Henderson Javier Alvarez was born in Valencia Venezuela on April 18th 1990, measures 6′0″ and weighs 190 lbs. That means he will turn 20 years old early on in the 2010 season and will pitch the majority of the season in either HiA Dunedin or AA New Hampshire, after making the jumps from the DSL, GCL, and LoA Lansing during the past 3 seasons. He’s a right handed pitcher with 3 average to above average pitches and could develop at least 1 more this season.
Alvarez throws a good fastball at 89-94 MPH on a consistent basis. Baseball America commend his [...]

Here are some quick Jays news, rumours, and possibilities:

GM Alex Anthopolous admitted to working tirelessly to attempt to fill the lack of a SS impact player the Jays currently have. He seems focused on one team since he admitted to trying to work out 3,4,5 team deals to get this one player, but as usual he kept the rest of the information confidential. It seems that this is Alex’s #1 priority.
The Jays also made it known around MLB that both LHP Scott Downs and RHP Jason Frasor are available and that the Jays are waiting for offers. I know that [...]

A brand new report from Jayson Stark which is summarized on MLBTR states that the Cubs have checking in with the Jays regarding relievers Jason Frasor and Scott Downs. Both have shown they can handle closing duties and we all know the Cubs have never been comfortable with Carlos Marmol in the role. This is very interesting for Jays fans, since anyone who reads Baseball America as avidly as I do knows that they recently ranked 5 Cubs SS prospects in their top 10 going into 2010. Here they are in order:
1 – Starlin Castro – The top Cubs prospect [...]

It seems Alex Anthopolous is an avid reader of Jays Journal, as I had mentioned he should bring Daniel Farquhar in for spring training – done, and also that the Jays should take advantage of Johnny Damon’s situation and give him a chance to “get back” at the team that has shunned him. If they make this deal and make Erik Bedard their next target I may have to get a crystal ball and new head gear. lol. As reported by MLBastien and relayed by MLBTR, the Jays are remaining quietly optimistic that they can land him and place him [...]

The Jays have assigned the following to the Blue Jays:

2B/3B Brad Emaus, played in AA (.336/.376/.712)  in 2009 and the AFL thereafter. Will battle both Mike McCoy and Jarrett Hoffpauir for an infield bench spot. Chances are Brad will begin the season in AAA and provide the Jays with infield depth in 2010.
RP Daniel Farquhar, pitched in HiA/AA (22 saves 1.87 ERA) in 2009. Will battle for a pen spot and could be called upon once trades/injuries occur, but Daniel is mostly getting a look to see if he can handle AAA in 2009. I’m very happy he’ll get to [...]

In order to have success in MLB, you must have a strong catcher who can manage both handling the games, and hits in clutch situations. The Jays have lacked this for a long time, but things they are a changing folks. The Jays have concentrated much of their recent efforts in steadying themselves behind the plate and it seems to be working. From Arencibia to Ochinko, the Jays have a good stream of offensively and defensively capable catchers coming up the ladder. Here they are in order of talent:
1. Travis d’Arnaud: will be 21 in 2010. He was the [...]

The Blue Jays signed Shawn Hill to a minor league deal and although he won’t be available to pitch until at least June, he adds yet another depth piece to Jays pitching. He’s had nothing but bad luck since he broke into the league, and I’m sure most hope that the Canadian pitcher will be able to turn things around. Good luck to him!
As posted on MLBTR, the Philadelphia Phillies GM Ruben Amaro “told reporters today that the club may not be able to retain Jayson Werth as they already have $130MM committed to just 14 players for 2011, writes [...]

The Jays have been part of 23 drafts since they came into being in 1977. Between 1977 and 1982, the Jays enjoyed 5 top 5 picks in the draft, with SS Augie Schmidt being the last at 2nd overall. Since then, over 27 years from 1983 to 2009, the Jays have had 41 picks in the 1st round (supplementals included). In those 27 drafts, the Jays received a top 10 pick only 5 times. Of those 5 top 10 picks, the Jays chose C Matt Stark (1983) 9th overall, RP Billy Koch (1996) 4th overall, OF Vernon Wells (1997) 5th [...]

The Jays sent some cash to the Giants today in order to grab 6′5″ 230 lbs RP Merkin Valdez, who was going to be lost by the Giants due to the need to make a spot for Aubrey Huff on their roster. It’s unclear how much cash the Jays sent the Giants, but it’s likely to be a small amount as Merkin has little chance of cracking the 2010 bullpen.
Things you need to know about Merkin (Mola) Valdez.

He was signed by the Atlanta Braves in 1999 when he was still known as Manuel Mateo. How you get from being called [...]

The recent interview I conducted with Hotstove.com is included below. I will be adding more of these types of interviews as the season wears on, and have already received word from Jays minors sources that I will be able to get some interview questions answered by players we have interest in. Here is quicker access to the interview:

The main page: http://www.hotstove.com
Allows for quick navigation to the top stories posted and to comment quickly about these posts. It provides access to a free agent list, to subscribe through Twitter, and has association with the YES Network, which is not that easy [...]