Brownie19

Do players actually bother responding to all the reports published about them? Had Bo been asked about this story in any recent interviews? You think Mr. Professional, Bo Bichette is going to want to be viewed as a whiny little bitch who pouts, complains and forces a trade as soon as things go sour - right before he's about to hit free agency? That just seems like a moronic thing to do.

That's true, but it seems highly doubtful that anyone is going to pay the added value to get Bo for this playoff run when they have no idea when he'll be healed or any indication he'll be able to stay healthy and/or perform as he's capable. I'm pretty convinced that we want to keep Bo or next year. He'll have all the incentive in the world to ball out and have a great season as he approaches free agency. Provided he still can and does play like the all-star he's been in the past, I have to think his value will be higher at this time next year than it is right now. There is a possibility teams will 100% believe in his talent and will pay full pop this offseason - or not.

You're not going to win this argument. BR doesn't have much credibility.

This is a really bad take.

Why would Bo do this 1 year before free agency? That's a terrible look for a guy looking to land a mega deal after next year. Jays have no reason to trade him now. They know he'll DEFINITELY give a f*** next year when he has to prove this year was just a blip in the radar.

Ah - sorry. I thought you were suggesting it was some aggressive move or something. You're just saying the Dodgers are good, which is true. Can he stay healthy though? That org is on a pretty awful run for that right now.

Dodgers whiffed on a few FA signings this year. Happens to even the best.

Why do you say that? The Dodgers, who's pitching is all essentially dead, called up a 25 year old starter from AAA? Seems rather normal to me.

I suspect the #'s suggested that Showalter got lucky. Call that balls of steel, but that probably backfires more than it works....even though he can save face afterwards by saying "if we're going to lose, it won't be Bonds who beats us" and most would just nod their head and agree.

Maybe - but that's a lot of assumptions you've drawn from one interview/report. You're going to interpret whatever you want - that's obvious, so no sense in debating it. I fully expect there are LOTS of current MLB players who aren't happy in their current situation. Do you think any of the vets on Toronto are super happy with the direction of the team right now? You think they are super stoked to be wasting the last productive years they have on a losing team that has no real shot of contending anytime soon? You think any quality player wants to play for the A's, White Sox or Rockies? Assuming an unhappy player is going to create a problem for the organization/clubhouse just doesn't add up - if it did, there would be problems across baseball. The Jays aren't going to give up Bo for free, which is probably the going rate for his services right now. They might get something of value for him in the offseason when his pussy heals. However, it is 100% not in Bo's best interest to cause a massive stink and/or dog it during his last year under contract. Regardless of whether he's happy or not, he has EVERY incentive imaginable to keep his mouth shut and work his f***ing tail off this offseason and next season to produce at an all-star level and prove that 2024 was a small blip in the radar and that he is the 4-5 WAR shortstop he's been the last 4 seasons. Who the f*** is going to want to give out an 8 year $200M deal to the little bitch who pouted and quit on his team because they weren't winning - when a BIG reason for that was his s***** play? It just doesn't add up for me.

Slang for alzheimer's

I think Kikucci draws a Top 100 prospect myself. 3.33 xFIP, 3.59 FIP, 10+ K/9. Kikucci shouldn't be mentioned in the same breath as 2023 Jack Flaherty (4.47 xFIP, 4.20 FIP, 8.7 K/9)

Dodgers aren't stupid Joe.

Jim - you must be getting oldtimers because this is 100% false. Bo specifically said he wanted to be drafted by the Jays because of their openness to let him continue with his unique swing. "The Toronto Blue Jays selected Bichette in the second round, with the 66th overall selection, of the 2016 Major League Baseball draft.[4] He said afterward that he turned down "about four offers" during the draft in order to go to Toronto."

I have no idea. I suspect he's very unhappy with his performance this year and with the teams performance overall. Does he look unhappy in the dugout this year? Yes, I think he does, but it's logical to suggest he may just be extreme frustration with his own play. He may be feeling like he's let his team down bigtime (which he has). Do I think he's given up and is just mailing it in, trying to force a trade out of Toronto (Vince Carter style)? I'm not sure I've seen any evidence of that. That's not really something you see in baseball very often. I haven't heard any reports that Bo isn't putting in all the hard work he typically does, or that he's out partying on the Town every night because he doesn't give a f***. Could he be frustrated with the direction of the team, which has seemingly let a good opportunity slip away (90 win team for 3-4 years)? That seems reasonable to me. But wouldn't half the team feel that way? You think Vlad, Springer, Gausman, Jansen, Berrios, etc. are super happy with the current direction of the team? Doubtful. Maybe some players hide it or suppress those feelings better. If that were the reasoning for wanting "out" then I think there would be several players who were unhappy and want out. And keep in mind that by principle, I don't put a lot of weight into what players say to the media.

You can choose to interpret whatever you want. But don't assume you're right about it. He very well could just have the view point that baseball is a business and trades are part of the sport. If he were traded, he'd accept and welcome that with a good attitude. That certainly sounds like something a professional like Bo would say. For you to interpret something - and then draw a conclusion that he needs to be traded now as it could lead to clubhouse issues is just really odd. Next, you'll probably blame the FO if they don't trade Bo before the deadline. All that will snowball out of your decision to interpret a quote. Of course there's a potential your interpretation is correct or that at some point, Bo will become unhappy in Toronto and/or become an issue in the clubhouse. If that happens, I'm sure you'll toot your own horn about how smart you are - even if these course of events could be completely unrelated.

Still curious what the #'s say. I just posted this in another thread, but I do find it odd that Judge doesn't receive ANYWHERE near the same treatment Bonds did throughout his career. Bonds was intentionally walked more in 1 season then Judge will be his entire career. I wonder if that's a reflection of the stats proving that intentionally walking someone is worse than facing them? Just a thought.

I fully expect the FO is weighing all those factors internally. Don't read into the s*** they tell the media. You also mis-quoted what Bo said.

Interesting question. I think he'd have challenged Bond's record of 73. I also find it interesting that despite running a 199 wRC+ over the past 3 seasons, Judge doesn't even remotely get treated like Bonds did. Judge has be intentionally walked 34 times over the past 3 seasons. Bonds was intentionally walked 120 times in 2004 alone! Bonds had a 3 year stretch where he was intentionally walked 249 times, which was 14% of his total PA's. Bonds had a .609 OBP with a 37.6 BB% and a 6.6 K% in 2004. Unreal stuff.

I know what you're saying, but I don't think it's overly unrealistic to see a bounce back season from Gausman and/or Berrios. You can't just exclude that as a realistic probability simply because we didn't get bounce back years from Springer, Kirk (or Varsho?) this year. I also think that people's version of a "full rebuild" may be different. I don't think selling off expiring contracts (or guys with only 1 1/2 years remaining) like Vlad, Bo, Gausman, Bassitt, Varsho, Green, Springer, etc. is unrealistic or a sign of a "total rebuild" - it's just a necessary move to retool/restock if the team isn't contending at the deadline in 2025. You can't afford to let those guys walk for nothing. Whether it's a "full rebuild" or not may depend on what the return for those player is. Are we getting AAA/ML ready players, or are we getting guys in the low minors who are more risk/reward moves?

They said yesterday the average OPS is like .703 (as Springer now has an above average OPS after yesterday's game). It's crazy how much offensive production has dropped across MLB. Vlad's .835 OPS puts him almost 40% better than the average hitter this year. I sure miss the offense we had during the steroid era.

I actually think there's a decent probability that things play out the way Joltin Joe has suggested. They trade all the rentals at this deadline because they do want to contend next year. As my good friend jaysblue suggested, if you squint really hard, you could see the Jays add offense (corner OFer, DH, maybe 3rd base), another SPer and some bullpen help via free agency. That coupled with bounce back years from Bo, Gausman, Berrios and hopefully some breakout years from the youngsters and there's a real possibility we can make the playoffs next year. But - there's also a real possibility that it blows up in their face again and they are big time sellers before the next deadline. Vlad, Bo, Gausman, Bassitt, Berrios, Springer, Varsho, Green, etc. could all be moved (yes, it's unlikely they would ALL go, but they'd all be potentially on the table). That cookie of potentially contending next year, combined with ownership pressure to keep the dome full to pay for the reno's may ultimately extend our rebuild time as player value will decrease as they inch closer to free agency. That said, in some cases (like Bo and Gausman), their values may not decrease as much if they can rebound next year (v. their current value). If they do pull it together and make the playoffs again in 2025 - perhaps it's all worth it.

OldFart making random things up seems par for the course unfortunately.

I'd be curious what the %'s say about putting the tying run on first and bringing the winning run to the plate. That's historically been a baseball "no-no", but obviously with the batter being Judge, that would skew the %'s a lot (getting close to how it would have been skewed back in the day with Bonds).

I had to listen to the game on the radio today, but it was a fun game to follow!