2023/24 Blue Jays Off Season Thread

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

Hmm interesting take, not sure about all the holes you are seeing, there really isn't that many.

Rotation and bullpen are deadly with a capital D, and deeeeeep, also with a capital D.

Top 5 catching tandem in MLB
Bo, Vlad, Springer, Varsho were all positive contributors despite some of them having down years.
Plugging up 3B, 2B and LF will not be that hard to do.
Especially with Biggio, Espinal, Schneider, Horwitz, Orelvis, Lantigua and Barger kicking around.

3rd - open
2nd - open
LF - Varsho (question as to if he can be an offensive contributor)
CF - open
RF - Springer (question if he can be healthy and produce offensively again)
1st - Vlad (gotta bring his numbers up to what he was from three years ago)
C - the tandem was pretty pathetic last year. Questions as to what they can do consistently
DH - open

There are definitely questions and holes in the offence.

The bench guys, aren't amounting to much production-wise. Biggio turned it on at year end but truly hasn't shown much throughout his career. Sure, start him at 2nd, but he's still a question from a consistency perspective. Pitching is on point though that was largely because injuries were a minimum. Romano showed cracks though, so that's something to keep an eye on, though probably not a huge concern like the bats above. So yeah, I think there's a lot to address overall this off-season.

[Samonadreau]

The price it would take to get 1 year of Soto, no thanks.

This isn't the NBA where you get one Kawhi Leonard type and win a championship.

You need players you can take a few runs with.

[Roof-Daddy]

Originally Posted by bluejays

3rd - open
2nd - open
LF - Varsho (question as to if he can be an offensive contributor)
CF - open
RF - Springer (question if he can be healthy and produce offensively again)
1st - Vlad (gotta bring his numbers up to what he was from three years ago)
C - the tandem was pretty pathetic last year. Questions as to what they can do consistently
DH - open

There are definitely questions and holes in the offence.

The bench guys, aren't amounting to much production-wise. Biggio turned it on at year end but truly hasn't shown much throughout his career. Sure, start him at 2nd, but he's still a question from a consistency perspective. Pitching is on point though that was largely because injuries were a minimum. Romano showed cracks though, so that's something to keep an eye on, though probably not a huge concern like the bats above. So yeah, I think there's a lot to address overall this off-season.

Varsho will be the CF, and he put p 2.1 fWAR last season despite being below league average with the bat (85 wRC+) ad he projects better defensively as a CF, so the OF hole is in LF

Springer had his worst batting season of his career (104 wRC+) and still put up 2.2 fWAR, that is not a hole, and I would bet his offense bounces back some

Kirk and Jansen combined for 3.6 fWAR and that was with Jansen injured and Kirk having a terrible year on offense, this is not a hole it's top 5 in all of MLB at the position

Vlad was pathetic with 1 fWAR, but the Jays still won 89 games and made the playoffs despite that, this is also not a hole in the line up. He needs to better for sure, but he was still a positive contributor and there is always a chance he has a resurgence, especially if they signed Ohtani which would take some of the pressure off of Vlad

And since this is a discussion about signing Ohtani, well then the DH slot would also not be open, it would be filled with one of the best hitters in all of MLB

So like I said, LF, 2B, 3B are the only holes I see after signing Ohtani and the Jays have a plethora of replacement level guys (with upside) to fill those holes cheaply, plus my bet is they would have no issue attracting more talent to sign with them after signing the best player in the game.

This is a team that prided itself on having no real holes in the line up last season. That's why they were able to win 89 games despite HUGE underperformances from a lot of their players like Vlad and Springer and Kirk and Varsho. There were no black holes weighing them down. Biggio ended up with 1 fWAR, Schneider had 2 fWAR in 35 games lol. Even Espinal finished the season at 0.1 fWAR and didn't drag the team down.

[bluejays]

I agree and disagree on a lot. What I'm getting at with Ohtani is he fills a big need, but with money tied up in him the Jays won't be able to sign anyone else really. So hole = empty slot. But what I'm also alluding to is there is a lot of uncertainty within the lineup. On one hand I agree with WAR being used, but it seems a little flawed with overvaluing defence in the OF. And the annoying part of what it doesn't show is how Vlad and George swung at bad pitches. There is a lot of uncertainty and I just think the money would be better off spent across several players instead of just one big one.

[Roof-Daddy]

Honestly love the idea of trading for Soto if they can land Ohtani, but just bringing in a guy like Brantley to play LF would be a solid enough move after adding a star like Ohtani.

Whatever happens though, it would be nice to get Candelario signed for 3B. I've read that the Jays don't see guys like Barger or Orelvis as long term solutions for 3B, more like potential 2B of corner OFers long term if they make it, so 3B is a hole they might need fill from an external source. Maybe Leo Jiminez can be a 3B down the road, or even a dark horse like Lantigua.

[ben voyonsdonc]

Cody Bellinger would be a pretty good consolation prize if Ohtani goes to the Dodgers.

[Jiri Hrdina]

Honestly I can't imagine someone not being excited about signing Ohtani.
The dude is a unicorn and while I understand he would just be a hitter, he instantly adds a ton of power and production. Couple that with a solid pitching staff and better performance from Vladdy, and I don't see why they can't be a contender.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina

Honestly I can't imagine someone not being excited about signing Ohtani.
The dude is a unicorn and while I understand he would just be a hitter, he instantly adds a ton of power and production. Couple that with a solid pitching staff and better performance from Vladdy, and I don't see why they can't be a contender.

Yeah. And getting Ohtani probably gets Vlad better pitches.

Then the holes you have are an outfielder to replace KK, a 3B for Chapman, and a 2B for Merrifield. Not like they had tons of offensive production out of those 3 lineup slots last year.

[browna]

Making Vlad better could include insulation by other players, but could also be getting a buddy of some sort on the team to have him more relaxed. Hernandez and Gurriel leaving left him alone, and it really didn't look like he was having nearly as much fun.

He looked to be having fun at the ASG, and proceeded to blast ball after ball out of the park.

[Roof-Daddy]

Duhn duhn DUHN....

Héctor Gómez of Z101 Digital reports the Blue Jays are currently the favorites to land Juan Soto in a trade with the Padres.
He adds that talks with the Yankees have stalled. Gómez has a history of running with things too early, but he does have his sources. If something materializes here, it’s easy to imagine Alek Manoah being involved. The Padres would probably also have some interest in some of the Jays’ talented bullpen arms (Nate Pearson, Zach Pop, Yosver Zulueta, etc.).

If we got Ohtani and Soto this off season I would lose all control of where my blood flow is going...just sayin'

And yes, Manoah makes a ton of sense if the Padres think last year was an anomaly.

[GirlySports]

Jays should always trade with the Padres.

[Inferno]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1731085204016558293

[nfotiu]

Blue Jays future revenue projections look a lot better than nearly every other team. I don't think this chart is exactly right, but it is close

https://www.reddit.com/r/Torontoblue...on_viewership/

They have far more viewers per game than all other teams, and that is going to matter a lot for monetizing local TV as the American RSN bundle scheme unravels.

It might not be so far fetched to see them outbid everyone right now.

[bluejays]

Originally Posted by nfotiu

Blue Jays future revenue projections look a lot better than nearly every other team. I don't think this chart is exactly right, but it is close

https://www.reddit.com/r/Torontoblue...on_viewership/

They have far more viewers per game than all other teams, and that is going to matter a lot for monetizing local TV as the American RSN bundle scheme unravels.

It might not be so far fetched to see them outbid everyone right now.

That's really interesting considering some of the traditional markets have large populations and diehard fans. I'd have thought it would be Chicago, NY, Boston among others who would come out on top but I guess not...it's not even close.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by bluejays

That's really interesting considering some of the traditional markets have large populations and diehard fans. I'd have thought it would be Chicago, NY, Boston among others who would come out on top but I guess not...it's not even close.

There was a comment that the data source/methodology was different for the Jays than the US teams, so not sure that's 100% comparable.

It'll be interesting to see what happens as the RSNs die. MLB is directly producing the Padres now that Diamond gave the local rights back.

[nfotiu]

Originally Posted by bizaro86

There was a comment that the data source/methodology was different for the Jays than the US teams, so not sure that's 100% comparable.

It'll be interesting to see what happens as the RSNs die. MLB is directly producing the Padres now that Diamond gave the local rights back.

I'm not sure it is apples to apples either. But I follow this stuff pretty closely and there are a lot of good sources pegging Jays viewership in the 800-900,000 range, and the NY/Bos teams around 250k, and the rest of the American teams less than 100k.

I've always been and expos/Nats fan, so not being a homer at all. I've been following the RSN bubble closely and got curious about these BJ rumours and now can see them making sense.

[Roof-Daddy]

I just have to look at it once while it's still up in the air:

C - Jansen/Kirk
1B - Vladdy
2B - Biggio/Schneider
3B - ???
SS - Bo
LF - Soto
CF - Varsho
RF - Springer
DH - Ohtani

Be pretty easy to attract a 3B like Candelario to sign with the Jays with that line up.

Positive thoughts everyone!

[browna]

Originally Posted by bluejays

That's really interesting considering some of the traditional markets have large populations and diehard fans. I'd have thought it would be Chicago, NY, Boston among others who would come out on top but I guess not...it's not even close.

Again, goes back to my comment about Ohtani (and others) having the aspect of the Jays providing them the ability to be a bigger deal across an entire country here, than in even the largest of regional US markets.

[bizaro86]

Originally Posted by Roof-Daddy

I just have to look at it once while it's still up in the air:

C - Jansen/Kirk
1B - Vladdy
2B - Biggio/Schneider
3B - ???
SS - Bo
LF - Soto
CF - Varsho
RF - Springer
DH - Ohtani

Be pretty easy to attract a 3B like Candelario to sign with the Jays with that line up.

Positive thoughts everyone!

I think that lineup with similar pitching to last year get 95-100 wins with me playing 3B.

[Strange Brew]

Originally Posted by nfotiu

Blue Jays future revenue projections look a lot better than nearly every other team. I don't think this chart is exactly right, but it is close

https://www.reddit.com/r/Torontoblue...on_viewership/

They have far more viewers per game than all other teams, and that is going to matter a lot for monetizing local TV as the American RSN bundle scheme unravels.

It might not be so far fetched to see them outbid everyone right now.

This is one revenue stream. How would they stack up on all the other sources of revenue?