Jays Journal » Dewayne Wise

Jays Protect An Interesting Group From Rule 5 Draft

Jared Macdonald — Sat, 20 Nov 2010 19:45:03 +0000

(2:07pm) As announced on the official Blue Jays team site, the Jays have added outfielders Moises Sierra and Darin Mastroianni, pitchers Alan Farina and Joel Carreno, and catcher Brian Jeroloman to their 40-man roster, protecting them from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft on December 9th.

For anyone that is unsure about the details of the Rule 5 Draft, it is a draft of players who have been left off of their club’s 40-man roster, and the team with the worst regular season record picks first, concluding with the team that had the best regular season record. Each player is only eligible once a certain exemption period has elapsed. Only teams who have available spots on their 40-man roster can take part in the Rule 5 Draft, because any player selected is moved to that team’s 40-man roster immediately. Each player costs $50,000 and must remain on their new club’s Major League roster for the entire season, otherwise they will be sent back to their original club at half price. For a full in depth explanation on the Rule 5 Draft, you can always head here.

There have been notable players taken in the Rule 5 Draft that have had success at the Major League level including Joakim Soria, Dan Uggla, Johan Santana, Josh Hamilton, and Jose Bautista. The Toronto Blue Jays have a rich history with the Rule 5 Draft as well. Notable players that have been claimed by the Jays in the Rule 5 Draft include Willie Upshaw (1977), 1987 AL MVP George Bell (1980), World Series Champions Kelly Gruber (1983) and Manny Lee (1984), and Dewayne Wise (1999). (more…)

Non-Tender Candidates: 3B, OF

Jared Macdonald — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 04:50:19 +0000

As you’ve likely read at some point, the Jays finally revealed their highly knowledgeable 2011 coaching staff today. It was monumental that the Jays held onto Bruce Walton, Brian Butterfield and Dwayne Murphy, but the additions of Don Wakamatsu, Torey Lovullo, and Pat Hengten superbly round out the staff. It should make for a great atmosphere for the players to ask questions and grow even more in 2011.

Newly appointed bench coach Don Wakamatsu will not be blocked though should he get the nod for the New York Mets managerial position, but here’s to hoping he sticks with the Jays in 2011 and beyond, mainly because of his experience as a catcher to help J.P. Arencibia develop and as a Major League manager to give John Farrell constant quality feedback. On to the non-tenders…

Edwin Encarnacion – Encarnacion, evidently the “throw in” portion of the Scott Rolen trade with the Reds, really did a sufficient job as the Jays third baseman considering the Jays were lacking options at the hot corner. He endured constant criticism for his fielding throughout his tenure with the Jays and adopted the nickname E5, which was unfortunate considering he was popular with teammates in the clubhouse, had a great attitude going back to the minors, and he was one of the nicer players when I saw the Jays before games during their interleague series in San Diego in June. While, according to Fangraphs and UZR/150, Encarnacion had his best fielding season of his career, he did commit 18 errors in 95 games, which was the highest on the team.

Offensively, Encarnacion put together a .244/.305/.482 line in 96 games in 2010, and showed more patience at the plate with 60 Ks, tying his career low for Ks in a season. He is in his final year of arbitration, and the reason he is making a case for a raise (which he will likely get) from the $4.75M he made in 2010 is because of his power potential. This season marked only the 2nd time in his career he’s topped the 20 homer mark, hitting 21 dingers to go along with 51 RBIs. This was all boosted by his scorching end to the season, where he went 8-for-19 (.471) with 5 HR and 10 RBI in his final 5 games of 2010. (more…)

Rzepczynski, Litsch, and Waivers Coverage

Mat Germain — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 14:17:54 +0000

Marc Rzepczynski will be 25 years old on the 29th of this month and promises to provide many more outings as the one he served up on Friday night. I would say that the big lefty was “effectively wild” as he threw a 2-hitter (with no walks) against a decent lineup and provided the Jays with an outing that was befitting of what they would have received from Brandon Morrow – the pitcher that Marc was replacing. He plunked 2 hitters square in the back and threw a couple of pitches that Bob Uecker would have loved to call “Just a bit outside”. This may have unsettled Angels hitters and made them nervous as none of them wanted to take a bean to the noggin. Still, the excellent start was what Jays fans expected of Marc when the season began, as he had shown glimpses of his talent last season when he maintained a 3.67 ERA over 61 innings with 60 Ks and only 51 hits allowed. However, injuries slowed his 2010 season and may actually benefit the Jays down the stretch.

Benefit? Yes, as the Jays are facing some struggles from 2 of their SP who were injured all of the 2009 season and may be tiring – or are injured – as a result of the year off. I’m thinking of Jesse Litsch in particular, a pitcher who has an ugly 5.79 ERA with an equally ugly 1.457 whip this season. Even before he was put in the DL, Jesse was definitely not pitching like the pitcher we saw in 2008 when he went 13-9 with a 3.58 ERA and 1.233 whip. In my opinion, and after this great start from Marc, Jesse should either be shut down, sent down to AAA to work on his stuff once healthy, or moved to the pen so that he can limit his innings and start anew in 2011. If Tallet is sent packing in trade, Jesse could always become the long relief guy if he returns healthy. Rzepczynski would get a shot to prove himself, gain experience at the highest level, and would provide the Jays with a 3rd lefty in the rotation, all with different styles. (more…)

Brett Cecil Keeps Yank Bats Quiet

Mat Germain — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 21:28:22 +0000

I tuned into the game when it was 1-0 for the Yankees, the bases were loaded, Arod was at the plate with Robby Cano and Jorge Posada behind him – and the were no outs. “Here we go again” I thought, growing tired of the latest stretch of games where it seems that a 1 or 2 run lead by an opponent seems more than enough to beat the Jays and their silent bats. It was then that I was reminded just how great the Jays can be, and how great they will become for years to come. Brett struck out Arod with a fastball up in the zone, proceeded to strike out the best hitter in the AL in Robinson Cano, and got Posada to end the inning with a grounder to Aaron Hill. I sat here as silent as the crowd was in NY at that point, wondering, how in the world did this young kid get the poise to create this kind of magic? I don’t have an answer to that question, but I will say that it is exactly what the Jays need and that it resulted in one of the most needed wins of the season. (more…)

The Changing Jays Depth and Bench

Mat Germain — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 13:57:37 +0000

Although it may seem to go mostly unnoticed, Alex Anthopolous has made some pretty significant changes to the depth of the Jays overall since the season began a few short months ago. He has added experience to the bench, a lead off hitter to a line up that desperately needed one, acquired enough pitching to await those injured, and added to the minor league depth in many areas. All of these moves have helped enhance the Jays chances this season and could still play a major role in their success from here on out. Sure, it’s hard to top dealing the best pitcher in franchise history in terms of impact and media attention, but the tinkering is very interesting because it smooths out the bumps along the road and provides some safety about the future.

Here’s a revision of the in-season moves that have added to the ever-changing Jays depth and bench:

4/13/10: Every single Jays fan was aware that the Jays had no in-house SS option at any level in the minors that seemed to be on the rise or able to handle SS duties in MLB within the next 3-4 years. So what does AA do? Well, he steals what most believe was the best international SS prospect from under their hated rivals nose when he acquires Adeiny Hechavarria. Sure, the kid is rough around the edges and will take some time to develop, but a 1-2 year time-line is better than anything that was going to be available on the FA market or in the draft, so this was by far the most important and best acquisition made by AA.
4/15/10: The second acquisition was Fred Lewis from the Giants for peanuts and a bobble head of Alex Anthopolous that says “gotcha” continuously. We all know the impact he’s had in settling the top of the lineup and he’s learning to hit the inside pitches….oh oh…. (more…)

Brett Cecil Beat the Yankees, Now The Rays

Mat Germain — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 09:26:56 +0000

What more can you ask for from a 24 year old starter? He stepped up against 3 division rivals – including what most analysts will tell you are the 2 best teams in baseball – and simply shut them down to earn himself and the Jays 3 straight wins. Here are the lines of his last 5 starts:

@ Sea: 6.1 IP/7 HA/ 2 ER/1 BB/ 4 SO
@ LAA: 7.1 IP/ 2 HA/0 ER/ 2 BB/ 3 SO
vs BAL: 8 IP/ 4 HA/ 2 ER/ 0BB/ 7 SO
vs NYY: 8 IP/ 5 HA/ 1 ER/ 1 BB/ 5 SO
@ TB: 6.2 IP/ 3 HA/ 1ER/ 3 BB/ 2 SO (more…)

Jays Win Series Vs Yanks in Extras

Mat Germain — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 22:30:14 +0000

It was a very well pitched and managed game that displayed the relentless dedication to winning that both teams have this season. The Jays didn’t get much from the top of their lineup until the winning hit was driven in for the win in the 14th inning, but that in itself is worthwhile. Instead, it was the middle of the lineup (Wells, Gonzalez, and Overbay) that produced most of the offense for the Jays. It was enough to ensure Ricky Romero‘s great efforts in the game – going 8 strong innings with only 1 mistake, a 2-run shot given up to Derek Jeter – were not wasted. Following his efforts, the pen took over and aside from a hiccup from Kevin Gregg, they were simply outstanding on this day. (more…)