Blue Jays Morning Brew: Jose Reyes on health, Russell Martin catcher R.A. Dickey, and more

It’s funny seeing how the media is scrambling around the Toronto Blue Jays in the early days of Spring Training. With the plethora of available story-lines available at the start of camp, each day seems to bring with it a theme, a common thread shared by many.

For day 1, it was the Dioner Navarro/menage trio of catchers controversy and how the team would deal with it. Day 2 brought the arrival and clubhouse leadership skills of Josh Donaldson, and to a lesser extent the discussion on clubhouse culture with former Blue Jays first baseman Adam Lind.

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So what did Day 3 bring?

Well, initially it brought with it the return of the catching controversy, with a lot of the early reports highlighting the fact that Russell Martin was catching R.A. Dickey in the bullpens for the first time on Wednesday. John Lott of the National Post has an excellent breakdown of the matter, including the attention the media was paying to the event. And while Martin did let a few slide by him on day 1, he seemed to get some glowing reviews from Dickey and looked generally comfortable doing so.

In fact, here’s an excellent video of Martin telling Dickey to surprise him on each pitch. Martin wanted to get comfortable with moving to the ball as needed, and generally speaking, he looked comfortable.

While Dickey made a good point of noting that he will not influence the decision regarding who his catcher is (or as we know it around these parts, “the fate of Josh Thole”), Scott MacArthur of TSN is apt in noting that Dickey will still need to provide his endorsement. Scott also catches up to Josh Thole, who offers some fairly candid thoughts on the matter, noting that his preference is to stay with the big club.

Gregor Chisholm and the team at MLB.com did a nice job of focusing on other items on Wednesday. In particular, Chisholm addressed the competition at second base, catching up with both Devon Travis and Maicer Izturis. For Travis, he understands that he has an opportunity here in Toronto that he didn’t have in Detroit, and he intends to do what he can in camp to seize it. Meanwhile, Maicer Izturis would appear to be the favorite to win the job. However, Izturis is coming off a freak knee injury last season and needs to prove he can be both healthy and productive before he’s handed the job at the keystone.

Elsewhere in the competitive world of Spring Training, Steve Delabar tells Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star that he feels better this spring and intends to put the struggles of 2014 behind him. An All-Star in 2013, Delabar could be a huge boon for the bullpen if he can prove to be healthy and productive again in 2015.

Health continues to be a big focus of the day, with our final stop being with Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet. Zwelling had an interesting piece on how Jose Reyes feels that the team could be very good in 2015, if he’s healthy. The article discussed the rapport developed between Reyes and Josh Donaldson over the winter, as the two have tried to become comfortable with each other and prepare to share the same side of the infield. For that to happen though, Reyes has to stay on the field and it all starts with his hamstrings. He also provides an interesting note on taking it easy on the turf, becoming yet another player to speak up about how the turf affects the body.

Finally, if you missed any of the updates we had on Jays Journal over the last few days, here are some of the highlights that you should check out.

– Blue Jays Minor League Depth

Craig Borden takes us through some of the arms we may see throughout the season as the team tries to piece together its bullpen for 2015.

– Miguel Castro likely to start season in Dunedin

Flame-throwing righty Miguel Castro has received a lot of good publicity this spring, both from his stature (6’5″) and his high-90’s and occasionally 100 MPH heat.

– Where will Jon Berti land for Blue Jays in 2015?

Our Ryan Mueller loves his long-shot prospects. Jon Berti may not raise many eyebrows, but he could become an interesting depth piece with his versatility should a need arise.

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Next: Adam Lind airing some grievances?