Eric Thames - Gone for what??

Wow, what a shitty day to be a Blue Jays fan. You go to bed thinking, we have one of the best stock piles of young outfielders anywhere in baseball.  You wake up and your Bullpen is now just okay... for a couple guys they could probably get via free agency.  The raw power of Eric Thames was evident with any BP session you watched.  Its very sad that this organization has forgotten the lessons of Cito Gaston who turned Jose Bautista into Joey Bats and Marco Scutaro in a valuable player and Shawn Green into well you get where I am going here.  What happens in 3 yrs when Anthony Gose has been sent back to the farm 3 times and people are wondering, will he be traded??   You need to give these young guys an opportunity to succeed and compete at the Major League level.  Travis didn't know where he was going, one minute he is stud, the next he is back on the farm.  This is a huge mistake by an organization that always claims that you need to get the best player in the deal to win the trade.  Well on deadline day 2012 they lost both trades.

Travis Snider Traded to the Pirates for RHP Brad Lincoln

I guess the Blue Jays got tired of seeing Travis Snider swing and miss at off-speed pitches.  Snider who would be out of options next spring was slowly degrading as a prospect.  The Jays maximize there investment and are clearly going to go with Anthony Gose in the outfield as the third with Colby Rasmus and Jose Bautista.  Anthopoulos, Jays GM has realized that Snider was not going to be one of the top 3 in the Spring and there hand would be forced.  Snider had been up and down many times over the last 4 years, his huge home run potential and still projects as a quality corner outfielder.  His power and early success had lots of Blue Jay Fans excited about his potential.  Only to be disappointed when he would go in prolonged slumps.  Snider is also an excellent defensive outfielder getting quality jumps on the ball and exhibiting a strong arm.  He will probably play rightfield for the Pirates who are in a playoff push for the first time in more than 2 decades.

Open question - But how much of a chance did they really give Travis Snider?

Blue Jays 2011 Year in Review

2011 was a year of change.  New Manager, New Closer, New 1st Baseman, and most of the experiments worked out this year.  Adam Lind who played 1st Base in College turned in a great year with the glove, making most of us forget about Lyle Overbay.  Lind who appeared at times as uninterested left fielder, we have to assume that the idea of chatting with all the opposing players is more interesting than standing in left field or on the bench waiting to hit.  The move has solved the issue of the offensive vacuum that plagued the Jays for parts of the last 5 yrs.  To Adam's right was Aaron "I Forgot how to Hit!" Hill, who was traded to the Dbacks for another under performer Kelly Johnson.  Johnson could be brought back next season but it is not sure how they will handle second base next year. 

Does Brett Lawrie play to hard??

Brett Lawrie makes huge difference in return from leg contusion driving in 3 runs in his first game back. This shows his determination as many thought the injury was going to be much more serious. This begs the question is Lawrie going to be limited by his all or nothing effort. With each injury he will be less of the player he could be, but its also impossible to ask Lawrie to play less hard. That is like telling a pitcher to throw quite so hard. He is intense and that is why we love him, but unfortunately it could be an issue moving forward.