Blue Jays Quick Hits: Barnes, Bautista and Others

After an exciting Friday night game against the New York Yankees, several small bits of news emerged from Blue Jays Twitter. In this edition of Quick Hits, we take a look at some tidbits you may have missed.

Bautista Debuts as a Fire Frog

Former Blue Jay Jose Bautista, who just signed a minor-league contract with the Atlanta Braves, made his organizational debut Saturday as a member of the Florida Fire Frogs, Atlanta’s Class-A Advanced affiliate.

Joey Bats finished the day 1-for-3 with a walk, scoring a run in the fifth inning. He batted leadoff for the Fire Frogs as they took on the Lakeland Flying Tigers, Detroit’s Class-A Advanced affiliate.

Danny Barnes Stays Hot

It’s been no secret that Danny Barnes has been dominant so far this season for the Jays. In 10.2 innings, Barnes is 1-0 with a 0.84 ERA with 14 strikeouts and a fantastic 1.03 WHIP, not bad for a 35th round pick

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

In Friday night’s game against the Yankees, he pitched a scoreless seventh inning, throwing 22 pitches and allowing one hit, a single to Ronald Torreyes, and striking out Aaron Judge. I think it’s safe to say that Barnes has earned his spot in the bullpen.

Grandy Still Not Hacking

Coming into Saturday’s contest in the Bronx, Curtis Granderson has not yet swung at a first pitch this season. According to BaseballReference.com, Grandy has not registered a swing on a first pitch this year.

For his career, the Grandy Man has slashed .368/.373/.644 against first pitches, with 25 home runs and 19 doubles. While there’s not much to take away from this particular stat, it’s interesting nonetheless. This discipline shows that Granderson is a capable leadoff hitter, fully able to work counts and make opposing pitchers work.

Smoak and Travis Get Routine Off Day

According to manager John Gibbons, the off day for Justin Smoak and Devon Travis was not due to any injuries or concerns on the part of the coaching staff. When asked why they were sitting, Gibbons sarcastically replied: “isn’t everybody allowed to have a day off?”

Smoak and Travis should be in the starting lineup for Sunday’s series finale against the Yankees.

Next: Blue Jays: Randal Grichuk should be hitting better, here’s why