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Welcome Back Gibby

The Toronto Blue Jays have a new manager, you may recognize him as he managed the team from mid 2004 to mid 2008 running up a 305-305 record.

John Gibbons has returned to the helm of the Blue Jays, yes the same John Gibbons that scuffled in the clubhouse with Ted Lilly and had much publicised battles with Shea Hillenbrand after he had written "This Ship is Sinking" on the team whiteboard.

Gibbons takes over without argument, the best line-up he will have ever managed and expectations will be high on the team heading into the 2013 season, Gibbons main strength in my opinion is how he runs his bullpen, which will become very important to the Jays success if they are to contend in the AL East.

Gibbons last big league job was with Kansas City as their bench coach.

He is a no nonsense manager, and a favorite of the players (aside from 2 obvious omissions) who will be handed the keys to a Corvette now instead of a Ford Focus like he had in his previous years here.

Former Toronto Blue Jay and current Arizona Diamondback John McDonald was quoted this morning on the Fan590 with saying 'We loved playing for him. Gibby wasn't gonna take crap from nobody'.

McDonald also mentioned that he and his fellow teammates felt as if they let Gibbons down in 2008 when he was fired by then GM JP Ricciardi.

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Deal likely to go through today

The Mega deal between the Miami Marlins and the Toronto Blue Jays is expected to be approved by Commissioner Bud Selig today.

Speculation on the long wait time for approval is that Bud Selig has been making Jeffrey Loria sweat due to the hoops that Major League Baseball went through last year to help Miami obtain a new stadium.

Expected Jays line-up after trade + signing of Melky Cabrera

1. SS Jose Reyes
2. LF Melky Cabrera
3. RF Jose Bautista
4. DH Edwin Encarnacion
5. 1B Adam Lind
6. 3B Brett Lawrie
7. CF Colby Rasmus
8. C JP Arencibia
9. 2B Emilio Bonifacio

Bench: C John Buck, OF Rajai Davis, IF Macier Izturis

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NEW! Jays Patch for 2013

It seems Toronto brass is so elated with the massive trade that they will be enshrining Jeffrey Loria on the 2013 JL Patch.

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Welcome to a new Jays world.

Once this historical fire sale of a trade has been made official, Toronto Blue Jays fans will be looking at the best team most fans of the team have ever seen(fans under 30 years of age), the proof will be in the pudding if they can win 2 consecutive World Series to unseat the 92/93 teams.

Coming in:
SS Jose Reyes : While Reyes has had issues with his legs in the past, he is a top 5 SS in the MLB and is coming off a healthy season in Miami, he adds speed (LOTS OF SPEED), 10-11 HR's, league leading triple calibre and a solid glove.

SP Mark Beuhrle : 33 year old lefty who has won in double digits the last 12 years straight, he has a No-Hitter (2007) and a Perfect Game (2009) in his pitching cabinet.

SP Josh Johnson : 28 year old starter in his prime, has been the Marlins ace for the past 3 seasons.
Johnson has a good pitching combination of a slider, change-up, curveball, and a low to mid 90s fastball

IN/OF Emilio Bonifacio :  During the beginning of the 2012 season, Bonifacio led the major league in Stolen Base, was safe in his first 20 attempts.  Bonifacio while having little to no power, has speed to burn and is a decent hitter, he also allows the Jays the flexibility of calling up Anthony Gose when/if someone goes down.

C John Buck : Buck has been fairly awful with the Marlins the past couple seasons, he did however have his best season playing at Rogers Centre 3 years ago and will be a very serviceable backup to J.P Arencibia, or Travis D'Arnaud depending on any future moves Toronto may make.

Possible Starting Line-up:

1. SS Jose Reyes

2. 3B Brett Lawrie

3. RF Jose Bautista

4. 1B Edwin Encarnacion

5. DH Adam Lind

6. CF Colby Rasmus

7. C J.P Arencibia

8. 2B Emilio Bonifacio

9. LF Rajai Davis

This could quite possibly be the best line-up Toronto has fielded since 1993, possibly more dangerous, it also gives the Jays 5 solid stolen base threats, 3 with league leading wheels in that category.

Possible Starting Rotation:

1. Brandon Morrow

2. Josh Johnson

3. Ricky Romero

4. Mark Beuhrle

5. J Happ

Welcome to a new world Jays fans, and welcome back to relevance in the AL East.

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Blue Jays acquire RHP Jeremy Jeffress from the Royals

The Blue Jays have acquired Jeremy Jeffress from the Royals for cash considerations

Kansas City designated Jeffress for assignment late last week. They originally acquired him from the Brewers in the Zack Greinke deal, but he's spent most of the last two years in Triple-A. The 25-year-old Jeffress owns a 4.89 ERA in 38 2/3 big league innings spread out over the last three years. He owns a 5.60 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 4.7 BB/9 in 82 career Triple-A innings.

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Jays give Maicer Izturis a three-year, $9M contract

Maicer Izturis is the Blue Jays new second baseman!

Unless they find a better one.

Toronto signed the former Los Angeles Angels infielder for a 3 year 9 Million Dollar contract Thursday.

Izturis, 32 has spent the last 8 seasons with the Los Angeles Angels, filling in as a utility infielder. He can play second base, third base and shortstop, but as of now he fits a void at second base for Toronto, who would prefer to start Short Stop prospect Adeiny Hechavarria at Triple-A Buffalo next season, the Jays new Minor League home.

Izturis last season, hit .256 in 319 Plate Appearances w/17 Stolen Bases & a .320 OBP, not earth shattering.

Should Hechavarria win a promotion (in my opinion, his bat is not ready), and assuming the Jays hold on to current shortstop Yunel Escobar (whom is in the doghouse following his eye black incident), Izturis could become a capable backup at three infield spots. Long-term, the Jays say Hechavarria will play shortstop.

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Lawrie wins Blue Jays first ever Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award

Lawrie's outstanding play at the hot corner earned another accolade on Sunday as he was named the Blue Jays' recipient of the first Wilson Defensive Player of the Year Award.

Each team had one player selected as its defensive player of the year. Unlike the Gold Glove Awards, which are voted on by Major League managers and coaches, these award winners were determined by statistical metrics, using the same "shredder system" seen on the sabermetrics-heavy show "Clubhouse Confidential," along with input from MLB Network analysts.

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Jays lose two on waivers

The New York Yankees have claimed RHP David Herndon off waivers from the Blue Jays

Herndon has pitched in 97 MLB games with a record of 2-8, 3.85 ERA, 76 K's and 117 Innings pitched.

The Seattle Mariners have claimed Scott Cousins, also on waivers.

Cousins has 175 Career AB's in MLB, hitting .183

Toronto claimed Herndon from Philadelphia on October 23rd, Cousins was claimed from Miami on October 17th.

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Who's on Second, Scutaro?

Mike Aviles, we hardly knew ye.

Alex Anthopolous has dealt Mike Aviles and Yan Gomes to Cleveland for reliever Esmil Rogers, not bad, but as of now the Toronto Blue Jays are without a second baseman, Aviles on one hand would have been an upgrade to Kelly Johnson, on the other hand, a low .OBP (on base percentage) is not what the Jays need, they have enough of those.

It is quite possible Toronto believes Adeiny Hechevarria can handle the move over to second, I'm not sold on his bat yet though, I think it's one to possibly two years away from major league level (the same as Gose/Sierra).

Another option would be to target someone like Marco Scutaro in free agency, the former Jay had an outstanding post season with San Fransisco on their way to the World Series title, and could be an excellent stop gap between next year and that all elusive second baseman since Alomar departed in what seems like a land far far away by now.

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Aviles/Gomes dealt to Indians

The Mike Aviles era has ended rather quickly as the Jays have dealt Aviles to the Cleveland Indians along with utility man Yan Gomes for RHP Esmil Rogers.

In 53 innings of work last season, Esmil Rogers posted an ERA of 3.06 and went 3-1 with zero saves.

Rogers was signed as an amateur free agent in 2003 by the Colorado Rockies, Rogers is not eligible for free agency until 2017.

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Jays must look hard at Grienke/McCarthy

When a season goes as horribly wrong as the 2012 Toronto Blue Jays season did, changes are imminent.  

Blue Jays GM Alex Anthopolous  and President Paul Beeston know the clock is ticking on the fans patience, and possibly their star as well, Jose Bautista, the starting pitching is in shambles, players such as Colby Rasmus have not lived up to their hype and may never live up to it.

Which brings us to the starting rotation and the need to act on it right now, Zack Grienke is the lead horse in free agency and would immediately become the staff ace with Brandon Morrow slotting in behind him at the #2, dropping Romero to the #3, which would benefit him in alleviating some pressure next year if he happens to come slow out of the gate.

Grienke may not want to come here, which seems to be a reoccurring theme among all major sports franchises in Toronto, which is another story all together, Brandon McCarthy whom is now a free agent underwent surgery for 2 hours to relieve cranial pressure after CT scans revealed McCarthy had suffered an epidural hemorrhage, a brain contusion, and a skull fracture during an outing against the Angels when hit by a line drive off the bat of Erick Aybar. He was recovering sufficiently well that he was able to join his teammates in the dugout as a spectator during their postseason run, and could be an excellent innings eater for Toronto.

Alex Anthopolous also has the luxury of a well built farm system, one that could be used to add a veteran arm in the off-season, whichever route the GM takes, he must upgrade before 2013 or further risk infuriating a fan base that has been more than patient.

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Ortiz re-signs w/Boston

David Ortiz has re-signed with the Boston Red Sox on a 2 year $26 Million deal, which likely will carry the Red Sox slugger into retirement.

It is speculated the incentive bonuses could raise the deal to as much as $30 Million over the 2 year pact.

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Escobar on the way out?

Rumours have begun suggesting that Yunel Escobar may be expendable with the emergence of  Adeiny Hechavarria in Las Vegas.

Hechavarria is currently batting .316  with 4 homeruns, 35 RBI's and 6 Stolen Bases with the Las Vegas 51's in AAA.

Many scouts consider Hechevarria as the best Shortstop prospect in Baseball, even going as far to say he would be the best fielding shortstop in the majors right now.

Escobar has been somewhat disappointing at the plate so far this season, hitting .250 with just 2 homeruns and an OBA of .300

The Pirates, Athletics and Mariners have all expressed interest.

The Jays are said to be actively pursuing relief pitching with Sergio Santos' return up in the air.

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Four homers power Blue Jays past Orioles.

Brandon Morrow had something to prove on Wednesday night -- if not to himself, then at least to those who were critical after his previous outing, in Texas.

Toronto's No. 2 starter was coming off the worst start of his career, which saw him surrender six runs in just two-thirds of an inning against the Rangers. The results this time around were drastically different.

Morrow threw 6 1/3 strong innings before departing with a contused right shin, and the Blue Jays hit four solo home runs en route to a 4-1 victory over the Orioles.

"I came into the game with a little chip on my shoulder after last time," said Morrow, who allowed just one run on four hits while striking out eight. "Of course, we knew this game was a big one -- to sweep them and get back in the race. Now we're just two games in back of them, and that was a big series for us."

That outing against Texas marked the shortest start of Morrow's big league career. An inability to locate his fastball down in the zone as well as to finish off batters with his slider led to the performance.

He had no such problems, though, against the Orioles, effectively commanding his fastball on both sides of the plate while also using his changeup and curveball combination on a more frequent basis.

His lone blemish came in the second inning, when he allowed two of the first three batters he faced to reach base before surrendering an infield RBI single to Ryan Flaherty.

From that point on, Morrow faced just one batter over the minimum until he was hit by a line drive off the bat of Wilson Betemit in the seventh. Morrow attempted to walk off the injury but eventually had to be helped off the field by a trainer and manager John Farrell. He is listed as day to day.

After the outing in Texas, Morrow said he was just going to pretend that the start never happened and that he wasn't going to make any drastic changes because of one bad start. He echoed that statement on Wednesday following his seventh quality start of the season.

"Nothing at all," Morrow said when asked what he worked on between starts. "I threw my bullpen just the same way, I didn't take any extra. Just got in, got out, hit my spots and came away with a good feeling after the bullpen and forgot about it in between. But then, this being a big game for us and that little chip on my shoulder from last time helped me out."

The Blue Jays did all of their damage via the home run. Edwin Encarnacion, Brett Lawrie, Rajai Davis and Colby Rasmus each recorded solo homers off right-hander Jason Hammel to secure the three-game sweep.

Encarnacion's blast, which came in the second inning, was his 17th of the season. He ranks second in the Major Leagues, behind only Texas center fielder Josh Hamilton, and also is second in RBIs (42) to go along with 27 extra-base hits.

Davis' shot, in the third, was his second in as many games against Baltimore, and Lawrie added his fourth of the season the following frame. Rasmus capped the offensive output in the fifth inning with his sixth homer of the season and his third in the past five games.

The 25-year-old Rasmus is now on a seven-game hitting streak, and is batting .344 with three homers, six RBIs and seven extra-base hits during that span.

Rasmus believes that his recent success can be attributed to moving up approximately six to eight inches in the batter's box and also crowding the plate on a more regular basis.

"I think with my approach now, it lets me not think about pitches that are called balls or strikes or whatever, worrying about what they're throwing," Rasmus said. "I'm just getting up there trying to just wag at anything that looks good.

"That's the way I kind of hit coming up, and I kind of changed that because I was trying to be more of an all-around hitter and trying to worry about that pitch four or five inches off the plate. But my approach this last little bit is, I'm just getting on top of the plate, and I'm trying to grip it and rip it."

Hammel allowed nine hits while striking out five in 6 2/3 innings in his first loss this month. The four homers were more than he surrendered in the past nine starts combined.

The right-hander didn't react too kindly to the loss, and appeared to accuse the Blue Jays of stealing signs during the game.

"They were taking some pretty big hacks on breaking stuff, too, which leads me to believe something else," Hammel said.

"The swings they were taking on the breaking stuff was pretty amazing to me. I don't think you can take swings like that, not knowing they're coming. I don't know, that's all I can say."

The Blue Jays have now effectively bounced back from a recent 1-5 road trip by winning three consecutive games. The fact that they were able to sweep the Orioles after being outscored over the weekend by the Rangers, 34-16, is a testament to the character of the club, according to Farrell.

"Not surprising in my mind," Farrell said. "This is a team that has been very resilient. They have been able to separate from what they did the day before, the series before.

"We were able to do just that -- put it behind us -- and go out and put three very good ballgames together."

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McCoy Recalled

The Toronto Blue Jays have recalled infielder Mike McCoy from Las Vegas of the Pacific Coast League (AAA) and have optioned outfielder Eric Thames to Las Vegas.

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Blue Jays new Logo Leaked

The Toronto Blue Jays 2012 Logo looks to be going back to a retro Blue Jay that has been brought up to date.

Here is the logo, complete with Canadian Maple Leaf

The Jays have refused to comment on the new logo, or if it's fake, but all signs point to it being the real thing

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J.P Arencibia & Brett Lawrie get their new Rookie Uniforms

As posted by Jose Bautista on Twitter, here are JP & Brett wearing their brand new rookie unis!

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Lawrie surpassing expectations

Major League Baseball prospects and hype are nothing new, but what is a rare sight, is that player surpassing already lofty expectations.

Case in point, Brett Lawrie.

The young Canadian from Langley, BC is long what the Blue Jays organization has coveted, a franchise player whom is Canadian.

Toronto dealt starter Shaun Marcum for the rookie third baseman and all early indications are that it could be the most important trade in franchise history (Alomar & Carter still hold that torch), already garnering high praise all around baseball, some insiders are already calling him the "New Charlie Hustle" for his rugged go get it style, which is not uncommon to Canadians who watch hockey, Brett Lawrie is the definition of a rugged Canadian in your face style hockey player, only he wears baseball cleats and a glove, not skates.

There is also now a connection between the two as you can routinely see banter (on twitter, or possibly around the GTA) between some of the Jays players and players of the Toronto Maple Leafs (ie. Tyler Bozak, Colby Armstrong) and Paul Bissonette of the Phoenix Coyotes.

Brett Lawrie is taking Toronto by storm, and even the iconic Maple Leaf franchise is taking notice of a ball player.

Only good things can come with Lawrie wearing the Jays colours (whatever they may be next year)

Note: I leave you with a rocking new version of Come As You Are

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Jays deal Hill, McDonald to D'Backs for 2B Kelly Johnson

Aaron Hill and John McDonald have been dealt to Arizona for 2B Kelly Johnson

The Jays GM Alex Anthopolous held a press conference earlier this afternoon to announce that the Toronto Blue Jays had dealt 2B Aaron Hill and long time fan favourite utility man, John McDonald to the Arizona Diamond Backs for 2B Kelly Johnson

Kelly Johnson comes to the Blue Jays with a significant drop in his numbers following an impressive campaign in 2010.

Both clubs will be banking on the resurgence of the two Second Basemen.

Notes from the Presser

Alex Anthopoulos:

• I know for the fans this will be a tough one.
• I have not ruled out either player being back here in 2012.
• Kevin Towers contacted me, looking to make changes, asked about John McDonald, and then Aaron Hill’s name came up.
• Talks started several weeks ago.
• McDonald asked to be moved to a playoff team if possible so he could experience it and so he could bring that experience back to the Blue Jays.
• Kelly Johnson is obviously not having his best year.
• He’s a left handed bat, draws walks, has some power to all fields.
• This gives Blue Jays a chance to get a good look at Johnson.
• Brian Jeroloman fills the empty roster space so as not to halt development time of other prospects.

John McDonald:

• I’m extremely conflicted.
• Looking forward to a great opportunity to play in postseason.
• The playoffs are what every ball player wakes up in the morning thinking about.
• Hopes to come back next year, but postseason opportunity is something he’s felt he’s been missing.
• I think we were able to leave a lot behind. Had great talks with young players about the city, organization and future chances of winning.
• I can only gain from this situation as a player and in the future as a coach.
• Kirk Gibson was my hitting coach during my short stint in Detroit. Spoke with him earlier by phone.

Aaron Hill:

• I can’t thank everybody enough for everything.
• This is a little tough. This is all I’ve known.
• It’s been a blast. I’m very open to coming back next year.
• I do believe this team will win. Whether I’m a part of that or not, I’ll be rooting for them.

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