than the most of the rest of baseball but different than what many of these young players are used to. Despite the success of the Astros, Cubs, Indians and Rays there is and will be for a while a rejection to change, and all 4 of these organizations have talked about systemic buy-in. When something falters early there is a strong potential that these young players don't buy in. That is the concern with hitting right now. It's so bad that I'd be concerned for losing these guys. Players aren't much different than fans...they react to small samples. I know others are hoping for a complete tanking this year...but I think the org needs a good amount to show they belong. The prospects are still the key for this org. If a few hit close to their ceiling there will be some really competitive teams. If we have an abnormal amount of busts there will be revolt.

Record book doesn't show until the end of week 1...but I have to be close to the all-time worst slugging percentage with my .275

Ramirez .304//.355/411 Bautista .284/.374/.466 Cano .279/.332/.432

That's not union issues that is municipal govt. In a roundabout way I'm working for my 5th municipality now and every single day you see something that just makes you shake your head.

Morimando should hit 1000 minor league innings this season. Someday some team will give him a September in the majors to get his last 10 days in the majors and get his full pension.

He breaks the fWAR calculation as his WAR is still 0.0. When he gets his first out it will drop.

He's 2-0...the old timers can stop complaining about his team hating him now and just call him elite. Meanwhile ... Matt Boyd is the new DeGrom.

Where the MLB Pipeline top 100 are starting. The IL is the most impressive list. 1. Pacific Coast League Prospects: Forrest Whitley, Kyle Tucker, Keston Hiura, Luis Urias, Carter Kieboom, Justus Sheffield, Yordan Alvarez, Sean Murphy, Griffin Canning, Logan Allen, Corbin Martin, Taylor Widener The two Triple-A circuits are quite close in terms of talent to open 2019. That is, after all, the nature of Triple-A. The better the prospects, the more they're pushed up the ladder. The more tests they pass along the way, the better ranked they are on prospect lists. It's natural that the most exciting group of prospects will be those closest to the Majors. So what tips the PCL over its Triple-A brethren here? For one, there will be more Top-100 prospects in the PCL than the IL by the score of 12-9. But it's more than just a numbers game. The PCL will boast one of the most loaded rosters in all of the Minors at Round Rock, where the Astros are sending Whitley, Tucker, Alvarez and Martin as well as notable prospects such as Cionel Perez, Garrett Stubbs and Myles Straw. Elsewhere with El Paso, Urias and Allen had legitimate claims to reach San Diego on Opening Day (alongside Fernando Tatis Jr. and Chris Paddack), and it'll be fascinating to see what they can do to push the envelope. In general, it'd be a slight lie to say the PCL doesn't get a little extra credit here because of its hitter-friendly ballparks. What kind of numbers can bat-first prospects like Hiura and Kieboom put up in that environment? What can a pitcher such as Canning or Widener do in an attempt to thrive? It'll be interesting to watch. 2. International League Prospects: Bo Bichette, Mitch Keller, Dylan Cease, Mike Soroka, Austin Riley, Ke'Bryan Hayes, Touki Toussaint, Ryan Mountcastle, Michael Chavis If a certain Blue Jays third baseman was 100 percent healthy to begin 2019, there's no way the International League would feature in this second slot. But as things stand, the IL (not to be confused with the newly termed injured list) slots in at No. 2 with 10 of the Top 100 overall prospects. In Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s absence (and with Eloy Jimenez in the Majors and Nick Senzel hurt as well), Bichette becomes the top prospect in the IL as he brings his plus hit and above-average power tools to Buffalo. As has been the case in recent years, Gwinnett might have the most dynamic roster on the circuit. The rotation will be impressive, led by Toussaint and Soroka initially with Kolby Allard also expected to contribute. Austin Riley is back after showing good pop with the Stripers last season, and he'll be worth watching for his defense as he tries to play his way out of Josh Donaldson's shadow at third. But don't sleep on Indianapolis with its combination of Keller and Hayes; the latter, in particular, should be fun to watch as he shows impressive defense at third while trying to hit enough to force a Major League look. Every Cease outing will be a must-watch as he builds off a 160-strikeout season, and Chavis and Mountcastle will try to show their bats are at least Major League-ready, even if they can't fit an exact position. Lots to follow in the IL, and that's before the Return of Vlad Jr. 3. Florida State League Prospects: Royce Lewis, Casey Mize, Jonathan India, Ronaldo Hernandez, Nate Pearson, Travis Swaggerty, Oneil Cruz, Victor Victor Mesa, Vidal Brujan Skipping right over Double-A, we head to the FSL. Maybe it should be called The League of First Overall Picks. The Sunshine State will boast not one, but two top selections in Lewis (2017) and Mize (2018), at least initially. Both could move quickly for separate reasons. The Tigers admittedly are opening up Mize in Lakeland in order to keep him away from the cold weather (and possible postponements and cancellations) in the Eastern League, so once things get a little warmer, he might head up north assuming all goes well. Lewis already has 46 games of FSL experience and even helped Fort Myers capture the circuit's championship last fall, so he might not need much more seasoning there after showing his plus hit tool and plus-plus speed with the Miracle last season. The FSL also claim 2018 No. 2 overall pick India and top international signing Mesa. As for top-of-the-line tools, look no further than Pearson's fastball and Brujan's speed. With seven teams sporting at least one Top-100 prospect in the 12-team league, there could be a special talent on the field in every FSL ballpark each night to open 2019. 4. Southern League Prospects: Taylor Trammell, Brendan McKay, Ian Anderson, Cristian Pache, Jazz Chisholm, Drew Waters, Brusdar Graterol, Nico Hoerner There is so much going on here. Nico Hoerner, the 24th overall pick last year, is jumping to Tennessee to begin his first full season. The Braves have decided to play Pache and Waters -- both plus runners and exceptional center fielders -- on the same grass at Mississippi. They'll be backing a solid staff led by Anderson -- the No. 31 overall prospect who has four Double-A starts under his belt. Chisholm is jumping to the Southern League after a breakout 2018 in which he hit 25 homers between Class A and Class A Advanced in the D-backs system. McKay will bring his two-way potential to the upper levels, this time as a designated hitter only when he's allowed to bat. It's not just the talent that will stick out here, though there's plenty of that going around too. It's the storylines that should bring prospect fans back to the Southern League day in and day out this season. 5. Texas League Prospects: Keibert Ruiz, Adrian Morejon, Dustin May, Gavin Lux, Justin Dunn, J.B. Bukauskas Things drop off quite a bit from one Double-A circuit to another here in the fifth spot, but the Texas League can claim the honor of the best of the rest. The Tulsa roster should be the most loaded, which might not a huge surprise with the Drillers returning many of the prospects who won them a Texas League title last season. Ruiz is back and could be ready to take off after playing 101 games, mostly as a 19-year-old, during his first trip through the circuit. Lux was arguably the biggest breakout Dodgers prospect of 2018, while May was singled out multiple times this spring as a pitcher who stood out to Major League brass. Morejon (Amarillo), Dunn (Arkansas) and Bukauskas (Corpus Christi) bring their own impressive package of pitches that could keep Double-A hitters guessing all night. 6. Carolina League Prospects: Luis Robert, Nick Madrigal, Brady Singer, Nolan Jones, DL Hall, Miguel Amaya The Carolina League has one more Top-100 prospect than the Texas League, but lacks the overall punch. Luis Robert returns to Class A Advanced after injuries limited him to only 32 games there last season, but when he's healthy, he's got as many tools as any outfielder in the Minors. Nick Madrigal will join him in Winston-Salem as the 2018 fourth overall pick opens his first full season. He'll hope to show off his plus-plus hit tool, exceptional ability to make contact and perhaps a little more power than he displayed over 43 Minor League games last summer. Singer, who has still yet to pitch for a Royals affiliate, highlights Wilmington's roster, but he's far from the only Kansas City prospect suiting up for the Blue Rocks. Fellow college pitchers Daniel Lynch and Jackson Kowar join him in the rotation, and boppers MJ Melendez, Nick Pratto, Seuly Matias and Kyle Isbel fill out the lineup. Jones, Hall and Amaya open 2019 in the back half of the Top 100, but could move into the top 50 if they carry their 2018 results into their second full seasons. 7. California League Prospects: MacKenzie Gore, Joey Bart, Luis Patino, Heliot Ramos You hate to make it this simple, but sometimes, it just has to be. There are only two Cal League clubs that can claim to have Top-100 prospects on their Opening Days rosters -- Lake Elsinore and San Jose. That sounds minimal, and yet those two teams should be worth following almost daily as spring turns into summer. Gore and Patino are as impressive a 1-2 combo as anyone can find in the Minors, and good luck to any Cal League lineup that may have to face the 20-year-old lefty and the 19-year-old righty on back-to-back nights. Meanwhile at the other end of the state, Bart and Ramos -- the top two prospects in the Giants system -- combine forces in the San Jose lineup. Both can be right-handed thumpers, especially in the hitter-friendly Cal League, though Bart might not be around for long given how advanced he's already looked coming out of Georgia Tech. Unfortunately, the Giants and Storm don't cross paths for the first time until May 10 (when they'll play against each other six times in 10 days), but if all four are still around by then, that will be must-follow action on the West Coast. 8. Eastern League Prospects: Matt Manning, Andres Gimenez, Yusniel Diaz, Luis Garcia, Colton Welker If this were one team, it'd be exciting. Manning would lead the rotation. Gimenez, Garcia and Welker could combine forces on the infield. Diaz would highlight the outfield. Instead, all five are spread across the Eastern League to Erie, Binghamton, Bowie, Harrisburg and Hartford, and that gives the Double-A circuit a slightly watered-down feel, especially compared to its counterparts in the Southern and Texas Leagues. Some storylines worth following: Garcia, who will only turn 19 on May 16, continues to be pushed aggressively by the Nationals in attempt to perhaps be the next Juan Soto, and Welker's bat should be tested like it hasn't been before when he played in hitters' havens like Class A Asheville and Class A Advanced Lancaster. 9. Midwest League Prospects: Wander Franco, Nolan Gorman, Ryan Weathers What was said above about Triple-A leagues and how potential they contain for talent can be used in the opposite fashion for the Class A level here. Younger prospects haven't had as many chances to prove themselves, haven't developed their tools quite as sharply and many don't pop into Top-100 lists as easily. On one hand, that means the leagues featuring younger prospects won't rank as highly in these preseason lists. On the other, those young prospects who do stand out this young and inexperienced can really grab our attentions. That's what the Midwest League has in Franco. The 18-year-old switch-hitting shortstop tore up the Rookie Advanced Appalachian League with a .351/.418/.587 line and 11 homers in 61 games last season, and many believe he's got the skills to take that performance (or something close to it) from April to September, beginning with Bowling Green. If he does, he could enter 2020 as the game's top overall prospect. Elsewhere, Gorman will be on a mission to show his 2018 power was real in his return to Peoria, while Weathers heads to Fort Wayne in an attempt to become the next big Padres arm to pop. Both were 2018 first-round picks. 10. South Atlantic League Prospects: Jarred Kelenic, Alec Bohm, Hans Crouse, Julio Pablo Martinez This isn't a knock against the Sally League because, guess what, they're playing baseball there again and that's more exciting than any ranking on a website. Kelenic will be out to prove the Mets wrong for dealing him this winter when he moves to Mariners affiliate West Virginia, where he'll attempt to show off multiple tools from the outfield at age 19. Bohm, a fellow 2018 first-rounder, was given the same assignment by the Phillies to Lakewood, but it feels less significantly less aggressive, given the third baseman is coming out of a college program at Wichita State. Crouse and Martinez head to Hickory, making it the only team on either Class A circuit with multiple Top-100 prospects, and they have the weapons on the mound and the plate/outfield to open eyes early with the Crawdads. See? Still lots to like in the 10th slot, which speaks to the diversity of talent across the Minor Leagues heading into 2019. Injured/Rehabbing Prospects: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Nick Senzel, Alex Kirilloff, Jo Adell, Jesus Luzardo, Michael Kopech, Brent Honeywell Jr., Hunter Greene, Triston McKenzie, A.J. Puk, Estevan Florial, Franklin Perez, Eric Pardinho,Michel Baez It's even more upsetting when the group is put together like this, but just because these 13 prospects won't be with a Minor League club on Thursday, that doesn't mean it'll be long before they make their 2019 debuts in the Minors. Guerrero -- the biggest star of the group -- has already returned to playing games in Florida as he recovers from an oblique strain and should be up with Triple-A Buffalo or elsewhere on a rehab assignment shortly after Opening Day. Kirilloff is out with a minor wrist injury, but in its roster announcement, Double-A Pensacola said he's expected to return in April. Puk and Honeywell are still building themselves back up following Tommy John surgeries that knocked them out for all of 2018 and should be back on Minor League mounds at some point in the first half. (Kopech, however, will miss the entire season due to the same procedure.) Of the bunch, the injuries to Senzel, Adell and Luzardo might hurt the most as all three hoped to be forces in the upper levels but instead will be on the shelf for weeks, leaving their Opening Night for another day. Extended spring training Prospects: Sixto Sanchez, Matthew Liberatore, Cole Winn Three high-school pitchers from last year's Draft enter 2019 ranked among the Top 100 prospects, and two of them (Liberatore, Winn) will be held back some as the Rays and Rangers work to build up the pair of 19-year-olds following their first Spring Trainings. Marlins vice president of player development Gary Denbo said last month that Sanchez, who was acquired from the Phillies in the J.T. Realmuto trade, would open in extended after he made only eight starts last year due to elbow inflammation.

Rule changes for MiLB this year ITCHERS TO FACE MINIMUM OF THREE BATTERS - At the Triple-A and Double-A levels, the starting pitcher or any substitute pitcher is required to pitch to a minimum of three consecutive batters, including the batter then at bat (or any substitute batter), until such batters are put out or reach first base, or until the offensive team is put out, unless the starting pitcher or substitute pitcher sustains injury or illness which, in the umpire-in-chief's judgment, incapacitates him from further play as a pitcher. EXTRA INNINGS RUNNER ON SECOND BASE REVISION - At all levels of Minor League Baseball, extra innings will begin with a runner on second base. If the last batter of the previous inning was the pitcher, the player to occupy second base to start the following inning will be the player in the batting order before the pitcher's spot in the lineup. By way of example, if the pitcher bats in the eighth position and the number nine hitter in the batting order is due to lead off the 10th inning, the number seven player in the batting order (or a pinch-runner for such player) shall begin the inning on second base. Any runner or batter removed from the game for a substitute shall be ineligible to return to the game, as is the case in all circumstances under the Official Baseball Rules. PITCHER'S MOUND VISITS - Visits by coaches and position players will be limited based on the classification level. Triple-A teams will be allowed five (5) visits per team (down from six), Double-A teams will be allowed seven (7) visits per team (down from eight), Single-A teams will be allowed nine (9) visits per team (down from 10) and there will not be a limit on mound visits for Short Season and Rookie-level clubs. - For any extra-innings played, each club shall be entitled to one additional non-pitching change mound visit per inning. - Official Baseball Rule 5.10(l), which governs mound visits by a manager or coach, remains in effect (i.e., a pitcher must be removed on the second visit by a manager/coach in an inning). Definition of Mound Visit: - A manager or coach trip to the mound to meet with the pitcher shall constitute a visit. A player leaving his position to confer with the pitcher, including a pitcher leaving the mound to confer with another player, shall also constitute a mound visit, regardless of where the visit occurs or the length of the visit. Visits by a manager, coach or player to join a mound visit in progress shall not constitute an independent visit. In addition, the following shall not constitute mound visits: a. Discussions between pitchers and position player(s) that occur between batters in the normal course of play and do not require either the position player(s) or the pitcher to relocate; b. Visits by position players to the mound solely to clean spikes, provided to player does not confer with the pitcher; c. Visits to the mound due to an injury or potential injury of the pitcher; d. Visits by position players to the mound after the announcement of an offensive substitution, but prior to a subsequent pitch or play; e. Visits to the mound by position players that occur during a suspension of play pursuant to an umpire's call of "time" (e.g., following an injury to an umpire or player; the presence of a spectator, object, or a member of the grounds crew on the field; a manager's initiation of Replay Review, etc.), provided that the mound visit does not otherwise delay a return to game action; f. Visits to the mound by position players after a home run, provided that the player returns to his position before the runner crosses home plate; and g. Visits to the mound by position players during an inning break or pitching change, provided that the mound visit does not prevent the pitcher from complying with any applicable inning break or pitching change time limits. Enforcement of Mound Visit Limits: - A manager or coach who crosses the foul line on his way to the mound after his team has exhausted its mound visits must make a pitching change, unless during the at-bat of a starting or substitute pitcher's first three batters, in which case the substitute shall continue to pitch to a minimum of three consecutive batters in accordance with Rule 5.10(g). If a manager or coach believes an exception to the mound visit rule applies, he must confer with the umpire prior to crossing the foul line. In circumstances in which a team is forced to make an unintended pitching change by operation of this Rule, and there is no relief pitcher warming up in the bullpen, the manager or coach who violated the Rule by exceeding his team's allotted number of mound visits shall be subject to ejection from the game. The umpire may allow the substitute pitcher additional time to prepare to enter the game. If a position player makes a visit after his team has exhausted its allotted number of mound visits he may be subject to ejection for failing to return to his position when instructed by the umpire; however, an impermissible visit by a position player shall not require the removal of the pitcher. "Placing a runner on second base in extra innings accomplished the intended goals and created instant excitement in extra innings, but in a few instances exposed pitchers to serving as baserunners, which was a concern of our partners at Major League Baseball, so this amendment to that rule is an easy and practical solution," said Minor League Baseball President & CEO Pat O'Conner. "Pitchers facing a minimum of three batters at the advanced levels will limit the number of pitching changes and help keep the game moving at a steady pace, while also providing valuable data for Major League Baseball as they review the impact it has on the pace of play."

What kids say "hurky jerky"?

There are so many comparables right now that you have to figure that it's Vlad that doesn't want to talk extension.

His deal includes this year. So not an additional 8 years.

In his entire baseball career (Pro, minors, high school) Grichuk has played 100 games in a season in CF once (2016 when he was a +7 DRS). Could be that this has less to do with giving Alford a chance, but getting Grichuk in there on a more regular basis.

The only frustrating part about Pillar for me was those 3 week stretches where he would suddenly look like he could hit everything. The 143 wRC+ in April, followed by three months of sub 65 wRC+. There will always be some team who thinks they can sustain average to slightly above average hitting Pillar, at least until his Defense tumbles.

Money is good. Did Hanson ever clear waivers? He was DFA'd just 5 days ago. I think he now stays on our 25 man

Prediction...Alford hatred hits the board by June 1st.

My favourite Alen Hanson write-up. Hanson is a fairly limited offensive player as he doesn’t possess much power, doesn’t hit for average or get on base. He can't hit breaking and offspeed pitches (posting whiff rates over 40% against them) but finds playing time as he can play poor to average defense all over the field.

I'd like to add that the Kevin Pillar hate is probably the most undeserved in Jays history. Probably just behind Rima Fakih

And I'll add in this years BA write up. 13. Juan De Paula | RHP Juan De Paula Born: Sep 22, 1997 Bats: R Throws: R Ht.: 6'3" Wt.: 165 Drafted: Signed: Dominican Republic, 2014. Signed By: Eddy Toledo/Tim Kissner (Mariners). Track Record: A $175,000 signing out of the Dominican Republic by the Mariners in 2014, De Paula has been traded twice in his career. He was acquired by the Giants in the August 2018 deal that sent Andrew McCutchen to the Yankees. After spending the majority of the last two seasons in the short-season New-York Penn League, the 21-year-old De Paula made only one start in the Giants organization in 2018, striking out nine and walking one in five innings with low Class A Augusta before the season ended. Scouting Report: A skinny, 6-foot-3 righthander with plenty of room to add weight to his frame, De Paula has a plus fastball that sits in the mid-90s and touches 98 mph with above-average life. He has feel for both a changeup and curveball, although both pitches are currently below-average offerings with the chance to become average or above-average pitches in the future. De Paula's secondary pitches and overall control lack consistency at the moment, but that's widely to be expected from a 21-year-old with only one, late-season start in full-season ball. The Future: De Paula has the three-pitch mix of a mid-rotation starter. He's raw and needs to improve his fringe-average control, but he'll receive much-needed experience at low Class A Augusta in 2019.

saskjayfan > you all!

60% of the top pitchers in baseball had some point where they had little to no trade value in our pools. Trevor Bauer was dealt for Mike Olt at one point and a waiver wire pickup. DeGrom was never drafted in the DDL. Nola was the 3rd player in a trade for Jake Odorizzi. Corbin was a waiver pick up and traded as the 3rd piece for Alex Gordon. For all the great minor league stat scouting finds in pitching have many really worked out? Of the top 20 pitchers last year I think only a handful were top 20 Prospects by the scouting lists too. What I'm saying is that I'm not the only one that has no f***ing clue about pitchers.

and one isn't Tulo

He's got to hit a lot to be number 1. He's athletic but just doesn't profile anywhere defensively. It just isn't that picture perfect swing. https://2080baseball.com/draft-prospect-video/spencer-torkelson/

I was figuring we were discussing post strike era by the names being mentioned here (either that or no one remembers that the Jays won 89 games in 1983 and 84 with a SS that couldn't swing a bat). I hated Borders too though, loved Ernie Whitt though. I was just saying we've had some really s***** catchers.