Re: MLB The Show 20 Franchise Discussion Thread
2022 Blue Jays Spring training checkup: Week 3
The Blue Jays are coming into form nicely, and even look good against the Phillies, who crushed them twice early in the season. They now sit at a dominant 11-2 in spring.
What was looking like a long decision process is starting to take form rapidly. Question marks are becoming checkmarks, and the possibility for GM TheWarmWind to move north early this year has popped up. A few more questions need to be answered, but it has been his habit to leave spring training once all positional battles are done and depth charts completed.
Lineup prediction update (DH RHP bottom of the order TBD):
SS Luis Sardinas - The best SS in the game continues to look great in the field and at the plate.
CF - Jerome Mauzoul - With the power of his bat showing up this week, it's hard not to get excited about Mauzoul. He looks fantastic in CF, like a true upgrade from Trout defensively.
RF - Bryce Harper - Performing as expected. Expectations were high, there's just nothing interesting to talk about.
LF (CF/RF) - Trey Bloom - I honestly never thought I'd see the day when Bloom was taking walks, fouling off balls to battle when back in the count, and hitting for average. All that, combined with his power, makes him the scariest hitter in MLB.
1B - Julian Montano - His average is a little worrying, but looking at the underlying stats, it's a combination of bad luck and pitchers respecting him more. His walks are up, and his strikeouts are on 8+ pitch counts. Opponents are respecting the 2021 playoff MVP. The talent is still there, and will appear over time.
3B (SS) - Xander Bogaerts - His versatility at the plate is back.
C - Jonathan Blanco/Ray Rodriguez - Blanco continues to be as expected, a singles and doubles machine while providing solid work behind the plate. Now that Rodriguez is signed to an equitable extension for both sides, he seems to have calmed down and settled in to focus on the game. Looking much more like with breakout rookie season with his smooth swing and high rates of contact.
DH (SS/2B/3B) - Daniel Franco (IF) - Franco seems to have shaken off his awful sophomore slump and looks much more ready for MLB pitching. He'll likely play the infield often when the DH is needed by other players. Floyd Moyer is in hot contention for this spot. He's faltered a bit with more ABs under his belt, but out of all the potential rookies on the 40 man this year he looks the most ready.
2B - Jeremy Funk - Making a good case to take over leadoff from Sardinias. More on that later.
Bench:
LF Robberto Perez - Will likely get a lot of playtime over the season to keep that outfield healthy. Is also in the running for DH (I honestly hadn't considered it until writing this lol but it makes sense).
C Blanco/Rodriguez
RF/LF Floyd Moyer OR SS/2B/3B Daniel Franco
C/1B Alfredo Moreno - Looks like he's keeping the momentum going from his callup last September. Having a third catcher on the bench does give me the option to DH the Catchers on their off days too, which brings even more intrigue to that vaunted DH spot.
Depth Chart:
IF
1. Steve Roman (All) - Isn't out of the running to make the team yet, but there is nothing really special about this player either.
2. Tanner Manzenillo (All) - Speed, solid fielding, and power make up for a lack of batting consistency
3. Joel Julio (3B/1B) - The bat from last year is just gone, and it can't be chalked up to bad luck or sample size. Needs a visit back to the minors for some retooling.
4. Matt Leone (3B/2B/SS) - Solid defense can't make up for the lack of performance at the plate.
OF
Chris Manual is the only one worth talking about. Elite speed and proven a solid fielder in all three OF positions, Manuel is still a year away from being an MLB starter, but will serve well enough as a replacement in case of injury. If more are needed, the Blue Jays might want to consider trade instead of callups.
Rotation:
Jose Lozano - Off to a rough start, but I think the two time and reigning Cy Young award winner deserves the benefit of the doubt. Seemed to be on the cusp last appearance, so I suspect another start or two and he'll be back in form.
Adam McMullen - On the other hand, McMullen looks on top of his game.
Fernando Chavez - It's great to see him come back from such a serious injury and surpass expectations.
Alonso Baez - Was just too good to ignore. Gilmore didn't lose this spot. Baez won it.
Miguel Blanco - Ditto. Was just too good. Now we'll see how he does when he has ownership of a game.
Depth chart:
Ron Gilmore - Doesn't have the best spring stats, but his performance last year earns him first nod. Penciled in to LRP right now.
Troy Reyes - The right handed sinkerballer looks ready, and would be starting on any other team. Unfortunately for him, you have to be the best to crack this year's rotation.
Manuel Chavez - the knuckleballer can pitch some quality innings, but that's about the best I can say.
Pablo Gomez - After a fantastic rookie season, the movement and control artist seems to have lost his control. Requires some AAA time to get his groove back.
Bullpen (shortened version):
In consideration:
Joe Palmeiro - This fireballer shows promise as a late inning reliever in the future, but may be ready now for lower stress situations.
Steven Mota - Losing two good pieces this offseason was a blow to the bullpen, but Mota looks ready to slot in with fantastic stuff.
Out:
Jose Franco - Looked so good last year after being called up, but is just awful this spring. Can't find the zone, early breaking pitches, and a 7.71 ERA do not earn you a spot on this team.
Season road map:
The expectation is yet another year of winning, but it is a poor GM who doesn't plan for either scenario.
Trade plan if winning: While the likely trade plan if winning is to just stand pat, it's not entirely out of the question that the Jays may want to make a move to beef up the bullpen (though it is pretty beefy) or replace and injured player. These players are available for trade.
Andrez Lopez - A high potential CF who internal scouts are not so hot on. With Mauzoul extended and Manual an option, Lopez makes fine trade material for a high priced rental.
Jorge Hernandez - The Starter just isn't living up to his potential on the Jays. They want to trade him to a different team to give him a fresh start. Not for free though.
Jackie Ferris - The RF just doesn't look good out there under the Jays coaching. He also doesn't fit into the long term plan.
Trade bait if losing:
Luis Sardinas - While an extension isn't entirely off the table, the signing of Bloom makes the Jays budget much tighter over the next few years. While letting the best SS in the game walk would be painful, Sardinas is replicable with in system solutions. It's very possible even if they are winning, Sardinas won't sign an extension and will walk at the end of the season. Putting him up for trade if loosing makes too much sense. With Funk up for free agency as well the issue becomes who will bat leadoff next year, but Funk will be far less expensive, and the Jays have less options for replacing 2B. It's clear that if the Blue Jays want to stay within their current financial plan, AT MOST only one can stay. The best plan is to sign neither for right now and maintain flexibility as long as possible.
Rodger Ambercrombie - Another "best", in this case closer. Ambercrombie is entering his arbitration years and is understandably asking for a lot more money. He deserves it, but the Jays have both Elez and Reyes locked up for much more reasonable sums, and they are going to be looking to save every penny possible over the next few years. The logic here is once again, he's replaceable.
Ron Gilmore - He'll be on his last year of arbitration next year anyways, and there is no way the Jays can afford to keep him past that. Chavez is already locked into a very team friendly contract, so the odds of Gilmore ever seeing the top half of the rotation are slim to none. Besides, the Blue Jays' system always seems to spit out a quality starter every year anyways.
2022 Blue Jays Spring training checkup: Week 3
The Blue Jays are coming into form nicely, and even look good against the Phillies, who crushed them twice early in the season. They now sit at a dominant 11-2 in spring.
What was looking like a long decision process is starting to take form rapidly. Question marks are becoming checkmarks, and the possibility for GM TheWarmWind to move north early this year has popped up. A few more questions need to be answered, but it has been his habit to leave spring training once all positional battles are done and depth charts completed.
Lineup prediction update (DH RHP bottom of the order TBD):
SS Luis Sardinas - The best SS in the game continues to look great in the field and at the plate.
CF - Jerome Mauzoul - With the power of his bat showing up this week, it's hard not to get excited about Mauzoul. He looks fantastic in CF, like a true upgrade from Trout defensively.
RF - Bryce Harper - Performing as expected. Expectations were high, there's just nothing interesting to talk about.
LF (CF/RF) - Trey Bloom - I honestly never thought I'd see the day when Bloom was taking walks, fouling off balls to battle when back in the count, and hitting for average. All that, combined with his power, makes him the scariest hitter in MLB.
1B - Julian Montano - His average is a little worrying, but looking at the underlying stats, it's a combination of bad luck and pitchers respecting him more. His walks are up, and his strikeouts are on 8+ pitch counts. Opponents are respecting the 2021 playoff MVP. The talent is still there, and will appear over time.
3B (SS) - Xander Bogaerts - His versatility at the plate is back.
C - Jonathan Blanco/Ray Rodriguez - Blanco continues to be as expected, a singles and doubles machine while providing solid work behind the plate. Now that Rodriguez is signed to an equitable extension for both sides, he seems to have calmed down and settled in to focus on the game. Looking much more like with breakout rookie season with his smooth swing and high rates of contact.
DH (SS/2B/3B) - Daniel Franco (IF) - Franco seems to have shaken off his awful sophomore slump and looks much more ready for MLB pitching. He'll likely play the infield often when the DH is needed by other players. Floyd Moyer is in hot contention for this spot. He's faltered a bit with more ABs under his belt, but out of all the potential rookies on the 40 man this year he looks the most ready.
2B - Jeremy Funk - Making a good case to take over leadoff from Sardinias. More on that later.
Bench:
LF Robberto Perez - Will likely get a lot of playtime over the season to keep that outfield healthy. Is also in the running for DH (I honestly hadn't considered it until writing this lol but it makes sense).
C Blanco/Rodriguez
RF/LF Floyd Moyer OR SS/2B/3B Daniel Franco
C/1B Alfredo Moreno - Looks like he's keeping the momentum going from his callup last September. Having a third catcher on the bench does give me the option to DH the Catchers on their off days too, which brings even more intrigue to that vaunted DH spot.
Depth Chart:
IF
1. Steve Roman (All) - Isn't out of the running to make the team yet, but there is nothing really special about this player either.
2. Tanner Manzenillo (All) - Speed, solid fielding, and power make up for a lack of batting consistency
3. Joel Julio (3B/1B) - The bat from last year is just gone, and it can't be chalked up to bad luck or sample size. Needs a visit back to the minors for some retooling.
4. Matt Leone (3B/2B/SS) - Solid defense can't make up for the lack of performance at the plate.
OF
Chris Manual is the only one worth talking about. Elite speed and proven a solid fielder in all three OF positions, Manuel is still a year away from being an MLB starter, but will serve well enough as a replacement in case of injury. If more are needed, the Blue Jays might want to consider trade instead of callups.
Rotation:
Jose Lozano - Off to a rough start, but I think the two time and reigning Cy Young award winner deserves the benefit of the doubt. Seemed to be on the cusp last appearance, so I suspect another start or two and he'll be back in form.
Adam McMullen - On the other hand, McMullen looks on top of his game.
Fernando Chavez - It's great to see him come back from such a serious injury and surpass expectations.
Alonso Baez - Was just too good to ignore. Gilmore didn't lose this spot. Baez won it.
Miguel Blanco - Ditto. Was just too good. Now we'll see how he does when he has ownership of a game.
Depth chart:
Ron Gilmore - Doesn't have the best spring stats, but his performance last year earns him first nod. Penciled in to LRP right now.
Troy Reyes - The right handed sinkerballer looks ready, and would be starting on any other team. Unfortunately for him, you have to be the best to crack this year's rotation.
Manuel Chavez - the knuckleballer can pitch some quality innings, but that's about the best I can say.
Pablo Gomez - After a fantastic rookie season, the movement and control artist seems to have lost his control. Requires some AAA time to get his groove back.
Bullpen (shortened version):
In consideration:
Joe Palmeiro - This fireballer shows promise as a late inning reliever in the future, but may be ready now for lower stress situations.
Steven Mota - Losing two good pieces this offseason was a blow to the bullpen, but Mota looks ready to slot in with fantastic stuff.
Out:
Jose Franco - Looked so good last year after being called up, but is just awful this spring. Can't find the zone, early breaking pitches, and a 7.71 ERA do not earn you a spot on this team.
Season road map:
The expectation is yet another year of winning, but it is a poor GM who doesn't plan for either scenario.
Trade plan if winning: While the likely trade plan if winning is to just stand pat, it's not entirely out of the question that the Jays may want to make a move to beef up the bullpen (though it is pretty beefy) or replace and injured player. These players are available for trade.
Andrez Lopez - A high potential CF who internal scouts are not so hot on. With Mauzoul extended and Manual an option, Lopez makes fine trade material for a high priced rental.
Jorge Hernandez - The Starter just isn't living up to his potential on the Jays. They want to trade him to a different team to give him a fresh start. Not for free though.
Jackie Ferris - The RF just doesn't look good out there under the Jays coaching. He also doesn't fit into the long term plan.
Trade bait if losing:
Luis Sardinas - While an extension isn't entirely off the table, the signing of Bloom makes the Jays budget much tighter over the next few years. While letting the best SS in the game walk would be painful, Sardinas is replicable with in system solutions. It's very possible even if they are winning, Sardinas won't sign an extension and will walk at the end of the season. Putting him up for trade if loosing makes too much sense. With Funk up for free agency as well the issue becomes who will bat leadoff next year, but Funk will be far less expensive, and the Jays have less options for replacing 2B. It's clear that if the Blue Jays want to stay within their current financial plan, AT MOST only one can stay. The best plan is to sign neither for right now and maintain flexibility as long as possible.
Rodger Ambercrombie - Another "best", in this case closer. Ambercrombie is entering his arbitration years and is understandably asking for a lot more money. He deserves it, but the Jays have both Elez and Reyes locked up for much more reasonable sums, and they are going to be looking to save every penny possible over the next few years. The logic here is once again, he's replaceable.
Ron Gilmore - He'll be on his last year of arbitration next year anyways, and there is no way the Jays can afford to keep him past that. Chavez is already locked into a very team friendly contract, so the odds of Gilmore ever seeing the top half of the rotation are slim to none. Besides, the Blue Jays' system always seems to spit out a quality starter every year anyways.
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