An adjustment made by Roy Halladay late in his career could help CC Sabathia return to form in 2015.

Former Blue Jays and Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay seems to be enjoying retirement. From his Twitter feed, we know that his hobbies include flying planes, going to the zoo, and trolling his own fans. CC Sabathia, on the other hand, is not doing so well, with a combined 4.87 ERA over the last two seasons. Sabathia's peripheral stats from 2014 suggest that he is essentially attempting to become Halladay 2.0. Here are some numbers from Sabathia's injury-shortened 2014 season and Halladay's 2011 season, courtesy of Fangraphs:

Both pitchers showed above average control and did a very good job keeping the ball on the ground. Here's where the comparison gets ugly:

In other words, when the ball did leave the infield, Sabathia got burned. It is worth noting that Sabathia's HR/FB% was literally more than twice the league average. Steamer's projections have that number coming back to earthly levels, in addition to putting his 2015 ERA at 3.92. But in order to have a fighting chance, he has to address the alarming trend in his lefty/righty splits:

Sabathia's sudden loss of velocity circa 2013 can explain why he is no longer a Cy Young caliber pitcher, but it doesn't explain why only righties are capitalizing on his regression. However, looking at Brooks Baseball's data on his changeup, especially next to his fastball, we get a better idea of why his splits are becoming so drastically different:

Sabathia's changeup, which he throws almost exclusively to righties, isn't what it once was. Part of Sabathia's decreasing changeup value is probably because of his overall depreciation as an athlete. Part of it could be due to a closing gap in velocity between his fastball and his changeup. In any case, better peripherals mean nothing if he can't stop giving up extra base hits to righties.

So where does Roy Halladay come in to the picture? It's not him specifically, it's the progression of his changeup throughout his career. Halladay, like Sabathia, was a workhorse during his Toronto years, routinely topping 230 IP. Like the 2014 incarnation of CC Sabathia, he was limiting walks and pitching to groundballs. But Sabathia's changeup was once an extremely important part of his arsenal. Before joining the Phillies, Halladay barely threw a changeup (4.2% of the time, according to Brooks Baseball).

Then, in 2010, he started throwing the split-change, a changeup thrown with a split-fingered grip, also known as the pitch that helped Tim Lincecum become an elite pitcher for a while. Fangraphs did a more detailed write-up on his new and improved pitch when he first implemented it. Maybe it was hitters not being used to Halladay's new offering, maybe it was just that much better. In any case, hitters put up wRC+'s of 1 (no, that is not a typo) against his changeup in 2010 and 50 in 2011.

It does not necessarily need to be a split-change, but Sabathia might need a new out pitch for righties. His velocity isn't coming back. He has taken the first steps to becoming a pitcher, and not a thrower by increasing his groundball rate and limiting walks while still striking batters out. But home runs will continue to plague Sabathia if he doesn't adapt a new strategy. Throwing an 89 mph sinker and following it up with an 85 mph changeup is not going to cut it. If he tries that in Fenway, Mike Napoli and Hanley Ramirez will be aiming for the Citgo sign behind the Green Monster. He could try taking more velocity off his changeup to widen the velocity gap, but intentionally throwing a pitch slower could cause him to tip his pitches.

From a risk vs. reward standpoint, I cannot think of any reason for Sabathia not to try a new pitch out. As it is, during the last two seasons, Sabathia's slider has been more effective than his changeup against righties, according to Brooks Baseball. The only thing he has to lose is a pitch that is heading towards uselessness. If it was indeed unfamiliarity that made Doc's split-change so good, now is as good of a time as any to implement it, based on CC's contract status and the Yankees lack of starting pitching depth. Call Roy Halladay up, CC, he has to have a good amount of free time on his hands.

Oopps you missed me! Walked right by me! Hope he gets to see his pic with me on Twitter, he doesn't know we took this pic.twitter.com/CHgFlVfafm

— Roy Halladay (@RoyHalladay) January 11, 2015

Plus: Avisail Garcia agrees about his need to shed weight, and Conor Gillaspie adds pounds

Just as the winter meetings opened last month, word surfaced that the Toronto Blue Jayswanted to hire Kenny Williams to replace Paul Beeston as the club's president.

It was a strange story for a few reasons, and beyond the inconvenient timing. It was hard to understand the timeline, as Williams' reaction to a seemingly fresh story was, "That ship has sailed." And based on how you interpreted Williams' compliments of Toronto against the news that Reinsdorf denied the Blue Jays permission to interview Williams, one might get the sense that Williams had one foot out the door and Reinsdorf held him back by force.

But as the Jays abort their awkward, prolonged and public pursuit of another under-contract GM in Baltimore's Dan Duquette, it looks like there's something fundamentally off about the way they're conducting this search.

Sure enough, Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun detailed the Blue Jays' failed pursuit of Williams and said it can be applied to the Duquette situation. The entire read is fascinating, but it basically shows that Ed Rogers, deputy chairman of Roger Communications (which owns the Blue Jays), bungled it before it began:

Nov. 5, 2014

Ed Rogers, deputy chairman of Rogers Communications, phones White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf to ask for permission to hire Williams

"I asked, ‘For what position?’ " Reinsdorf said Friday from Chicago. "Edward said, ‘For Paul Beeston’s job.’ "

It could be pointed out here that Rogers’ knowledge of the baseball landscape was so deep, he did not know Beeston and Reinsdorf were best friends.

Reinsdorf said he told Rogers he would talk to Williams and call back.

"I called Paul and he was shocked," Reinsdorf said. A few days later, they talked again. Beeston told Reinsdorf he had talked to the Rogers people.

So, Reinsdorf decided not to call back Ed Rogers.

When Reinsdorf contacted Williams less than a week later, Williams told him that he had already been contacted by "an emissary" of Rogers, which is tampering. It even gets weirder from there, so the White Sox's opaque reaction to the story looks like the best attempt to say nothing when there's nothing nice to say.

We heard plenty from Rick Hahn about Avisail Garcia's wayward weight, but it seems like Garcia saw what Hahn did:

"I feel great," Garcia said. "Really good because I need to get in shape. I need to get ready for October. Everybody is on the same page. We want to play in October and hopefully everything works for us this year."

Adam Eaton was on an autograph stage with his fellow outfielder at SoxFest on Saturday and said Garcia could see the difference when signing pictures. Garcia and strength and conditioning coordinator Allen Thomas put together a plan this offseason and Eaton believes it will make a difference for Garcia later this season.

"On a couple of his pictures he said ‘Ewwww fat. I was fat,’ " Eaton said. "He looks great. He looks like he’s in good shape. … I think it’ll translate, too. I’ve been out of shape and I’ve played and I’ve been in shape and I played and it’s night and day. He’s young and he’s kind of finally figuring out where he needs to be."

Conor Gillaspie is going the other way with his build, blowing past the standard Best Shape Of His Life material and into more dangerous territory:

Thanks to an offseason weight conditioning program, Gillaspie estimates he has gained between 15 and 20 pounds of muscle, which should translate into driving the ball harder.

That figure sounds implausible, but the specifics aren't as significant as the existence of this story itself, since "pounds of muscle" usually foreshadows a disappointing season. He's trying to counter that with a more positive attitude:

"At the end of your season, you have to look yourself in the eye and just figure out, OK, what did I like, what did I dislike and you have to be honest with yourself," Gillaspie said. "There are quite a few things I disliked about last year, about myself, about the way I acted, about my attitude, about my confidence. It showed sometimes. But at the end of the day... I feel like I have been open about that and looked in the mirror and said ‘What can I do to fix it?’"

That sounds like Moises regret to me, but I'm not sure what I think of the results:

@SouthSideSox HE DID IT! #SmilesGillaspiepic.twitter.com/ncT908F6PE

— Sam Sherman (@Sam_Sherman5) January 24, 2015

Paul Beeston will be the Blue Jays' president and CEO through 2015 after signing a contract extension with the club, according to Edward Rogers, who announced it via a media release on Bob McCown's Prime Time Sports show on Rogers Communications' subsidiary Rogers Media's Rogers Sportsnet 590 the Fan. Rogers.

Rogers employee Alex Seixeiro won the race to Twitter to announce the news:

Edward Rogers confirming that Paul Beeston has signed an extension to remain with the Bluejays in 2015. Beeston will retire after the season

— Alex Seixeiro (@alexfan590) January 26, 2015

Rogers employee Barry Davis was seconds behind, although he was a little off with the contract length:

It's now official. Paul Beeston has agreed on a 1 yr contract extension and will remain president and CEO of the #BlueJays thru 2025

— Barry Davis (@SNBarryDavis) January 26, 2015

So the bungled attempt at replacing Beeston is over, at least for now. Beeston, the franchise's first employee, will get a full season before his retirement and slowly ride off into the sunset. I wonder what gifts each team will get him during his retirement tour?

This certainly seems to signal that there will be at least a temporary moratorium on the rumours about the Blue Jays trying to poach Dan Duquette from the Orioles, so for now, the Blue Jays' two first-round picks from 2014 Jeff Hoffman and Max Pentecost seem to be safe from being the player to be named later in a trade with Baltimore.

The official release from Rogers includes a quote from Edward Rogers that blah blah blahs about Beeston's contributions to "Canada's team" and addresses the rumours about his search for the next top executive for the Jays (surprisingly), but he and Rogers promised to not publicly speak about the search. But I'm sure we'll hear plenty about it from our friends in the media.

Copy of Full Release from Rogers

PAUL BEESTON SIGNS EXTENSION WITH TORONTO BLUE JAYS

Will Retire at End of Team’s 2015 Season

TORONTO (January 26, 2015) Rogers Communications announced today that Paul Beeston has signed a contract extension and will remain President and CEO of the Toronto Blue Jays until the end of the team’s 2015 season, at which time he will retire.

"Paul is one of baseball’s greats, whose passion for – and commitment to – winning is unparalleled. He is a proud Canadian and we’re proud to have him lead Canada’s team for the upcoming season," said Edward Rogers, Chairman, Toronto Blue Jays.  "We have been in discussions with Paul about his future with the team since his contract expired in October.  There were many rumours flying about, but it would have been inappropriate to comment on such matters publicly.  Make no mistake – we are elated to have Paul continue to lead the team for this season."

"I love this ball club and the fans.  I wake up every day thinking about the game and bringing another championship north of the border. I’m excited for the season ahead – we’ve got a great group of guys who are fiercely competitive and hope to be playing ball in October," said Beeston.

Beeston, 69, was the first Toronto Blue Jays employee in 1976 and has been with the ball club for 31 years, winning two World Series titles with the team.  He has served two terms as Toronto Blue Jays president (1989-1997 and 2008-present), and five years as president and COO of Major League Baseball.  A native of Welland, Ont., Beeston is a member of the Order of Canada.  He serves on the executive committee of the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown and was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002. 

Beeston’s successor will start when he retires. We will not be commenting on the succession process or timing.

The Jays announced a one-year extension for team president Paul Beeston, who will retire after the 2015 season. Elsewhere, the Mariners and Bud Norris agreed on a one-year deal to avoid arbitration.

The Toronto Blue Jays announced a one-year extension for team president Paul Beeston on Monday, ending the speculation that they would hire current Orioles GM Dan Duquette for the same role.

The Jays chased Duquette for much of the offseason but couldn't come to an agreement with the Orioles, who wanted a steep return as compensation for Duquette's departure.

Beeston will retire after the 2015 campaign, but the Blue Jays offered no comment on their plans for a successor. The 69-year-old Beeston was Toronto's team president from 1991 to 1997 before serving as the president and CEO for MLB from 1997 to 2002. He has been the Jays' current president since 2009.

Norris, Orioles avoid arbitration

Right-hander Bud Norris and the Orioles avoided arbitration Monday, agreeing to terms on a one-year, $8.8 million deal, according to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun.

Norris had a strong campaign for Baltimore in 2014, finishing with a 3.65 ERA and 4.22 FIP along with 139 strikeouts and 52 walks in 28 starts. The 29-year-old was entering his final year of arbitration after earning $5.3 million in 2014 and will be a free agent next offseason.

Mariners sign Chavez

The Mariners officially announced the signing of Endy Chavez on a one-year contract. Chavez's deal includes an invite to major league spring training, and if he makes Seattle's big league roster, the 13-year veteran will earn $750,000 and can make up to $400,000 more based on plate appearance bonuses.

The 36-year-old Chavez hit .276/.317/.371 for the Mariners in 2014 over 80 games. He can play all three outfield positions.

Padres ink Pena

Ramiro Pena signed a minor-league deal with the Padres that includes an invite to big league spring training, the team announced Monday.

Pena had an impressive season for the Braves in 2013 before having season-ending surgery on a torn labrum in his right shoulder. The 29-year-old hit just .245/.304/.347 in 81 games for Atlanta in 2014 and can play at three different spots in the infield, including shortstop.

I'm very happy that the Beeston/Duquette saga is over, at least for the moment. And I'm hoping that we don't have to talk about it again for a long time.

Since the Jays sent out the press release about Paul Beeston's signing came so late yesterday, everyone is reacting to it today. Here is a cross-section of reactions:

Paul Beeston was on Jeff Blair's show. Among the things he said were:

• The Jays have a good relationship with Rogers. "I don't think we are dysfunctional at the present time." Ask again tomorrow.
• If the Jays found a player they wanted, Rogers would fork over the money.
• The good thing about it all to Paul was that getting to hear all the nice things said about him.
• He still, even though he's a lame duck, has the authority to fire Alex and Gibby if he wanted.

Bob Elliott didn't try to hide his dislike for how this all happened.

And on the 51st day of silence Rogers Communications did something really unique - they actually communicated.

They went from Rogers Un-Communications to Rogers Communications in a five-paragraph press release which arrived at 6:51 p.m. on Monday.

The most interesting part of his story was:

You mean the Paul Beeston - not his son David Beeston, a lawyer with the Boston Red Sox - that Ed Rogers phoned around looking to replace?

He phoned Beeston's son looking to see if he would replace his dad?

Ken Rosenthal figures that both the Orioles and Blue Jays messed this us. No kidding.

I want to hear Orioles general manager Dan Duquette explain how he will mend fences with an organization that he spent several months trying to bolt.

And I want to hear Blue Jays chairman Ed Rogers explain why he is "elated" that Paul Beeston will return for one more season as president and CEO after ownership spent several months trying to replace him.

It really should make the 'State of the Union' night interesting. I get the feeling we won't be hearing from Eddie Rogers, at least on this subject.

The Baltimore Sun had their own look at the situation.

Well, at least we've heard from the Blue Jays, who officially announced that Beeston will stay for 2015 and then retire after the season, allowing the club more time to find his successor. Hopefully, the Blue Jays, who are owned by one of the largest communications companies in Canada, can plot a more tactical path this time. They botched this one from the beginning.

One of the largest?

Scott Stinson, in the National Post, wonders if the courtship of Duquette, a GM type himself, means that Rogers has already decided to fire Alex.

So the long-term picture is very unclear, but Toronto fans can take solace in the fact that ownership didn't cave to Baltimore's demands and give up valuable top prospects for a new executive. That's a bonus. And, hey, these are Toronto sports, where "it could have been worse" is a clear victory.

I get the feeling the Eddie Rogers reign is going to be an interesting time.

The Blue Jays and Phillies continue to talk about a potential Jonathan Papelbon trade, reports MLB.com beat writer Todd Zolecki. With Casey Janssen no longer under contract, Papelbon could fill Toronto's need for a high-leverage reliever. 

Papelbon, 34, is scheduled to make $13 million in 2015. A $13 million vesting option for 2016 could seemingly complicate things, as the option will vest if Papelbon finishes 48 games in 2015. As per Cot's Baseball Contracts, Papelbon may block trades to 17 clubs.

Jonathan Papelbon posted a 2.04 ERA in 2014, while recording 39 saves. The more advanced stats were also quite kind to him, as he was credited with a 2.53 FIP and 3.50 xFIP. Though his xFIP is quite a bit higher, Papelbon has outperformed his xFIP over the course of his career. His ability to limit home runs could be a strong fit in the home run friendly Rogers Centre.

My personal take is that this could be worth keeping an eye on. Papelbon has been worth 1+ WAR for nine consecutive seasons and probably represents more of a sure thing than the other remaining options. The Phillies may have the financial capability to eat a substantial amount of the remaining salary, while the Jays could give up additional prospects to compensate.The Blue Jays and Phillies are familiar trade partners, as the Jays have acquired Erik Kratz and John Mayberry in recent years.

As we get closer to Opening Day and rosters are close to set, how do the Red Sox rank on a position-by-position basis with the rest of the division?

Over the next couple of days, I’ll be looking at how the Red Sox stack up on a positional basis with the other teams in the American League East. Today, we’ll be covering the position players, and the pitchers will come tomorrow. For Boston, I’m going to be using the following players as the starters to make this exercise a little less complicated.

C: Christian Vazquez

1B: Mike Napoli

2B: Dustin Pedroia

3B: Pablo Sandoval

SS: Xander Bogaerts

LF: Hanley Ramirez

CF: Rusney Castillo

RF: Mookie Betts

DH: David Ortiz

Obviously, the lineup situation is much more complex than this, with some details still needing to be worked out. But there aren't any straight platoons in Boston's lineup, and spreading out the lineup by playing time percentages would be far too complicated for this exercise. For the other teams, I used the lineups from rosterresource.com. A quick note before we get started: these rankings are for 2015 only. Future value is not being considered here.

Catcher

The competitors: Vazquez (BOS), Russell Martin (TOR), Matt Wieters (BAL), Brian McCann (NYY), Rene Rivera (TB)

1. Martin

2. McCann

3. Wieters

4. Vazquez

5. Rivera

The Red Sox finished fourth behind the plate, and it really wasn’t all that close. Martin’s on-base ability and premiere defense made him an easy choice for number one. McCann and Wieters could be switched depending on how comfortable you are with the latter’s return from Tommy John surgery, but neither could reasonably be placed behind Vazquez at the moment. Boston’s catcher just doesn’t have the offensive skills or the experience to be ranked any higher heading into the season, but the future is still bright for the 24-year-old defensive wizard.

First Base

The competitors: Napoli (BOS), Edwin Encarnacion (TOR), Chris Davis (BAL), Mark Teixeira (NYY), James Loney (TB)

1. Encarnacion

2. Napoli

3. Davis

4. Loney

5. Teixeira

It wasn’t very difficult placing Napoli second on this list. Encarnacion is one of the very best hitters in the game. He’s the rare power hitter who can also limit his strikeouts, and over the last three years he has an OPS+ of 149. The Red Sox first baseman is clearly a cut above the rest of the players on this list, though. Davis is coming off such a tough season that it’s tough to bank on a bounce-back in 2015. Loney’s power is too limited for his offense to have any ceiling. Teixeira has been in decline over the last few years and has also struggled to stay on the field.

Photo Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Second Base

The competitors: Pedroia (BOS), Maicer Izturis/Steve Tolleson (TOR), Jonathan Schoop (BAL), Stephen Drew (NYY), Nick Franklin (TB)

1. Pedroia

2. Drew

3. Franklin

4.  Schoop

5. Izturis/Tolleson

Until I did this exercise, I didn’t realize just how weak the keystone position was in the AL East. The gap between Pedroia and Drew is probably bigger than any other 1-2 punch on this list. Not only is he easily the best defensive second baseman in the division, but he’s the cream of the crop offensively as well, despite his decline. The rest of the group was kind of hard to order, but I’m still a believer in Drew’s game, attributing a lot of last year’s struggles to the strange free agent situation. Franklin and Schoop is somewhat interchangeable as young players still trying to prove they belong at this level.

Third Base

The competitors: Sandoval, Josh Donaldson (TOR), Manny Machado (BAL), Chase Headley (NYY), Evan Longoria (TB)

1. Donaldson

2. Longoria

3. Machado

4. Sandoval

5. Headley

For as weak at the group of second basemen were, this crop of third baseman is at least equally as great. All five of these guys have a legitimate argument to be All-Stars this season if everything breaks correctly. Donaldson is clearly number one, as he was one of the best third baseman in baseball with Oakland and now gets to play in a much better offensive environment. I don’t believe Longoria’s 2014 is representative of who he is as a player now, and expect him to get back to being one of the game’s all-around elite in 2014. I wanted to put Sandoval above Machado, but the latter’s youth, potential and defensive chops won out for me. This ranking is less about how I feel about Sandoval and more about how I feel about the rest of the division.

Shortstop

The competitors: Bogaerts, Jose Reyes (TOR), J.J. Hardy (BAL), Didi Gregorius/Brendan Ryan (NYY), Asdrubal Cabrera (TB)

1. Reyes

2. Bogaerts

3. Hardy

4. Gregorius/Ryan

5. Cabrera

While Sandoval ranked a little lower than I originally thought I would have him, Bogaerts was a little higher. I’m still a big believer that the Red Sox shortstop will turn into a star in this league, but after last season I think it’s important to manage your expectations. Reyes is clearly above him, with injuries the only thing that will hold him back. The only place I struggled here was whether or not to put Hardy above him. However, Bogaerts’ offensive ceiling is much higher than the Baltimore shortstop, and I believe he’ll come closer to that ceiling than he did a year ago. That was enough to outweigh the defensive gap in Hardy’s favor for me.

Left Field

The competitors: Ramirez, Michael Saunders/Kevin Pillar (TOR), Alejandro De Aza/Delmon Young (BAL), Brett Gardner (NYY), Steven Souza (TB)

1. Ramirez

2. Gardner

3. Saunders/Pillar

4. Souza

5. De Aza/Young

It’s kind of strange to say that the best left fielder in the division is someone who has never played in the outfield, but here we are. Offensively, we all know that Ramirez is an outstanding hitter with the ability to be an elite one. Defense is the worry with him, but I think some of that concern is overblown. There will be growing pains in the beginning, but he’s athletic enough to make the proper adjustments and be fine out there. Gardner is very good in his own right, but Ramirez’s offensive abilities put him at the top spot here.

Center Field

The competitors: Castillo, Dalton Pompey (TOR), Adam Jones (BAL), Jacoby Ellsbury (NYY), Desmond Jennings (TB)

1. Jones

2. Ellbury

3. Jennings

4. Castillo

5. Pompey

Center field and right field are the positions I expect to catch the most criticism for. To me, it’s pretty obvious that Jones and Ellsbury are at the top of this list. They both are all-around contributors who have done it for a long time. Jennings is another player who has proven that he’s a very solid player both at the plate and in the field. All of the positive reports for Castillo tempted me to put him above Jennings, but he’s just too much of an unknown to put him above anyone in this division other than Dalton Pompey.

Right Field

The competitors: Betts, Jose Bautista (TOR), Travis Snider (BAL), Carlos Beltran (NYY), Kevin Kiermaier/Brandon Guyer (TB)

1. Bautista

2. Kiermaier/Guyer

3. Betts

4. Snider

5. Beltran

Here is the one where people are definitely going to let me have it. Don’t get me wrong, though, because I still like Mookie Betts. I just think people have been a little out of control with what the expect in his first full season. Everyone should be able to agree the Bautista is number one, I hope. I’m expecting something like a league-average offensive season from Betts, but I also think that Kiermaier will finish somewhere around ther. However, the latter’s defense is a cut above Betts’. This is prediction that could very well look silly at the end of the year, but I’m much more comfortable being conservative with a player of Betts’ experience than aggressive.

Designated Hitter

The competitors: Ortiz, Dioner Navarro (TOR), Steve Pearce (BAL), Alex Rodriguez/Garret Jones (NYY), John Jaso/Logan Forsythe (TB)

1. Ortiz

2. Rodriguez/Jones

3. Pearce

4. Navarro

5. Jaso/Forsythe

Ortiz has been the class of designated hitters in the entire league for most of his Red Sox career, and I won’t bet on his offense to die until I see it with my own eyes.

Bench

1. Red Sox

2. Yankees

3. Blue Jays

4. Orioles

5. Rays

Of course, the Red Sox offense is incomplete right now, and some of this depth will almost certainly be traded before Opening Day. As of right now, though, having guys like Shane Victorino, Daniel Nava, Allen Craig, Brock Holt and Ryan Hanigan is just too much for any other team here to overcome.

It looks like Boston’s stable of position players compares very favorably with the rest of the league. Though it’s not all that surprising, I was a little taken aback by them finishing slightly ahead of Toronto. It’s close enough that it’s safe enough to call it a draw between the Red Sox and the Blue Jays for the position players. I’ll be back tomorrow to look at the pitchers.

Nine non-roster players were invited to the Blue Jays' major league spring training camp: pitchers Miguel Castro, Roberto Osuna, and Gregory Infante, infielder Mitch Nay, outfielders Anthony Alford, Dwight Smith Jr., and catchers Derrick Chung, Jack Murphy, and Sean Ochinko. They join the 14 minor leaguers who already had invitations earlier this offseason.

Anthony Alford, Mitch Nay, Dwight Smith Jr., Miguel Castro, Scott Copeland, and Robert Osuna get their first career invites. Alex Anthopoulos is very encouraged by Miguel Castro, telling Bob McCown on Prime Time Sports Wednesday evening that the right-handed pitcher Castro "has a chance to make the team" out of spring training in a relief role (although he quickly added that he doesn't expect it to happen).

Of particular note is that Ricky Romero is not among the list of non-roster invitees (NRIs). His old number 24 has even been recycled for invitee Jake Fox. Sort of intriguing!

Other uniform number notes:

• As of the time of posting, two players were assigned #15 according to BlueJays.com: Danny Valencia (who wore it last year) and Chris Colabello. Fight! Fight! Fight!
• Devon Travis has been assigned #9, which was worn by Cole Gillespie for his single game as a Blue Jay, and late-season addition John Mayberry Jr.
• Maicer Izturis switches his #3 for Brett Lawrie's old #13, a number Izturis wore during his final years with the Angels. NRI outfielder Ezequiel Carrera gets #3.
• We knew about this already, but Marcus Stroman will be wearing his new #6 to spring training. His old #54 goes to NRI reliever Scott Copeland. A.J. Jimenez switches from the #6 he had held since being added to the 40-man roster to #8, last worn by Anthony Gose last year.
• Liam Hendriks, who wore #39 in his first tour in Toronto, will be wearing #31 this year, the number worn by his trademate Erik Kratz and Kendall Graveman in 2014.
• Brandon Morrow's old #23 and Dustin McGowan's old #29 have yet to be re-assigned. Does that give some hope the Blue Jays will sign McGowan to a minor league deal?
• New bullpen coach Dane Johnson will wear #38 (Brad Mills in 2014), the number he wore with the White Sox in his major league debut back in 1994. Brook Jacoby takes over the #26 (Adam Lind in 2014) he wore for the vast majority of his career.

Sortable Spring Training Uniform Numbers

There just might be a future Sporcle quiz on uniform numbers, so study up!

Our Thursday rumor of the day comes very very early in the day:

#BlueJays making a strong push to sign free-agent reliever Ronald Belisario, sources say. He's represented by Jim McNamara.

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) January 29, 2015

Belisario had a rough time in 2014, putting up a 5.56 ERA in 62 games. In 66.1 innings he allowed 78 hits, 18 walks and 47 strikeouts. He was much better in 2013 (3.97 ERA in 77 games) and 2012 (2.54 ERA in 68 games.

He's 32, right-handed, big guy (6'3", 240). He throws hard, averaged 93.9 on his fastball last year. Pretty much a fastball/slider pitcher.

We really could use another right-hander for the pen, I guess Belisario is as good as any of the guys that are left out there on the free agent market (at least among those that would fit in the budget that the Jays have left).

Not brought to you by Johnson & Johnson

The Blue Jays' all-time roster have more Johnsons on it than any other surname, so here is a quiz to find out how many of them you can name.

Do you snicker at the word "Johnson"? For your information the Blue Jays have also had a seven Willies (Willie Aikens, Willie Blair, Willie Cañate, Willie Fraser, Willie Greene, Willie Horton, Willie Upshaw), four Dicks (R.A. Dickey, Dick Davis, Dick Scholfield, Mike Bordick, and Dickie Joe Thon in the minors), a Wang (Chien-Ming Wang), and a Rod (Rod Barajas). Of course, don't forget Steve Cummings and Woody Williams. Yes, I am 12 years old.

Just click the green "Play" button below and start entering the players' first or given names.

Show off your score in the comments below. When discussing possible answers be sure to black them out with the "Spoiler Text" function (click the rightmost icon between "Message" and the text box in the comments, or hit Ctrl-F when typing).

Previous Thursday Morning Sporcle games:

• Blue Jays 40-Man Roster on July 15, 2014
• Canadian Blue Jays

Gibby is beloved by many, but what do we really know about his managerial style?

It will always be impossible to know exactly what a manager brings to a baseball team.

Even in an era where more and more of the game is being quantified definitively, one aspect that will always be elusive is the value of a good manager. A great deal of lip service is paid to how much guys like Joe Maddon help their teams win, but we will never know for sure.

Like coaches in any professional sport, managers in baseball are at the mercy of forces beyond their control to an enormous degree. They make tactical decisions of consequence at times, but more often than not they must simply watch their teams play and let the cards fall where they may. Even the best decision may lead to a loss, and absolutely indefensible choices sometimes result in positive outcomes.

Trying to tease of the precise value of the guy pulling the strings is an absolute nightmare.

Perhaps the most important thing a manager does is keep players happy and motivated, maintain a sense of unity and purpose within the team, and deal with the inevitable bad stretches and distractions that come with an 162 game season.

The Blue Jays have themselves a manager in John Gibbons who seems like he would excel in these areas. Gibby is ludicrously likeable and appears to have both the requisite fire and calm to be an excellent team leader. That being said, there's no way to know with any certainty whether the attributes he seems to display on camera translate to high-quality leadership.

Even if we could tell which managers have the best soft skills, it would still be near-impossible to determine exactly what that means to the on-field product.

However, if we leave aside the delusion that we know which bench bosses are the best what we can do is try and examine their styles.

A great deal is said about "John Gibbons: Human Being" but we tend to hear less about "John Gibbons: Tactician" other than vague references by Alex Anthopoulos about his solid bullpen management. The general consensus seems to be that's he good enough that he's not worth worrying about.

That evaluation is likely fair enough, but I figured I would dig a little deeper in Gibby's managerial stylings to see if there was more there. That digging began with his offensive decision-making.

Offense

Beyond turning in a daily lineup card, there are three major calls a manager can make that affects his team's offensive performance: pinch-hitting, pinch-running and bunting. In order to try and identify Gibby's style in these areas I've focused on the quantity of these moves he's made rather than the result. While he deserves credit for putting his players in the right position to succeed, the sample sizes on these moves' results are too small to make real judgments.

Instead I'd rather focus on what tactics he chose to employ instead of how they worked out. The chart below shows how often the Jays have pinch-hit, pinch-run, and dropped down sacrifice bunts during Gibby's most recent two-year reign.

Nothing much jumps out here. Gibbons has turned to more pinch hitters than your average skipper, but he's also led a team that has leaned on some hitters with nasty platoon splits like Adam Lind, Juan Francisco and Danny Valencia which could skew things. Even so, he's shown himself to be unafraid to look to the bench for a key hit, despite having a rather uninspiring group on reserves to call on.

Gibbons has chosen to pinch run pretty much exactly as much as one would expect, but there's one wrinkle that the total number misses. Over the last two seasons the Blue Jays have used pitchers as pinch runners seven times, the highest total in the league. He's used his hurlers this way more than even National League managers, and it's simultaneously brilliant and insane.

The Blue Jays have two especially athletic pitchers in Marcus Stroman and Drew Hutchison who make fine pinch runners. Using either saves the team a hitter that can be used later in the game and it can lead to magical moments like this one.

Alternatively, the idea of risking the health of your best pitcher is downright reckless. Stroman's hands and arms are worth millions and millions of dollars to the Blue Jays and exposing them to any possible harm just can't be considered wise. Chances are Stroman won't get hurt pinch running, and Gibbons deserves points for creativity, but using him in this way doesn't seem like a good practice.

When it comes to sacrifice bunts, the raw numbers only included successful attempts so they are slightly skewed. However, it gives us an idea about how often Gibbons has called for runners to be moved over and it turns out that he's utterly unremarkable in this respect.

The second part of a manager's tactical style is how he handles his pitching staff.

Pitching

As mentioned above, Gibbons has a reputation for being a shrewd manager of relief pitchers. At the very least he tends to use a pitchers in a way that makes sense, which is the most you can really ask for.

By far the most important strategic decision a manager makes related to pitchers is when to make substitutions and who to bring in. These are choices that skippers are evaluated on more than any other. 

A significantly less important pitching decision managers make is when to call for an intentional walk. Rarely is it the most statistically sound choice, but it is not without its uses and remains a part of the game.

The following chart shows how often Gibbons chose to go to new pitchers or call for walks.

Gibbons has gone to his bullpen very slightly less than average, but the difference is not particularly meaningful. Same goes for his use of intentional walks.

However, in terms of pitching changes quantity doesn't tell the whole story, there is also how long he left in starters and relievers. As it turns out, under Gibbons the Jays have been quick to pull their starters while giving their relievers more rope.

Keith Law released his top 100 MLB prospect list and there are 3 Blue Jays on the list. I'm sure you all could guess who they are, Daniel Norris is #18, Dalton Pompey is #42 and Aaron Sanchez is #51. Norris and Pompey weren't on his list last year, Sanchez dropped from 30th.

About Norris Law says:

The Blue Jays have done an excellent job turning raw teenage pitchers into legitimate starting-pitcher prospects, whether for trade (Syndergaard) or their own uses, as in the case of Norris, who entered their system as an erratic arm-strength guy who needed major delivery help just to be able to throw strikes. On any given night, Norris can show you four average or better pitches, with a plus slider and changeup and the ability to touch the mid-90s (though at the risk of coming out of his delivery).

At 90-92, Norris can stay on line to the plate and maintains some fastball command, but when he humps up to try to throw harder he tends to land on the side of his foot and spin off, which is when he loses his command. He's athletic enough to be able to maintain a consistent delivery, and the raw stuff is certainly there -- he was fifth in the minors in strikeouts in 2014 -- for him to be a front-line major league starter.

About Pompey:

Pompey will try to accomplish the Herculean task of going from low Class A to major league leadoff hitter inside of two years, no small feat for the 22-year-old Canadian prospect who came to pro ball without a tremendous amount of playing experience. Pompey has an extremely advanced approach at the plate for someone so young, combining excellent pitch recognition with the ability to know what pitches to take. He's a switch-hitter with a shorter, simpler swing from the left side, much more balanced but using his lower half less, while on the right side he gets a little longer but with more rotation, likely to make somewhat less contact but hit for more power when he does.

He's a plus runner with good instincts in center, and the Jays were impressed enough by his confidence and lack of panic (such as when he started out 3-for-36 in Double-A) that they were willing to promote him to the majors, his fourth level of the season, at the end of 2014. He needs to get stronger, but otherwise his bat and glove appear to be ready for the majors right now, with his eventual peak being that of a high-OBP, 40-steal leadoff hitter who plays plus defense in center field.

That's a pretty nice 'peak'.

And Sanchez:

Sanchez was filthy as a short reliever for the Jays at the end of the year, pumping 96-98 mph bat-breaking fastballs that hitters just pounded into the ground when they could hit them at all, throwing the occasional plus breaking ball just for kicks and leaving his changeup, itself not a bad pitch, in the minors. Sanchez has shortened his stride substantially in the past two years, and although it hasn't impacted his stuff, his command isn't what it once was and he's putting the health of his arm at unnecessary risk. The Blue Jays are working on trying to get his arm back up a tick so that his elbow isn't so low and so he can work downhill more by staying on top of the ball through his delivery, a process that coincidentally means lengthening his stride a little. (Two other notable prospects to have this problem in recent years: Tyler Skaggs, who blew out his elbow out after the Angels restored his old stride, and Taijuan Walker, who has had a few bouts of shoulder soreness since shortening his own stride.)

The Blue Jays believe he can be a starter, and they should, given his chance for three plus pitches. Sanchez has shown the capability to become a shutdown reliever, but that's a waste of his ultimate potential to pitch near the front of a rotation.

I agree that relieving is a waste of his potential, but I have a feeling that is what he is going to be doing this year.

There are a couple of former Jays on his list, Noah Syndergaard, who went to the Mets in the trade that got us R.A. Dickey, is one spot ahead of Norris at 17th and Franklin Barreto, who went to the A's in the trade that got us Josh Donaldson, is 95th.

Number 1 on his list is the Cubs' Kris Bryant and number 2 is Byron Buxton from the Twins.

Looking at the other AL East teams:

• Yankees have 2 players: Aaron Judge (23rd, OF) and Greg Bird (80th, 1B).
• Rays have 2 players: Justin O'Conner (78th, C) and Daniel Robertson (83rd, SS).
• Orioles have 2: Hunter Harvey (16th, RHP) and Dylan Bundy (26th, RHP).
• Red Sox have 5: Blake Swihart (10th, C), Henry Owens (20th, LHP), Eduardo Rodriguez (29th, LHP), Rafael Devers (55th, 3B) and Manuel Margot (70th, CF).

The Blue Jays have signed Ronald Belisario to minor league contract, reports Jim Bowden of ESPN. Belisario will make $1.7M if he makes the team. Jon Morosi had reported the two sides were "very close" to a signing earlier today. In addition, Shi Davidi reports that the Jays have signed infielder Ramon Santiago to a minor league deal.

Belisario, 32, seems to fit the Jays need for a right-handed reliever. Though Belisario posted a 5.56 ERA for the Chicago White Sox in 2014, his fielding independent pitching (FIP) was a much more favourable 3.54.

Belisario is a proven groundball specialist with a career GB% of 60.4%. He has large splits for his career with a 3.08 FIP against right-handed hitters and a 4.50 FIP against lefties. He relies mainly on a fastball-slider combination, where his fastball tends to average around 94 mph.

Since entering the league in 2009, Belisario has posted the tenth lowest xFIP against right-handed hitters (minimum 200 IP). His ability to get righties out should be a nice complement to a bullpen, which already features Brett Cecil and Aaron Loup from the left side.

Personally, I think this is a very solid signing for the Blue Jays. Belisario should allow John Gibbons to play the matchup game against some of the games best right-handed hitters. With players such as Evan Longoria, Hanley Ramirez, Adam Jones and Mike Napoli in the AL East, Belisario could be a valuable asset late in games.

Ramon Santiago, 35, comes over from the Reds organization after posting a .246/.343/.324 line in 2014. Santiago is a switch hitter that played primarily second base, shortstop and third base last season. For his career, Santiago owns a 76 wrc+ vs both lefties and righties. It seems he will compete for a spot on the major league team with players such as Maicer Izturis, Ryan Goins, Munenori Kawasaki, Steve Tolleson and Devon Travis.

Chad Jenkins speaks with Bluebird Banter about what makes him tick as a pitcher.

In a lot of ways Chad Jenkins is an easy guy to overlook.

He doesn't have the blazing fastball or knee-buckling breaking pitch that makes scouts salivate or the peripherals to get the sabermetric types enthralled. However, what he does have is a sinker that Aaron Hill once famously described as a "bowling ball".

Using this sinker and solid command, the Blue Jays righty forces opponents to put the ball in play against him, and so far the results have been pretty good. Although his fielding-independent numbers have not been stellar, he has posted a 3.25 ERA in his first 97 innings in the major leagues, including a 3.03 mark as a reliever.

Those ERA totals are the statistics he pays attention to the most.

"The number I look at is ERA," Jenkins said via a phone conversation with Bluebird Banter, "I’m pretty aware what my ERA sits around for the most part."

The 27-year-old also looks at one other stat very closely.

"Another thing is when I come into a game with runners on base I don't want them to score," he said. "I know if I leave a game with runners on base I hope my teammates pick me up.

"So for me the big number I care about is keeping my inherited runners from scoring."

In his career so far, Jenkins has done an excellent job of preventing those runners from coming in, allowing a measly 22% to score. One of the reasons why he is a good candidate for situations with runners on base is his ability to get ground balls.

Last season his ground ball percentage reached a career-high 57.3%, something he attributes to increased sinker usage.

"The biggest part for me was my pitch selection," he explained. "Last year I just threw a lot more sinkers than I ever have before in the big leagues."

Jenkins self-evaluation is right on the money as his sinker rate absolutely exploded in 2014.

Along with his increasing in ground ball rate, Jenkins did a fantastic job making batters chase at pitches outside the zone. Last season hitters swung for 39.8% of his pitches outside the strike zone, the seventh-best rate in baseball among relievers with at least 30 innings pitched.

Jenkins puts this phenomenon down to the movement on his pitches.

"If I can start my sinker in the zone and run out that helps me a lot. I get in trouble when I start it out of the zone and it runs back in. As long as I can start it in have it go out that’ll help my numbers in that category."

When hitters go chasing the right hander's pitches what they normally end up with is weak contact rather than strike outs. In Chad Jenkins's career he has allowed a batting average of .187 on pitches outside the strike zone. When hitters go chasing his sinker they play right into his hands and often wind up as yet another ground out victim, something that gives him immense satisfaction.

"I love the ground out, because [if I get one] I know that I did my job right."

Even though he lives and dies by the ground ball, Jenkins admits that he's not immune to the allure of the strikeout.

"I also know that the stat people love the strikeout," he said. "So when I do string together a couple I get pretty excited."

While statistics are useful for making evaluations after the fact, during the game Jenkins relies on different indicators to judge how well he's pitching.

"For me it's a feel thing. I know if the ball is coming out good. If it's coming out good I know where it's going and that's when I feel like I'm at my best."

Beyond feel alone, the sinkerballer likes to examine the ball while it's in flight.

"I like to see just one seam spinning through the air. I know it sounds weird, I want to see just one seam spinning in a circle... unfortunately sometimes I cut it and the ball is rotating sideways."

Looking ahead to to next season Jenkins has his sights set on something far simpler than statistics or the rotation on his pitches.

"A good 2015 would just be to stay healthy," he said. "Last year I was on a good track and then September came and now I have three screws in my hand."

Jenkins heads into the season as an important cog in a relief core with some question marks, even after the signing of Ronald Belisario on Thursday. While he has faith in his fellow relievers, he understands why fans have been clamouring for offseason additions.

"It's been a good offseason for us, but one thing we haven't really touched on is the bullpen. There hasn't really been a lot done in the bullpen as a whole. It doesn't really bother me. We have some young guys down there. I'm one of them. I've been in the big leagues for parts of three seasons but I've never had a full season. There's reasons for people to be skeptical I'm sure."

Jenkins could have a role in erasing some of that scepticism if he can build on a solid 2014. Not only did he have a strong season overall, but he also catapulted himself into the hearts of Jays fans with six innings of extra-inning shutout ball against the Tigers on August 10. Bluebird Banter readers deemed that performance the team's best pitching appearance of the year.

The Chattanooga native still considers "The Catch" his claim to fame as far is the public is concerned...

...but he thinks of the six-inning relief performance as the highlight of his young career.

"It's weird, the game started off kind of slow then it started steamrolling all of the sudden really quickly.

"Everything happened so fast. I was sitting in the bullpen and the phone kept ringing and it wasn't my name. Since [Todd] Redmond went early I knew that I was going to be last.... It was weird because I don't think I've ever been a part of that situation before."

That outing may be tough to top for Jenkins in 2015, but it seems likely he'll have his fair share of chances to do so.

Every year, pitchers get injured. Every year, some pitchers have disappointing seasons. Every year, some pitchers come out of nowhere. What's the way to make the best of that situation? Have a lot of options.

Not every team can be the Washington Nationals or the Los Angeles Dodgers. Teams with four or five bona fide aces don't come around very often. In fact, with the Blue Jays, the closest thing you have to an ace is R.A. Dickey and although he is a solid starter, he isn't an "ace". At least, not since arriving in Toronto.

But that's alright. Because along with Mark Buehrle, Marcus Stroman and Drew Hutchison, they have a pretty solid group of four starters. And that doesn't even consider the battle for the fifth spot. And that's where the extra depth comes in.

The Baltimore Orioles won the American League East division last season. Not many baseball fans could tell you who their number one starter was. That's because they had five above-average starters (I'm counting Kevin Gausman, not Ubaldo Jimenez). They also were remarkably healthy. Of their 162 games, one was started by someone other than their top six starters. That's one road to success.

The other is having enough arms that you hope some stick. This goes for the much-talked-about bullpen as well. The Jays have the four names I mentioned above and have added Marco Estrada who can start or relieve as needed.

Same goes for Aaron Sanchez, Daniel Norris, Todd Redmond and Kyle Drabek. Sure, you might not want a lot of them to be starting a lot but one or two may surprise you in the Spring and you have extra options for the bullpen as well.

The Jays also added a bunch of additional pitchers this winter. Liam Hendriks, Juan Pablo Oramas, Bo Schultz, Jeff Francis and Andrew Albers are all names you may never hear again or forget about by May. However, taking a look at guys in Spring Training is one of the few low-risk aspects when it comes to pitchers.

You take a look at enough guys, and odds are you will find a major leaguer or two. You may even find a really good big leaguer.

So yes, there are holes in the lineup, and where there are not holes, there are question marks. And they exist within the pitching staff as well. But, by bringing in guys on low-risk deals, you back yourself up for when someone like Estrada doesn't work out, or someone else gets hurt.

The only way to make sure you have a can't miss pitching prospect is to make sure you have a bunch of can't miss pitching prospects. The same thing applies to building pitching staffs. The only way to make sure you have a good one, is to make sure you have as many candidates as possible. Unless of course, you're the Washington Nationals or the Los Angeles Dodgers.

But even then, winning is no sure thing.

After Keith Law placed three Blue Jays in his top prospect list yesterday, MLB.com did him one better and also included Jeff Hoffman in their Top 100 list. As with Law's list, Daniel Norris, Dalton Pompey, and Aaron Sanchez all make the cut, while Jonathan Mayo and company added the 2014 first round pick in Jeff Hoffman at #87. The rankings are pretty similar with Norris leading the charge at #18 (compared to #17 on Law's list), while Pompey was placed at #43 (#42 on Law's list), while Sanchez was one spot lower at #44 (#51 on Law's list).

Having four players on the list places the Blue Jays in the upper half of the league's farm systems, with the Pirates actually leading the way with seven players. Norris will likely not be made aware of his ranking unless a carrier pigeon is sent to his van that he is living in on his way to Dunedin.

They had this to say about the new top Blue Jays pitching prospect:

Norris' early struggles in the Minor Leagues were largely a result of poor command. After several adjustments to his delivery, he has found something that works and allows his deep, dynamic repertoire to shine. His fastball sits in the low to mid 90s with late life. His slider is his best secondary offering, and he also mixes in a changeup and slow, sweeping curveball.

Hometown boy Pompey received high praise as well:

Pompey combines elite athleticism with a good feel for hitting on both sides of the plate. He has a mature approach and is adapt at working walks. While his approach lends itself more to high contact rates than power, his bat speed enables him to drive balls. He has above-average speed and puts it to good use both on the basepaths and in center field, where he covers a lot of ground.

The MLB.com scouts seem much higher on Sanchez then Keith Law:

Thanks to his clean, simple delivery, Sanchez generates easy velocity. As a starter, his fastball sits in the mid-90s and it averaged more than 97 mph when he pitched out of the bullpen for Toronto, according to Pitchf/x. His sharp, powerful curveball gives him an elite fastball-breaking ball combination. He creates a lot of groundball outs thanks to his fastball's heavy, sinking life and the downhill angle from which he throws.

With Hoffman yet to throw a pitch in professional baseball, the thoughts on his future are obviously fairly hazy:

When healthy, Hoffman stands out for his stuff, size and athleticism. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and regularly reaches 98 mph. His big curveball is nearly as good as his fastball and his changeup gives him a third above-average offering. He fills up the strike zone already and his athleticism gives scouts hope he'll be able to continue to refine his command as a professional.

The #1 player on the list was different from Law's list with Twins outfielder Byron Buxton remaining at the top compared to Kris Bryant leading the way in the eyes of the ESPN writer. Nothing really jumps out at first glance and the Top 100 pretty much lines up with the rest of the lists that have been released. Former Jays prospects include Noah Syndergaard coming in at #10, while Franklin Barreto slotted in at #85 just ahead of Hoffman.

Talking to Ken Rosenthal, new commissioner Manfred is willing to accept A-Rod back into baseball, seemingly with no hard feelings. Also, perhaps a ban of the shift isn't such a certainty after all. Get ready for pitch clocks though.

Commissioner Rob Manfred sat down for a wide-ranging interview with Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports earlier this week, discussing everything from the need to make baseball more accessible to younger generations and marketing the sport's biggest stars, to the issue of PED's and what might possibly have been a subtle dig on Bud Selig as someone who relied more on politics than facts or deep knowledge. If you missed the airing on Wednesday night you can find a highlight clip of the interview, along with the full transcript, linked here on the FOX Sports website.

Among the topics addressed were Manfred's two reported meetings with Alex Rodriguez as he attempts to reintegrate himself into baseball after his year-long suspension. Manfred declined to get into the specifics of those discussions, but it certainly seems like any apology Rodriguez might have issued had the intended effect. Manfred essentially confirmed the widely rumored episode where A-Rod cursed and stormed out of an arbitration hearing, but played it down as a single heated exchange and instead talked about the relationship between the two that apparently still exists. Manfred went on to say that, having served his punishment, A-Rod will be welcomed back by baseball to resume his career. No mention of his contract with the Yankees certainly, and the milestone bonus clause, but no suggestion of A-Rod's scorched earth tactics when arguing the Biogenisis suspension leaving any lingering resentment, in the Commissioner's office at least.

Add this to the Player's Association being willing to defend Alex Rodriguez's right to receive those bonus payments and all of a sudden the New York Yankees could find themselves on the unpopular side of this dispute. While this might not stop the Yankees from pushing to void the milestone markers in A-Rod's contract ahead of having to pay him the first $6 million installment - for passing Willie Mays on the home run list - it likely rules out Rodriguez simply choosing not to contest for fear of further alienating any remaining support. Unless the Yankees clearly feel they have strong legal merits for their case, this might factor into a decision on the value of taking on a protracted legal challenge without any allies. After all, look how well that served A-Rod last year.

Another interesting question was Rosenthal's follow-up to Manfred's previous mention of banning defensive shifts. The commissioner was careful to frame his previous answer as one topic on which he would be willing to have a conversation. Manfred suggested not to read too much into his previous comment, going as far as to suggest it might not even be needed should hitters naturally adapt towards hitting against defensive shifts. While the commissioner didn't rule out the possibility banning the shift, he gave no indication that the idea had moved beyond the conversation stage. It seems likely that any push to introduce a rule restricting defensive movement is a ways away, if it is introduced at all. He certainly seemed very aware of the reaction he received to his previous comments, leading to a more measured tone on the topic.

What seems much more likely to be introduced in the near future are pitch clocks. Commissioner Manfred appeared to treat the idea of cutting down average game times as a high priority, if for no other reason than the symbolism of proving to be listening to fans who have raised the issue. When asked about introducing pitch clocks at the MLB level, the commissioner clearly stated that it will be a topic for negotiation with the players union, as he did regarding the international draft. A sign perhaps that his own mind on both topics are very much made up.

Among other topics that were addressed, was international expansion. Manfred didn't appear to push it forward strongly, but he didn't rule out further international expansion - the MLB is of course already a multi-country league with the Toronto Blue Jays franchise - in the next 10 years. While expansion into South America would appear to make the most sense given existing demand, Manfred chose to refer to the whole Western Hemisphere as a possibility, It didn't seem to be anywhere as high a priority as the NFL's current efforts to build a market in London for example though, probably reasonable given the unique travel pressures of playing games daily.

I thought Commissioner Manfred came across as a measured reformer. Some of his ideas might generate strong debate, though I expect he'll get strong agreement behind his primary goal of maintaining labor peace. No strikes or lockouts during his tenure would likely make for a solid enough legacy all by itself.

Having strong depth at each position can be a crucial part to a team's success. Since front office cannot possibly expect every player to stay healthy, backups and minor league players can become very important.

This article will take a look at the Blue Jays' roster and depth at every position. Each position will be given a "Good", "Mediocre" or "Poor" rating to evaluate where the team stands. Possible upgrades will be suggested in the process.

Catcher: Dioner Navarro figures to be the backup, who seems to be a decent second-division starter. The question really comes down to whether or not Navarro is traded. With a salary of $5 million, it could be difficult to find Navarro enough playing time to obtain surplus value. If Navarro is traded, the Jays are left with Josh Thole or A.J Jimenez as plan B. Thole does have an 85 wrc+ against righties for his career, but has struggled quite a bit in recent years. A.J Jimenez appears to be strong defensively, but he was out-hit by Ryan Goins in AAA last season.

Rating: Good, at least for now. If Navarro is traded to create payroll flexibility, this rating could be changed to poor pretty quickly. Acquiring Tyler Flowers (in exchange for Navarro), or a Hector Sanchez/Chris Gimenez type may not be the worst idea if Navarro is in fact traded. I miss Erik Kratz.

First Base: A Justin Smoak/Danny Valencia platoon seems to be a decent cost-effective option at first base. From the left side, Smoak has been a league average MLB hitter for his career. Moving to a more homer-friendly park should be a better fit for his game, so some improvement could be expected. Danny Valencia should continue to crush left-handed pitching and provide solid value when he does play.

Daric Barton figures to be stashed in AAA as Plan B. Barton has been a league average hitter for his MLB career and is a very strong defender. Edwin Encarnacion figures to be the DH, but could always shift over to 1B if needed. The Jays may not have a superstar as their primary first baseman, but there does seem to be strong depth.

Rating: Good. The Jays should be fine at 1B even if injuries occur.

2B/SS/3B: These positions were grouped together as they all share similar "Plan B" options. From the left side of the infield, Reyes and Donaldson appear to be strong starters. Second base is the real issue, as the Jays seem to lack a quality starter.

Maicer's career numbers would play at second base, so if he is back to his old self the Jays could possibly find decent production. If Maicer does make the major league team, I would want a different option to be the backup shortstop. Ramon Santiago could fill that role, but only has a 76 wRC+ for his career.

Ryan Goins and Munenori Kawasaki appear to be on the outside looking in at this point. Devon Travis has strong minor league numbers, but huge question marks about his game. Counting on such an unknown probably isn't the greatest idea. I'm not sure if Steve Tolleson can play a decent shortstop, but he could provide a solid bat against left-handed pitching.

Rating: Poor. If Reyes or Donaldson miss significant time, the Jays could very well be left with two "black-holes" in their lineup. Signing Hector Olivera would be quite the upgrade, while a Cliff Pennington trade still appears to make a ton of sense. Without adding another quality option, the Jays could be in real rough shape if one of Reyes or Donaldson misses time.

Corner Outfield: The left-handed hitting Andy Dirks will likely be stashed in AAA as depth. Dirks has been around league average offensively for his career and provides solid defence. Kevin Pillar seems likely to provide strong offence against left handed pitching. Ezequiel Carrera and Dwight Smith Jr. could even see some time before the end of the year. Though they could probably use one more option, the team is in good hands with Dirks.

Rating: Good.

Centre Field: It appears the Jays will count on one of their top prospects in Dalton Pompey to man centre field. There are plenty of reasons to be excited about Pompey, but it is hard to forget he played the majority of 2014 in High-A ball. Though his speed and defence should provide value, it is probably a good idea to have a strong backup plan in place.

At this point, Kevin Pillar seems to be the Jays Plan B. Despite strong major league numbers, he has struggled against right handed pitching for his career. Unless he improves on his plate discipline, it would probably be tough for the Jays to count on him against right-handed pitching for long. Ezequiel Carrera is a left handed hitter who will likely start in Buffalo, but he has provided just 0.5 WAR in 176 career games.

Rating: Mediocre. I'd like to see the Jays add depth here. Trading for Jarod Dyson, Aaron Hicks or Cameron Maybin would be a strong idea. Even signing Tony Gwynn Jr. to a minor league contract could help. If no depth is added, there will be a lot of pressure on Pompey and Pillar to produce.

Starting Pitcher: Four of the Jays top five starters from 2014 figure to return. Marco Estrada seems to be the odds on favourite for the fifth spot, while Daniel Norris likely provides strong depth in AAA to start the season. I would like to see the Jays add a seventh starter, as it would be tough to stretch out Aaron Sanchez on short notice (if he is in fact a reliever). I do not see Jeff Francis, Liam Hendriks and Todd Redmond as terrific options, while I view Chad Jenkins as a reliever at this point.

If the price is right, why not target Carlos Villanueva? The former Jay has had quite a bit of success in the bullpen since leaving the Jays, and he could start if needed. If Estrada struggles and Norris isn't deemed "MLB ready", the Jays no longer have Kendall Graveman and Sean Nolin to fill in.

Rating: Mediocre

Bullpen: Whether it is Francisco Rodriguez or Rafael Soriano, the Jays bullpen could use another high-leverage reliever. The Jays are strong from the left-side with Brett Cecil, Aaron Loup and potentially Rob Rasmussen. Todd Redmond and Chad Jenkins could be long-relievers, but beyond Aaron Sanchez the Jays could use another high-leverage righty. The minor league depth is there, but an injury to one of their few high-leverage relievers would be a major issue.

Rating: Poor, at least for now. Signing K-Rod or Soriano would move everyone down a peg and suddenly the depth would be very good. There is just too much riding on Cecil and Sanchez right now in my opinion.

There isn't much for Blue Jays news today.

The Jays signed Brazilian born reliever Tiago da Silva to a minor league contract. Tiago pitched for Ciudad del Carmen in the Mexican League last year, putting up a 2.07 ERA in 61 innings, allowing 43 hits, 12 walks with 75 strikeouts and getting 29 saves. He won the Mexican League's 'Reliever of the Year award. Before that he pitched in the Italian League. He also had some good outings for the Brazil team in the WBC.

He also pitched in the Venezuelan winter league, throwing 30 innings in 30 games, with a 2.70 ERA, 31 hits, 3 walks and 37 strikeouts. Pretty good strikeout to walk rate. Hit the link to get the rest of his numbers.

I can't find a scouting report, but I get the feeling he doesn't throw very hard. He turns 30 in March.  I'd imagine he'll start the season with the Bisons. I don't think it really makes up for the Rays getting Ronald Belisario.

Jim Bowden, over at ESPN, has 'Six managers already on the hot seat'. I figured Gibby would have been one of them, but no.

Have the Jays been linked to Rafael Soriano yet? It seems like he would be a nice fit.

And there is a football game on today, if you didn't notice. Why don't we have a little contest to see who can come closest to predicting the final score?

I'll say 34-27 Seahawks and I'll predict there it more interest in watching to see if anyone wanders off with some of the footballs than ever before. Deflate should be the word for the drinking game today.

Jays pitchers and catchers report in 21 days!!!!

As things currently stand, the Blue Jays have 14 players under contract for 2015 (including Ricky Romero), with a total reported salary commitment of $112.75 million. If we conservatively assume that both Josh Donaldson and Danny Valencia win their arbitration hearings and the 25-man roster is rounded out with 10 players at or near the minimum, then that brings the salary commitment to around $126 million. There are also option buyouts to account for, which is a little more complicated. My understanding is the convention is for option buyouts in November to hit the next year's budget (hence the manuever the Jays did with Rajai Davis a couple years back), so that's another $2.4 million. Even were this incorrect, the Jays have five potential 2016 option buyouts totalling $5.6-million that they'd have to reserve something against ($1.6-million of that is virtually guaranteed), so it's not going to change much. There's also an unknown amount of money sent to the Mariners in the J.A. Happ - Michael Saunders deal, so we'll call the grand total an even $130 million.

In early October, Paul Beeston did a radio interview with Jeff Blair in which Beeston was asked about the 2015 payroll and said, "you know it's going higher [relative to 2014 payroll]". This echoed comments from another radio hit in August in which he expressed the same sentiment. Using the same type of accounting as above for consistency, the Jays had an opening day 2014 payroll of about $136 million.

Technically, any number above that would fulfil Beeston's commitment, but realistically it must have meant at least $140 million. Anything under that would be such a trivial increase that it would be not be possible to be so confident about going past the actual 2014 number. Moreover, due to the strong salary inflation in Major League Baseball, even $140 million in 2015 would have less purchasing power than $136 million in 2014. So it's safe to say that based on what Beeston was talking about back in October, at this point in the offseason the Blue Jays should have at least another $10 million in available funds for 2015.

On December 30, the Toronto Star's Richard Griffin informed us that the Jays were believed to have only $9 million in budget room left. Given that the Jays have not made any major league moves that would had affected payroll since early December (other than agreeing on contracts with Brett Cecil, Marco Estrada and Saunders at nearly $1 million less than was publicly projected), this would seem to imply a small cutback compared to what Beeston promised in early October. Technically not, but certainly in spirit especially since he was talking about Melky Cabrera likely being back and there's no way that could have happened on a budget only trivially higher than 2014's.

Not one week later, Shi Davidi wrote for Sportsnet that on the contrary, there was "$5-$7 million...thought to still [be] available".

Then last week, Ben Nicholson-Smith, also of Sportsnet, wrote that the Jays' "payroll flexibility [is] believed to be $5-6 million", which once again is slightly lower than the previous report. This again, despite nothing happening in the intervening period that should have reduced things. And it's noteworthy that this range would outright leave the 2015 payroll shy of the 2014 payroll calculated in the same manner.

It would seem then, that over the course of the winter, the 2015 budget has shrunk. And if all the reports above are to be believed, then it's shrunk continuously. Frankly, at this point, by the time we get to Opening Day I'm half worried we'll hear the Blue Jays have negative payroll flexibility.

What's curious is that something else has been shrinking continuously at the same time: the value of the loonie versus the greenback. We know that has obvious impacts on the Jays, though one would think that when the budget is set there would be either internal or external measures taken to hedge currency exposure so that the budget is not a moving target throughout the offseason (or worse, regular season).

So that's probably coincidence. But either way, it looks like the Blue Jays will fall short of Beeston's commitments last year. Conveniently, the State of the Franchise is later week, which would be a good time for fans to demand some answers about the budget directly from the front office. But with questions now pre-screened and this administration's track record, I'll bet against it.