Future Blue Jays Newsletter

As minor league spring training begins, some interesting storylines will begin to develop. These are the ones to watch, in my opinion. I’ve thrown in some thoughts about a sleeper I missed in the last newsletter, a couple of book reviews, and my take on the Joey Votto signing as well.

Time for Tiedemann?

With the Blue Jays starting pitching rotation dinged at the moment, there may be a huge temptation by the Blue Jays to insert the Crown Jewel of the farm system into it.

But I wouldn’t bet on it.

Certainly, Teidemann’s Super Two status will be a factor. But the fact that he’s thrown only 122 innings in his career would be a larger one. There’s no doubt he could start the season in a big league rotation, but there’s no guarantee he would finish it.

But if he starts the season in Buffalo (as he overwhelmingly likely will), the Tiedemann Watch will grow as June approaches in a manner similar to Alek Manoah in 2021.

Will Barriera Bounce Back?

2023 was a step back for the 2022 1st round pick, that much is sure. And while prospect progress seldom advances in a straight line, when I couple comments I’ve had from a couple of evaluators, and reading-between-the-lines of responses from Blue Jays staff, Barriera has a lot to prove this season. There are some questions about his makeup, body, and command, all of which can be put to rest with a strong start, likely at Vancouver.

Can Orelvis Keep Up the Pitch Recognition?

One of the more underrated stories in last year’s system was Orelvis Martinez’ massive improvement in pitch recognition. He walked more, struck out less, and saw more pitches/AB than at any other point in his career - the organization had asked him to work on going the other way more in the first month of last year, and I suspect those numbers might be even better otherwise. But you can’t argue with the results. Orelvis seems to have settled in at 2nd - I think it’s the best spot for him. He does have the fast-twitch reflexes an infielder needs, but he’s not the most instinctive of defenders. Playing 2nd simplifies things a bit for him, and I don’t think it’s a coincidence he posted such impressive numbers at Buffalo once he was moved there more or less full time.

Yes, he still has some more maturing to do, but Orelvis’ time is coming.

Can Tucker Toman Turn it Around?

Much was expected from the 2022 2nd rounder, but he fell short of expectations in the Florida State League, where to be fair, he was one of the youngest players.

While Toman showed an ability to work the count, his profile seems to be more hit over power, there are questions defensively, and a number of evaluators were not impressed at all with his skill set. He likely opens the season in Vancouver, and like his probably teammate Barriera, has a lot to prove.

Is Arjun Nimmala For Real?

He was labelled the best prep player in Florida last year, acquitted himself somewhat well in a Complex League trial, and has some calling him Bo Bichette with a better glove.

That’s a lot to live up to.

Nimmala should start with Dunedin, which means we won’t get a look at him online until late May. The scouting reports are heady, and as long as the Blue Jays are willing to be patient with his development, he could be the next Top 100 guy in the system.

Some More Stuff…..

One More Sleeper

A guy I neglected to mention last week was CJ Van Eyk, who turned a lot of heads in the Arizona Fall League last November.

Van Eyk missed all of 2022 and a good chunk of 2023 due to Tommy John and recovery complications - a reminder that not all pitchers take just a calendar year to recover.

Owner of one of the best curveballs in the system, Van Eyk was sent to Arizona to get some extra innings. He stood out in the hitter-friendly league, but was left off the 40-man when Rule 5 crunch time came last November. There were thoughts that his fastball - which sits in the 92-94 range - could play up in a relief role, making that curve even more effective. The Blue Jays crossed their fingers, and luckily Van Eyk was not selected. Ricky Tiedemann and Chad Dallas are ahead of him (assuming Bowden Francis takes the 5th spot in the rotation given the ongoing saga of Manoah), but Van Eyk should start the season at Buffalo, and has worked his way into the back of the rotation discussion.

Book Reviews

I am, admittedly, a book worm. Baseball figures very prominently in my reading (although I am in the middle of Michael Palin’s excellent Great Uncle Harry at the moment). I thought I would offer my thoughts about two of my recent reads.

Ok, this is not completely a baseball book, but Bryson has become one of my favourite authors. His razor-sharp wit is fully on display on this recap of a memorable summer in American history, the highlight of which was Babe Ruth’s pursuit of 60 Home Runs. Bryson intertwines details of the Babe’s season with the story of Charles Lindbergh’s epic solo-crossing of the Atlantic, the sometimes bizarre final days of Calvin Coolidge’s presidency, and the series of events plotted by international bankers one weekend on Long Island that set in motion the eventual stock market crash and the Great Depression, among other stories that made headlines in 1927.

Anytime I can read about the Babe, I’ll leap at it. How he could have such a productive career on the field while doing next to nothing to prolong it off of it is truly remarkable. Let’s see Aaron Judge try to hit 60+ HRs again keeping Ruth’s diet and extra-curricular schedule.

And wouldn’t you know it, the second book I wanted to share my thoughts on was yet another one about the Babe and the most famous longball of his career. Ed Sherman was chronicled this event in significant detail, and helped to bring the Babe to life much like Bryson did.

Look, I know what it’s like to be a baseball researcher. Having written two books of historical fiction (the old, “Based on real events,” type), I know what it’s like to become enamoured of what you’re researching, uncovering forgotten stories that make you fee like you’re some type of diamond Indiana Jones. But it’s just as easy to go down rabbit holes in order to fetch the maximum amount of details for your readers, then relate it in your writing. And sometimes that’s not what readers want. That’s what I found myself thinking while I read this book. While I was in awe of the depth of research Sherman did, I often felt like we were walking to Wrigley to watch the big World Series game, but taking too many side streets on the way.

Just the same, the reviewers on Amazon were overwhelmingly positive with their reviews, and perhaps I’m critiquing this book more as an author and less as a fan. But I felt less than satisfied after reading it.

Maple Votto Signs

There’s perhaps nothing more comical that when a journalist (sports or otherwise) ventures away from their usual beats to comment on something that they clearly have no clue about.

I write in regards to a certain Toronto sports columnist who tweeted his thought that the Blue Jays signing Joey Votto was more of a PR stunt than anything else.

C’mon, man.

Yes, it was something of a disappointing offseason. We’ve become used to the front office making a free agent splash, but this was a down year in the free agent world. It did come of something as a blow, especially in light of the way last season ended, and the whole flight of Ohtani that wasn’t.

Votto was obviously holding out hope for a big league deal, but all 30 MLB teams had crunched the numbers for three of his last four seasons, and had come to the conclusion that it just wasn’t there. I’m fairly certain that a number of teams offered deals similar to what the Jays offered, and when push came to shove, Votto held out until the writing was on the wall, then signed with his hometown team. For the Jays, there’s little risk to the deal. And yes, there was some buzz generated by Votto’s signing - which wouldn’t come close to comparing to the hype that would be created if Votto bucked the slim odds of returning to the bigs - but this was anything but a PR move. If his shoulder is fully healed (and I’ve been there - they are complicated joints, and can take forever to rebound from injury and/or surgery), and Votto goes to AAA and proves it, then the cost has been minimal.

You can bet your bottom dollar that the Jays and the 29 other clubs have done the math on Votto. PR, quite simply, doesn’t win ball games. Good players do.

Votto should make his home debut in a Buffalo Bisons uniform on April 9th. Canadian money is accepted at par for tickets, and it’s $2 hot dog night.