Blue Jays Podcast (VIDEO): Is This a Playoff Team?

This week’s episode of Jays’ Nest is a good one. We based Episode #24 on the question: Are the Toronto Blue Jays a playoff team? In order to answer that, we looked at the rotation and the possibility of adding a starter and/or a closer, which tied in with a reader question that led to a great discussion about the future of GM, Alex Anthopoulos. Our “Charging the Mound” segment returned with a venting session about Orioles manager, Buck Showalter. We also handed out our weekly awards, which saw my co-host, Keegan, eating crow.

Should the Blue Jays target Sonny Gray as a trade option? Would it work?

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Toronto Blue Jays

This week’s episode was prompted by a recent bet I made with a friend of mine. Simply, I bet that the Blue Jays will make the playoffs this season. In order to see if I made a good bet, Keegan and I looked at the current state of affairs in Blue Jays land. Right now, they are playing really well. And, they are doing so with contributions from guys like Chris Colabello and Kevin Pillar. that is about to change as Devon Travis is set to make his return very shortly. The addition of Travis will help with the infield. But, overall, it will allow the Blue Jays to use Ryan Goins as a late inning defensive replacement. He can even plug into the outfield to spell colabello who has looked less than sound. We like this idea because it allows for getting the most out of Goins without exposing his bat for prolonged periods of time.

When you are looking ahead to the chance of playing postseason baseball, the topic of the starting rotation has to be at the forefront. So, then the natural discussion to follow is whether the Blue Jays can pick up a pitcher via a trade. What is interesting is that each of the options that the Blue Jays have been linked to also has a potential closer available. We looked at Johnny Cueto and Aroldis Chapman, Cole Hamels and Jonathan Papelbon and even the less likely option of Sonny Gray and Tyler Clippard. Each of these come with a varying degree of likelihood. But, our conversation circled more around the fact that there is going to be a need to give up something. 

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“A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush” came up as a call to make a move soon. The Blue Jays covet their prospects, as do we fans. But, there is no guarantee that these prospects will pan out in the next 2-3 years. But, trading for a guy who will help right now is more of a guarantee. The Blue Jays have set themselves up to win right now. So, they’re going to have to do something. Of course, there will be a bidding war and the Blue Jays are in a position of need. So, they may be faced with some tough decisions. This conversation also included frustration on my part in trying to pry an impact starter from Keegan in our fantasy league. The parallels between myself as a GM and the Blue Jays are very similar. We lack the leverage. When you’re in a position of need, you have to fork over what you may not be comfortable parting with. Do you do it?

From there, we took a reader question from Alex of Prov., RI that wondered about the future of Alex Anthopoulos and John Gibbons based on how things go leading up to the trade deadline. Alex’s question asked if Rogers is in fact behind the decisions, are they setting up AA to be sent out of town. We’ve seen a reluctance to take on big contracts, etc, which would significantly impact what they do mid season. Ultimately, we think that if AA cannot pull off a move because of these restraints ownership puts on him, then his job is probably safe. But, if they give him the freedom to make a big move and it doesn’t work, that maybe more of a sign that he is in danger. This was a great question that led to some good discussion!

From there, we moved into our “Charging the Mound” segment. This week, Keegan went off about Orioles manager, Buck Showalter. The frustration stems from the seeming penchant for complaining about every single thing that doesn’t go the Orioles’ way. The Blue Jays and Orioles have had lots of drama including the ejections and ranting that happened in Friday’s contest that saw 3 Blue Jays ejected. Yet, somehow, Showalter managed to go unscathed. This was a difficult discussion given the respect that he garners around the league. Perhaps that respect gives him a longer leash with umpires, which probably adds to the frustration.

We wrapped up our show with our weekly awards. The Blue Jays Pitcher of the Week went to Marco Estrada with an honorable mention to R.A. Dickey who pitched wonderfully after learning of the passing of his father. Estrada took a no hitter late into the game, which made it more enjoyable for Keegan start to backtrack on his previous disdain for Estrada being in the rotation. Our Blue Jays Hitter of the Week goes to Kevin Pillar who is hitting .429 over the last 7 games.

Feel free to leave some feedback below. As always, we welcome your thoughts and would love to take your questions for all of our episodes!

AUDIO:

Jays’ Nest- Jays Journal- Podcast about Toronto Blue Jays – Jays’ Nest #24- Is this a Playoff Team?

VIDEO:

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