Tagged: Marlins
Johnson accepts, Angels’ turn to make a big splash
Kelly Johnson accepted the Jays arbitration offer today, giving them a potentially solid option at second base.
Johnson is basically Aaron Hill in that he has 20 home run power but can’t hit his weight. In 2010 he did his 26 HR, 71 RBI and hit .284. This past season between the Snakes and Jays he hit .222 with 21 HR and drove in 58. Obviously Toronto is hoping he’ll be more like the ’10 version.
At the time trading Hill for Johnson didn’t make much sense given that Johnson was a free agent. The whole deal hinged on the fact that Johnny Mac would re-sign in the off-season and Johnson would accept arbitration or agree to a long term deal. While Johnny Mac didn’t follow through, the Johnson part of the deal worked out.
Alex Anthopolous has also indicated that Johnson could be an option in the outfield as well should the Jays find a better option at second.
While all this was going on the suddenly big spending Los Angeles Angels bought just about every big name free agent that the Marlins didn’t, snagging Albert Pujols AND C.J. Wilson on the same day. This deal not only makes them better but also steals the Rangers’ ace in the process. Hard to argue with that logic. Also, I hear Pujols is a pretty good hitter too.
Now that Pujols is off the table it’ll be interesting to see where Prince Fielder winds up. The Jays are still interested but there are three or four other teams also in as well.
In terms of pitching help, outside of the recently posted Yu Darvish, there’s not much help left out there. If the Jays are hoping to upgrade their rotation they’ll have to explore the trade route.
Pabelbon is a Phillie and the Marlins are now orange
Jonathan Pabelbon’s last memory as a Boston Red Sox will forever the blown save he suffered that fateful September night in Baltimore, cementing one of the worst collapses in sports history.
His tenure came to an end last week when he signed a four year $50 million deal with the Phillies.
As I wrote shortly after Boston’s final game, Pabelbon’s departure is by no means a surprise. Even though he was a central figure to the Red Sox’s 2007 World Series championship, there was no way he was ever going to be welcomed back to Fenway. Boston is very much a ‘what have you done for me lately’ city and lately Pabelbon hasn’t been the shut down closer he once was. He had a fairly decent 2011 (aside from two blown saves against Baltimore in the final week) and finished 4-1 with 31 saves and a 2.94 ERA.
In 2010 he was 5-7 with eight blown saves and a 3.90 ERA. Quite the jump from the previous four years when his ERA never went surpassed 2.35.
As has been well documented, unless your name is Rivera or Hoffman, once you lose your edge as a closer it’s nearly impossible to regain it. Think of other once dominant closers that have flamed out in the past few seasons: Joakim Soria, Matt Capps, Joe Nathan, Jonathan Broxton, Brad Lidge to name a few.
So that being said, I think Phillie fans can count on maybe one good year from Paps but certainly not $50 million worth over four years. And any signs of struggles will only be amplified as Philly fans aren’t known for their patience.
And on the lighter side, we now have our first official look at the new Marlin alternates. I have to say, I don’t mind the orange. The black is redundant but every MLB feels the need for a black jersey these days so no real surprise there. Not all that thrilled with the ‘M’ logo on the hats, but overall I like ’em.
Marlins new jersey revealed today….Toronto’s next week?
When I haven’t seen a baseball game in about two weeks, things like a new uniform unveiling press conference become exciting to me.
So with that in mind, I am counting down the hours until 9 p.m. Eastern time when the Florida…sorry Miami Marlins…. will show off their new duds.
After their original logo was leaked in late September I became nervous about what the Marlins had in mind. But after seeing an early photo of their new home jerseys, I’ve got to say I kind of like it. I still like the black and teal from their 1997 championship team, but I like the embracing of tropical colours too. We’ll have to see what the road, alternate and any other jerseys they have planned look like later tonight.
Also looking forward to seeing the new stadium in a real game as well. Looks pretty snazzy from early artist renderings. Between Albert Pujols, Jose Reyes and Mark Buehrle, it sounds like the Marlins are determined to field an improved if not highly competitive team for 2012 as well. I like it.
Even more exciting for me is news that the Jays will reveal their new look logo next Friday. It’s interesting that this is just rumoured as the Marlins announced way back in September that their new duds would be made public on Nov. 11. But I digress.
After seeing Toronto’s leaked logo I am very very very excited to see what the new uniforms will look like. I have been saying for years now that they should ditch the black and go back to white and blue. Sounds like my prayers have been answered. Hopefully we’ll find out next week….just in time for the Christmas season.
The ‘other’ Jose homers to lead the Jays
As mentioned before in this blog, Jose Molina is quietly putting together a great year at the plate, albeit in limited action.
In just 23 games he’s hitting .304 with two homers and he’s even stolen two bases without getting caught. Tonight he was a major factor in leading the Jays to a series win with a double and a homer. Not bad for a back up.
Behind the plate he was just as, if not even more important, guiding Brandon Morrow through 6 2/3 shut out innings and even nailed Brandon Phillips trying to swipe a bag.
Nice to see Morrow post a solid outing, hopefully he’s turning a corner. He’s not alone on the mound as the entire Jays staff turned in with a nice week, averaging just 2.2 runs allowed over their past five games, giving them a 4-1 record. Quite a turn around from last weekend that saw the Red Sox just absolutely man handle the pitching staff with 35 runs in three games. Ying and Yang if you will.
The Jays will now look to the super sub Carlos Villanueva to pitch them to a sweep against the struggling Bronson Arroyo. As mentioned on tonight’s telecast the Jays have owned Arroyo in the past two meetings, but they haven’t faced in a couple of years now. I wouldn’t read too much into it, but it’s better than having struggled against the guy.
Brewers beat the Red Sox but the Cubs beat the Yanks and the Rays look ready to beat the Fish. Man what happened to Florida? I know Josh Johnson is hurt but did they ever fall back to earth in a hurry. A loss tonight would be nine in a row and they now sit dead last in the division. So much for a little momentum to build on heading into the new stadium.
Battered and bruised but still standing
Well the exam has been written and the marks are in: the Jays passed their 15 game 2010 playoff team test with a C-. Could have been better, but could have been much worse.
NL East preview….getting a little daring
1. Atlanta Braves- Yes a bit of a bold pick but I think they can do it. Jason Heyward figures to only get better now that he has a season under his belt while veterans like Brian McCann, Dan Uggla and Chipper Jones surround him. Rookie Freedie Freeman, in some scout’s eyes, will be even better than Heyward. Like the Braves of old though, their real strength comes from their pitching. Derek Lowe, Tommy Hanson and Tim Hudson don’t get a lot of press but they form a pretty solid 1-2-3 punch. The bullpen isn’t chalk full of super stars but they’re capable of preserving leads. They have what it takes to win NL style games and certainly have the depth to return to the playoffs.
2. Philadelphia Phillies- Certainly the safer pick for first, but something about them just doesn’t do it for me. Roy Halladay is going to win 20 games or more, that’s a given. But Cliff Lee only really seems to dominate in the post season. He’s had success in the regular season of course, but more often than not he’s posted some pretty average numbers. Roy Oswalt isn’t the pitcher he once was, though coming to Philly seemed to rejuvenate him last year. Cole Hamels is yet to really harness his potential so far. As for the line up they lose Jayson Werth and Chase Utley is still struggling with knee injuries. Jimmy Rollins is coming off a down and injury plagued year as well. Ryan Howard declined in the second half last season, though he still blasted 31 homers. While I certainly wouldn’t rule them out of finishing first, or even winning the World Series, there’s definitely some questions surrounding the team.
3. Florida Marlins- Some may say this season is all about bidding farewell to the old stadium and gearing up for a triumphant first season in the new ball park. But the fish still have stars like Hanley Ramirez and Josh Johnson as well as up and comers like Gaby Sanchez, Matt Dominguez and Mike Stanton. The pieces are there to actually be fairly competitive if Javier Vazquez can put his Yankee return behind him and pitch like a Brave. Ricky Nolasco and Anibal Sanchez could also finally post their break out season. They’re going to miss Dan Uggla and I wouldn’t count on John Buck to smack 18 homers again, but the potential to surprise some people is certainly there. I wouldn’t rule out a second place finish.
4. New York Mets- The Mets can thank the Washington Nationals for helping them avoid a basement finish. Even still, it’s entirely possible. No team has been mismanaged by the front office worse than New York in quite some time with once super stars like Carlos Beltran and Jason Bay signed to mega deals but no real indication of ever producing like what they’re paid to do. Problems off the field as well with K-rod’s issues, there’s too many things wrong with this team to even begin to mention. They haven’t figured out how to drive the ball in their new field either. Anything remotely close to .500 would be cause for champagne. 
5. Washington Nationals- At long last there’s reason to watch the Nationals. Well if Stephen Strasburg were healthy they’d be more fun, but they do have other reasons to watch. Werth is overpaid but at least it signalled that management is ready to start building instead of constantly rebuilding. Ryan Zimmerman finally has some protection and Bryce Harper’s hype alone should help generate some interest. Contending is certainly out of the question this year, but I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the Nats posted their first winning season since moving from Montreal next season. Another bad year this time around will give them one more high draft pick to build with for 2012. The good, the bad and the Uggla
Blue Jays Nest 