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Jeroloman was DFA'ed a while back. I'm not sure if he's still in the system; I assume he's not as the AAA catching situation, to put it bluntly, is beyond dire (3 catchers on the DL at AAA alone). Heck, at a lower level a first baseman was converted to catcher to help out in the short term.

They signed a catcher after the deadline from somebody I think Philly who had to make room.

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It was actually done via trade right before the deadline, but this guy is AAA filler at best.

Maybe your right. Jeroloman is on the 7day DL in NH. I am just looking for somebody to soak up some inning so they could move Mathis if they wished at the end of August. Then again, the way he has played, maybe he fits back into their plans.

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An off-the-field story worth following is the Oakland-San Francisco saga, even if it is moving at slower than a snails' pace. The A's have long wanted to move to San Jose where they can get a new stadium earmarked for baseball (instead of playing in a multi-purpose facility) and to try and take advantage of some new fans in the San Jose area without alienating their current fans. It's not like they couldn't rebuild a stadium in Oakland either, the owner of the A's has shot down that proposal already; he wants San Jose badly. The Giants, who have territorial rights to the San Jose territory, want no part of it. The speculation is that if the owners approve the move that SF ownership could try to turn around and sue the league, something I think would be a first. Given that ground will soon be broken on an NHL-sized facility in Markham, ON, part of the Toronto territory, I think they will be watching with interest to see what San Francisco does should the league allow Oakland's move to San Jose.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/athletics-giants-coliseum-move-san-jose-jemile-weeks-bud-selig-new-ballpark-stadium.html

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  • 1 month later...

Could it be? An actual feel good story stemming from Loria and the Marlins? It's probably a PR stunt but it's still a nice story.

In 2005, OF Adam Greenberg made his major league debut against Florida. In his first at bat (on the first pitch), he was hit in the head with a fastball from a Florida pitcher, knocked unconscious, and never had another MLB at bat. That is, until now, as Florida will sign him to a one day contract next week and play him against the Mets with the promise that he will get an at bat.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/8430448/7-years-later-miami-marlins-give-adam-greenberg-another-bat?ex_cid=Twitter_espn_8430448

Interestingly enough, Greenberg faced the pitcher who hit him last season in an independent league game where he got a base hit.

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We all know that when it comes to homerism in hockey, Jack Edwards and the NESN crew are up right at the top. In baseball, the White Sox have a crew that vastly surpasses NESN (or any other homer). Just how big of homers are they? The Wall Street Journal actually did a study on this - http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390444180004578016652376246198.html

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I here whispers that the Jays aren't going to spent to bring in top free agents. Roger's put their wallet back in their pocket, Jays regroup roster off of the scratch and dint pile and we end with another fourth or fifth place finish again next year.

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I here whispers that the Jays aren't going to spent to bring in top free agents. Roger's put their wallet back in their pocket, Jays regroup roster off of the scratch and dint pile and we end with another fourth or fifth place finish again next year.

Not sure what "rumours" you're talking about because Anthopolous has been pretty clear in all his interviews over the last 2 months that they Jays are looking to add in the offseason and will spend (either via free agency or trade) in order to get the right pieces. He's specifically mentioned upgrades in the starting rotation at 1B/DH (whichever EE isn't playing), 2B and LF.

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Not sure what "rumours" you're talking about because Anthopolous has been pretty clear in all his interviews over the last 2 months that they Jays are looking to add in the offseason and will spend (either via free agency or trade) in order to get the right pieces. He's specifically mentioned upgrades in the starting rotation at 1B/DH (whichever EE isn't playing), 2B and LF.

Hope your right. Everyone knows that Alex shortsheeted the 2012 season. We still need today a top end starter and big lefthanded DH masher the same as last year (I think EE has earned the first base position). I'll believe it when I see it. I agree they have the resources. I believe they missed an opportunity last year. I expect they will go back into the second hand shop when the big boys show up with big dollars.

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Hope your right. Everyone knows that Alex shortsheeted the 2012 season. We still need today a top end starter and big lefthanded DH masher the same as last year (I think EE has earned the first base position). I'll believe it when I see it. I agree they have the resources. I believe they missed an opportunity last year. I expect they will go back into the second hand shop when the big boys show up with big dollars.

I base this on nothing other than my own intuition, but I strongly feel that the Jays will sign David Ortiz to DH. Ortiz has always been very complementary of Toronto, has ties to Farrell and is a close friend of Bautista.

For SP it appears as though the Angels are going to decline the options of both Haren and Santana, the White Sox are looking like they'll do the same with Peavy. I would be targeting these three guys, plus Greinke to fill the SP void via FA.

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Good stuff. I am just speculating from interviews and articles I have read. I get the sense that fans particularly in the Toronto area are pretty disturbed with sports teams in general. I don't believe that fans will tolerate another sit on your hands year. Besides it would be a great time to gain some ground on the woeful Maple Leafs in terms of popularity. I believe it would be a huge mistake not to get something done.

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Well, now. I suspect the 1-game wildcard is really going to get called into question after an interesting Infield Fly call in the Atlanta-St. Louis game. Whether that call cost them the three runs they were down at the time of the call is hard to say but that's a tough one...although I suspect someone on here is happy either way. :)

That was a great post-game celebration by St. Louis too - get the final out and then run off the field as fast as possible.

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Well, now. I suspect the 1-game wildcard is really going to get called into question after an interesting Infield Fly call in the Atlanta-St. Louis game. Whether that call cost them the three runs they were down at the time of the call is hard to say but that's a tough one...although I suspect someone on here is happy either way. :)

That was a great post-game celebration by St. Louis too - get the final out and then run off the field as fast as possible.

No question that it was a bad call, but here's the best comment I heard after the game. If you're so concerned about being done in by one bad game then you better win your division.

That second wild card not only made the last few weeks of the season more interesting, it also puts some value on winning your division. I remember past seasons where the yankees and red sox were assured of being the AL East winner or the Wild Card winner and the discussion was that it would be better to be the wild card because it resulted in a more favourable matchup in the division series.

I love the fact that there is a real reward for winning your division and that a wild card team has to work that much harder to win it all.

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I love the fact that there is a real reward for winning your division and that a wild card team has to work that much harder to win it all.

Same here, the division once again really means something and it provides a lot more hope for teams that would otherwise be out of it down the stretch. I'm not a big fan of a lot of what MLB does but this is one thing I feel they got right.

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No question that it was a bad call, but here's the best comment I heard after the game. If you're so concerned about being done in by one bad game then you better win your division.

That second wild card not only made the last few weeks of the season more interesting, it also puts some value on winning your division. I remember past seasons where the yankees and red sox were assured of being the AL East winner or the Wild Card winner and the discussion was that it would be better to be the wild card because it resulted in a more favourable matchup in the division series.

I love the fact that there is a real reward for winning your division and that a wild card team has to work that much harder to win it all.

Agreed Bad Call / no grey area/ I prefer not to match up in semi finals in the same division particularly because the two best teams may be in same division/ I prefer the two best teams in conference to be playing for the conference title.

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  • 3 weeks later...

AA is handing Farrell, who knows all the quirks for the entire Blue jays lineup, to a division rival and gets a backup infielder in return? We will turn around and let McCoy walk for nothing. chief gain ZERO. He would be better off taking a player from a lower league with some upside.

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AA is handing Farrell, who knows all the quirks for the entire Blue jays lineup, to a division rival and gets a backup infielder in return? We will turn around and let McCoy walk for nothing. chief gain ZERO. He would be better off taking a player from a lower league with some upside.

I'd much rather have Aviles than McCoy, I don't think it's even close. Aviles has shown he can at least hit at the MLB level whereas McCoy can't crack .200. Both are decent runners and play acceptable defence; both can also play multiple positions. Even had they not done this, I don't think McCoy was lasting much longer on the 40-man roster, what with the recent waivers claims and players that need to be added to the 40-man to avoid being Rule 5'd. The market for 2B is really weak this year, I wouldn't be surprised to see Aviles pencilled in as the 2B to start next season. He's a good enough hitter to hit in a bottom spot in the lineup on a regular basis.

As for the quirks to the lineup, in principle I agree with you but when I think about it, what quirks are there? It's not exactly a secret that the Jays are a pull hitting, swing for the fences team that doesn't take a lot of pitches or walk a lot. Every team knows that and can plan around it. Hopefully a new hitting coach will come on with the new guy meaning that there could actually be a quirk or two. In terms of pitching, I think we'll see 2 new starters in the rotation (joining Morrow, Romero, and Happ) so there aren't a whole lot of secrets going the other way. It's not like a football coach who has his own playbook. Will Farrell be able to provide a more extensive scouting report on the players? Probably. He would've done the same had he been let go and rest assured, whoever the Jays hire (provided it's someone from another organization) will provide a more extensive scouting report on the players from the organization he left. Such is life when it comes to managers.

This whole ordeal has been ridiculous but really, what options did the Jays have? Farrell went to management and said he wanted to pursue the Boston job. What's the Jays' recourse? Force him to stay against his will for a year? Pay him to stay at home? Or, as they did here, make the best of a bad situation. Aviles isn't much of a return, but it's better than the compensation that other coaches/managers have gone for in recent years, which usually consist of a fringe prospect. He'll fill a useful role right away, whether it's as a starter or an improvement on the bench infielders from last season. Honestly, they came out with more than what I thought they'd get for Farrell.

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I'd much rather have Aviles than McCoy, I don't think it's even close. Aviles has shown he can at least hit at the MLB level whereas McCoy can't crack .200. Both are decent runners and play acceptable defence; both can also play multiple positions. Even had they not done this, I don't think McCoy was lasting much longer on the 40-man roster, what with the recent waivers claims and players that need to be added to the 40-man to avoid being Rule 5'd. The market for 2B is really weak this year, I wouldn't be surprised to see Aviles pencilled in as the 2B to start next season. He's a good enough hitter to hit in a bottom spot in the lineup on a regular basis. As for the quirks to the lineup, in principle I agree with you but when I think about it, what quirks are there? It's not exactly a secret that the Jays are a pull hitting, swing for the fences team that doesn't take a lot of pitches or walk a lot. Every team knows that and can plan around it. Hopefully a new hitting coach will come on with the new guy meaning that there could actually be a quirk or two. In terms of pitching, I think we'll see 2 new starters in the rotation (joining Morrow, Romero, and Happ) so there aren't a whole lot of secrets going the other way. It's not like a football coach who has his own playbook. Will Farrell be able to provide a more extensive scouting report on the players? Probably. He would've done the same had he been let go and rest assured, whoever the Jays hire (provided it's someone from another organization) will provide a more extensive scouting report on the players from the organization he left. Such is life when it comes to managers. This whole ordeal has been ridiculous but really, what options did the Jays have? Farrell went to management and said he wanted to pursue the Boston job. What's the Jays' recourse? Force him to stay against his will for a year? Pay him to stay at home? Or, as they did here, make the best of a bad situation. Aviles isn't much of a return, but it's better than the compensation that other coaches/managers have gone for in recent years, which usually consist of a fringe prospect. He'll fill a useful role right away, whether it's as a starter or an improvement on the bench infielders from last season. Honestly, they came out with more than what I thought they'd get for Farrell.

I think they did the right thing to let him go. I am just peeved that they didn't get somebody back with more of an upside. i don't buy that you have to get somebody big club ready. I would rather take a long shot at somebody in a lower league than getting another also run.

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I think they did the right thing to let him go. I am just peeved that they didn't get somebody back with more of an upside. i don't buy that you have to get somebody big club ready. I would rather take a long shot at somebody in a lower league than getting another also run.

I preferred someone that can play right away. The Jays have a ton of lower level guys and a lot of MLB holes to fill. If you can plug a hole with a player who will cost less than a comparable guy on the free agent market (Aviles has control years left) and doesn't cost anything off your roster, I'd call that more valuable than a single A reliever that could amount to something in a few years time.

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Without going into a huge diatribe here, let me sum up my thoughts on Farrell in two words: Good riddance.

He's shown nothing in his two years to show that he's more than an average (at best) big league manager. For whatever reason the Red Sox love him so the fact that we could get a solid major league player for a guy who quite frankly could've been let go outright following a second straight disappointing season.

This is the best case scenario for AA, he rids himself of a manager he didn't want anymore and gets a second chance to find the right guy. My money's on Sandy Alomar although I'd like to see if the Dodgers will let us interview Tim Wallach this time, he'd be a sleeper candidate for me.

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I preferred someone that can play right away. The Jays have a ton of lower level guys and a lot of MLB holes to fill. If you can plug a hole with a player who will cost less than a comparable guy on the free agent market (Aviles has control years left) and doesn't cost anything off your roster, I'd call that more valuable than a single A reliever that could amount to something in a few years time.

I think AA agrees with you, I just don't. Is Avila better than Johnson cause if he isn't all you have improved is your utility guy, which amounts to getting nothing back.

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