Kuzul

When Anthony Gose was called up to the Toronto Blue Jays from their Triple-A affiliate, the Buffalo Bisons, it raised more than a few eyebrows.

In fact, it was Gose who raised his eyebrow first.

On the same day that Gose was promoted, a story by Bucky Gleason of the Buffalo News quoted Gose as saying, “I’m probably at the lowest point I’ve ever been in my career.” Clearly, this is not an ideal time to pit him against major league pitching.

So when Buffalo manager, Marty Brown, called Gose to tell him he had been promoted it was just as puzzling to him as it would be to fans.

By all accounts, it seems like the Blue Jays had better options in every facet of the game. They could have promoted either Moises Sierra or Jim Negrych in order to keep Gose in the minors to continue his development, but elected to give Gose the call.

Why did the Blue Jays promote Gose? Manager John Gibbons was quick to admit that he was not promoted to be an everyday player, but rather to help out in specific situations. But even if the Blue Jays wanted to use him in certain situations, they may have been better off calling up someone else.

Gose has had a fairly tumultuous season in Triple-A after making his MLB debut last year. Gose was inserted into the Blue Jays lineup to replace an injured Jose Bautista, but failed to make a lasting impression.

At the time of his promotion, he had an average of just .227 and an OBP of .343 in the minors. Obviously, those are hardly the numbers you would like to see from someone being promoted to contribute offensively. But Gose is just 22 years old and still has some developing to do.

However, the problems that have plagued him at the plate throughout his professional career have persisted this season. He is showing very few signs of developing. Staying in Triple-A in order to improve would probably do him some good.

He has had trouble hitting left-handed pitchers, and his .167 average against them this season shows no indication of improvement. He has also been known to have an elevated strikeout count, and questionable plate discipline at times. His 41 strikeouts in 40 games this season have done little to put those rumors to rest.

While Gose may not be excelling at the plate, there are a number of players around him who are. Gose’s teammate, Negrych, has hit .386 in 34 games this season with an OPS of 1.033. Negrych is a second baseman but if the Blue Jays wanted offensive help, surely they could have moved Emilio Bonifacio to the outfield to make room for Negrych in the infield.

Another Buffalo Bisons player turning some heads is the 24-year-old Sierra, who spent some time with the Blue Jays last year as well. He has hit .324 with 18 RBI this season and plays the outfield, just like Gose.

Sierra has bettered Gose in almost every offensive category this season—including average, runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, RBI, total bases, OBP, SLG and OPS.

Perhaps Gose was recalled to add some speed on the base paths, but he has even struggled in that regard this season. He has five stolen bases, but has been caught stealing an additional four. Sierra, meanwhile, is a perfect three-for-three in steal attempts.

It appears the Blue Jays made a puzzling move promoting Gose to the major leagues. In every facet of the game there was a similar or better player they could have chosen instead, all while leaving Gose to continue his development in Triple-A.

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The Toronto Blue Jays minor league system may not be as strong as it was a year ago, but they still have some premier talent developing throughout the farm system.

In order to acquire a wealth of major league talent for the 2013 season, the Blue Jays were forced to part with some of their more promising prospects such as Travis d’Arnaud, Jake Marisnick, Noah Syndergaard and Justin Nicolino.

The Toronto Blue Jays have not fared as well as they would have liked in the early part of the 2013 season, but let’s check in on some of the top prospects from the Dunedin Blue Jays, Lansing Lugnuts, New Hampshire Fisher Cats and Buffalo Bisons.

Statistics courtesy milb.com

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It’s been a long time since Roberto Alomar manned second base for the Toronto Blue Jays, and boy do they miss him. What was once a point of strength and consistency for the ballclub has become a revolving cast of players.

Since Alomar moved on to Baltimore after the 1995 season, second base has seen the likes of Homer Bush, Aaron Hill, Orlando Hudson and most recently Kelly Johnson come and go. Fans of the early 1990 Blue Jays have had to deal with a lengthy stretch of average play from their second basemen—save for Aaron Hill’s 2009 campaign that netted him his only All-Star appearance and a Silver Slugger—and it appears that trend will continue.

This year there are two new faces that will be battling for playing time on the right side of the infield. Emilio Bonifacio and Maicer Izturis are both offseason acquisitions for the Blue Jays, but which one of them will get the nod as the starting second baseman is still up in the air.

Looking at their offensive numbers leaves little room for comparison as they posted nearly identical numbers. Bonifacio had a batting average of .258 compared to Izturis’ .256 last season. Their on-base percentage differed by just 10 points and Bonifacio crossed the plate just five time more than Izturis last season.

Their career averages are similar as well as Bonifacio is a career .267 hitter with a .329 OBP while Izturis has hit .273 with an OBP of .337 over his career.

Both players will bat out of the bottom of an already powerful Toronto batting order, and their ability to get on base to give the top of the order a chance to produce runs may become a large factor in divvying up the playing time.

In my opinion, Maicer Izturis will be the starting second baseman for the 2013 edition of the Blue Jays. Although Izturis has a very slight advantage in some key offensive categories, for argument’s sake we can assume the difference between their offensive production over the course of a full season will be negligible. Izturis still has a clear advantage in a few key areas.

The first is experience. Izturis, five years Bonifacio’s senior, has played 168 games at second base in his career. Compared to Bonifacio’s 75 games played at the position, there is a noticeable difference in experience.

This experience is reflected in their defensive statistics as well. Izturis has a career range factor per nine innings of 5.06 compared to Bonifacio’s career mark of 4.51. Range factor per nine innings has a simple formula that combines a player’s number of putouts and assists divided by the innings they’ve played to generate a crude score of their defensive capabilities. The higher the number, the larger a player’s range.

Another telling statistics is that although Izturis has played 93 more games at second base, he has committed two fewer errors. In Bonifacio’s career at second, he has been charged with 12 errors, compared to Izturis’ 10.

One last factor tipping the scale in the direction of Izturis, is of no fault to Bonifacio. In fact, it is his versatility as a fielder that makes him more valuable as a bench player than as a starter. By having Izturis man second base on a day-to-day basis, it will allow manager John Gibbons to deploy Bonifacio around the diamond as needed to provide off days or to exploit pitching matchups.

In 2011, Bonifacio spent time playing every position on the field except for pitcher, catcher and first base. His versatility is a valuable skill set to have coming off the bench and means Izturis is more likely to be the second baseman.

Before Bonifacio was acquired from the Miami Marlins, general manager Alex Anthopoulos acquired Izturis via free agency to fill the hole left by preceding second baseman Kelly Johnson. Anthopoulos signed Izturis to be the team’s second baseman, and I believe that is how the season will play out.

All statistics courtesy of baseball-reference.com

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Let’s all agree that this season is over. Sure, the Toronto Blue Jays will finish their regular season schedule and then they will get to watch some entertaining playoff baseball, but as far as Blue Jays fans are concerned, this one is over.

But, as Toronto fans are used to saying, “There’s always next year.” Here is the thing about next year: Unless the Blue Jays improve, next year will be exactly like this year.

In order to get better, the team needs to improve in every aspect. Their coaching, their hitting and their fielding are all on trial. Heading into the 2013 campaign, here are five Toronto Blue Jays that need to step up their game if they want to play October baseball.

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On Tuesday, the Toronto Blue Jays agreed to a two-year player development contract with the Buffalo Bisons of the International League (AAA). The players will leave Las Vegas and begin playing baseball in Buffalo as soon as next year. The contract runs through to 2014.

Up until this year, the Bisons had a contract with the New York Mets, but were unhappy with attendance and decided it was time for a change. They play out of Coca-Cola Field in Buffalo.

Although this will not directly affect the talent that is put on display at the Rogers Centre, there are a number of advantages to moving the team to Buffalo.

There are minor changes that play a role, but were not the main reason behind the change. For starters, the new stadium seats almost 5 000 more spectators. With a young and entertaining team on the field, the Bisons could see their attendance spike.

Las Vegas, naturally, is a large tourist destination with a lively nightlife scene that players can get caught up in while playing there. Sometimes, sending young players out there is a gamble as to how they will handle themselves.

But now on to the more important reasons behind the move. The geographic proximity of the two cities will be a major factor. Having a Triple-A affiliate in Las Vegas means large travel times for players getting called up and sent down. Toronto is the closest Major League team to Buffalo and the shortened distance will make it much easier to make player transactions.

The shortened distance between the parks will also make it easier for Blue Jays scouts and management to watch their Triple-A affiliate, something Alex Anthopoulos is excited about as noted by this Blue Jays press release.

Cashman Field in Las Vegas, where the Triple-A affiliate, Las Vegas 51s play, is known as a hitter’s ballpark. This not only skews hitters’ statistics, but can also negatively skew a pitcher’s as well. Especially in the minors, where young pitchers are constantly changing and adapting their delivery, having home run after home run fly out of the park is not exactly great for the confidence. The Blue Jays have been known to actually keep some prospects in Double-A New Hampshire and not send them to Las Vegas for this very reason.

Starting in 2013, the Toronto Blue Jays’ Triple-A affiliate will move from Las Vegas to Buffalo. Although it won’t affect the big league club on a day-to-day basis, there are a number of good reasons for the move.

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Any team, whether it be professional or amateur, men’s or women’s, adult or children’s will be defined by moments in their history. Their highs and lows, their ability to recover from those highs and lows, player acquisitions or trades can all play a role.

These defining moments can be anything: single pitches, single innings, games, seasons, careers or off the field completely.

The Toronto Blue Jays have been playing baseball for 36 years. After 2,813 wins, five playoff appearances and two world championships, the franchise has been defined by a number of monumental events.

Here are the top five defining moments in Blue Jays history.

August 12, 1976

On March 26, 1976, the American League voted and approved an expansion franchise to be established in Toronto. On August 12 of the same year, a “Name the Team” contest was held to determine what the Toronto MLB expansion franchise would be called.

Out of over 30,000 entries, the “Blue Jays” were selected.

The expansion franchise finally had an owner, a ballpark and now an identity. The outpouring of support was overwhelming as the Jays eclipsed the single season attendance record for an expansion franchise in just 50 games.

Without a name, a franchise has no definition. This was a defining moment in Blue Jays history both literally and monumentally. 

Alex Anthopoulos

In 2009, the Blue Jays named Alex Anthopoulos the organization’s General Manager. In just three years, Anthopoulos has left his mark on the franchise in the most positive light imaginable.

Anthopoulos immediately changed the way the Blue Jays scouted and valued players by making front office changes in the scouting department. Quickly, he transformed a 28th ranked prospect system into one at the top of the league. 

He traded the monster contract of Vernon Wells and saved the organization nearly $86 million. He was able to transform the identity of the Blue Jays by acquiring young players and watching them develop in Blue Jays uniforms.

Whereas players such as Vernon Wells, Alex Rios, Lyle Overbay and Marco Scutaro riddled the Blue Jays lineup when he took over, Anthopoulos cut ties with them and transformed the lineup into a young, athletic one that was fun to watch.

Although it is too early to judge the total impact Alex Anthopolous will have on the Blue Jays organization, as of right now, hiring him was a defining moment. 

Roberto Alomar

In 2011, alongside fellow player Bert Blyleven and executive Pat Gillick, Roberto Alomar was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.

Alomar was the first player to enter the Hall wearing a Toronto Blue Jays hat and was inducted with manager Pat Gillick, who was responsible for bringing him to Toronto.

Although Alomar spent a moment thanking each organization he played for during his induction speech, he clearly had strong feelings for Toronto as he spoke about them for some time. This is an excerpt from his induction speech, via MLB.com:

…to all the Toronto Blue Jay fans and the entire organization, thank you for your loyalty and support. My time in Toronto was the best of my career. It was with Toronto that we won two World Series together. You guys embraced me from day one. You were with me through ups and downs and I am so proud to represent you here in Cooperstown as the first Toronto Blue Jay inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

The first Toronto Blue Jay to enter the Hall of Fame is unquestionably a defining moment in the history of the franchise. 

SkyDome 

Up until 1989, the Blue Jays played their home games in Exhibition Stadium. The stadium was right on the Toronto waterfront and had its fair share of problems hosting baseball. 

For one, there were over 10,000 seats that were so far from the field when converted to a baseball diamond that the Blue Jays did not offer them for sale. Due to its location on the waterfront, it was also the site of extreme winds and cold. The very first Blue Jays game was played in the snow.

Needless to say, the Blue Jays needed their own nest.

The SkyDome opened in 1989, and when it opened its doors it was truly an engineering masterpiece for its time. It took two-and-a-half years to build the world’s first retractable dome stadium (see video on the right). It is attached to a hotel that has 77 rooms overlooking the field. It houses a professional baseball team, professional football team, countless concerts and will shortly be the centre piece of the 2015 Pan-Am Games.

In 2004, Rogers Communications bought the right to the stadium and renamed it the Rogers Centre.

Moving into the SkyDome and having a suitable stadium is definitely a defining moment in Blue Jays history. 

Joe Carter

There have been a lot of wonderful moments inside the SkyDome, including back-to-back World Series championships in 1992 and 1993.

On October 23, 1993 inside the SkyDome, the Toronto Blue Jays were playing the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series. After going up 5-1, the Blue Jays let the Phillies back into the game with a five-run seventh inning. With the Blue Jays batting in the bottom of the ninth inning, down 6-5 with a man on first and second, history was made.

On a 2-2 count, Joe Carter took Phillies closer Mitch “Wild Thing” Williams’ pitch over the outfield wall for a three-run home run.

A walk-off home run in the most dramatic of fashions made for one of the most memorable radio broadcasts when Tom Cheek famously said, “touch ‘em all Joe, you’ll never hit a bigger home run in your life.” The home run and accompanying broadcast has lived in Blue Jays lore ever since.

What do you think should have made this list? Let me know in the comments section below. And find me on twitter @applebyinc

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