Apr 24, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay (34) gets a new ball during the fourth inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citizens Bank Park. The Pirates defeated the Phillies 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

At the time of his trade in December 2009, fans were more than a bit upset over the team trading its ace to Philadelphia. It was an admittance that the team needed to rebuild, a waving of the white flag that fans knew was coming, but wanted to pretend would never come.

Now, three-plus seasons removed from his Blue Jays uniform, Halladay’s name still carries some weight in these parts. The true fans always held out hope that the Jays and Halladay would one day be reunited.

Unfortunately, the arrival of that day seems more and more in doubt.

Halladay was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Monday with shoulder discomfort that has apparently been nagging the 35-year-old right-hander for the better part of two weeks. He is slated to visit with Dr. Lewis Yocum to review the shoulder injury and discuss options moving forward, according to Jayson Start at ESPN.

The injury apparently dates back to an April 24th start against the Pittsburgh Pirates. In that start, Halladay threw six innings of 1-hit ball and striking out 8 in the process. However, the overall 2013 body of work for Halladay have been atrocious, with the former ace struggling to a 2-4 record, an 8.65 ERA, a 4.5 BB/9 ratio, and a -1.1 bWAR through 7 starts this season.

The final kick in the teeth came on Sunday, when the lowly Miami Marlins, they of the 30th-ranked offense in baseball, knocked Halladay around for 9 runs in 2.1 innings, giving Halladay his second straight start with a game score of 13 or lower.

Because of the middling results, coupled with his slip in performance during the 2012 season, the speculation that the end may be sneaking up on Halladay is running rampant. That may be a bit premature until an official medical report is out, but we are talking about a pitcher with more innings on his arm than just about any other in baseball.

Doc was a one-of-a-kind arm in a generation dominated by five-man rotations, specialized relievers, and pitch counts. Halladay has thrown seven different seasons with more than 220 innings pitched, including 266 and 250.2 in his Cy Young seasons of 2003 and 2010 respectively. He had a run of six consecutive seasons where he averaged more than 236 innings per season.

All that effort has lead to some fantastic results on the field. 2 Cy Young Awards, 7 Top 5 finished in the Cy Young voting, 8 All-Star selections, 201 career wins, a 3.37 career ERA, 2101 career strike-outs, and a cumulative bWAR of 65.5 over a 16-year career.

If this really is the last ride for Roy Halladay, he’s had one hell of career. But knowing Doc, something tells me he still has a little something left in the well to draw from.

Sept 15, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA: Minnesota Twins first baseman Justin Morneau (33) looks on from the dug out during the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox at Target Field. The White Sox won 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE

The Blue Jays were lucky enough to find a team like the Miami Marlins willing and ready to trade a handful of some of their best players. Scenario’s like that aren’t there every offseason.

They were also able to sign an above average hitter Melky Cabrera to a very cheap contract just because of his PED suspension. Without Melky’s PED suspension he would have been looking for much more money and years and probably would have wanted to play for a more popular team than the Blue Jays. That’s another scenario that doesn’t come across every offseason.

Going into the offseason Alex Anthopoulos said the Blue Jays needs were starting pitching, 2nd base, left field and either 1st base or DH depending on where Edwin Encarnacion plays.

The Blue Jays took care of left field by signing Melky Cabrera. There 2nd basemen will probably either be Maicer Izturis who signed a 3 year contract with the Jays or Emilio Bonafacio who was a part of the Marlins trade.

Alex Anthopoulos also said at the beginning of the offseason that the only starters guaranteed spots were Brandon Morrow and Ricky Romero. The 2 starting pitchers acquired in the Marlins trade Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle are now obviously also guaranteed spots in the rotation.

Every offseason fans of a sports team have delusional fantasies about things there team will do in the offseason. If you’re a Blue Jays fan so far this offseason has to have surpassed your wildest dreams. In a dream offseason the most popular dream scenario’s that Blue Jays fans have not only seem possible but fit the Blue Jays needs.

The only needs the Blue Jays have left are 1st base or DH depending on where Edwin Encarnacion plays and the other starting pitching spot. If the Blue Jays decide to do something at another position it’ll just be to upgrade not to fill a need.

Coincidentally 1B/DH and starting pitcher fit the description of the 2 players Blue Jays fans have been forever fantasizing about acquiring the most Justin Morneau and Roy Halladay.

Justin Morneau became the fall back Canadian first basemen fantasy after the Cincinnati Reds gave Joey Votto a huge contract extension. The Blue Jays trading for Morneau didn’t seem realistic at the beginning of the offseason because he’s only under control for 2013 and making 14 million dollars. A contract length and money term the Blue Jays didn’t operate with before this offseason. After acquiring Josh Johnson who is just under contract for 2013 and making 13.75 million acquiring Morneau doesn’t seem that crazy. Morneau, unlike the other players the Blue Jays players traded for probably wouldn’t have any hang ups about playing in Canada, his home country. Adam Lind is still owed 7 million but the way the Blue Jays have been throwing money around this offseason keeping him on the bench or eating some of his salary in a trade seems like a real scenario. Lind has also been one of the worst hitters in baseball the last 3 years so going into a season where the Blue Jays seem content on contending, keeping him around to play 1st is probably a risk not worth taking.

For many greedy Blue Jays fans it’s probably not a real dream offseason until they fill that last starting pitch spot with Roy Halladay. Doc is making 20 million in 2013 with a 20 million vesting option for 2014. That 2014 option has almost no chance of being picked up because Halladay had to pitch a certain amount of innings during his Phillies tenure for it to be picked up. He fell way behind that bench mark with the time he spent on the DL last offseason.

That means if the Blue Jays acquired him this offseason, they’d be the first to try to keep him after 2013 for much cheaper than 20 million. There’s no doubt that 20 million for an older Doc in 2013 is an over pay. Then again so is paying Mark Buehrle 19 million in 2014 and 20 million in 2015 but that didn’t stop the Blue Jays from acquiring him.

For the first time delusional Blue Jays fans fantasies don’t seem that crazy. It’s still highly unlikely the Blue Jays acquire Justin Morneau and Roy Halladay but it certainly would put the icing on the dream offseason cake.

To get some perspective into Phillies nation, I asked Ethan Seidel, a Staff Writer at FanSided’s Phillies site That Balls Outta Here, a few questions about his team, and in turn answered a few questions for him about the current state of the Blue Jays. Head over to their site if you’d like to see my answers as well.

Kyle Matte: It has obviously been a rough year for Phillies fans given the significant injuries to so many key players. The Braves and Nationals appear very real — they just handed the Blue Jays 5 losses in 6 games — do you think Philadelphia has a chance to catch them? How optimistic is the fan base?

Ethan Siedel: I would put optimism in Philadelphia at slim to none. Granted, we tend to be a pessimistic lot, but there isn’t much to get excited about. Not only are the Nats and Braves real contenders, but the Phils are still staring up at the Marlins and Mets in the standings. By the time Utley, Howard, and Halladay come back it will be too little too late.

KM: What’s going on with Domonic Brown? He was one of the top prospects in baseball before losing his rookie eligibility last year, yet he’s currently sitting in the minors with Juan Pierre manning left field.

ES: Domonic Brown has gone from untouchable to unwanted. The teams plan from spring training was to give him some consistency and keep him in AAA all year. As funny as it looks to be blocked by Juan Pierre, Brown hasn’t done enough in his time in Philly to warrant another promotion. A change of scenery could do him wonders, but that won’t gel with a team that looks to be on the verge of re-tooling.

KM: How do you see the Cole Hamels situation unfolding? Are the Phillies capable of giving him the contract he wants, or will he hit the open market (whether through trade or free agency)?

ES: One thing should be clear about the Cole Hamels situation: the Phillies CAN sign him. Despite shelling out big dollars to Halladay and Lee they have deep pockets thanks to selling out and an impending new tv contract. That said, every day they don’t sign him it gets less likely he will be in Philadelphia next year. I always thought they would find a way to get it done, but if they let him test the market (with the Yankees and Dodgers looming) it may be too late. He wants what CC Sabathia got, but I think Matt Cain‘s deal is a more accurate framework.

It shouldn’t have been shocking news. Every team in baseball has a payroll limit, just as the resources of every business are finite.

(more…)

#1: Kyle Jordan Drabek

Right-Handed Pitcher / 23 years old / 6’1″ 190 lbs

image courtesy of hackensackbulls.blogspot.com

Born: December 8th, 1987 in Victoria, Texas

Bats: Right   Throws: Right

High School Team: The Woodlands, Texas

College: NA

Drafted: by the Phillies in the 1st rd (18th overall) of the 2006 draft

Signed: for $1.55 million by Steve Cohen (Phillies)

Quick Facts:

• His stuff is said to be even better than his dad’s, and although he may be a great athlete due to his father, it’s apparently his mother who gave Kyle his competitive edge as indicated in this Jerry Crasnick of ESPN article.
• He readily admits to his competitive edge, as he was quoted as saying that “My brother and I had some real bad attitudes growing up,” and added “We were overly competitive.”
• The Drabeks apparently live in a 17,100 square foot home. Must be nice!
• He played short-stop as a 12-year old and throughout his high school days, always ranking well within the top players on his squad offensively speaking, as well as on the mound.
• One interesting fact about his time in High School is that Kyle threw a knuckle-ball instead of a change up when he needed a different pitch to go to than his fastball and curve.
• Pitched in the Aflac All-American High School Baseball Classic in 2005, along with Matt Latos and Chris Tillman. (more…)

Image courtesy of Rocket Sports & Entertainment

#4: Anthony Robert Gose

Outfielder / 20 years old / 6′1″ 190 lbs

Born: August 10, 1990 in Bellflower, California

Bats: Left    Throws: Left

High School: Bellflower H.S.

College: N/A

Drafted By: The Philadelphia Phillies in the 2nd round (51st overall) of the 2008 amateur entry draft and signed for $772,000

Jersey Number: #4 for the Dunedin Blue Jays

Quick Facts:

• 2010 Florida State League Post-Season All-Star
• 2009 South Atlantic League Post-Season All-Star (more…)

Even some of the leaders who were added last season by Anthopoulos, such as John Buck and Alex Gonzalez, have come and gone. So, many people in the industry rightfully question how much leadership remains in Toronto and question whether or not there’s enough of it on board. I say that the latter question is non-sense, and that there’s plenty of leadership remaining with the club for the 2011 season.

Some of the players that can be expected to take on a bigger leadership role with the Jays in 2011 are predictable, and others are not. What bodes well for the Jays is that those who do take on that role will likely do so because they want to, and also because they can do so with the respect of the remainder of the team.

Here are my candidates to become the likely leaders of the club in 2011: (more…)

Photograph provided by W. Sanders Photography - Wes Sanders

One of the many pitching prospects chosen high in the 2010 draft that could someday turn out to be an ace of the Jays staff is next in the big Texan…..

#14: Noah Syndergaard

Right Handed Pitcher /  18 years old / 6’5″ 200 lbs

Born: August 29th 1992, in Mansfield Texas

Bats Left   Throws Right

High School Team: Legacy High School, Mansfield Texas

College: Had a commitment to Dallas Baptist University before signing with the Jays.

Drafted: in the 1st sandwich round, 38th overall

Signed: for $600,000, $258,000 under MLB’s slot recommendation. Jim Callis of Baseball America notes that he got similar money to what would be expected had he been drafted in the 4th or 5th rounds, where he was expected to be drafted. He is represented by Xclusive Sports Management.

Quick Facts: (more…) ]]> http://jaysjournal.com/2011/02/08/top-50-jays-prospects-jays-journal-edition-14-noah-syndergaard/feed/ 11 http://jaysjournal.com/2011/02/06/win-some-lose-some-and-then-some/ http://jaysjournal.com/2011/02/06/win-some-lose-some-and-then-some/#comments Sun, 06 Feb 2011 14:44:39 +0000 Mat Germain http://jaysjournal.com/?p=5127 There are 3 things that have occurred, or are about to occur, recently that affect the 2011 season of the Toronto Blue Jays. Some of them are good for the Jays organization as a whole, some of them are bad, and others depend on the price and the landing spot. The topics in question are [...]

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