Once inside the store, my android phone started buzzing and ringing like crazy! What happened, I thought, as I checked my phone in the frozen food section. At first, I misread everything on the screen, and thought the following:
"Oh, we picked up Josh Johnson. How about that?"
When I returned home, and the reports from MLB.com, Facebook, and Twitter tweets poured in, I realized just how big and massive this trade turned out to be.
Toronto Blue Jays acquire:
- SS Jose Reyes; three-time all-star, 40 stolen bases last year, 2011 batting title winner (.337 BA, 1st in National League), due to make $92 million over next five years
- SP Josh Johnson; 8-14 win-loss record on one of the worst teams in the NL, 3.81 ERA, one year left on his contract
- SP Mark Beuhrle; 13-13 last year, fastball throwing lefty, gutsy, 33 years old, threw 2 no-hit games.
- 2B Emilio Bonifacio
- C John Buck
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| PEACE OUT! Former Marlins star Jose Reyes, pictured above, joins JJ, Beuhrle, Bonifacio, and Buck on the trading block to Toronto in blockbuster deal between the two clubs. |
Miami Marlins acquire:
- SS Yunel Escobar
- SS Adeiny Hechavarria
- SP Henderson Alvarez
- C Jeff Mathis
- Minor league prospects Anthony DeScalfini, Jake Marisnick, Justin Nicolino
What does this mean for baseball fans in Toronto? For the first time since 1993, when Toronto was last in the postseason and this happened, the Blue Jays are legitimate playoff contenders in the American League, if not in all of Major League Baseball. Their division, the American League East Division, is wide open: The Yankees are vulnerable with the health status of Derek Jeter and their starting rotation up in the air, The Red Sox and new manager John Farrell are rebuilding (sidenote: John Farrell sent Blue Jays fans a friend request LOL), the Rays are in steady decline, and the Orioles are a wild card o_O Now, or maybe next year, is the time for Alex Anthopoulos to make his move.
Before everyone goes bananas on pitchers' win-loss records, please bear in mind that statistic is a double-edged sword. They are a basic level understanding of a pitcher's ability, however a more advanced understanding of the game will tell you a pitcher's wins and losses are more a reflection of a team's performance behind him, and a minor reflection of the opposition the pitcher faces with every outing. The Miami Marlins finished the year 69-93, which is good for dead last in the National League East Division, so Johnson and Buerhle combined for 21 wins; that's thirty percent of the Marlins' win total between two pitchers: The former coming off tommy john surgery in 2011, while the latter started 31 games and won his fifth consecutive Gold Glove from the pitcher's mound. The pride of the Blue Jays pitching staff is to have groundball pitchers, or pitchers that throw down in the zone, which is a key asset in the ultra competitive, hard-hitting AL East, so Buehrle and Johnson are a nice addition ^_^
I'm a little disappointed the Blue Jays lost SS Hechavarria and SP Alvarez, because they represented the future of the organization, similar to their prospects. I wish them the best of luck in a town, which according to Twitter, is full of vitriol for the Marlins organization for going through with another "fire sale". Without the world championship his Marlins won in 2003, Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria probably wouldn't have a team with which to sell all its star players, nor would he have a baseball-only stadium with a retractable roof built with taxpayers' money.
Nevertheless, it feels good to be a Jays fan today ^_^ Any chance the season can start tomorrow? o_O
