Donaldson led the Blue Jays to the postseason for the first time since 1993 with one of the best offensive performances in franchise history. He hit .297 with 41 home runs and led the Majors with 122 runs scored while pacing the AL with 123 RBIs and appearing in all but four games. Donaldson was also first in the AL with 84 extra-base hits, second to Trout with 8.7 WAR and third with a .939 on-base plus slugging percentage.
George Bell was the first Blue Jays player to win the AL MVP in 1987. In the last several weeks, Donaldson has won the Hank Aaron Award, the Players’ Choice Most Outstanding Player Award and an AL Silver Slugger Award as the league’s top offensive third baseman. He finished fourth in voting for the AL MVP in 2013 and eighth last season as a member of the A’s.
By now you’ve either read my blog post on the topic or seen the gifs or videos of Jose Bautista’s epic home run from Wednesday night’s ALDS Game. And his bat flip.
And of course you’ve heard and or read the many opinions of those who know better that Bautista disrespected the pitcher, the Texas Rangers and the game of baseball as a result of his emotional response.
Esquire had a nice piece on the bat flip and it’s place in sports history.
From a cultural standpoint those who had a problem with what Bautista did lack cultural understanding and awareness.
These same people had a problem with his temper over the years. They had a problem with how Jose Reyes played the game and celebrated the game with joy. They don’t like the way Johnny Cueto sometimes does a jig before he pitches. And I’m sure there’s so much more they dislike.
But there are also things they like that I have no patience for. They like hitting batters to send a message. They like it when a veteran assults a younger player to teach them a lesson. They like batters who never celebrate a home run. Lest they anger the baseball gods.
These people can also be found in other sports. Here in Canada you can find them in hockey. And everywhere else.
You know who I’m talking about. They are not necessarily wrong. Nor are they right.
It’s like Harold Reynolds saying that Canadians can’t catch. He’s not right. And he’s not wrong. He’s ignorant. Of course we can catch.
And Jose Bautista is not disrespecting anyone or anything. This is how he displays his passion and love for the game. The same game he’s been playing since he was a kid playing baseball in the Dominican Republic. The same game Cole Hamels had been playing in the States.
And it’s the same game. However people play this game all over the world. I’ve had the opportunity to watch baseball in Taiwan. And to watch an international game played between Canada and the Dominican Republic. And of course Blue Jays baseball.
To expect an homogeneous baseball culture in 2015 is not just ridiculous. But short sighted and ignorant.
Let’s enjoy the game and how people doing all over the world play it. On the biggest baseball stage in the world. Major League Baseball.
I don’t know if PitchTalks creator, Kevin Kennedy, know this or not but this monthly event has quickly become the must attend event for sports fans (not just baseball) across the Greater Toronto Area. For me, it’s the highlight of my month.
Scott Crawford is the Director of Operations for the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in St. Mary’s, Ontario. Alexis Brudnicki is the lead writer for the Canadian Baseball Network and former statistician for the Toronto Blue Jays.
If you're missing #PitchTalks, you're missing insane stories from women's baseball world championships! It involves bullets. And hurricanes.
Ashley Stephenson (a full-time teacher) has been a member of the Canadian women’s baseball team since 2004 and has already participated in five world championships. Autumn Mills (a full-time policewoman) has been with the team since 2005, primarily as a pitcher.
Last night, Toronto’s baseball faithful enjoyed one of the most entertaining editions of Pitch Talks to date.
Alexis Brudnicki shared her deep insights and knowledge about Canadian International Baseball. I always appreciate the early speakers and panelists. Most of the time they bring a new and fresh perspective on the sport.
Alex Seixeiro and Scott Cullen shared their thoughts on the upcmoing fantasy baseball season. I’m not a huge fantasy player. However, there were tons of people in attendance who had their nerd caps on. It was an amazing sight to behold.
Finally we had the pre-season Blue Jays banter with Scott MacArthur, Mike Wilner, Jamie Campbell and Gregg Zaun. And this panel DID NOT disappoint. Zaun, in fact, stole the show. He shared stories of his time with the Baltimore Orioles (getting put in his place by Cal Ripkin Jr.), Florida Marlins (World Series champs) and Toronto Blue Jays (helping JP Arencibia learn to become a major league catcher). Zaun was uncensored and in the mood to share with fans of the best sport in the world.
If you’re a fan of baseball in Toronto (or Canada for that matter) then Pitch Talks is the place to be. What are you waiting for?!
If you are a hardcore baseball fan living in the Greater Toronto Area then you were probably in attendance last night at the latest Pitch Talks event. Hosted by Kevin Kennedy at the Culture, Art, Media & Education Centre in Toronto, last night’s event featured a short Blue Jays film by Cashew Mirman Videos as well as the Canadian premiere of the Dock Ellis story: No No: A Dockumentary.
Kicking off the festivities was a round table panel discussing the latest Blue Jays move this winter featuring: Megan Robinson (Sportsnet Fan590), Ben Nicholson-Smith (Sportsnet), Shi Davidi (Sportsnet) and Drew Fairservice (NOT Sportsnet – Fangraphs).
As the Toronto Blue Jays start the second half of the 2014 season, I thought I would take a quick look at the various positions and players to see what where we are at and what we need to do to win the American League East.
First Base is currently being played by all-star player Jose Bautista. Adam Lind? He’s on the DL for the next little while after taking medical advice from his mother. Strange days. While he was playing, Lind was hitting the cover off the ball. Against righties mind you. Manager John Gibbons, understanding that Lind can’t hit lefties, has platooned him for most of the season with Edwin Encarnacion. Lind is currently hitting .320 but don’t expect him back until August.
DH/First Base. Edwin Encarnacion continues to assault the ball with his towering home runs. When he’s not injured. Yikes. Encarnacion sits at the break with 26 home runs.
Second Base. Started with Maicer Izturis. But he only played 11 games. Third baseman and all-Canadian Brett Lawrie has been playing there. But guess what? Injured. So the Jays got Steve Tolleson from Buffalo.
Shortstop is the oft injured Jose Reyes. But guess what? He’s not injured! Yay. While his range is not world class he’s been (while he’s not injured) a steady contributor for the Blue Jays at the top of the batting order. Currently, Reyes sits at 17 stolen bases.
Third base. See above for Lawrie. In the meantime, Juan Francisco has been….ok. In 71 games he has hit 14 home runs. Not bad. But he has also struck out 85 times. Not good.
Left field is currently being patrolled by Melky Cabrera. I can’t remember if he’s injured or not. Seriously, he’s not injured. His play, when you compare it to last year, is a 180 degree difference. He has 7 assists as a fielder and is a very capable second hitter in front of Toronto’s power hitters.
Center field is currently patrolled by Colby Rasmus. He’s not injured but he’s not even hitting .250. He does have 12 home runs but he also has over 70 strike outs. EVen Anthony Gose looks like a superstar when he has replaced Rasmus. And Gose is not hitting that much over the .250 line.
Right field has mostly been patrolled by Bautista (when he’s not injured or playing first/DH). His home runs might not be as high but he can still bang with the best of them. His hitting has actually gotten stronger as he’s using the entire field. Which is a benefit considering opposition teams play him to pull almost all the time.
Catching. Anything is better than JP Arencibia from last year. Where is JPA now? In the minors trying to play first base in the Texas Rangers system. Good grief.
The pitching corps has actually being a bright light for the Blue Jays. Mark Buehrle has been the ace of the staff. Buehrle sits at 10 wins with an amazing ERA of 2.64. Bright lights? Rookie Marcus Stroman and closer Casey Janssen.
Manager John Gibbons has been outstanding. That’s just my opinion. But look where the Blue Jays sit: In second place 4 games out of first. Now that’s pretty good. And so is this team. When they are healthy.
What do the Blue Jays have to do from here to win the division and play for the World Series?
Get healthy and stay healthy.
Get a top of the line pitcher.
Get a star infielder.
Time for Alex Anthopoulos to step up to the plate.
That is the message that greets you when you visit PitchTalks.ca. And you WILL visit that website. It’s one of the best new things on the internet today.
If you’re a baseball fan, this site is for you.
If you’re a sports fan, this site is for you.
If you’re a Toronto sports media fan, this site is for you.
Toronto is baseball crazy at the moment with the Toronto Blue Jays doing well in the American League East this year. So far. However, baseball is not the sole domain of North America. It’s huge in Asia. Specifically, Taiwan.
I was in Taipei earlier this spring and got the chance to go to a baseball game between the Elephants and Monkeys. As my son would say, “Go Primates!”
The game was pretty good. However, it was the atmosphere that I enjoyed the most. No one is drunk although they serve beer. It’s a family atmosphere even though the crowd is split between the rival teams. And the crowd is generally very well behaved even though the entire stadium is singing, clapping and cheering throughout the game. It’s amazing!
Here are some photos inside and outside the stadium.
