On July 21, 2006, Jeremy Accardo was dealt from the San Fransisco Giants to the Toronto Blue Jays for third baseman Shea HIllenbrand.
This trade proved to be an absolute steal for the Blue Jays as Accardo was given the closer’s job in 2007 because of the injury to B.J. Ryan. During his time as the full time closer for the Jays, Accardo saved 30 games in 35 opportunities and finished the season with a ridiculous 2.14 ERA.
When the 2008 season rolled around Accardo was again considered for the closer’s role but struggled upon his return because of an injury he had been dealing with. So, he spent the majority of his time that year in the minor leagues rehabilitating and getting his stuff back.
Then, the 2009 season came and Accardo was told that he would soon be back in the majors by then general manager J.P. Ricciardi. Things did not go as planned and Accardo became frustrated with the Jays organization and rightfully so. He went on to have a pretty great year with the Jays’ minor league club in the Pacific Coast League (PCL) which is a hitter friendly league.
And then came the 2010 off season, where Accardo was promised by current general manager Alex Anthopolous that he would get his time soon. Soon did not come as the regular season finished without even a brief appearance in the major leagues. A casual fan may have wondered if he was injured or if he had had a really bad year, but no, in fact, it was quite the opposite. Like I said, the PCL is a very hitter friendly league and Accardo actually managed to win PCL reliever of the year award which is quite impressive. So, that raises the question: Why isn’t Jeremy Accardo with the big club?
In my mind there are two possible answers to this question.
—The first answer—
As we are simply fans, we have no idea what goes on behind the scenes and there may be something we don’t know about. It is extremely unlikely that Accardo has anything wrong with him physically because he has been pitching very well for a while and has won a few awards. The only thing I can think of is maybe there is something wrong mentally with Jeremy Accardo. But that may be even more unlikely because Alex Anthopolous wouldn’t want somebody who is mentally unstable in the farm system with the young players. Attitude problems are something that general managers try to keep away from the up and comers. So, it seems like any of the usual signs are not there. Strange.
—The second answer—
This answer seems to be the popular one among Blue Jays critics and fans who pay any attention whatsoever to Accardo. That Jeremy is being mistreated and punished for something he has done. Now, the next question one asks is what did he do? Well, here is what he may have done. Accardo was engaged to a girl with whom he broke off the wedding at the last possible second. The girl you may ask? Jays owners Rogers Communications’ vice chairman Phil Lind’s daughter. Hmm…not suspicious at all. Now, I hope this isn’t the case but, it seems as though the Jays are using their power to punish Jeremy Accardo in a way that is unfair.
I pray actually that the Jays aren’t abusing Accardo in that sense because it is cruel. He is doing fantastically in the minors and has deserved another shot in the bigs for a long time now. He has every right to be frustrated and is still young. It seems unfair that if the Jays aren’t going to use him that they don’t want to trade or release him. It is a pity…
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