• Moderators, please send me a PM if you are unable to access mod permissions. Thanks, Habsy.

OT: The Toronto Blue Jays

Big week for the Jays. First up the Yankees then the Red Sox. If they can keep their heads above water, that would be great. Hoping for a split overall. Anything better would be magical with the ongoing personnel issues. Would be great to win the Sox series and push them below the Jays in the standings.

First up tonight is Alvarez. Henderson had a nice bounce back game against the Angels two starts ago and then was ugly against the Royals. Interestingly though he was looking strong and then got emotionally offstride when there was a ball called on one he thought was a strikeout. It threw him right off his game. This is the kind of thing you have to expect with young pitchers. If he can learn to avoid that and rebound against the Yanks that would be excellent.
 
The Oakland Athletics are a surprising wild-card contender despite being last in the American League in OPS from shortstop, last at catcher and next-to-last at third base.

They have tried to upgrade at third, where Brandon Inge is now in an 8-for-58 slump that includes 21 strikeouts and one walk.

They probably won’t upgrade at catcher, given that Kurt Suzuki is signed for $6.45 million next season and Derek Norris is his eventual successor.

But general manager Billy Beane would "love" to get a shortstop who could improve upon Cliff Pennington’s .203 batting average and .556 OPS, according to a major league source.

The A's, who on Tuesday begin a six-game homestand that features the Texas Rangers and New York Yankees, are not yet in serious trade discussions, sources say. But their potential targets include the Toronto Blue Jays’ Yunel Escobar and Diamondbacks’ Stephen Drew.

Escobar, at first glance, would not appear to be much of an upgrade: His OPS has declined from .782 last season to .635 this year. He also comes with makeup questions, though Beane historically is undaunted by such issues.

The Jays are willing to move Escobar, sources say, in part because of their belief that Triple A shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria is ready to play in the majors. Hechavarria, 23, is batting .314 with an .805 OPS in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Escobar, 29, is under contract for $5 million this season and $5 million next season, and his deal includes $5 million club options for both 2014 and ’15.

Drew, who played for Athletics manager Bob Melvin during Melvin’s tenure with the Diamondbacks, likely would be a rental. He is earning $7.75 million this season, and his deal includes a $10 mutual option for 2013.

The bigger question with Drew, 29, is his physical condition. He missed nearly 11 months after he broke his right ankle and is only 8 for 39 (.205) with two walks since returning.
Click to expand...

http://mlbbuzz.yardbarker.com/blog/...could_pursue_shortstop/11232331?new_post=true
 
BIG double play there. Alvy hangs in for six and did a great job of steadying himself after looking very iffy in the first two innings. EE continues to pound the ball. And Lind too has kept it going since his recall. Need some runs in a big way.
 
no-darth_vader.jpeg
 
That's it. If JB is gone for any amount of time we can finally kiss the season goodbye. This team is bordering on being cursed this season.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top