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Its opening day in the minor leagues. Buffalo's game has already been rained out with the games in New Hampshire and Michigan in doubt too. Dunedin could be our only hope for a game. But before the games begin it's time to talk about the minor league updates. The first MLU on Da Box was published on April 10, 2004. Alex Rios was in AAA, Aaron Hill in AA and a host of players who we had high hopes for were scattered through the system. Those of you with long memories might remember Vito Chiarravalotti, who we got excited about for a while before we learned that first basemen who mash in short season ball don't always make it to the big leagues.

I wrote my first MLU on April 12th, 2004. The Jays had a minor league team in Charleston and Greg Zaun was playing for the Jays AAA team in Syracuse. 2017 will be the 14th year of minor league coverage on Da Box, the longest continuous coverage of the Blue Jays minor leagues on the internet.



A lot has changed over the last 14 years. Back in the day there were no real-time updates for games, the results landed at some point and you took it from there. Now the games are updated pitch by pitch at the upper levels and inning by inning at the lower ones. Many of the games are broadcast live on video so you can see the players for yourself. Twitter has also made a big difference. The teams tweet about the games, the teams broadcasters tweet about the games and journalists tweet. John Lott has been tweeting an abbreviated MLU on Twitter for a couple years now. There are many sites that provide minor league coverage apart from milb.com. There are so many ways to get information on games that the unique value of our MLU has diminished over the years. That is reflected in a reduced readership, people have more immediate ways of getting a description of what has happened in the game. By the time we post the MLU many minor league followers have followed the game themselves and know what happened. So we have decided that the "old-form" MLU should not continue here. But people still love minor league information and insights and its not so much the results that matter its what it means or how things happened that matter.

As a result the MLU is being reborn as a way to note the notable things that happened in that days games. It could be a particularly good performance or a bad performance. It could be a weird and wacky play, to quote Marv Albert. It could be a reflection on a player. But it will not be a description of how the runs were scored or a list of who went 2-4 in a game. The times are changing and the world has moved on. We are doing the same but we hope the new and improved MLU has more value than the old form MLU.

#2JacobBrumfield, sam and myself are back at the controls. As it has been over the last few years the MLU will run Monday to Friday. We hope you enjoy the new format. Let the games begin!

Minor League Update....Update | 13 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
Mike Green - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 11:04 AM EDT (#340324) #
Wonderful. 

I well remember the old days of the MLU- those who carry on the work in a new way have my gratitude.  Thanks, guys.

China fan - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 11:14 AM EDT (#340325) #
".... the longest continuous coverage of the Blue Jays minor leagues on the internet...."

Congrats to you and everyone else in the fantastic team of MLU writers.  We're grateful for the great coverage -- it has added immeasurably to my understanding of the Jays organization, and to my enjoyment of the baseball season.
85bluejay - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 11:31 AM EDT (#340326) #
This is an excellent & overdue change - I've been wondering the last few years that it seemed to be a waste of time & effort recapping what's easily available on the net. I really enjoy following the development of young talent. Some under the radar guys I like include Emilio Guerrero,Christian Lopes,Jose Fernandez,Adonys Cardona,Osman Gutierrez,Yeltsin Gudino and of course, lost cause D.J. Davis
eldarion - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 11:59 AM EDT (#340327) #
Reading the MLUs was a morning highlight for me...thanks for all of the effort, guys. I'll certainly keep reading, whatever the format. Can I help in any way?
bpoz - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 12:21 PM EDT (#340329) #
Thank you for your efforts. I always checked the box scores before going to da box.

The stories on team sites written on certain pitchers were good. Borucki, Reid-Foley and C Greene to name a few.

The best part for me was the discussions by the members of BB.
#2JBrumfield - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 12:50 PM EDT (#340330) #
Those 2004 updates take me back. Those dates covered the first time I saw Blue Jays minor leaguers in action with the Syracuse SkyChiefs.

What I said in the comments section in the April 12 thread still holds true today - "If you've never been to Frontier Field in Rochester, GO! It's a beautiful park and I wish the Jays moved their affiliate there instead of the Twins."

I joined the minor league beat April 8, 2007 when Mike Green and Gerry decided to give me the keys to the kingdom. The first time I wrote was Andrew McCutchen (Indianapolis) and the next was Bill Murphy (Syracuse), a bit of a wide spectrum there. Just like my initial 3 star selection - 1. J.P. Arencibia 2. Manny Rodriguez 3. Randy Boone. The affiliates were 2-1 on my Box debut.

I'm excited about the new change to the updates. It was a grind doing them especially when short-season ball kicked in.

Here's hoping the minor league affiliates give us something to be encouraged about, especially with the tough start by the parent club.
Gerry - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 01:47 PM EDT (#340333) #
The Lugnuts game has now been called. They hope to get a doubleheader in tomorrow.
CeeBee - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 01:47 PM EDT (#340334) #
memories, thanks for the memories :) I'll still be reading the MLU's every day no matter what format they are done in. I appreciate all the hard work you guys do
Cheers
Chuck aka CeeBee
Gerry - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 01:49 PM EDT (#340335) #
New Hampshire's game has been postponed too. Dunedin are your only minor league option tonight.
Gerry - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 01:58 PM EDT (#340338) #
Lourdes Gurriel is on the DL in Dunedin. He was injured in spring and apparently not recovered.
jerjapan - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 03:25 PM EDT (#340345) #
The longest continuous coverage of the Jays' minor league affiliates is indeed a reason to be proud. Thanks guys, I always enjoy these posts!
China fan - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 04:24 PM EDT (#340352) #
I also agree with the idea of switching the MLU coverage to a more free-flowing style, without being limited to the basic numbers on each game.  We all have access to the box scores and the MILB stats, and we can see the crude statistical trends ourselves.  What would be great would be the occasional eyewitness report (from a stadium or a broadcast), or someone noticing an exceptional performance, an emerging trend, a local media interview that explains a pattern, a report on a player's defensive performance, etc.   And I'd love to see any analysis that goes beyond the simple statistics: perhaps a player who is turning a corner with a leap in production, or a strong performance from a player who is young for his level, or anything with that level of nuance.  It doesn't have to be comprehensive -- just the occasional update on players who seem interesting for one reason or another.
ISLAND BOY - Thursday, April 06 2017 @ 05:44 PM EDT (#340354) #
I just want to add my thanks for the minor league coverage over the years, and will read whatever format you guys provide. You have given us hardcore Jays fans great information on the prospects, and I really enjoy reading about players that the writer has actually observed in action.
Minor League Update....Update | 13 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.