IBTrini

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/tex/yu-darvish-scratched-from-texas-rangers-opening-day-start?ymd=20140325&content_id=70070800&vkey=news_tex

It's also on Rogers channel 415 (MLBHD)

Went to game day then clicked on Audio then used my mlb credentials even though I do not have mlbtv and it works. If you don't have an mlb account just create one.

Not looking to pick a fight here, just dialogue. Generalizations are what really causes misinterpretations. I responded to a post which seemed to insinuate that the Jays did not get Santana because of money so I thought that was inaccurate. Are you now implying that nobody here is angry that Anthopoulos was not successful in getting Santana on board? If so, I disagree because it certainly comes across that way to me especially with a 1-year contract. With respect to Anthopoulos not doing anything all offseason, I disagree with this statement as well even though I do not have proof he did otherwise. I am sure he tried but was unsuccessful at getting what he felt was needed while being fiscally responsible - The key here is "not trying to get what you need at any price". Now if you had said the fans are disappointed that the teams' holes were not filled I would agree however not everything is as black or as white as it is being made out to be. There are usually situations surrounding the process which are not known to outsiders which can changes a person's perspective on what went down. I guess it may have been more accurate to say maybe Anthopoulos just does not have what it takes to bring in talent in the manner but that's speculation as well. To suggest the root cause for not improving the team over the off-season was money is also speculation. It is irresponsible to suggest that since Rogers has the money they should be spending it like it comes from a bottomless pit. Anthopoulos has certainly dug a hole for himself and the organization with the prior off-season additions so compounding it with rash moves just to satisfy the fans will be a bigger problem in my opinion. It's frustrating to say the least however sooner or later he will be held responsible for his performance and hopefully the right decision will be made at that time.

Just curious to know if you can ask this - How much money do you feel Anthopoulos should have offered for Santana?

ftfy

I do not think the payroll was frozen like you are implying unless you believe that spending money foolishly is the answer. The Jays may have been able to get Santana for 30M on a 1 year contract - I feel pretty certain he would have bitten at that. However that sort of spending is not acceptable. As far as I know the Jays had the highest $ offer on the table before the Braves became involved and even then the Braves only matched what the Jays had on the table. So much for the player's ethics etc with respect to having a tentative deal on the table and then running off for the same money from a totally new team. You can't really blame an individual on his choice between his stats versus challenges. He feels he will look better in the NL and as such will be able to secure a bigger contract next year based on his 2014 performance. I prefer not having individuals with that sort of mentality on the Jays team.

I can understand the disappointment and even though I do not think Santana would be the key to getting the Jays to the WS I feel having his arm in the rotation would have been nice in the short term. You keep mentioning 14M but that is not the figure Santana wanted from an AL team so where do you stop with the offer? 14.2M, 16M, 18M, 30M? Santana got a break cuz of an NL team's injury - Nobody saw that coming. Sanatana is really a wimp and appears to not have too much confidence in his own ability. It's appears as if he did not really want to be in the AL and as such the $$$ would not have made a difference unless it was too hard to leave behind so in reality it is really a silver lining for the Jays since a longer contract, in my opinion, was not really feasible.

Just got home, read this, tuned in to the TV and saw it will be showing in a bit. It is really nice to be able to sit back, relax and watch some baseball even if it is not the "A" lineup.

I haven't been there however a quick look online shows the games are categorized as either "Regular" or "Premium". "Regular" $16-$24 and Premium $23-$31. See link for more details: http://mlb.mlb.com/spring_training/tickets.jsp?c_id=tor

Not sure if anyone would find this interesting however I am referencing it cuz I have seen countdown threads whereby people need to manually recalculate the remaining time to the event. If the event starts from 1 second after midnight you can set it to that time or if an event starts at 1:05 pm it will countdown to that particular time. There is also a free website countdown for blogs etc. Here is a sample for interested individuals: http://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?iso=20140216T00&p0=250&msg=Blue+Jays+-+Pitchers+%26+Catchers+Report&swk=1

Wouldn't the following links be more accurate or was that supposed to be an attempt to show whose 2013 numbers were reissued to whom? Just a question and not meant to be anything otherwise. Toronto Blue Jays Non-Roster Invitees: http://mlb.mlb.com/team/roster_nri.jsp?c_id=tor Toronto Blue Jays Coaching Staff: http://mlb.mlb.com/team/coaches.jsp?c_id=tor Toronto Blue Jays 40-Man Roster: http://mlb.mlb.com/team/roster_40man.jsp?c_id=tor

I think a lot of people are under-estimating what all GMs are trying to get from the Jays since they believe the Jays are desperate. Anthopoulos is not in a great place right now cuz he does not want to give up the rest of the farm (which I agree with) for additional missing pieces and neither does he feel it is time to sell off major pieces to rebuild the farm. Maybe he is really waiting for the trade-deadline to come around before deciding which way to go. I was anxious for the start of the season but now I am also anxiously anticipating what most probably will happen at the trade-deadline as well cuz I just don't see the team doing well enough in 2014. Whichever way he decides to go it will be unpopular with some fans - those who are only interested in the "now" and those who believe in the "sustainability" route.

Off the top of my head I believe Jose Reyes may be that individual however his contract with the BlueJays is really from 2013 - 2017 which is 5 years. Which player were you referring to? BlueJays seem to have a harder time than other American teams getting good players to come to Canada -maybe that's just a figment of my imagination- so overpaying will be a big part in getting those players here. In Anthopoulos' mind, and a lot of other baseball minds, the 2013 team (before the season started) would have been a hard one to beat so it was a worthwhile gamble especially as the ultimate goal is to win the WS. The moves impacted the future (prospects) of the team to an extent but it did not necessarily cripple them either. Anthopoulos is in a precarious position but still can redeem himself. If the team does well then he still has time to rebuild the farm with good scouting while providing entertaining baseball for the fans. There will still be talent in the team which can be moved for good value at the trade-deadline if the Jays are out of it. I am just sitting back and waiting for 2014 to watch some baseball again. I am not going to get bent out of shape by his moves or lack of moves cuz I really do not know what cards he is working with. In other words, I do not know who he is really trying to get or what the other GMs are asking for those assets. This plays a big part in evaluating any moves and the team on a whole.

I believe it has more to do with the value he places on a player and his being uncomfortable paying more for the asset than that arbitrary price. The real issue may have more to do with his initial valuation and the upper limit he is willing to go to.

Being too tunnel-visioned essentially ensures a person is not flexible enough to break free from limitations. Most teams have limitations however with this team being in Canada, still playing on turf, finishing in the cellar position etc does not bode well for Not every move should be based solely on it having a direct impact at the MLB level for it to be seen either as a good or bad move. Some MiLB moves do fall into a grey-area/category - the individual does not have to be above replacement level to directly benefit the MLB team. If a particular move fills a need (MLB/MiLB), either directly or indirectly, in the long run then it should also be looked at from that perspective. Most of the times the fans, and even the media as they continually show especially around this time, do not have a clue as to what the thinking was behind a particular move/rumour. In my mind, TheHurl provided an excellent example of outside-the-box thinking for such a move: Some MiLB moves are just roster fillers, MiLB and MLB (non-elite) depth, or to provide mentor-ship etc and as such should not be judged in isolation. If the reasoning behind the move is ever made public, which will surprise the hell out of me, we will then be able to see whether the decision was flawed or not. I am not saying Anthopoulos has not made errors because, in hindsight, it is obvious he has - everyone makes mistakes.

I know with each passing day the value of those vets can go down quickly however I am curious to know if you are deadset on option "A" or if you would even entertain option "B" with a July timeline in which to change course. Or in your mind that would be too late to move those assets to rebuild/restock the farm?

Hopefully the FO is seeing it the same way and have a plan in place to change directions quickly if/when things start to fall apart by July. The value of those assets will start to fall off quickly so they cannot drag their feet on this.

If Anthopoulos is getting "full support" from ownership then the budget shouldn't really be a problem theoretically. It will be interesting to see what is happening over the off-season.

I would also choose option "B". I know injuries are part of the game but for a second year the Jays had to play with 2/5 of their rotation and that's too tough to overcome especially with no real pitching depth. I do not think it is even possible to replicate the total mess the Jays had defensively at 2B and that costs quite a few games in my opinion. I believe with just a few additions (without depleting the farm-no more "all-in") the Jays should have a really good team in 2014. I concur with your thoughts along the line of looking to see where the team is at in July and making the appropriate move then. The Jays will have lots of desirables at the trade-deadline if it comes to that.

This was precious - had a good laugh!

insufferable = Difficult or impossible to endure sourpusses = A habitually gloomy or sullen person The phrase can be used to describe a miserable/negative person who you do not like being around. e.g. without calling anyone out I would say some trolls on here fall into that category.

Just taking this opportunity to welcome you. Hope you have fun in here.

Fans are a vital part of any sport and as such their passion sometimes overstep the boundaries of commonsense and impartiality. They are usually not interested in finding the root cause of problems which would entail the analysis of negative patterns, identifying hidden weaknesses within the system, and discovering specific actions that contributed to the problem. This is definitely not something the fanbase is in a position to do successfully partially because most of the pertinent information will not be available to the general public and/or some of the fans are just not that interested in doing all that work for something that's just there for entertainment value. Some fans live and die by the performance of their team and as such you will find that no matter where you go or which team you choose to follow there will definitely be a faction there too.

This could also be another factor however I do not believe this to be true. Most of Anthopoulos' moves have been good and the previously perceived plan looked like a good strategy so putting him in a no-win position does not sound feasible - I could be wrong.