The Afterglow Has Co$t Us Dearly, Toronto Blue Jays 2026... yadda yadda

new thread to discuss Hoffman wins, Gimenez RBIs and bush party installations

Another thought on the ASB system: Cavan Biggio, your moment has arrived.

where's he at now?

Gausman: K's for everyone, setting records!

Cease: hold my beer

Dylan Cease is something else today: 11 strikeouts through 5, working on seven straight.

Fluharty getting hit with two line drives in a row - yikes

To what extent does your life revolve around Alejandro Kirk!

(I’m watching A’s-Jays and that Kirk nuke in the 9th was incredible)

My dad--I mean ME--turned the game off and missed all that...I'm back, though!

I didn't deserve that.

I also tuned out after the Langeliers GS ... came back for the 10th!

Think Clement got a missed call on that checked swing.

Ya he def went around imho. Anyways… what a game! Cease, Kirk, other new guy, Ernie!

bump

Looking for another walk-off win here.

i will take a scoreless save from Hoffman. Lauer looked amazing and loved seeing Sanchez and Okamoto get their first homers for us too.

they set a record for most (pitching) Ks in an opening series too (49 by my count)

My needs-context joke worked...Jays pitchers struck out 50 (!) in their first three games, a franchise record (one extra-inning game in there). I've got to wonder if that isn't an MLB record--to open the season, obviously, but over any three-game stretch?

Sorry, was typing...I got 50, I don't know.

First 3-0 start since 1996!

Not to worry, but a 77-85 team...Looking back at them, I was surprised to find out that Hentgen's Cy Young year (I remembered that, of course) was close to 9.0 WAR on B-Ref.

Looking at old Jays teams on B-R, I noticed that after the win today, the Jays are exactly at .500 all-time following the win today (3857-3857).

Looking at that '96 Cy, pretty sure there are still Yankee fans convinced that Pettitte should have won. I recall that it was considered a toss-up at the time because of W-L records: yeah, maybe Hentgen pitched a little better, but 21-8 vs. 20-10, award should go to Pettitte.

Hentgen pitched a lot better. (I was arguing for him at the time--no WAR then, just looking at all the old-school stuff--and trying to tell people it wasn't just because he was a Jay.) Forty more innings, 10 CG vs. 2, more than half-a-run edge in ERA, better WHIP. Pettitte had a better K/BB rate.

Hentgen won 110-104 (16 firsts to 11, though).

Re strikeout record for any three-game stretch: the Astros struck out 52 in 2016:

https://www.mlb.com/news/astros-mlb-record-52-strikeouts-in-3-game-set-c180433878

But 50 is an opening-the-season record, yes.

Bo is off to a brutal start (1-14)...he's always been streaky; Jays fans a little more patient than in NY, I'm sure, but not all that patient.

Saw him getting boo’d. Not exactly the best start

Whatever just happened to Cody Ponce there, did not look good at all

Not home, but just read that:

https://www.mlb.com/news/cody-ponce-injured-in-blue-jays-debut

Yuck. Why you load up on seven or eight starters.

Yeah, I'm expecting the worst here.

Five runs in two innings for Heineman. Still a better ERA than his twelve runs in 3.1 innings last year.

As expected, not great: "Blue Jays are 'holding onto' hope of a return this season."

https://www.mlb.com/news/cody-ponce-acl-sprain

Hope springs eternal: six very strong innings from Max tonight, his 298th career QS. It's a stat that's barely ever mentioned anymore, but I got curious:

https://www.statmuse.com/mlb/ask/who-has-the-most-quality-starts

Assuming Verlander falls short of 300 wins, I think 300 QS will be more or less as unlikely as 300 wins. So two more, and maybe Max will be the last.

I was kind of hoping the Gatorade dump would be on Max tonight, but I guess that's something that just doesn't happen.

Hardly ever happens to a SP. who got it (my computer died)?

Jesus (many jokes in the offing here).

i would be very afraid of pouring gatorade on max scherzer

I know--that's exactly what I was hoping for...Had this vision of Vlad doing his thing, then making a mad dash for the clubhouse.

How's that for a nightmarish loss? Up 3-2 in the 10th, two outs from a win. Next guy strikes out, but Kirk is injured from a foul tip during the AB. So two out, runner on third, Heineman in the game. Next guy drops down a surprise bunt, Heineman throws it away. (Would Kirk have made the out? Have to look at it again--maybe he would have at least held on to the ball.) 3-3 now, next guy doubles him home.

Looking at the replay, Kirk would have had the good sense to hold on to the ball.

On top of which, as the post-game commentators just pointed out, the idea that you're going to come off the bench and instantaneously pull off this incredibly difficult throw is wishful thinking. I realize it was a great bunt and a bang-bang play, but Heineman's supposed to think of the possibilities ahead of time. Guy bunts, no play, hang on to the ball.

It wasn't that hard of a play, Heineman should have thrown him out to end the game, he just blew it.

Three out of four games dropped to two of the worst teams in MLB, Ponce injured, Kirk may be injured, the vibes are bad after that 3-0 start.

Looked at it again...I think it's a more difficult play than that because he picks up the ball facing the other way and had to wheel around. I don't know--it he'd made it, I would have been impressed, especially having just gotten into the game.

He should have held into it imho- play was going to be close and looked like it *could* roll foul. Runner wasn’t going to score on the play - they would have just had to get the next guy out.

Kirk out for probably close to two months. Ugh

Heinemen's adequate, but what do they do? I guess they're long past the point of giving Varsho some games there...Anyone at Triple A? Trade for a stopgap?

For a second, I forget about Tyler Heineman's controlled demolition thing.

He had a pretty bad day today

I've been watching baseball long enough, that I'm sure I've seen many errors uglier than his rundown-toss to third today. Nothing immediately comes to mind, though.

They traded for Brandon Valenzuela in the offseason, who looks like he could maybe be a slightly better option than Tyler?

He sure did look demoralized in the dugout.

Apparently he was inconsolable after the game.

he did not look good when he came back at the end of last season; i would be surprised if this year was any different

To state the supremely obvious, tonight--Cease vs. a guy with a near-5.00 ERA, Guardians having lost--is a must.

Very easy to lose sight of the fact that this is just not a very good team.

Yeah, but there are no good teams in the AL. Someone has to emerge from this quagmire and get to the World Series, and it might as well be us.

Varland is great, but he allows too many baserunners and his numbers are great in part because he never gives up home runs and therefore almost never truly gets burned. But I feel like I've seen too many outings where he ends up with two runners on via a soft hit and a walk, but gets out of it. He won't be able to walk that tightrope in the playoffs, if we get there.

That's more of a recent development, no? That's why he was such a godsend at first after Osuna and Romano, who saved most of their games but (as I recall) gave you a heart attack more often than not along the way. (And then there was Hoffman: heart attack + blown save.) Varland was just mowing them down early on.

That’s not my impression of Varland. His WHIP is just above 1, which is good (not amazing tho). His FIP is 1.90; a little more than his ERA but obviously isn’t indicating any reliance on luck.

Varland's last seven outings: 7 IP, 1 ER, 7 hits, 4 BB, 8 K, 0 HR. I'm guessing that's his worst 7-game stretch for the year, and while a bit messy, yes, still effective. (Not sure if he gave up any inherited runs in there--he always starts an inning clean, doesn't he?) Maybe the workload--including pitching almost every game in the postseason last year--is catching up to him a bit.

There's a big difference in his K/9 and WHIP before and after the ASB, but his ERA doesn't reflect it. So there's some recency bias in my comment. He's still great, but I'm more worried than I should be when he enters the game.

looks like Schnider was picking up what you were putting down last night!

Watching this team ground into routine double plays--first Vlad, then Okamoto--as they try to cobble together a couple of runs against the 1971 Orioles, I mean the 2026 A's, is death. Remind me again why playoff races are fun.

One thing that does me make laugh is how Springer/Vlad has been replaced by Springer/Clement in the Smucker's commercials. Corporations are even more merciless than fans.

I worship self-deprecation, so big applause to Vlad. Mired in this nightmarish season, he just missed (by about three feet) his first home HR this year--double off the wall. As he's standing on second, big grin on his face, he's looking over at the dugout--where you know they're razzing him--and starts to mimic some arm curls: "Yeah, I know--I've gotta hit the weight room."

He did it!

i hope now that monkey's off his back he can start really hitting again

Mr. Okamoto, Mr. Kaz Okamoto...

that ball was destroyed

most MLB home runs in a season for a Japanese player not named Ohtani

Guessing last night's game was the most dispiriting I've seen in almost 50 years of attending Jays games. 11 games to go, locked in a near-dead heat for the last WC, facing a team three or four games even more mediocre than they are, and they lose 10-1. Conceding that Schneider can only work with what he has, that key pitchers are down, and that I'm asking questions about answers I already know, why did he entrust the 4th inning (0-0) to a pitcher with an ERA over 7.00, a WHIP near 2.0, and a K/BB ratio barely over 1.5? 4 runs...and then he throws him out for the 5th and another run. Meanwhile, the guy who pitched the third, a 28-year-old making his major league debut, had just retired five batters without a hit or a walk, striking out three.

Why? Because Cullucci had thrown 25 pitches, coincidentally the exact same number Braydon Fisher had thrown when he got pulled mid-inning in the second--he also hadn't yet given up a run, and there were two outs and a runner on first.

This was the Schneider of 2022 and 2023, the Schneider of the Gausman/Berrios playoff debacles: he had a plan and he was sticking to it. With 11 games to go.

Managed to win this afternoon--didn't watch--but the new problem I think is that the Guardians passed the White Sox, and the White Sox have the seasonal edge over the Jays. So win-lose, and a slightly longer shot today.

I'm giving Schneider a pass for his handling of the pitching staff. Multiple bullpen games per week was nobody's game plan heading into the season.

Schneider probably thinks that anyone pitching in relief gets one trip through the batting order at most, no matter how well he's pitching. I can't say he's wrong.

Bullpen days are tough to navigate, no argument, just having a hard time seeing the logic of giving 25 pitches each to the two guys who were getting people out while giving 53 to the guy with abysmal numbers and who gave up five runs.

On that note, I saw that the Marlins (who have the exact same W-L as the Jays but are 7.5 games out of a playoff spot with nine to play) used Sandy Alcantara in relief yesterday. He's already leading MLB in innings pitched and is a year removed from TJ surgery, but every game counts, right? I'm not saying that the Jays should pitch Cease every day, but the contrast in managerial styles there is ... interesting.

My thinking also, more or less: avoid giving any innings at all to Michael Lorenzen--he's off-the-chart awful--even if it means the risk of overworking someone else. Not necessarily Cease, but get those two innings from somewhere else. There's no time left.

Of course--it bears repeating--pitching is not the #1 problem with this club.

xp my whole point in posting that is that the Marlins are fucking stupid

I assumed there was some context where using Alcantra was an unavoidable act of desperation…. or were they just like “lol idk”

With an absolute whimper.

so uh, how we feeling about vlad?

And that's that.

Trying to figure out this latest Vlad controversy; from what I can tell, it's a Spanish interview where he's saying that the team is paying him for what he's already done, not for what he's going to do in the future. Which is...partly true, but weird. Almost any contract is what, 80-90% based on expected future contributions? And his timing couldn't be worse.

Rare agreement with Kevin Barker: keep your head down this week, play good defense, then get out of Dodge as quickly as you can.

his statcast seems to be mostly good but where it's dropped precipitously over the last several seasons is in barrel and sweet spot %, especially the latter. you have to hope for a recovery next season, don't want the guy fully turning into Dave Magadan for that kind of money.

ppl clowned on jeter for being a robot in interviews but he understood the assignment: no player has anything to gain from saying anything but 'just trying to help the team'

i feel like that "paying me for what i've done" line is something agents (or famous dads) tell players who's performance isn't living up to their contracts/expectations. might be a nice way to frame things if they're feeling lousy about their output – absolutely not a thing you put forward as a defence to the fans tho.

Wasn't watching, but I see Vlad was 0-4 yesterday with two strikeouts (could drop under .260 if he plays today). Guessing that wasn't pretty re fan reaction.

am heading to the game today and will find out what the crowd thinks in person.

Taking a wild guess this ticket was bought weeks ago?

no, yesterday! got 4th row, 100 level outfield for half price!

tbf vlad hitting over/under .260 isn't the problem -- it's him slugging .356

that's 123rd out of 134 qualified hitters -- and behind andres gimenez!

you can't sign a $500m contract, play like that, and then get pissy or the fans will bury you

pretty decent run with the jays for george springer tho, eh

if he were a leaf the fans would already have buried him!

Oh, I know his BA is the least of Vlad's problems--if he were Alonso or Schwarber, 40+ HR would have gone along with that. But it would go a little way towards compensating for his piddly power numbers if he were hitting .300; he'd go back to being the Mark Grace he was when he experienced power outages before.

Found it interesting he played yesterday but sat today. I was going to come on here before the game (when I assumed he'd be playing) and say I admired that he (mostly) still played everyday and didn't let the din get to him.

lol- I said that to a friend last night. Vlad is finding out what it’s like to be a Leaf

You know how many starting pitchers have certain catchers they're paired with, like personal caddies (Gibson/McCarver a famous example)? Obviously Max needs you, Thermo.

I see Schneider and Max reprised their little vaudeville routine today.

ya. the baseball version of james brown getting ushered off stage and then exploding back

I still love it, staged as it probably was. Must have been amazing to be there for Max's and Springer's farewells.

there were literally people in the stands around me crying in the post-game

https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/article/how-okamotos-success-can-impact-blue-jays-push-into-japanese-market/

TORONTO – The Toronto Blue Jays introduced Kazuma Okamoto during a Jan. 6 news conference and as part of his visit to the city, the team planned a dinner for him at a high-end omakase sushi restaurant the next day. As the reservation approached, however, the newly signed slugger respectfully took a pass, because he’d gone to the Eaton Centre food court for lunch and crushed so many hot dogs he was too full for another meal.

Something to entertain you till the game...For what I assume is A.I.-generated garbage, not bad. The only egregious mis-ranking is placing #3 ahead of #4. Doubt many Jays fans would agree (if they'd gone on to win last year, possibly, but not even then, I don't think).

https://i.postimg.cc/JhGkj5ZG/jays.jpg

Springer a head of Bautista is a little surprising. I think having Donaldson's MVP in there and not Bell's is dead wrong.

Also, I'd include clinching in '85--that was huge. Iconic image of Bell catching the ball and dropping to his knees.