Blue Jays 2010
- Thread starter shack
- Start date
Blue Jays might have to make Lind into a platoon player if he keeps hitting against lefties the way he has all season.
Blue Jays have a terrible record against left handed pitchers and it's not surprising that their first loss to Baltimore this year came in a game started by a lefty.
Lind is biggest part of the problem because he bats only .121 against port siders which is a huge problem esp when this hitter is your DH.
Lind hits .121 vs lefties and .266 versus righties
http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_player_splits.jsp?c_id=tor&playerID=452252&statType=1
Vernon is also a problem versus Lefthanded pitchers. He hits .287 versus right and .196 versus left
http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_player_splits.jsp?c_id=tor&playerID=150484&statType=1
Blue Jays have a terrible record against left handed pitchers and it's not surprising that their first loss to Baltimore this year came in a game started by a lefty.
Lind is biggest part of the problem because he bats only .121 against port siders which is a huge problem esp when this hitter is your DH.
Lind hits .121 vs lefties and .266 versus righties
http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_player_splits.jsp?c_id=tor&playerID=452252&statType=1
Vernon is also a problem versus Lefthanded pitchers. He hits .287 versus right and .196 versus left
http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/individual_player_splits.jsp?c_id=tor&playerID=150484&statType=1
I agree. Apparently he's breaking records for giving up runs in the number of games he pitches in (21 out of 24 I read somewhere).
Last night was the 13th game. Nice come back though.
Drabek's debut
6 IP, 3 ER, 9 hits, 3 BB, 5 Ks. 88 pitches (53 strikes), fastball topped out at 95 mph, settling in around 92-93 mph. Didn't use the changeup very often, but he threw his curve for strikes and kept the hitters guessing. Showed composure on the mound and worked himself out of a couple of tough spots; too bad our offense couldn't give him any run support.
Not a bad debut for our future ace, but he's still got a long way to go... let's hope he builds on his success in future starts, especially when he faces the Yankees in a couple of weeks!
6 IP, 3 ER, 9 hits, 3 BB, 5 Ks. 88 pitches (53 strikes), fastball topped out at 95 mph, settling in around 92-93 mph. Didn't use the changeup very often, but he threw his curve for strikes and kept the hitters guessing. Showed composure on the mound and worked himself out of a couple of tough spots; too bad our offense couldn't give him any run support.
Not a bad debut for our future ace, but he's still got a long way to go... let's hope he builds on his success in future starts, especially when he faces the Yankees in a couple of weeks!
The defense gave Drabek a nice helping hand tonight as well. In fact I enjoyed the defense from both teams. Lots of terrific plays from Markakis, Izturis, Wigginton, Hill (who made two nice defensive plays - one on the DP and one on the relay play to home plate) , Buck (throwing out a base-runner at 2nd base) , Snider (I guess Omar Malave's tutoring before the game paid immediate dividends), Wells, etc. The defense tonight was thoroughly enjoyable to watch.6 IP, 3 ER, 9 hits, 3 BB, 5 Ks. 88 pitches (53 strikes), fastball topped out at 95 mph, settling in around 92-93 mph. Didn't use the changeup very often, but he threw his curve for strikes and kept the hitters guessing. Showed composure on the mound and worked himself out of a couple of tough spots; too bad our offense couldn't give him any run support.
Not a bad debut for our future ace, but he's still got a long way to go... let's hope he builds on his success in future starts, especially when he faces the Yankees in a couple of weeks!
Drabek is going to have to develop a decent change up to confuse hitters because the Orioles were hitting him pretty good tonight. With a WHIP of 2.00 it's lucky for him more runs weren't scored.
Drabek also needs to do a lot of work to improve his control too because (53 strikes and 35 Balls tonight) walks will kill you up here.
Wouldn't surprise me if he starts next season at Las Vegas and gets the call in May or June unless of course he has a really good spring training.
Jays have no options on Jesse Litsch so assuming 1 - 4 are Romero, Marcum, Cecil and Morrow and Litsch and Drabek are competing for #5 slot Drabek has to show significant superiority to get that slot, - assuming everyone's healthy and Litsch isn't moved to the bullpen.
Drabek also needs to do a lot of work to improve his control too because (53 strikes and 35 Balls tonight) walks will kill you up here.
Wouldn't surprise me if he starts next season at Las Vegas and gets the call in May or June unless of course he has a really good spring training.
Jays have no options on Jesse Litsch so assuming 1 - 4 are Romero, Marcum, Cecil and Morrow and Litsch and Drabek are competing for #5 slot Drabek has to show significant superiority to get that slot, - assuming everyone's healthy and Litsch isn't moved to the bullpen.
I think our defense has been better than expected, and I might be the only one who thinks this, but I'll actually be a little sad to see Overbay leave. He doesn't hit for as much power as a prototypical 1B, but his defense is outstanding, and having a solid infield behind our young rotation has given them a huge boost in their development. Encarnacion has to go, he had hands of stone even before his wrist problems; there's been talk about moving Hill to 3B to make room for that Cuban kid in the minors, but that probably won't happen until 2012 at the earliest.
I agree that if we finish at .500, it'll be a successful season, but I disagree about the milestones part. Lyle Overbay has 19 HRs, and his career high is 22; John Buck has 18, which ties his previous career high. They're both free agents at the end of the year, so I'm sure they'd like to cross the 20-homer plateau if possible. Vernon Wells has 27 HRs, and I'm sure he'd like to get to 30, and of course Bautista is shooting for the club record, which means that every home run he hits for the rest of the year will be a milestone for the Jays. Romero and Marcum are within range of 200 IP (the threshold for being considered a "workhorse") and Kevin Gregg only needs one more save to tie his career high of 32, and I'm sure he wants to establish himself as a consistent closer, whether he's playing for us or for someone else.
The good thing is that the milestones and the tough schedule will ensure a competitive team for the rest of the year. I think it's really important for the Jays to finish strong, and not let up down the stretch; if they want to compete in a couple of years, they'll have to learn how to play the whole season from start to finish (young starters on innings limits being the notable exception). Kudos to Cito for making sure that they do.
I guess that's a possibility, but Escobar has great range, and it seems like a waste to put such a great defensive SS at 3rd base. Hill, on the other hand, has been struggling in the field this year, and his range seems a lot less than it was before.
Here's what Richard Griffin (who's actually pretty decent, for a Star reporter anyways) had to say:
http://thestar.blogs.com/baseball/
I dunno if I'm totally convinced about Hill at 3rd, but if I needed any more proof that Escobar belongs at short, this video seals the deal for me:
[video=youtube;ogYXNi7vLEM]http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=10318395[/video]
Play of the year!
Good point. There are some Jays shooting for "personal best" milestones. Anyway, bring on the Red Sox Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
I have seen the future and the future looks bright. Drabek did good in his debut.
If the Jays could get Overbay for a lot less then the $7.mil he gets for this season do you think they should resign him ?
I would like to see him resigned for around $4, no more then $4.5 per, for three or four years.
If the Jays could get Overbay for a lot less then the $7.mil he gets for this season do you think they should resign him ?
I would like to see him resigned for around $4, no more then $4.5 per, for three or four years.
I love his defense, but I wouldn't give him a 3- or 4-year deal at this point. Part of the reason AA traded Brett Wallace for Anthony Gose is because first base is an easy position to fill, and I wouldn't want to be stuck with Overbay in 2013 or 2014. If he came back on a one-year deal with a mutual option, I'd be ok with that, but he's looking for a long-term contract (which he deserves) and that's just not a good fit for us.
As much as I'll miss his defense when he's gone, I just don't think he should be part of our long-term plans.
Oh ga-damn. You are correct. I just checked his age, he is 33(Jan). I do not know why I thought he was 29 or 30 ? Yes, definitely go year by year.
I would love to get Votto out of Cincy.
Adam Lind might play 1st base in 2011. Dispite his .230 B.A., he has still hit 22 HR's.
That'd be a dream come true, but I really doubt it'll happen - Cinci is a team on the rise, and Votto's the cornerstone of their offense. They'll be looking to lock him up for his remaining arbitration years during the offseason, and they might even try to buy out his first year or two of free agency.
***
I actually shared a diamond with Votto on a couple of occasions, back when we were teenagers. We never played at the same level in summer leagues because he was light-years better than me, but we went to rival high schools and played a few games against each other.
When he was only 14, I saw him crush two massive homers over the fence at Connorvale (the most pitcher-friendly park in Toronto, deeper down the lines than the SkyDome with tons of foul territory). I knew that he was a fastball-killer, so I told my pitcher to pitch around him and throw nothing but curveballs. We walked him in his first at-bat, but when he came up again in the third, there were two outs and nobody on, so I decided that we should challenge him - BIIIIIIIIG mistake! My pitcher hung a curve in the middle of the plate, and that was all she wrote - the park is like 330 down the line, so that shot must have been 380-plus.
Later in the game, we were down by like eight runs or something (I know we lost by a mercy) so our coach brought in one of our crappier pitchers for mop-up duty. He had a decent fastball, but he was too cocky for his own good - whenever I called for a curve or a changeup, he kept shaking me off. So, I smiled, put down one finger, and held my breath... and watched Votto crush the ball over the wall in center. Connorvale is 400 feet to straightaway center, and the ball carried well beyond the fence - our center fielder didn't even move after the crack of the bat. I've never heard a ball hit that hard in my life.
As far as I know, that ball is still carrying to this day.
Years ago one of my friends brought one of his friends to our adult baseball league. This guy was hitting balls that were about twice as far as any of us ever seen. Turns out this guy was in the Jays minor league system and never made it to the majors. That show just how really good someone has to be to make the majors.
