King

Reyes lines out to 2B.

Herrera K's swinging after being up 3-0. Inning over. 2-0 Jays after 2.

Asche flies out lazily to RF. Two out.

Come on Freddy. I need a big night.

http://www.amateurgourmet.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/SourPatchKidsAssortedSMALL.jpg

Marc Topkin ‏@TBTimes_Rays 8s8 seconds ago Souza is getting what #Rays say is a precautionary MRI due to right forearm tightness

They had Roemon Fields in CF late in the game yesterday.

http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/spring-training-notes-part-3/ http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/spring-training-notes-part-4-lansing-game-notes/ Two more, "premium" content but signup is free and takes 30 seconds.

http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/spring-training-notes-part-2/ Here’s part two of the notes I took while watching the spring training action at theBobby Mattick Complex in Dunedin. There was so much going on that I’m just going to give you the highlights. I mostly concentrated on the pitchers because it’s much easier to watch them throw for a few batters, get a read on their stuff and rotate on to the next pitcher on another diamond. http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/wp-content/uploads/Matt-Boyd-42-300x199.jpg Matt Boyd freezes Jake Fox The first pitcher that I really watched for longer than a batter or two was Matt Boydwho started the game that featured the most veteran group of players. Boyd was looking really good with a 93-94 mph fastball, curve and changeup working well. He had a very good outing and struck out veteran Jake Fox looking on a great backdoor curve (see photo). Sean Reid-Foley was pitching in the game against the Puerto Ricans and showed some nasty stuff. If I’m right, he was throwing a four-seam fastball with arm-side run at 92-93 mph while he also threw a two-seamer that had a lot of sink at around 91 mph (I did ask one of the other pitchers watching and he confirmed this). I didn’t see any offspeed stuff but there was a lot going on and I may have been taking photos when he actually threw a different pitch. Jairo Labourt‘s stuff was much livelier than the last time I saw him (last year in Lansing) and he was hitting 93-94 mph with his fastball and commanding it, breaking a bat with a 94 mph heater on the outside corner. He also threw an 84 mph slider that looked good. I didn’t see all that much of him, but I did finally get to see Brad Allen pitch. While his stuff wasn’t overpowering like some of the other pitchers I saw, he was very workmanlike and had a good outing, locating his stuff well. I’m intrigued by his unusual delivery that probably helps his stuff play up. Colton Turner has returned. I learned that he missed last year with Tommy Johnsurgery but he was on the mound, throwing 89-90 with a changeup that was around 84 mph. http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/wp-content/uploads/Juan-Meza-300x238.jpg Juan Meza Remember the name Juan Meza. Meza was one of the big signing-bonus guys from last year and it’s very likely that he’ll start his pro career in the GCL this summer. He was throwing 90-91 mph at 17 years old with a very nice changeup. Jordan Romano For some Canadian content, Andrew Case was throwing around 90 mph with (what looked like) a changeup. Markham-born Jordan Romano was probably one of my most pleasant surprises of the day. The 6-foot-4 righty was sizzling with fastballs in the 93-94 mph range that had all kinds of movement. When he located that and his slider, he was extremely nasty (although the command of the slider was in and out). Of the guys I’ve seen so far, he’s the one who could move through a couple of levels this year, probably starting in Lansing. Another hard thrower that I saw pitch for the first time today (I’ve seen him hit) wasCarlos Ramirez. Ramirez has been in the system since 2009 but just began his conversion to pitching last year. He was hitting 95 mph on the radar gun with an 81-83 mph slider that had a very sharp, downward break. If he gets more consistency and more command, he could move quickly too. Oh, and Jimmy Cordero never fails to draw a crowd hoping to see a 100 mph reading on the radar gun. From what I heard, he only hit 97 today (it’s still early) but he still struggles to command his fastball and slider. On the hitting side, I was really impressed by Dan Jansen who took a Zak Wasilewski curveball that was down, out of the zone, deep into the gap in left-center for a double. For me, this was one of the best pieces of hitting I saw all day. Lane Thomas had a hard-hit infield single to the right of the shortstop (can’t remember who it was) that the fielder couldn’t handle. For the catchers, Matt Morgan looked really smooth, throwing a runner out on the bases by a long shot while Justin Atkinson showed off a good arm. I saw Juan Kellymake a throw down to second from behind the plate and, while he made a good throw, putting it right on the money with a low, laser-beam like trajectory, his footwork was awkward. In case you missed it, here’s Tuesday’s itinerary: BP and BP (Batting Practice and Bullpens), Interviews for an upcoming podcast, simultaneous games either at the Blue Jays’ complex or at the Phillies’ complex in Clearwater (I’m leaning towards staying in Dunedin to see the younger group play but I’ll make that decision after finding out who’s expected to pitch in the four games). Then I head to Tampa to catch the Jays/Yankees game at George Steinbrenner Field (yep, as a mere spectator. I’ll be in section 104). Hutchison, Castro and Osuna are all scheduled to pitch so I’ll get to see them live (if from an inopportune angle to really tell you much of anything).

http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/spring-training-notes-part-1/ Wow, it was a whirlwind of a day for my first one in Dunedin. There apparently is no spring in Gulf Coast Florida this year, we’re full on into summer with temperatures hitting the high-20s (celsius). I can really sympathize with the players who go through much worse when playing in July and August down here because it gets into the 30s with a lot of humidity in the actual summer months. Oh yeah, and there was baseball to go with the warm weather! There was so much baseball at the Bobby Mattick Complex that it’s been hard to process. In addition to four fields going for batting practice and fielding drills (including the dreaded pitcher’s fielding practice), there were pitchers throwing bullpen sessions simultaneously and that was all before lunch. I did some interviews with a few players (coming next week in a series of podcasts) and then there were three games all happening at 1:00 pm. The three games included a team of Jays’ players against the Puerto Rico Junior National Team and two intra-squad games. If you’ve never watched and scouted games like this before, the intra-squad games can be a real mind bender because you’re trying to watch everything that’s going on and pick up things about the pitching, hitting and defense. After about 2 1/2 hours of it, your brain gets tired! But, since I know you’re waiting for information, I’ll pull out some teasers and give you a taste of what I saw over about six hours of activity. Fielding Practice http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/wp-content/uploads/Dwight-Smith-throw-300x240.jpg Dwight Smith makes a throw There are some interesting players lining up at some interesting positions. Lane Thomas told me this afternoon that he’s being moved to second base while I finally saw Dwight Smith, Jr. take some ground balls at second base. He was in a group withJon Berti, Ryan Schimpf and Christian Lopes. Hopefully I’ll be able to watch both players at the new position in games over the next few days. Gunnar Heidt has been playing third base as well as second while Ryan Metzler was taking balls at third too. Canadian Justin Atkinson was playing a new position, too: catcher. I had heard rumblings of this position switch and he seems to be taking to it pretty well. Bullpen Action http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/wp-content/uploads/Alonzo-Gonzalez2-281x300.jpg Alonzo Gonzalez I caught an early ‘pen session by lefty Alonzo Gonzalez. Alonzo is coming off a season in which he made some big improvements and the 6-foot-5 lefty was throwing a good fastball with arm-side run as well as a slider and a changeup. Rob Rasmussen was working with a pitching coach and looked like he’s using a new arm angle (more sidearm) but wasn’t actually throwing so I can’t exactly say anything conclusively. Lefty Luis Perez was working a towel drill as well. A little bit later, I watched a bullpen session by a group I called the “walking wounded.” Three pitchers who are recovering from major injuries threw. Both Adonys Cardona and Clinton Hollon were really putting some sizzle on the ball. Hollon has some great movement on his fastball and he’s looking just as good as when I saw him at the same time last year. Patrick Murphy was the third pitcher and he’s been struggling to get out of the gate since he was drafted in 2013. Today was the first time I saw him pitch and I can’t really say much. There were no radar guns for the bullpen session but I can say that he wasn’t throwing nearly as hard as the other two. Batting Practice http://www.bluejaysfromaway.com/wp-content/uploads/Dan-Jansen-1-261x300.jpg Dan Jansen With four BP sessions going on simultaneously, it’s really tough to figure out what to watch but there were a couple of players who stood out in BP and catcher Dan Jansenwas one. I’m going to talk a bit more about him a bit later in this post but he’s definitely going to be a guy to keep track of. Another player who impressed me with the results was Sean Hurley. He’s kind of been a forgotten man but he had a lot of power in college. That said, I noticed that his back foot slid forward as he was transferring his weight forward to swing and I’m wondering if that has had an effect on his in-game performance. What started as a quick post turned into a much longer one and so I’m breaking it up into two parts. You can read about what I saw in the games a little later on (the post will be scheduled for 1:00pm). Here’s my itinerary for Tuesday: BP and BP (Batting Practice and Bullpens), Interviews for an upcoming podcast, simultaneous games either at the Blue Jays’ complex or at the Phillies’ complex in Clearwater (I’m leaning towards staying in Dunedin to see the younger group play but I’ll make that decision after finding out who’s expected to pitch in the four games). Then I head to Tampa to catch the Jays/Yankees game at George Steinbrenner Field (yep, as a mere spectator. I’ll be in section 104). Hutchison, Castro and Osuna are all scheduled to pitch so I’ll get to see them live (if from an inopportune angle to really tell you much of anything).

real name is Ryan, Rowdy is a nickname

Tellez just went oppo-taco in A-Ball spring training game

Chris King ‏@StatsKing 26s26 seconds ago Rowdy Tellez who looks to be in great shape this year just went oppo bomb style. Such easy power in that bat. #BlueJays

wilner stop

May as well give him 500 more PAs just to be sure!

Goins just won the 2B job gg izturis

Chris King ‏@StatsKing 45s46 seconds ago @JaysFromAway much improved defensively. The bat on the other hand....,

That was smoaked

Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 60m60 minutes ago Masterson's average fastball 11 94/93 12 94/9213 94/9114 91/90and sitting mid 80's this spring..? Tim Britton @TimBritton · 1h1 hour ago Masterson's first seven fastballs according to the stadium gun: 85, 85, 88, 85, 85, 87, 86.

lol

Good call, given an injection today for shoulder inflammation and shut down from pitching

lol

I don't understand the mentality that he "deserves a chance to start". He's blown chunks as a starter at every level of the minor leagues.

BBBB, Sending you a PM.

You're a f***ing idiot.