jaysblue

Judge is way past his prime and made of glass since he plays with the Yankees. If he was with the Blue Jays though...haha.

Spot on! One of the main things I love about the States. The geographical diversity is a huge plus! Every state is unique as well. Someone from New York or New Jersey can easily move down to a warmer climate if they wish or visa versa. You have tropic climates, the mountains, major urban centres, small towns, the desert, places with mild climates all year round etc. Not much choice here in Canada unfortunately.

Leafs will make the Playoffs no problem, but you know very well Spanky they're not a team built to go on a long run. Other teams like Boston and Florida and other teams turn it up a notch in the Playoffs in terms of physicality, which is something the Leafs don't have. Guys like Matthews, Marner and Nylander are fantastic players during the regular season. They could out skate and use their skills to beat up on the bad teams and even good teams as well, though when it comes to Playoff hockey, they get shut down, they're afraid to go into the boards, take a hit etc. Leafs need two defensemen at the deadline IMO.

LOL a little over exaggerated but alright. The FA list for SP's is usually thin and maybe there are a couple of roster-able No. 4/5 starters who have some upside depending on their situation.

The infrastructure in Toronto is just awful. I will never drive downtown and have no intention of ever doing so. Too much congestion, construction, road closures, pedestrians, bicyclists, expensive city parking etc. Not worth it. The Gardiner Expressway is awful. The 401 is always a mess, no matter what part of the day. Driving in this city sucks. Too many roads now have a 50 KM/H limit and some major roads don't even have proper separate left-hand or right-hand turning lanes. Bike lanes are popping up everywhere, taking away a lane of traffic. Buses clog up the roads as well. Even the traffic out in the suburbs is pretty awful during rush hour and the weekends. Mississauga has too many stoplights on busy streets like Dixie and Dundas Street, which are always a mess. This city needs another subway line running east/west, but that will never happen and it's way too expensive now. As well, they need more commuter rail trains that go into the downtown core. Toronto is pretty backwards for what is considered a world-class city.

Yeah from a PR perspective not just for the Angels but even the MLB, trading Trout strictly as a salary dump and receiving nothing of value looks pretty bad for optics. He's still considered a star player and one of the faces of baseball, even if he's aging and has been injury prone the last couple of years. As long as he's healthy, Trout should still be good for a couple of MVP-esque type seasons with the bat. He's definitely capable of coming close to his 2022 numbers again offensively.

Hope he can have a successful return to the mound. He's been through a lot these last couple of years. One of the most dominant relievers in the game when he was healthy.

If Escobar has a respectable spring, I think he makes the team and shares playing time at 3B with IKF. He still offers some pop and if IKF is really awful in the early going with the bat, Escobar likely will start 60% of the time. It was always pretty clear that the Blue Jays needed another 3B who has some offensive ability with IKF in the fold. Escobar will have a short leash, so if he has an awful April, he is likely gone and someone like Barger gets called up.

What's his +/- rating and goals totals in games vs. teams above .500?

Lol you're such an ignorant Leafs fan man. You know this team can't play a physical team like Boston or Florida in the Playoffs. The Leafs style of play isn't successful against those types of teams.

The Leafs love beating up on the bad teams. They could use their skill easily to just steamroll them. But when it comes to a more physical team like Boston or Florida in the Playoffs, their style of play won't work.

Don't use him against LHP at all, and everything should be fine!

We'll see what happens. If Escobar doesn't impress during ST, for sure he's gone or sent to Buffalo. He did hit 20 HR's in 2022, so he still does have some pop. Even an aging broken down Escobar is likely an upgrade offensively over IKF lol. Vogelbach needs a hot spring with the bat and Horwitz to struggle. Jays could send Horwitz down, so they have more roster flexibility with him. If Vogelbach makes the team and struggles heavily in April/May, he likely gets DFA'd and Horwitz takes his place. Don't mind seeing what Vogelbach could do with the bat against RHP if he has a hot spring. He has some pop and could get on-base. But yeah Horwitz is younger and has more defensive utility which is an advantage.

I think Escobar is more of an insurance policy with the bat at 3B since the Jays are rolling with IKF. If Escobar has a good spring training offensively, I could see him being on the active roster, making 2-3 starts per week and pinch-hitting late in games for IKF. If an injury or injuries happen, for sure he'll get more playing time. Though I still think he finds a way to get 200 + PA's if he makes the team out of spring training or more, especially if IKF really is a huge disappointment with the bat and if he doesn't live up to his defensive expectations in the early going. Like you said earlier, a lot of minor league FA's choose their teams. Escobar chose the Jays because he knows unless the Jays re-sign Chapman, he has a great chance at a roster spot and playing time as his only competition is really IKF.

Ohtani never signed up for this! He was expecting Josh Hader, not Justin Wilson!

Yeah I could see Vogelbach with a hot spring training making the team as the last bench piece and they could use him as a DH strictly against RHP on the days Turner plays some 3B. As well as a pinch hitter late in the game for IKF or Espinal or KK etc. There definitely is a way he could get 300 PA's. Only downside is he can't play a position and has no versititlity, other than 1B lol. Gallo would have been a nice fit in this role since he could play multiple positions, but would have cost $5M

Yeah I had no issue with the KK and IKF signings, but even said at the time as long as they don't hinder or tie up the Jays from making other offseason moves later on. As we approach ST, seems like they have unless the Jays sign/trade for another OF or 3B. I was talking with someone and said the same thing - think Atkins jumped the gun signing KK and IKF to those deals early in the offseason, when there wasn't really any serious interest for the both of them. The way the offseason has gone, would wager that KK and IKF would still be FA's right now. Atkins tends to act early to fill holes/roster spots in the offseason e.g. like he did with Kendrys Morales as a DH signing him to a 3-year deal at the beginning of the offseason when he didn't really have to rush or need to.

I suggested Votto or JD as bench pieces/veteran bats. Have no issue with them signing Escobar and Vogelbach as bench pieces as well to MiLB deals. Hopefully both don't get more than 200 PA's unless injuries happen. Though given the Jays rolling with IKF as their main 3B, I could see Escobar getting PA's especially if IKF struggles offensively earlier on.

I mean if Bellinger and Chapman both end up signing one-year deals that are reasonable, would be disappointing if they weren't able to sign one of them.

There isn't anything wrong with signing guys like Vogelbach or Escobar to minor league deals and as depth options, though if the Blue Jays don't sign anyone else, good chance both of them somehow end up on the MLB roster and get playing time early on.

Seems like that offseason where JPR signed guys like John Thompson, Tomo Ohka and Victor Zambrano lol.

I'm buying an Eduardo Escobar jersey this morning! Nice depth signing for ST and only a minor league deal, so not complaining.

I bet KC when they were 3 to 1 and down only a TD. Really wanted the 49ers to win, but saw in-game the Chiefs were the best bet.

I said this at the time of the IKF signing: I have no problem with the Jays bringing him aboard as a utility option who could play all over, but if his salary prevents the Jays from upgrading the roster in other areas, would be disappointed. Looks like that could be the case. As well, they shouldn't have had to go two-years on him, which is still a head scratcher IMO.

I know he's not a favourite on here by some (Boxy and Spanky specifically lol), but after watching the Super Bowl yesterday, you can never bet against the more experienced quarterback in the big game like Patrick Mahomes. Even with the 49ers up by a field goal before the end of the game, and up a field goal in OT, you saw how cool and collected Patrick Mahomes was in those moments like he was just playing backyard football. You got the sense he was going to drive the ball down field and score. Chiefs had a tough schedule: beat both the Bills and Ravens on the road to get to Las Vegas. Pretty remarkable for Kansas City to win two years in a row. Mahomes definitely has cemented himself more as one of the NFL's best quarterbacks, whether you like his style of play or not.