Blue Jays Morning Brew: Platoons, Playoffs & Targets

Jul 2, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Adam Lind heads for first after hitting a single in the Jays 7-4 win over Milwaukee Brewers at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports

Good Morning. Wipe the sleep from your eyes because we’ve brewed up a fresh pot of Blue Jay goodness to start your day. Here’s your Blue Jays Morning Brew.

Brendan Kennedy looks at the weird splits of Adam Lind and Steve Tolleson. Lind can’t hit lefties, but is raking against righties. Tolleson is the opposite. Kennedy points out that the Blue Jays exploited match-ups to produce a wicked May.

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But have had struggles since. For me, the most important part of this piece at The Star is when Kennedy says “[Some teams]

have historically used platoon advantages to great success, but it’s also a mark of a team with too many flawed players.” The Jays have a number of players who have specific talents, but few that are…let’s say…’well rounded’.It was also really interesting to get Lind’s take on his southpaw sorrow.

At the National Post, John Lott

gives us the aftermath of the debut

Daniel Norris will never forget. Apparently, the 21 year old imagined facing avid Ortiz and WANTED to face him. That’s the kind of grit this team needs. To boot, he threw a 3-2 curve ball, his first curve in that count all year. In case you were vacationing on Mars and missed it, here is Norris’ debut. Even if you’ve seen it, it’s worth another look.

Also, I’m pretty sure Buck Martinez called him Daniel Morris.

The debut of Daniel Norris may have the Blue Jays excited about their future. But, I’m not so sure about the IMMEDIATE future. But, apparently, the club is getting prepared for the playoffs. Even though, they are listed (as of Sunday evening) on MLB.com as having a playoff probability of 0.6%, the Blue Jays have announced prices for tickets should the team make the post season.

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Sean Fitz-Gerald at the National Post,

tells us

that prices for the Divisional Series will run from $35 to $230. And, should they pull off the mother of all miracles, World Series tickets will go for a minimum of $100 and up to $350. I know that preparation is important, but…the playoffs? Really?

Finally, Jon Reid at Bleacher Report gives us three free agents the Blue Jays should target. He thinks it’ll be tough to lure him out of New York, but Alex Anthopoulos should target Brandon McCarthy. He argues that top pitching targets like Jon Lester are out of the Blue Jays range. This bothers me because it’s like starting your shopping at the discount store. how do you know you can’t afford the name brands if you don’t even try? Let them tell you “No”. Then set your sights lower. Go after Lester. Why not. What is the worst that can happen? He’ll laugh and then clear his throat and say, “Uh…I mean…thanks, but no thanks.” I don’t like the idea of setting your sights low for fear of rejection.