Q&A with Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter

Tom Dakers of Bluebird Banter, our sister site for the Toronto Blue Jays, did a quick Q&A with each other ahead of this weekend’s series.

Enjoy!

1. The Jays are in last place in the very competitive AL East. Did you expect this is them or do you think they will start playing better and get into a race for a playoff spot?

Well, they really could barely play worse, so I’d like to think they will play better. But getting into a playoff race? That’s hard to imagine at the moment. I’d like them to get back to .500 and then see from there. The team hasn’t been scoring. Most of the offensive troubles have been coming from the top of the order. Vlad, Bo and Springer hadn’t been hitting the way we hope.

Vlad has been better, for the past 2-3 weeks, not showing the power we would like, but hitting the ball hard and getting on base about half the time. I’d move him into the leadoff spot, but they don’t consult me. Bo seems to have started hitting this week, getting his average back over .200 and hitting with more power. Springer? He’s been terrible, and, for the last couple of weeks, sick with the flu or something that has been running through the clubhouse. If they start hitting at a MLB average rate, we’ll be better.

2. Can we have a quick scouting report on the starting pitchers the Rays will face?

Tonight is Chris Bassitt. He’s had good starts and bad starts. He throws a number of different pitchers and some days he has a hard time figuring out which dozen are working for him on this particular day.

Tomorrow Kevin Gausman starts. He had a minor injury near the end of spring training and his first few starts were not great. He had four excellent starts in a row and then let the Twins beat him up badly in his last start. He looks like the same guy as always, high fastball, low splitter, with an slider thrown in to surprise us.

And Alek Manoah goes Sunday. He’s back from banishment to the minors. He had one very bad start, and one very good start, for 6 innings, and then error in the seventh opened the door to a three (unearned) run homer that got him an L. But he pitched 7 innings on 78 pitches.

3. Who is your favorite Jays player to watch?

Depends on the day, but it is hard not to enjoy Vlad when he is hitting well. He’s a happy guy. I’d like to think I’d be a happy guy if you played me millions to hit a ball with a bat. Daulton Varsho is a great player to watch too….but we’ll talk about him in a moment.

4. Trevor Richards is a former Rays reliever they essentially gave up on. Why is he good now”?

Good is subjective. He’s learned to strike guys out. Last year he struck out 33.3% of the batters he faced. And he’s one of the few of our relievers who John Schneider will allow to pitch more than an inning in an outing. Unfortunately, with the strikeouts comes a lot of homers and more walks than one would like to see, especially when you know there is a home run coming.

5. Closer Jordan Romero is off to an ugly start to the season. What happened?

He came into the season with a bit of an injury at the end of spring training and likely was pushed on the roster before he should have been. But he had his first Blown Save in his last outing, after 6 saves. The Blown Save wasn’t all his fault. Up by a run, he got an ground ball right at the second baseman, but it hit a bad bit of infield dirt and took a strange hop. After that there was a home run that barely cleared the wall in right. Baseball Savant says would have been in a home run in 9 of 30 parks, and Camden was one of them.

6. Did you expect Daulton Varsho to be your MVP so far this season?

Well, no.

With a but. His bat looked great in spring training, and he carried it into the season. Unfortunately, he’s cooled off lately. But he’s leading the team in home runs, tied for the top in RBI. He is fun to watch on the bases. And he’s the best Jays outfielder since Devon White. If it is hit in the air, he can get to it.

7. Our old friend Kevin Kiermaier reached 10/5 rights this season, how is he treating the Jays?

Last year he was great. This year, he’s been far less great, and, of course, has missed time with the virus that has hit so many Jays and a hip flexor issue. He’s played in 27 of the Jays 42, some of those as a defensive replacement. I wasn’t thrilled when the Jays resigned him this offseason. Not that I don’t like him but that he limits the value of Varsho. Varsho’s bat looks much better as a center fielder than as a left fielder. I would have preferred the team find a power bat for left field and have Varsho in center every day. Again, if they would just consult with me, they would be so much better off.