Blue Jays Morning Brew: Stroman, Prospects, MLB Draft notes

The Blue Jays pick 21st in the MLB Amateur Draft on June 9th

Draft Chatter  –  With the MLB Amateur Draft under one month away, prospect talk and mock drafts will begin to pile up. Over at Sportsnet, Shi Davidi looks at how Ross Atkins and the front office will look to restock the system.

Davidi adds that the Blue Jays recently ran a six-round mock draft to become accustomed to the group’s drafting tendencies, and that assistant general manager Tony LaCava will be more involved in this year’s process.

The DH Rule  –  John Lott at Blue Jays Nation gives you this analysis of the irrationality of the DH rule, which is as strong an argument against it as you’ll find. I’m in full agreement that, regardless of whether a pitcher hits or not, it needs to be universal between leagues.

Could you imagine the AFC and NFC having a different positional rule in football? How about the (old) Eastern and Western Conferences in the NHL?

Storen’s Struggles  –  At TSN, Steve Phillips makes the argument that Drew Storen’s struggles aren’t just physical, but also mental, noting that losing the closer’s role to Roberto Osuna “had to be disappointing.” That’s not exactly something which can be quantified, but until the reliever straightens it out on the mound, the search for answers (reasons?) will only dig deeper.

Tulo’s Struggles  –  Are you looking for a warm hand on your shoulder, reassuring you that everything will be okay with Troy Tulowitzki? Dave Cameron’s article over at FanGraphs is not where I’d recommend starting, but grit your teeth and dive in, it’s a must-read.

Jerry Howarth Throwback  –  I’m always thrilled to see pieces like this over at Sportsnet, where they’ve posted the score sheet used by Jerry Howarth in the first Blue Jays game he called. For those strange few (of which I am admittedly one) who find beauty in a marked-up score sheet, Jerry’s are some of the best.

Next: Mark Shapiro's difficult draft history in Cleveland

Graduating Prospects  –  Nick Dika at BP Toronto looked at the Blue Jays’ graduating prospects and how they stack up against the rest of baseball.

Stroman’s sink  –  Marcus Stroman is forcing opposing hitters to pound a lot of pitches into the ground this season, resulting in an excellent ground ball rate. Brendan Kennedy of The Toronto Star breaks down Stroman’s pitch arsenal from the ground up, and it’s a great read for any Blue Jays fan looking to better understand the young ace’s game.

Stroman’s sink, part two  –  Brendan Kennedy has an accompanying article here that’s well worth your time, too, where he talks to Pat Hentgen about Stroman’s sinker.

“I think Stroman’s sinker might actually be better than Halladay’s, but Halladay just did it for so long,” Hentgen said.