Valverde and His Spitter. So What?
Oh Lawd! Valverde done spit into his mitt. Surely it’s a sign of the apocalypse! Quick, send the owners to shelter. Light the Selig Signal. Make the game adopt gloves and balls that change colors when...
View ArticleSend Romero Down (so you can bring him up)
I’ve contested as far back as a two months ago that Ricky Romero should have seen some time in the minors this year. I did not make that comment because I wanted to attack or otherwise debase Ricky. I...
View ArticleDear Angry College Pitcher Who Hates His Coach…
Dear angst ridden young college pitcher, angry at his coach. Ah yes, the public call out. Those always go over so well… Nothing says “pick your head up” like being called a coward in front of an entire...
View ArticleRays Book Excerpt 4. Meet Your Teammates
Excerpt from first rough draft. Errors expected. …He played catch with David Price, who, by contrast, was naturally cool and never had to try to be accepted at anything. Price oozed charm and...
View ArticleBuehrle Teaching Romero a Cutter.
Photographic evidence that having established veterans on your team helps in unquantifiable ways....
View ArticleHow Not to Break Your Collarbone
Carlos Quentin said the reason he charged Zack Greinke after getting plunked in Thursday’s Dodgers/Padres game is because the pair had history. Bad history. Quentin said it goes back to an alleged bean...
View ArticleJPA VS Base Clogging
Gregg Zaun and I like to argue, and that’s a good thing. It makes for bold television, better informed viewers, and, best of all, I’m always right. We were talking about JP Arenciba’s approach to the...
View ArticleDirty, Rotten, Cheaters…
If Clay Buchholz was caught applying a foreign substance to his hands tonight, he could (and should) be ejected on the spot — according to the rules of baseball under 8.02. But it’s highly unlikely...
View ArticleHow To Kill An All-Star
How To Kill an All-Star. Last year I said Ricky Romero should not have been in the big leagues to finish the year. He should have been sent down to recover from whatever mental issues were ailing him....
View ArticleNo Time To Think Twice, Sean Nolin.
When I heard the Jays were calling up Sean Nolin yesterday, I got pretty upset. “What is it with this organization and fast tracking young, inexperienced arms?” I railed against it on Baseball Central....
View ArticleRA Dickey VS Chaos Theory
Believe me, no one is more tired of hearing RA Dickey say he’s still trying to figure out his knuckleball than me. The whole, “it’s a process”, “it’s a journey”, “the knuckleball is a capricious...
View ArticleMy Life Is A Lie
My entire baseball career is built on a lie. It started just after my junior year, on the day I wasn’t drafted but was told I would be. I spent 2002 playing ace to my college staff, leading the squad...
View ArticleHalladay
I remember when I first took serious notice of Roy Halladay. I’d been called up by the Padres to start a few games until Chris Young came back from the DL. Starting…heh, that’s generous. In fact, what...
View ArticleRays Book Excerpt 4. Meet Your Teammates
Excerpt from first rough draft. Errors expected. …He played catch with David Price, who, by contrast, was naturally cool and never had to try to be accepted at anything. Price oozed charm and...
View ArticleBullish on Masterson and His Value Upside
I’m bullish on the prospect of the Red Sox signing Justin Masterson, and I think Justin Masterson should dig it as well. He’s going to get a lot of run support, the upgrades to infielding make Boston...
View ArticlePrice, Buehrle, and Why You Should Pitch Like Them
It’s a common misconception that, if you’re an older left-handed pitcher with less velocity, you have to throw more off-speed, aka, junk. The thinking goes that, because your fastball is slower, you...
View ArticleRoster Shuffles and Tulo’s Struggles
Hutchison will head south to Buffalo so the Jays can keep him on his throwing program. The Jays have lots of off days coming up and when you’re having he kind of year Hutchison is, you get demoted so...
View ArticleStroman and The Minor League Playoff Hustle
Marcus Stroman… The Blue Jay world seems fixated upon his return. Will he be healthy, will he contribute, what do all his tweets about feeling better than ever mean? Lets review what we know and take...
View ArticleStroman VS. Buehrle & Tulo VS. Martin
(AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Nathan Denette) Here are six things Jays fans should be coming to terms with before the Jays head to New York. 1) The Jays don’t need Marcus Stroman to win. They...
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