Raptors news: Gregg Popovich backs Ime Udoka amid Raptors links, Fred VanVleet shouts out fans

Raptors news: Gregg Popovich backs Ime Udoka amid Raptors links, Fred VanVleet shouts out fans

The Toronto Raptors will likely head into next season with Nick Nurse as the team’s head coach, but that doesn’t mean that they are totally done looking for a replacement that could step in if Nurse’s performance is not deemed satisfactory. In fact, Toronto is reportedly extending feelers out to gauge the availability of former […]
Raptors news: Gregg Popovich backs Ime Udoka amid Raptors links, Fred VanVleet shouts out fans – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

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Author: Mike Luciano / Raptors HQ

Here’s when the Raptors should consider firing Nick Nurse

Here’s when the Raptors should consider firing Nick Nurse

Nick Nurse will forever be remembered as the man who brought a championship to the Toronto Raptors for the first time, and his work in seasons since that victory has established him as one of the very best coaches in the league. The 2022-23 season, however, has been nothing short of a nightmare for him. […]
Here’s when the Raptors should consider firing Nick Nurse – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

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Author: Mike Luciano / Raptors HQ

NBA Rumors: Immanuel Quickley’s projected contract could make him Fred VanVleet replacement

NBA Rumors: Immanuel Quickley’s projected contract could make him Fred VanVleet replacement

The Toronto Raptors will likely make a very concerted effort to keep Fred VanVleet on the roster, but that doesn’t mean that they have already locked in their star point guard for the next few years. Contingency plans need to be made, and a division rival may have one of the best possible replacements right […]
NBA Rumors: Immanuel Quickley’s projected contract could make him Fred VanVleet replacement – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

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Author: Mike Luciano / Raptors HQ

Nate Pearson has a good outing, Kevin Kiermaier makes baseball fun, and more, as the Blue Jays tie the Pittsburgh Pirates

Will the Blue Jays rue the day where they had the bases loaded, no outs, and a 3-2 count, only for the game to end in a tie?

No, because it’s just spring training, and game results don’t really matter.
That said, it is a bit disappointing, as even a win in spring training makes the fanbase happy.
Let’s look at the player of the game, as well as other notes worth mentioning.
Blue Jays Nation’s player of the game:
Today’s player of the game belongs to the train himself, Nate Pearson.
Did he walk in a run when he came into the game with the bases loaded and two outs? Sure. But that doesn’t mean he didn’t have quite an impressive outing. It’s also worth mentioning that the walk came on eight pitches; at that point, you just tip your cap to the batter.
His second inning of work was fantastic. Pearson blew a 101 mph fastball by the poor Pirate hitter and his secondary stuff was absolutely nasty. His knuckle-curve sits in the low 80’s and has a sharp, late break. His slider also generated two whiffs as well.

In this outing, Nate Pearson showed why he’s more than just a flame throwing pitcher.
Yes, he hit 101 mph to get his only strikeout, but look at the knuckle curve (second clip), or even his two sliders for whiffs.
If he can stay healthy, he’ll be fantastic.#BlueJays pic.twitter.com/Qr30NGgm8j
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) March 2, 2023

Moreover, Pearson threw 15 strikes of his 28 pitches, which is …

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Author: Brennan Delaney / Blue Jays Nation

Sportsnet announces Blue Jays Spring Training television schedule and changes to broadcast team

There will be a Blue Jays game on TV in just over two weeks.

Sportsnet PR announced the company’s broadcast schedule for Spring Training games on Wednesday afternoon, in which all 16 home games at TD Ballpark in Dunedin along with some road games (currently listed as TBA) will be televised. All games, both home and away, will be played on the Sportsnet Radio Network.
The dates of the 16 home games can be viewed below…

Sportsnet also confirmed some changes to the broadcast team that’ll be working Blue Jays games for the 2023 season.
Buck Martinez and Dan Shulman are in the booth, as we knew, and Joe Siddall will also be providing colour commentary in place of Pat Tabler, who parted ways with Sportsnet earlier this winter. Also, it seems that Arash Madani has been replaced on the broadcast team by Arden Zwelling, who will join Hazel Mae as one of the two in-game reporters.
Sportsnet’s broadcast team for the 2023 season can be viewed below…

The Blue Jays will kick off Grapefruit League play on Saturday, February 25 against the Pittsburgh Pirates and they’ll play their first televised home game the following day against the New York Yankees.
Spring Training will wrap up on March 28 and the Blue Jays will play their season opener on March 30 in St. Louis against the Cardinals. Toronto’s home opener will come on April 11 when they host the Detroit Tigers.
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Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation

Raptors’ Scottie Barnes nabs deserved invite to NBA All-Star Weekend

Raptors’ Scottie Barnes nabs deserved invite to NBA All-Star Weekend

The Toronto Raptors will officially be represented at All-Star Weekend in Salt Lake City next month. While Pascal Siakam wasn’t named an All-Star starter for the Eastern Conference last week (but should be named a reserve on Thursday), Scottie Barnes will officially be participating in the festivities. On Tuesday afternoon, the NBA announced the 28 […]
Raptors’ Scottie Barnes nabs deserved invite to NBA All-Star Weekend – Raptors Rapture – Raptors Rapture – A Toronto Raptors Fan Site – News, Blogs, Opinion and More

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Author: Josh Paredes / Raptors HQ

Former Blue Jay Scott Rolen has been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame

Cooperstown will be welcoming two Blue Jays to the Hall of Fame this year.

The Veterans Committee voted Fred McGriff into the Hall earlier this winter and now Scott Rolen has been voted in by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America. Rolen received 76.3 percent of votes, narrowly getting over the 75 percent needed to be elected…

Rolen: 76.3Helton: 72.2Wagner: 68.1Jones: 58.1Sheffield: 55Beltran: 46.5Kent: 46.5A-Rod: 35.7Manny: 33.2Vizquel: 19.5Pettitte: 17Abreu: 15.4Rollins: 12.9Buehrle: 10.8K-Rod: 10.8Hunter: 6.9
— Ryan Thibodaux (@NotMrTibbs) January 24, 2023

Rolen, an eight-time Gold Glove winner and seven-time All-Star, obviously isn’t at all remembered for his brief stint in Toronto, which came late in his career.
He came up with the Philadelphia Phillies in the mid-90s and won the National League Rookie of the Year in 1997. After seven seasons with the Phillies, he was dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals, where he’d spend six seasons and win the 2006 World Series.
In January of 2008, the Blue Jays acquired Rolen from the Cardinals in exchange for Troy Glaus. Over a season-and-a-half in Toronto, Rolen slashed a .288/.358/.452 line with 19 home runs while playing excellent defence at the hot corner. With the Blue Jays firmly out of contention in July of 2009, he was moved to the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for Edwin Encarnacion, Josh Roenicke, and Zach Stewart.
Rolen is a prime example of how baseball’s perception of player value has changed over the years. In his first go-around on the ballot back in 2018, Rolen received just 10.8 percent of votes and was nowhere near being elected to the Hall of Fame. But over the past few years, the sabermetrics community has pushed hard in favour of Rolen, who put up a 70.1 bWAR over his career in the big leagues.
Elsew …

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Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation

Winter League wrap-up, final edition: Rainer Núñez’s team falls in the finals, Bowden Francis dominated in the semi-finals, and more!

This will be the last edition of the Winter League wrap-up… This means that we’re getting closer to the start of the 2023 season!

While most of the leagues haven’t finished, there are no more Blue Jay prospects playing, so it’s time to wrap up the wrap-ups.
In this article, we’ll look at prospects who played in their team’s playoff rounds. In a two-part series, I looked at how all the Jays prospects did in LIDOM (you can read that here), as well as in the other three winter leagues (which you can read here).
Let’s start by focusing on the Dominican Winter League.
Licey del Tigres win the Dominican Winter League:
On Wednesday night, Licey won their 23rd title in LIDOM, beating Rainer Núñez’s Estrellas 2-1 in the final game to win the series 4-1.

Nate Pearson is emerging as that high leverage, swing and miss the 2023 Jays are lacking.
11 IP0 ER5 H15 K (36.59 K%)4 BB (9.76 BB%)34 swinging strikes (43.59 whiff%)36.75 CSW%
Here is every whiff & strikeout this season.#BlueJays #NextLevel pic.twitter.com/YCmlr3Ypo7
— Brennan Delaney (@Brennan_L_D) November 13, 2022

As you may know, Nate Pearson was a big part of Licey’s early success, pitching in relief and doing so quite well. Finishing in mid-November, the 26-year-old posted a 36.6 K%, a 9.8 BB%, and a 43.6 whiff %. Moreover, he didn’t allow an earned run in the 12 innings he pitched in. I wrote more about his adventure in the Dominican Republic here, but he’s emerged as a potential bullpen piece for the Blue Jays next season.
Sadly for Núñez, he didn’t quite perform as he did during the regular season, which saw him win LIDOM’s Rookie of The Year award. In the four-team round-robin, he slashed .167/.219/.167 with 11 strikeouts in 32 plate appearances for a 34.4 K%.

¡DOBLETE de Rainer Núñez que remolca la primera de las @EOBASEBALLCLUB! 🐘🌟#LIDOM #CopaBanreservas ⚾️🏆 pic.twitter.com/Mnx8FYvZwT
— LIDOM (@LIDOMRD) December 8, 2022

It’s possible that the 22-year-old first baseman was dealing with exhaustion, as he had been playing since April 2022. Either way, Núñez certainly made an impression and ranked as Blue Jays Nation’s 16th-best prospect heading into 2023.
Criollos de Caguas bow out in the semi-final:
Although Blue Jays p …

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Author: Brennan Delaney / Blue Jays Nation

Toronto Maple Leafs set to visit Arizona Coyotes in 5,000-seat Mullett Arena for the first time

Toronto Maple Leafs set to visit Arizona Coyotes in 5,000-seat Mullett Arena for the first time

The Toronto Maple Leafs will hit the ice for their first game at the 5,000-seat Mullett Arena in Tempe, AZ when they take on the streaking Arizona Coyotes on Thursday evening.

The Coyotes (12–16–5) toppled the defending Stanley Cup champion Colorado Avalanche 6–3 on Tuesday. They’ve been one of the National Hockey League’s best teams at home this season, posting a 6–3–2 record through their first stretch of games at the brand-new arena.
The Maple Leafs are used to playing in front of big crowds at Scotiabank Arena, but the Coyotes have one thing going for them that the Leafs don’t: a sellout streak. Arizona has sold out each of its first 11 home games at Mullett Arena this season, with attendance capped at 4,600 in its NHL configuration; as of midnight on December 29, the cheapest seats for Thursday’s Toronto/Arizona game were listed at $190 USD, with standing room passes also available for $150.
Mullett Arena, the NHL’s newest and smallest rink, has drawn rave reviews from players for the quality of its ice surface. Construction also recently finished on brand-new home and visitor NHL dressing rooms, the latter of which ranks among the largest in the league — a far cry from the temporary hodgepodge put together for the Coyotes’ first homestand.
The new rooms are firmly big-league quality.

👀#GoHabsGo pic.twitter.com/Iqm3JMa5XK
— Canadiens Montréal (@CanadiensMTL) December 19, 2022

The Coyotes are preparing for their arena and entertainment district proposal to go before Tempe citizens in a referendum this coming May. Until then, they’re firmly in rebuilding mode, albeit with the likes of Clayton Keller, …

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Author: Mike Gould / The Leafs Nation

Daulton Varsho’s offensive results should receive considerable boost in 2023

The addition of Daulton Varsho will improve the Toronto Blue Jays’ roster in numerous ways next season, with most of the fan base focusing on his elite defensive abilities, and rightly so. But while the former Arizona Diamondback should make a significant impact in the outfield, he also stands to do so at the plate.
And after enjoying a breakout performance last season, there’s the potential for the 26-year-old – under team control through 2026 – to raise his ceiling to another level as he attempts to make a seamless transition with Canada’s lone MLB franchise.
On the surface, Varsho’s 2022 offensive results weren’t eye-popping – aside from his career-best 27 home runs, .443 slugging percentage and .207 isolated power – as he struggled to a .235 batting average and a .302 on-base percentage across 151 games. The left-hander also posted a measly 106 wRC+, putting him six per cent above league average.
But, like with many traditional results, these don’t tell you the whole story. They provide a small glimpse into Varsho’s offensive skills, though to better understand his value, we must explore his biggest strength: hitting against right-handed pitchers.
As a lefty, the 5-foot-10 outfielder matches up exceptionally well versus righties, hitting .240/.317/.484 with 26 home runs, a …

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Author: Thomas Hall / Blue Jays Nation