Blue Jays Notebook

Here’s an assortment of Blue Jays (and prospect) notes to get you by until tomorrow:

• Adam Lind has looked very good this spring, and has been acclimating himself to first base quite nicely. In batting practice, he was consistently pulling the ball to right field and hitting absolute bombs over the wall and onto the Jays’ clubhouse roof. Hopefully Lind is able to regain his 2009 form this season and provide some pop to the Jays’ lineup.
• Speaking of people who have looked good this spring, it’s no secret that Brett Lawrie has impressed almost everybody that has seen him play, and I’m included in that group. Obviously he’s been great at the plate, but defensively it looks like he’s been playing third base for years. Not only can he make off balance, accurate throws across the diamond, he has the speed to rush in and field any bunts, even catching a botched one before it hit the ground in one case. He’s also been working on his defense with the Jays’ resident defensive guru John McDonald.
• A player who has really been growing on me is Rajai Davis. Sure the power he has displayed this spring through his leadoff home runs has been a nice surprise, but his speed in the outfield and on the bases is what Jays fans should really be looking forward to this season. Davis worked very hard this past offseason with his leg workouts and with a speed coach, and he feels even faster than he was last year when he stole 50 bases.
• Jays manager John Farrell has been impressed with Brandon Morrow this spring, which is nothing new considering his quotes about Morrow in articles on Bluejays.com. One thing in particular he’s been impressed with, though, is the way Morrow has been complementing his four-seam fastball with his changeup and two-seamer.
• Henderson Alvarez,  who was optioned to minor league camp last Friday, was working with Jays pitching coach Bruce Walton and ace Ricky Romero on his pitching mechanics, specifically what appeared to be an arm slot/delivery type issue. Hopefully some hard work by Alvarez this spring will translate into more strikeouts for him this season and the recognition from scouts that he deserves.
• Prior to throwing his bullpen session last Thursday, rehabbing free-agent acquisition Octavio Dotel was playing catch on flat ground and working with Jays trainers on his landing foot position, among other things.
• Rehabbing second baseman Aaron Hill looked good in minor league action when he was a DH last week, but isn’t bolting out of the box by any means, being cautious overall with his return from his quadriceps injury. One of his at-bats in a minor league game was against Asher Wojciechowski, the No. 9 prospect on our top 50 prospects countdown.
• Venezuelan catcher Santiago Nessy — no. 48 on our top 50 prospects list — has been catching promising southpaws Griffin Murphy and Mitchell Taylor in bullpen sessions recently, among others.
• Gustavo Pierre has looked good in minor league games, making his usual, slick plays at short and showcasing his speed on the bases somewhat.
• Newly-signed shortstop Chris Woodward has been spotted standing on his own off the bench in minor league games, but his in game performance has been okay so far, including his grand slam and slick double play today in the Jays’ Triple-A minor league game, according to Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star.
• Face of the franchise Jose Bautista has clearly shown his camaraderie with other Spanish-speaking players on the club, frequently being seen around camp in a small group with Yunel Escobar, Juan Rivera, and Edwin Encarnacion.

-JM

Like what you read and want to stay informed on all updates here at Jays Journal? Follow Mat and I on Twitter (@JaysJournal and @bigja12), “Like” our Facebook page, or grab our RSS feed!