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  17. <description>A Toronto Blue Jays Blog</description>
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  34. <title>Caleb Joseph relishing his opportunity with the Blue Jays</title>
  35. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/09/caleb-joseph-relishing-his-opportunity-with-the-blue-jays.html</link>
  37. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  38. <pubDate>Mon, 07 Sep 2020 13:02:22 +0000</pubDate>
  39. <category><![CDATA[News]]></category>
  40. <category><![CDATA[Caleb Joseph]]></category>
  41. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17242</guid>
  42.  
  43. <description><![CDATA[<p>Caleb Joseph doesn&#8217;t profile as a power-hitting catcher, but in his first regular season at bat with the Blue Jays, he went deep.</p>
  44. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/09/caleb-joseph-relishing-his-opportunity-with-the-blue-jays.html">Caleb Joseph relishing his opportunity with the Blue Jays</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  45. ]]></description>
  46. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Caleb Joseph doesn&#8217;t profile as a power-hitting catcher, but in his first regular season at bat with the Blue Jays, he went deep. It was over two years — 766 days, to be exact — since the backstop hit his last home run. But he celebrated like it was his first.</p>
  47. <p>Joseph&#8217;s debut with the Blue Jays was a long time coming. The Blue Jays signed him to a minor league deal back in January, and although he was the third-string catcher on Toronto&#8217;s depth chart, he waited for his opportunity.</p>
  48. <p>He travelled with the team to summer camp at Rogers Centre in July and was a member of the Blue Jays taxi squad, laying in wait in Buffalo. The 34-year-old got the call over the weekend when the club optioned Reese McGuire to their training site and promoted Joseph.</p>
  49. <p>When he wasn&#8217;t on the active roster, Joseph worked behind the scenes in Buffalo trying to replicate real-game scenarios by hitting high velocity pitches in the cage, a tip he picked up from former teammate Mark Trumbo.</p>
  50. <p>Joseph also worked with hitting coach Guillermo Martinez, adjusting swing paths and altering his thoughts at the plate. The seven-year veteran wasn&#8217;t planning to go yard in his first at bat as a Blue Jay, but he felt a sense of belonging by contributing to the team in his first game.</p>
  51. <p>&#8220;It&#8217;s something special about this club,&#8221; Joseph said. &#8220;They said the right things, they did the right things, and I really felt special today. It&#8217;s something that I hope is reciprocated back, I hope they feel my genuineness and my love towards them, because I really do love this team and I&#8217;m so happy to be on it.&#8221;</p>
  52. <p>As his teammates suited up for games and took the field, Joseph was on the outside looking in for the last six weeks. He knows what it feels like to be a spectator for the first half of the season. When he hit his first home run of 2020, he acknowledged his brethren down in the bullpen.</p>
  53. <p>When he rounded second base, Joseph pointed his first in the air and looked to where his teammates were stations in the bullpen beyond the right field fence. He also made a celebratory shout that echoed throughout Fenway Park, and he stuck out the devil horns for good measure.</p>
  54. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  55. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Missed this from earlier today, but Caleb Joseph&#39;s salute to the Blue Jays bullpen and his shout while rounding third base was a cool moment. <a href="https://t.co/ePNrKWSifB">pic.twitter.com/ePNrKWSifB</a></p>
  56. <p>&mdash; Ian Hunter (@BlueJayHunter) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJayHunter/status/1302811595425411072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 7, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  57. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  58. <p>&#8220;I tried to tell the bullpen: &#8216;If I ever get a home run, I want to acknowledge you because you guys are out there all by yourself.&#8217; Everybody gets to cheer, clap hands, and hooray and hoorah in the dugout, but a lot of those guys get forgotten,&#8221; Joseph said.</p>
  59. <p>&#8220;I&#8217;ve seen Mitch Garver do it and I thought: &#8216;Man, I would love to do that.&#8217; I mentioned that not thinking that it would happen so quickly. So, just being able to acknowledge them and coming into the dugout and seeing how happy everybody was, it was really special. It was a moment I&#8217;ll never forget.&#8221;</p>
  60. <p>Joseph isn&#8217;t a Canadian citizen, but he may as well be. <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJays/status/1230499849608536065">His flawless air drumming performance from Spring Training caught fire on Twitter</a>, and his Twitter handle <a href="https://twitter.com/yyzbackstop">@YYZBackstop</a> is another ode to &#8220;Rush&#8221;.</p>
  61. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  62. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Neil Peart would be proud <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/2764.png" alt="❤" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /> </p>
  63. <p>@CamelBackstop x <a href="https://twitter.com/rushtheband?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RushTheBand</a> <a href="https://t.co/4VTqW8e2bb">pic.twitter.com/4VTqW8e2bb</a></p>
  64. <p>&mdash; Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJays/status/1230499849608536065?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 20, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  65. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  66. <p>Last year, Ken Giles and Luke Maile <a href="https://www.mlb.com/news/wwe-belts-used-to-honor-blue-jays-victories">awarded celebratory tag team wrestling belts</a> to a position player and pitcher after every Blue Jays win. This season, Joseph took it one step further by picking three stars from the game, a beloved Canadian hockey tradition.</p>
  67. <p>Rather than pass out a replica wrestling belt, he pays homage to the Canadian roots of the club by selecting the top three plays or performers (and in the words of Joseph, some &#8220;not so cool plays&#8221;) to not only keep the players accountable, but to have fun.</p>
  68. <p>As a player with seven big league seasons under his belt, Joseph brings some veteran savvy to the roster, but he also brings a great deal of advice for this young core. The end game is always to finish the day with a win, but he preaches to his teammates to sit back and enjoy the game, too.</p>
  69. <p>&#8220;Winning games in the big league is hard,&#8221; Joseph said. &#8220;With such a young core and such a young group here, you really want to make sure they understand that winning is expected, but it is so difficult that you&#8217;ve really got to enjoy it.</p>
  70. <p>“I made the playoffs in 2014 with the Orioles and I thought: ‘Man, this is great. We&#8217;ll just do this every year.&#8217; And it took another two years to get back there just as a Wild Card [team] in 2016 when Toronto spanked us. But I haven&#8217;t been back since.</p>
  71. <p>“You get the feeling that, man, this is a special moment. Let&#8217;s make sure we enjoy it. Having that kind of post-game celebration, I feel like everybody&#8217;s relishing in the win, and more times than not, they&#8217;re team wins. We get to really savour the moment and go into the night feeling really good about ourselves, just trying to build some momentum for the next day.”</p>
  72. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/09/caleb-joseph-relishing-his-opportunity-with-the-blue-jays.html">Caleb Joseph relishing his opportunity with the Blue Jays</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  73. ]]></content:encoded>
  77. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17242</post-id> </item>
  78. <item>
  79. <title>The Marcus Stroman trade is already paying off for the Blue Jays</title>
  80. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/marcus-stroman-trade-is-already-paying-off-for-blue-jays.html</link>
  82. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  83. <pubDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2020 20:05:34 +0000</pubDate>
  84. <category><![CDATA[Opinion]]></category>
  85. <category><![CDATA[Anthony Kay]]></category>
  86. <category><![CDATA[Marcus Stroman]]></category>
  87. <category><![CDATA[Simeon Woods Richardson]]></category>
  88. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17228</guid>
  89.  
  90. <description><![CDATA[<p><em>Note: This article was originally written back on March 11th, but with today marking the first anniversary of the Marcus Stroman trade, it seemed like a good idea to publish this piece.</em></p>
  91. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/marcus-stroman-trade-is-already-paying-off-for-blue-jays.html">The Marcus Stroman trade is already paying off for the Blue Jays</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  92. ]]></description>
  93. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><em>Note: This article was originally written back on March 11th, but with today marking the first anniversary of the Marcus Stroman trade, it seemed like a good idea to publish this piece.</em></p>
  94. <p>When the Toronto Blue Jays traded Marcus Stroman last summer, the consensus reaction to the return seemed to be: “That’s it?” The New York Mets parted with two prospects, Anthony Kay and Simeon Woods Richardson, which, at the time, was deemed to be a light return for the Blue Jays.</p>
  95. <p>Marcus Stroman was pitching like a top-ten pitcher in the American League at the time, and he wasn’t a mere rental for a contender. With an additional year of team control, Stroman was an attractive trade chip for a team with a two-year window of contention.</p>
  96. <p>There was a belief that the Blue Jays would net at least a top 100 prospect in exchange for their veteran right-hander, but the Blue Jays pulled the trigger on a pair of prospects with very little pedigree.</p>
  97. <p>My, how things have changed since the 2019 trade deadline. As he battles for a spot in the Blue Jays rotation, Kay has been one of the most impressive arms in spring training camp for Toronto.</p>
  98. <p>Meanwhile, Woods Richardson landed inside Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus and MLB Pipeline’s top 100 prospects list, ranking as high as 61. The 19-year-old finished his second season of pro ball in the Blue Jays organization, pitching to a 3.80 ERA with 126 strikeouts in 26 games split between single-A and high-A ball.</p>
  99. <p>The Blue Jays did in fact land their top 100 prospect in exchange for Stroman. It just took six months for Woods Richardson to cross the threshold into that illustrious top prospects list. And now he&#8217;s the organization&#8217;s number three ranked prospect, behind Nate Pearson and Jordan Groshans.</p>
  100. <p>Kay was a depth starter for the Blue Jays down the stretch, appearing in three games in September for the big club. His MLB debut on September 7, 2019 against the Rays was one of the most impressive rookie pitching performances in recent Blue Jays memory, as Kay fanned eight batters over 5.2 innings.</p>
  101. <p>The 24-year-old’s peripheral spring training numbers this year don’t look great, but his 7.36 ERA and 7 walks across four games don’t tell the entire story for Kay. Nearly half of those walks came in a disastrous outing when he failed to escape the first inning and walked four batters.</p>
  102. <p>At the time of the trade, the Blue Jays got raked over the coals for the light return they received for Stroman, but in retrospect, it was a smart move to make. If the Blue Jays weren’t keen on extending Stroman anyway, it made sense to trade him at his high point and gamble on a young, high upside arm with Woods Richardson, and someone who was on the doorstep of the big leagues like Kay.</p>
  103. <p>The team that used 21 starting pitchers last year suddenly has a wealth of starting pitching depth, to the point where Kay and Pearson will be one of the first arms called into battle.</p>
  104. <p>Some folks might not see it this way, but the Blue Jays also pulled off a savvy piece of business by making the Stroman trade and following that up by signing Hyun-Jin Ryu to a four-year, $80 million dollar contract. The Blue Jays essentially signed Ryu to the dollar figure they would have earmarked for a Stroman extension, plus the team got a bonus in the form of Kay and Woods-Richardson.</p>
  105. <p>Even though he didn&#8217;t crack the opening day starting rotation, Kay will impact the Blue Jays roster in some fashion in 2020 and he will be called upon to eat some innings for the big club this season.</p>
  106. <p>At 20-years-old, Woods Richardson is at least two more years away from climbing the organizational ladder and earning a promotion with the Blue Jays. Due to his sudden rise through the prospect rankings, Woods Richardson even might be worth more to the Blue Jays as a trade chip soon, rather than as star pitching prospect.</p>
  107. <p>It&#8217;s only been one year since the Stroman trade, but in retrospect, it was a tidy piece of business for the Blue Jays. They have a back-end starter in the form of Kay, a top-end prospect with Woods Richardson, and they freed up some money to ink Ryu long term.</p>
  108. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/marcus-stroman-trade-is-already-paying-off-for-blue-jays.html">The Marcus Stroman trade is already paying off for the Blue Jays</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  109. ]]></content:encoded>
  113. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17228</post-id> </item>
  114. <item>
  115. <title>Observations after game one of Blue Jays baseball</title>
  116. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/observations-after-game-one-of-blue-jays-baseball.html</link>
  118. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  119. <pubDate>Sat, 25 Jul 2020 14:12:08 +0000</pubDate>
  120. <category><![CDATA[Game Recap]]></category>
  121. <category><![CDATA[Bo Bichette]]></category>
  122. <category><![CDATA[Hyun-Jin Ryu]]></category>
  123. <category><![CDATA[Jordan Romano]]></category>
  124. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17207</guid>
  125.  
  126. <description><![CDATA[<p>Toronto Blue Jays baseball on television in the year 2020 &#8211; is this something out of the twilight zone?</p>
  127. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/observations-after-game-one-of-blue-jays-baseball.html">Observations after game one of Blue Jays baseball</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  128. ]]></description>
  129. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Toronto Blue Jays baseball on television in the year 2020 &#8211; is this something out of the twilight zone? I&#8217;ll admit, it was an odd sensation to see real, live baseball in the flesh in the year 2020. Pandemic be damned, the MLB season soldiers on.</p>
  130. <p>As weird as it was at first, there was something comforting about sitting down to watch a baseball game again. Except, this time, the games matter! In fact, they matter a lot more, considering there are only 60 of them and 8 teams from each league will make the playoffs.</p>
  131. <p>Anyway, onto the expert analysis you were expecting after game one of 60 this season from the Toronto Blue Jays.<br />
  132. &nbsp;</p>
  133. <h3>Ryu came as advertised</h3>
  134. <p>https://twitter.com/BlueJays/status/1286797751385313280</p>
  135. <p>Admittedly, the Hyun-Jin Ryu signing seems light years ago at this point (to the point where some people might have forgotten the Blue Jays signed him in the first place). He was more or less the classic Ryu, mixing up speeds and angles with his many breaking pitches.</p>
  136. <p>He got beaten up at the end of his outing, but one might attribute that to starting pitchers not building up the innings they need to go 6-7-8 innings deep into a ballgame.</p>
  137. <p>The Rays induced hard contact by the time the fifth inning rolled around, punctuated by the homer from Yoshi Tsutsugo and the double from Jose Martinez.</p>
  138. <p>Considering it was Ryu&#8217;s first outing of the regular season, I&#8217;d say it was decent.<br />
  139. &nbsp;</p>
  140. <h3>Everybody loves Romano</h3>
  141. <p>I realize this is game one of 60, but meet your new favourite reliever, Jordan Romano. He&#8217;s essentially a Canadian clone of Ken Giles, as Romano is throwing exclusively sliders and fastballs (just like Giles), and Romano&#8217;s throwing high-90&#8217;s heat out of the bullpen.</p>
  142. <p>You might&#8217;ve noticed that Romano is also doing a Giles-esque dip on the mound to get his body set to throw the pitch, so the Blue Jays have two Giles in the back end of their bullpen now.<br />
  143. &nbsp;<br />
  144. <iframe src="https://giphy.com/embed/cKyQs8EOAcl1Jiw47a" width="480" height="396" frameBorder="0" class="giphy-embed" allowFullScreen></iframe></p>
  145. <p><a href="https://giphy.com/gifs/cKyQs8EOAcl1Jiw47a">via GIPHY</a></p>
  146. <p>In retrospect, it&#8217;s crazy to think the Blue Jays exposed him to the Rule 5 draft and the White Sox (and subsequently the Rangers) nearly stole him away, but luckily Romano floated back to the Blue Jays. If game one is any indication, he could see some high-leverage situations out of the bullpen this year.<br />
  147. &nbsp;</p>
  148. <h3>Bichette battled in his at-bats</h3>
  149. <p>Again, not to sound too premature about one game into the 2020 MLB season, but Bo Bichette showed right off the hop how he plans on being a valuable member of the Blue Jays roster in 2020.</p>
  150. <p>He attacked in his leadoff at bat versus Morton, and fouled off some tough pitches, only to be retired in the first at bat of the game, but not before he worked a seven-pitch at bat versus Morton. Bichette was rewarded later on with a single during a six-pitch battle with Morton.</p>
  151. <p>Every single one of his at bats were four pitches or more, so maybe Bichette is gaining some plate discipline through osmosis by merely hanging around Cavan Biggio (who led the Blue Jays with a .364 OBP last year).<br />
  152. &nbsp;</p>
  153. <h3> Rafael Dolis&#8217; splitter was <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/1f440.png" alt="👀" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /> </h3>
  154. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  155. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Missed this from earlier, but this splitter from Rafael Dolis is <a href="https://twitter.com/PitchingNinja?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PitchingNinja</a>-worthy. <a href="https://t.co/wRTvW8eSXt">pic.twitter.com/wRTvW8eSXt</a></p>
  156. <p>&mdash; Ian Hunter (@BlueJayHunter) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJayHunter/status/1286854110432628736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 25, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  157. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  158. <p>Rafael Dolis&#8217; first outing with the Toronto Blue Jays was a little rocky &#8211; two walks, seven batters faced, 27 pitches thrown, 15 of them balls &#8211; but what really impressed was his splitter.</p>
  159. <p>After watching that clip, it&#8217;s totally understandable how Ken Huckaby was blown away with the pitch, and he even gave Dolis of a Roy Halladay comp.</p>
  160. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  161. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Rafael Dolis is quietly generating some buzz in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BlueJays?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#BlueJays</a> camp.</p>
  162. <p>Here’s the only quote you need, from Ken Huckaby, who was calling balls and strikes with Dolis on the mound:</p>
  163. <p>“He thew a couple sinkers that I haven’t seen since I caught Doc. They were just unbelievable.&quot;</p>
  164. <p>&mdash; Scott Mitchell (@ScottyMitchTSN) <a href="https://twitter.com/ScottyMitchTSN/status/1283165258367078400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 14, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  165. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  166. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/07/observations-after-game-one-of-blue-jays-baseball.html">Observations after game one of Blue Jays baseball</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  167. ]]></content:encoded>
  171. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17207</post-id> </item>
  172. <item>
  173. <title>Michael Jordan&#8217;s obscure and subtle Blue Jays connections</title>
  174. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/michael-jordan-obscure-blue-jays-connections.html</link>
  176. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  177. <pubDate>Mon, 18 May 2020 12:58:49 +0000</pubDate>
  178. <category><![CDATA[Off the Field]]></category>
  179. <category><![CDATA[1993 Blue Jays]]></category>
  180. <category><![CDATA[Michael Jordan]]></category>
  181. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17178</guid>
  182.  
  183. <description><![CDATA[<p>At first glance, the greatest basketball player of all-time and the Toronto Blue Jays have very little in common.</p>
  184. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/michael-jordan-obscure-blue-jays-connections.html">Michael Jordan&#8217;s obscure and subtle Blue Jays connections</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  185. ]]></description>
  186. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>At first glance, the greatest basketball player of all-time and the Toronto Blue Jays have very little in common. But look deep enough and you&#8217;ll find some loose connections linking Michael Jordan to the Blue Jays.</p>
  187. <p>ESPN&#8217;s &#8220;The Last Dance&#8221; brought these connections to light during its ten episode run. The series is a must-watch for any sports fan, but if you watch closely, there are some subtle, obscure links to the Blue Jays.</p>
  188. <p>Aside from the Canadian tuxedo in the photo above, here are three vague connections between Jordan and the Toronto Blue Jays.</p>
  189. <h3>News of Jordan&#8217;s retirement leaks during Game 1 of the 1993 ALCS</h3>
  190. <p><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZmnBxvbJP7Q?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></p>
  191. <p>This was pre-social media, so when major news broke, it often happened when people opened their morning newspaper. This was one case when a massive news story broke mid-game during the broadcast of a major sporting event.</p>
  192. <p>After Jordan threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Game 1 of the Blue Jays-White Sox ALCS series in Chicago on October 5, 1993, word leaked about MJ retiring from basketball. Word travelled so fast that Jordan exited Comiskey Park during the seventh inning.</p>
  193. <p>In the words of Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf from The Last Dance: &#8220;All hell broke out at the ballpark on a Tuesday night.”</p>
  194. <p><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/foLDJALnJ_U?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;start=8716&#038;wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></p>
  195. <p>The next day, Jordan announced his retirement from the NBA (for the first time). Meanwhile, White Sox ace Jack McDowell was lit up by the Blue Jays for 7 runs and 13 hits in the first postseason start of his career.</p>
  196. <p>The White Sox were playing their first home playoff baseball game in almost ten years, and as the news of Jordan’s retirement preoccupied Chicago residents, White Sox manager Gene Lamont didn&#8217;t use that as an excuse.</p>
  197. <p>&#8220;Michael didn&#8217;t want to rain on our parade, he felt badly about it. Jordan is not the reason we left 13 runners on base. We were overshadowed by the Blue Jays, not Michael Jordan.&#8221; (From Neil Campbell of The Globe and Mail)</p>
  198. <h3>MJ replaces future Lansing Lugnuts coach Charles Poe</h3>
  199. <p><iframe loading="lazy" class="youtube-player" width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/p6ysmHLFsw0?version=3&#038;rel=1&#038;showsearch=0&#038;showinfo=1&#038;iv_load_policy=1&#038;fs=1&#038;hl=en-US&#038;autohide=2&#038;wmode=transparent" allowfullscreen="true" style="border:0;" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin allow-popups allow-presentation allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox"></iframe></p>
  200. <p>This one is an obscure Blue Jays connection, but it&#8217;s a fascinating one. Hat tip to <a href="https://twitter.com/hillmanchad/status/1252186122026876929">@hillmanchad</a> for pointing this out, but once Jordan joined the Birmingham Barons in 1994 (the Chicago White Sox AA affiliate), the move bounced Charles Poe from the Barons roster, sending him down to single-A.</p>
  201. <p>With two outfielders vying for the same job in right field, Jordan presumably took Poe’s spot on the Barons double-A roster. &#8220;It was my turn to go,&#8221; <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1994/08/29/cannons-poe-adjusts-to-games-little-bounces/b00b8126-9b9b-4c14-88c8-6b88f84f69cd/">Poe told the Washington Post in August 1994</a>. &#8220;They told me I shouldn&#8217;t have any problem making the team if I played well in spring training, which I did.&#8221;</p>
  202. <p>Poe re-emerged with the Barons in 1995 and was a Southern League All-Star. He made it all the way to triple-A with the Oakland A’s organization the following season, but Poe never saw the bright lights of the big leagues.</p>
  203. <p>Once his pro career concluded at the end of the 2002 campaign, the former White Sox farmhand transitioned to coaching in 2003.</p>
  204. <p>To tie it back to the Blue Jays, Poe was the hitting coach for the Lansing Lugnuts from 2005 to 2007, with Lansing being the Blue Jays Single-A affiliate in Michigan. Interestingly enough, his journey came full circle in 2019 when he returned as a member of the coaching staff for the Birmingham Barons.</p>
  205. <h3>Jordan&#8217;s connections with Blue Jays draftee Scott Burrell</h3>
  206. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  207. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Blue Jays pitching prospect Scott Burrell has opted to leave baseball, and instead join the NBA. Burrell, one of the Blue Jays&#39; top pitching prospects over the past couple seasons, was drafted 20th by the Charlotte Hornets in the NBA Draft. <a href="https://t.co/Pq9c3MNNis">pic.twitter.com/Pq9c3MNNis</a></p>
  208. <p>&mdash; 1993 Jays In Real Time (@RealTime93Jays) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealTime93Jays/status/1014563255493292035?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 4, 2018</a></p></blockquote>
  209. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  210. <p>Scott Burrell became the second Blue Jays draftee to abandon baseball for the bright lights of the NBA (Danny Ainge was the first in 1981). Burrell has the distinction of being the first American athlete drafted in the first round by two professional sports leagues; as a draftee of both the Blue Jays <em>and</em> the Charlotte Hornets.</p>
  211. <p>The Hornets drafted Burrell 20th overall in the 1993 NBA draft and he found his way to the 1997-1998 Bulls and played alongside Jordan during his final season with the Bulls.</p>
  212. <p>Burrell drew the ire of Jordan during Episode 7 of The Last Dance as MJ employed his &#8220;tough love&#8221; strategy on his teammates. Burrell took the brunt of Jordan&#8217;s jabs. As Steve Kerr said: &#8220;Michael would just bludgeon everybody around him.&#8221;</p>
  213. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  214. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Michael Jordan vs Scott Burrell, the greatest hits <a href="https://t.co/tQvudoZEav">pic.twitter.com/tQvudoZEav</a></p>
  215. <p>&mdash; Rob Lopez (@r0bato) <a href="https://twitter.com/r0bato/status/1259691288846311424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 11, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  216. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  217. <h3>Huck Flener was the first Blue Jay to face MJ</h3>
  218. <p>Nothing could have prepared baseball players for the media circus that accompanied Jordan on his journey through spring training in 1994. Nobody wanted to be &#8220;that guy&#8221; who gave up a hit to the NBA legend-suddenly turned baseball player.</p>
  219. <p>Toronto Blue Jays players got their first taste of Jordan in a White Sox uniform during a spring training contest in mid-March 1994. Huck Flener struck out Jordan on three straight pitches, but Aaron Small wasn&#8217;t as fortunate, surrendering a single to Jordan.</p>
  220. <p>After the game, Small was in good spirits after letting the then three-time NBA champion reach base. Here&#8217;s what Small told Allan Ryan of the Toronto Star:</p>
  221. <p>&#8220;I guess it&#8217;s something I can tell my kids one day. For sure I am going to hear it from my friends back home. Maybe I should have stopped and had him sign it, but honestly, I never thought about it being Jordan until he got around to third. I was looking right at him and thought: &#8216;Geez, that&#8217;s Michael Jordan.'&#8221;</p>
  222. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/michael-jordan-obscure-blue-jays-connections.html">Michael Jordan&#8217;s obscure and subtle Blue Jays connections</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  223. ]]></content:encoded>
  227. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17178</post-id> </item>
  228. <item>
  229. <title>Bo Bichette talks about his MLB milestone on MLB Network</title>
  230. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/bo-bichette-talks-mlb-milestone-mlb-network.html</link>
  232. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  233. <pubDate>Fri, 01 May 2020 14:16:19 +0000</pubDate>
  234. <category><![CDATA[Video]]></category>
  235. <category><![CDATA[Bo Bichette]]></category>
  236. <category><![CDATA[MLB Network]]></category>
  237. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17164</guid>
  238.  
  239. <description><![CDATA[<p>With the MLB season on pause, Bo Bichette discovered a unique way to play.</p>
  240. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/bo-bichette-talks-mlb-milestone-mlb-network.html">Bo Bichette talks about his MLB milestone on MLB Network</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  241. ]]></description>
  242. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>With the MLB season on pause, Bo Bichette discovered a unique way to play. He put down his bat and glove and picked up a video game controller and a headset as the Blue Jays&#8217; representative in MLB The Show Players League.</p>
  243. <p>Prior to the league shutting down, the 22-year-old positioned himself as one of the most hyped Blue Jays players in recent memory. While the official season is on hold, Bichette is hoping to will his team into the playoffs, much like he&#8217;s done with his virtual Blue Jays squad.</p>
  244. <p>In the meantime, Bichette got plenty of TV time over the weekend <a href="https://www.mlb.com/network">on MLB Network</a> as they featured him on the network&#8217;s &#8220;Play Ball&#8221; program. Bichette spoke about the finesse of playing MLB The Show, his favourite playing growing up, and the highlight of his career so far.</p>
  245. <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://streamable.com/m/bichette-talks-players-league" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></p>
  246. <p>Earlier this year, you may have seen the video of Bichette interacting with a young fan at the Don&#8217;t Blink Home Run Derby, and there&#8217;s a bit of an extended clip between the two.</p>
  247. <p>The best part of the whole clip was how the kid mimicked a backstabbing play that Bichette made in the field, and he knew the exact play this young fan was talking about.</p>
  248. <style>.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }</style>
  249. <div class='embed-container'><iframe src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/zau9ZnG2zXI' frameborder='0' allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
  250. <p>&nbsp;<br />
  251. Baseball lineage is a big thing on the Blue Jays in 2020 with four players who are sons of major leaguers (Bichette besides Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Travis Shaw).</p>
  252. <p>Bichette spoke about the benefits of coming up through the ranks with the likes of Vladdy and Biggio.</p>
  253. <style>.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }</style>
  254. <div class='embed-container'><iframe src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/W0FDx-6x8ek' frameborder='0' allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
  255. <p>&nbsp;<br />
  256. Plus, in a bonus segment with Dempster, Bichette mentions his favourite batting stance, his favourite hairstyle in MLB, and which father-son duo would win a home run derby on the Blue Jays.</p>
  257. <p><iframe loading="lazy" src="https://streamable.com/m/circle-the-bases-with-bo-bichette" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" data-mce-fragment="1"></iframe></p>
  258. <p><em>Hat tip to <a href="https://www.mlb.com/network">MLB Network</a> for the videos</em></p>
  259. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/05/bo-bichette-talks-mlb-milestone-mlb-network.html">Bo Bichette talks about his MLB milestone on MLB Network</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  260. ]]></content:encoded>
  264. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17164</post-id> </item>
  265. <item>
  266. <title>Which Blue Jays team was better: 1992 or 1993?</title>
  267. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/which-blue-jays-team-was-better-1992-or-1993.html</link>
  268. <comments>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/which-blue-jays-team-was-better-1992-or-1993.html#comments</comments>
  270. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  271. <pubDate>Sun, 12 Apr 2020 13:40:45 +0000</pubDate>
  272. <category><![CDATA[History]]></category>
  273. <category><![CDATA[1992 Blue Jays]]></category>
  274. <category><![CDATA[1993 Blue Jays]]></category>
  275. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17125</guid>
  276.  
  277. <description><![CDATA[<p>Only 14 MLB teams have won back-to-back World Series titles.</p>
  278. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/which-blue-jays-team-was-better-1992-or-1993.html">Which Blue Jays team was better: 1992 or 1993?</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  279. ]]></description>
  280. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Only 14 MLB teams have won back-to-back World Series titles. The Toronto Blue Jays are among that select group and one of two teams in the expansion era to win consecutive championships.</p>
  281. <p>The Blue Jays were one of the last teams in baseball to &#8220;run it back&#8221;.</p>
  282. <p>While their 1992 World Series title was a watershed moment for the franchise, their 1993 championship season was an impressive feat in its own right.</p>
  283. <p>Of the 40 players who suited up for the 1992 Blue Jays, only 19 returned for the 1993 season. More than half of the Blue Jays&#8217; 40-man roster turned over from year-over-year, and they still repeated as World Series champions.</p>
  284. <p>One thought that&#8217;s crossed my mind (and surely yours as well): which team was better, the 1992 Blue Jays or the 1993 Blue Jays? It&#8217;s like asking someone to pick their favourite child and it would be unfair to pit each club against each other.</p>
  285. <p>But in their separate context, which club was superior: 1992 or 1993?</p>
  286. <p>Several years ago, I did <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2010/01/which-team-was-better-92-or-93-blue.html">a surface-level article about which team I posited was the better of the two</a>, but with the 1992 and 1993 Blue Jays games getting some play in Sportsnet, I thought it would be fun to go back and re-evaluate which squad was the best.<br />
  287. &nbsp;</p>
  288. <h3>Starting Lineup</h3>
  289. <p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-17134 size-large" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg?resize=800%2C58" alt="" width="800" height="58" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg?resize=1024%2C74 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg?resize=300%2C22 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg?resize=768%2C55 768w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starting-Lineup-Comp-1.jpg?w=1164 1164w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a></p>
  290. <p>The 1993 Toronto Blue Jays lineup was an absolute buzz saw. John Olerud, Paul Molitor and Roberto Alomar combined to finish 1-2-3 in the American League batting title race. They were also the best players in baseball at their respective positions that season.</p>
  291. <p>&#8220;WAMCO&#8221; entered the Blue Jays lexicon as one of the most-feared one-through-fives in baseball. White, Alomar, Molitor, Carter and Olerud bulldozed opposing pitchers. And then the mid-season acquisition of Rickey Henderson only added to the Blue Jays&#8217; juggernaut status.</p>
  292. <p>The 1992 Blue Jays hit four more home runs than the 1993 Blue Jays, but the &#8217;93 Blue Jays dominated every other offensive category in this head-to-head comparison.</p>
  293. <p>In 1993, the Blue Jays were shut out once in 162 regular season games. Yes, once. They scored the third-most runs in baseball that year and their 847 runs scored still stands as the fifth-highest in Blue Jays franchise history.</p>
  294. <p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17130" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg?resize=780%2C88" alt="" width="780" height="88" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg?w=780 780w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg?resize=300%2C34 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg?resize=768%2C87 768w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Advanced-Comp.jpg?resize=770%2C88 770w" sizes="(max-width: 780px) 100vw, 780px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a></p>
  295. <p>The 1993 Blue Jays were the superior team on the base paths as they out-stole bases by a margin of 170 to 129, and that team carried four 20-plus base stealers, including 22 stolen bases from their 36-year-old designated hitter, Paul Molitor.</p>
  296. <p>Despite these impressive numbers, the 1992 Blue Jays were no slouches at their respective positions. Here&#8217;s a position-by-position breakdown, comparing bWAR at each spot on the diamond year-over-year.</p>
  297. <p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Position-Comp.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17151" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Position-Comp.jpg?resize=800%2C70" alt="" width="800" height="70" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Position-Comp.jpg?w=958 958w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Position-Comp.jpg?resize=300%2C26 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Position-Comp.jpg?resize=768%2C67 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a></p>
  298. <p>The 1993 Blue Jays had some monster seasons at first base, second base and DH, but the 1992 team&#8217;s contributions in the outfield and shortstop far eclipsed what the 1993 team accomplished.</p>
  299. <p>The 1993 position players edged their 1992 counterparts by a count of 31.2 bWAR to 30.9 bWAR, but the fact that the 1993 Blue Jays had three elite hitters in their lineup gives them the edge in the starting lineup category.</p>
  300. <p><strong><em>Advantage: 1993 Blue Jays</em></strong><br />
  301. &nbsp;</p>
  302. <h3>Starting Rotation</h3>
  303. <p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starters-Comp.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17132" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starters-Comp.jpg?resize=800%2C71" alt="" width="800" height="71" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starters-Comp.jpg?w=970 970w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starters-Comp.jpg?resize=300%2C27 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Starters-Comp.jpg?resize=768%2C68 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a></p>
  304. <p>Pat Gillick made two monumental free agent signings in back-to-back years by adding Jack Morris to the 1992 team and Dave Stewart to the 1993 team. Despite their top-tier salaries, both starters posted subpar regular season numbers as members of the Blue Jays.</p>
  305. <p>If there was a fatal flaw of the 1993 team, it was their starting pitching. Only two starters posted a sub-4 ERA (Pat Hentgen and Juan Guzman) and Morris, Stewart and Stottlemyre posted an ERA+ of below 100.</p>
  306. <p>Contrast that with the 1992 Blue Jays, who featured Guzman&#8217;s sparking 2.64 ERA, Jimmy Key&#8217;s 3.53 ERA and David Cone was lights-out down the stretch as a late-season acquisition.</p>
  307. <p>Toronto&#8217;s starters ranked 13th in baseball with 12 bWAR in 1992, while their starters slipped to 20th with 8.1 bWAR in 1993.</p>
  308. <p>While the 1993 Blue Jays had two big-game pitchers in Morris and Stewart, the lingering effects of their injuries decimated them into number four and five starters during the 1993 season. That gives the edge to the 1992 Blue Jays in the starting pitching department.</p>
  309. <p><strong><em>Advantage: 1992 Blue Jays</em></strong><br />
  310. &nbsp;</p>
  311. <h3>Bullpen</h3>
  312. <p><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Relievers-Comp.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17131" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Relievers-Comp.jpg?resize=800%2C71" alt="" width="800" height="71" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Relievers-Comp.jpg?w=970 970w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Relievers-Comp.jpg?resize=300%2C27 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Relievers-Comp.jpg?resize=768%2C68 768w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a></p>
  313. <p>1992 was the last year of Tom Henke&#8217;s storied career with the Blue Jays, but come 1993, Duane Ward transitioned seamlessly into the closer&#8217;s role. It came as no surprise because Ward dominated the American League for the five previous seasons as a late-inning reliever.</p>
  314. <p>Ward reached his pinnacle in the 1993 season, saving a franchise-high 45 games and posting a 2.13 ERA while finishing a league-leading 70 games. The Blue Jays&#8217; closer also finished fifth in Cy Young voting in 1993.</p>
  315. <p>The bullpen was the one category in this head-to-head comparison that surprised me the most. In my mind, I had the 1992 Blue Jays having the superior bullpen, but the regular season numbers said otherwise. Toronto&#8217;s bullpen in 1993 bested the 1992 in every category.</p>
  316. <p>The one thing I&#8217;ll give to the 1992 relief corps is how dominant they were during the 1992 World Series. Seven relievers combined to surrender one earned run in the World Series against the Braves, and that sole earned run didn&#8217;t come until the eighth inning of Game 6 of the World Series.</p>
  317. <p><strong><em>Advantage: 1993 Blue Jays</em></strong><br />
  318. &nbsp;</p>
  319. <h3>Bench</h3>
  320. <p>It&#8217;s rare when a bench or utility players have a direct impact on a game, let alone a season, but in this case, the bench on the 1992 Blue Jays provided a dramatic swing in a World Series game.</p>
  321. <p>Both Derek Bell and Ed Sprague came up clutch in Game 2 of the 1992 World Series and Sprague delivered one of the most impactful home runs in playoff history. Sprague&#8217;s home run off Jeff Reardon ranks as the second-highest WPA (win probability added) home run in the history of the World Series.</p>
  322. <p>The 1992 bench included players like Jeff Kent, Turner Ward, Alfredo Griffin and Randy Knorr offering positive contributions towards their team. The 1993 bench consisted of Rob Butler, Dick Schofield, Woody Williams and Carlos Delgado.</p>
  323. <p>During the regular season, Toronto&#8217;s pinch hitters in 1992 outperformed the 1993 team by a count of 0.4 bWAR to 0.1 bWAR, but the Blue Jays&#8217; utility players earned their stripes in the 1992 postseason.</p>
  324. <p>For my money, if I were Cito Gaston and had to call upon a hitter in a dire situation, I&#8217;d pluck somebody from the 1992 bench.</p>
  325. <p><strong><em>Advantage: 1992 Blue Jays</em></strong><br />
  326. &nbsp;</p>
  327. <h3>Overall</h3>
  328. <p>If we were pitting the 1992 and 1993 Blue Jays teams against each other, I think the starting lineup and the speed of the 1993 would be far too much for the 1992 team to handle in a seven-game series.</p>
  329. <p>However, the question isn&#8217;t which team would beat the other, it&#8217;s which team was better overall. As much as the additions of Paul Molitor and Tony Fernandez helped to the 1993 team, I believe the 1992 Blue Jays were a better balanced ball club.</p>
  330. <p>On the starting pitching side, the 1993 Blue Jays were far too unpredictable and riddled by the injuries. Players like Guzman and Hentgen carried the starting rotation in 1993 when Dave Stewart and Jack Morris battled injuries the entire season. (Stewart missed the first month of 1993 and Morris was shut down in September and didn&#8217;t pitch in the playoffs.)</p>
  331. <p>The lineup on the 1993 team was a juggernaut, but the 1992 team wasn&#8217;t far behind their 1993 counterparts. The 1992 team produced a wRC+ of 108, while the 1992 produced a wRC+ of 109.</p>
  332. <p>The 1992 team played better defence, they had better starting pitching, and the bench single-handedly won them a game in the 1992 World Series. The 1993 Blue Jays steamrolled the competition, but the 1992 iteration was a better top-to-bottom roster.</p>
  333. <p>For that reason, I&#8217;m choosing the 1992 Blue Jays as the better team of the two.</p>
  334. <p><strong><em>Winner: 1992 Blue Jays</em></strong></p>
  335. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/which-blue-jays-team-was-better-1992-or-1993.html">Which Blue Jays team was better: 1992 or 1993?</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  336. ]]></content:encoded>
  338. <wfw:commentRss>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/which-blue-jays-team-was-better-1992-or-1993.html/feed</wfw:commentRss>
  339. <slash:comments>1</slash:comments>
  342. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17125</post-id> </item>
  343. <item>
  344. <title>One of the prettiest 4-6-3 putouts in Blue Jays history</title>
  345. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/one-of-the-prettiest-4-6-3-putouts-in-blue-jays-history.html</link>
  347. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  348. <pubDate>Sat, 04 Apr 2020 12:48:31 +0000</pubDate>
  349. <category><![CDATA[Retro]]></category>
  350. <category><![CDATA[John McDonald]]></category>
  351. <category><![CDATA[Marco Scutaro]]></category>
  352. <category><![CDATA[Roy Halladay]]></category>
  353. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17111</guid>
  354.  
  355. <description><![CDATA[<p>Everyone has that one particular game or play in their mind which is their own &#8220;holy grail highlight&#8221;.</p>
  356. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/one-of-the-prettiest-4-6-3-putouts-in-blue-jays-history.html">One of the prettiest 4-6-3 putouts in Blue Jays history</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  357. ]]></description>
  358. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Everyone has that one particular game or play in their mind which is their own &#8220;holy grail highlight&#8221;. It was the greatest play you&#8217;ve ever seen, but there may not be any way to recall or substantiate it.</p>
  359. <p>That happened to me for years with a particular play I remember vividly from a Roy Halladay start in 2008. It was a Flashback Friday, and as per usual, it was appointment viewing because it was Doc start. And like clockwork, he carved up the New York Yankees.</p>
  360. <p>He threw a complete game two-hitter against the Yankees on July 11, 2008, but one of the most impressive aspects of that game was a creative putout between John McDonald and Marco Scutaro.</p>
  361. <p>Infielders have combined for glove flip or shovel plays before, but this was unlike anything I had ever seen before. As Scutaro fielded the ball and was running towards second base, he flipped the ball out of his glove to McDonald&#8217;s glove side; then McDonald spun and fired a missile to first base to record the out.</p>
  362. <p>You have to see it to believe it.</p>
  363. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  364. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">The quality isn&#39;t great, but I finally found footage of this Marco Scutaro/John McDonald flip play from 2008. It&#39;s one of the prettiest 4-6-3 putouts you&#39;ll ever see. <a href="https://t.co/kokGrsYHgz">pic.twitter.com/kokGrsYHgz</a></p>
  365. <p>&mdash; Ian Hunter (@BlueJayHunter) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJayHunter/status/1245721146164641797?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 2, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  366. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  367. <p>The video quality isn&#8217;t the greatest, but after years of trying to find this footage, I tried a weird workaround and it was like the holy grail of Blue Jays highlight footage had landed on my desktop.</p>
  368. <p>Unless you were watching the play live, it&#8217;s an easy game to forget. This was just prior to the 2008 All-Star Game (the one where Halladay picked up some tips on his cutter courtesy of Mariano Rivera), and the Blue Jays were dead last in the AL East, 9.5 games back from the Tampa Bay Rays.</p>
  369. <p>As inconsequential as this Blue Jays game was, this ingenious play left an imprint on my memory for the last 12 years.</p>
  370. <p>In retrospect, the most remarkable thing about this Scutaro/McDonald play wasn&#8217;t the play itself, but it was Halladay&#8217;s reaction. As Jamie Campbell noted in this clip, Doc rarely elicited any emotion on the mound, but even he couldn&#8217;t believe what he witnessed.</p>
  371. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none">
  372. <p dir="ltr" lang="en">&#8220;And look at Halladay. He doesn&#8217;t smile very often in the middle of a game, but he gets a kick out of that play.&#8221; (The play-by-play from <a href="https://twitter.com/SNETCampbell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SNETCampbell</a>) <a href="https://t.co/Se19X8ZG6v">pic.twitter.com/Se19X8ZG6v</a></p>
  373. <p>— Ian Hunter (@BlueJayHunter) <a href="https://twitter.com/BlueJayHunter/status/1245727429018234882?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 2, 2020</a></p></blockquote>
  374. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  375. <p>It was a nothing game for the Blue Jays in the dog days of summer, but Halladay emasculated the Yankees (as he was one to do) and Scutaro and Johnny Mac made a play that I&#8217;ll never forget as long as I live.</p>
  376. <p>Now that there&#8217;s video proof, maybe others will feel the same way.</p>
  377. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/04/one-of-the-prettiest-4-6-3-putouts-in-blue-jays-history.html">One of the prettiest 4-6-3 putouts in Blue Jays history</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  378. ]]></content:encoded>
  382. <post-id xmlns="com-wordpress:feed-additions:1">17111</post-id> </item>
  383. <item>
  384. <title>Remember when the Blue Jays had a tiger in the clubhouse?</title>
  385. <link>http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/03/remember-when-the-blue-jays-had-a-tiger-in-the-clubhouse.html</link>
  387. <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ian Hunter]]></dc:creator>
  388. <pubDate>Sat, 28 Mar 2020 14:31:35 +0000</pubDate>
  389. <category><![CDATA[Off the Field]]></category>
  390. <category><![CDATA[Drew Hutchison]]></category>
  391. <category><![CDATA[Edwin Encarnacion]]></category>
  392. <category><![CDATA[Jose Bautista]]></category>
  393. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://bluejayhunter.com/?p=17092</guid>
  394.  
  395. <description><![CDATA[<p>&#8220;Tiger King&#8221; is the number one show on Netflix in Canada right now.</p>
  396. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/03/remember-when-the-blue-jays-had-a-tiger-in-the-clubhouse.html">Remember when the Blue Jays had a tiger in the clubhouse?</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  397. ]]></description>
  398. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&#8220;Tiger King&#8221; is the number one show on Netflix in Canada right now. It&#8217;s an unabashed train wreck that you can&#8217;t turn away from. Just when you think it couldn&#8217;t get any more ridiculous, it does.</p>
  399. <p>So, as Netflix helps fill the void from the Major League Baseball season, for some reason, I found the parallel between this show and the 2014 Toronto Blue Jays, of all things.</p>
  400. <p>As you may or may not recall, the Blue Jays brought a baby tiger and lion into their clubhouse in September 2014 as a &#8220;team bonding&#8221; exercise prior to a game at Rogers Centre.</p>
  401. <p>Forget Joe Exotic, here&#8217;s the original Tiger King Jose Bautista cradling a baby tiger.</p>
  402. <figure id="attachment_17096" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-17096" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-17096 size-full" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg?resize=640%2C640" alt="" width="640" height="640" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg?w=640 640w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg?resize=150%2C150 150w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg?resize=300%2C300 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Bautista-Tiger.jpg?resize=75%2C75 75w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-17096" class="wp-caption-text">Jose Bautista Instagram</figcaption></figure>
  403. <p>But it wasn&#8217;t enough to bring in just one baby big cat, the Blue Jays had a baby lion in the clubhouse, as well. A baby tiger and a baby lion amongst dozens of people in an enclosed environment seems like a recipe for disaster, but everyone emerged with all their appendages.</p>
  404. <figure id="attachment_17097" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-17097" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Reyes-Tiger.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-17097" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Reyes-Tiger.jpg?resize=640%2C519" alt="" width="640" height="519" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Reyes-Tiger.jpg?w=966 966w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Reyes-Tiger.jpg?resize=300%2C243 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Jose-Reyes-Tiger.jpg?resize=768%2C623 768w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-17097" class="wp-caption-text">Jose Reyes Instagram</figcaption></figure>
  405. <p>After the fact, the Blue Jays took some heat from PETA and were accused of “inadvertently supporting cruelty and neglect”, according to <a href="https://nationalpost.com/sports/baseball/mlb/toronto-blue-jays-criticized-by-animal-rights-group-for-inadvertently-supporting-cruelty-and-neglect">this piece by John Lott and Sean Fitz-Gerald from the National Post</a>.</p>
  406. <p>Mark Buehrle was the one who arranged for the little beasts to visit the Blue Jays locker room. The animals paraded around the clubhouse, as all the players took photos with the baby tiger and lion.</p>
  407. <figure id="attachment_17095" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-17095" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-17095" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?resize=640%2C551" alt="" width="640" height="551" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?resize=1024%2C881 1024w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?resize=300%2C258 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?resize=768%2C661 768w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?w=1888 1888w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Blue-Jays-Baby-Tiger.jpg?w=1600 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-17095" class="wp-caption-text">Jose Bautista Instagram</figcaption></figure>
  408. <p>Some players deleted the photos, but others like Drew Hutchison and Edwin Encarnacion kept the momentos on social media.</p>
  409. <figure id="attachment_17103" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-17103" style="width: 640px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Edwin-Encarnacion-Tiger.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-17103" src="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Edwin-Encarnacion-Tiger.jpg?resize=640%2C608" alt="" width="640" height="608" srcset="https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Edwin-Encarnacion-Tiger.jpg?w=900 900w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Edwin-Encarnacion-Tiger.jpg?resize=300%2C285 300w, https://i0.wp.com/bluejayhunter.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Edwin-Encarnacion-Tiger.jpg?resize=768%2C730 768w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" data-recalc-dims="1" /></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-17103" class="wp-caption-text">Edwin Encarnacion Instagram</figcaption></figure>
  410. <p>Hutchison must have felt the eye of the tiger that afternoon, as he faced the Chicago Cubs and spun a 6.1 inning gem where he struck out ten and gave up only one earned run.</p>
  411. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
  412. <p lang="en" dir="ltr">Need to hang out with this little guy from now on whenever I pitch <a href="http://t.co/eAthTXKMVy">pic.twitter.com/eAthTXKMVy</a></p>
  413. <p>&mdash; Drew Hutchison (@Hutch2290) <a href="https://twitter.com/Hutch2290/status/509905689003958272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 11, 2014</a></p></blockquote>
  414. <p><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p>
  415. <p>The soaring popularity of Tiger King has brought this to the forefront once again, and in retrospect, it&#8217;s crazy that the Blue Jays had these baby tigers and lions roaming the clubhouse before a game.</p>
  416. <p>The post <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com/2020/03/remember-when-the-blue-jays-had-a-tiger-in-the-clubhouse.html">Remember when the Blue Jays had a tiger in the clubhouse?</a> appeared first on <a href="http://bluejayhunter.com">Blue Jay Hunter</a>.</p>
  417. ]]></content:encoded>
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