There’s word going around baseball that the Blue Jays may be on the verge of another trade. Now if you’re yelling at the computer screen, asking “Why?” just calm down. There is an obvious abundance of DH/1B types on the roster. After the Vernon Wells trade the Jays now have four, yes four, players who can comfortably fit at DH. The great thing about this is that the Jays have many options and directions they can go; they could stick Napoli at 1B, Arencibia at catcher and use Edwin Encarnacion, Adam Lind or Juan Rivera at DH. In my opinion I think that Arencibia should start with the team this year rather than in Vegas. He’s a young hitter which means there will be many steps he’ll need to take (along with many slumps) but he’s the future for the Jays and he’s basically dominating the minors with his 53 home runs in 2 seasons at AAA.
If Anthopoulos has to trade someone away it should easily be Rivera or Encarnacion. They’re two players that are reaching the end of the line in their careers, unlike Napoli. Although Napoli isn’t the big bopper type that you’re looking to carry the team, he’s still young, (just turned 29), which means he still has a lot of upside. Adam Lind absolutely needs to be in the lineup everyday, his 23 home runs and 72 RBI are much needed in this lineup, I don’t think there’s much talk about not having him in there. He can easily cover the DH spot or help out Napoli at 1B when he’s needed. The one position that the Jays are reportedly looking at is 3B, if they’re able to land a third baseman, then the outfield will be set with: Bautista, Davis & Travis Snider. Since the Jays have already stated that Rajai Davis will be starting in Center the fact of the matter is that Juan Rivera is too expensive to be a bench/pinch hitter, so he’ll likely be the odd man out.
With the Wells trade the Jays freed up quite a bit of payroll which means they could actually go after a bigger name third baseman rather than an unproven type of player. I don’t know about you but I would be much more comfortable with an infield & outfield that looks like this:
C – Arencibia
1B – Napoli
2B – Hill
SS – Escobar
3B – ?
RF – Bautista
CF – R. Davis
LF – Snider
DH – Lind
This depth chart is much more reliable than having Rivera or Encarnacion on the field and having to stick Bautista at 3B or 1B. If they make the right move it could really make a difference not just in the lineup but for the future of the franchise. So lets all sit back and see what Anthopoulos’ next move is.
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