Blue Jays Morning Brew: Podcast and Winter Tour

The Toronto Blue Jays have announced the players joining their 2016 Winter Tour. That, the Jays Nest Podcast and more in Tuesday’s Morning Brew

You might not know it from looking out your window this morning, but the Toronto Blue Jays are just 40 days away from their pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training in Dunedin, Florida. So let’s grab a hot cup of the Morning Brew and check in on the news, stories and other Blue Jays coverage from around the web.

Podcast Ep. 55  –  The Jays Nest Podcast, featuring Shaun Doyle from Jays From the Couch and myself, launched the Russell Martin episode this morning. Our sincere gratitude to the Blue Jays organization for announcing the Drew Storen trade before we recorded this episode, thus giving us something to chat about!

More from Toronto Blue Jays News

• Matt Chapman has been exactly what the Blue Jays needed
• Blue Jays: The goalposts are moving in the right direction
• Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays advance to the Championship Series
• Blue Jays: Comparisons for Alek Manoah’s Second Season
• Blue Jays: Adam Cimber, the unlikely decision King

Shaun and I broke down what the addition of Storen could mean for the bullpen and the indirect impacts it could have on players in the starting rotation and the outfield. We also look at the potential extensions to Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista and debate whether or not Dalton Pompey is who the Blue Jays would prefer to see win the starting job in left this spring. Even scenic New Brunswick gets some love in this episode. Be sure to subscribe on iTunes here or for Stitcher on Android devices.

Winter Tour Announcement  –  The Blue Jays announced the players that will be dispatched as part of their upcoming winter tour on Monday. I’ve seen some complaints that the dates don’t cover enough ground geographically, but keep in mind that these trips represent the players taking time out of their own offseason (a shorter period than some might think). That’s valuable time to a ball player, especially when the have the option to be on a beach, not inside a Canadian mall on a snowy January day. Hopefully some of you get a chance to get out and meet your favourite Jays!

Chatting With Storen  –  Gregor Chisholm of MLB.com spoke with new reliever Drew Storen on his time with the Washington Nationals, and how the powerful righty sees himself fitting in with the Blue Jays. To Storen’s credit, he’s saying all the right things.

“I know, no matter what, any of those last nine outs are important. Whatever they want me to do, I’m going to go out there and do my job. And I’m excited to join the team, join the guys and really work towards a championship.” In a free agent year, however, a nice save total wouldn’t be a bad thing for Storen’s open market value.

Some Love for Doc  –  Good stuff here from Greg Wisniewski on Roy Halladay, who he argues is the greatest Blue Jays player of all time. He highlights a point that we’ve left out of many Doc discussions, too. In 2000, Halladay posted a 10.64 ERA over 67.2 innings with a 2.202 WHIP (!), leading to his demotion to single-A from which he rebuilt his career. The greatness of that feat alone cannot be understated.

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Get to Know Gabe  –  Another great prospect profile from Brian Crawford of JaysProspects.com here with Gabe Noyalis, the young pitcher who the Blue Jays recently signed despite not having pitched in organized baseball since 2012 with Division 3 Misericordia University. The 24-year old is reportedly touching 98 MPH with his fastball, and while he’s admittedly a long shot, Noyalis will be a great dark horse to follow deeper in the Blue Jays system this coming season.

Tulo & Stro  –  Dayn Perry over at CBS Sports looks at the importance of Marcus Stroman and Troy Tulowitzki to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2016. Lesser-known players and more uncertain roster positions may be getting more attention, but strong seasons from these two could have a bigger impact on the Blue Jays success than anything. Tulowitzki especially, as even a return to 90% of his old self at the plate would keep the offense afloat at 2015 levels.