1:40 PM Eastern
Reports have been swirling about the baseball-o-sphere that the Blue Jays are close to signing John McDonald to return to Toronto on a one-year deal, and having just spoken to some people close to the situation, I can confirm to you that the reports are true.
Johnny Mac will be back with the Blue Jays in 2010 – hopefully to actually play this time.
McDonald’s signing gives the Blue Jays a shortstop for next season. A starter if Mike McCoy doesn’t win the job in Spring Training or if no one else comes over via signing or trade, and a back-up (and pinch-runner extraordinaire!) if there’s another shortstop in the fold by the end of March.
It’s a no-lose situation for the Jays. McDonald is a fan favourite and can be an absolutely spectacular defender and despite the fact that he doesn’t bring the offense, he still does things on a regular basis that can get the fans to jump out of their seats – which is something that may be dearly missing from the upcoming season’s edition of the club. And his presence does nothing to set back the development plan for the future – it’s not as though stealing at-bats from Angel Sanchez would be a big issue, and Justin Jackson may not even start the season as high as AA.
Having John McDonald playing shortstop and hitting 9th for a team that’s likely to finish 4th in the A.L. East isn’t a terrible thing. And if he’s there to keep the seat warm for whatever hotshot prospect the Jays pick up in a Roy Halladay deal – or to tutor that prospect as Omar Vizquel tutored him – then it’s a very good thing. It’s a million and a half dollars well spent.
And hey, any clubhouse that has John McDonald in it has an automatic leg up on all the others.
Oh, and by the way, I’ll be on The Game Plan with Roger Lajoie this afternoon at 3:25 Eastern on The Fan590 and this very website, and check out The Casino Rama Grill Room tonight, on SunTV at 6:30 PM Eastern. I’ll be on with the Fan’s own Zachariah Cooper and Warren Sawkiw, as well!
Rational, reasonable comments are always welcome!
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Mike McCoy looks like a pretty great waiver claim (if you go by his PCL numbers.) Thoughts? Do you think he can actually play big league short?
MW: I’ve never seen him play, so I’ll reserve judgement until I do. But judging from the signings of Gonzalez and McDonald, the Blue Jays don’t think so.
- peteAny idea why the jays let buck coats get go? He seems like a low cost option for right field? Does he have major holes in his game as far as you know? Is this a 40 man roster thing?
I know he is nobody’s first choice but was he not an asset worth hanging onto seeing as they probably won’t pay Bautista to be their RF/backup CF.
MW: Evidently not. There were several opportunities for the Jays to give Coats a shot over the last two years and they never did, so there must have been something about him they didn’t like enough.
- jeremyok the Bobby Darin reference is acknowledged. Are you lobbying for Mack the Knife as his new nickname ?
I admit I am a Johnny-Mac fan, but I really enjoyed watching Marco and will be sad to see him go. I’ll be watching him from afar next season and I will not be surprised if he puts up impressive numbers again.
MW: I will.
- TouchemallJoeWould love to see Mac get the starting job, do you think he could keep the offence that he did have this season in his small sample up for a whole season in the starting lineup? He matched his career best in HR this year with extremely limited playing!
MW: He won’t be the starter.
- SleepyNice to see Johnny Mac come back – quality guy in a sea of …….
Potentially, the next shoe to drop is the trading of Roy. To be honest, I’d rather get a touch less for him and trade him anywhere but Boston or the Yankees.
ANYWHERE but Boston or the Yankees.
MW: Don’t hold your breath.
- GaryTerrible move, even defensively McDonald is a bit overrated and is one of the worst hitters in baseball.
The fact that this city is infatuated with him is borderline insane.
More of the same from AA and Beeston.
- AJGreat to hear! As long as he’s playing a majority of the time. Though he’s a great addition to the bench, I’d much rather see him playing on a full time basis – he’s too good not to, in my humble opinion.
Cheers, Mike!
MW: Sorry about that.
- Matt McLeanA bit of good news from Blue Jay land. Johnny Mac and his on field magic is proof positive that winning isn’t just about scoring runs.
MW: Except that they haven’t won anything with him.
- Peter1.5 million for one year, sure. 3 for 2? Rip-off.
- RenegadeJohnnie Mac is a swell guy but career .238 / .276 / .317 is pretty hard to stomach.
MW: Nobody ever said he could hit.
- ZackWhaddaya mean ‘can be an absolutely spectacular defender’. He is an absolutely spectacular defender. The guy’s a human highlight reel.
In any case. I’m thrilled. I like him. I like to watch him play the infield. And I think he’ll help settle down a jittery young rotation. They won’t worry about ground balls in the infield with Johnny Mac around.
MW: Can be an absolutely spectacular defender. Has also botched some pretty routine plays, though obviously not on a regular basis.
- isabella reyesI think this is a great move and a fine start.It’s always fun to see John M. give it his all. go jays
- john wHey Mike
Rumor has Doc going to the Bosox for Buchholz and Casey Kelly. If Boston made that offer, do you think the Jays should jump on it? Sure, try a squeeze them for a little more but two blue chip prospects should get it done.
MW: Rumour has it the Bosox won’t move Kelly.
- rickMike,
Do you think a team can still win it all with an ‘all glove, no bat’ shortstop?
MW: If the other eight guys can rake, sure.
- GavinFangraphs opinion on the signing..
The Toronto Blue Jays were expected to ink veteran shortstop John McDonald to a one-year, $1.5 million contract, but instead it turned out to be a two-year, $3 million deal, making the decision even worse than it was. Yes, Marco Scutaro is on his way out of town (for two much-needed, high draft picks) but the club could have found a better way to spend $3 million. Although the sample size is small, UZR suggests McDonald is no longer a gifted fielder, and that he’s still getting paid based on his reputation from years past. And offensively, he’s a black hole. His 0.7% walk rate from ‘09 is good for a chuckle.
MW: The walk rate is hilarious, it’s true, but when you’re only getting two or three at-bats a month, you’re going to hack.
- MichaelHey Mike,
I have two questions for you:
1 – Is Mike McCoy anything other than a non-slugging middle infielder who gets on base at a reasonable clip and can steal some bases?
2 – Why do so many people have such little faith in Edwin Encarnacion? Sure, his overall numbers last year were not good, .225/.320/.410, but from September 8th on, Edwin was a BEAST! In 85 AB he hit .294/.371/.600 with 7 HR and 18 RBI. That is around 50 HR over an entire season! Certainly I know that a sample size as small as two-thirds of a month does not make for a season, and I am definitely not expecting those 50 homeruns, but should it not at least have some people a little excited? The three seasons before last year he had an average OPS of about .800, and he will only be 27 next year. I thought, too, that he broke his wrist last year which might explain his awful start. Hopefully he will be able to build off of his great finish to the season!
Thanks!
MW: 1 – No idea. 2 – First impressions mean a lot to people, and Edwin was awful his first month or so as a Blue Jay. That turned a lot of people against him immediately.
- Justin from Ardtreamichael,
i didn’t actually realize that jmac is 35 yrs. old. as you pointed out.
was thinking for some reason that he was more like early 30′s.
he looks to be a bit of an oddity in a way i think doesn’t he?
to me alot of guys getting to that age bracket (35 & on) start can start to lose some range, speed & agility.
but not our man john mac by the looks of it.
or perhaps we’ll see it start creeping in this upcoming season.
probably not though is my guess. maybe his lack of full time play over the yrs. has helped him out some.
but i get a sneaking suspicion we’re going to see alot more of jmac than usual to find out.
MW: I don’t think we are – also see above as to your contention that Mac hasn’t lost any range, speed, etc.
- darrell bishopDelighted to hear Johnny Mack will be back! Something to look forward to…
MW: Agreed!
- nancy thurstonHi Mike
I agree – nothing wrong with having Johnny Mac as your number 9. If he hits .250 that’s a bonus. I think he makes up for it with his defense, hustle, and clubhouse presence. What implications does this have on the possible signing of Scutaro?
MW: There was never any intention to re-sign Scutaro.
- markMethinks that Alex Gonzalez is the Blue Jay shortstop. Similarly to last season, Johnnie Mac will be the Toronto version of the rally monkey, who will come in occasionally to juice up the crowd.
“Oh where have you gone Marco. A lonely nation…..”
MW: Please don’t butcher Simon and Garfunkel.
- stat ladyI hope they’ll have some bats coming off the bench as well. Resigning Bautista would be a start given his late showing with the bat and his exceptional defense all of last season.
MW: He’ll cost at least $3 million on a one-year deal.
- Will, OshawaMike,
I’m worried the jays won’t get what they’re asking for for Roy Halladay. Hes 32 years old and only signed for one more year. (sure he could sign an extension but he would be expensive. Whats to stop the yanks just waiting until he hits free agency)
If he does go, do you think the return will be acceptable, and who do you think gets him? I love montero from the yanks – what a tank. Thanks!
MW: I think the return will be acceptable, but I don’t know who gets him. As for Jesus Montero, he just turned 20 last week – there’s a lot that could happen with him before he makes an impression in the bigs.
- MosesMike,
With the Jays just signing A.Gon, I really don’t understand the rationale behind it. So the Jays now have 2 SS (Johnny Mac) who bring exactly the same thing to the table; defensive SS, can’t hit for average, can’t get on-base, and minimal power/slugging compared to the rest of the SS in the league. It would make sense if one got on base at a better rate or if one had a better batting average.
MW: Gonzalez is a much better offensive player in the overall than Johnny Mac. He could also have some value at the trade deadline.
- JoachimWell today’s news takes Eric Aybar out of the question. Not that he was going to be dealt anyway.
I’ve looked at a couple of BoSox boards. The fans seem to like AG and be really sad that he’s gone.
Which is a good sign.
MW: Kind of. Remember what Blue Jays boards looked like when Reed Johnson left.
- reyeswouldn’t john mac be helpful to the yankees as a backup? they are loaded with offence so they dont need his hits and his defence is an upgrade over jeter? and why did they sign gonzalez isnt he the same player mcdonald offensively?
MW: The Yankees may have pursued McDonald – he said several teams were interested – but I doubt they’d have made the same offer as the Jays did. See above for Gonzalez.
- nickHey Mike
Do you think Johnny Mac would have re-signed if he knew they club would also sign Gonzalez a day later?
MW: I’m sure he did know.
- rickI thought after signing Johnny Mac to return, that we would see a signing of a more offensively gifted SS with Mac to fill in defensively in the late innings.
How does the signing of SS Alex Gonzalez amke sense then???
The online article I read doesn’t make any mention of defensive prowess but certainly, he wasn’t signed for his bat. And he’s 32.
What gives???
(Gonzalez posted a .238 average with eight home runs and 41 RBIs.
An all-star in 1999, the native of Cagua, Venezuela is a career .247 hitter with 114 home runs and 521 RBIs over 1,229 games.
- GaryHey Mike, What do you think of the Alex Gonzalez signing? I think he is competent, nothing special but a far better option then having to watch Johnny Mac at the plate 400 times. If Scutaro has a 2010 season similar to his 2009 season then the downgrade is disastrous. But, even an average Scutaro season is significantly better then an average Gonzalez season. The extra 40 OBP percentage points that Scutaro gives you over Gonzalez is nothing to sneeze at. There are also the intangibles that don’t show up in the stat sheet like his terrific base running and I can’t imagine that Gonzalez is a better defender. Would I be correct in saying that the sole purpose in letting Scutaro walk is to get the 2 draft picks? Despite Scutaro’s age and the draft picks that the team wouldn’t receive if they resigned him, I would have resigned him in a New York minute if I were in charge. They have been looking for a SS for years and after Scutaro proved he can do the job, they are letting him go. I recognize the risk in overpaying a player after he has just completed the best season of his career, but I think it would have been worth the gamble. Time will tell. Your thoughts.
MW: Scutaro couldn’t be the shortstop for the future at his age, the likelihood of his repeating last season’s production is minimal and he’s dealing with what could well become a chronic heel injury, so the only reasonable move for the Blue Jays is to take the draft picks.
- DomenickJust one more thing on the Scutaro/Gonzalez/shortstop situation. Can’t we get a decent shortstop in return for trading one of the best pitchers in the entire league in Doc?
MW: Probably.
- DomenickMike, Macdonald’s signing I like. We can always use his glove. What’s with Gonzalez! His numbers are horrible. I am starting to get shaky regarding the next two years.Your thoughts….
MW: You were optimistic about the next two years?
- JohnI don’t get the signing alex Gonzales? Johnny can’t any resect! I get that they want him a bench guy but they sign this a day later?
- tosesorry for the terrible grammar
MW: Apology accepted.
- toseI am delighted that McDonald is back. Now if the organization would only let him play! He gets to so many balls, catches everything, is always thinking — just a tremendous asset. His lifetime .238 at the plate is fine for someone who can anchor the defence the way he does. I hope we don’t bring in someone else to play in front of him, who hits 40 points better (about a hit a week) and makes fewer plays. Ask the pitchers what Johnny Mac means to them.
MW: Oops.
- royhughesSo if they have Mcdonald then why sign Gonzales?..This guy strikes out a ton..Once every 5 AB..I’m assuming there may be a “platoonish” situation because Gonzales hits well against lefties…
Both Mcdonald and Gonzales have similarities..I know how much you love that OBP and these 2 won’t make you do cartwheels down along Blue Jay Way..
They are both good defensively and perhaps Gonzales has a little more pop in his bat but he is 32 and his stats have declined recently..
- ray bits been a while since my last posts. I wanted to get your thoughts on Scott Boras comments on Revenue Sharing. he said some teams near the bottom in revenue, make close 80-90 Million in Revenue Sharing and in the Central Fund Welfare.
are these numbers accurate?
how much do you think the blue jays get in these methods?
An Espn article thinks that Boras may be off with his numbers but if included with Tv/radio contracts teams make close to 80 Million from these 3 sources of wealth.
again, your thoughts.
MW: I don’t really know who gets how much from revenue sharing, but I do know that pretty much everything that comes out of Boras’ mouth is said with an agenda behind it.
- VJ