everyone knows that I'm the last person to casually criticize AA - and i know that when Lawrie is activated some move would be made BUT...

if the Jays lose Wells to a waiver claim in order to get half a dozen stopgap innings from a spare part like Ortiz, that's just stupid. Gibbons says "bullpen protection because we have a long stretch without an off day" but you're not going to have eight relievers (I assume) when Lawrie is activated so why bother with it for just a day or two?

Well, that answers the question 'who was the least important hitter' for the moment.  I am starting to worry about roster selection too - we have 2 guys who have nearly identical skill sets in Davis & Bonifacio except one is younger and can (sorta) play the infield.  With a short bench it makes no sense to my thinking to keep both while sending away a guy who is good defensively and who brings another element to the game (power).  I can live with an 8 man bullpen as long as the guys on the bench are able to do something useful.  Davis pre-2013 was very useful, but with Izturis and Bonifacio both having plus speed and ideally both ending up on the bench at some point I don't see a spot for Davis.

So far 13 hitters have been used (Wells never got into a game), with Kawasaki and Blanco the only ones with sub 25 PA (ie: 2+ PA per game for all others).  Meanwhile we are up to 15 pitchers being used with Ortiz being #16 if he gets into a game.  10 have seen 25+ batters, 4 in the 15-17 range (Bush, Janssen, Gonzalez, Santos) and one in single digits (Jeffress). 

Well, if you are going to pull the 'importance' card... I'd be willing to bet more people were killed by drunk drivers today than were killed in the bomb attack at the Boston Marathon (2).  Not to mention more killed by careless firearms use, or by texting while driving, or ... you get the idea.

Now, for a Jays site, Bautista being pulled is big news.  If he is getting hurt again then that could totally screw things up.  Hard enough with Lawrie missing for so long and Reyes down but if we see Bautista down for an extended period then the team is in deep dog do-do.

In my opinion Wells was going to be DFA'd this week anyway, when Lawrie comes back.  It could be possible that AA thinks it will be easier to get Wells through waivers today than later this week (I have no clue how, but it is a possibility given that the Jays did not put Jeffress on waivers for a week after taking him off the 25 man roster....there are games here of which we know nothing).

I assume Ortiz gets punted back to the Queen city when Lawrie is ready in a day or two.

Thanks, Gerry, for injecting some common sense into the Casper Wells discussion.

I like Casper Wells, but I kind of figured that he was only added to warm the bench until Lawrie arrives.  It is a bit strange, though, that Wells would be DFA'd before Lawrie actually joins the team.  The idea that AA is trying to time the waiver claims system to sneak Wells through is an interesting theory.  Who knows, though, what AA is actually doing.  Whatever it is, I find it to be annoying.

And batting third for your Toronto Blue Jays, the catcher, number nine, J.P. Arencibia!

David Bush was signed as Starter Depth.  He had his MLB trial and was found wanting.  Ramon Ortiz was signed as Starter Depth.  He's getting his MLB trial now.   Now it's possible Romero's return will take much, much longer than expected.   A.A. might need to know who's ready to pitch at this level now.

I agree the lineup looks pretty bad right now. Should be a lot better in a couple days once we have Lawrie and Bautista back in there. Honestly because of the defense I think Lawrie actually brings slightly more to the team than Reyes, but obviously I'd rather have both. I just hope our starting pitching solidifies and we manage to go .500ish or a bit better over the next two months. We're not the only team having issues right now. Look at the Angels and Rays.

Bautista's out with back spasms.  That could go on for weeks.  I know, because it can be 3-14 days when it happens.

Please read this as it makes sense: http://www.battersbox.ca/comment.php?mode=view&cid=270390 .

True for your average Joe spasms can go on like that. However Jose isn't that and the team has trained therapists, physicians and doctors to treat injuries like this.

Question: would Gose be more valuable right now, both defensively and offensively, than Rasmus?

Probably. Tbh the best offensive/defensive lineup I can think of with everyone healthy would be something like this.

Reyes - SS
Cabrera - DH
Bautista - RF
Encarnacion - 1B
Arencibia - C
Lawrie - 3B
Izturis - 2B
Rasmus - LF
Gose - CF

So, logically, those back spasms spell the end of the 3B experiment, right?

Lawrie up, Santos to DL (seemingly minor tricep issue) according to Rotoworld.

Well, if you are going to pull the 'importance' card... I'd be willing to bet more people were killed by drunk drivers today than were killed in the bomb attack at the Boston Marathon (2).

John that's a pretty f'ing bush league comment. A wife of a friend was running in the Marathon and missed the explosion by a few minutes.

Perhaps you can explain to them and a few thousand others how unimportant the event was.

I think John makes a fair point. These kinds of attacks are designed to make us scared. In the meantime, all these other things that happen each day get overlooked because they're taken for granted.

This attack comes with the sound and the fury, but in the end these are rare incidents that become bigger stories because they hit places that we think of as "safe."

Americans suffer from a form of Social Mental Illness regarding (gun) violence. ALL DAY - most US networks have broadcast about nothing but the Boston Attack - 3 dead about 144 injured. No doubt a very disturbing incident.

Since 9/11 America has destroyed two countries, Iraq and Afghanistan, murdered over 100,000 civilians in those two countries and all because 23 Saudi's hijacked a few planes and killed "nearly 3,000 people." Since that attack, "The Atlantic" reports in a story titled "Under a Blood red Sky" (July 21st 2012) Americans have killed with JUST guns: "...334,168 of there own countrymen either by homicide, suicide and unintentional death. The toll is 100 TIMES larger than the 9/11 toll."

Three deaths are a tragedy - 334,168 deaths are a form of damnation of the soul that no other country on earth has ever sunk to. Americans, sorry another crazy struck - how about the morons among you look in the mirror next time this happens. The morons include those that kill and those that enable by thinking your second amendment is about "Liberty and Freedom" when all it is about IN REALITY is death, suffering and a madness of society unmatched anywhere else in the universe of men.

Shame on you - shame on you!

Jgad... what makes you think I haven't?

"Question: would Gose be more valuable right now, both defensively and offensively, than Rasmus?"

No.

I really don't understand why it's become so fashionable to run Colby Rasmus out of town. He's doing everything he's supposed to be doing. Yes, he strikes out a lot, but so do Bonifacio & Arencibia, neither of whom walk and play defense as well as Rasmus. Having Gose in AAA brings an unnecessary spotlight on Colby's daily play, and the kid needs some breathing room to relax at the bottom of the order with some job security so we can see what he's capable of over a full, healthy season. I'll worry about Rasmus when he's the weakest link on the team, but there's a long way to go for that.

All the talk about the Jays trying to get help in the middle infield got me thinking.. Whatever happened to Joe Inglett?

He was pretty productive as a jay...

It seemed like he never really got much of a chance after his decent 2008 season...

I'm just speculating here, but my guess would be he must have been a difficult personality to deal with in the locker room? Or did he not like the baseball lifestyle (ie. travelling and flying)? Or was he just not that good?

He seemed good enough he should have at least kept playing somewhere?

"....Having Gose in AAA brings an unnecessary spotlight on Colby's daily play, and the kid needs some breathing room to relax at the bottom of the order with some job security..."

With his .826 OPS and good defence, Rasmus clearly deserves to be the starting CF right now. Where I disagree is the notion that "job security" will necessarily improve a player's performance. This is an untested psychological theory, which is challenged by a competing theory: the notion that a player performs better if he isn't complacent and if he knows that he has to keep proving himself to keep his job. This too is an untested theory, of course. Some players might respond better to job security, while others might respond better to the pressure to prove himself. Which theory is better for the complex psychology of Colby Rasmus? Who knows, it's impossible to guess, but I don't think we should assume one or the other.

The other point is that the Gose speculation is not really a response to Rasmus. It's actually, in most cases, a response to the Jays offensive troubles and a desire to strengthen the lineup. Since the DH spot is currently struggling with a .552 OPS (the worst of any regular), it makes sense to look at ways of improving it, and capitalizing on the OF depth in the Jays system. That's the reason to look at Gose. Over the course of a few months, would Gose be a more valuable player than Lind? If so, could DH be filled by a revolving cast of Cabrera/Bonifacio/Bautista etc, and does this create room for Gose? Rasmus won't play every day at CF, he'll need an occasional rest, so Gose could rotate through the OF spots. That's the scenario that leads to the speculation about promoting Gose.

And someone's worried about Casper Wells being DFA'd to allow Ramon Ortiz to be brought up.   Talk about importance.

I wasn't talking about "importance" - I was talking about baseball. I have other forums to talk about "importance"

And to clarify - I said if we LOSE Wells, obviously if AA get's him through waivers then I'd withdraw the complaint.

Rasmus has been a frustrating player.  A guy with talent up the wazoo who seems to have stretches of 'wow' followed by stretches of 'ugh'.  His current 123 OPS+ would be the 2nd best of his career.  He had a 132 OPS+ a few years back, but surrounded it with 3 years in the 80's.    In his career he has hit 264/337/481 in the first half (nice) and 209/276/339 in the 2nd half (John McDonald like).  If he keeps hitting like this the Jays at mid-season could have an interesting choice - do you trade him while he is hot and try to get a nice return or do you keep him hoping his hot stretch is a sign that he finally has turned the corner?  Next year is his last here before free agency so the Jays have to make a choice very soon about signing him long term or risking him walking away after 2014.  Not an easy thing with a guy who has splits like that.

I read on DJF that Brett Lawrie is being recalled while Sergio Santos goes on the DL with a Tricep Strain. Is this accurate?

I'm happy that Colby's power numbers are good, but really, it's a tiny sample size. My impression is that he's run into a couple of HR. And it's not the strikeouts that matter. You can be a strikeout machine and yet still be very valuable (think of Granderson or pre-2011 Dunn).

If Colby can turn into Granderson-lite, I would be thrilled. So far he looks pretty awful at the plate.

I doubt the reason inglett didn't stick around was because he wasn't good in the clubhouse.  It was because he's not that good.  He'll have great memories of his awesome summer of 2008, but no one really bought it.

Inglett never was given much of a chance.  Twice he played in 100+ games, his OPS+ those years was 105 and 97.  Funny how his second time over 100 games he had just 160 PA though - that was with Milwaukee - 14 times putting him in RF, 10 times in LF, 8 times at 2B and once in as a pitcher, 71 times he was just used as a pinch hitter (6 times pinch hit then played the field).  In those 77 PH AB's he hit 294/377/485.  Then he went to Houston that offseason and was given just 33 games and was 3-17 as a PH (176/176/176) and that was it for him in the majors.  He didn't play in the minors last year so I suspect he is retired. 

Inglett's defense was 'meh'.  -11.6 UZR/150 at 2B, 8.8 in LF, 2.6 in RF (the positions he had 100+ innings at - I wouldn't read anything into under 100 innings at a position unless extreme results occurred).  So a good defensive outfielder and not so good at 2B.  With his bat he needed to be stronger at 2B and ideally able to play a strong SS (just 11 innings there) and 3B (58 innings lifetime).  FanGraphs has his career worth $9 million, with 2 of his last 3 years being negative value (last year in Toronto and his final season in Houston).

Inglett never was given much of a chance.

He should have learned to pitch, like one of the all time great utility men, Mike McCoy.  Okay, not actually, but Alex Obal of battersbox.ca fame and I were behind home plate when he retired the Red Sox in order in garbage time, throwing 76 MPH heat and a 60 MPH curve. It was phenomenal (though admittedly position players pitching is basically my favourite thing ever).

Kawasaki is fun to watch.  So far, he's got a cool 5.4 pitches/PA, fouling off many good pitches even against lefties. 

So far, I really like Kawasaki. Scrappy approach at the plate, good runner, and just enough power to keep the outfield from playing shallow all the time.

I think he's basically the Japanese David Eckstein.

"The other point is that the Gose speculation is not really a response to Rasmus."

When it's framed as a direct question, it's a response to Rasmus, and greenfrog did nothing to dissuade that notion. Had it been framed as a "Should we call up Gose?" one I wouldn've been the first person to agree with the idea that the team's best look includes Gose, a drum I have been beating for a very long time.

I'm not trying to disabuse you of any of your notions, 92-93. I simply asked a question about whether Gose would currently be a more valuable major-league player than Rasmus. I wanted to hear what other people think. Despite Colby's OK production in his 45 PA to date, he *looks* bad at the plate, and so-so in the field. But I haven't seen Gose since last year - I don't know if he would be any better.

Also, I don't understand the logic of your "race to the bottom" argument. Should we only question the value of the worst player on any given team? In any event, the Boni and Arencibia comps seem dubious to me, as Boni is a utility player who has been forced into a full-time role, and there is no catching equivalent to Gose in the high minors - the Jays are stuck with Arencibia, for better or worse.

On last night's radio broadcast, they were discussing Colby Rasmus. They claimed that his problem was that he always swings hard, whether there are two strikes, whether there are men on base, or whatever. You can see this in his stats: he has nine hits so far this season - three of which are homers, and three of which are doubles. Two-thirds of his hits are for extra bases!

Better hitters are able to do what Ichiro! was so good at doing in his prime - adjust their swing to suit game conditions and adapt to what the pitcher is giving them. But that's not always easy to do - if it was easy to do, everybody would be doing it. Most people can't hit a major league pitch at all with even one kind of swing.

But at least Rasmus is able to redirect a major league fastball a long way, and he's a genuine center fielder. He's also at least a little bit selective at the plate. So he has two or three major league skills. Some players don't have any. And Rasmus is still young enough to improve. (Ironically, as I've mentioned before, Rasmus has almost exactly the same skill set as Vernon Wells.)

Gose has electrifying speed, wonderful defense, and even a little bit of pop in his bat, but he hasn't proven that he can hit even at Rasmus's level. He could still become the next DeWayne Wise. (Which means that he won't have to work for a living ever again, given that the original Wise is still playing.) He could be much, much more, but he has a way to go.

I must admit I quite liked Casper Wells, particularly as right handed platoon player. We have to remember though, how does Casper Wells see himself?

It would not surprise me given that he is only 27 and has had relative success, that he and his agent might feel he is an everyday player. I wonder if he quietly asked for his release so as to explore other opportunities ?

As fans I think we need to be aware that not all players may fit into our narrative.

"Despite Colby's OK production in his 45 PA to date, he *looks* bad at the plate, and so-so in the field."

This is nothing more than confirmation bias. He looks fine, both at the plate and in the field.

"as Boni is a utility player who has been forced into a full-time role"

We entered the year with expectations that Bonifacio would play just as often as Rasmus. One player is being compared to Roberto Alomar on the airwaves despite sucking, the other is being run out of town because a speedy prospect who can't is at AAA. Figure it out, Toronto.

"He looks fine, both at the plate and in the field."

So, I take it this is also confirmation bias? Or are you now declaring yourself bias-free?

"We entered the year with expectations that Bonifacio would play just as often as Rasmus."

Who is this 'we' you speak of?

Sorry, you're right. I should've said "He looks like someone who is hitting .225/.311/.525 would". I'm not the one suggesting that what we're seeing from the results isn't truly representative of what Colby has been doing out there.

I think the general consensus around here was that Rasmus would be the starting CF with tons of rest vs. LHP, and that Bonifacio would at the very least split 2B with Izturis while gobbling up those CF vs. LHP ABs (because Rajai was going to platoon with Lind).

Sorry, you're right. I should've cited stats like Colby's 42.2% K rate, his .311 OBP (of a piece with his OBP's of .289 and .298 over the last two full seasons), and, while we're at it, the fact that OBP is more significant than SLG% in determining a player's overall offensive value.

Look, you can make this into a polarizing debate if you want. I'm just calling it as I see it (call it bias if you will), and checking my opinions against those of others. I'm not oblivious to Rasmus's stats, good and bad. I think Dave Till's post gives a pretty good overview of the current relative merits of Rasmus versus Gose.

This is nothing more than confirmation bias. He looks fine, both at the plate and in the field.

It's too early to determine anything, really. With that being said, Colby is on pace to shatter the single season strikeout record and I'd be surprised if 27% of his fly balls went over the wall for the year. He has been walking, at least.

He's on pace for a .359 wOBA and 127 wRC+ too.

I see your wOBA and raise you a team leading fWAR and bWAR for Rasmus (sans Reyes).

Second-worst K rate in baseball, just behind Aaron Hicks. No one else above 39%.

J.P. Arencibia won a Minor League (AAA) Batting Title and people complain about his MLB numbers as being less than adequate. David Cooper won a Minor League (AAA) Batting Title and people complain about his MLB numbers as less than adequate. Now tell me what Anthony Gose has won, and he was supposed to be 5-tool guy? People are complaining about Colby Rasmus when most of the lineup's struggling.

Defense has been an issue this season. Offense has been an issue this season. Some members of the bullpen were/are having issues. Starting Pitching has been an issue this season. The Team is a decent 6-7 record thus far.

A.A.'s talk with Shi Davidi indicated excessive demands in proposed trades. That means anything A.A. could do must wait indefinitely (May, June, July)?

Rasmus is the best tee-ball player in the league and a pretty good centerfielder. He might improve with the bat. I'm not sure exactly what this is worth, but I doubt two weeks' worth of production stats give you the best handle on it. To me, his job is in no danger whatsoever, and I'd be starting him against all reverse splits, cutter/changeup, right-side-of-the-rubber lefties too.

No one else above 39%.

But only because the bench god took mercy on Brett Wallace and sat him for a couple days. He went 0/4 with 0 Ks in his last game, lowering his K rate to a much more respectable 65.4%.

Seems that AA's strategy on Jeffress has worked. He passed through waivers without being taken, and the Jays will get to keep him in the system. (His minor-league team has not been assigned yet.)

Possible alternative explanation: he's just not that good, and every other team was unimpressed by the guy.

It's too early to determine anything, really.

Nah, it’s never too early to determine things at Da Box.  We do it all the time.  And with the same results each time.  We’re consistent. 

China Fan,

To chime in on your musings.  Jeffress isn't that good, but the thinking has always been that those arms don't grow on trees and he's got some athleticism to him.  So, the Jays now have some time with him and perhaps by September he's figured something out and now you have another power arm.

It's a good move here and perhaps sometime down in Dunedin with Dane Johnson would do him well. 

Probably a mix of both in regards to Jeffress. He's not that good but he has a nice arm. Theoretically he can get better, but he's definitely a project that's not worthy of using a spot on any 40-man roster.

Colby must've been reading da box today.