Hipfan

That's because all the teams are following the Cubs and Astros by tanking; instead of trying to put together a somewhat decent team, that, if lucky and catches some breaks, makes the playoffs, they put together crappy teams in hopes of high draft picks. While that plan obviously worked for the Cubs and Astros, it won't work for everyone and makes baseball worse. The Yankees turned things around without purging their MLB team, and others should follow suit.

Seriously, no Vlad? Come on!!!!

I'd only take that trade if they are willing to eat some of that salary!

Morales to the Royals now? Please?

Then the system needs to change to reward younger players. Teams should not be allowed to hold back a player for a few weeks in the minors and get an extra year of control. Once a player is called up, it should burn a year in regards to service time, or something like that. This habit of keeping the best young players in the minors for a little while and gaining more service time, while within the current rules, is not fair to them. The players will need to force a change to this policy in the next CBA. Players used to make up for this with large FA deals, but that seems to be coming to an end so the system needs to change. Arbitration needs to change, and/or when players are eligible for free agency. Maybe change it to 4 or 5 years service time, and kill the ability of teams to stash a player in the minor for a month and gain a year of control? I'd say if a player is in the majors for 1/2 or more of the year they get credit for a year's worth of service time. That would end all of this service time maneuvering garbage.

If Grichuk doesn't improve the Jays outfield still looks pretty gross. If he can produce 2.5-3 WAR and the Pearce/Granderson combo can do the same, it will be a passable OF, with Teoscar available for depth (or replacing Pearce as a platoon with Grandy?). Still, they Jays don't have any really great offensive players anymore, other than Donaldson. Smoak could be a difference maker, but I'm not sold on last season yet. I really think Cain would have been a good addition to the team, but that's clearly not happening now.

Even if your calculations are true, they could backload the contract; for example, if Cain were to sign a 4 year $65M deal, they could do $10M year one, then $15M, $20M and $20M. By the last year of the contract both Martin and Tulo will be off the books, if I'm not mistaken, so there would be more room for a deal like that.

As much as I loved Joey Bats time in TO, the last couple of years he really seemed to decline, especially last year. I'd love to see a resurgence from him but I think he's done. His bat speed seemed slower, his OBP went down, and he doesn't seem to be able to play the OF anymore. I can't really see him bouncing back, but I hope he does. I think Grandy will turn out to be the better player this coming season, assuming they both are healthy.

That's called a negotiating tactic. They aren't going to publicly say "We absolutely need to sign an outfielder", it's all posturing. They know they need OF help if they actually want to contend for a WC spot next season. Atkins has done a good job shoring up the infield without spending too much money on it. Now they need an OF, and a SP, and have around 20M left budget wise, if I'm not mistaken.

Morrow top 5 DL time next year...

Even though they just got stripped of all their recent international signings?

I wonder if Gordon can get back to being close to a 2 WAR player...if the Jays could land him and Duffy in a package deal it could kill 2 birds with one stone. His contract isn't great but it only has 2 years left on it. He's a great defender but his bat was absolutely horrible last year. Question is was that a blip or the beginning of the end for him?

I bet he'll end up with a 6 year deal somewhere between 150-175M...he has Boras as his agent, right? I'm sure someone will come up with serious cash to make it happen, like Arizona with Greinke.

Wow...totally shocked when I heard the news. He is my all time favourite Jay, and I've been a fan since the Exhibition Stadium days! He was so dominant, and played the game the right way. I loved watching his starts, especially against the Yankees when they were in their prime, as perennial World Series contenders. The Yanks had such a powerful lineup, but Doc made them look like a AAA team, seemingly every time. First Gord Downie, now this, on top of a bunch of personal stuff that doesn't need mention here, has made this last month one of the worst of my life. This just feels like a huge kick to the groin. And I'm just some random fan that never knew him. I can't imagine the grief his family is going through right now; Doc was just 3 years older than me and if I lost my spouse so suddenly (we have three kids), I'd be lost. My heart goes out to his wife and kids.

If by August you mean April, then yes, you are correct.

I had no idea he was playing so poorly this year! I hope it's just due to injuries and that he bounces back and has a few more highly productive years left. He is an amazing hitter and it would be a shame to see him drop off so quickly.

Yep...there's no point in keeping track for the rest of this year, they are done. The only thing I want to see is trades for good prospects. The rebuild needs to happen now. As much as I love Donaldson, they really need to trade him and start prepping for the Vlad/Bichette era. The probably won't get much for Bautista, or Estrata, but they should try to unload them, and maybe even Happ. Forget about trying to compete next year; this team is too old and has too many holes to fill (2 OF spots, the bullpen, 2B) to realistically challenge in the AL East. In two to three seasons they could be pretty good if they make the hard choices now and sell.

I really hate that he plays for Boston. That's an awesome play.

That's a good agent!

Even if the Jays did overpay for Morales, the contract won't cripple the team. Imagine being on the hook for Greinke's contract, or Justin Upton? The Jays have been pretty smart in keeping the team competitive while not hamstringing the future. If Morales ends up sucking, it won't kill the team. If he ends up a league average bat, he's a decent value at $11M per year. If he manages to repeat his 2015 season (2.4 bwar, 127 OPS+), he basically pays for the contract right there.

Wasn't he behind the development of the farm system that everyone on this board is envious of? I know the Sandoval contract is brutal, but everyone makes mistakes, and he built a solid foundation for that team, while also winning a World Series. Can't really say he "ruined" the team.

I think the issues isn't about having one good year, it's the position the opt-out leave the club in. If they sign Holland to a 2 year deal worth $8 Million for the 1st year (plus incentives, perhaps up to an extra $2 million), and a 2nd year worth $10 million, with a player opt-out, it could totally hamstring the organization. If Holland is great, he gets to walk and sign a better deal; if he's terrible, he has the insurance of an extra year at a high salary. There is no risk for him. For the Jays, though, they are risking signing a player coming off a serious injury that could be a total waste of however many millions it takes to sign him (I'm guessing somewhere between $8-10 million). Signing Holland to a 2 year deal mitigates that risk (especially if it's a team option) because if he is great, you have him locked up for another year at a reasonable price. The player opt out negates that benefit to the team, so they are now taking on all the risk of Holland either getting injured again, or being ineffective, without much reward should he go back to being an elite reliever. Now, I'd love for the Jays to sign Holland, perhaps even if the contract contains an opt-out, but I understand the reluctance of teams giving those types of deals out. It's basically an insurance policy for the players; if they suck, or get injured, they have a guaranteed salary, and if they perform to the expectations of the contract (or even better it), they can opt out and get a better deal. It's a no-win situation for the team.

Been an interesting offseason in regards to player salaries. Front offices are clearly altering the way they view players; did anyone expect Chapman and Jansen to get paid far more than EE and JB? And now Trumbo getting under 40M; I know he's a one dimensional power hitter but the market took a huge left turn, it seems, this year.

Donaldson is one of the greatest player the Jays have ever had; I think it will take a number starting with a 2. I love watching him play, so there is certainly some sentimental/emotional reasons that I'd love to see him sign, but if he will take somewhere in the 7/210 range I'd be ok with that. If he demands something way more than that, then either trade him now to max his value, or ride him out and take the comp pick (assuming it's still there with a new CBA).

Yep...our downfall was the plate discipline. Everyone was trying to hit the 5 run home run instead of just trying to put the ball in play. That killed the offence.