Steven Matz was an ace, the bats fall asleep in the nightcap, Blue Jays split double header

That was quite a long day of baseball and we’re back to where we started!

Things worth mentioning…

Steven Matz continues to be extremely good, which was the big thing to draw from today. Matz made his third start of the season in the first game of the double-dip and flirted with a, abbreviated no-hitter, holding the Royals to fuck all until the sixth inning when Nicky Lopez hit a Royals-esque bloop single. Matz would end up going six innings, allowing one earned run on two hits while striking out five. His ERA is 1.47 and the Mets look stupid for giving him to the Blue Jays in exchange for a bag of magic beans.
The Blue Jays put up five runs on Mike Minor and the Royals, led by a Lourdes Gurriel first-inning double, Jonathan Davis’ first dinger (and hit) of the season, which was as big as Lake Ontario, and a bomb from Vlad.

Welcome to the Vladimir Guer-air-show #PLAKATA pic.twitter.com/MK8i9s6qTf
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) April 17, 2021

The second game was a bit limp-dick after the first, to be honest. Tommy Milone got the start and allowed a couple of runs over two-and-one-third …

Read More

Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation

Minor Leaguers: Do They Even Exist?

We were told, some time ago, that the minor leaguers would be staggered so as to come to spring training after the Blue jays broke camp. Certainly, in the case of the jays, there was some mild fuzziness because the complex is just five miles across town and the non-roster invitees to major league camp just continue on when the rest of the system arrives. All this in preparation for the opening of the minor league season currently set for May 4. So in theory all those many wonderful prospects are there, now, as you are reading this, going through their paces – and have been for over a week so. . . why is it so quiet?

Seriously, as far as a quick Google search can reveal, not one whisper published this month about Austin Martin or Jordan Groshans or Alek Manoah and what kind of impression they, or anyone else, might be making. For someone who’s generally as fascinated with this side of the organization as I am the major league club, it makes one feel a bit deprived. Moreso when you feel obliged to generate some content as the season approaches.
So here’s what little I’ve got: a …

Read More

Author: Tammy Rainey / Blue Jays Nation

Leafs acquire Big Save Dave from Calgary

For all the talk about how the Leafs were staying the course with the Campbell/Andersen/Hutchinson trio, we can now say we were mislead…

TRADE: We’ve acquired goaltender David Rittich from Calgary in exchange for a 2022 third-round selection. #LeafsForever
Details » https://t.co/9sLAeLvWvQ pic.twitter.com/q2wJXOxdoZ
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) April 12, 2021

A third round pick is a reasonable price for a solid NHL goaltender, not too high, not too low, but for anyone hoping for Linus Ullmark or Chris Driedger, David Rittich is a step down from that calibre. For anyone hoping for the returns of former Leafs, James Reimer or Jonathan Bernier, well, you’re out of luck too.

Leafs get goalie insurance. Flames retain 50 percent of Rittich’s salary/aav. Which they needed to do to get it to a third-round pick https://t.co/FxLqer6pSU
— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) April 12, 2021

The salary retention is a big part of why the Leafs paid a 3rd, although it’s a 2022 3rd (you know, when the draft is good again.) The cap hit is the same as the hit on Nick Foligno and it now appears the intention is to shut down Andersen until playoff time.
 

Read More

Author: Jon Steitzer / The Leafs Nation

Toronto Raptors: Dominant performance from Daniel Theis could get Raptors interested in offseason

Toronto Raptors: Dominant performance from Daniel Theis could get Raptors interested in offseason

The Toronto Raptors were predictably stomped by Daniel Theis and the Chicago Bulls last night, as a Raptors team that only fielded eight players was not enough to overcome the dynamic duo of Nikola Vucevic and Zach LaVine. The Raptors have been playing essentially the entire season without a center worth a damn on either […]
Toronto Raptors: Dominant performance from Daniel Theis could get Raptors interested in offseason – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

Read More

Author: Mike Luciano / Raptors HQ

William Nylander isolating after possible exposure to positive COVID case

Just hours before the Leafs were set to take on the Canadiens Wednesday night, the team announced that William Nylander would be held out of the lineup for precautionary reasons after being exposed to a possible positive COVID case with a close contact outside the team.

For precautionary reasons, William Nylander will not play tonight vs Montreal as he has had exposure to a possible positive case with a close contact outside the team. Nylander is isolating and the situation will be re-evaluated tomorrow pending the results of further testing.
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) April 7, 2021

It is important to note that as of now, there has been no positive test reported in the case of Nylander himself and he is isolating away from the team pending the results of further testing. The hope of course is that it is a false alarm and Nylander will be fine but preventing this from becoming a full blown outbreak like we have seen in Vancouver over the last few weeks has to be the top priority.
After consulting with the league, it has been determined that Wednesday’s contest with the Canadiens will go ahead as planned so hopefully that means the league is …

Read More

Author: Nick Richard / The Leafs Nation

The New York Yankees have acquired Rougned Odor

It looks like we’re going to be seeing a whole bunch more of Rougned Odor.

According to Jeff Passan, the Yankees are acquiring Odor from the Rangers and Texas wants to move on from him so badly that they’re eating the majority of the $27 million left on his contract.

Texas is expected to absorb almost the entirety of the $27 million owed to Rougned Odor, who’s on his way to the Yankees, per sources. He’s due $12 million this year, $12 million next year and a $3 million buyout on a $13 million club option in 2023.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 6, 2021

Odor, of course, had been designated for assignment prior to the start of the 2021 season after a mediocre spring training followed up a disastrous 2020 campaign. In 38 games last season, Odor slashed a .167/.209/.413 line with an outrageous 47-to-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Things have generally gone poorly for Odor since he signed his six-year, $49.5 million contract extension after what appeared to be a breakout season in 2016. He slashed a .267/.305/.487 line between 2015 and 2016 and was a key part of the Rangers’ offence those seasons (you know, the ones who lost in the ALDS back-to-back) but completely cratered after that. Between 2017 and 2020, his OPS dipped to .697 …

Read More

Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation

TLN Three Stars: The power play? Yes, the power play!

Coming off an exciting win, the Toronto Maple Leafs were looking to take it back to back against the Calgary Flames and make a clean sweep on their road trip. With tonight’s 5-3 win, the Leafs remain first in the Scotia North Division with a four point lead in the standings. Tonight’s game started off pretty slow and quiet, and it looked like it was going to be one of those boring, ‘why did I stay up for this’ type of games, but that quickly changed as the puck dropped for the second period. From a 2-0 lead, to a 3-3 tie in the third, and then a power play goal (Yes, the power play drought is over!), the Leafs managed to hold on and take the W against the Flames.
Three Stars
3rd Star: Travis Dermott
Okay, Travis Dermott’s save on what would have been the first goal of the night, was quite the play. Just as the puck was about to make its way into the net, Dermott scooped it out, keeping the game at 0-0, and watching it in slow motion and in replay, I know we all took a sigh of relief. Dermott …

Read More

Author: Roxanne Khasow / The Leafs Nation

21 Things To Think About Heading Into The 2021 Season

We’re finally here.

After a long, dark, cold, miserable (save for a few days when the Blue Jays went out and dropped $200 million on players) winter, baseball is back.
The Blue Jays are going to be interesting this year. They made the “playoffs” in last year’s 60-game dash and appear poised to compete for a playoff spot in the normal, five-team format. But while the team is undoubtedly on the upswing, they’re far from perfect, and you could reasonably convince me that they could be a 75-win team or a 90-win team or anywhere in between.
A lot can go right and a lot can go wrong, because that’s baseball, so I’ve gone ahead and put pretty much everything interesting that this team is facing into a nice, easy-to-digest listicle. So here are the 21 things to think about heading into the 2021 season…

Vladdy Breakout SZN
I know it’s an eye-roller to say that so-and-so rolled into spring training in The Best Shape Of His Life, but, holy shit, Vlad Jr. rolled into spring training in really good shape. Vlad has apparently lost something like 40 pounds between last season and this season and that could …

Read More

Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation

Toronto Raptors: 3 players who are not returning next season

Toronto Raptors: 3 players who are not returning next season

The NBA trade deadline has passed, and the Toronto Raptors were sellers. They parted ways with one of their most dominant scorers in Norman Powell, sending him to Portland for Gary Trent Jr. and Rodney Hood. The Raptors also shed bench players in Terence Davis and Matt Thomas. The final year and a half of sharpshooter […]
Toronto Raptors: 3 players who are not returning next season – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

Read More

Author: Jason Mills / Raptors HQ

Channel Six Podcast: Leafs are winning the wrong way

We’re back with another installment of the Channel Six Podcast.
This week we went guestless and kick off the show with Mer’s recap of the very brief return to play for the Toronto Six, their impact, and what we can expect from them in the future. Following that we dived into the good and bad of the Toronto Maple Leafs:
The Good: The Leafs are on a 3 game win streak.
The Bad: Their offense has looked shaky and they are winning in OT.
The Good: Jack Campbell has looked good.
The Bad: Hutchinson is starting because Campbell might still be hurt.
The Good: Alex Galchenyuk looks like a good fit for the Leafs.
The Bad: Whomever else they bring in is probably going to cost more than Egor Korshkov and David Warofsky.
Yes, we got at all this and more in 40 minutes of gripping discussion.

Channel 6 Toronto · Episode 3: The saddest three game win streak
If listening to us in your browser doesn’t cut it for you, you can find us on Apple and Spotify as well. And we’ll be back in a couple of weeks with even more Channel Six for your ears.

Read More

Author: Jon Steitzer / The Leafs Nation