SPEAKER_00 0:00

This is Walk Off Slams with Greg Zahn on AM 1150.

SPEAKER_01 0:06

Welcome back to Walk Off Slams. I'm your host, Greg Zahn. This is where we talk all things Blue Jays. We talk Major League Baseball news. Get into a little roasting at the end. You know what? You love it, the Sunday roast. I don't understand why people get so excited to get me all fired up, but they love it, so I'm giving it to them. So we're going to dive right into some Blue Jays news. Obviously, everybody knows Vladdy missed a few games with a sore back. Comes back on Tuesday night against Boston and 0 for 4. We were hoping that the mental break, maybe a little physical break, might do him some good, but clearly not. The big storyline from that night was George Springer's 300th home run and a 6-1 victory against the Boston Red Sox. We'll take it, wins a win. You know, after a couple of series losses to Philly in New York, and quite frankly, not surprising losses. The Phillies in New York are playing better baseball right now. They're better teams. The Blue Jays offense is still ranked near the bottom of the game in OPS with runners in scoring position, and that's a straight-up byproduct of everybody in the ball club trying to go deep. Everybody's trying to hit home runs. Everybody's trying to lift and separate. They don't hit situational hit. And they don't pass the baton. So, you know, OPS is on base plus slugging. So they're not getting on base and they're not slugging. And that is, you know, it's a byproduct of approach. You know, last year's Blue Jays was a ball club that basically got hot at the same time. We've talked about it a lot. You know, I I've been talking about it at nauseam all season long because the abats haven't gotten any better, the approach hasn't changed, and you know, the results are certainly not there. Uh so it makes you wonder: was 2025 a fluke? Well, take a look at the track records of everybody that got hot for that ball club last year, and look at what they're doing this year. And you might point your finger at the fact that it was an anomaly. Uh it wasn't supposed to happen. Uh, you know, most of the conversations I was having with club officials, people inside the the Blue Jays realm, uh you know, they were talking about trading guys like Bo Bichet before the season even started. They never expected everybody to get hot the way they did and carry them all the way to the World Series. But uh we baseball people look at track records for a reason. There's a there's a reason why you put stuff on the back of a bubblegum card. And it usually holds out, it usually comes true. Uh there are feel-good moments, there are feel-good seasons where people get it rolling, the chemistry is off the charts, which it is in that Blue Jays clubhouse. That's the only possible explanation for the smiles on their faces uh in the current situation. A lot of people get rubbed the wrong way by the Blue Jays and how much fun it looks like they're having, even though they're under 500 and not playing good baseball despite the expectations. Well, you know, I'm I'm I'm kind of on the fence. You know, I'm okay with with guys keeping it loose in the clubhouse. I'm not a heck of a big fan of you know all the demonstrative celebrations out there on the field when business isn't getting done, and the business is winning divisions and getting to the playoffs and ultimately winning the World Series. But to each their own, you know, I'm not in that clubhouse every day. I don't know the chemistry, I don't know the personality. Uh I think that uh they do a pretty fine job of keeping themselves in a positive attitude. Gotta be positive. It's a long season, and uh you gotta go out there with a smile on your face, hopefully, and and go get business done. Makes it a lot easier. Back to Vladdy and you know his return to the lineup. Uh obviously the the numbers aren't there, but you know, people are starting to wondering, you know, is this back something to be concerned about? Is it something to uh worry? Well, I don't think so. I mean, I it's it's really the first we're hearing of it. If if it's something the Blue Jays are keeping under wraps on a regular basis and this is a chronic thing for him, yeah, it could be an issue. I mean, you you need core stability, flexibility, hydration, fitness, all the stuff you guys know. Uh you need all that stuff to maintain good good core health. And unfortunately, you know, it it happens to players sometimes where they get an injury, a tweak, a twinge, low back, not something to mess with. It's it's one of those things, and I know from personal experience, you know, the wrong bed in a hotel can mess you up if you're not properly hydrated, if you're not flexible, if you're not taking care of yourself. And once those backsms and the problems start to set in, uh it can be a problem because it's debilitating. You can you can't run, you can't swing, you can't bend over and pick up a ground ball. You know, baseball's a very explosive sport. You know, it's it's it's a lot of quick quick activity after lengthy periods of nothing. And it's it's pedal to the metal, and it's hard to do. I'm just gonna tell you, it's not easy. So looking at Vladdy's back situation, you know, I was kind of hoping it would give him a nice reprieve mentally, uh, a blessing in disguise, if you will. Um, you know, he he started off typical. He was Vladdy Guerrero after 45 starts, but this power outage, this drought, if you will, it's carrying on. And I don't know if it's so much that he's you know just unwilling to make adjustments, whether the pitching coach lacks the influence on him to help him through some changes, but there's too much movement in his swing. I've said it 40,000 times. This guy does not need all of the movement in his swing in order to generate the kind of power that he needs. But let's be honest, I don't really look at Vladdy as a power hitter. I mean, he hit 20 something last year. The average output for a major league hitter since Rawlings took over or Major League Baseball took over Rawlings, the average output for homers, average, if you get 600 plate appearances, is 20 jacks. 20 homers. Vladdy doesn't even he didn't even hit 30 last year. George Springer outhomered him by, I think, nine. So you look at Vladdy and you get this misconception that he's a power hitter. He's not a power hitter. If you don't hit 35 jacks in the game today, you're not a power hitter. Uh the balls are juice, the stadiums are small, the bats are lightning rods. You know, 30 is the benchmark for legit power. I don't know if Vladdy ever hit 30 in his career in one season. He might have. I haven't checked the stats. I don't pour over him that closely. But I don't look at him as a power hitter. I look at him as a pure hitter, a guy that drives the ball, hits doubles, takes walks, high on base percentage. He's a quality hitter. But is he Barry Bonds? No. Uh he's not a power hitter. So for people to sit there and you know say he's having a power outage, Vladdy could wake up tomorrow and hit 20 jacks between now and the end of the season, and it won't be that far off from last year's total. So I think people need to just give him a break because they're projecting their expectations, their vision of what Vladdy is onto him and his performance, and the track record just doesn't support it. I mean, show me a show me a stretch in Vladdy's career where he went back to back to back years of 30 or more homers, and then we'll talk about him being a power guy. Because, as I said, 20 is average now. 20. Back in my day, a guy of equal strength, equal hitting prowess would hit 12 to 15. And now it's 20 because of the balls in the ballpark. Um, you know, it's it's something that people need to be a little bit wary of. Um, you know, seems like the injuries are all we ever talk about, so you know, we might as well get into it. Kirky's back, Vladdy's, you know, not feeling so well. Um, you know, and of course, he goes three for three in his in his return, and everybody thinks, oh God, here we go. The Blue Jays are gonna take off, and then one for four, oh for four. Wah, wah, wah. I said it before, I'll say it again. He did not get enough work on his rehab assignment for me as a manager. I would be like, no, he's not ready yet. I need to see him catch three, four, maybe even five, nine inning games, get 40 at bats. Alejandro Kirk was off to an awful start to the 2026 season. He had an opportunity to basically reset his whole year with a second spring training. And they gave him, I don't know, five rehab games, one game behind the dish. I think he got two hits, a Hulbert, a double. Uh, it wasn't exactly a reset, in my opinion. Could have been more. And who knows? You know, he could just as easily, you know, flip a coin. He can go out and go, you know, get three more hits against the Red Sox, and everybody's gonna think, well, Zahn's crazy. Well, I'm not crazy, and I know what baseball is, and I know how long it takes some guys to get moving. Um, you know, he he's not exactly a Ferrari, he's more like a Cadillac. They take a little while to warm up. So hopefully he'll get it rolling because he is a big, big deal to that lineup. Var shows out with a bad wrist, he's uh you know, starting to swing the bat again, he tweaked it. Uh wrists, wrists and mobliques, they freaked me out. Uh, a lot of little bones and tendons in the wrist, and and they can go wrong real quick. And you know, I remember bumping my hand on the back of a doorknob one time, and it bruised me up pretty good in the wrong spot in the back of my wrist. It was sore for months. At one point I felt like I had to put a cast on it just to catch bullpeds. It wasn't fun. Uh and so I worry about you know Varsho getting the the irritation out of that wrist, but it might be a blessing in disguise there because you know he wasn't exactly doing a whole lot. All of the metrics, guys, are suggesting that his defense is down from last year. And if if Varsho's not uh playing top-tier defense, he's a bench warmer for me. Um I use my own metric, the Zarp, to measure hitters' production. And when you look at Miles Straw and the games that he would qualify for, and I mean five innings or more of work to qualify for an official game played, uh, kind of the way they measured it when Cal Ripkin was doing the streak with you know Ty Cobb's numbers. Um Miles Straw in his 26 qualified games, 1.1 ZARP. 1.1, that's that's elite. That's all-star caliber. That's the best in the in the in the game, are 1.1 and more. I mean, so Miles Straw, he's making serious contributions offensively when he gets in there. And to be quite honest with you, his defense can't be that much different than Varsho. Because, as I said, the metrics guys are saying that Varsho's not covering as much ground. He's not making the plays he once made. So, in my opinion, he's he's a nice backup at this point for me. Uh, Barger looks like he's starting to play catch out to 120, taking normal batting practice, uh, should be hitting off the speed machines pretty soon. This is an important guy. Drove in 70 runs last year. He was one of those feel-good stories. That 70 RBI total is hard to replace. Uh he can play third, he can play the outfield. He's a big piece of the puzzle. Um, and uh, you know, when you when you look at the Jays, they need to get it going now. And they don't have much time to get going and wait for any more offense. The pitching's been what's pretty much carried this ball club so far, but now all of a sudden, you're starting to see the workload of the bullpen start to catch up with the Toronto Blue Jays. They've got the fourth highest number of innings pitched in Major League Baseball by a bullpen. Uh, and honestly, it's pretty pretty likely to do with the philosophy. You know, uh, I think Dylan Sees has gone over a hundred pitches a couple of times this year. But I look at his start against Philly, and I think to myself, he went 93 pitches, he punched out 11, he only gave up three hits, so there wasn't a whole lot of traffic, not a whole lot of drama, not stressful. Could he have gone another 20? In my opinion, absolutely. What are you paying a guy $30 million for to go five innings? And then sure enough, he does pretty much the same thing against the Red Sox. Chews up a hundred pitches in five innings. Maybe five and five and two-thirds, six innings, whatever pitch. It's too much. I mean, the strikeouts are wonderful. They are, they're really sexy. But good God, I mean, we're gonna get five, six innings out of a guy making thirty million dollars. I know I'm nitpicking, and I know almost every team in the world would be like, oh, you know, if we can get five or six innings out of a guy and have an ERA under, you know, four, we'd be absolutely tickled to death. But what's the trickle-down effect when you're covering three and four innings every time that guy goes out with your bullpen? Well, the trickle-down effect is uh you get to guys like Brayton Fisher, and all of a sudden a guy who was looking unhittable over five starts is now giving up runs in three of his last five. And this is a guy who is now, in my opinion, overexposed. And what I mean by overexposed is the one trick pony is no longer tricking people. He pitches backwards, he throws curveballs predominantly. So a normal pitcher would throw, I don't know what the game would suggest today. Back in my day, it would be 65 to 70 percent fastball. He throws 65 to 70 percent breaking ball. Okay, so it's a feel pitch. Now you have to have a good feel for it in order to really time it up and get it spinning right. Fastball command is a lot easier to maintain than feel for a breaking ball, a split finger, especially. It comes and goes. Sometimes it'll leave guys for a month at a time. And you hope that they have enough fastball command to at least trick people into thinking that it's still there. Well, what we've seen from Fisher is a league that's caught up with him, a league that has read the scouting reports, now have a clear idea of exactly what they're dealing with. The volume of breaking balls is no longer a surprise. It is who he is, and you can pretty well book it. When he gets into trouble, he's gonna go to this pitch. Those are the tendencies that we look at when we when we look at analytics, when we look at stats. Uh, they're helpful. Um, it's one of those things where you you think to yourself, uh, what is it that I'm I'm gonna go up there and look for? Well, if it's coming out of his hands 65 to 70% of the time, you want to be looking for it. And now they're starting to look for it. So the ball that comes out that starts in the zone, what we call strike the ball, breaking stuff, is now no longer being swung at. I I remember the careers of Dylan Batansis, Jabba Chamberlain. You look no further. You sit there and you go, wow, that guy could throw 96 to 100, but he never did, couldn't command it. He'd show it to you to get you all excited, make you think you had to get the barrel out there quick, and then he'd throw slider, slider, slider. And you'd swing over the top of the ones at the knees that you thought were fastballs, but now are in the dirt. But when you're sitting on slider, when you're expecting it to come out of his hand, and he throws you a slider down in the dirt uh that started in the strike zone, you don't swing anymore. And so you've lost your effectiveness. And that's the problem. Uh when I talk about the philosophy of the Jays, it's you know, I feel like their philosophy is we're dying to get to the bullpen. And I don't understand that. Kevin Gosman, Dylan Sees, tremendous. Why did you go get a guy like Simeon Woods, Hyphen, I don't even remember his name, the kid from Minnesota. Um, I don't I don't understand. Simeon Woods Regard. There you go. You go get this guy. He comes back to the Blue Jays and he throws four stellar innings and then you don't pitch him for eight to eight plus days. Why? What he was a starter, he was stretched out. It's not like you need to baby this dude. He's ready to go. He's absolutely ready to go. And I don't understand what your philosophy is on pitching, other than we don't want to overdo that. Do it. Well, you got to get there first. Get there first, and then you can rest, guys. Put the pedal to the metal, put your best nine guys on the field every single day. You ride those horses till they buck you. You'll know when they need a day off. Gonna do some MLB news. One of the things that people are really, really keen to talk about is Terek Scuble and the Tigers. Leading off the latest MLB news. Healthy, pitching. Are the Tigers gonna trade him? Well, they're saying they're not interested in trading him, but I don't blame them. I mean, the the American League is is really, really soft. 10 of 15 teams, 10 of 15 teams are below 500. It's a joke. Uh the Tigers are only five or six games out of a wild card. As bad as they've played, and as much as they've missed Scoobyl, they're in it. They could get hot. Scoobyl can be Scoobyl, and the Tigers could get it rolling. Um, you know, as of right now, the Chicago White Sox, who I will talk about in a moment, yes, the Chicago White Sox are leading the AL Central. It's amazing, but the Tigers are still in it. So, what would it signal to the fan base if you continue to talk trading your best player? Now, I don't know what the chances of them re-signing him are. I mean, I'm gonna say pretty slim, unless the guy absolutely loves Detroit. I've told you guys a thousand times, you know, there's a reason why free agents, especially the number one free agent, end up in places like New York, LA, you know, Boston in a weird scenario. It's because they have the money, they're good places to live, they're places that you can see putting down roots, starting a family, starting a foundation, raising your kids, etc. Not exactly sure Detroit's one of those places. Now, they've done a great job re-revitalizing the city, but I don't know. I'm really not signing up to live through Michigan winters. Um and quite frankly, the taxation for a place like that with that kind of weather, just not really something that most MLB players are looking forward to. I mean, you know, let's let's like let's just talk about Canada. Do any of the former Canadian Major League Baseball players in recent years even live in Canada? No, they don't. They don't want the weather, they don't want the taxes. So they move to the United States. I mean, Corey Koskey lives in Minnesota, it's just across the border. But it ain't it ain't Canada. And it's not Michigan, and it's not Pittsburgh, and it's it's it's just they don't want cold weather or taxes. So they move. Um but the Tigers got a chance, they're still in it, and unfortunately, um the rest of the league can wait till the trade deadline to find out whether or not they're still in it. Because if they find themselves out of it and it's clear and definitive, you'll probably see them go. They have to. They don't really have a choice, which kind of sucks for the organization because you'd think if they just added a couple of guys, they'd be a pretty good ball club. But uh no. Speaking of good ball clubs, uh the Chicago White Sox, wow. Um, I was pretty flabbergasted early. In the year when I found out that the entire NL Central, a couple of those awesome cities, they were all over 500. Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, St. Louis, Cincinnati. All over 500. 10 of 15 teams in the American League under 500. Well, the Chicago White Sox, who I expected to be a seller dweller this year, they are six games over 500, leading the American League Central by at least a game over Cleveland. And the Indians just lost Jose Ramirez, probably one of the most impactful players in that division. They're looking pretty legit. They're looking like contenders for the division title. And I'm telling you, that that infield is a killer. Those guys can rake. Murakami kind of anchoring it. Tweak his hand me a little bit. He'll be back soon. But almost everybody in that infield is doing something offensively at a high level to help that ball club. They're getting great pitching. Um, it's fun to watch. I love it when I'm wrong. I really do. Because that means that there's a group of guys over there in Chicago on the South Side who are believing in one another, who were playing some good ball in concert with one another, and it's translating to wins and losses in the positive way. And that's a pretty good thing for the Chicago White Sox and their fan base. When we come back on Walk Off Slams, my interview with the golden boy himself, you know, the ginger, my brother from Another Mother, my former broadcast partner, Jamie Campbell, will be joining us here on Walk Off Slams.

SPEAKER_00 23:41

This is Walk Off Slams with Greg Zahn on AM 1150.

SPEAKER_01 23:47

Welcome, welcome, welcome back to Walk Off Slams. I'm your host, Greg Zahn. With me this week, I have a special treat. You know him as the host of Blue Jay Central. I know him as my best pal and brother from another mother, Jamie Campbell. Welcome to the program, JC.

SPEAKER_02 24:06

Good to see you, Zonny.

SPEAKER_01 24:09

It's always a pleasure to see you. Um, you know, I know you're a lot closer to the ball club than I am, and you know, I I can read things on the internet, but you know, this club is just what some people might call snake bitten. And it seems like every time something good happens, something bad happens. You know, one guy comes off to DL, another guy goes on. And and and my big thing is how on earth are these guys maintaining this positive attitude? Because all I see are smiles. These guys look like they're I don't understand I don't understand how they're doing it. I'd be I'd be in in my locker pulling my hair out if I was John Schneider.

SPEAKER_02 24:50

You uh, given how long you played, would understand that when things aren't going well, it's not quite as fun to be around the ballpark. And so I get the impression that the reason this team looks as joyous as it does, and we're not talking about every player here, let's be quite frank. There are some long-faced members of this team. But for the most part, um the core of their lineup are guys who have always expressed that when playing. And and the greatest example of it is Ernie Clement, who, you know, by some standards, has no right to have the kind of major league career he's having, given that he was rejected by two teams within a year. Um, but here he is making a significant contribution to a team that should be in a better standing than it is. And he's part of a team that already included Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who for as long as he's been part of the organization has never not played with a smile on his face, even when things are are you know drastically underachieving. So um I know fans watch and don't like it, in fact, when they see happy times and smiles and pranks and joking around on the bench when the team's getting beaten five to nothing in the middle of the fourth inning. Um but you know, as one who played as long as you did, you should be able to weigh in on the fact that it's a long season. You know, they're not that far out of a postseason spot right now. It's not like they've been buried. They have a chance. Uh they've been hit hard by various injuries, as you alluded to. So I guess the only thing to do is just keep having fun until you find your stride. It makes cool it makes great sense to me, right, Greg? It's a game. It's baseball. I know it's a profession, but it's still baseball at its heart.

SPEAKER_01 26:54

Yeah, it really is. I mean, and and I would be one of those crotchety old dudes of being like, hey, you know what, win a few ball games and then and then goof off and have fun. This is a this is a job, this is a business. But at the end, at the end of the day, I remember being on some pretty miserable teams. And you can only you can only be serious about things for so long. I mean, now behind the scenes, great. Laugh, joke, have a good time. And you, you know, you bring up Ernie Clement. Uh, you know, I I have been critical of Ernie's approach, especially at the plate. I love the guy. Like, I I want to make that clear. Uh, and I have, I I think. I go, I kind of go out of my way because I know how much Blue Jays fans like him. Um, you know, since you bring him up, I'm wondering because I'm hearing some some some comments on on your broadcast about taking the good with the bad with Ernie, you know, with the at bats. I mean, is has there been any conversation with you know the hitting coach, the manager about how Ernie approaches his at bats and how quickly they are over. Has there been any talk about that?

SPEAKER_02 28:05

There is, there have been those discussions privately, I'm sure, but one of the things that I at least respect about this organization's coaching staff is that they try not to mess with something that seems to work long term. So in Ernie's case, as the world knows, if the world is watching him play, he'll swing at everything and he'll swing at it early. So to see him draw a base on balls is is a once in a blue moon type of uh event. Yeah. But yet to see him swing early at pitches in many cases outside the strike zone and somehow make contact with those pitches and somehow put the ball in play, it's amazing to watch. Um, I know there's a ton of luck involved as the you know, as the term goes bap it friendly. Right. Um so I don't think the organization wants to to take Ernie aside and say, hey, we think you can be a better ball player if you do this. Uh if you slow it down, pull it back, maybe not swing so aggressively so early in the count. I don't think they have any interest in changing him. Um again, you won't see him change. Now, someone someone like Vladimir Guerrero Jr., you know, given the stretch he's going through, he could use a change perhaps. Um, not change of scenery, but my goodness, something's amiss there. I don't know if it's too many voices. Um, it looks mechanical, but I'm not the ex-player here, so I'm not the one who's gonna weigh in on that kind of thing. But until they they get him right, and now that Kirk is back, this team is not gonna be formidable until the guy normally slotted in the three-hole is doing damage. And when that happens, I think you'll see a reverse unfortunate.

SPEAKER_01 30:02

Yeah, I I look at his swing, and it's funny. 45 games in, James, I I had to do a double take. I have I was looking all over the internet on multiple pages, multiple sources. I did the AI thing. I it was it was obvious to me that after 45 games, he was off to exactly the same start, like almost a carbon copy of what he had done previous three to four years. It was eerie. I had to, I couldn't believe it. So I went and I double-checked, and I was like, okay, he's doing exactly what he normally does. And as the ex-player, as the hitting coach, I'm looking at him and I'm looking at going, I'm looking at a guy with unbelievable bat-ball skills, unbelievable power, and I'm looking at all these moving parts, and I'm saying, no wonder it takes him so long to get that power stroke going. It's a timing thing. So, how on earth is the hitting coach, uh, since you bring up voices, how how how my question is, is how can they not get him to abandon all of this extra movement that he doesn't need? It's like, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I get it, but the the the repairs need to be done pretty darn quick, because this is taking a lot longer for him to get going than normal.

SPEAKER_02 31:17

It is, and as we speak, he's dealing with um uh a back issue that that doesn't appear to be too serious, but you know, as someone who was swinging a bat for a living, you can know how uh you know how important it is to maintain a healthy back. Um in Vladdy's case, though, I've heard what you just said about too much movement um from others who played in the big leagues, and I I understand it. Why there hasn't been some kind of intersection there um with you know the series of coaches that they do have, uh Popkins chief among them, um, is is a bit of a mystery. I wonder if there is Greg, a young man who has risen to a certain level in this league, has garnered himself a long-term multi-million dollar contract and is stubborn, right? Because you know, stubborn worked and paid off in prior years, um, being that same person is not working right now. I sometimes think people reach a point of success where they find it very difficult to change, and that might be playing in this respect.

SPEAKER_01 32:30

Yeah, it is. I mean, it's as a player, you're you're like, well, I've done it this way for so long. Right. You know, and you know, and on this program, we're gonna talk about uh a number of players on the Blue Jays and and the way they do things. And I mean, the major leagues is a is a is a place where change is constant. Yes. People are going to adjust. And when I watch when I watch juniors at bats, I watch a guy who looks like he's up there guessing all the time. Uh, he, you know, with all the data, with all of the stuff going on. I mean, people accused Manny Ramirez of being dumb. Uh, but he was one of the smartest hitters you ever ever met. He did his research, he he was prepared. I'm sure Vlad Jr. is uh a very prepared hitter, almost to the point where it's you know paralysis by analysis, because he's getting good pitches to hit and he's not doing anything with them. And that tells me that he's not focused on the right thing. Because right now, if I'm if I'm the opposition and I'm pitching to him, I'm not afraid of him right now. There's certain places I can go in the strike zone. I'm just gonna keep going there until he proves to me. Now, I always argue that a batting lineup is symbiotic. Uh ultimately, have you heard any? Who do they ideally want to hit in front of Vlad and behind Vlad?

SPEAKER_02 33:55

Well, they're so immersed in this uh left-right, left-right balance that that it changes so frequently, right? There is no consistent leadoff man other than, say, George Springer, right? When Springer's healthy, he's the guy at the top of the order. But even Springer went through a a stretch of of um failure that that pushed him down to the sixth hole. You know, so there have been different guys at the top. Uh Nathan Lucas has hit in the leadoff position, for example, with a right-hander on the hill. Ernie's hit in the leadoff position with a left-hander on the hill. I think Pinango at one point let off a game or two as well. So there's constant movement at the top of the order. Um keeping Vlad where he is, I don't know if it matters much. Sometimes I think they should have experimented with dropping him in the order just uh to put him at ease at the very least, right? If he's not going to be the dangerous hitter he's supposed to be sitting in the three-hole, maybe drop him down to six and see if that changes anything.

SPEAKER_01 35:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 35:01

Uh it's a mystery. It's a it's a fantastic mystery. It's it's interesting. Um, and let's let's know this, right? The the the data shows that Major League Baseball decided that they were going to pitch differently to this year's Blue Jays than they did a year ago. This year's Blue Jays, they get more pitches out strike outside the strike zone than any other team in baseball. And that is a league-wide adjustment to a team that was was winning a year ago based on contact and consistent contact. So, what's the best way to mess up contact? Don't throw strikes. And teams have been relying on the Blue Jays swinging at pitches outside the zone, and so far it's worked.

SPEAKER_01 35:48

Yeah, I mean, it's look no further than Henry Clement. We keep coming back to the poster boy. I mean, if I'm pitching against him, if I'm calling the ballgame, he's gonna get his hits on bad balls. There's no there's no doubt about it, but he's not gonna generate any power balls. I would not throw that kid a strike if I didn't have to. Right. Literally, and he's not gonna take a walk. And you hit the nail on the head, James. That's the identity of this this ball club. I call him the Toronto Hack Attack. That's my nickname for their offense. They all got hot at the same time last year and carried all the way through the World Series, and it just doesn't happen. And you're right, you know, the league has made an adjustment. They don't throw very many strikes to the Toronto Blue Jays. It's banging.

SPEAKER_02 36:34

That's why you've seen this um individual regression from so many guys who had such good years last year. Springer and Guerrero, notable among them. Um, not that you were going to ask George Springer to try and replicate the year he had a season ago. That might be a once-in-a-lifetime type of situation, but um I think the way they're being pitched is one of the reasons why the numbers just aren't there. I mean, they they have certainly impacted Guerrero Jr. uh, you know, this this guy, based on the way he swings the bat, should be sort of an automatic 25 home run, 90 to 100 driven in type of hitter every single year. But my goodness, his home run totals don't match, don't come close to matching Brendan Valenzuela's, for example. Right. Right? And to say that in the middle of June, um that really speaks about why they're sitting at this moment outside of playoff position.

SPEAKER_01 37:32

Well, I uh you know, one last thing to talk about. I mean, you brought him up, Brandon Velenzuela, like uh, you know, as a former catcher, switch hitting catcher, you know, I'm pretty impressed with the kid. Uh, you know, he's got some things to clean up. You know, I'm not as impressed with his defense as everybody else is because I don't think he blocks the ball very well. There's been a few, you know, pass balls, wild pitches that could be cleaned up, but for the most part, um, do the Jays see this guy as a future everyday?

SPEAKER_02 38:06

You know, that's a great question, Greg. I don't know how they see him, other than that he's been this really surprisingly good acquisition. As you know, you never really know what a player is like until they get to the big leagues. So when he was acquired from San Diego for Will Wagner, you know, who has not been able to stick in the big leagues with San Diego, uh, no one truly understood who Valenzuela was. It's only when you see him play in the majors do you really start to get a sense. And and again, let's wait for years two and three when some adjustments are made by big league pitchers. Um, but what he's done is he's created this really interesting problem given that Alejandro Kirk is locked in long term. And and Kirk returned recently from the IL and got back to business almost immediately of being, you know, a premier hitter in this league. So how they're gonna do that for the next few years, I don't know. Um, it cost Tyler Heineman his job, and Heinemann is sort of your classic reliable backup catcher who, you know, who can make a living playing 10 years in the big leagues just by being a backup, and all of a sudden, you know, his position on the on the roster was not required because of how good Valenzuela's been. So, as they say, it's a great problem to have, right? Two decent catchers. Um, Kirk's sort of legitimate. You know, he's reached that level of being a bona fide number one, and maybe we'll find out that Brandon Valenzuela has that future too, whether or not it's with this team. Who knows, right? Because a catcher like that, and and I'm sure you are among the many former catchers who have seen a sort of a decline in performance in that position specifically. Um, maybe he's either someone you hang on to and try and work some kind of a platoon setup, or you trade him away to get another piece at some point.

SPEAKER_01 40:04

Right on. Well, I think you're right. It's a nice luxury to have. You know, a couple of guys, it's it could end up, you know, they could trade him, trade Kirky, it could bring in some good players for for the organization at some point. Well, I gotta get going on this one, James, but thank you so much for being here. And uh, it's always a pleasure to you know see it. I know the people on the radio can't tell that we keep we're looking at each other, but I love you, pal. I love you, pal. Hope to talk with you on the on the program again soon. I love you too, bud. Great to hear your voice. Take care. When we come back on Walk Off Slams, we're gonna get into everybody's favorite portion of the program, the Sunday roast.

SPEAKER_00 40:47

And now, the Sunday Roast with Greg's on.

SPEAKER_01 40:52

Major League Baseball took away the players' ability to police the game on the field years ago by keening up umpires to players being hit by pitch, basically leaving it in the hands of guys who rarely know the subtle nuances well enough to have a feel for when injections are warranted. We've even seen pitchers ejected after hitting batters with curveballs. Guys are afraid to pitch inside for fear of hasty ejections, and players can hang out all over the plate while wearing full suits of armor, thus taking away any fear they have of getting drilled. The outside corner is totally up for grabs, and the behavior of players is completely unchecked. Guys are pimping homers and bat flipping walks. They overreact to pitchers inside like they're a threat to their lives. Managers don't even know what to say or what not to say in these situations. Let me set the stage for you in a recent Orioles Padres game. 4-2 is the score. Orioles pitcher dumps Maddie Machado on his ass, high and tight. I love it. No blood, no foul. Rolls him into a double play. So basically, the high and tight made the slider down and a wave much more effective. Unfortunately, then the drama begins. Same Orioles guy accidentally drills Xander Bogartz in the head. Same inning. Padres are pissed that I understand. Gotta get your pound of flesh, don't you? One of mine goes down, one of yours goes down. It sends a message to be careful pitching in on my big guys. If you drill one of mine, I'm gonna drill one of yours. It's a cat and mouse game and a battle for the plate. On one hand, you have hitters that want to be comfy, and on the other side, a pitching staff that needs to make them uncomfortable. Who has the stomach for it? Well, not many people do these days. Most players don't want to play this game, and inexperienced coaches who have never played this brand of baseball themselves don't know how to manage it. So here we go. The Padres are gonna get their payback. They get out to a 7-2 lead, and up steps Gunner Henderson, the Oriel's best player. He's the guy you're gunning for. Get it? Gunning for Gunner? Okay, moving on. They took their shot at him twice in the at-bat and they missed. That should have been it. The message was sent, but unfortunately, the unwritten rules say once you take your shot and you miss, you don't get to keep going until you land one. Amateur hour stuff. Fast forward to the ninth with two outs, they drill Gunner Henderson complete and utter garbage, and so was the way the Orioles manager, Craig Alberna, is took up for the Padres. He said, I get why they're mad. I'm not saying they hit Gunner on purpose. Really, dude? He went on to say they did it the right way, and Gunner is okay with it and just took first base. No, Craig, they didn't do it the right way, and neither did you. The Padres had their chance. They weren't good enough to get it done, and they should have just moved on. Now we get to Albernez and his beta post-game comments that are a shining example of how to lose a clubhouse in one quote 101. What he should have said was the Padres had their chance and they missed. Drilling Gunner on purpose because it was in fact on purpose was Bush, and we won't forget it. Drop the mic, walk off. Overdone. It's Sunday. Can you smell that roast?