Archive for the 'John Jaso' Category

Jun 03

Postgame Shot Of Joe: Derek Shelton Stinks

Andy Sonnanstine, BJ Upton, David Price, Evan Longoria, James Shields, Jeremy Hellickson, John Jaso, Kelly Shoppach, Matt Joyce, Reid Brignac 6 Comments »

Joe was going to sign off on his allegiance to Sonny in this missive. The words of how good of a pitcher Sonny (is alleged) to be from the likes of Don Zimmer and Tony La Russa as well as the memory of his studly pitching in 2008 make Joe hope for, pine for, Sonny to return to that form.

But it is not meant to be and after tonight, Joe’s done with Sonny. But you know what, Sonny could have thrown damned near the game of his life and it wouldn’t have mattered.

The Rays offense is horrible.

With the exception of Matt Joyce, this is a team worthy of Montgomery the way they hit. As usual, Joe points to the guy responsible for the hitting: Derek Shelton.

Joe can sort of give Dirtbag a pass as he missed so much of the start of the season. There are no more excuses for Bossman, Briggy and the two lummoxes the Rays have for catchers.

Jason Valdez (!) of all people tossed a four-hit complete game shutout. Sickening. Yeah, he had some decent defense behind him robbing the Rays of one extra-base hit, but still, that was one potential extra-base hit.

For the Rays to put together any kind of winning streak with this putrid offense, David Price, Big Game Shields and Hellboy will have to throw no-hitters and hope the Rays can score in extra innings.

Jun 03

The Deadliest Catchers*

John Jaso, Kelly Shoppach 4 Comments »

* This title is blatantly stolen from the Happy Hour with JP Peterson show on 1010 Sports and the show’s producer Bryan Drake. In return we present them with this image as a peace offering (click on pic for a larger version)…P.S. That is Dioner Navarro’s boat he left behind.

Earlier this week we looked at how bad Kelly Shoppach has been this season, and wondered if his days here are numbered. Part of that is based on his contract (he is a free agent after the season) and age (31). But Shoppach is far from the Rays only problem behind the plate.

Of course, catchers that can’t hit can be found in just about every big league ballpark. To get a better sense of just how bad Shoppach and John Jaso have performed this season, let’s compare them to their peers… Read the rest of this entry »

Jun 02

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Price’s Lack Of Support, JJ’s Lack Of Dyn-O-Mite, And Some Late Nights Ahead

Ben Zobrist, David Price, John Jaso 9 Comments »

Rangers 3, Rays 0 (click on image for boxscore)

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

THE GOOD: David Price. For 7 innings, it was the dominating Price that we all love. He retired 23 of the first 26 batters he faced not running into trouble until 2 outs in the 8th. And then, a double-steal off of John Jaso led to 2 runs on a weak single by Elvis Andrus. A loss. But not one that was Price’s fault.

THE BAD: Running Wild…JJ Dyn-O-Mite went 0-4 and is now hitting .220 with a .280 OBP. That’s a little better than Kelly Shoppach. But at least Shoppach offers some defense. Jaso can’t even do that. Besides his overly mechanical mechanics, He can’t throw. His release looks quick enough. But there is no accuracy and no strength. And yesterday the Rangers stole 5 bases, including 2 double-steals in the 2-run 8th inning. He has now allowed 32 steals in 30 starts…Running Dumb. Ladies and gentlemen, can Ben Zobrist please have your attention. He’s just been handed an urgent and horrifying news story. He needs all of you to stop what you’re doing and watch. CANNONBALL!!

THE TELLING: Casey Kotchman could return Read the rest of this entry »

May 01

Postgame Shot Of Joe: Durham Calling Reid Brignac

Alex Cobb, Ben Zobrist, John Jaso, Reid Brignac 6 Comments »

This was simply an awful loss, no other way to put it.

You spot a kid making his first start in the bigs a five-run lead in the first inning and you lose 6-5? Really? You chase an unexpected starting pitcher early and you can’t score another run? Seriously?

Joe’s just about had it with Reid Brignac. Cool guy. Love his banter on Twitter. But no matter how nice of a guy he is, there has to be some offense there.

Perhaps maybe if Brignac put his smart phone down a little more and spend some extra time in a batting cage, he might be able to hit slightly better than his weight. Then again, look who he has to turn to for guidance from a hitting instructor.

If the Rays had any kind of a shortstop who could hit, this game would have been locked up, a series win.

Why not try SRod at short? Zorilla was once a shortstop, why not him? In his many stints with the parent club prior to this season, Brignac has never displayed an ability to be a decent, consistent hitter. He still hasn’t through the first month of the season after being handed a starting job.

Joe can forgive a guy who doesn’t hit well so long as he makes contact and has an outstanding glove. Brignac does not make any sober person forget Omar Vizquel or Ozzie Smith and the guy strikes out as much as he gets a hit. Disgusting!

Oh, and John Jaso, lest anyone not remember, is still a liability behind the plate.

What happened to the killer instinct? The Angels were all but buried but allowed to get back in the game.

Damn. That’s two games tossed away in this series.

Mar 24

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Jaso’s Jewels, Final Bullpen Spots And Manny’s Fixed Swing

Evan Longoria, John Jaso, Jose Lobaton, Manny Ramirez 19 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

RANDOM THOUGHTS: Look for Jose Lobaton to be the backup catcher if John Jaso must start the season on the DL (bruised family jewels)…Stuart Sternberg on a new stadium: “It’s three years plus and it will be plus”…

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Joe Maddon says he has likely settled on the last 3 relievers. Marc Topkin speculates it will be Juan Cruz, Jake McGee and Cesar Ramos (not Rob Delaney). Maddon also acknowledged that the Rays may trade Cesar Cabral. [TampaBay.com]
  • The Rays are second in Baseball America’s farm system rankings. [HardballTalk]
  • Most managers might be afraid Read the rest of this entry »
Mar 23

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss A Hot Pumpkin, Joyce 2nd And Traitor Scott

Cesar Cabral, Dan Johnson, Gov. Rick Scott, John Jaso, Matt Joyce 14 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: Dan Johnson. We are about to find out what The Great Pumpkin is capable of when given regular playing time. And we are getting a glimpse this spring. Johnson hit his 4th home run last night, and 2nd in 2 days…Reid Brignac. If Briggy Baseball does anything offensively this season it will be a bonus. So it is exciting to see how hot he is right now. Last night he had 2 more hits and is now 15-36 (.417) this spring…David Price. King David was dealing last night. So good, that Joe Maddon let him toss 103 pitches when he was originally slated for 90. He struck out 7, walked 2 and gave up just 1 run in 6.1 innings.

THE BAD: John Jaso. Jaso worked out yesterday, but is still sore and is expected to be out a few more days. With only 9 days until opening day, there isn’t much time left to get Jaso’s bat going. So far this spring he is only 5-27 (.185) although two of those are home runs.

THE TELLING: Ben Zobrist led off, something that will happen a lot during the season. But more interesting was seeing Matt Joyce in the 2-hole. Johnny Damon will probably need a game off every week. Will we see Joyce batting second on those days?…David Price threw his curveball for the first time, but really wants to get his slider back to where it can be, noting that it “wasn’t very good“…

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Three more relievers were cut and reassigned to minor league camp: Chris Bootcheck, Mike Ekstrom and RJ Swindle. None of the cuts are surprising, but Ekstrom and Swindle are a bit disappointing since they might have been favorites for two of the open bullpen slots when camp began.
  • Gov. Rick Scott will throw out the first pitch at the Rays season opener versus the Orioles. No word yet on whether Gov. Scott will wear an Orioles jacket or a Yankees jacket.
  • Marc Topkin reports Read the rest of this entry »
Mar 21

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss Briggy Baseball, Russell’s Struggles And Maddon Tossing A Fan

Adam Russell, Jeremy Hellickson, Joe Maddon, John Jaso, Mike Ekstrom, Reid Brignac 23 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: Reid Brignac. On the same day his family served up a cajun feast for the players and staff, Briggy Baseball went 2-3. He is now 13-30 this spring. His .433 average is the best among players with at least 20 at bats…Filling Out The ‘Pen. Two of the leading candidates for the final spots in the bullpen, Rob Delaney and Cory Wade have combined for 19 Ks and just 2 walks in 20.1 innings this spring.

THE BAD: Adam Russell. The reliever acquired from the Padres continues to struggle this spring. This time he gave up 3 runs on 4 hits, retiring just one batter. This was Russell’s 8th appearance. He has allowed at least 2 hits in all but one…Mike Ekstrom. It could be argued that Ekstrom has had the worst spring of any player on the Rays. He entered March with a good chance of being on the opening day roster. And now we are not even sure he is a candidate. The latest implosion was giving up 2 runs in the 9th inning, blowing a 1-run lead. He has now given up a run in 5 of his 7 appearances.

THE TELLING: Other than Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez swapping DH and LF, yesterday’s lineup could be the one used on opening day with Ben Zobrist at 2B, Dan Johnson at 1B and Matt Joyce in RF…John Jaso won’t be back behind the plate until at least Thursday after taking a foul tip to the family jewels…Reminder: Todd Kalas will host a 30-minute season preview tonight on Fox Sports Florida at 6:30.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

  • Joe Maddon had a fan in an Orioles jersey ejected from Port Charlotte stadium after the fan yelled a racial comment at BJ Upton…We spoke with somebody at the game that was told what the fan said. There was no grey area. It was definitely bad. [Marc Topkin]
  • In addition to letting his hair grow long, Joe Maddon has dumped his iconic glasses. [TampaBay.com]
  • The scary history of Read the rest of this entry »
Mar 14

[THE HANGOVER] The One Where We Discuss BJ’s Legs, Chirinos At 3B And The Anti-Sonny

BJ Upton, Chris Archer, John Jaso, Robinson Chirinos 2 Comments »

The GBT – The Good, The Bad and The Telling sandwich, where The Bad is nice and lean and the The Telling is ripe.

click above image for boxscore

THE GOOD: BJ Upton. Bossman had his speed on display yesterday, stretching a single into a double and scoring from third on a pickoff throw to first (from the catcher)…Dirk Hayhurst. He allowed to hits, but pitched another scoreless inning.

THE BAD: Chris Bootcheck. The late spring signee, who played in Japan last year, started the game but struggled with his control. He eventually gave up 4 runs on 5 hits in 2 innings…Mike Ekstrom. Ek continues to struggle, this time giving up 2 runs (1 earned) in 1 inning on 3 hits and a walk…Just A Little Patience. Rays batters struck out 9 times with no walks.

THE TELLING: Robinson Chirinos has also been working out at 3B…Evan Longoria was dehydrated and out of the lineup…James Shields allowed just an unearned run on 3 hits in 5 innings of a minor league intrasquad game…Jeff Niemann will throw in a minor league intrasquad game today…Jeremy Hellickson will start tomorrow after today’s off-day.

THE JUNKYARD DOGS WEBTOPIA…

Oct 07

The Fat Catcher Has Likely Played His Last Game With The Rays

Dioner Navarro, John Jaso, Kelly Shoppach 11 Comments »

Yesterday, when we posted the postseason roster, we noted that Dioner Navarro was among those not asked to stay and keep working out with the club in case a player is injured or the team makes changes before the ALCS. Well, it turns out that Navarro was asked to stay. But he apparently has better things to do with his time (via Marc Topkin of the St. Pete Times)…

The Rays wanted Navarro to remain with the team and keep working out so he’d be in shape in case they needed to add him to the roster in the event of injury, or for the next round should they advance…But Navarro, who was sent to the minors for two months and played sparingly after his Sept. 1 recall (10 games, five starts), declined, and seemingly brought his tenure with the Rays to a bad ending. He made $2.1 million this season and will be eligible for arbitration again.

Geez. His own Percivilian moment.

And so, Navarro, who may be Read the rest of this entry »

Sep 03

What Will Rays Do With Their 3-Headed Catcher In 2011?

Dioner Navarro, John Jaso, Kelly Shoppach 13 Comments »

With the return of Dioner Navarro this week, the Rays now have an interesting dilemma this off-season. When Navi was demoted back in June, we just assumed that he would be non-tendered during the off-season, essentially releasing him. It appeared that the Rays had chosen Kelly Shoppach’s bat over Navi’s defense and familiarity with the pitching staff. And with the inconsistency of the Rays offense, the Rays were willing to take a step backwards defensively at the catcher’s position.

But then something happened. Actually, we should say something didn’t happen. Shoppach never started hitting. In 146 plate appearances, Shoppach is hitting .189 with 3 home runs (2 in one game), a .306 OBP and a .288 wOBA (that sucks).

So what will the Rays do?

Of the three catchers, Shoppach is the only one the Rays are committed to for the 2011 season, to the tune of $3.0 million. Navarro is arbitration-eligible and would make $2.5-3.0 million. If they non-tender him, they owe him nothing. John Jaso would make near the big league minimum of $400K.

You have to assume they will Read the rest of this entry »

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