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	<title>Toronto &#187; Roster Changes</title>
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	<description>Comprehensive coverage of the Toronto Blue Jays</description>
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		<title>Chris Coglan Arrives During Blue Jays Eleventh Hour Shuffle</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2017/04/01/chris-coglan-arrives-during-blue-jays-eleventh-hour-shuffle/</link>
		<comments>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2017/04/01/chris-coglan-arrives-during-blue-jays-eleventh-hour-shuffle/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 01 Apr 2017 23:00:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Tammy Rainey]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Chris Coghlan]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Melvin Upton Jr.]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Mike Bolsinger]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Roster Changes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ryan Goins]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ryan Tepera]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=9989</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Your Toronto Blue Jays made two moves of significance today, with at least one more to go before Sunday&#8217;s 12 p.m. roster deadline. The first and most intriguing move came when the team announced they had signed OF/IF Chris Coghlan to a minor league contract. Blue Jays have agreed to terms with Chris Coghlan on [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Your Toronto Blue Jays made two moves of significance today, with at least one more to go before Sunday&#8217;s 12 p.m. roster deadline.</p>
<p>The first and most intriguing move came when the team announced they had signed OF/IF Chris Coghlan to a minor league contract.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Blue Jays have agreed to terms with Chris Coghlan on a minor league deal.</p>
<p>&mdash; Arden Zwelling (@ArdenZwelling) <a href="https://twitter.com/ArdenZwelling/status/848207244743372800">April 1, 2017</a></p></blockquote>
<p>Coghlan, who was dropped this week by the Phillies will start out in Buffalo. While we don&#8217;t know the specifics of the deal, you would be safe in assuming that the deal has opt-out provisions concerning how long they can keep him there. But that&#8217;s fine as there&#8217;s no reason to think they will want him there very long anyway.</p>
<p>Coghlan was Rookie of the Year for the Florida Marlins back in 2009 (edging out a certain pitcher you may have heard of by the name of JA Happ) and played most of the last three seasons with the Chicago Cubs. The &#8220;most of&#8221; comes from the fact that he was traded to the Oakland A&#8217;s at the beginning of Spring Training in 2016 and played 51 disastrous games for the A&#8217;s before being dealt back to the Cubs in June. The less said about his time in Oakland, the better, but his career in Chicago deserves a closer look.</p>
<p>In 321 games for the Cubs, the left handed hitter accumulated over a thousand plate appearances and slashed .264/.350/.441/.791, good for a 118 OPS+ and/or a 119 wRC+. And he splits even better than that vs. RHP. In 2014-15 he posted an .832 OPS against right handed pitching. In addition, he brings excellent defensive versatility. While he has primarily played LF, in his career he has over 200 defensive innings in right, in center, at second base and at third.  You can stop wishcasting on Angel Pagan now. The only intrigue here is who will eventually lose their job to Coghlan because my guess is that this is the guy who&#8217;ll play more innings in LF for the Jays this year than anyone currently in the organization.</p>
<p>In other news worth noticing, the Jays put Mike Bolsinger on waivers today after beating the Pittsburgh Pirates in Montreal. The team would love for him to clear and join the Buffalo rotation, but when given the chance at a final audition in the Montreal series, Ryan Tepera answer the bell working a shutout inning, while Bolsinger spit the bit and got knocked around today.The obvious conclusion is that Tepera has made the team.</p>
<p>That leaves only one question remaining &#8211; the 25th man competition that has been framed for several days now as a contest between Melvin Upton Jr. and Ryan Goins. On the surface, the choice would seem obvious as Upton&#8217;s offensive potential (however modest) particularly against lefties, well exceeds the value offered by Goins well regarded defense and near non-existent offense (as analyzed by <a href="http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2017/03/27/what-would-it-cost-to-have-ryan-goins-glove-on-the-roster/">Greg Wisniewski on Monday</a>). There may be more wheels turning than we know about. Coghlan certainly changes the equation, everyone is still puzzled at the attachment to Carerra, and the odds are strong that Ross Atkins is furiously working the phone looking for the best trade return he can score. Perhaps among not only Upton/Goins but also Carrera. It may well be that the choice comes down to whether there is something of value to be had in trade.</p>
<p>Answers to these question won&#8217;t be long in coming. (not unlike the regular season! &#8211; ed.)</p>
<p>Lead Image &#8211; <a class="ng-binding ng-scope" title="Kim Klement" href="http://www.usatsimg.com/searchByPhotographerId/Kim%20Klement">© Kim Klement</a> USA Today| <span class="ng-binding ng-scope">2017 Mar 13</span></p>
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		<title>Takeaways from Team Canada vs. Toronto Blue Jays</title>
		<link>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2017/03/08/takeaways-from-team-canada-vs-toronto-blue-jays/</link>
		<comments>http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/2017/03/08/takeaways-from-team-canada-vs-toronto-blue-jays/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Mar 2017 14:57:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[Ewan Ross]]></dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Articles]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Featured]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[George Kottaras]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Roster Changes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Team Canada]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[WBC]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[World Baseball Classic]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://toronto.locals.baseballprospectus.com/?p=9296</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I just have a few thoughts after watching Team Canada’s exhibition vs. the Blue Jays Tuesday afternoon, as well as the first few days of action in the Tokyo and Seoul. Canada Roster Changes Canada has officially announced three changes to their roster. First, Blue Jays farmhand Mike Reeves has replaced Rangers prospect Kellin Deglan [&#8230;]]]></description>
				<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>I just have a few thoughts after watching Team Canada’s exhibition vs. the Blue Jays Tuesday afternoon, as well as the first few days of action in the Tokyo and Seoul.</p>
<h3><strong><b>Canada Roster Changes</b></strong></h3>
<p>Canada has officially announced three changes to their roster.</p>
<p>First, Blue Jays farmhand Mike Reeves <a href="http://www.baseball.ca/reeves-added-to-wbc-roster" target="_blank">has replaced Rangers prospect Kellin Deglan</a> as the backup catcher. Reeves is a 25 year old career minor leaguer who has never played above the Single-A level. I’m disappointed that Baseball Canada didn’t turn to 2016 52<sup>nd</sup> overall pick Andy Yerzy to fill that role. With Greatest Living Canadian George Kottaras entrenched as the team’s starting catcher, I really think it makes more sense to give the exposure to the youngster over the steady veteran.</p>
<p>Secondly, Cubs prospect southpaw <a href="http://www.baseball.ca/kellogg-added-to-world-baseball-classic-roster" target="_blank">Ryan Kellogg has been added to the team</a>, replacing the withdrawing Adam Loewen. Kellogg, a 5<sup>th</sup> round draft pick back in 2015, is someone I thought should’ve been on this team all along. At just 22, Kellogg made an impressive debut in full-season ball in 2016, posting an ERA a shade over 3.00 in his 24 appearances in the Mid-West league. Control appears to be his primary asset, walking just 26 batters in his 130 innings last season, and he looked quite good in the clean inning he posted on Tuesday.</p>
<p>The loss of Loewen is disappointing, as it removes the possibility of Loewen being used both ways in this tournament. With the Canadian roster only featuring four outfielders, including starting a player the calibre of Rene Tosoni vs. the Blue Jays, I thought there was at least a possibility of Loewen seeing some time as a corner outfielder, especially late in games. With this news, that option obviously goes out the window.</p>
<p>Lastly, Athletics reliever, and Team Canada closer John Axford withdrew from the tournament, and <a href="http://www.baseball.ca/therrien-added-to-wbc-roster" target="_blank">has been replaced by Phillies relief prospect Jesen Therrien</a>. Therrien made a serious jump last season, reaching Double-A and nearly doubling his strikeout rate to more than 12 per 9 innings. Along with Kellogg, Therrien is a player I’d have liked to have seen on the roster from day one and an intriguing arm that I hope we get a chance to see during the tournament.</p>
<h3><strong><b>Canada is Shorthanded</b></strong></h3>
<p>Unless there are more last minute additions to the roster, Canada will be going into the World Baseball Classic with open slots remaining on their roster.</p>
<p>In the World Baseball Classic, teams are permitted a 28-man roster, and from the announcements Canada has made thus far there are only 26 players currently on the team.</p>
<p>I can’t for the life of me explain why Canada wouldn’t want a full roster of players. There are numerous roles on the club that could be filled by additional players. As things stand right now, Canada only has four outfielders and three middle infielders, an issue that could constrain key tactical moves late in ball games. Also, purely as a fan, knowing that there are open slots makes me even further question why Vladimir Guerrero Jr. isn’t sitting on the Canadian bench. Even if you didn’t think he could help the team on the field, Guerrero would provide an interesting talking point, and a point towards excitement in the future for Canadian baseball fans.</p>
<p>Things get really confusing when you <a href="https://www.worldbaseballclassic.com/teams/can" target="_blank">turn to the World Baseball Classic site</a> to try to further investigate the Canadian roster.</p>
<p>When you scroll down to the roster section of that page, you see three new pitchers added to the roster in Dominican born Jose Fernandez, Texan born John Stilson, &amp; Florida born Justin Shafer. Two of these pitchers (Fernandez and Stilson) pitched for Team Canada in their exhibition game vs. the Jays on Tuesday, and it wasn’t clarified on the broadcast so I just assumed those players had been loaned to Canada for the game by Toronto. After seeing them on Team Canada’s roster, I’m now questioning myself. As someone who’s been covering Blue Jays prospects for a long time, I can say with a good degree of certainty that John Stilson is not Canadian.</p>
<p>Weird stuff’s going on. I just don’t know what.</p>
<h3><strong><b>Old Timers</b></strong></h3>
<p>Eric Gagne gave up a hit and a walk while pitching a scoreless third inning. To my untrained eye he looked like a fairly credible pitcher with a fastball in the low 90s, and a bevy of junk ranging from a slow looping curveball and his typical circle change, to a slider that I do not remember him throwing during his heyday. I’m certainly intrigued to see him pitch more during the tournament, but where are the goggles?!</p>
<h3><strong><b>Youngsters getting a chance</b></strong></h3>
<p>Dalton Pompey looked good. Pompey reached base in each of his four plate appearances (once by an error), stole a base, and <a href="http://m.mlb.com/video/v1232345383/cantor-pompey-lays-out-for-diving-catch/?game_pk=510000" target="_blank">made a highlight reel catch</a> in center field. He is going to get an opportunity to star in this tournament and I continue to believe he’s the Blue Jays best option in left field.</p>
<p>I like that Ernie Whitt slotted Tyler O’Neill into the third slot in the lineup, but O’Neill struggled. After walking in his first at bat, O’Neill saw just nine pitches in his remaining three at bats, striking out on three pitches each time. The strikeouts will be there with O’Neill, I just really hope he gets a hold of one of the pitches he swings very hard at over the course of the tournament. He’s gonna make a baseball go a long way.</p>
<p>Padres prospect Josh Naylor replaced Freddie Freeman at first base in the fourth inning, and ripped a double to center field in one of his two at bats. Naylor also impressed defensively, snagging a line drive down the line. Naylor is obviously blocked on the roster by Morneau and Freeman, but it appears he should be the first bat off the Canadian bench.</p>
<h3><strong><b>Canada got screwed by the draw</b></strong></h3>
<p>After seeing the calibre of play being shown in the first two days of action in Asia, I’m becoming increasingly bitter that Canada was put into a group where they have practically no chance of advancing.</p>
<p>Even a Canadian team in its depleted state is a stronger team on paper than the upstart Israeli team advanced out of Pool A last night. Meanwhile in Pool B, it does appear that this version of the Cuban National Team is a weaker version than we’ve seen in the past, which is hardly surprising given the recent spate of defections. Were Canada in Pool B in place of Australia, their chances of advancing would likely ride on a single game against the Cubans, and I’d take that dice roll.</p>
<p>All those hopes and dreams feel completely dashed due to Canada’s situation of being paired with the Americans and the Dominicans, who are the two most talented teams in the tournament. It’s a shame.</p>
<h3><strong><b>George Kottaras Played!</b></strong></h3>
<p>He got a walk and a hit. He’s awesome.</p>
<p>Lead Photo: © Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports</p>
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