kgm1

Not a huge fan of Cuban ball players but right now they are most of the FA middle infielders available. If Fernandez shows up then i would bite the bullet and try and sign him. If not then how healthy is Oliveras

I have no idea what the Jays will do but the best target for us was Kendrick and he can block a trade to us . Also with the deals Dipoto made for pitching he mat not deal him.

absolutely no doubt but would he come to play in TO. I think for us to upgrade the infield we will have to sign a cuban.

Which is exactly why i still keep him even if Pompey wins the CF job . Either Pillar and Gose make the team or Gose and Pompey. One of Pillar or Pompey should be in AAA as they have options

I'm sticking to what I have said all offseason that it is Pompey,s job to lose. If your bringing the best team north then they won't worry about super two. As for LF Dirks is the big question mark . I have it a Mayberry/ Gose platoon but if Dirks is healthy who knows.

Justin Jackson,s name just reminds me of our huge 07 draft failure

Estrada is not an AL east pitcher so hard as it is for me to admit this I would rather keep Happ if money is no issue. Seems AA has a lot more budget than i thought and if he can get a free agents to sign here then backloaded contracts can stretch that budget more.

All minor league free agents for those who are interested the list is here http://www.baseballamerica.com/minors/minor-league-free-agents-2014/

Not sure if this was posted . Jays minor league free agents. Toronto Blue Jays RHP: Austin Bibens-Dirkx (AA), Randy Boone (AA), Scott Copeland (AAA), Scott Gracey (AA), Justin Jackson (AA), Mike Lee (AA), Radhames Liz (AAA), Sergio Santos (AA) LHP: Richard Bleier (AA), Tony Davis (Hi A), Efrain Nieves (Hi A) C: Yusuf Carter (AA), Mike Nickeas (AAA) 1B: Mike McDade (AA), Brett Wallace (AAA) 3B: Jared Goedert (AAA), Andy LaRoche (AAA) OF: Cory Aldridge (AA), Adron Chambers (AAA), Michael Crouse (AA), Melky Mesa (AA), Ricardo Nanita (AAA)

States later in the chat they will definitely be top half. Brett (Stratford, ON, Canada): I believe the Jays have one of the better minor league systems in baseball, what is your opinion on them? Clint Longenecker: The Jays have one of the more talented systems in the game, but the most valuable currency in the minors is impact players at the upper minors who could contribute to the majors in the short term. The Jays top grouping of players—Norris, Sanchez and Pompey—all fit that description, but beyond that the impact talent at the upper minors thins a bit. But their talent base is very strong and the wave of prospects at the lower minors is among the most talented in the game. Sorry to hedge on this one, but I think there is a very reasonable range of answers depending upon how one might weigh the time value of prospects (to take an economic term and apply it to prospects) versus total long-term impact. It’s hard not to be excited and bullish about this group of players.

I like this one. Gerry (Toronto): What are scouts saying about Kendall Graveman’s progress this season? Can he be a major league starter? Clint Longenecker: What a great success story for the player, the scouting department and the player development staff. Area scout Brian Johnston needs to be commended. Graveman was his gut-feel guy in the 2013 draft, and by the end of the next season that $5,000 signee was a major leaguer. He added a cutter and really took off this year. While he is unlikely to be an impact big leaguer, he is close to contributing to the major leagues. He could be a backend starter who can log innings because of his plus life that enable above-average groundball rates and plus control to his low-90s heater that touches 95. He will survive by throwing strikes, getting groundballs and limiting home runs. He has only allowed five home runs in 207 minor league innings. He can pitch off of his fastball and he cutter is a true plus weapon. His could contribute out of the pen also.

many times . said he would be bottom half of the top 30. AZ (Toronto): Hi Clint…what are your thoughts on Anthony Alford now that he’s finally given up the football dream and is focusing 100% on baseball. I’m assuming he’ll be in Lansing next year. How crippling do you think the lost development time is? Hard hard is something like that to overcome? Clint Longenecker: Crippling is probably a strong word. It is tough no doubt. That’s why there have been so few players who have had successful long-term careers in baseball after splitting their time between sports early in their careers. But the short list of players to accomplish that feat are mostly premium athletes, and Alford is exactly that. The scouts who saw him in the Appy League this summer said he was arguably one of the best athletes in all of the minors. They gushed about his combination of premium body, power and speed. They said it all comes down to the bat, which is why it was encouraging that he made it to the final stretch of instructs and why he is in Australia this offseason. Getting at-bats as quickly as possible is paramount for him. The odds are against him because of the lost developmental time, but premium athletes are the ones that are most likely to defy expectations.

The whole chat would be pages and i haven't even read the f***ing thing all yet myself.

From the Chat Clint Longenecker: Thanks for stopping by. This is an exciting system that saw some of its top prospects make it to the majors this year. This is also an exciting draft class to augment this system. Let’s dive in! Brett (Stratford, ON, Canada): Who were you fringe players that just missed out on the top 10? Clint Longenecker: The next grouping of players after the top 10, all of whom had an argument for being in the top 10 depending upon preference or risk tolerance, includes arguably the most major-league ready starter in the system in Kendall Graveman, who had a great year and shot up to the big leagues a year after signing $5,000, and a group of interesting lefthanders—Jairo Labourt, Ryan Borucki, Sean Nolin and Matt Smoral—and one of the top pure hitters in the system with Dwight Smith Jr. Personally Graveman and Smith are in the top ten for me

This year Polonco was killing it in AAA and the Pirates were in dire need of an OF but refused to bring him up to avoid super two. He did fine then dropped off badly but Snider stepped up.

Not according to this from MILB.com The Angels signed Cuban infielder Roberto Baldoquin with a record $8 million signing bonus on Tuesday, according to MLB.com. Baldoquin, 20, defected from Cuba in February and has been training in the Dominican Republic. The Angels have not yet confirmed the deal, but Baldoquin's bonus would be the largest given to an international amateur player during the current international signing period, which began on July 2. The deal is pending a physical, according to MLB.com. The LA Times reported that Angels general manager Jerry Dipoto was in the Dominican Republic last week. "This is a dream come true," Baldoquin told MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez, who first reported the signing. "I've made a lot of sacrifices to get to this point. I'm ready for the next part of my journey." Baldoquin is a right-handed middle infielder who can also play third and the outfield. The 5-foot-10, 180-pounder played three seasons for Las Tunas in Cuba's top league and was also on Cuba's 16-and-under national team. He received the biggest bonus for a prospect signed out of Cuba by the Angels since the team gave $3 million to Kendrys Morales in 2005. The 20-year-old will most likely begin his career in the Minors, with Class A Burlington and Class A Advanced Inland Empire as likely destinations, although it's possible Baldoquin could impress enough in Spring Training to go straight to Double-A Arkansas. The Angels may see the infielder as a potential replacement for Erick Aybar or Howie Kendrick. As per MLB's Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Angels were alloted $2.38 million in bonus pool money to spend on international amateur players this period, based on the organization's 2013 record. With an $8 million bonus, Los Angeles will have to pay a 100-percent tax on the pool overage and will not be allowed to sign an international player for more than $300,000 during the next two signing periods. Baldoquin's bonus would be the largest bonus given during the international signing period, which began July 2, topping the $3.1 million signing bonus the Brewers handed teenage shortstop Gilbert Lara on July 10. Lara is ranked No. 4 on MLB.com's Top 30 International Prospects.

Wow Angels sign Cuban for 8 mil blowing out their international spending limit. The Angels signed Cuban infielder Roberto Baldoquin with a record $8 million signing bonus on Tuesday, according to MLB.com. http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20141104&content_id=100527140&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_milb&sid=milb

Like the Pirates did with Polanco.

s*** looked back at BA and can't find where I read it . just read the damn thing today

They are very high on a new stem cell type cure for Diabetes. I can just see this helping Morrow to reach his potential

BA just did an article on him . He lost 40 lbs and has now gone from unplayable to barely passable at first.

Trading Valbuena might depend on whether they want to hold Bryant back to avoid super two status . The rumor I heard today was they wanted Hammel back and were targeting lester and him.

Lester, Hammel, Martin,and trade for an OF .

Hurl has been suggesting Valbuena as a good option for the infield since last off season. Do the Cubs trade him? They have Arrieta, Wada, and Hendricks plus guys like Wood, Turner and Dobront . I suspect they will add better talent than Happ but I would do the deal if they took it.

I have had no problem with any of AA,s waiver claims so far this year. The Hendricks deal pissed me off because he eats a roster spot but really the 40 man has some room .