MLB 2012 - The Toronto Ban Jays

[Griever20]

Originally Posted by jparker2112

This is awesome!!!!

Ty This is more like, fooling around with the idea than anything Else, but I really enjoy this one. Bit more 'gamey' than others, but i need to restraint myself from trading from time to time and 2012-2014 was when I really got into Baseball

[Griever20]

Development Lab:
MLB SP Marcus Stroman(21, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Movement
AAA SP Chris Archer(24, 2/3.5*) Improve Control
AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(20, 2/3.5*) Improve Control
AAA LF Nick Castellanos(20, 2/4*) Quality of Contact
Short A LF Jesse Winker(19, 1.5/4*) Improve Outfield Defense
R SS Jim Hatfield(20, 1.5/4.5*) Gap Power
R 1B Adam Brzezinski(23, 1.5/4*) Generate Batspeed
R 2B Dave Cardenas(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense

First Update: Dec. 12th
FINISHED: R 2B Dave Cardenas(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL
STOPPED: Short A LF Jesse Winker(19, 1.5/4*) Improve Outfield Defense
ADDED: R C Carlos Perez(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Defense at Catcher
ADDED: R 2B Leon Guadarrama(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Infield Defense

Second Update: Dec. 30th
STOPPED: R C Carlos Perez(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Defense at Catcher
STOPPED: R 2B Leon Guadarrama(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Infield Defense
ADDED: R CF Luis Garcia(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
ADDED: R 2B Jesus Lopez(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Infield Defense

Third Update: Feb. 4th
FINISHED: R CF Luis Garcia(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Outfield Defense SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: R 2B Jesus Lopez(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Infield Defense OUTSTANDING
ADDED: R 3B Tony Constancio(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense
ADDED: AAA 3B Anthony Rendon(22, 2.5/4*) Improve Infield Defense

Total Update:
FINISHED: MLB SP Marcus Stroman(21, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Movement SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: AAA SP Chris Archer(24, 2/3.5*) Improve Control SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(20, 2/3.5*) Improve Control NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: AAA LF Nick Castellanos(20, 2/4*) Quality of Contact OUTSTANDING
FINISHED: R SS Jim Hatfield(20, 1.5/4.5*) Gap Power NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: R 1B Adam Brzezinski(23, 1.5/4*) Generate Batspeed NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: R 3B Tony Constancio(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: AAA 3B Anthony Rendon(22, 2.5/4*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: R CF Luis Garcia(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Outfield Defense SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: R 2B Jesus Lopez(16, 0.5/2.5*) Improve Infield Defense OUTSTANDING
FINISHED: R 2B Dave Cardenas(16, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL

We decided to do something a bit different as we kept two spots open for defensive improvements… and with some luck, we managed to get Anthony Rendon up to a 55D at third base and got some good bats that lack defense to improve from our AAA guys… we will continue down that path eventually.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
RHSP Javier Guzman(16, 3*) 55/50/50 65 Stamina from Kansas City Royals.
RHSP Etelson Velez(16, 3*) 40/60/80 70D from Minnesota Twins.
1B Sergio Betancourt(16, 3.5*) 45/45/80/60/35 45D at 1B from Miami.
2B Ed Diaz(16, 3.5*) 80/45/35/45/75 45D at 2B from Milwaukee Brewers.
2B Tony Morales(17, 3*) 55/60/55/65/55 50D at 2B from Baltimore Orioles.
3B Tony Costancio(16, 3*) 65/45/55/55/70 40D at 3B from Baltimore Orioles.
CF Pippo Angloma(16, 3*) 70/70/50/40/85 40D at CF from St. Louis Cardinals.

Well we got some good guys here. We will have to run some of them through our defensive drills next offseason and hope for some luck, but there is potential in here!

[Griever20]

Your 2013 Toronto Blue Jays:

Starting Pitching

RHSP Henderson Alvarez III(22, 2.5*) 9-15 3.86 84K 32GS 189IP 1.5WAR // 10-18 3.78 124K 42GS 252.2IP 2.2WAR (career)
Alvarez had a nice 2012 under the radar with a 3.86ERA and is one of the guys that deserve a bit more run support. His calling card is control, groundballs and the ability to throw a lot of pitches. He isn’t something special, but with a lot of team control left, Alvarez will be around for a while.

RHSP Chris Archer(24, 2/4*) 11-9 4-82 169K 29GS 162.1IP 1.8WAR (AAA) // DNP (career)
At age 24, Archer was the obvious choice to make the MLB roster to replace Davies, but even with his successful work at the development lab, the control of his pitches is a big issue. Having walked 3.9 per nine in AAA, his 2013 my be similar to Marcus Stroman’s… trying to develop at the MLB level with a lot of pain. Acquired via trade from TBR in 2012.

RHSP Carlos Carrasco(26, 2.5*) 11-12 4.58 141K 34GS 3.7WAR // 21-27 4.76 275K 67GS 374.4IP 5.0WAR(career)
Carrasco had a solid, but unspectacular 2012 and at age 26, our scouts have decided that the ceiling has come down and the floor will not come up. The concerning thing about him is his stamina, which has come down to a 40… which is close to unacceptable for a starter. We will run him out there for the start of 2013… but his days may be limited. Sad.

LHSP Scott Kazmir(29, 2.5*) 7-21 3.50 173K 193.0IP 34GS 3.2WAR // 73-82 4.07 1166K 214G/213GS 1215.0IP 17.9WAR (career)
The most random thing about Kazmir is… the 2x All-Star had his best season since 2007 and led the league in losses. Unbelievable. Promoted to Opening Day starter, the lefty really was eye opening in 2012, pitching off his changeup and utilizing our outfield defense in clever ways to get outs. Signed to the end of 2014.

RHSP Marcus Stroman(21, 2.5/3.5*) 7-16 4.84 125K 30GS 158IP -0.1WAR // 7-16 4.84 125K 30GS 158IP -0.1WAR (career)
Our extreme groundballer was forced to develop at the MLB level and did a good job, flashing his potential from time to time, and wasn’t hurting too much for us. The development lab increased his control and there is still movement and control potential, and since he has a great work ethic and is a Blue Jay with his heart, we expect another jump this season… right Marcus… RIGHT???

Relief Pitching:

RHRP Al Alburquerque(26, 2.5*) 1-6 7SV 6.58 70K 67.0IP 80G -1.1WAR // 7-7 7SV 4.73 137K 110.0IP 121G 0.2WAR (career)
Alburquerque was a hot mess last season and honestly, we are pretty down on him this season as well. The 26-year old has close to unfixable control issues, walking 6.6 per nine last season and while his stuff is elite, opponents only need one hit to drive in a run as he probably walked the first batter he faced. If we find a better reliever, he is in big danger. Trade acquisition from DET in 2012.

LHRP Bobby Cramer(33, 2.5*) 9-3 5SV 3.25 79K 99.2IP 76G 0.5WAR // 11-5 5SV 3.08 98K 85G/4GS 131.2IP 0.5WAR (career)
Cramer was not only or lone All-Star last season, but a revelation last season as he performed admirably out of the pen and somehow has thrown 99.2IP last season. At age 33, he may not be around forever, but we hope he will be around for another couple of years at least. There was talk about stretching him out as a starter, but we wanted to give the innings to a young arm… and we don’t have a good lefty for the pen to replace him.

RHRP Tyler Duffey(22, 2/3*) 2-3 0SV 5.83 28K 29.1IP 6G/6GS 0.2WAR (AAA) // DNP (career)
There was a lot going on with Duffey in Minnesota before we got him in the Rule 5, and not a lot that makes sense. The kid has a stamina of 35, yet was started a total of 15 times last year in the minors… That being said, he isn’t MLB ready and only here because of his potential that he may not even reach… there is a lot of work… but we have to take chances. Acquired via the Rule 5 draft in 2012.

RHRP Yoslan Herrera(31, 2.5*) 3-7 4SV 5.25 54K 61.2IP 70G -1.3WAR // 4-8 6.30 64K 80IP 75G/5GS -1.2WAR (career)
Herrera was discovered on the street before our clubhouse last year, and he pitched just like that last season. Yet, he is the best we can get here in this spot. Nothing to see here, move on.

LHRP Mario Lujan(24, 2/2.5*) 1-0 1SV 0.00 14K 8.1IP 4G/0GS 0.5WAR (R) // DNP (career)
Party! Our 2012 draft class has arrived. Replacing Luis Perez who has had an abysmal spring and little room for growth, our 21st rounder in last years draft got the job based on… a bit more potential and a 3.24ERA in spring training. Out of University of Kansas, he was a late find and features a four seamer, a sinker and a cutter with low 90’s velocity. Lujan is described as a sparkplug in the clubhouse, so a good guy to have around… he will get hit a lot tho.

RHRP Joakim Soria(28, 3.5*) 2-2 8SV 2.50 74K 72IP 72G 1.5WAR // 15-17 168SV 2.42 415K 370G 387.1IP 7.3WAR (Career)
Featuring a deep arsenal of a fastball, slider, curveball, changeup and cutter, the 2x All-Star signed a 3y$12.26M contract this offseason to stay around until his age 31 season, and we are veery excited and happy about having ONE good pitcher in the bullpen.

RHRP Arodys Vizcaino(22, 2.5*) 2-0 2SV 4.95 27K 40IP 35G -0.3WAR // 3-1 2SV 57.1 44K 57.1IP 52G -0.2WAR (career)
Vizcaino held up in the games we got him in and wasn’t a complete train wreck, which is about what we hoped. Through spring, he got his velocity up a tick and got the a bit of spin on his curve, nearing his full potential. Control needs to improve, as with most of our pitchers, but we think he is worth keeping around through his arbitration years.

RHRP Blake Wood(27, 2.5*) 0-0 0SV 5.56 33K 45.1IP 35G -0.1WAR // 6-6 1SV 4.65 126K 164.2IP 141G 0.4WAR (career)
Wood was a disappointment last season as he had a good 2011 and we hoped for him to lead the middle relief core ,Throwing 91-93, there is nothing too special in him and he struggled to get the job done but… well, we lack better options.

Catcher

C Travis d’Arnaud(24, 2.5*, R) .221/.275/.313 2HR 9RBI 52G/32GS 0.2WAR // .221/.275/.313 2HR 9RBI 29H 7R 52G 0.2WAR (career)
d’Arnaud was good enough as a backup catcher, but long term, we would like to get someone in that has a bit better defensive ratings. His bat hasn’t played up to his minor league numbers as well… but he is a warm body that can catch and amass a bit of WAR.

C Devin Mesoraco(24, 3.5/3.5*, R) .263/.315/.451 19HR 59RBI 139G 4.0WAR // .255/.307/.442 21HR 65RBI 139H 67R 157G 4.0WAR (career)
Mesoraco was eye-opening last season as he led all batters in WAR in our team, and we expect him to be the guy behind the plate for us for years. His bat is now fully developed and 70 grade power sounds soo juicy. Expect us to keep him around for a looong time. Acquired from CIN in 2012 offseason.

Infield

1B David Cooper(26, 2.5*, L) .257/.311/.358 9HR 49RBI 136G/115GS -1.2WAR // .251/.307/.363 11HR 61RBI 130H 51R 143G -1.1WAR (career)
Pure desperation. The lefty is just plain bad for a first baseman, but our options are too limited to not have him on the roster. Cooper will get a lot of AB’s against right-handed pitching but don’t expect more than an empty .270 out of him.

1B Eric Thames(26, 2.5*, L) .247/.310/.401 16HR 65RBI 160G/159GS 0.0WAR // .253/.311/.423 28HR 102RBI 237H 117R 255G 255G 1.8WAR (career)
Light and shadows. There were stretches last season where he looked like a potential 30HR guy, and there were stretches where he looked like he had no chance to hit a baseball. That equalled a net 0.0WAR season and we hoped for a bit more. At age 26, development is done, but there may just be one good season in Mr. Thames.

2B Eduardo Escobar(24, 2.5/3*, S) .253/.323/.373 7HR 52RBI 158G/149GS 0.9WAR // .253/.322/.372 7HR 52RBI 137H 57R 167G 0.9WAR (career)
Escobar had a good year in his rookie season, but I still have issues with him. At 50/80, his gap power, which is where his potential rating of 3* stems from, will never be reached, and his defensive ratings are average… at best. We missed the chance to pull him through a development lab because I fudged up, so we may have to do this next winter… Acquired via trade from CWS in 2012.

IF Adeiny Hechavarria(23, 2.5*, R) .282/.315/.371 2HR 18RBI 7/8SB 94G/36GS 0.6WAR // .282/.315/.371 2HR 18RBI 48H 12R 94G/36GS 0.6WAR (career)
Hechavarria is pushing hard to be the everyday second baseman and if he continues to perform with the bat like he did last season, he may soon have that job. A contact bat with a lot of singles and good speed on the basepaths and better defense than Escobar, he may even be the better 2B right now… but we want to see if Escobar can get his potential fulfilled.

3B Anthony Rendon(22, 3/3.5*, R) .383/.474/.685 34HR 101RBI 135G/125GS 7.1WAR (AAA) // DNP (career) #20 prospect
Having destroyed AAA pitching last season and finally (in the second try) improving his 3B defense juust a bit, Rendon got the call to be our 3B for the foreseeable future. With some parts of his bat still in development (Contact 50/70, Power 50/60, Avoid K’s 55/70) there will be some growing pains, but we have no reason to not start his MLB career. Acquired via trade from WSH in 2012.

3B Scott Sizemore(28, 2.5*) .190/.289/.308 9HR 48RBI 156G/150GS -0.4WAR // .214/.309/.344 23HR 118RBI 222H 121R 314G 1.9WAR (career)
Sizemore was a hot mess last season and that lost him his third base job… well and Anthony Rendon coming up. We signed Sizemore for his ability to hit .250 with a high OBP and got nothing out of him, which means he is relegated to platoon against LHP.

SS Ryan Goins(24, 1.5/2*, L) .286/.343/.408 3HR 52RBI 101G 2.5WAR (A) // DNP (career)
Can play 2B and short with great defence. We don’t talk about the rest. PLEASE! Just kiddin. His bat is work in progress and barely MLB ready, but we lack a good shortstop and the next best guy is more a center fielder than a shortstop so…

Outfield

LF/RF Jordan Danks(26, 2.5*, L) .207/.288/.321 11HR 43RBI 155G 25/31SB 0.8WAR // .207/.288/.321 11HR 43RBI 119H 58R 155G 25/31SB 0.8WAR (career)
The Chicago White Sox left us with a Gold Glove left fielder that held his own… but needs to improve his hitting if he want to keep his job in the next years as his base stealing numbers suggest he could dramatically improve his scoring if he does so. That being said, he is a 45 contact ability guy… no reason to expect more than a .230 hitter.

LF/RF Travis Snider(25, 2.5*, L) .229/.296/.390 22HR 67RBI 155G 14/18SB 1.8WAR // .240/.302/.409 50HR 171RBI 333H 183R 387G 30/41SB 4.1WAR (career)
Snider led our team in home runs while batting around his career numbers of .240, and honestly, I’m fine with that. Yes, we are paying him $3.3M this season for those numbers, but he is also one of the team leaders and has become very vocal in the clubhouse, AND similar to Thames, there may be a career season in him one day.

CF Jake Marisnick(22, 2.5/3*, R) .212/.262/.330 8HR 46RBI 22/28SB 153G 2.0WAR // .212/.262/.330 8HR 46RBI 99H 40R 22/28SB 153G 2.0WAR (career)
Marisnick’s bat has still ways to go, but his 80 rated center field defense alone is worth his butt in gold. He really helped out our flyball orientated pitchers like Kazmir and I personally think he got robbed a gold glove, but there will be one in the future. Our scouts bumped him up to a 3* potential, so some good news.

CF Kevin Kiermaier(22, 2/2.5*, L) .274/.347/.431 13HR 70RBI 34/45SB 137G 1.0WAR (AAA) // (career)
Another defensive ace, Kiermaier was slated to start the year in AAA but an injury to Anthony Gose and the fact that Kiermaier is on the 40-man and simply better than Gose made this call easy. Kiermaier has good speed, can play Gold Glove defense and has a solid bat in the making. Acquired via trade from TBR in 2012.

[Griever20]

Preseason Prediction:
81-81, 3rd in AL East, 13G behind Tampa Bay Rays

Predicted Top Players:
C Devin Mesoraco .294/.357/.594 38HR 98RBI

That is surprising to be honest. I am not sure if replacing some of our replacement level guys and adding Rendon will add 20 wins to our roster, but I am ready to be surprised. Those Mesoraco numbers would be insane if they get real, but I doubt that as well. Looking at the roster, this feels like another losing team.

The huge questions going into 2013 are:
How will the draft go with us having the 3rd overall pick?
How will the kids develop and our minor league system fare?
Can Chris Archer fulfil his potential?
Can our bullpen survive?
How will Anthony Rendon adapt to the MLB level?

The Division:
Tampa Bay(82-80) was a hot mess last season, yet they are expected to win 94 this season. The duo of 1B Edwin Encarnacion(30, 3.5*, .270-35-78 .866OPS 3.6WAR) and 3B Evan Longoria(27, 4*. .290-38-118 .892OPS 6.1WAR) will lead their offense and of course, SP David Price(27, 3/3.5*, 6-11 4.64 91K 1.4WAR) is expected to rebound while SP Brandon Morrow(28, 3*, 10-7 3.24 200K 2.7WAR) may have to repeat his 2012 to get this one done.

The New York Yankees(97-65) are slated to lose six games compared to last season, and most of that is due to… age. 2012 AL Cy Young Winner SP CC Sabathia(32, 3*, 19-10 2.75 217K 5.7WAR) and SP Hiroki Kuroda(38, 2.5*, 17-10 3.50 184K 3.0WAR) are slated to lose some more games according to many pundits and you have the ageing due of Derek Jeter(38, 2.5*, .295-16-80 .747OPS 2.0WAR) and 3B Alex Rodriguez(37, 2.5*. ..316-19-49 .919OPS 4.1WAR 90G) that basically would need two DH slots to play. Adding insult to (future) injury, 2B Robinson Cano(30, 4*, .297-12-56 .808OPS 2.0WAR 110G) is a free agent this winter.

A team that Vegas expects to fall behind us and lose seven games, the Boston Red Sox(87-75) not only lost Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz, added knuckleball pitcher R.A. Dickey(38, 3.5*, 16-5 2.91 175K 3.9WAR), but need a new direction. Their best hitter left are CF Jacoby Ellsbury(29, 3/3.5*, .318-15-60 28/34SB 4.8WAR) and free agent signee C Miguel Montero(29, 3/3.5*, .275-18-64 .838OPS 3.9WAR) but make no mistake… this is a shadow of former Red Sox teams. Oh and by the way, after hitting .211 last season, CF Mookie Betts(20, 2.5/5*) will start the year in AAA.

As for the Baltimore Orioles(73-89), there is little improvement to be seen according to the bookmakers. There are still people that think that 1B Chris Davis(27, 3/3.5*, .244-23-63 .763OPS 0.9WAR) will have a monster season one day and 2013 is the year where 3B Manny Machado(20, 2.5/4*, #11 prospect) and SP Kevin Gausman(22, 2/3*, #48 prospect) make their first Opening Day but even then, a 35-year old SP Roy Oswald(3*, 16-9 4.73 170K 2.7WAR) as your ace is not a good sight.

Top Position Player


Top Pitcher

Baseball America announced their Top 100 prospect list:
#1 2B Justin Rimmele, 22, Minnesota Twins(AAA)(NEW) (2nd overall 2012)
#2 RHSP Gerrit Cole, 22, Pittsburgh Pirates(MLB)(+4)
#3 CF Christian Yelich, 21, Miami Marlins(MLB)(-1)
#4 RHSP Jose Fernandez, 20, Miami Marlins(MLB)(-3)
#5 RHRP Tyler Huskins, 20, Chicago Cubs(MLB)(NEW)(6th overall 2012)
#6 SS Jim Hatfield, 21, Toronto Blue Jays(AAA)(NEW)(17th overall 2012)
#7 RHSP Brian Fox, 19, Seattle Mariners(AA)(NEW)(3rd overall 2012)
#8 SS Jesus Muniz, 22, San Diego Padres(MLB)(NEW)(7th overall 2012)
#9 SS Corey Seager, 18, Los Angeles Dodgers(AA)(+4)
#10 SS Trevor Story, 20, Colorado Rockies(AAA)(+12)

Notable Toronto Blue Jays on the list:
#14 RHSP Victor Torres(5*), 17, R ,IFA signing (NEW)
#20 3B Anthony Rendon(3.5*), 22, MLB, Trade WSH (-12)
#23 LF Nick Castellanos(4*), 21, AAA, Trade DET (-6)
#25 RHSP Noah Syndergaard(4*), 20, AAA (+16)
#48 RHSP Chris Archer(4*), 24, MLB (+1)
#51 3B Eugenio Suárez(3.5*), 21, AAA, Trade DET (-3)
#72 CF Jake Harris(4*), 19, R, 4th round 2012 (NEW)
#93 LF Jesse Winker(3.5*), 19, A, Trade CIN (-16)
#103 SP Lucas Giolito(3.5*),18, AAA, Trade WSH (NEW)
#107 RF Avsail Garcia(3.5*),21, AAA, Trade DET (-36)
#109 RHRP Ricardo Maurer(4*), 18, A, 2nd round 2012 (NEW)
#123 RHRP Felipe Vazquez(4*), 21, AAA, Trade TBR (-39)
#168 RHRP Roberto Osuna(3.5*) 18, A
#172 LHRP Mike Cosens(3.5*) 22, AA, 5th round 2012
#193 1B Adam Brzezinski(4*) 23, AA, 3rd round 2012
#370 RHRP Jorge Diaz(4*) 17, R, Scouting Discovery CWS

Absent from this list? Blake Snell who was slashed down to 45 control potential, 45 stamina and a 2.5* overall prospect. Bad luck as he was the biggest piece out of the Tampa Bay Rays trade, but he may have a second life as a relief pitcher. Overall, we eek out the Marlins by 3 points as the best system in baseball, and they have a lot of their studs making their MLB debut this year.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
April 27th – CF Anthony Gose(22, 2*) was eligible to come off the IL… and banished to the minors right away.

Series:
1-2 vs DET
0-3 vs TBR
3-0 @ NYY (PH Travis d’Arnaud 1-1 R 4RBI HR(1), CF Jake Marisnick 3-4 R 2RBI DB HR(2), SP Henderson Alvarez III 6IP 3H 3ER 3BB 2K W(1-0 4.50))
4-0 @ MIN (SP Chris Archer 7IP 4H 0ER 2BB 3K W(1-0 0.75), SP Scott Kazmir 7.1IP 5H 0ER 2BB 3K W(1-1 0.00), C Devin Mesoraco 2-4 2R 5RBI BB 2HR(3))
3-0 @ SEA (SP Henderson Alvarez III 7IP 6H 1ER 1BB 1K W(2-0 3.32), SP Chris Archer 7.1IP 3H 1ER 3BB 5K W(2-0 0.93), 1B Eric Thames 3-5 R 3RBI HR(3))
0-1 vs NYY

Record: 11-6, 2nd in AL East, 1GB
April: 11-6
Runs Scored: 74(8th)
Batting AVG: .245(9th)
OBP: .312(11th)
Home Runs: 17(8th)
Stolen Bases: 14(3rd)
Runs Against: 66(4th)
Starters ERA: 2.48(1st)
Bullpen ERA: 3.62(8th)
Defensive Eff.: .743(1st)
Zone Rating: +7.5(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: RHSP Chris Archer 2-0 0.93 16K 3.04FIP 0.6WAR 19.1IP 3GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: LF Jordan Danks .304/.414/.390 0HR 7RBI 9R 4/4SB +1.5ZR 0.7WAR 17G

And somehow, we have ran a 10-game hitting streak into second place in the division and a 11-6 record. That one can not be sustainable, purely because our defensive metrics are absurd and our pitching is not remotely good enough to put up those kind of numbers. Yet, praise to all of them, I didn’t expect that much early excitement this season.

Speaking of excitement that didn’t work out, Anthony Rendon has been the worst player on our roster in April with -0.6WAR as he has hit a big, fat nuthin’ since coming up. He is here and will stay here as his defense is still better than Sizemore and there is no reason to sent him down for some AAA dude that will hit the same.

Looking around the AL, the Houston Astros turned their move to the AL into a surprise month as they lead the West with Nick Swisher(32, 3.5*, .302-4-22 .996OPS 1.0WAR) showing off his skills for them, and so does new leadoff hitter Dustin Pedroia(29, 3*, .284-3-7 .786OPS 0.2WAR). Surprisingly enough, they called up the first overall pick of the 2022 draft in 1B Bill Fowlkes(23, 2.5/4.5*, 1-3), but using him as a pinch-hitter… I got questions.

Minor League Report and Awards:
AA LHRP Mike Cosens(22, 2/3.5*) 3-0 6SV 0.73 10K 12.1IP 0.1WAR 10G
Won Awards this month

Our absurdly stacked AAA team is 11-9 so far and with Eugenio Suárez hitting .352, Jim Hatfield hitting .302-2-9, and Noah Syndergaard being 1-0 1.75 27K in 4 starts. Fun times. Not much movement on the development side tho, but it is early.

Bad news, the injury bug has hit us as well as AA RHCL Chris Devenski(22, 1.5/3*) is out for the year with elbow ligament reconstruction surgery and our international steal R SP Javier Guzman(16, 1/3*) with a ruptured bicep tendon. Bad luck.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
none

In Other News:

April 14th – The New York Yankees announced a 6y/$175.2M contract extension for 2B Robinson Cano(30, 4*, .286-1-6 .870OPS).

April 16th – Rangers 1B David Ortiz(37, 4*) collected career home run #400 today in a 6-5 over the Athletics. The 6x Silver Slugger and 8x All-Star is a career .285/.379/.541 hitter with 400HR 1340RBI 1918H 1138R and 57.4WAR in 1886G games.

April 19th – Houston 3B Chris Johnson(28, 3*) had a fun day at the plate, going 5-5 2R 4RBI DB HR in a 11-8 win over the Cubs. The 28-year old is batting .348-1-5 .945OPS 0.4WAR in 6 games.

April 17th – Mariners 1B Todd Helton(39, 2.5*) added another hit to his career total, and it was a special one, #2500. The 3x Gold Glover, 4x Silver Slugger and 5x All-Star is a career .318/.416/.539 362HR 1371RBI 2500H 1387R 85.4WAR in 2209 game.

April 17th – Rangers RHCL Joe Nathan(38, 3.5*) made headlines by collecting save #300 for is career. The 4x All-Star is a 53-28 300SV 2.87 828K 794.IP 12.9WAR pitcher in 644 games.

April 17th – San Francisco Giants C Buster Posey(26, 5*) was sizzling at the plate, going 5-5 RBI 3DB in a 5-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies. The 2012 NL MvP is batting .450-0-7 1.242OPS 0.5WAR in 5 starts.

April 17th – Detroit Tigers CF Austin Jackson(26, 3*) has hit for the CYCLE today, going 4-5 3R RBI DB TR HR in a 7-6 win over the Mariners. The fourth year pro is batting .318-1-1 .991OPS 0.0WAR in 5 games.

April 17th – Nationals SP Stephan Strasburg(24, 3.5/4.5*) pitched a NO-HITTER today, beating the Brewers 3-0 while only allowing 2BB. In two starts, he is 2-0 0.00 19K 0.7WAR.

April 19th – Phillies SP Roy Halladay(35, 3.5*) added career win #200 today. The 2x Cy Young winner and 9x All-Star is 2-0 1.93 12K 0.4WAR in 2 starts.

April 20th – Nationals CF Michael Bourn(30, 2.5*) lost a long 22-game hitting streak today in a 2-1 loss to the Reds. The 2x Gold Glover is batting .371-0-3 .834OPS 2/4SB 0.2WAR in 8 games.

April 28th – Pirates SP Gerrit Cole(22, 2.5/5*) introduced himself to the Chicago Cubs with a complete game 1-hitter with 3BB and 10K in a 5-0 win. The righty is 1-1 3.24 25K 25IP -0.1WAR in 4 games.

April 29th – Angels SP Jered Weaver(30, 2.5*) brought home a 15-0 rout of the Twins, pitching a 4-hitter with 0BB and 10K. The 2x All-Star is 3-1 3.03 26K 0.1WAR in 4 starts.

May 1st – Angels CF Mike Trout(21, 5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .344 with 6 home runs, 12RBIs and 27 runs scored for the month. This is the third PotM in a row, counting 2012.

May 1st – Rockies SS Troy Tulowitzki(28, 5*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .403 with 6 home runs, 16RBIs and 18 runs scored for the month.

May 1st – Red Sox RHRP Jesse Crain(26, 3.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-0 1SV 0.00 4K in 5IP in six games for the month.

May 1st – Reds RHSP Johnny Cueto(27, 3*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-0 1.05 20K in 25.2IP and four starts for the month.

May 1st – Blue Jays RHSP Chris Archer(24, 2/4*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after going 2-0 0.93 16K in 19.1IP in four starts for the month.

May 1st – Diamondbacks LHSP Tyler Skaggs(21, 2.5/3*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 3-0 2.53 11K in 10.2IP in three starts for the month.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
None

Series:
2-0 vs NYY (SP Marcus Stroman 6.2IP 4H 1ER 2BB 3K W, SP Henderson Alvarez III 7IP 5H 2ER 1BB 3K W )
0-3 vs LAA
0-3 @ TBR
0-3 @ BAL
2-2 vs OAK (LF Jordan Danks 2/3 R 2RBI BB HR(1), SP Chris Archer 5.2IP 4H 2ER 1BB 8K ND(2-2 2.91))
1-2 vs BOS (SP Henderson Alvarez III 6.2IP 7H 1ER 0BB 6K ND(3-1 3.56))
0-2 vs TBR
1-1 @ CLE
1-2 @ NYM (SP Carlos Carrasco 5IP 2H 1ER 1BB 4K W(1-2 4.36))
2-1 vs BAL SP Marcus Stroman 5.1IP 3H 2ER 2BB 5K W(4-4 4.63), SP Chris Archer 6IP 3H 0ER 2BB 4K W(3-4 2.60))
1-0 vs CLE (SP Scott Kazmir 5.2IP 3H 1ER 2BB 4K ND(1-4 2.84))

Record: 21-25, 5th in AL East, 7GB
May: 10-19
Runs Scored: 164(14th)
Batting AVG: .240(11th)
OBP: .304(13th)
Home Runs: 34(12th)
Stolen Bases: 23(10th)
Runs Against: 207(10th)
Starters ERA: 3.50(3rd)
Bullpen ERA: 4.43(10th)
Defensive Eff.: .723(1st)
Zone Rating: +18.9(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: RHRP Blake Wood 1-1 2.45 15K 14.2IP 0.3WAR 13G
Toronto Position Player of the Month: C Devin Mesoraco .258/.324/.505 6HR 15RBI 10R +2.1ZR 0.6WAR 26G

And there we are back to reality. A nine game losing streak and slumping batters (or, batters hitting to their talent), and our pitching coming down to earth, and there we are back in 5th. Some not so bad news, Rendon hit .239/.311/.337 1HR 7RBI 0.2WAR in May and didn’t look totally overwhelmed. Yet, him and Goins are fighting the Mendoza line… our dear friend.

Oh and by the way, Scott Kazmir really is the most unlucky pitcher I have ever seen. 2.84ERA and only winning one game? That is outrageous… for the second year in a row.

Also outrageous are the Minnesota Twins, Miami Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates who have already lost 30+ games this season. The Marlins have the holy duo of prospects in Yelich, Fernandez up there and Giancarlo Stanton(23, 4*, .257-10-26 .815OPS 1.2WAR) up, but there is little help left. The Twins are looking at a looong rebuild as now, the #1 prospect in baseball, Justin Rimmele, has a torn ACL and is out for the year.

Talking about teams where things go well, the Los Angeles Angels still can’t believe their luck in having Mike Trout(21, 5*, .342-10-31 1.094OPS 8/10SB 3.2WAR) and are in the division lead with veteran Albert Pujols(33, 3.5*, .287-7-29 .854OPS 1.0WAR) and 1B Kendrys Morales(29, 3*, .326-9-36 .921OPS 1.4WAR) supporting him.

If you look below, you can see it was Milestone May last month as a ton of players got their career milestones out of the way, and there are some more that should fall this year… tho the 3500 hits for Derek Jeter look doubtful as he needs 186 more and I doubt that his career will continue. A-Rod needs 86 for 3000 but isn’t playing regulary. We could see some home runs milestones fall later this year and at least one 200 win pitcher… none of our business tho.

Minor League Report and Awards:
Short A RHSP Danny Ortiz(17, 1.5/2.5*) 4-1 2.29 36K 0.8WAR 35.1IP 6GS
R RHSP Willie Ortega(16, ½.5*) 4-0 1.64 37K 1.6WAR 33IP 6GS
R CF Jake Harris(19, 1/4*) .478-2-23 1.281OPS 2.2WAR 27G
Won Awards this month

Some other good news, our top draft picks in Jim Hatfield and Adam Brzezinski both got up to a 2* overall by developing in AAA and AA and the same for our A closer Roberto Osuna… slow progress but progress. Also, I got a pretty interesting scouting report on our AAA catcher and 2012 16th rounder Eric Fountaine. The 22-year old is a 60 rated defensive catcher now with a 55/45/45/45/60 bat… I guess we found the good defensive catcher as backup to replace d’Arnaud soon.

On the negative side, we eventually decided to move Blake Snell into the bullpen. He had an ERA of 6.10 in four starts and it was pretty clear that the flaws we have seen in his scouting report are real. Shame.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
1B Hugo Ramos(16, 3*) 45/45/80/60/25 50D at 1B from Tampa Bay.
2B Carlos Andujar(16, 3.5*) 60/70/55/55/65 55/55/45 Speed/Stealing 50D at 2B from New York.

We have some good first baseman in R ball and with Andujar, another… defensive challenged infielder down there. We will continue to run defensive drills in the development lab… There are too many good batters down there that need some work.


In Other News:
May 4th – Diamondbacks RF Gerardo Parra(25, 2.5*) collected five hits today, going 5-5 2R RBI TP in a 6-5 win over the Phillies. The 2011 NL Gold Glover is batting .314-0-7 .728OPS 3/4SB 0.6WAR in 20 games.

May 4th – Tigers RHSP Justin Verlander(30, 3.5*) missed a no-hitter by one hit, pitching a 9IP 1H 0ER 1BB 12K game in a 2-0 win over the Indians. The 2011 Cy Young and MvP is 3-1 1.75 46K 1.5WAR in 5 starts.

May 7th – Phillies 1B Ryan Howard(33, 2.5*) was able to put up home run #300 today for his career total. The 2006 NL MvP, 2005 NL RotY, 3x All-Star and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .272/.363/.549 300HR 905RBI 1107H 670R .912OPS 32.2WAR hitter in 1138 games.

May 8th – Brewers 3B Aramis Ramirez(34, 3*) scattered hits all over Miller Park today, going 5-5 3R 4RBI BB HR in a 16-6 rout of the Phillies. The 2x All-Star is batting .271-2-11 .706OPS 0.3WAR in 24 games.

May 8th – White Sox SP Jose Quintana(24, 3/3.5*) picked things up where he left them last year, pitching a 9IP 5H 0ER 0BB 5K gem in a 2-0 win over Minnesota. The 24-year old is 1-1 2.36 22K 0.8WAR in 5 starts.

May 9th – Yankees RF Andruw Jones(36, 3*) joined the 2000 hit club today. The 10x Gold Glover, 5x All-Star and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .255/.339/.491 461HR 1355RBI 2000H 1256R 159/220SB 54.0WAR hitter in 2254 games.

May 10th – Dodgers SP Clayton Kershaw(25, 4.5/5*) joined the elusive club of pitchers with 15K in a game, going 7.1IP 3H 0ER 1BB 15K in a 4-3 win over the Reds. The 2x Cy Young winner is 4-0 1.79 59K 2.0WAR in 6 starts.

May 13th – White Sox LF Adam Dunn(33, 2.5*) added his own career milestone today, home run #400. The 2002 NL All-Star is a career .240/.369/.490 400HR 998RBI 1448H 988R 44.9WAR in 1756 games.

May 14th – Yankees SP CC Sabathia(32, 3*) added to the number of milestones by winning #200 today. The 2x Cy Young Winner and 1x All-Star is a career 200-107 3.43 2278K 2633.2IP 59WAR pitcher in 395GS.

May 15th – San Francisco SP Matt Cain(28, 3.5*) pitched a complete game 2-hitter with 1BB and 5K today, beating the Astros 10-0. The 2x All-Star is 4-2 3.19 50K 0.9WAR in 7 starts.

May 18th – White Sox SP Jose Quintana(24, 3/3.5*) has his second shutout of the month, going 9IP 2H 0ER 2BB 8K while beating Baltimore 10-0. He improved to 2-2 2.70 35K 1.2WAR in 7 starts.

May 19th – Tigers SP Andy Pettitte(40, 2.5*) just gets another milestone, career win #250. The 3x All-Star is a career 250-148 3.89 2395K 3220.1IP 64.7WAR pitcher in 518G/508GS.

May 21st – Phillies SS Jimmy Rollins(34, 2.5*) got career hit #2000 out of the way today. The 2007 NL MvP, 3x Gold Glover, 3x All-Star and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .270/.328/.431 191HR 787RBI 2000H 1151R 396SB 44.3 WAR in 1785 games.

May 26th – Nationals SP Jordan Zimmerman(27, 3.5*) pitched a beauty today, 9IP 4H 0ER 1BB 4K in a 8-0 win over the Red Sox. The 2012 All-Star has been struggling this season, 2-5 5.43 52K 0.6WAR in 9 starts.

June 1st – Tigers 1B Prince Fielder(29, 5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .417 with 10 home runs, 23RBIs and 18 runs scored for the month. The 4x All-Star is batting .339-12-30 1.067OPS 2.0WAR for the season.

June 1st – Phillies LF John Mayberry Jr.(29, 2.5*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .324 with 9 home runs, 30RBIs and 15 runs scored for the month. The 5th-year pro is batting .284-10-37 .880OPS 0.9WAR for the season.

June 1st – Tampa Bay RHSP Alex Cobb(25, 2.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 2.70 27K in 26.2IP in 10G/3GS for the month. The righty is 5-1 3.45 47K 1.1WAR in 13G/6GS for the year.

June 1st – Dodgers LHSP Clayton Kershaw(25, 4.5/5*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-1 1.64 52K in 44IP and six starts for the month. For the year, the 2x All-Star is 7-1 1.93 85K 2.6WAR in 10 starts.

June 1st – Mariners 2B Jose Iglesias(23, 2.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after after batting .341 with 1 home runs, 10RBIs and 10 runs scored for the month. The Rule 5 draftee is batting .313-2-13 .778OPS 7/7SB 1.6WAR for the year.

June 1st – Miami RHSP Jose Fernandez(20, 2.5/4.5*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 2-3 2.41 26K in 37.1IP in six starts for the month. He bounced back from a rough April to move to 2-5 4.33 42K 0.1WAR in 9 starts.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
June 20th – CF Adam Duvall(24, 2/2.5*, .258-2-6 .771OPS 0.5WAR 27G) was returned to us by the Mets after he got selected in the Rule 5 draft this winter. We assigned him to AAA again.

Series:
1-1 vs CLE (SP Carlos Carrasco 6IP 5H 0ER 2BB 5K W(2-2 3.83))
2-1 @ NYY (SP Henderson Alvarez III 6IP 5H 0ER 1BB 3K W(4-1 3.08), 1B David Cooper 3-5 R 2RBI DB)
2-1 @ BOS (SP Carlos Carrasco 5.2IP 7H 1ER 1BB 5K W(3-2 3.60), C Devin Mesoraco 2-4 2R 3RBI BB 2HR(11))
1-2 @ BAL
2-1 vs MIA (SP Henderson Alvarez III 6.1IP 4H 1ER 2BB 6K W(5-2 2.88), LF Jordan Danks 2-4 R 3RBI DB)
0-3 vs STL
2-1 @ WSH (SP Scott Kazmir 7.2IP 4H 1ER 3BB 5K W(4-4 2.96), C Devin Mesoraco 2-4 2R 3RBI BB HR(14))
2-1 @ PHI (SP Marcus Stroman 7IP 1H 0ER 3BB 5K W(6-5 4.01), SP Henderson Alvarez III 8.1IP 7H 2ER 0BB 3K W(6-3 3.17))
0-3 @ NYM

Record: 33-39, 4th in AL East, 6GB
June: 12-14
Runs Scored: 279(13th)
Batting AVG: .238(14th)
OBP: .304(14th)
Home Runs: 62(12th)
Stolen Bases: 33(10th)
Runs Against: 313(7th)
Starters ERA: 3.44(2nd)
Bullpen ERA: 4.52(13th)
Defensive Eff.: .715(2nd)
Zone Rating: +25.5(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: LHSP Scott Kazmir 3-1 2.93 20K 30.2IP 0.7WAR 5GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 3B Anthony Rendon .268/.392/.512 4HR 13RBI 11R +0.7ZR 0.8WAR 25G

We have another Rookie of the Month and it is Anthony Rendon. He picked up pace with a couple of home runs early in the month and then was up to hitting .300 for the month before cooling down again. Also, he only juust eked out Devin Mesoraco for our internal Position Player of the Month as the backstop has hit .289-6-17 .902OPS in June and leads all AL catchers in home runs by four.

On the pitching side, the starters are amazingly good and really utilize our good defense for a good ERA… our bullpen costs us games tho. Both the righties Al Alburquerque and Tyler Duffey are a mess and lefty Mario Lujan isn’t that much better. I don’t want to return Duffey and Al Alburquerque still has the great stuff… best option would be recalling Jesse Chavez who is currently working as a starter in AAA… we stand pat.

Fun stat, Eduardo Escobar has a 16-game hitting streak and still sucks in the WAR department with a net zero… his defense is not that great unfortunately.

Around the league… don’t look now but Clayton Kershaw(11-2 1.43 116K) is on pace for the pitching triple crown. Good luck with that.

Also, our friends and partners in trade, the Washington Nationals have the best record in baseball. Riding a 22-game hitting streak, CF Michael Bourn(30, 3*, .320-3-20 .809OPS 14/18SB 2.6WAR) is red hot, RF Jose Bautista(32, 4*, .280-17-52 .920OPS 2.0WAR) and 1B Adam LaRoche(33, 3*, -302-17-56 .942OPS 2.2WAR) can be added to that list and LF Bryce Harper(20, 5*, .292-6-36 .825OPS 1.4WAR) is heating up… oh and Stephen Strasburg(24, 3.5/4*) is 7-2 2.68 110K 3.0WAR.

Taking about a bad turn of events, the Detroit Tigers lost reigning AL MvP Miguel Cabrera(30, 5*, .364-13-34 1.067OPS 2.4WAR 44G) to a severe case of post-concussion syndrome that will keep him out for the rest of the season. Hopefully, there will be no long-term consequences… but that ended their season basically as they are waay below .500 despite 1B Prince Fielder(29, 5*, .329-20-50 1.061OPS 3.0WAR) trying his best.

Minor League Report and Awards:
AA 1B Ricardo Camacho(23, 2/2.5*) .371-5-15 1.024OPS 1.2WAR 26G
A 1B Emilio Guerrero(20, 1/1.5*) .388-4-16 1.066OPS 1.2WAR 23G
R RHSP Willie Ortega(16, ½.5*) 5-0 2.01 39K 1.5WAR 6GS 31.1IP
R C Alfredo Carillo(16, 0.5/2.5*) .410-10-28 1.375OPS 1.9WAR 21G
R CF Ian Dellaripa(20, 1.5/2.5*) .392-3-20 1.095OPS 1.2WAR 25G
Won Awards this month

In other news, Nick Castellanos got bumped up to 2.5* overall with some little improvement to his running… his batting developing would be better. Yet, he is batting .338-8-45 in AAA and add Eugenio Suarez batting .329-5-26 and Jim Hatfield batting .323-8-49… I don’t know how Las Vegas is still 2 games behind in their division.

On the other hand, our pitching is still struggling down there with both Giolito and Syndergaard not getting their ERA below four and lefty closer Felipe Vazquez posting an ugly 5.70ERA with 18 saves. Work in progress I’d say.

Also work in progress is A ball left fielder Jesse Winker… and he is working on getting back on the field for 2014 as he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon and is out for the year after batting .288-7-35 .925OPS 1.2WAR. Sad news, and sad for him as we hoped he would improve quite a bit .

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
none

In Other News:

June 1st – Brewers 3B Aramis Ramirez(34, 3*) added to the milestone party by collecting hit #2000 today. The 2x All-Star and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .286/.343/.498 342HR 1221RBI 2001H 982R 47.3WAR player in 1868 games.

June 1st – Cardinals RF Torii Hunter(37, 2.5*) also got a milestone under his belt, home run #300. The 9x Gold Glover, 4x All-Star and 1x Silver Slugger is a career .274/.332/.463 300HR 1127RBI 1991H 191SB 39.4WAR hitter in 1962 games. He collected hit #2000 three days later.

June 3rd – Red Sox RHSP Clay Buchholz(28, 2.5*) shut down the Twins today, 9IP 5H 0ER 0BB 4K while winning 9-0. The 2010 AL All-Star is 5-2 3.12 45K 1.5WAR in 10 starts.

June 5th – Dodgers LHSP Clayton Kershaw(25, 4.5/5*) added to his amazing season with a complete game 4-hitter with 1BB and 8K in a 5-0 win over the San Francisco Giants. The 2x All-Star moved to 8-1 1.71 93K 3.0WAR in 11 starts.

June 5th – Rays RHSP David Price(27, 3/3.5*) put on a show today, going 9IP 2H 0ER 1BB 6K in a 4-0 win in Seattle. The 2x All-Star is now 6-2 2.13 66K 1.7WAR in 11 starts.

June 11th – Mets LF Josh Willingham(34, 3*) had a huge day at the plate, going 5-5 4R 7RBI with 3HR in a 14-7 slugfest win over the Phillies. The veteran is batting .249-16-48 .878OPS 1.2WAR in 52 games.

June 13th – White Sox RF Hunter Pence(30, 3.5*) had a big 5-hit day in a 10-5 loss to the Royals, going 5-5 2R 2RBI DB HR. The 2x All-Star is batting .306-13-32 .944OPS 2.3WAR in 53 games for his new team.

June 21st – Marlins RF Giancarlo Stanton(23, 4*) had a career night tonight in a 5-1 win over the Yankees, going 3-3 3R 4RBI BB with 3HR. The 2012 NL Silver Slugger is batting .266-17-43 .891OPS 2.4WAR in 61 games.

June 29th – Reds 1B Joey Votto(29, 4.5*) was a big part of a 18-0 destruction of the Twins, going 5-6 3R 4RBI DB HR for the night. The 2x Gold Glover is batting .304-19-56 1.031OPS 2.8WAR in 69 games.

June 29th – Cleveland RF Nick Markakis(29, 3*) was part of the winning team today, but lost his 20-game hitting streak. The 2011 AL Gold Glover is batting .336-5-27 .871OPS 2.0WAR in 69 games.

July 1st – Athletics 1B Billy Butler(27, 3.5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .369 with 6 home runs, 26RBIs and 17 runs scored for the month. The former KCR star is batting .321-9-43 .862OPS 1.7WAR for the season.

July 1st – Marlins RF Giancarlo Stanton(23, 4*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .345 with 10 home runs, 26RBIs and 18 runs scored for the month. The 1x All-Star is batting .287-20-52 .957OPS 3.2WAR for the season.

July 1st – Rangers RHSP Yu Darvish(26, 3.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-1 1.72 31K in 36.2IP in 5 starts for the month. The 2012 AL All-Star is 8-4 2.41 102K 2.2WAR in 16GS for the year.

July 1st – Giants LHSP Madison Bumgarner(23, 3.5/4*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 0.72 46K in 37.2IP and five starts for the month. For the year, he is 9-5 2.37 108K 1.8WAR in 15 starts in what may just be his best season.

July 1st – Blue Jays 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3/3.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after batting .268 with 4 home runs, 13RBIs and 11 runs scored for the month. The top prospect is batting .218-5-23 ..661OPS 7/8SB 0.5WAR for the year.

July 1st – Cardinals RHRP Evan Scriber(27, 2*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 1-0 6SV 0.59 15K in 15.1IP in 14G for the month. A Rule 5 draftee from OAK this winter, he is 2-3 8SV 3.86 33K 0.3WAR in 37 games.

[Griever20]

2013 First Year Player Draft:
Today's Major League Baseball first-year player draft will produce a new pool of potential all-stars, players with aspirations of one day holding position in the lineup, starting rotation or bullpen. The prime candidates, according to BNN's predictions, includes:

1. Jimmy Harrell, 21 year-old 3B out of college.
2. Nick Shirley, 18 year-old LF out of high-school.
3. Fernando Soriano, 17 year-old 3B out of high-school.
4. Jim McConnell, 17 year-old CF out of high-school.
5. Shawn Buie, 21 year-old CF out of college.
6. Ray McCown, 18 year-old LF out of high-school.
7. Jason Puskas, 18 year-old C out of high-school.
8. Mike Gitlin, 20 year-old CF out of college.
9. Nick Barham, 21 year-old RF out of college.
10. Don Beaudoin, 18 year-old LF out of high-school.

The first five picks go to Houston, Kansas City, Toronto, Minnesota and Baltimore.

1st Round, 1st Pick(1st overall) Houston Astros select CF Shawn Buie(21, 2/5*) out of Cal State Fullerton College
Great Competition: .400-15-79 1.466OPS 66G 8.2WAR
Signability: Hard, Bonus Demand: $5.0M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Baseball IQ , Financial Ambition, Leader, Loyalty
The 21-year Shawn Buie is the closest to can’t miss as you can get, 75/90/50/60/75 80-85 speed ratings and 65 center field defense.

1st Round, 3rd Pick(17th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(21, 2/5*) out of Tulane University
Great Competition: 12-2 1.84 147K 132IP 20G 5.7WAR
Signability: Normal, Bonus Demand: $3M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Leader, Adaptability, Work Ethic, Baseball IQ. Financial Ambition
There were a number of high ceiling starters in this draft, but Komosinski was the most promising in our book as a college arm that has good personality traits and three pitches that are all well developed with a slider/sinker/splitter combination that will generate a lot of groundballs.

2nd Round, 1st Pick(47th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select RHRP Ricardo Maurer(23, 2.5/5*) out of Drury University
Average Competition: 7-1 0SV 1.38 147K 85IP 15G/13GS 4.4WAR
Signability: Very Easy, Bonus Demand: Slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Work Ethic
The best relief prospect we could find, our scouting hopes that we found a future closer that can hold down the job for a very long time. And he is cheap.

3rd Round, 2nd Pick(77th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select 1B Carlos Puentes(22, 1.5/4*) out of Fairfield University
Average Competition: .288-35-69 1.281OPS 16/20SB 6.3WAR 65G
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $500k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Work Ethic, Adaptability, Loyalty, Leader
Very similar to our 2nd rounder last season, we selected a high power potential first baseman from college, this time hitting from the right side. High potential for K’s.

4th Round, 3rd Pick(98th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select SS Lee Greening(21, 1.5/3*) out of University of Calgary
Poor Competition: .321-17-55 1.139OPS 4.5WAR 57G
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: Sot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Unknown
A slick fielding shortstop with 60D at short, 65 at 3B and 70 at second base, the Canadian native was one who was very popular with our fans, and we decided to go with it.

5th Round, 3rd Pick(128th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select C Garrett Paul(21, 1/2.5*) out of Virginia Tech
Great Competition: .280-14-48 .937OPS 2.3WAR 50G
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: Slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Work Ethic
A defensive catcher with decent batting for depth.

6th Round, 3rd Pick (158th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select RHSP Jose Calles(18, 1.5/3*) out of Leadership Christian Academy
Poor Competition: 7-3 1.65 123K 4.3WAR 93IP 13GS
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $240k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Loyalty, Adaptability, Work Ethic
Young starter with a lot of groundball outs in his pitches, throwing an average fastball with a LOT of breaking balls. Will be fairly cheap and works hard.

7th Round, 3rd (188th overall) Toronto Blue Jays select 1B Joe Sokolow(21, 1.5/4*) out of UCLA
Fair Competition: .307-16-55 1.143OPS 4.3WAR 52G
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $230k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Baseball IQ
The best available guy on the list. Yes, we stack left-handed first baseman. 65/45/60/70/65 on the hitting side, he should be an easy sign.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
August 1st – 1B David Cooper(26, 2.5*, .223-5-26 .636OPS –0.9WAR 77G) was demoted to AAA and AA 1B Adam Brzezinski(24, 2/4*, .240-22-62 .862OPS 2.0WAR AA), our 2012 2nd rounder from college, was called up to be our every day 1B against right-handed pitching.

Series:
2-0 vs SEA (SP Marcus Stroman 7IP 5H 1ER 1BB 10K ND(6-5 3.78))
2-2 vs CWS (SP Marcus Stroman 5.2IP 4H 2ER 2BB 6K W(7-5 3.74))
1-2 @ TEX (SP Chris Archer 6IP 6H 2ER 1BB 4K ND(4-6 3.30))
3-1 @ SEA (SP Marcus Stroman 6.1IP 4H 3ER 0BB 5K W(8-5 3.77), C Devin Mesoraco 2-3 2R 4RBI 2BB DB HR(17), SP Scott Kazmir 7IP 2H 0ER 1BB 3K W(6-6 2.84))
1-2 vs KCR (SP Marcus Stroman 8IP 1H 0ER 3BB 6K W(9-5 3.48))
2-2 @ DET (SP Chris Archer 6IP 4H 2ER 2BB 4K ND(4-6 3.28), SP Scott Kazmir 5.2IP 3H 2ER 1BB 7K W(7-6 2.95))
2-2 @ CWS (SP Marcus Stroman 7.1IP 2H 1ER 0BB 7K W(10-5 3.77))
1-1 vs BOS (3B Anthony Rendon 2-4 R 3RBI BB DB)

Record: 47-51, 3rd in AL East, 9GB
July: 14-12
Runs Scored: 388(12th)
Batting AVG: .238(13th)
OBP: .305(14th)
Home Runs: 81(13th)
Stolen Bases: 53(9th)
Runs Against: 411(5th)
Starters ERA: 3.49(1st)
Bullpen ERA: 4.39(13th)
Defensive Eff.: .718(1st)
Zone Rating: +38.4(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: LHSP Scott Kazmir 3-1 2.79 28K 38.2IP 1.0WAR 6GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 3B Anthony Rendon .294/.368/.494 2HR 9RBI 15R +2.9ZR 0.7WAR 25G

Two things. First: I could not stand the anemic bat of David Cooper any longer. Second: Brzezinski is 24, he either can swim at the MLB level, or will drown. I was very tempted to call up Castellanos for Snider and Hatfield for Goins and Suarez for… you get the point, but one at a time, and by age.

Also, while Cooper was a black hole, the rest of the lineup does one thing very well. DEFENSE. How they managed to push this makeshift rotation to lead the AL in starters ERA is beyond me, but may the magic continue. For example, Jake Marisnick may be hitting .205, but he is soo good on defense that he is a positive 2 WAR… insane.

On the pitching side, Carlos Carrasco is not going to be resigned. The only reason he is still in the rotation is that our AAA kids are not ready yet, but his stamina is a big concern and we will replace him with someone better next year…

Some very early thoughts on the development lab… Archer is showing some promise and I think we need to sent him to the control program once again to unlock his full potential, Brzezinski is an option now that he is here, and so is Stroman… that is three slots filled by our MLB roster.

Minor League Report and Awards:
Short A RHSP Carlos Lemus(17, 1.5/3*) 3-1 0.83 32K 1.0WAR 32.2IP 6GS
R RHSP Hector Trinidad(16, 1.5/2.5*) 3-0 3.18 26K 0.4WAR 17IP 6G/3GS
R 3B Cesar Montoya(17, 0.5/3*) .446-8-28 1.327OPS 1.9WAR 23G
R CF Jake Harris(19, 1.5/4*) .491-5-24 1.292OPS 2.3WAR 26G/24GS
Won Awards this month

So, bad news first. AAA LHP Blake Snell is out for the year with a torn flexor tendon in his elbow. Scratch him from our list of prospects I’d say.

Now, to the good news. Eugenio Suárez has broken the 2.5* barrier in AAA and is hitting .329-8-35 .906OPS 2.9WAR in 95 games and is well underway to audition for a job next spring, maybe as a DH?

More good news? Our draft picks have all signed, LHSP Jeremy Komosinski was rated the #2 prospect in MLB’s top 100 Live list, and surprisingly enough, RHRP Joe Szczygiel(23, 2.5/5*) #14 as a reliever… His nickname is “The Incredible Hulk” by the way. He is on a fast track to the majors as well at age 23 and with the stuff he has, and since we have some junky ERA’s in the bullpen this season, there is room…

The sad and sorry truth is tho, we assembled way more talent via the draft and the international amateur free agents then by the trades we made.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
LHSP Dave Ruano(16, 3*) 50/50/50 65Stamina Finesse Pitcher from Phillies.

Another interesting arm for our depth.

In Other News:

July 1st – Rays RHSP James Shields(31, 2.5*) blanked the White Sox 7-0, pitching a 4-hitter with 0BB and 10K. The 2011 AL All-Star is 5-5 4.09 85K 0.8WAR in 15 starts.

July 1st – Cubs SS Starlin Castro(23, 3.5*) collected a five hit game tonight in a 9-1 win over the Reds. The 2011 NL All-Star is batting .310-7-40 .791OPS 7/8SB 2.7WAR in 71 games.

July 2nd – Cardinals SP Chris Carpenter(38, 3*) pitched a gem today, going 9IP 2H 0ER 1BB 5K in a 2-0 win over the Astros. The 2005 NL Cy Young Winner is 10-3 2.53 93K 2.1WAR in 16 games in what can only be called a vintage season.

July 2nd – Diamondbacks RHRP Kyle Davies(29, 2/2.5*) made the most out of a spot start, pitching a 2-hitter with 1BB and 6K in a 4-0 win over the Colorado Rockies. The former Blue Jay is 5-1 1SV 2.45 37K 0.9WAR in 47.2IP as a long man with 18G/4GS.

July 10th – Rays 1B Edwin Encarnacion(30, 3.5*) had a big 3HR night in a 7-5 triumph over the Red Sox, going 4-5 3R 4RBI 3HR. The 2012 AL All-Star .287-26-55 .976OPS 3.2WAR in 81 games.

July 12th – Rays RHSP James Shields(31, 2.5*) pitched a no-hitter with 1BB and 7K in a 2-0 win over the Orioles. The second no-hit pitcher of the year, he moved to 6-5 3.89 97K 0.9WAR in 17 games.

July 22nd – Astros RHSP Mike Leake(25, 2.5*) has put up a great show today, pitching a complete game 7-hitter with 1BB and 3K in a 6-0 win over the Reds. The control artist is 9-7 3.89 77K 1.7WAR in 18 games.

July 23rd – Diamondbacks RHRP Rick Porcello(24, 2.5/3*) pitched a complete game 3-hitter with 2BB and 7K in a 4-0 win over the Cardinals. The finesse pitcher is 7-7 4.98 71K 1.4WAR in 18 starts.

July 24th – Orioles RHSP Roy Oswald(35, 3*) pitched a 2-hitter with 1BB and 5K in a 1-0 win over the Twins. The 3x All-Star is 3-7 4.22 77K 2.9WAR in 15 starts.

July 24th – Red Sox 3B Mike Aviles(32, 2.5*) had a terrific night, hitting 3HR in a 5-4 victory over the White Sox, going 3-4 3R 5RBI 3HR. The veteran is batting .244-12-41 .666OPS 0.3WAR in 86 games.

July 26th – The Rangers have just acquired RHSP Phil Hughes(27, 3/3.5*, 3-6 3.21 113K 3.1WAR) from the Yankees for three prospects.

July 26th – Cardinals 1B Lance Berkman(37, 3*) collected hit #2000 today in a 6-4 loss to the Braves. The 6x All-Star is a career .293/.404/.533 375HR 1290RBI 2001H 1201R 89SB 69.8WAR in 1984 games.

July 27th – Braves RHRP Tim Hudson(38, 2.5*) put up career win #200 today, albeit in relief. The 3x All-Star is a career 200-115 3.43 1902K 2809.2IP 52.3IP 52.3WAR in 433G/423GS.

August 1st – Tampa Bay 1B Edwin Encarnacion(27, 3.5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .347 with 11 home runs, 22RBIs and 25 runs scored for the month. The 2x All-Star is batting .292-31-67 .975OPS 3.9WAR for the season.

August 1st – Nationals LF Bryce Harper(20, 5*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .381 with 8 home runs, 24RBIs and 24 runs scored for the month. The 1x All-Star is batting .314-14-60 .941OPS 3.7WAR for the season.

August 1st – Twins RHSP Ian Kennedy(28, 2.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 2.00 36K in 45IP in 6 starts for the month. The 2013 AL All-Star is 10-6 2.68 130K 3.5WAR in 21GS for the year.

August 1st – Nationals RHSP Joe Blanton(32, 2.5*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 1.27 25K in 35.1IP and five starts for the month. For the year, he is 7-4 4.53 80K 0.1WAR in 19 starts.

August 1st – Yankees LHSP Martin Perez(22, 2.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after going 2-0 1.74 13K in 20.2IP in 5G/3GS for the month. Being traded on deadline day, he put up those numbers with the Royals where he was 3-2 2SV 2.85 47K 66.1IP 0.1WAR in 34G/6GS.

August 1st – Cardinals RHRP Evan Scriber(28, 2*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 3-0 2SV 0.00 11K in 12.2IP in 14G for the month. The RotY for the second month in a row, he is 5-3 10SV 2.83 44K 0.8WAR in 51 games.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
August 3rd – 1B Eric Thames(26, 2.5*, .258-8-39 .716OPS -0.2WAR) was placed on the 15-day IL with back stiffness. Going back and forth, we decided to bite the bullet and called 1B David Cooper(26, 2.5*, .223-5-26 .636OPS -0.9WAR) back up…

August 16th – RHSP Marcus Stroman(22, 2.5/3.5*, 12-5 3.22 106K 1.4WAR) was placed on the 15-day IL with an oblique strain. LHRP Luis Perez(28, 2*, 3-0 2.18 30K 0.8WAR AAA) was called up to and LHP Bobby Cramer will be in the rotation.

August 19th - 1B Eric Thames(26, 2.5*, .258-8-39 .716OPS -0.2WAR) comes off the DL and 1B David Cooper(26, 2.5*, .219-6-33 .622OPS -1.2WAR) was banished back to AAA after costing us another -0.3WAR.

September 1st – LHRP Luis Perez(28, 2*, 0-0 3.38 1K -0.1WAR) was sent back to AAA as RHSP Marcus Stroman(22, 2.5/3.5*, 12-5 3.22 106K 1.4WAR) was activated off the IL.

Series:
0-1 vs BOS
3-0 vs LAA (SP Chris Archer 6.1IP 5H 0ER 1BB 7K W(5-7 3.19), SP Scott Kazmir 5.2IP 6H 1ER 2BB 3K W(8-6 2.80), 2B Adeiny Hechavarria 4-5 3R RBI)
1-2 @ TBR (SP Marcus Stroman 6IP 2H 1ER 6BB 3K ND(11-5 3.27))
2-1 @ BOS (SP Scott Kazmir 8IP 5H 1ER 2BB 3K W(9-6 2.70), SP Marcus Stroman 7IP 5H 1ER 0BB 4K W(12-5 3.16))
2-1 vs TEX (2B Eduardo Escobar 2-2 R 2RBI BB HR(10))
0-4 vs CLE
1-2 vs BAL (1B Adam Brzezinski 2-4 2R 6RBI BB 2HR(5))
2-1 @ KCR (3B Anthony Rendon 2-5 R 4RBI HR(9))
2-1 @ OAK (2B Adeiny Hechavarria 5-5 R RBI DB, SP Henderson Alvarez III 7IP 5H 0ER 0BB 2K W(10-6 3.56))
0-2 vs NYY

Record: 60-66, 4th in AL East, 5GB
August: 13-15
Runs Scored: 508(13th)
Batting AVG: .237(14th)
OBP: .302(15th)
Home Runs: 106(13th)
Stolen Bases: 74(8th)
Runs Against: 555(8th)
Starters ERA: 3.80(3rd)
Bullpen ERA: 4.40(12th)
Defensive Eff.: .715(1st)
Zone Rating: +47.4(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: LHSP Scott Kazmir 2-1 3.79 28K 35.2IP 0.8WAR 6GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 2B Adeiny Hechavarria .337/.358/.442 1HR 14RBI 15R +4.6ZR 0.6WAR 27G

Want so hear something funny? We went 13-15 and gained four games on first place. And I still don’t think we are a good team. But, we are improving bit by bit and the next wave of players is due next spring.

I am very happy with the first month of Adam Brzezinski and a month of Adeiny Hechavarria at second as that helped out offense a little bit. The bullpen however is still a big concern as Alburquerque, Lujan and Duffey are struggling and Cramer is 33 and most likely won’t carry the left side forever.

Now, about players that won’t be around forever, the New York Yankees have a ton of them, and are 53-73. Derek Jeter(.261-2-30 .625OPS -1.0WAR) is in what may just be his final year, 3B Alex Rodriguez(38, 3*, .273-12-38 .810OPS 1.4WAR) is on the IL with a rotator cuff strain, reigning Cy Young Winner CC Sabathia(33, 3*, 5-2 2.96 50K 1.4WAR 9G) is out for the year with elbow surgery, 1B Mark Teixeira(33, 2.5*, .214-18-58 .691OPS 0.0WAR) is a shadow of his former self… and they have five guys batting below .220 in the lineup.

Another fun stat. The Colorado Rockies have 68 wins and therefore, have already matched the win total of 2012. Adding 1B James Loney(29,3 2.5*, .328-8-59 .819OPS 1.2WAR) as a table setter for SS Troy Tulowitzki(28, 4.5/5*, .289-13-34 .924OPS 2.1WAR) and RF Carlos Gonzalez(27, 4*, .287-22-76 .835OPS 1.8WAR) has helped, but the big thing for them is… they found five AAAA pitchers that have their ERA hover around 3.50 and 4.50.

Minor League Report and Awards:
AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(21, 2/3.5*) 4-0 3.26 31K 38.2IP 0.8WAR
AAA 3B Eugenio Suarez(22, 2.5/3.5*) .380-7-18 1.162OPS 34R 38H 1.7WAR
RHCL Joe Szczygiel(23, 2.5/5*) 1-0 6SV 0.00 16K 9.2IP 0.6WAR
A SS Jesse Carver(23, 1.5/2.5*) .369-2-13 1.022OPS 17R 24H 1.1WAR
R LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(22, 2/5*) 5-0 1.24 63K 43.2IP 2.5WAR
R RHCL Humberto Talavera(17, 1.5/2.5*) 2-1 8SV 2.38 13K 11.1IP 0.7WAR
R SS Guillermo Cervantes(17, ½.5*) .327-5-23 1.00OPS 1.0WAR 27G
R CF Jake Harris(19, 1.5/4*) .495-3-20 1.414OPS 2.5WAR 26G
Won Awards this month

Good news, we got some good performances in the minors last month and in general. Our AAA team is 78-57 and lead their division by 3.5 games. The clue about Noah Syndergaard is, he was PotM, he is 14-4, but only with an ERA of 4.09, and the scouting report still says… needs more time.

Our AA team is not much to write home about, but our single A teams are 69-52 and 70-62 with RHCL Roberto Osuna(18, 2/4*, 65-2 9SV 1.26 81K 2.3WAR) and RHCL Joe Szczygiel(see above) being the future of our pen, and our international free agent RHSP Victor Torres(17, 1.5/5*, 10-7 2.19 146K 4.0WAR) is performing nicely.

What we are waiting for… is some breakthroughs in player development.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
none

We didn’t find anyone interesting this month, but one thing has to be said. The not so interesting players that we grabbed may develop into a brutal generation of 2.5* AAAA players that we can pick and choose from … and one development bump, and we may find a star in them.

In Other News:

August 3rd – Cleveland SP Justin Masterson(28, 2.5*) pitched a masterpiece today, a 1-hitter with 1 BB and 5K in a 1-0 win over the Rangers. The sinkerballer is 8-7 3.89 79K 0.6WAR in 20 starts.

August 7th – Astros 3B Chris Johnson(28, 3*) hammered 3 home runs today in a 10-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks, going 4-5 4R 7RBI 3HR for the night. The 28-year old is batting .283-11-51 .796OPS 1.9WAR in 81 games.

August 9th – Mariners C John Jaso(29, 3*) had a five hit night today, going 5-6 3R 6RBI HR in a 17-7 rout of the Twins. The left-handed hitter is batting .233-9-47 .732OPS 2.6WAR in 91 games.

August 14th – Tigers 1B Prince Fielder(29, 5*) collected career home run #300 today. The 5x All-Star and 3x Silver Slugger is a career .292/.401/.560 300HR 858RBI 731R 1297H 44.8WAR in 1253 games.

August 17th – White Sox 3B Brett Lawrie(23, 3*) bashed 3 home runs today in a 12-1 rout of the Orioles, going 4-4 4R 7RBI 3HR. The Canadian native is batting .280-15-55 .794OPS 2.7WAR in 107 games.

August 17th – Kansas City C Salvador Perez(23, 5*) joined the fun with a 4-6 3R 6RBI 3HR game in a 10-7 win over the Athletics. The 2x All-Star is batting .297-21-63 .847OPS 4.7WAR in 93 games.

August 22nd – Cubs LF Alfonso Soriano(37, 2.5*) put up career hit #2000 today. The 7x All-Star and 4x Silver Slugger is a career .268/.316/.493 380HR 1069RBI 1118R 2000H 275SB 41.3WAR in 1871 games.

August 24th– Reds LF Raul Ibanez(41, 2.5*) waited long to reach it, but career hit #2000 is here. The 2009 NL All-Star is a career .275/.337/.466 290HR 1174RBI 1042R 2001H 32.9WAR player in 2066 games.

August 28th – Royals SP Mark Buehrle(34, 2.5*) used his pinpoint control to pitch a complete game 3-hitter with 0BB and 8K in order to beat the Yankees 11-0. The 3x Gold Glover is 10-10 4.64 93K 1.6WAR in 26 starts.

August 28th – Rockies RF Carlos Gonzalez(27, 3.5/4*) joined the 3HR team, going 4-5 3R 4RBI 3HR in a 5-4 loss to the Cardinals. The 2010 NL Silver Slugger is batting .289-22-76 .842OPS 1.8WAR in 125 games.

August 30th – Rangers 1B David Ortiz(37, 3.5*) put up #2000 today. The 8x All-Star and 6x Silver Slugger is a career .285/.379/.540 415HR 1388RBI 1185R 2000H 58.9WAR in 1961 games.

August 31st – Oakland 3B Josh Donaldson(27, 3/3.5*) banged out five hits today, going 5-5 2R 2RBI 2HR in a 6-4 loss to the Tigers. The 2012 AL All-Star is batting .265-20-62 .782OPS 3.5WAR in 115 games.

September 1st – Angels 1B Albert Pujols(33, 3.5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .358 with 8 home runs, 29RBIs and 19 runs scored for the month. The 3x MvP is batting .303-21-86 .868OPS 3.8WAR for the season.

September 1st – Nationals LF Bryce Harper(20, 5*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .402 with 8 home runs, 28RBIs and 20 runs scored for the month. The 1x All-Star is batting .333-22-88 .998OPS 5.9WAR for the season.

September 1st – Oakland RHSP Clay Buchholz(29, 2.5*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 6-0 1.66 31K in 43.1IP in 6 starts for the month. The 2010 AL All-Star is 12-6 3.58 120K 2.9WAR in 25GS between OAK & BOS.

September 1st – Pirates RHSP Paul Maholm(31, 2.5*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 2.35 20K in 38.1IP and 6 starts for the month. For the year, he is 13-7 3.81 90K 1.8WAR in 25 starts.

September 1st – Yankees RHSP Chris Andretta(23, 2/2.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after going 4-1 3.54 20K in 40.2IP in 6G/6GS for the month. A 4th rounder in 2012, he is 4-3 4.18 24K -0.2WAR in 8 starts.

September 1st – Padres RHRP Alex Gardea(23, 2.5*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 5-0 2.84 12K in 12.2IP in 15G for the month. The Cuban defector is 6-0 2.51 14K in 14.1IP in 17G.

[Griever20]

Transactions:
none

Series:
1-0 vs NYY (1B Adam Brzezinski 3-5 2R 3RBI 2HR(7))
1-3 vs MIN (LF Jordan Danks 3-4 3R DB)
1-2 @ TBR (SS Eduardo Escobar 1-3 R 4RBI BB HR)
2-1 @ NYY (C Devin Mesoraco 2-3 2R 3RBI BB DB)
2-2 vs TBR (SP Marcus Stroman 6.1IP 4H 1ER 5BB 6K W(13-6 3.27))
2-1 vs BOS (SP Carlos Carrasco 5IP 4H 0ER 2BB 4K W(6-11 5.05), SP Marcus Stroman 7.2IP 5H 1ER 1BB 6K W(14-6 3.17))
2-1 @ LAA (C Devin Mesoraco 3-3 2R 2DB, 3B Anthony Rendon 3-4 2R 2RBI BB DB HR(14))
3-0 @ TEX (SP Marcus Stroman 6.0IP 5H 1ER 0BB 5K W(15-6 3.10), 2B Adeiny Hechavarria 3-4 R RBI DB, SP Chris Archer 6.1IP 2H 3ER 2BB 10K ND(7-11 4.25))
3-0 @ BAL (SP Scott Kazmir 6.1IP 3H 0ER 2BB 4K W(11-9 3.09), SP Carlos Carrasco 6.1IP 3H 0ER 0BB 3K ND(6-11 4.71), SP Marcus Stroman 8IP 2H 0ER 3BB 7K W(16-6 2.96))
1-0 vs NYY (C Devin Mesoraco 2-4 3R 4RBI BB DB HR(25))

Record: 78-76, 2nd in AL East, 3.5GB in Division, 1.5GB in Wild Card
September: 18-10
Runs Scored: 647(12th)
Batting AVG: .240(13th)
OBP: .307(14th)
Home Runs: 144(10th)
Stolen Bases: 90(8th)
Runs Against: 661(8th)
Starters ERA: 3.87(3rd)
Bullpen ERA: 4.02(10th)
Defensive Eff.: .717(1st)
Zone Rating: +64.8(1st)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: RHSP Marcus Stroman 4-1 2.08 31K 39IP 1.1WAR 6GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 3B Anthony Rendon .330/.420/.669 8HR 21RBI 23R +7.0ZR 1.9WAR 27G

In a surprising turn of events… we somehow won eight straight to end the month of September and with eight games to go… we are close to a wild card spot. We don’t have things in our own hands as we only play teams below us in the standings, namely the Yankees for two, and then Baltimore and Boston. Three teams below .500. Crazy.

We are definitely ahead of schedule with this team for now, and a major factor this month was Anthony Rendon who won Rookie of the Month and Player of the Month and, according to our scouts, is slowly but surely filling out his potential. And so is Marcus Stroman who already has a 16-win season. Also, Adam Brzezinski put up a .253-6-19 .812OPS month and is looking pretty good. My ETA for a winning team was 2014, and we may beat that.

As for the playoff picture, the NL is pretty much set with WSH, ATL, NYM, CIN, STL and SFG in the driver seats for the offseason. In the AL however… no team apart from the White Sox should be deemed save here and not winning the division could be a death sentence for any team.

Eight more and we know more.

Minor League Report and Awards:
R RHRP Jorge Diaz(17, 1.5/3.5*) 2-1 7SV 2.70 12K 0.1WAR 10IP
R CF Jake Harris(19, 1.5/3.5*) .420-2-16 1.137OPS 1.0WAR 20G
Won Awards this month

Now, our AAA team made the playoffs, but lost in the first round. The kids are getting there tho and we can see Suárez and Castellanos fighting for jobs for 2014 in the lineup, and Syndergaard, Giolito and lefty Daniel Norris working towards a rotation spot mid 2014 or 2015.

In AA, our lefty closer Mike Cosens, a 5th round pick in 2012, is coming off a 8-7 29SV 2.57 68K 1.7WAR 63IP year and is a 2.5/3* guy, so he may make a big jump into the majors as our lefties there are… concerning. As for Joe Szczygiel, the scouting report still says future closer and he was 3-0 9SV 0.00 25K in 15.2IP in single A and the scouting report says he can be a decent big leaguer… but I see him starting in AAA next year.

Another year of difficult development lab decisions tho…

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
none

In Other News:

September 1st – Reds RHSP Homer Bailey(27, 2.5*) pitched a gem, 9IP 6H 0ER 0BB 6K with the closest of margins, winning 1-0 over the Cardinals. The righty has done everything he could, going 8-3 1SV 3.26 73K 1.3WAR in 30G and 6 starts.

September 3rd – The Los Angeles Dodgers and LHSP Clayton Kershaw(25, 4.5/5*, 15-5 1.72 196K 6.3WAR) agreed to a 7y/$195.8M contract extension that will keep him around for his age 32 season.

September 3rd – Marlins 3B Placido Polanco(37, 2.5*) showed that there is some juice left in his bat, going 5-5 2R in a 11-4 win over the Phillies. The 3x Gold Glover is batting .285-2-38 .671OPS 0.7WAR in 118 games.

September 6th – Astros 2B Jose Altuve(23, 3.5*) collected a 5-hit game, going 5-5 RBI 3SB in a 5-4 win over the Mets. The 2x All-Star is batting .340-9-55 .855OPS 3.8WAR in 129 games.

September 15th – Guardians RF Nick Markakis(29, 3*) lost his 21-game hitting streak today. The 2011 AL Gold Glover is batting .313-10-57 .827OPS 3.0WAR in 132 games.

September 20th – Padres LHSP Jaime Garcia(27, 3*) pitched an impressive 2-hit shutout in a 12-0 win over the Astros today, walking none and whiffing 6. The Mexican groundballer is 15-13 3.14 145K 4.4WAR in 30 games.

September 20th – Yankees LF Curtis Granderson(32, 3*) got his batting average up with a 5-5 2R 4RBI HR night in a 11-5 win over Baltimore. The 3x All-Star is batting .227-26-81 .749OPS 2.5WAR in 139 games.

September 22nd – Angels 1B Albert Pujols(33, 3.5*) collected career home run #500 today. The 2001 NL RotY, 3x MvP, 10x All-Star and 6x Silver Slugger is a career .323/.410/.599 500HR 1567RBI 1459R 2416H 91.6WAR hitter in 2001 games.

September 25th – Nationals RHSP Hiroki Kuroda(38, 2.5*) won 10-0 over the Braves with a 9IP 5GH 0ER 1BB 6K in the win. The veteran is 6-16 4.27 146K 3.2WAR in 30GS between WSH and NYY.

September 25th – White Sox LHSP Chris Sale(24, 3.5/4.5*) struck out 14 en route to a 8-0 win over the Tigers, working 9IP 3H 0ER 0BB 14K. The 2013 AL All-Star is 12-9 3.18 214K 6.0WAR in 31 games.

September 28th – Padres CF Will Venable(30, 3*) had a nice 5-5 4R 2RBI 2HR night in a 10-6 loss to the Cubs. The 2012 NL Gold Glover is batting .260-15-51 .734OPS 30/39SB 3.8WAR in 148 games.

October 1st – Blue Jays 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .330 with 8 home runs, 21RBIs and 23 runs scored for the month. The rookie is batting .265-17-68 .800OPS 4.3WAR for the season.

October 1st – Nationals RF Jose Bautista(32, 4*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .319 with 8 home runs, 23RBIs and 16 runs scored for the month. The 3x All-Star is batting .275-32-102 .900OPS 3.7WAR for the season.

October 1st – Tampa Bay RHSP James Shields(31, 3*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-1 2.31 44K in 39.0IP in 6 starts for the month. The 2011 AL All-Star is 11-9 3.68 171K 2.0WAR in 31 starts.

October 1st – Miami RHSP Jose Fernandez(21, 2.5/4*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 5-0 1.30 39K in 34.2IP and 5 starts for the month. For rookie is 13-11 3.96 155K 1.1WAR in 29 starts.

October 1st – Blue Jays 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after batting .330 with 8 home runs, 21RBIs and 23 runs scored for the month.

October 1st – Miami RHSP Jose Fernandez(21, 2.5/4*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after going 5-0 1.30 39K in 34.2IP and 5 starts for the month.

[Griever20]

I just realized I must've missed a post here... we finished 82-80 and missed the playoffs... sorry about that

And as feared by many Nationals fans, Bryce Harper did not even take one swing in the playoffs and the lone 100-win team got eliminated early to make way for the San Francisco Giants… and they ran with it all the way. Led by C Buster Posey(26, 5*, .335-24-94 .944OPS 6.7WAR), DH Victor Martinez(34, 3.5*, .303-13-73 .769OPS 3.3WAR) and 1B Brandon Belt(25, 4*, .323-14-75 .894OPS 6.3WAR) on the offensive side of things, and stud LHSP Madison Bumgarner(24, 3.5*, 19-11 3.10 253K 4.7WAR), the team crowned their season with the second World Series win within four years.

Transactions:
October 19th – RHP Jesse Chavez(30, 2/2.5*, 16-6 3.80 130K 3.7WAR AAA), RHP Chris Heston(25, 2/2.5*, 2-3 2SV 5.02 34K 0.0WAR AAA) and CF Anthony Gose(23, 2*, .283-7-31 .813OPS 0.6WAR AAA) were waived and designated for assignment.

October 22nd – All three passed through waivers.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
LHSP Danny Vasquez(16, 3*) 40/55/80 70 Stamina Finesse Pitcher from Baltimore.
3B Joaquin Rodriguez 55/60/55/60/55 40D at 3B from Nationals.
RF Juan Galarza(16, 3*) 60/55/55/45/60 55D at LF from Colorado Rockies.

[Griever20]

Salary Arbitration:
SP Henderson Alvarez III(23, 2.5*, 12-11 4.45 101K 1.7WAR) - Estimate $1.3M - offered 1y/$1.25M
SP Carlos Carrasco(26, 2.5*,8-11 4.61 130K 2.4WAR) - Estimate $3.6M – NO OFFER
SP Jesse Chavez(30, 2/2.5*, DNP at MLB level) - Estimate $1.3M – NO OFFER
LHRP Bobby Cramer(34, 2.5*, 5-8 6SV 4.22 71K 0.4WAR) – Estimate $1.248M - offered 1y/$1.2M
RHRP Blake Wood(28, 2/2.5*, 3-1 1SV 2.11 1.4WAR) – Estimate $850k - offered 1y/$820k
3B Scott Sizemore(28, 2.5*, .225-4-23 .651OPS 0.0WAR) – Estimate $1.2M - NO OFFER
RF Travis Snider(25, 2.5*, .222-20-63 .654OPS 0.1WAR) – Estimate $4.6M – NO OFFER

Some of them hurt by the name, and especially Travis Snider has gotten us some quality home runs over the last two years… but to be honest… he is not good enough overall for $4.6M. And for Carrasco… the stamina is too bad. We rather take another chance with a prospect from the minors.

Upcoming Free Agents:
none

Development Lab:
MLB SP Marcus Stroman(22, 3/3.5*) Improve Control
MLB SP Chris Archer(24, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Control
MLB 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*) Improve Infield Defense
AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(21, 2/4) Improve Control
AAA 3B Eugenio Suárez(22, 2.5/3.5*) Generate Batspeed
AAA LF Nick Castellanos(21, 2.5/4*) Gap Power
R LF Miguel Licea(17, 0.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
R LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(22, 2/5*) Secondary Pitch Improvement

[Griever20]

Blue Jays Awards:

1B Todd Helton(40 .205-15-61 .623OPS 0.1WAR) won his fourth and final Gold Glove Award as he retired after the season.
1B Prince Fielder(29, 4.5*, .316-41-110 1.030OPS 6.1WAR) won his fourth Silver Slugger Award.

Major Awards:

That is the 3rd one for Kershaw!

Transactions:
November 15th – All our arbitration candidates that we want to keep signed their contract extensions.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
none

Contract Extensions:
San Francisco Giants C Buster Posey(26, 5*, .335-24-94 .944OPS 6.7WAR) 8y/$248.3M – 2012 ML MvP, 2010 ML RotY, 2x All-Star, 1x SS
Cleveland C Carlos Santana(27, 4*, .245-22-73 .824OPS 4.3WAR) 5y/$78.5M – 2x All-Star
San Francisco Giants 1B Brandon Belt(25, 4*, .323-15-75 .894OPS 6.3WAR) 6y/$65.08M

[Griever20]

Free Agent Signings:
Pittsburgh Pirates 1B Joey Votto(30, 4.5*, .318-37-108 1.027OPS 7.9WAR) 7y/$211.5M – 1x MvP, 2x GG, 2x SS, 3x All-Star
San Diego Padres 1B Prince Fielder(29, 4.5*, .316-41-110 1.030OPS 6.2WAR) 7y/$200.2M – 4x SS, 5x All-Star
Milwaukee Brewers SP Anibal Sanchez(29, 3*, 3-4 1.99 68K 25WAR) 7y/$134M – 1x GG, 1x All-Star
Tampa Bay Rays 2B Ben Zobrist(32, 3*,.249-18-79 .775OPS 3.5WAR) 5y/$116M – 2x All-Star
Cleveland Guardians 2B Ian Kinsler(31, 3*, .298-13-71 .821OPS 5.8WAR) 5y/$104.8M – 1x GG, 4x All-Star

Votto to a division rival is outrageous.

Trade News:
none

Transactions:
December 26th – Due to the Rule 5 draft, we placed LHRP Felipe Vazquez(22, 2/4*) and RHRP Chris Devenski(23, 2/3*) on the 40-man roster.

December 26th – We picked nobody in the Rule 5 draft, but lost LHSP Justin Nicolino(22, 2*, 3-69 1sV 3.67 36K 0.8WAR 56.1IP AAA) to the Chicago Cubs,
RHSP Anthony DeSclafani(23, 2/2.5*, 8-11 5.88 141K 3.3WAR AAA) to the New York Yankees and CF Anthony Gose(23, 2*, .283-7-31 .813OPS 36SB 0.6WAR AAA) to the San Diego Padres.

February 1st – We didn’t sign a quality international amateur free agent as we got outbid on every one and didn’t decide to go over the cap soon enough.

[Griever20]

Development Lab:
MLB SP Marcus Stroman(22, 3/3.5*) Improve Control
MLB SP Chris Archer(24, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Control
MLB 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*) Improve Infield Defense
AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(21, 2/4) Improve Control
AAA 3B Eugenio Suárez(22, 2.5/3.5*) Generate Batspeed
AAA LF Nick Castellanos(21, 2.5/4*) Gap Power
R LF Miguel Licea(17, 0.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
R LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(22, 2/5*) Secondary Pitch Improvement

First Update Nov. 29th:
STOPPED: R LF Miguel Licea(17, 0.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
ADDED: R 3B Cesar Montoya(17, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense

Second Update Dec 16th:
FINISHED: MLB 3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL
ADDED: A C Carlos Perez(18, 3*) Improve Defense at Catcher

Third Update January 4th:
FINISHED: R 3B Cesar Montoya(17, 0.5/3*) Improve Infield Defense OUTSTANDING
STOPPED: A C Carlos Perez(18, 3*) Improve Defense at Catcher
ADDED: R CF Jake Harris(19, 1.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
ADDED; A SS Gabriel Cervantes(17, 1/3*) Improve Infield Defense

Fourth Update February 9th:
FINISHED: R CF Jake Harris(19, 1.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: A SS Gabriel Cervantes(17, 1/3*) Improve Infield Defense SUCCESSFUL
ADDED: R LF Miguel Licea(17, 0.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense
ADDED: R C David Riquelme(17, 3*) Improve Defense at Catcher

Final Update Febuary 25th:
FINISHED: MLB SP Marcus Stroman(22, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Control SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: MLB SP Chris Archer(24, 2.5/3.5*) Improve Control NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: AAA SP Noah Syndergaard(21, 2/4) Improve Control SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: AAA 3B Eugenio Suárez(22, 2.5/3.5*) Generate Batspeed SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: AAA LF Nick Castellanos(21, 2.5/4*) Gap Power NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: R LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(22, 2/5*) Secondary Pitch Improvement SUCCESSFUL
FINISHED: R LF Miguel Licea(17, 0.5/3.5*) Improve Outfield Defense NO IMPROVEMENT
FINISHED: R C David Riquelme(17, 3*) Improve Defense at Catcher NO IMPROVEMENT

Not a bad round I would say, our big guys got improvements and some defensive stuff for the kids...

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
CF Al Martinez(16, 3*) 65/65/55/45/65 60D at LF from Kansas City Royals.
SS Daniel Alvarez(16, 3*) 45/50/75/70/30 45D at 2B from San Francisco Giants.
CF Bengt Young(16, 3*) 55/80/55/85/50 55D at CF from Boston Red Sox.

Nothing too impressive, but depth.

[Griever20]

Your 2014 Toronto Blue Jays:

Starting Pitching

RHSP Henderson Alvarez III(23, 2.5*) 12-11 4.45 101K 32GS 192.1IP 1.3WAR // 22-29 4.07 225K 74GS 445IP 3.6WAR (career)
Alvarez came in with an ERA of 3.86 in 2012 and got inflated up to 4.45, but was a model citizen, ate a lot of innings and collected his first winning season. The control artist may not be the best clubhouse guy is striking out only 4.7 per nine and his days may be limited as we got some better pitchers underway in the minors.

RHSP Chris Archer(25, 2.5/3.5*) 8-12 4.04 159K 31GS 171.1IP 1.7WAR // 8-12 4.04 159K 31GS 171.1IP 1.7WAR (career)
Leading the majors in walks, Archer still struggles with control and to be honest, the 25-year old is probably never going to reach his ceiling. His stuff is not quiet developed to the max, his movement is not great, and he only throws in the low 90’s. Chris will get another shot this season and his 2013 was not bad, but that was in part because of our elite defense. Acquired from TBR in 2012.

LHSP Scott Kazmir(30, 2.5*) 11-11 3.06 150K 206IP 34GS 4.1WAR // 84-93 3.92 1316K 248G/247GS 1421.0IP 22.0WAR (career)
Scotty repeated his stellar 2012 with an even better 2013, netting an All-Star selection, his third of the career, and he is our anchor in the rotation despite the scouting report. His changeup has really played and the rest of his pitching is rock solid, what a great pickup. Signed to the end of 2014.

RHSP Marcus Stroman(22, 3/3.5*) 17-6 2.84 145K 30GS 177.2IP 2.6 // 24-22 3.78 270K 60GS 335.2IP 2.5WAR (career)
Our extreme groundballer has made a bit jump in 2013 and has become the ace of our staff and opening day starter for 2014. His career 2013 is partly because of our infield defense and a league leading .226 BABIP, but we really think he can become a career Blue Jays.

LHSP Daniel Norris(20, 2/3*) 12-5 5.10 112K 144.2IP 33G/25GS 1.8WAR (AAA) // DNP (career)
Carrasco out, the so-so prospect that we don’t mind rushing a bit in. Norris has (surprise) control issues and room for growth on every front, but with his 55 stamina, he should give us more than Carrasco.


Relief Pitching:

RHRP Al Alburquerque(27, 2*) 3-1 2SV 4.25 63K 53IP 54G 0.1WAR // 10-8 9SV 4.57 200K 163.1IP 175G 0.4WAR (career)
Alburquerque improved from an horrible 2012 and put up respectable numbers with a 4.53 ERA… but to be honest, if we find a better reliever, he is in big danger. He cut his walks by 0.4BB/9… to 6.2 BB/9 which isn’t exactly stellar. Trade acquisition from DET in 2012.

LHRP Bobby Cramer(34, 2.5*) 5-8 6SV 4.22 71K 98IP 77G/2GS 0.2WAR // 16-13 11SV 3.57 169K 162G/6GS 229.2IP 0.6WAR (career)
A great little acquisition in 2012, Cramer pitched great out of our pen and as a spot starter in two occasions, but he ran out of steam in 2013 and our manager used him a lot (waay to much) for 98 innings. At age 34, we have to see how much he left in the tank.

RHRP Tyler Duffey(23, 2/3.5*) 1-4 0SV 5.75 46K 67.1IP 45G -2.0WAR // 1-4 0SV 5.75 46K 67.1IP 45G -2.0WAR
The lone reason why he is here is… we don’t want to rush our relief prospects that are also rated 2*, and need some seasoning in the minors. Or have a future closer in Joe Szczygiel get burned before he is ready. Yes, the potential is still there and actually went up this winter, but at age 23, it is a long way for him. Acquired via the Rule 5 draft in 2012.

RHRP Yoslan Herrera(32, 2*) 5-5 1SV 2.62 41K 75.2IP 74G 0.8WAR // 9-13 4.51 105K 155.2IP 149G/5GS -0.6WAR (career)
Herrera was discovered on the street before our clubhouse in 2012, and rewarded out trust with a career year in 2013. His talent is limited, but he at least one more year in him before he gets into danger to be replaced by a younger kid.

LHRP Luis Perez(29, 2*) 4-0 0SV 2.08 32K 34.2IP 31G 0.9WAR (AAA) // 5-6 4SV 4.79 110K 146.2IP 120G/4GS -0.9WAR (career)
Last year, we celebrated the arrival of Mario Lujan who our scouts really liked… and got burned for a 6.61ERA. Back to Luis Perez, who still isn’t super impressive, but had a good year in AAA and in spring training. He never got an ERA under 4.50 in the majors… but at least was never as bad as Lujan.

RHRP Joakim Soria(29, 3.5*) 2-3 36SV 3.10 58K 61IP 65G 0.8WAR // 17-20 204SV 2.51 473K 435G 448.1IP 8.1WAR (Career)
Featuring a deep arsenal of a fastball, slider, curveball, changeup and cutter, the 2x All-Star has had a good season in 2013 as our closer, even though his 3.10ERA was not stellar. Signed till the end of 2015, we have a good closer and solid arm. Love the kid.

RHRP Arodys Vizcaino(23, 2.5/3*) 5-3 2SV 4.14 43K 58.2IP 63G -1.1WAR // 8-4 4SV 4.50 87K 116IP 115G -1.2WAR (career)
Vizcaino is not stellar, but keeps on improving and developing and especially our scoting department likes his potential a lot. The changeup can be devastating at times and we love his personality, but the walks (6.1 BB/9) was an issue in 2013.

RHRP Blake Wood(28, 2/2.5*) 3-1 1SV 2.11 60K 72.2IP 58G 1.4WAR // 9-7 2SV 3.87 186K 237.1IP 199G 1.8WAR (career)
Throwing 91-93, there is nothing too special in him and he struggled to get the job done in 2012, but in 2013, he was the best pitcher out of the pen. Wood was certainly helped by his groundball tendencies and the defense behind him… but that is our strategy.

Catcher

C Travis d’Arnaud(24, 2.5*, R) .238/.290/.406 7HR 21RBI 56G/34GS 0.5WAR // .230/.283/.361 9HR 30RBI 63H 21R 108G 0.7WAR (career)
d’Arnaud was good enough as a backup catcher, but long term, we would like to get someone in that has a bit better defensive ratings. His bat hasn’t played up to his minor league numbers as well… but he is a warm body that can catch and amass a bit of WAR.

C Devin Mesoraco(25, 3.5*, R) .256/.340/.487 27HR 88RBI 135G 4.9WAR // .255/.323/.464 48HR 153RBI 266H 142R 292G 8.9WAR (career)
Mesoraco followed up a good 2013 with a stellar 2014, netting him an All-Star nomination for the first time in his career. At age 25, he has many seasons left in his bat and will be a mainstay in our organisation for a long time. Acquired from CIN in 2012 offseason.

Infield

1B Adam Brzezinski(24, 2/3*, L) .237/.313/.474 11HR 35RBI 52G/47GS 0.9WAR // .237/.313/.474 11HR 35RBI 41H 30R 52G/47GS 0.9WAR (career)
We had sooo enough of Cooper that Brzezinski got the shot for the last two months and he took the opportunity and created positive war… something Cooper never managed. His power and batting eye is not even close to potential and similar to a Chris Archer, it is make or break for him on the development side in 2014. Potentially a 45/65/75/80/30 first baseman with a lot of whiff. 3rd rounder in 2012 draft.

1B Eric Thames(27, 2.5*, L) .241/.315/.373 12HR 58RBI 148G/147GS -0.4WAR // .248/.313/.405 40HR 160RBI 363H 182R 403G 1.5WAR (career)
Mr. Thames returns for another year of baseball to Toronto but this year, he will be starting the season on the bench. And hopefully, for good. The potential that was advertised never materialized in him and his 2013 numbers were even worse than his 2012 season despite another year of experience. A line drive hitter that can generate some doubles, but lacks home run power, he does not have the skills to stay around for much longer.

2B/UT Eduardo Escobar(25, 2.5*, S) .264/.330/.440 14HR 60RBI 131G/97GS 1.3WAR // .258/.326/.401 21HR 112RBI 243H 112R 298G 2.2WAR (career)
Escobar lost his regular second base job after not hitting that well and not being up to our high standards on the defensive side, just to get a second life as a backup infielder that came in and started to hit from the bench and when the starters are tired. He will stay in that role given the circumstances at second, but there is some value in him here. Acquired via trade from CWS in 2012.

2B Adeiny Hechavarria(24, 2.5*, R) .290/.309/.379 4HR 38RBI 8/11SB 124G/88GS 1.8WAR // .288/.311/.377 6HR 56RBI 155H 58R 218G/124GS 2.4WAR (career)
Hechavarria was a sparkplug late last season and ended up with his usual slashline of .290/.310/.370 that we can expect from him. I still think he could utilize his speed more, but the combination of a good contact bat, very good defense and some speed make him our everyday 2B over Escobar.

3B Anthony Rendon(23, 3.5*, R) .267/.352/.455 19HR 72RBI 156G/150GS 5.4WAR // .267/.352/.455 19HR 72RBI 151H 79R 156G/150GS 5.4WAR (career) #20 prospect
Partially due to his low adaptability, Rendon struggled early last season to get into the MLB rhythm but took of mid-season enroute to a Rookie of the Year Award. Having finished the development lab for his defensive skills twice now, his third base defense is rated at a solid 60 and his bat seems to play nicely already with some room for growth. Acquired via trade from WSH in 2012.

3B Eugenio Suárez(22, 2.5/3.5*) .339/.436/.521 16HR 57RBI 130G/126GS 31/41SB 4.6WAR // DNP (career)
At a rating of 30, Suárez’ defense at third isn’t the greatest thing since the invention of sliced bread, but his bat plays at 55/50/55/55/45 with a 55/50/70/55/50 potential, and that gives us the designated hitter that we want. He stole 31 bases last season in AAA and we decided to give him the green light for now as our leadoff hitter, hoping the .436OBP from AAA can translate. Should be a good upgrade over the Sizemore/Cooper/Thames mess we had last season. Acquired from DET in 2012.

SS Ryan Goins(26, 2*, L) .211/.254/.301 7HR 36RBI 151G 1.2WAR // .222/.259/.322 13HR 77RBI 202H 81R 305G 2.5WAR (career)
Is here for his glove and his glove only. Our 2012 1st rounder Jim Hatfield wants this job badly, but will get another year in AAA, so Goins is save for now… but to be honest, he probably won’t be our starting shortstop in 2015.

Outfield

LF/RF Nick Castellanos(22, 2.5/4*, R) .361/.431/.550 14HR 91RBI 133G 13/25SB 3.7WAR (AAA) // DNP (career)
Our 2014 version of Anthony Rendon for me. A kid that, if he starts well and gets the final development boost at the MLB level, can win the Rookie of the Year award. Rated 70/65/60/45/55 batting potential with 60 defense in left field, Castellanos is a great prospect that should get our bats up to life and should be an upgrade over the bat of Travis Snider. Acquired from DET in 2012.

LF/RF Jordan Danks(27, 2*, L) .236/.315/.352 10HR 60RBI 154G 16/18SB 2.9WAR // .221/.301/.336 21HR 103RBI 247H 125R 309G 41/49SB 3.6WAR (career)
Can’t go completely wrong with a 2x Gold Glover in the outfield. Moving to right field to make room for Castellanos, the question about Danks is not whether the defense will be great, but whether he can at least repeat his 2013 season with the bat to stay relevant offensively. Acquired from CWS in 2012.

CF Jake Marisnick(23, 2.5*, R) .204/.263/.307 11HR 45RBI 20/23SB 150G 3.4WAR // .208/.262/.318 19HR 91RBI 199H 86R 42/51SB 303G 5.4WAR (career)
Our scooting department thinks I am too obsessed with Marisnick’s defensive ability, but a Gold Glover at center field that is putting up 3.4WAR while batting .204… find be a better center fielder in this organisation. His bat is slowly developing, but 2013 was actually a bit worse than 2014 there… but yes, I love this kid.

CF Kevin Kiermaier(23, 2.5*, L) .256/.300/.374 4HR 30RBI 10/11SB 87G 1.4WAR // .256/.300/.374 4HR 30RBI 50H 29R 10/11SB 87G 1.4WAR (career)
Make no mistake, if we go by pure scouting reports, Kiermaier would be the starting right fielder, albeit by a small margin. We will observe the situation closely, but what Kevin did as a backup outfielder was exquisite and we will soon have to make a tough decision between good outfielders with what is coming up from AAA. Acquired via trade from TBR in 2012.

[Griever20]

Preseason Prediction:
87-75, 2nd in AL East, 4G behind Tampa Bay Rays

Predicted Top Players:
none

That would be a five game improvement over 2013, albeit with no top player on the roster. We added some WAR by replacing the dead wood of Cooper and Thames and hopefully an improvement by having Castellanos over Snider. Not sure if Norris will be better than Carrasco but I would take a 87 game season.

The huge questions going into 2014 are:
How will the kids develop and our minor league system fare?
How will our rookies in Suárez, Castellanos and Norris fare?
Is the second half of 2013 really the true potential of this team?
Can we capture a Wild Card?
Will we call up some of our bullpen arms in order to help a playoff push?

The Division:
Tampa Bay(88-74) is looking to defend their division crown with a 91 win season with their usual group of talented players in 3B Evan Longoria(28, 3.5*, .263-26-75 .837OPS 4.1WAR) and 1B Edwin Encarnacion(31, 3*, .265-47-113 .893OPS 4.3WAR) leading the mashing with the pitching of ace LHSP David Price(28, 3*, 13-7 2.94 202K 3.7WAR) helping out… while their closer Jake McGee(27, 5*, 3-3 2SV 2.43 91K 1.9WAR) is looking for another strong year. Also, young phenon RHRP Bill Gray(24, 2.5/5*) will make his MLB debut.

As for the Baltimore Orioles(76-86), Vegas likes them for 85 wins and a third place finish… I don’t believe this. They got SP Ricky Nolasco(31, 2.5*, 11-13 5.13 160K 3.1WAR) at a 2.78ERA… the 21-year old sophomore 3B Manny Machado(21, 3/3.5*, .257-8-33 .705OPS 2.1WAR) will be the most important asset for them.

The New York Yankees(71-91) need to rebuild and are predicted a 79 win season. With Derek Jeter retired and Alex Rodriguez(38, 2.5*, .262-13-41 .778OPS 1.6WAR) limited to bench duties according to several news outlets, they rely heavily on 2B Robinson Cano(31, 3.5*, .294-26-106 .863OPS 3.3WAR)… and luck. RHSP CC Sabathia(33, 2.5*, 5-2 2.96 50K 1.3WAR) returns from injury, but is not the same pitcher he was two years ago.

For the Boston Red Sox(80-82), the rebuilding process shall continue with 77 wins. The rookie year of 2B Xander Bogaerts(21, 2/3*) and a second season of 2B/OF Mookie Betts(21, 2.5/5*, .230-5-30 .636OPS 2.0WAR) may generate excitement, but the desperation of bringing in OF Ichiro Suzuki(40, 2*, .271-9-61 .674OPS -0.2WAR) and OF Travis Snider(26, 2.5*, .222-20-63 .654 0.6WAR)…

Baseball America announced their Top 100 prospect list:
#1 2B Victor Adan, 17, New York Mets(INT)(NEW) (IFA signing)
#2 3B Jimmy Harrell, 22, Kansas City Royals(AA)(NEW) (2nd overall 2013)
#4 LHSP Jeremy Komosinski, 22, Toronto Blue Jays(AAA)(NEW) (3rd overall 2013)
#4 RHSP Brian Fox, 20, Seattle Mariners(AA)(+3) (3rd overall 2012)
#5 CF Shawn Buie, 22, Houston Astros(MLB)(NEW)(1st Overall 2013)
#6 LHSP Justin Walker, 23, Pittsburgh Pirates(AA)(NEW)( 7th overall 2013)
#7 RHSP Bryan Graham, 20, Los Angeles Dodgers(AA)(NEW)(11th overall 2013)
#8 2B Justin Rimmele, 23, Minnesota Twins(MLB)(-7)(2nd overall 2012)
#9 SS Ketel Marte, 20, Seattle Mariners(MLB)(+10)
#10 RHSP Jason Behrendt, 19, Colorado Rockies(AA)(+-0) (9th overall 2013)

Notable Toronto Blue Jays on the list:
#15 RHSP Victor Torres(5*), 18, AA ,IFA signing (-1)
#28 RHSP Noah Syndergaard(4*), 20, AAA (-3)
#32 SS Jim Hatfield(3.5*), 22, AAA, 1st Round 2012 (-26)
#36 LF Nick Castellanos(4*), 21, AAA, Trade DET (-13)
#56 RHRP Joe Szczygiel(4.5*), 23, AAA, 2nd round 2013
#61 CF Jake Harris(3.5*), 20, R, 4th round 2012 (+11)
#65 3B Eugenio Suárez(3.5*), 22, MLB, Trade DET (-14)
#72 LF Jesse Winker(3.5*), 20, AAA, Trade CIN (+21)
#123 SP Lucas Giolito(3*),19, AAA, Trade WSH (-20)
#132 RF Avsail Garcia(3.5*),22, AAA, Trade DET (-25)
#141 RHRP Ricardo Maurer(4*), 19, AAA, 2nd round 2012 (-32)
#144 RHRP Roberto Osuna(4*) 19, AA (+24)
#162 RHRP Felipe Vazquez(4*), 22, AAA, Trade TBR (-39)
#177 LHSP Daniel Norris(3*), 20, MLB
#290 1B Joe Sokolow(4*), 21, A, 7th round 2013
#291 LHRP Mike Cosens(3.5*), 23, AAA, 5th round 2012 (-119)
#378 RHRP Jorge Diaz(4*) 18, S A, Scouting Discovery CWS, (-8)

A good group of guys, the only sad one is Jim Hatfield. Him regressing surely does throw a wrench into our plans. That being said, our AAA team could be a monster.

[Griever20]

Double Post, Forum Problems not fun

[Griever20]

Had some trouble with the schedule, works now but we only have 3-game series right now… don’t ask.

Transactions:
April 12th – LF Nick Castellanos(22, 2.5/4*) was placed on the 15-day IL with bck stiffness 2 weeks. He was batting .167 before the injury. OF Juan Lagares(25, 2*) was recalled from AAA and Kevin Kiermaier goes into the lineup.

April 27th - OF Juan Lagares(25, 2*, .211-0-0 .632OPS -0.1WAR 8G) was sent back down to AAA and LF Nick Castellanos(22, 2.5/4*) was activated off the IL.

Series:
2-1 @ BAL (SP Scott Kazmir 6.1IP 5H 1ER 1BB 7K W(1-0 1.42))
2-1 vs BOS (2B Adeiny Hechavarria 3-4 2R 2RBI BB HR(1), SP Marcus Stroman 6.1IP 3H 2ER 1BB 11K ND(0-0 1.59))
0-3 @ CLE
2-1 @ CWS (SP Daniel Norris 7IP 3H 0ER 1BB 6K W(2-0 1.46), SP Henderson Alvarez III 8IP 5H 0ER 1BB 3K W(1-0 1.50))
3-0 vs OAK (SP Scott Kazmir 6.2IP 3H 1ER 1BB 6K W(2-0 2.00), SP Chris Archer 6.2IP 2H 3ER 4BB 6K ND(0-1 7.53), SP Daniel Norris 6.1IP 4H 2ER 4BB 5K ND(2-0 1.93))
1-2 @ LAA (SP Marcus Stroman 8IP 4H 0ER 1BB 9K W(1-1 2.84))
0-3 vs HOU (3B Eugenio Suárez 2-5 2R 3RBI DB HR(6) SB(4))
2-1 @ KCR (SP Chris Archer 7IP 4H 2ER 1BB 8K W(1-2 5.81))

Record: 12-12, 3rd in AL East, 3GB in Division
April: 12-12
Runs Scored: 86(13th)
Batting AVG: .234(13th)
OBP: .300(15th)
Home Runs: 22(8th)
Stolen Bases: 29(1st)
Runs Against: 83(4th)
Starters ERA: 3.49(5th)
Bullpen ERA: 3.21(4th)
Defensive Eff.: .732(2nd)
Zone Rating: +10.0(2nd)

Toronto Pitcher of the Month: RHSP Henderson Alvarez 1-1 2.40 13K 30IP 0.6WAR 5GS
Toronto Position Player of the Month: 1B Adam Brzezinski .286/.368/.506 3HR 11RBI 6R -0.3ZR 0.5WAR 24G

We are struggling. The bats are not alive. The best hitter in our team was a 24-year old 3rd rounder in the 2012 draft that has not even fulfilled his potential. Now, we have four hitters hitting below .200 including Devin Mesoraco and Nick Castellanos… concerning. On the plus side, Eugenio Suárez is batting a good one and leads our team in home runs. Pitching is fine tho!

Surprisingly, the Baltimore Orioles are performing strong and are 15-9 with 1B Chris Davis(28, 2.5/3*) batting .317-5-14 .963OPS 1.1WAR hitting his stride and 3B Manny Machado(21, 3/3.5*, .316-2-12 .903OPS 1.1WAR) joining the fun… this is not good for us.

Another team that seemingly have turned things around after two losing seasons are the Dodgers. With a 17-7 start, SP Zach Greinke(30, 3.5*) going 2-1 2.64 30K 0.7WAR in his second year with the team, and LF Matt Kemp(29, 4*, .330-4-1 .949OPS 1.0WAR) and RF Yasiel Puig(23, 4.5*, .293-8-21 1.032OPS 1.0WAR) doing the heavy hitting… really heavy hitting. Aaand SS Corey Seager(20, 2/4*, .189-1-4 .508OPS 0.0WAR) joined the team for his rookie season.

Minor League Report and Awards:
AAA LHSP Jeremy Komosinski(22, 2/5*) 3-1 1.73 25K 0.7WAR 26IP 4GS
AAA LF Jesse Winker(20, 1,5/3.5*) .485-5-19 1.446OPS 20R 1.8WAR 18G
A 1B Carlos Puentes(23, 1.5/4*) .310-8-26 1.021OPS 0.6WAR 21G
Won Monthly Awards

Things are working out well in our minor league teams, and we caught a little break as our R LHSP Danny Vasquez(17, 1/3.5*) developed a cutter and upped his potential a notch with at that one. A fourth pitch for a guy with 80 control potential? I take it!

Bad news, Noah Syndergaard is struggling and got lit for a 7.41ERA and so is one of our other top prospects in AA SP Victor Torres with a 6.93ERA… it is early.

International Amateur Discovery Additions and Update:
None impressive.

In Other News:

April 10th – Mariners RHCL Francisco Rodriguez(32, 2.5*) collected career save #300 today in a 5-0 win over the Baltimore Orioles. The 4x All-Star and 2x Reliever of the Year is a career 43-30 300SV 2.59 931K 761IP 725G 13.4WAR pitcher.

April 11th – Cardinals RF Corey Hart(32, 3*) has hit for the CYLCE today in a 7-5 loss to the Reds, going 4-5 R 3RBI DB TP HR. The 2x All-Star is batting .370-2-6 1.174OPS 0.5WAR in 6 games.

April 11th – Dodgers SP Kevin Millwood(39, 2.5*) pitched a complete game 4-hitter with 1BB and 6K in a 7-0 win over the Pirates. The 1999 NL All-Star is 3-0 1.19 16K 0.5WAR in three starts.

April 21st – Tampa Bay RF Ben Zobrist(32, 3*) slammed 3 HR in a 12-3 win over the Red Sox, going 3-5 3R 6RBI 3HR. The 2x All-Star is batting .309-3-12 .987OPS 0.8WAR in 14 games.

April 26th – The Los Angeles Angels and superstar CF Mike Trout(22, 5*) signed a 8y/$188.9M contract extension today that will keep him around till the end of 2022. The reigning AL MvP is batting .328-8-22 1.209OPS 1.5WAR in 18 games.

May 1st – Angels CF Mike Trout(22, 5*) was named AL Batter of the Month after batting .321 with 10 home runs, 27RBIs and 20 runs scored for the month.

May 1st – Nationals RF Jose Bautista(32, 4*) was named NL Batter of the Month after batting .376 with 8 home runs, 27RBIs and 20 runs scored for the month.

May 1st – Cleveland RHSP Corey Kluber(28, 2.5/3*) was named AL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-0 1.12 26K in 32IP in 5 starts for the month.

May 1st – Nationals RHSP Hiroki Kuroda(39, 3*) was named NL Pitcher of the Month after going 4-1 0.82 29K in 33IP and 5 starts for the month. F

May 1st – Cleveland CF Akira Matsubara(29, 3*) was named AL Rookie of the Month after batting .305 with 4 home runs, 13RBIs and 18 runs scored for the month.

May 1st – Pittsburgh RF Kenny Mullin(24, 2/3.5*) was named NL Rookie of the Month after batting .257 with 5 home runs, 11RBIs and 8 runs scored for the month.