BigCecil

lol. no doubt. not even close but I think we have beaten that f***ing horse to death. he can throw though...when he plants.

WTF is Colla doing swinging on the 3rd f***ing pitch of the AB?!!!! Atta boy

This....Sale just pounds the zone.

'.....Well so far through the first 2 innings gripping and ripping isn't working although we are making decent contact. Sale is flying through us. Lets hope Mark B keeps doing what he does best.

I don't think our 2-3-4 hitters should be working counts. Against Sale they may only get one good pitch to hit in an AB...Swing if its the 1st one. Stay in a zone but aggressive.

and now for another kind of LHP....Mark B

time to panic for sure lol...2 pitches in

I like Travis but he is not our 3rd best f***ing hitter. C'mon Jonn.

Hate facing that guy. Sale is filthy. Lets hope Valencia and Smoak (from right side) are in the line up.

Graveman is AE in 18 and wont be FA until 21 and he is a fixture in their rotation now. CHEAP. Lawrie can be FA in 2018. $2mm this season. JD will get a big Arb bump this year. Nolin and Baretto will be cheap for a long time whether they turn into MLB players or not. Anyway you slice it getting the WAR from JD we do in one roster spot makes it a winner.

Would much rather have Reyes. Better value. Buhuhahahahahahahaha

For sure he will. I don't think anyone would bite on an ask of 5/100. But I could see 3/55-58. He wont be a Jay imo. If we suck 2016 we will take what he can bring. Ortiz is rolling short deals @$16mm for DHing. The issue for Jays fans is how used to that elite offensive contribution we have become. Our 3/4 hitters are 25mm per. Replacing that production will be painful.

He absolutely does. the deal AA did with him he doesn't get enough credit for imo. But would WE pay Jose at 37 $20mm? At this point unless it was a one year deal I don't think so.

He has a lot of movement in his swing like Jose and he doesn't have as good of an eye. So he is going to be prone to some slumps when his timing is off. No big deal. The flip side of that is when he gets hot look out.

I don't know why so many love to hammer you on this. Who doesn't love JD but your comment on his age is factual that might be a factor. Late bloomer like Edwin. If I'm the As I'm looking longer term at this deal and feeling ok with it. We got an elite player but they got back potentially 2 regulars and 2 with potential to be. Nolin Im not sold on. Id still make the deal all day long if Jays but As did better than they get credit for imo.

Fair points. Its a matter of risk and probabilities. Age doesn't guarantee a reduction in production but there is often a correlation to age/injury and decline. Edwin and Jose B are signed on under market deals through 2016 barring extension and both are/have battled injuries. Jose missed a significant component of 2 seasons (12 and 13). He has a having a great 2015 so far. Edwin, so far, hasn't been E-Rex consistently. I think age and wear has affected Reyes on both O and D and his DL CV is extensive. His BB rate decline is concerning to me. We are likely stuck with him to end of term and have no replacement regardless. Martin plays the toughest position physically of all of them at 32. He and had an outlier yr production wise 2014 he looks to be continuing it this season. Stro looked solid, but small sample size. Norris knocking at door? I must have missed his dominance in Buff? He is knocking at the door because they just showed Boyd it. Osuna looks great. Sanchez is a big question mark to most. I love the JD deal and the control is one reason why...but its a fact that we made the deal with our developing talent. Easy to dis Rasmus as he was frustrating, but he put up a 5 fWAR 2013 for us. Who knows if Pillar will be predictable on D/O yet. I'm not panicking. I think this is a year to make a move(s). Next year we could be fine without making any deals 2015, but more risks imo. I don't think anyone turns into a pumpkin at midnight. I just don't know whats magical about next year when we are right there this season. Guys who have argued we need to tap some off season solid FA arms Im totally on board with. We just haven't been able to execute that outcome well to date.

I do and nobody is an "ace" after 20 MLB starts. Sorry.

Simple reason. With this elite offense what we get from Pillar and Travis is icing. They are good enough to compliment the rest. Next yr if Martin, Reyes, Bautista and Edwin(through 2016) are all seeing production drop from aging then you are banking on them more and that's what would make me cautious. Actually I was hoping for Hamels who had 3 more yrs of control. That's not looking like its possible now. They also need to add to pen and I do believe with that its a playoff team. Agree on the FA route...we just haven't signed a real quality arm last 2 off seasons. Its a vicious cycle not winning because that's just part of the reason we aren't attracting them.

Thanks for laying that out. I respect your perspective. I don't like the 2016 line up and the variables as much as Id like the bolster this seasons roster. Mostly because I think another year on Edwin, Reyes, Jose B and Martin is material. Love Stro but 20 MLB starts and we all have him as a front end rotation guy? Our record on addressing holes meaningfully with FAs is not reliable. (sans Martin). I don't have much faith in Saunders and Pompey and Pillar is a 4th OF. OF depth is an issue this season also clearly.

92 team was pretty good on D - don't forget Devo. Alomar was incredible of course. 92 is probably was plus. 93 meh. Morris, Stewart and Steib, Key weren't very good. They were at the end of their careers in both 92 and 93. I think Steib and Key may not have even been left on rosters? Leiter was still developing after a lot of injuries and was a reliever in 93 series. Cone was a positive in 92. We also had Guzman and Hentgen. Our 5th starters were sketchy. Average overall.

Cant be half pregnant. MIA deal changed the organizations philosophy like it or not. Aging Reyes and Martin with aging Jose and Edwin deals expiring. JD is an elite player but he came at a cost of losing talent the org built. I don't want to waste an elite offense of today hoping Norris becomes the next Cliff Lee (ish) and Pompey becomes something he isn't likely. And that Sanchez finally stops BBing people. And that Stro is what he looks like he is for real after only 20 MLB starts etc etc. We have gotten used to taking this offense for granted, but losing (due to age and/or not resigning) our 3/4 hitters etc will create a whole host of new variables/holes. I like Travis too but far too early to know what he will contribute sustainably above replacement.

The only 2 championship teams we ever had were built around offense and average rotations. Our D wasn't plus. 92 did have a shutdown Ward/Henke pen to hold leads.

Thanks Captain Obvious. Who could argue with a statement that we need to develop our own talent? Its not an either/or proposition. And exactly how many races have we been in since 1993? lol This year we actually have a real shot. JD was all about trading talent we developed for an elite player. But that's ok? Sure it is. Martin was a key FA investment. Good teams supplement their home grown talent with strategic deals at appropriate times. Don't fall in love with prospects. "Next year"s team will have its own new set of variables and holes even if no deal(s) is made. Seems moot anyway re Hamels if more recent reports are true.

Aside from thinking RA would be more in line with his 1st couple years and praying Hutch would progress to mid to front end his 2nd full season after TJ, what did we really expect from this rotation when Stro went down? Its an inadequate pitching staff. When all is going well we put together a streak, but too many nights we just have to score too many runs to W. We need to make a deal(s) to stay competitive or it will be "next year" again. Its playing out like most thought it would.

Very well said. I keep thinking this year will turn around and resemble at least his first couple marginal yrs but it doesn't look like it. Regardless he gave us a good start baring the news of his father's passing and continues to try to be a professional...