JaysForever

I know it is early, but swapping Okamoto for Bo seems to have been a great piece of work, especially when you factor in the money.

He only has to be on the roster for 90 days. They will do some roster gymnastics for 90 days to slip him through.

I was wondering if DS was going to make the team for sure. Now with Sanchez, DS is cemented as a platoon LF and is not going anywhere.

I think Lukes is gone. They need a middle inflielder who bats right. That could be Jimenez right now who is out of options, or someone they grab through a trade. If Jimenez can somehow platoon with Giminenz at SS, that would be great. But he has not shown anything yet at the MLB to make me think that with any certainty. The Jays also have alot of fringe mlb outfielders who could make a jump this year or next. So I do not think they will have any inclination to hold onto Lukes. It is probably the time to cash in. Arias, Pinango, Schreck are all LH outfielders.

I doubt that he could have won a couple of GGs in Japan and be horrible with the glove. I am not really worried.

Barger is a lock for RF based on the current roster. He looked better out there towards the end of the season with his rocket of an arm. Santander is in LF and signed longterm. I think Springer will put up decent numbers and extends another year. So Santander's move to DH is probably premature right now. I don't think this something to worry about until probably 2028. CF is the only question mark in the outfield because Varsho is a free agent. So long as they extend Varsho, the outfield stays intact. In another 2 years maybe Arias is knocking on the door. Or one of the Pinango or Schreck surprise. Either way, I think this panic about the the shape of the outfield longterm is premature.

Isn't JImenez out of options. If you have to chooose 13 position players right now, he isn't on the roster.

Donovan 😉

I do not see a point in these lateral moves. These players are not notably better than Lukes. There are also some outfielders in the minors that could be knocking on the door. At least Donovan gives you a starter, and makes Schenider expendable. That is an upgrade.

The Cards are in rebuild mode so I imagine deal would happen before the start of the year. They have 2 players on the market which are good fits for the Jays. Donovan and Jojo Romero.

Donovan would be an everyday player and a lefty bat for the top of the lineup. You then rotate Gimenez, Clement, Barger, and Okamoto for 3 spots. Against lefties, Clement, Okamoto, and the better of Barger or Gimenez. Against righties, Barger, Gimenez l, and the better of Okamoto or Clement. Whoever is left over becomes a pinch hitting option off the bench late in games. This probably means Schneider is out. And the bench is Straw, Heisman, and Lukes with who ever is left out amongst the players above. Schneider is probably included in the trade. I am more wondering what kind of prospects you have to give up. Throwing in a surplus outfielder is not a problem since the jays have too many of them.

I am curious what a reasonable trade looks like. I have not seen any detailed rumors when it comes to him. Which makes me think that noone is really close.

I am surprised that Donovan hasn't been traded yet. STL have a few left handed hitters that could be on the move. No idea what it would cost to get Donovan but he would be a good fit for the Jays. He takes over 2B and lets you platoon Clement/Gimenez. Donovan has also played ss and outfield so there is some flexibility there.

Is it safe to assume that Loperdifo is nothing more than a 4th/5th outfielder? Or can he improve by 2027? His numbers last year in the majors were good (only 96 at bats) against LHP and RHP, but they seem much better than his minor league numbers. So it is probably a flash in the pan. RJ Schrek seems to be on a better trajectory.

The Philly rumors are just a ploy to create a bidding war. It does not look like they are close. I think agents are getting desperate since no one is increasing their offers.