Artificial Turf Wars

Throughout the shutdown of MLB caused by the Covid-19 panic, ATW will be doing looks back at various aspects of franchise history, from the draft to award winners and snubs to interesting pennant races and more. This week, Greg and Josh look back at the Toronto Blue Jays' trading history. Starting with the slightly slower early era that built to a frenzy from 1990-1993, then a look at some trades that didn't exactly work out in the Blue Jays favour and finishing with a look at the deals that helped build the latest contending teams. They also answer a few listener questions on the Blue Jays trading history.

Throughout the shutdown of MLB caused by the Covid-19 panic, ATW will be doing looks back at various aspects of franchise history, from big trades to award winners and snubs to interesting pennant races and more. In the first episode of the series, Greg and Josh look back the the Blue Jays' history with the draft. They discuss the early success that turned into mystifying ineptitude and its impact on the slow build of the expansion squad, some interesting "ones who got away," some picks that for various reasons were poorly made and had poor results, a stretch of really strong picks in the 1990s, and a look at the top bWAR earners in club history.

Matthew Kory of the Red Sox Coast to Coast Podcast stops by (19:45) to preview the Boston Red Sox for the upcoming season. He discusses the recent injury issues for Chris Sale and the effect on the Red Sox rotation, the still-solid offense and the mercurial Andrew Benintendi, the how and why of the Mookie Betts-David Price trade, the loss of Alex Cora and the pending potential discipline for sign stealing and finally, his prediction for how the season will play out in Boston.Greg and Josh also discuss the battle for the fifth spot in the Blue Jays rotation, Rafael Dolis' appendectomy and the effect on the bullpen, Jordan Romano's step forward and Vlad Guerrero Jr. and Danny Jansen's recent power displays. Finally, they answer listener questions and give out a Gold Star.

Greg and Josh go over the stories from the first week of spring training including Hyun-Jin Ryu's first start, Nate Pearson's powerful debut and the inability for fans to watch it, Pearson's extreme unlikelihood to make the opening day roster, Vlad's work to lift the ball more and the early results not reflecting the process, Anthony Alford's early struggles as he hopes to earn a roster spot and the minor league signing of Marc "Scrabble" Rzepczynski. Finally, they answer listener questions and discuss the new blackout baseball games in Canada in the context of larger issues MLB has with reaching and growing its audience.

Spring Training has arrived, so Greg and Josh discuss some actual news in the World of the Blue Jays (and baseball at large). They go over the surgery undergone by top prospect Eric Pardinho and its effect on his development, the unfortunate incident involving Reese McGuire, a couple of new MiLB reliever signings, the latest in the ongoing Astros' sign-stealing saga, and Charlie Montoyo's stated early favourites in the battle for the final spot in the starting rotation. Finally, they answer listener questions, give a Gold Star to a very unlikely recipient and give out a Do Over to Major League Baseball.

Greg, Josh and Nick go over some of the recent happenings in the world of the Toronto Blue Jays. They discuss the signing of Rafael Dolis and his potential role in Toronto, the very interesting roster situation that the Jays find themselves in with too many players for too few spots and what that may mean for pursuit of potential bullpen upgrades in free agency, the minor league signing of Joe Panik and finally they look at the various top 100 prospects lists that have come out recently and what they tell us about where the Blue Jays stand as an organization. Finally, they answer listener questions and give a Do Over to the owner of the Colorado Rockies.

Greg and Josh discuss a crazy week in the World of MLB that happened to coincide with a rather quiet one in Toronto. They cover what the signing of Shun Yamaguchi means for the club in terms of potential future Japanese free agents, Yamaguchi's potential role with the club, what types of moves the Jays could still be looking to make this offseason, Sean Reid-Foley remaining in the mix as a starter, Richard Urena's departure, the minor league signing of Ruben Tejada and new jerseys to be unveiled. Finally they answer listener questions and give out the longest Do Over in ATW history to the whole mess created by the Astros scandal.

Happy Holidays from Artificial Turf Wars!Greg, Josh and Nick break down a really busy week in Blue Jays land. They discuss the signing of Hyun-Jin Ryu and what he means to the club, how he changes the outlook of the rotation and what his signing signifies to the fan base. They also go over the signing of Travis Shaw and the role he'll play on the club, the signing of Shun Yamaguchi and where he slots in the pitching plan, and what comes next for the club. Finally, the trio answer a slew of listener questions before signing off for the year.

Greg, Josh and Nick discuss the good and bad of the signing of Tanner Roark to a two-year, $24M deal including what would improve the outlook of the move and what would make it a waste. They also discuss the rule 5 draft and why the Jays didn't take anybody, what other known targets say about the Blue Jays' offseason strategy, and other teams targeting the Blue Jays' young catchers. Finally they answer a number of listener questions and give a second straight Do Over to the Jays' front office.

Shi Davidi (28:45) of Sportsnet stops by to discuss the Jays' apparent plans in free agency, some of the difficulties they've been facing and potential missteps, the confusing Matt Shoemaker situation, and what could happen if they miss out on Hyun-Jin Ryu and Dallas Keuchel. Greg and Josh also discuss the decisions made at the tender deadline - including cutting ties with Luke Maile, Derek Law and Jason Adam and keeping Brandon Drury, missing out on Zack Wheeler and what that could mean, and general issues with the current free agent situation. They also give out a Do Over to Ross Atkins and answer listener question.

Former Vancouver Canadians general manager Jason Takefman stops by (21;10) to discuss the relationship between the parent club and its minor league affiliates, the development of local fanbases and what he thinks of the reported minor league contraction. Greg and Josh also discuss the additions of Thomas Hatch and Santiago Espinal to the 40-man roster, why others were not added, stadium renovations and some eyebrow-raising comments from Ross Atkins. They also answer listener questions, compare the Blue Jays situation to the White Sox and look at the Astros' cheating scandal.

Greg and Josh discuss the acquisition of Chase Anderson including why the Jays might have wanted him and what they might look to do with him going forward. They also talk about the departures of Ryan Tepera and Devon Travis, Mark Shapiro's comments to the Toronto media about Gerrit Cole and free agency, Dalton Pompey and others reaching minor league free agency and Vlad Guerrero Jr. failing to finish top 3 in Rookie of the Year voting. They also answer listener questions and give out a Do Over to MLBPA head, Tony Clark.

Greg and Josh give out their annual end-of-season rewards to the Blue Jays including familiar categories such as best hitter, best pitcher and favourite moment, as well as some more creative topics like best home run celebration, most whelming player, most surreal and GIFable moments.

Greg and Josh prepare for the end of the Blue Jays' season with a look forward at the surprisingly meaningful final series against Tampa and avoiding a 100 loss season, then a look back at recent events like Vladimir Guerrero Jr's controversy-causing weightlifting comments, Cavan Biggio's cycle, injuries and illnesses for Lourdes Gurriel Jr, Bo Bichette and Anthony Kay, the strong finish for Ken Giles and the appearance of the unknown in Breyvic Valera. Finally, the answer a slew of listener questions and give a Gold Star to a pitcher for the Texas Rangers.

In their latest foray into Blue Jays news/notes, Greg and Josh discuss Toronto's quest to avoid 100 losses and how likely/unlikely that has seemed at various points over the last couple of weeks, Trent Thornton's "no-hitter" and he change to his repertoire that accompanied it, Anthony Kay's impressive debut, the defensive challenges facing this team now and in the future, Wilmer Font locking down the opener role and earning a spot on next year's club, Rowdy Tellez and Cavan Biggio playing better as they look to establish themselves as big leaguers and Anthony Alford simply not playing at all. Finally they answer listener questions and give out a Do Over to the Mets manager.

Greg and Josh discuss the announced return of Eric Sogard, the wealth of September call ups, TJ Zeuch debuting as a bulk-inning reliever, the playing time crunch in the outfield, Anthony Kay's pending debut, Ken Giles throwing on back-to-back days, the return of Ryan Tepera and potential extensions for some young Blue Jays. They also answer listener questions and give out a Do-Over to one of the best hitters of all-time.

Greg and Josh break down the latest news and stories from Blue Jays land including Bo Bichette's continued hot start to his career with two home runs against Clayton Kershaw, Vlad Guerrero Jr's march back into the Rookie of the Year conversation, the ups and downs of the young Toronto rotation with surprise results from Jacob Waguespack and inconsistent - both in performance and pitch selection - work from Trent Thornton, returns to health from Clay Buchholz and Ryan Tepera and a brief look at the performance of the baby Jays over the last month or two. Finally, they answer listener questions and give out both a Players' Weekend-related Do-Over and a Gold Star.

Greg and Josh discuss the latest string of good play and what it suggests fans should look for going forward. They also break down the epic Vladimir Guerrero Jr. vs Aroldis Chapman showdown and the "it factor" that players like Vlad possess, Bo Bichette continuing to break record, Freddy Galvis being waived and how that impacts the roster going forward, the Justin Smoak/Rowdy Tellez playing time mess, Ken Giles' "health" and the struggles of the front office to get a popular message across. Finally, they answer listener questions.

Greg and Josh go take a look at the post-deadline state of the Jays, starting with the incredible, record-breaking debut of Bo Bichette. They discuss his tremendous numbers, how the skill set seems to apply to big league pitching, and a couple of things he still needs to work on. They also talk about the latest injury to Ryan Borucki and the worries associated with it, the acquisition of Zack Godley and the impressive performance of Jacob Waguespack. They also answer listener questions and give a half gold star to the Toronto Blue Jays.

In a Trade Deadline special episode, Greg and Josh break down the Jays' activity over the last couple of days, specifically focusing on the Aaron Sanchez/Joe Biagini/Cal Stevenson deal for Derek Fisher and the David Phelps and Daniel Hudson deals for Thomas Hatch and Kyle Johnston, respectively. They also discuss general thoughts on the Jays' success/strategies at the deadline and how they played out.