[情報] Athlon Baseball 2009 Blue Jays Preview

看板Blue_Jays作者Belladonaa時間16年前 (2009/02/15 17:29)推噓5(5推 0噓 4→)

留言9則, 4人參與討論串1/1

Athlon Baseball 2009 Toronto Blue Jays Preview Manager Cito Gaston and general manager J.P. Ricciardi were talking about 2010 even before the end of the winter meetings, and that’s a wise course considering that surgeries on Dustin McGowan and Shaun Marcum and the loss of A.J. Burnett to free agency ripped the guts out of the team’s strength. Rotation Roy Halladay is still the ace and one of the game’s best pitchers, but will he be happy in the final two years of his contract? That has to be a concern given his supporting cast. Jesse Litsch will begin the year as the nominal No. 2 starter, while Casey Janssen, who underwent shoulder surgery in spring training and missed all of the season, will get a chance to regain a spot in the rotation. David Purcey, a high draft pick who had quality starts in six of his 12 outings, will have to pitch his way off the team, while Ricky Romero and rehabilitation project Matt Clement (who hasn’t pitched in the majors since labrum and rotator cuff surgery in 2006) could force their way into the rotation. The Blue Jays might have to convert a reliever into a starting role. Bullpen The Blue Jays’ remaining area of strength is anchored by closer B.J. Ryan, who made an early return from Tommy John surgery by tossing 13.2 scoreless innings to open the season and won the monthly AL award for closers in May. There is more than adequate depth in middle relief, underlined by the fact that none of Ryan’s 60 appearances was longer than one inning. That group is expected to return intact and will be even deeper if Jeremy Accardo recovers from a forearm strain that saw him disabled on May 10. Accardo appeared in 64 games and had 30 saves filling in for Ryan the year before. The Blue Jays always seem to find a revelation in the bullpen, and last year’s was sidearmer Jesse Carlson. The 27-year-old rookie appeared in 69 games and picked up seven wins, the most by a Blue Jays reliever since Paul Quantrill had 11 in 2001. Lefthander Scott Downs has been a valuable setup man, but he could pressed into a starter’s role due to injuries and free agent departures. Middle infield Ricciardi has never managed to find an everyday shortstop in the bargain basement bin, with David Eckstein being the latest bust. The Blue Jays collect retreads at this position and were once again rummaging through the odds and ends of the free agent market. The plan heading into the spring is to go with a tandem of John McDonald (a career .236 hitter) and super-sub Marco Scutaro, who made 53 starts at short and made only eight errors in 557 total fielding chances split between five positions. After signing a four-year, $12 million contract, second baseman Aaron Hill suffered a season-ending concussion in May after colliding with Eckstein and didn’t resume baseball-related activities until the winter. His progress will be monitored in spring training. Hill is one of the most professional hitters in the lineup and has turned into a tremendous defender. Corners First baseman Lyle Overbay and third baseman Scott Rolen are superior defenders when healthy. Overbay is underrated defensively. He ranked first in games played and total chances among AL first basemen after a long recovery from a broken bone in his right hand that messed up his swing all of 2007 and through the first part of 2008. Overbay finished second on the team in hits, total bases and home runs after going through a 23-game homerless drought to start the season. Rolen continued to be plagued by a variety of aches and pains associated with his left shoulder and ended up re-tooling his swing after a stint on the DL. Whether lowering his hands and bringing them in closer to his body will keep him healthy remains to be seen, but he had 13 extra-base hits and hit .298 after returning from the DL. Outfield Alex Rios and Vernon Wells are both locked up for the long term, and while Rios led the club in runs, hits, total bases and steals (career-high 32), Gaston raised some eyebrows over the winter by suggesting that one of his goals was to make sure Rios “really knows how to hit.” Wells, who appeared in only 108 games due to a hamstring strain, and Rios cover a great deal of ground and are above-average defenders. The Blue Jays would dearly like Adam Lind to finally cash in on his potential and develop enough offensive consistency to take over in left field, because he’s a left-handed hitter on a club that is shy in that commodity. Travis Snider, the organization’s top prospect, was not overmatched after joining the big league club. It will be interesting to see whether the team carries him as a designated hitter if he doesn’t earn a spot in the field. A trade could also open a spot for him. Catching Brian Jeroloman and J.P. Arencibia are the catchers of the future, but for now the Blue Jays will go with bargain-bin veteran Rod Barajas. Barajas reneged on a contractual agreement with the Blue Jays in favor of the Phillies before the 2007 season but turned into the Blue Jays’ No. 1 catcher in 2008 after signing as a free agent. Barajas had a nice year, winning supporters in the clubhouse while posting a 3.32 earned run average that led all AL catchers and throwing out 34.4 percent of would-be base stealers. It will be disappointing if Michael Barrett, signed to a minor league contract, fails to make the roster. DH/Bench The Blue Jays’ ability to make late-season moves could be limited if Scutaro is pressed into daily duty as shortstop. But there is some depth to be found in the person of Joe Inglett, a 30-year-old left-handed hitter who made 62 of his 82 starts at second base in the absence of Hill. Inglett will be a valuable component off the bench if Hill is healthy again. He is a gritty performer who was recalled on four separate occasions last season. Snider appears to be the top option to get the bulk of the at-bats at designated hitter. Management The firing of John Gibbons in June and the return of Gaston, who managed the Blue Jays to back-to-back World Series in 1992-1993, changed the dynamic of the team’s clubhouse. Gaston and hitting coach Gene Tenace believed the Blue Jays had become too passive at the plate — too concerned with drawing bases on balls and “passing the baton” — and they have already indicated that Rios, in particular, is going to be given a makeover in spring training. Pitching coach Brad Arnsberg was retained despite some initial indications that he was on the way out. One of the most interesting moves last year came at the end of the season when Paul Beeston, who along with Pat Gillick was the architect of the Blue Jays teams of the ’80s and early ’90s, was retained as president and chief executive officer on an interim basis. Whether it’s a full-fledged back to the future move remains to be seen, but know this: What was once Ricciardi’ s team is now clearly Gaston’s team. Final analysis It could be a very long summer in Toronto. The Blue Jays spent a total of eight days above third place in 2008, and they will be hard-pressed to be better in 2009 with a payroll that has decreased from $97 million to $85 million. Despite the return of some familiar faces, the good old days are clearly not just around the corner. Plus, the slumping economy and the fact the Blue Jays were operating with a virtual payroll freeze led to rumors through the winter that Rogers Communications might put the team up for sale at some point during the season. Beyond the Boxscore Strong staff The Blue Jays were the first American League team since the 1967 Chicago White Sox to lead the majors in both starting ERA and bullpen ERA. Yankee killer Alex Rios had a remarkable 26-game hit streak against the Yankees snapped on Aug. 19, when he went 0-for-4 in a 2–1 win at the Rogers Centre. The streak was the longest against the Yankees since Charlie Gehringer had a 31-game streak against the Bronx Bombers in 1935-36. Rios batted .364 (39-for-107) during the streak, with six doubles, three homers and 16 RBIs. True ace Roy Halladay has been a model of consistency during his time with the Blue Jays. Last year, Halladay once again led the AL with nine complete games, more than any other major league team except for the Milwaukee Brewers (12) and Cleveland Indians (10.) Halladay had a three-game winning streak, a four-game winning streak and a five-game winning streak. He also lost three consecutive complete games, becoming the first pitcher to do so since Randy Johnson in 1999. Who’s at short? One of J.P. Ricciardi’s first moves as general manager was trading shortstop Cesar Izturis to the Los Angeles Dodgers, starting what has become a never-ending search for a shortstop. Since the start of the 2001 season, no fewer than 16 different players have started a game at the position. Slow recovery Second baseman Aaron Hill was given permission to begin working out three times a week at the end of November, after a long recovery from post-concussion syndrome. Hill suffered the injury on May 29 and spent the rest of the season fighting fatigue and other symptoms. Hill was hitting .263 with two home runs and 20 runs batted in at the time of the injury and was in the first year of a multi-year contract after hitting .291 with 17 homers and 78 RBIs in 160 games in 2007. Hill started working out at the Blue Jays’ facility in Dunedin, Fla., after finally getting the go-ahead from specialists. Farm System 2008 Top Draft Pick — The Jays selected Cal first baseman David Cooper with the 17th overall pick. He spent time in all three lower levels in his first year, hitting .304 with one home run and 13 RBIs in 24 games at Dunedin, .341 with two home runs and 21 RBIs at short-season Auburn, and .354 with two homers and 17 RBIs in 24 games with Lansing of the Midwest League. Cooper is a little under-sized for a first baseman, but the Blue Jays believe his swing mechanics — specifically, his ability to keep the bat down in the zone for a long period of time — and his dedication to improving his power will allow him to reach the majors eventually. 2007 Top Pick — Kevin Ahrens, 3B, Memorial (Texas) High School Led Class A Lansing with 119 hits in 122 games; will spend ’09 at Double-A. 2006 Top Pick — Travis Snider, OF, Jackson (Wash.) High School Overcame elbow injury to impress in the majors. Figures to be a regular by 2010. 2005 Top Pick — Ricky Romero, LHP, Cal State Fullerton Climb should culminate with big league roster spot at some point in 2009. 2004 Top Pick — David Purcey, LHP, Oklahoma Injuries opened the door for 12 major league appearances. Will be a disappointment if he doesn’t open the year with the Jays. 2003 Top Pick — Aaron Hill, 2B, LSU Mainstay missed most of 2008 with concussion-related syndrome. Expected to be ready again in 2009. Other Prospects (age on Opening Day) C J.P. Arencibia (23) Catcher of the future made huge strides defensively. Former Tennessee Volunteer is on the fast track. LHP Brett Cecil (22) Had better than 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio at Double-A before moving up to Triple-A. SS Justin Jackson (20) Drafted out of high school, Jackson spent ’08 learning how to be everyday pro. Will likely spend full year at Single-A Dunedin. LHP Marc Rzepczynski (23) Could arrive quickly, but the Blue Jays’ organization has lefty depth. LHP Brad Mills (24) Had 159 strikeouts in 147 innings in stints with two Single-A teams and one Double-A club. Statistician 1 >> 3-0 counts faced by reliever Jesse Carlson in 2008 out of 237 batters faced. 4 >> Inherited runners (out of 32) Jason Frasor allowed to score last year. 5 >> Winning road trips (out of 13) by the Blue Jays in 2008. 6 >> Seasons of 20 homers for Vernon Wells, three away from Carlos Delgado’s club record. .238 >> Career average for opponents’ 3-4-5 hitters against Dustin McGowan. 23 >> Starts by Roy Halladay of at least seven innings in 2008, second only to Cole Hamels’ 24. 12 >> Consecutive plate appearances in which Lyle Overbay reached base during one stretch in May. It set a new club record. .438 >> Joe Inglett’s batting average in 16 at-bats with the bases loaded. 38 >> Club-record streak of consecutive innings without allowing a walk for Jesse Litsch from April 27-May 24. 32 >> Stolen bases for Alex Rios in 2008, the first Jay to swipe 20 bags since 2001. Difference Maker Scott Rolen’s contract makes him difficult to trade, so he could help the Jays in several ways by finally staying healthy and returning to the form he showed in 2006 with St. Louis when he hit .296 with 22 home runs and 95 RBIs. Rolen opened the season on the 15-day disabled list after a freak finger injury suffered when he took a ball off the tip of the middle finger of his right hand during a spring training fielding drill. He was a mess at the plate when he returned and had to overhaul his swing to make contact. -- ※ 發信站: 批踢踢實業坊(ptt.cc) ◆ From: 118.160.65.183