Quick Jays Quirps: 24-March-2010

The Following are Jays news, happenings, and opinions around the MLB world:

• Jordan Bastien was asked some questions by fans here. One interesting question has him establishing the 2012 lineup based solely on current Jays and their prospects. He listed it as follows: “1. Hechavarria, SS, 2. Hill, 2B, 3. Lind, DH, 4. Wells, CF, 5. Snider, LF, 6. Arencibia, C, 7. Wallace, 1B, 8. Moises Sierra, RF, 9. Brad Emaus, 3B” All-in-all it’s not a bad looking lineup. It could use some power or speed at 3B, but it looks very promising overall. One omission made was Travis d’Arnaud, who I believe will force JP to DH or play 1B a lot of the time, and will also result in Adam Lind seeing LF and 1B time. If Hechavarria is as good as advertised, the Jays have a pretty settled lineup. Within the same piece, he also answers a Hechavarria question.
• Shaun Marcum will be the opening day starter.
• In one of the weirder stories of the spring, Casey Fien returned to the Tigers and was so mad about leaving the Jays organization that he asked why he was released. The Jays responded by saying he was a liability. A liability? I’m pretty sure all pitchers are liabilities, so there has to be something more to this story. I’m not sure we’ll ever know what, but an educated guess would be that he didn’t fit the plans for the pen or had some personal issues with the staff or players.
• Brian Tallet told the Toronto Sun’s Bob Elliot that he was working on his changeup in his last outing and in getting it in the lower part of the strike zone. Unfortunately, he got it up a little too high and it needs more work, but he seems dedicated to getting it working to make himself more effective as a starter.
• The same Bob Elliot piece later adds that if Edwin Encarnacion can’t play at the beginning of the season, that Adam Lind will go into LF, Jose Bautista will go to 3B, and Randy Ruiz will fill in at DH. Isn’t this the best hitting lineup the Jays have for 2010? The way Ruiz has been crushing the ball, the Jays could be looking at Adam Dunn like numbers from the big man, so I ask you this: how do you bench 30-40 home run potential with a .275 plus average in return for a .230 average and 20-25 HRs? Something will need to be done to make sure Ruiz gets maximum ABs this season.
• Meanwhile, the Toronto Star’s Richard Griffin addresses the Jose Molina issue. The best Molina quote: “I talk to all of the players here and I tell them, I’m not here to just see the year go by, teach guys and lose. I want to teach guys and win. You don’t learn this game losing.” Molina may be the most under rated add in this season, but his presence should help settle the young staff the Jays have. I’m not sure how he’ll be dealt with if the Jays want to bring JP Arencibia in at some point in 2010, but I do hope it’s with respect and that he would get a chance to play elsewhere.
• The Jays begin the season against the Texas Rangers (3 games in Texas including their opener), then head to Baltimore (3 games including their opener), followed by the Jays home opener against the White Sox on April 12th. The fact that such a young team starts on the road may be a good thing, as it lets them get the jitters out of the way and to loosen up as a team on the road before they play in front of the home crowd. Facing the Texas pitching first may be a blessing in disguise, since the majority of their starters have looked “questionable” this spring. Let’s hope that kick starts the Jays bats! Here is where you can find the rest of the Jays schedule.