Artificial Turf Wars

Greg and Josh discuss the latest news and notes from Blue Jays land including the Charlie Montoyo extension, the "better late than never" pickup of Dexter Fowler, Santiago Espinal showing more power, David Phelps officially making the roster, some minor ills in the bullpen and why Greg Bird is not on the roster yet. They also give out a couple of Do Overs and answer listener questions.

Greg and Josh discuss the latest week of Blue Jays news and games. They start by going over the Randal Grichuk for Raimel Tapia and Adrian Pinto, including the change to Toronto's lineup, the overall talent change and a scouting report on Pinto. They also talk about Nate Pearson's renewed use of his curveball, some hints about the probably opening day lineup, Orelvis Martinez opening eyes at camp, Matt Chapman's early defensive prowess and the announcement of stadium renovations. They also answer listener questions, give a Gold Star to Nathan Lukes and enter Shapiro's Ranting Corner.

Greg, Josh and Nick break down a very productive week for the Blue Jays. They start with the biggest news, the acquisition of Matt Chapman in trade from the Oakland A's. They discuss the deal itself, the things Chapman can bring to the table that specifically help the Blue Jays on both the offensive and defensive side and the issues Chapman had offensively in 2021. The also talk about the pickups of Yusei Kikuchi and Andrew Vasquez, the swirling trade rumours about what will happen next and the ideal role for Nate Pearson.Finally, they answer a bunch of listener questions and give out a Do Over.

Greg, Josh and Nick discuss the end of the owners' lockout of the players and the new collective bargaining agreement. They go over some of the new features of the CBA such as the change in the CBT, the new pay for younger players and the expanded postseason, then some of the changes they couldn't make. They also answer listener questions, give a Gold Star to a pitcher who REALLY cares about baseball being back and talk about some rule changes and how they will affect the Blue Jays.

Because of a lack of baseball news during the lockout, Greg and Josh take a look back at a couple of key players from the first successful era of the Blue Jays Franchise. They go in depth on Jimmy Key and Fred McGriff and what made them special to the Blue Jays and their fans, both during and after their tenures in Toronto. They also answer listener questions, give a lockout update and give out a Do Over to the Rays owner.

Greg and Josh go over a busy week in Blue Jays land. They go in depth on the signing of Kevin Gausman including the contract he signed, what he brings to the table, how he has changed his approach to pitching in recent years to gain success and why the contract valuation isn't really representative of what Gausman did in 2021. They also discuss potential reasons why the team signed Gausman over Ray, the pickup of Yimi García and the impact on the back of the pen and the no risk/very high reward minor league deal for David Phelps. Finally, they look at the impact of the soft lockout deadline on free agency and how that can be played with going forward. They also answer a slew of listener questions and give out a Gold Star on Max Scherzer's behalf.

Greg an Josh discuss the José Berríos extension including the value of the deal, what he brings to the table from both a performance and durability side and what the signing frees up for the Blue Jays both in the near and long term. They also discuss Robbie Ray's Cy Young win, how the pursuit of free agents could be quite tough in this current market and how the Jays might try to mitigate some of those risks. They also answer questions and give out a Gold Star to the Blue Jays PR/Marketing team.

Greg, Josh and Nick give out their annual end of the year awards to the Blue Jays including obvious topics like Best Hitter, MVP, Favourite Moment and less obvious, more random categories.

Greg and Josh wrap up a great, but not great enough Blue Jays season. They start by talking about some of the incredible records set by the offensive members of the club, then go into the incredible, Cy Young-worthy season by Robbie Ray and Alek Manoah's impressive rookie campaign before discussing where it went wrong. They go over the recent games before looking at some of the problems as a whole that led to missing the postseason, despite winning 91 games. They also take a look forward at some of the challenges the club will face in the offseason. Finally, they answer listener questions and give out a Gold Star to Bo Bichette.

Nick Stellini stops by to preview the upcoming "playoff" series between the Blue Jays and Yankees (28:45). He looks back at the crazy recent series with the Red Sox before discussing the various pitching matchups, the returns to health from some key members of the Yankees bullpen, the potential impact of the increased capacity in Toronto and where the Yankees went wrong to be in this position at all before pondering the value of the unbalanced schedule.Greg and Josh also take stock of how the Blue Jays got to where they are with a look at the brief stumble in the opening two games of the series against the Twins, before turning it around thanks to the returning power of George Springer. They then look ahead to the upcoming Yankees series, specifically with the choice to start Hyun-jin Ryu in the opening game, and how the whole rotation is now set up for the final week of the season (and more, if necessary). They also touch on the injury and recovery of Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Teoscar Hernández' incredible perfor

Greg and Josh discuss the recent series against the Orioles, Rays and Twins, with a specific focus on the wild end to the Orioles series. They also take stock of the rotation as it stands with Hyun Jin Ryu going on the shelf, talk about the way Robbie Ray's pitches interact and how he's using them to such success, look at Vlad's dwindling Triple Crown chances and the historic nature of his season, and touch on the performances of Marcus "40-homer man" Semien, Teoscar Hernández and the bullpen.They also answer listener questions and give the Blue Jays Offence a slightly different Gold Star.

Greg and Josh go over an incredible week of games in Blue Jays land. They discuss the expectations entering the four-gamer with New York and the ending results, Marcus Semien and Lourdes Gurriel's incredible hot streaks, Vlad Guerrero's odd splits with runners on base, Hyun-Jin Ryu's recent Jekyll and Hyde act, the returns of Nate Pearson and Julian Merryweather to the bullpen, Brandon Hyde's weird dugout antics and a look at the state of the Wild Card race.Finally they answer listener questions, give out a Gold Star and an unnamed award.

Greg and Josh go over the last couple of weeks of play in Blue Jays land. They discuss the, up until recently, anemic offence that (combined with some poorly timed errors) led to a tumble down the Wild Card standings, the recent series wins, the offensive explosion against the A's, Robbie Ray's incredible August, George Springer's return to the batter's box, the major September roster shuffle and finally a discussion about the easiest route to the postseason.They also answer listener questions and give out a couple of Gold Stars.

Greg and Josh discuss the disappointing west coast portion of the road trip, which ended up with three blown leads leading to losses. They go over the offensive issues that created the close games, the bullpen meltdowns and some fielding/bad luck issues. They also talk about the strong rotation, Teoscar Hernández's Player of the Week Award and the changes he has made to become a strong hitter, George Springer's injury, the pending returns of Nate Pearson and Tim Mayza on the pitching side and Cavan Biggio on the position player side, as well as other people returning from injury who may not have roster spots waiting for them. Finally they answer listener questions and give a rare Gold Star to MLB.

Matt Kory of Sox Outsider stops by to go over the latest series between the Red Sox and Blue Jays, the confusing Boston deadline moves, the delayed return of Chris Sale and the divisional fight going forward. Greg and Josh also discuss the incredible performance at home against both Cleveland and Boston, George Springer rounding into all-World form, Vlad's struggles, the 6-man rotation's strong play and the future moves required there, the bullpen carousel continually turning but expecting pending major reinforcements of Julien Merryweather and Nate Pearson and the debut of Corey Dickerson and his importance to balancing out the Toronto lineup.

Greg and Josh go over a crazy week in Blue Jays led by the acquisition of José Berríos for Austin Martin and Simeon Woods Richardson. They discuss what Berríos can bring to the club and the cost going the other way, why it made sense and the secondary impact on the roster of Berríos' arrival. They also touch on Brad Hand's recent struggles, Joakim Soria's arrival and the overall look of the new bullpen, the Blue Jays' homecoming, Alek Manoah's velocity and why it doesn't really matter if it's down, George Springer heating up and Santiago Espinal pushing for more playing time. They also answer listener questions and give a Gold Star to Joey Votto.

Greg and Josh talk about a disappointing week in Blue Jays land that saw them go 1-5 including two more blown late leads. They go over some of the late game issues including specific worries about the recent stuff shown by Ryan Borucki and Jordan Romano and the late inning offence, the new look, optimized offence, a strong bounceback start from Ross Stripling, the trade talks surrounding the Jays and a discussion about what direction the team should take and the returns of Thomas Hatch and Alejandro Kirk along with the loss of Danny Jansen to injury. They also answer listener questions and give a Do Over to MLB Network.

Baseball Prospectus Senior MLB Draft Writer, Keanan Lamb, stops by to discuss the Jays 2021 draft (21:45). He gives his thoughts on the number one pick, Gunnar Hoglund, and the risks the Jays weighed by taking an injured pitcher in the first round, the upside play with picks 3-5 and some interesting late round signs. He goes over the various reasons why this particular draft was so pitching heavy before giving a final grade on the Jays selections. Greg and Josh also discuss the upcoming return of the Blue Jays to Toronto and the crazy process that led them there, the All-Star game heroics from Vlad Jr. – and to a lesser extent Semien, Hernández and Bichette – and their strong play out of the gate, the continued dominance of Robbie Ray and return to form of Hyun-jin Ryu and Pete Walker's role in those turnarounds and the return of Ryan Borucki and its impact on the bullpen before checking in on the status of Danny Jansen. They also answer listener questions and give out two Gold Stars.

Greg and Josh break down the Rowdy Tellez for Trevor Richards (and Bowden Francis) trade, including what Richards brings to the table and why Rowdy was a clear choice to be moved, they also discuss Bo's selection to the All-Star team, a positive but also disappointing series vs the Rays and how it affects fandom, the stabilizing force brought by Adam Cimber and Jacob Barnes to the middle innings, Randal Grichuk's place in the lineup and what types of trades make sense for this team and what types probably don't. They also answer a couple of listener questions and give out a Gold Star.

Greg and Josh discuss the acquisitions of Adam Cimber and Corey Dickerson, including what they can bring to the club, how they impact the depth and what the trade says about how the Jays will operate going forward. They also go over the All-Star selections of Vlad Jr, Marcus Semien and Teoscar Hernández, the struggles of Ryu and how he can get out of them and Chatwood and how he can't, Anthony Kay's strong recent run and creative uses for him with a healthy rotation, Lourdes Gurriel's hot streak, Springer moving up in the order and the pending returns of some relievers and some catchers. They also answer listener questions, touch on the awful allegations against Trevor Bauer and his place in the game in the future (or lack thereof) and give a Do Over to Chip Caray.