Our Great Shame

You're going to have to pardon me for not being overly excited about Merkin Valdez, Alex Anthopoulos's most recent addition to the Toronto Blue Jays. Sure, 98 MPH on the radar gun tickles my fancy, but it's tough looking past the 1.72 WHIP Valdez posted in 49.1 innings last season.

While AA and the Blue Jays have moved on after losing out on Aroldis Chapman, I haven't. In the aftermath of the Cuban flamethrower signing with the Cincinnati Reds for$30.25 million, I found it curious that nobody in the front office would commit to the reported $23 million Toronto had offered. Not a peep from AA, or Paul Beeston. Post J.P. Ricciardi, I guess I'm just not used to that type of silence from upstairs.

So I did what any rational person would do: I emailed Jeff Blair. Was the $23 million offer true? According to Blair, indeed it was.

I continued to pry. Why not, from the top of the highest mountain, announce to the world that the Jays were big players in the Chapman ballgame? Why not let the fanbase know that the new regime went hard after the young, controllable prospect? Allowing the reported offer to remain unconfirmed was, in my humble opinion, a lost public relations opportunity. And, with Ricciardi out of the picture, didn't the Jays want to change their PR strategy? Sure, the Blue Jays had lost the battle, and didn't end up signing Chapman. But they could have let us all know they were doing their best to win the war.

More from Blair:

"Its the way Alex is. He believes being too open cost the Jays a Lincecum for Rios deal. Don't think saying you went after Chapman would score any PR points. It would just confirm you lost to the Reds."

Blair's right. Fuck public relations. Losing Roy Halladay wouldn't have hurt so much if Toronto had acquired Tim Lincecum. Hell, if Lincecum's a Blue Jay, perhaps Halladay remains one. And while there's no shame in losing out on a high-profile prospect to the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, or even Los Angeles Angels, there certainly is in losing to Cincinnati.

We'll have to settle for Merkin Valdez.

El Pitcher

I told myself not to get my hopes up over Aroldis Chapman, the stud Cuban southpaw looking for a Major League Baseball home. Obviously, I didn’t take my own advice. Getting my hopes up is what I do; it’s how I live my life.

And then, as if on cue, it all comes crashing down.

According to an inside source, word has it, from The Beest himself, that the Jays have offered Chapman $15 million. And that’s as far as they’re willing to go.

Reports across the land have Chapman signing a deal at, or north of, $20 million, effectively ruling out our Toronto Blue Jays. My heart weeps.

Now, I’m praying to the baseball Gods that I’ve gone all Bob Elliott on you here, and that Chapman does indeed head north.

But I wouldn’t get my hopes up.

A Prophecy Realized

Here's what I wrote back on October 8th ...

"It's going to get worse, before it gets better."

Well, according to the picture above, we've reached bottom.

Think about it: A.J. Burnett, hi$ 5.27 po$t-$ea$on ERA, and hi$ New York Yankee$ teammate$ are World $erie$ champion$.

Paul Beeston, unable to complete the one task he was brought in to accomplish, conveniently tossed aside the "interim" in "interim president." Staying along with him: Cito Gaston, a manager who's worn out his welcome among both players and fans, and who now has an expiry date.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have won one game. Out of 13.

The Buffalo Bills are - you guessed it - last in the AFC East. Terrell Owens? One touchdown.

It's too early for the Toronto Raptors to have disappointed us. But in all likelihood, they probably will. (On an aside, Charles Oakley remains one of the greatest quotes of all time: "These days with these guys I don't know if you can say too much to them without them breaking down and crying, like a girl. It is what it is." Don't ever change, Oak.)

It can't get much worse. Which is why it's going to get better.

Hideki Matsui, World Series MVP Hideki Matsui, is going to look pretty good in the Blue Jays' lineup as their designated hitter.

Vernon Wells had wrist surgery. As my man 40 put it so eloquently years ago: "That changes everything!!1"

The Maple Leafs' search for a goaltender has finally been called off. In Jonas Gustavsson, they've found their man. The Monster and his .901 save percentage will keep the puck out. If Tuesday night was any indication, Phil Kessel will take care of putting the puck in the net. Toronto is a four-game winning streak and another overtime loss away from 6th spot in the Eastern Conference. (Provided the eight teams between them lose five in a row, of course. It could happen.)

Fuck the Bills. They're hopeless.

As for the Raptors, it's never too early for the Chris Bosh "MVP!!1" chant.

When you're at the bottom, the only place to go is up.

(Unless Alex Anthopoulos trades Roy Halladay. Then all bets are off. Fuck.)

Until We Meet Again

I didn't go to the game. I didn't even watch it. Last night, for the first time, I saw Roy Halladay dominate a box score. Inning by inning, strikeout after strikeout. In the end, another complete game shutout.

And it won't be the last at the SkyDome. I believe Roy Halladay will be a Toronto Blue Jay in 2010.

For some inexplicable reason, I have faith in the plan Paul Beeston is shortly due to unveil. I know; I have no reason to. I know absolutely nothing about it. Nobody does. Yet I remain unhinged. Rumours of a $120 million dollar payroll were enough to make me believe that will indeed be the case. Like George Costanza said: "Jerry, just remember, it's not a lie if you believe it."

Pat Gillick as president? Again, I know, the franchise shouldn't continue delving back into the past. It's not a healthy way to live. But I'm all over it. If I've learned anything over the years as a Blue Jays and Maple Leafs fan, it's that my nostalgia quota can never be filled.

The Blame Game

Cito Gaston apparently "managed" during yesterday's ball game. Since it was a matinee affair, I cannot confirm it actually happened. It's one of life's mysteries: if The Cito manages, and no one is there to see it, did it really happen?

For reasons unbeknownst to me, I still believe in The Cito. The Tao of Stieb doesn't, not anymore. The Ack, he made relevant points in the comments section of The Tao's post: surely I cannot defend some, or many, of Cito's lineup and in-game decisions. Nobody can. The workings of Cito have shaved at least a year off my life.

(It seems Cito can't be trusted in the clubhouse, either. Gaston decided to tell the media that Rod Barajas isn't coming back in 2010. So they could, you know, run over and ask Barajas about it. Gaston's obviously well on his way to graduating from the J.P. Ricciardi School of Media and Public Relations.)

Look, I'm an idiot, but I'm not a complete idiot. The Cito's been brutal, almost all across the board. Lineups, bullpen management, in-game calls, Kevin Millar; you name it. Millar's been a nightmare. I fully well hope and expect to wake up and find out he never happened. Randy Ruiz should be playing. Every single mother fucking day. There's no way anyone in the entire Blue Jays organization can justify why Ruiz didn't play - not one at-bat - in a doubleheader against Texas on September 1st. There is no rhyme or reason. If there's any truth to the rumours that Travis Snider's stubbornness is clashing with The Cito's stubbornness ... may the good Lord help us all.

Did I mention Kevin Millar?

But, wait. Cito's faults are all exacerbated, greatly, by the losing. Let's face it: the 2009 Blue Jays are simply not very good. At all. And I don't believe Cito is what ails this team. Put another manager in the dugout, even John Gibbons, and this team still isn't competitive. There simply isn't anything Cito can do to make the boys come up big in the clutch.

The Ack and the Tao are right: everyone's got a hand the clusterfuck that is our Toronto Blue Jays. The Cito, Ricciardi, Paul Beeston, and the cats above Beeston. Everyone. The Tao put it most eloquently:

"Rogers is a piss-poor steward of the Jays. They should be ashamed of the mess they've made of this team."

If Beeston doesn't want to stick around, he needs to wrap up the Penske File, and hire a new God damn president. Otherwise end the charade, and take on the job for a few years. Everyone is sick to death of the lack of communication from management and ownership. I can't remember a time when the team's overall relationship with the media and fans was so poor. The faithful needs to be shown some progress - hell, some movement - right now and, other than Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, the on-field pickings are dire.

It's ironic that while I've spent most of this season defending Toronto's "idiot general manager," he's going through one of his worst seasons. I feel like George W. Bush's campaign manager. With the incredible amount of question marks moving forward, we might very well be at one of the all-time low points in the history of this franchise. (But let's please refrain from anymore comparisons to les Expos; they are more than premature; they're silly.)

While I'm not sure how the situation is going to improve, I'm able to find some solace in the fact that it can't possibly get much worse. (Actually, we could be Baltimore Orioles fans...)

I believe in Paul Beeston. I've got no other choice.

Adios Alex!!1

So, that "non-story" about Alex Rios being claimed on waivers turned out to be quite the story in the end, didn't it?

Rios is off to the Chicago White Sox. I found out about his travels while on the treadmill. I nearly fell the fuck off.

Now that I've had some time to have a few drinks collect my thoughts, first and foremost, it's still hard to believe the Toronto Blue Jays allowed their starting right fielder - a two-time all-star, a Blue Jay lifer since being drafted 19th overall in 1999 - to walk away for nothing in return. I wrote only two days ago that it would be unbelievably foolish to allow Rios to leave; that there was absolutely no way it was going down like this.

Wrong. (Again.)

But I've changed my tune. And not only because I'm a J.P. Ricciardi apologist. While it hurts to see Rios go, it was the right move for him to be "awarded" to the White Sox. Toronto was presented with an opportunity by Chicago's Ken Williams, and it was one they had to take. I love Alex Rios. I believe in Alex Rios. But love is blind. He's not worth $12 million a season.

On the surface, sure, it looks brutal. I read The Mockingbird's take where "Jonny Hale ain't a damn thing changed" (as coined by Drew - LtB) points out that, according to The Hardball Times, the Blue Jays released an underrated fielder who, at an average of $11.7 million dollars a season, "is a bargain." So, I quite understand the angst towards Ricciardi.

(That being said, this notion that Ricciardi works alone in a small corner of the Rogers Centre, making these decisions all by his lonesome, is absurd, infuriating, and driving me batty. Much like the potential tradeage of Roy Halladay, I've no doubt the decision on Rios was an organizational move. It was too big not to be. If you're going to bash Ricciardi, bash his assistants, Tony LaCava and Alex Onthopoulos; bash Paul Beeston; bash Rogers. Bash them all. Not Ricciardi exclusively. Please, and thanks.)

However, I believe the market, down $47 million overall in club payrolls in 2009 versus 2008, will continue in that direction. No longer will the Alex Rios's of the world be worth $58.7 million over five years. That's Jason Bay type money.

We were all emotionally invested in Alex Rios, yet it's safe to say we all expected more. A player making that type of money has to have a career OPS+ higher than 104; has to have hit more than 24 home runs, and driven in more than 85 runs, in one season.

Bay's career OPS+ is 129; he's hit the 30 home run and 100 RsBI mark three times. His career OBP is .041 points higher than Rios's (.376 to .335). Rios is a better defender, with a better arm, and more speed, but I believe Bay is the better overall player. Bay's taking home $7.8 million in 2009, and will likely hit the free agent market this winter. Flip their contracts, and I think you've got a market that makes a whole lot more sense.

There will be no more waiting for Alex Rios. He and Vernon Wells were to be the offensive core of this team; it didn't work out. And there was only one moveable contract between the two of them. Bottom line: I believe the Jays figured they'd eventually, via a trade, have to pay for Rios to play on another team; that's why he's no longer a Blue Jay today. Like it or not, the offensive torch has been passed on to Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, with Travis Snider, the right fielder of the future, waiting in the wings. And I've got no problem with that.

The Blue Jays did receive something for their prized right fielder, who's never posted an OPS above .865 in his six seasons with the team, and I'm sure your already very familiar with the term: financial flexibility.

More financial flexibility. Gone is the remainder of Rios's near-$60 million contract, to add to the $11 million shed in trading Scott Rolen. In 2010 alone, Ricciardi, and his fine support staff, have shed more than $20 million, while adding only Edwin Encarnacion's ($4.75 million) and Josh Roenicke's ($1 million and change) salaries to their MLB payroll. (I'm a dreamer, but here's hoping the $15 million allocated to B.J. Ryan in the 2010 budget is available to fill other holes in the roster. That's more than $30 million to spend next year - Doc's last hurrah.)

Do the Jays have a chance to compete in 2010? As an eternal optimist, you know I think they do. (I think they're still in it this year. After last night's win, if the boy can win their next eight versus New York, Tampa Bay and Boston, they're right back in this thing. Playoffs!1) The pitching is there, and I'm assuming Roy Halladay is Blue Jay come opening day. The same goes for Marco Scutaro. I can support an outfield of Lind, Wells, and Snider. And while it's probably the complete opposite direction the team should be moving in, I'd be all over an incentive-based contract to bring Carlos Delgado back home as the designated hitter. (I'm a sucker for nostalgia.)

If the payroll stays in the $80 million to $100 million range, and I believe it will, Rios had to go. I think it's worth the gamble to have money to play with in a downward trending market, so Toronto can find it's own Bobby Abreu. (Five million!!1 Unbelievable.).

Think of it this way: not including arbitration eligible players, post 2010, the only Blue Jays owed loot are Aaron Hill and Vernon Wells. Financial flexibility for Alex Rios? Sold.

As Stoeten points out over at Drunk Jays Fans, this could be Paul Beeston, and J.P. Ricciardi, setting the table for the next Blue Jays president and, subsequently, next Blue Jays general manager. Ricciardi's come out and said that if they're tearing it down again, he won't be the man to try and rebuild it. So, in essence, Ricciardi might very well be going down as a martyr. What a man. What a hero.

Farewell, Alex.

UPDATE: According to Jeff Blair, everything is fucked, and we're all fucked along with it.