Episode 26 feat. Julia Kreuz - Pennant Race, Bullpen Woes, and Factors for the Jays

We had Julia Kreuz as our guest from Jays Talk Plus on Sportsnet to talk about the Jays and what lies ahead in the final month of the season and perhaps beyond. We talked about the importance of winning the division, the Bullpen being an issue and what needs to be fixed, how they can leverage Brandon Little with his struggles, where does Berrios stand in the rotation, if Yesavage could get the call, Springer being the MVP, and many more!

Where you can find Julia Kreuz:

1. X: @juliackreuz
2. IG : julia.kreuz
3. Co-Host of Jays Talk Plus on @Sportsnet (Weekdays from 10am-12pm)

Episode Transcript

(00:31):
Welcome to another edition of the Blue Jays Ave.
Podcast. We have a special guest in here
today and she's the Co host of Jays Talk.
Plus the shows on weekdays from Monday to Friday from 11:50 on
Sportsnet. Julia Krutz, welcome to the
show. We are honored and privileged to

(00:52):
have you on today. Well, my pleasure guys.
Thanks for having me on. Yeah, thanks for joining us.
It's, you know, we, we always watch this show and watch on TV
and stuff and read your articles.
So we're we're excited to have you.
And it's just such an exciting time to be a Blue Jays fan.
And it's it's it's awesome, man.It it reminds me of the old

(01:12):
days, you know? Tell me more about it.
Tell me about your experience. I'm always excited to hear about
those old, good old days. Ohe, ohe.
I mean, when we won the World Series, I was only what, 10 and
11 years old. And then, you know, it's been so
long since and in the 1516 yearsbrought back some, some, some

(01:36):
excellent times and, and really expanded the fan base again.
So it was, you know, it's great.And then then now, like I think
it's teams as good as any team. So we're excited, yeah, about
time we start to expanding that fan base again, right.
Finally these days are winning and and the focus is back.
Summer was all about them. Absolutely.

(01:58):
Especially, especially especially what they went
through last year and a major turn around like they pulled a
180 like just top to bottom, which is incredible to think
like who would expect this, right?
So. OHP yeah.
Alright, alright, so let's just get this thing started.
So right now, the Blue Jays are playing meaningful September

(02:19):
baseball as we speak. And right now everybody's
fighting for the playoffs and fighting for the division right
now. And if you look at the way the
Jays record stands, I believe they have the best record in the
AL by half a game ahead of the Detroit Tigers.
And what do they? Need to do to hold down the
division because if you look. At the back Shapiro, Ross Atkins

(02:41):
era. They've been having a hard time
winning a division. They've been a wild card.
Team in the past but not winningthe division and what do they
need to do to hold it down? Yeah, it's a it's it's funny,
we're recording this on the Friday, September 5th.
And from what you guys said, it's coming out on Tuesday,
right? So it will be post Yankee

(03:02):
series, which should inform us alot about how the division is
sort of shaping up. And when you look at these two
teams, the bugaboo is very similar right now.
It's the bullpen. It's the fact that you don't
really know which arm you can trust on any given night to get
you those big outs. And I think that is going to be

(03:22):
so amplified in this Yankee series that starts today for us.
And if you're listening, you know, in the future, haha.
Hindsight is a is fascinating. But yeah, it's, you know, you
look at how the Blue Jays bullpen has performed since the
All Star break really, or since the trade deadline, whatever cut
off you wanna you wanna take there.
The second-half of the season has been kind of all over the

(03:45):
place for this relief course. So I think when you consider
where the Blue Jays are, where they're trying to go and what it
will take to get there, the offence is rolling in a way that
we certainly didn't expect it toearlier this season, even with
the way that the season started.The starters are doing their job
for the most part. I know that wrinkles are going

(04:08):
to surface here and there. Jose Berrios is a pretty big
question mark right now. I'm not too worried about Max
Scherzer, even though he had a abit of an injury scare his last
time out. It's the bullpen.
You have to look at those guys and and and just the way that
things have gone and you can't help but wonder, are they going

(04:28):
to figure this out? How are they going to figure
this out? It seems like there are so many
individual problems right now that they need to resolve on a
case by case basis. Whether that is, you know,
overwork, whether that is mental, whether that is just
your stuff is getting away from you, your command is getting
away from you. There's different things

(04:49):
plaguing different guys and it'sled to sort of a moment where
everyone is slumping at once. I'm a firm believer that if
everyone is slumping at once, they can also figure it out all
at once and get back sort of in in a good rhythm here.
But it's not going to happen overnight.
It's outing after outing that you get there.
And the good news for this team is that there is a final month

(05:11):
here that they can use to sort of figure it out and get to and
get to a good place before October baseball.
Let me ask you about what are the arms that they got at the
deadline in Shane Bieber? He's basically only had one bad
inning in in the Blue Jays organization as it stands right

(05:31):
now. So how important is of a pickup
has he been and how important will he be down the stretch
heading into the playoffs? Yeah, it's uh, it may go down as
the trade of the trade deadline,right?
There were a lot of moves, therewere a lot of small moves, there
were a lot of reliever moves andsure, Ohana Suarez, you can

(05:54):
point to him going back to the Mariners as a big as a big trade
that happened around the deadline and now he's kind of
slumping again in this return toSeattle.
So we'll see how that one sort of shapes up.
Josh Naylor same thing. We'll see, you know, once all is
said and done how those two shape up.
But Shane Bieber has the potential to be the guy.

(06:16):
And you know the, the, the name that we remember this trade
deadline by 1 because it was kind of under the radar right
when a guy is coming back from Tommy John and you don't really.
Know. How he's going to look.
He hasn't pitched in so long. He had a set back during his
rehab that's, you know, sort of delayed his return to to Major

(06:39):
League Baseball even more. The way that all of that
happened, him joining the new team in a in a a point of his
career that was so turbulent. So up in the air.
You're in the middle of a rehab assignment.
And so some of them came with the with the Cleveland Guardians
organization. And now you're gonna pitch for

(07:00):
AAA Buffalo in the Blue Jays organization.
So your debut with your new teamis not even coming at the Major
League level after you've already won a Cy Young, right.
So bizarre. There was so much for Shane
Bieber that could have gotten inhis head, that could have been a
distraction, that could have been a reason for doubt, whether
that's of himself or of this moment of this team, whatever it

(07:24):
may be. And he's just been able to sort
of set that all aside. And I don't know if it's
compartmentalizing or if it is just really going through the
process and understanding where you are and what is expected of
you and being extremely secure in what you have to offer.
But whatever it may be, Shane Bieber has all the reason in the
world to be secure in what he has to offer because he has been

(07:48):
phenomenal for this team since joining.
The. The Blue Jays, it's three
starts. I understand that it's a small
sample, but there is the track record behind him as well.
And you look at what he did in this start against the
Cincinnati Reds, the fact that he allowed five runs to score in
the second inning and then just locked in after that.

(08:09):
Understood that he maybe didn't have his best stuff, but the
assignment was eat as many innings as possible in a series
where again, Berrios only went two innings, right.
So all of these things are it's it's more than just the
performance on the field becausehe's a very, very talented
pitcher. He's a very well prepared
pitcher. He's going to be fine.

(08:30):
But it's also being dropped in the middle of a Pennant race
straight out of Tommy John and dominating.
And when you don't dominate, still understanding what it is
that your team needs to do, needs you to do and going out
there and doing it, honestly, I cannot believe that it's worked

(08:52):
out this way. The Blue Jays should be
extremely happy with the with what they're getting out of
Shane Bieber. And who knows, right?
If he keeps pitching like this, most likely he is not going to
opt into his player option next year.
We don't even know how long thistenure is going to be.
And already there's so much goodto talk about, and there's so
much. Hope.

(09:12):
For the future, for October, that comes from what we're
seeing from Shane Bieber right now.
So you mentioned about the bullpen and it's been a bit of
an issue as of late and they're not the only team that's going
through its woes. There's a lot of teams that's
going through what woes, especially teams who are
contending. And we could mention names about

(09:32):
that. But on a blue Blue Jays
perspective, if you look at the way the bullpens gone, like they
sent down Brayden Fischer, Masonflirty, they picked up the
contract of Ryan Borucki, which is so bizarre because like he
started his career with the BlueJays and then you seen the
struggles with Jeff Hoffman giving up home runs and then

(09:53):
Louis Farland had his ups and downs and there's so much
potential in him and then. And then you have Brady Little,
which we'll get to later on because I think he's a topic of
of its own. But like, how do you look at the
bullpen as itself right now? I know that Ross made the moves
getting Sir Anthony Dominguez aswell.

(10:14):
And and and just looking at itself like what can they do to
fix this issue? Mr. Anthony is actually coming
in as probably one of the most reliable arms right now as we
sort of prepare for this Yankee series.
And I know that you watch him pitch, you kind of need to

(10:35):
accept their they're going to bewalks.
There's going to be a wild pitchhere and there.
And you have to live with that in a way.
But Sir Anthony to me is one of the guys that you know right now
that you can, that you can trustin big moments.
How the Blue Jays get to him andget there still remains to be

(10:55):
seen. Something that has been so good
in the Blue Jays have done so well, John Schneider and his
staff is finding the pockets of a lineup for each reliever to
have the most success. Obviously, it's not always that
you're going to be able to do that.
And when guys are struggling with things like command and
location and there's really no good lineup pockets to sort of

(11:19):
right, If you're going through it, you're going through it.
And the only way out of it is tojust go through the process a
little bit. But there is no one fix for for
this, for this group. You can point to a Fluharty and
Brayden Fisher and say, well, maybe if they come back and they
look like they did earlier on, it puts the Blue Jays in a bit

(11:42):
of a better spot. You can look at Trey, you
Savage, and dream of maybe seeing him in this bold pen as
well. But there, it won't be one guy.
It won't be there won't be a savior here.
In my mind. It's just you need to go through
it. You need to figure out what it
is that isn't allowing you to perform at your best.
And again, there's different answers for each of these guys.

(12:03):
They are very much dealing with different things at this point
and go from there. I expect the Blue Jays to
continue to look for those patches of lineup to give their
guys the most success within reason and within the realm of
possibility. I also understand that there's a
legitimate reason to just have Jeff Hoffman stay in that closer

(12:26):
role, especially because you're talking about guys who are very
routine oriented and who benefita lot from kind of sort of
knowing when they're going to becalled upon.
All of these things make sense to me.
It's just, you know, you, you hope that the guys that are
coming up in in different times to give you quality stuff.

(12:49):
And in the meantime, you also hope that a little can figure
out the knuckle curve again and and have a little bit more of
that tight spin on it that allows him to get the swing and
miss or to steal a strike mix inthat sink, right.
There's so much. And you look at Louis Varland.
Well, the stuff is there. So very clearly the stuff is

(13:12):
there. The velocity is there.
There is there's knuckle curves that are moving amazingly well.
So is his thing maybe a little bit more mental, a little bit
more of an adjustment to a new place, to a new team.
Let's not forget he is from Minnesota, right?
He was a local kid. He didn't even know he was on
the trade block. So there's just so much to look
out four with individual guys that I don't think that one

(13:36):
addition to this pen is going tochange anything.
And that's why I'm saying it's it doesn't feel like this is
something that is going to change overnight.
It's just it's through the work that you're going to find your
way out. And to the other side, you
mentioned Brendan Little and he's been such an intricate part
of this bullpen all year long. And you know, he's kind of hit

(14:00):
that rough patch of late. And you know, the other day I
was looking at his appearances and he had about it.
He was, I think it was a couple games ago, 66 appearances and
we're just hitting. You got almost a full month of
baseball left. I, I don't think he's pitched
this much in in, in his career so far.
So how much of that would you say is, is just being overworked

(14:24):
at this point? And like, what are the other
options that they could look at that they brought in that could
possibly, you know, try to limitkind of just to give them a
little bit of a breather down the stretch and maybe not use
them so much. What are your thoughts on some
of the some of the guys that they could bring in and, and,

(14:45):
and a way to get him kind of back on track?
Yeah, I mean, I haven't spoken to him about it.
So it's, it's tough for me to say with any sort of safety or
security here. But I'm sure that surpassing
career numbers in, in innings and in, in, in workload and
things like that does play a factor in September, right?

(15:09):
You're going to hear a lot of guys saying something like,
well, I'm fresh and healthy as much as you can be in September.
And when you're doing it for thefirst time, the rigors of a full
Major League season, no matter if you're a starting pitcher or
position player or a relief pitcher, it's it's going to
catch up to you eventually. Now, is that the whole of the

(15:31):
problem here? I don't think so, but I would be
shocked if it wasn't at least part of it.
And you're right, little has pitched a lot this season that
shows obviously trust in the guythat shows that he has been
effective for most of the for most of the year.
And now he needs to find his wayback there.

(15:52):
So if he needs a breather, the Blue Jays will definitely it's
in their best interest to give him that rather while, you know,
keeping a close eye on he needs to stay fresh and he needs to
stay ready to go. I think once Mason flew already
is available and ready to get back because he we're still
waiting for the 15 days since hegot sent down here.

(16:15):
I expect to see him back in and if that Los Angeles series and
the way that he wrapped up that game against the Dodgers, any
indication the Blue Jays would do well to trust him in the big
moments as well. He's pitching really well.
I know that there was a moment there in the season where it
just got away from him. He got sent down, He came back
up. He looked like the Mason

(16:36):
Fluharty of earlier in the season.
So I fully expect him to do thatagain.
And the Blue Jays will vary verymuch benefit from having a
trustworthy lefty that is well rested.
That was just coming back up from from AAA and who can indeed
give Brendan Little a bit of that blow that you are referring

(16:57):
to. And this is nothing against Ryan
Brookie, right, Guys like. You've known.
Him for a while. We've seen him before this all
great. It's.
Just. You, you can't really know how
much at this point. You can trust Ryan Brekky.
So yeah, very much looking forward to seeing Mason Fluharty
back. With the Major League team.

(17:18):
So I want to talk about Jose Berrios here.
And he's been in with his organization since 2021.
And yes, he's been one of the most durable pitchers in
baseball. But there are moments you ask
yourself, OK, there's one game he pitches really well, like a
front light start. And then there's another game he
just blows up just like that game against Cincinnati.

(17:39):
And I know that there was a layoff, a nine day layoff.
And if you look at this stuff, Imean, this stuff is there, but
the question is like, like, where does he stand?
Because like there are moments like he's he's such an enigma.
And when you when you look at him as a pitcher as a whole, and
like I said, durability is the best of reliability and he's one
of those. But at the same time, there's

(18:00):
times that you could be frustrated.
And if you recall that moment in2023, and I don't know who made
that call that they pulled him in the 4th.
And there were moments this yearitself that he's been struggling
around the 5th inning. Like where did he stand?
Can he be trustworthy and could he still be part of the playoff
roster? Yeah, this he has a month,

(18:21):
right? I I think when you talk about
playoff rotation and, and, and kind of how things are going to
line up, there is a lot that is going to come from how guys are
performing in September right now.
I don't think Barrios is in thatin that playoff rotation.
If the Blue Jays decide to use him in a different way, that

(18:44):
remains to be seen. I don't see a guy like that
coming out of the pen either, just because so much of his
success is about mixing and matching and sequencing and
keeping hitters guessing and allof that.
It's not necessarily what you think of when you think of a
relief pitcher, but he has a month.
He has a month to to prove that he can indeed get back on track

(19:04):
and be the reliable starter thatwe've seen him be for most of
his tenure with the Blue Jays. This isn't, I don't think that
anyone should write off or writeout Jose Berrios just yet
because he has shown us time andagain that he has that knack for
coming back and looking like himself again.

(19:25):
It's just this has been a bit ofa prolonged slump for Barrios,
and so there is legitimate reason for concern.
He has a month. He still has some starts to
figure some things out and to prove that he is indeed strong,
fresh, healthy like he says he is and that he can still get key
out for this team in the big moments.

(19:48):
We're talking about a very smartpicture, guys.
Even when he doesn't have his best stuff, you can for the most
part trust that he'll find a wayto make the big pitches when he
needs to. He'll find a way to get out of
tough situations and limit damage and things like that.
It's just really unfortunate andreally uncharacteristic that we

(20:08):
are seeing this prolonged slump from a guy like Barrios.
Let's wait and see. I'm not ready to make any calls
just yet about this one. It could Trace Savage be an
option for the Jays down the stretch.
I know when they brought him up to AAA a few weeks ago, you

(20:29):
know, and it was before September and I and it just it
it seemed like they were gettingset up that if he pitched well,
that maybe you might be a September call up at the time.
And now they're having a pitch on a relief in in Buffalo and
he's doing pretty good. So is is there any way that he
could be an option for the Blue Jays in September or maybe even

(20:49):
beyond? Who knows?
Yeah, I think there's definitelyan Ave. for it.
There are roster considerations,there's service time
considerations for sure that we kind of need to keep an eye on
here. But, and I joked with with with
Blake recently, I said when we started talking about this as a

(21:11):
remote possibility, I thought, OK, I'll lot will need to align
and potentially go wrong for theBlue Jays bullpen for this to
actually be a real thing, a realthing that we're talking about.
And here we are, right. It's it's funny to think that it
would take a bullpen implosion exactly like the one that we saw

(21:35):
and would obviously also take Trey is Savage continuing to
dominate level after level afterlevel as he climbs his way up
the the minor league system. And so yeah, things have aligned
here we are. It's a real possibility that we
are talking about. John Schneider was very
noncommittal, but he was he alsoindicated that, yeah, if there's

(21:57):
guys that can help us win ball games at this level, they need
the experience of what we're going to ask of them indicating
what that he's he's probably coming out of the bullpen if
that happens. And so that is why he is, you
know, sort of getting into that routine as well and that rhythm
with the with AAA Buffalo right now.

(22:18):
I think it's a real possibility.Now if the Blue Jays bullpen
figures it out a little bit morequickly than than we anticipate,
then maybe that becomes a bit ofa back burner thing.
Again, a backburner conversation, if you will, but
if you yeah, I mean things things aligned in the perfect
way for us to be having this conversation.

(22:38):
And the Blue Jays would be smartand they are to consider it as a
real thing because it's not unheard of, right.
You go back to Jackson job last year with the with the Tigers,
that's exactly what they did. And you need to keep an eye on
the development. You don't want to risk the
future for the now too much. I think there's a a limit and a

(22:58):
line that you need to that you need to consider.
But you Savage still has inningsin.
Him. For sure, And he should make for
a pretty intriguing matchup for these major leaguers who have
never seen him before. And it's a weird arm angle.
And it's all of the things that we've been talking about with
him that have led to the successthat he's had so far in his pro

(23:20):
career. Man, wouldn't that be something
his first year playing professional baseball, actual
professional baseball? He ends up in the major leagues.
Yeah. If it happens, it'll be one of
those fairy tale, meant to be stories of a guy who started in
Single A and made his way all the way up to to the big
leagues. Ah, yeah.

(23:42):
I don't know if I I don't. What do you guys think?
Are you guys? Would you guys want to see that
happen this season? Would you be excited for it?
So I'll answer that. So, you know, The thing is like,
I remember, I think it was a fewyears ago when the Rays brought
up Shane Mcclanahan. I I don't think he was on the

(24:03):
regular season roster, but he was eligible to be on the
playoff roster. And and you know, The thing is
like, we haven't seen a prospectlike this in such a long time.
And it's so funny you brought this up because there was a open
roster spot, I believe, because the one that caught me when
whenever you look at the Blue Jays transactions, is that they

(24:25):
activated or they called up Robin Tipitina's and they
immediately transferred him to the 60 day IRL, right?
And I want to ask you this. It's like like, does that open a
door for him to get called up inthat sense?
Because I think, I think Jay's fans would be excited, but like.
Would would you? Think that's a that's a Ave. for

(24:46):
the for him to get called up? Or do you think braided fish
would be the first man in line to get called up?
Oh yeah, no, definitely. I think that there's other
options before you, Savage. But yeah, the Blue Jays are
going to maneuver the 40 man roster reporting and if they
need to make that move, they they will have the pieces in
place and the room on the rosterto to to make that move.

(25:10):
I don't think that you Savage isthe first guy that you would
think of that can come in and help this team right now.
But yeah, I I'm pretty interested in, you know, what
that does for, yes, savages service time.
Blake brought up a good point onour show this week.
Say he comes up and he gets hurtand he needs to go on the Isle.

(25:31):
That's still counts towards his service time, right?
And, and, and, and there are rules in place now with the the
latest CBA that's sort of prevent teams from manipulating
the service time as much as theydid in the past.
But this is still a consideration.
So the Blue Jays are in this to win a World Series.
I expect them to make every movethat they believe will get them

(25:53):
closer to a World Series and service time be damned if that
is the case. I just don't think that Yesavage
is the first guy out on September 5th as we talk and and
knowing that from here to Tuesday when this podcast is
out, a lot can change guys. I think we have to talk about

(26:15):
this player and I think he mightbe the MVP, but there's other
guys you could have under consideration.
That's George Springer. And we knew that when the Jay
signed that contract. They knew that, you know, he was
he was supposed to be a big partof this office.
But knowing that, you know, giving the age at all the last
couple years, he's regressed. Nobody expected the way he's

(26:35):
playing right now. And he's playing like an MVP.
And the question is, like him going back to the leadoff, how
important is he, especially given that playoff experience he
was with the Astros. And now, you know, a pivotal
time for the Blue Jays to try towin, especially the way he
ignites the offence and one of the best leadoff hitters in MLB

(26:59):
history. Like, how important is he?
Is he? And also, do you consider him to
be in the MVP conversation? Yeah, John Schneider alluded to
that, huh. Yeah, in Cincinnati, which I
don't. I love it when Schneider puts
that stuff out there. I think, you know, last year and

(27:20):
the year before, it was Dalton Varsho was the best outfielder
or best? Yeah, I think it was best
outfielder in Major League Baseball and he deserves that
Gold Glove. And where is his Gold Glove?
And things like that. I absolutely love when John
Schneider said it was sort of chimes in and he can pick his
spots. That's something that he does
very, very well too. And he has a point, right?

(27:42):
He has a point. Where would the Blue Jays
offence be without George Springer?
Maybe now. You wouldn't find it as as
jarring of a difference, but think.
About the the. Early season when when this
offence was still kind of figuring things out and guys
were not hitting very well and then the contact came and then
the power finally emerged as well.

(28:06):
It was George Springer winning games for the Blue Jays.
We can havoc on the bases, making things happen, coming up
with the clutch hits. Yeah.
You you look at the whole of theseason and the fact that there
hasn't really been a considerable slump.
He's cooled off here and there, but for the most part, George
Springer has been George Springer.

(28:27):
I think you're right in saying that no one expected a turn
around like this. And it goes even beyond what
he's doing on the field, right. You see Davis Schneider in the
series against the Yankees, havea fourteen pitch at bat against
Carlos Rodon. He ends up popping out believe
it was 14 pitches. He comes back into the dugout
and he's so dejected that he popped out after that to after

(28:52):
that about and everyone is, you know, giving him kudos and sort
of Pats on the back. But Springer is the one that is
sort of there for him. And then I believe the bridges
got a pretty clutch based hit right after that in in the
following a bat and Springer is the one who goes over to David
Schneider and and kind of, you know, bangs on his chest and
says, I told you, I told you this is it.

(29:12):
So this is more than just about what Stringer is doing on the
field. It's what he represents for this
team. It's the guy who has won and has
been crowned the MVP at the higher stage, right?
He is a World Series MVP. We're getting that version of
Springer. And even beyond the regular
season, having a guy who has been there who knows what it

(29:34):
takes to win and who knows what it takes to have the heart rate
slow down at the big moments. That is invaluable for this
club. Again, A-Team that's trying to
get over a hump here, A-Team that's trying to finally win a
playoff series after all of these years of, of getting to
the wild card round and being unable to do anything with it.

(29:55):
So, yeah, I think there's a million reasons you could circle
to say that that Springer deserves MVP consideration.
There are 10 names on the ballot.
I don't expect him to dethrone Aaron Judge or Kyle Raleigh.
But yeah, I, I, I do believe that George Springer is going to
get at least some MVP votes here.

(30:16):
Yeah. I mean, there was this, there
was a tweet the other day I saw and it was, it was really
interesting. And over a 45 game span he had,
he had 66 hits, fifty runs, 39 RBI, sixteen home runs and nine
stolen bases. The only players to do that in
Major League history is Ruth andGehrig.

(30:37):
So I mean, that's pretty freaking awesome that a guy
who's, I mean, he's no spring chicken anymore.
Let's let's be honest. I mean, and he's putting up
numbers like that. It's just it's it's, it's
unbelievable. Yeah, it's, yeah, Blake
mentioned that one on the show as well.

(30:57):
It's it is unbelievable. We were talking about talking
about it with Vernon Wells todayon the on the show.
Vernon Wells, who says that these days George Springer is
his favorite player, right. So that is really, really saying
something. I think for Springer in talking
about about the season with him.The one take away for me is one,

(31:20):
well, there's 2/1. He knows himself extremely well
now. He is very aware of what he's
capable of, what he isn't capable of anymore.
Because as amazing as this season has been, and I know that
we're kind of tired of hearing about, oh, it's this age 35
season. Well, it is his age 35 season.
And that comes with pros and cons.

(31:40):
The biggest pro being that if you're paying attention, you
know yourself, you know your body, you know what you have to
do to recover, you know where your swing is, and you know how
to make the most of that. Yeah.
And the cons are obvious, right?There's going to be some
limitations that maybe you didn't have before and accepting
those as a big part of of the road to to success.

(32:02):
And he's recovered, guys. I think one thing that is key
for the success of George Springer, mentally or otherwise,
which is he's just playing with joy again.
He's enjoying himself. He loves being there.
With the guys. He loves, you know, being in the
dugout and studying the the relief pitcher that is about to
come in. He loves dancing around with

(32:24):
Vladdy. Like, there's so much he loves
interacting with fans. There's so much about this game
that George Springer loves. And that's what we're seeing
from him this season. Again, it's it's that it's that
kid, right, that comes in to play the game.
And I spoke to him about this ora little bit earlier in the
season and he was the one that said, yeah, there's obviously a

(32:44):
line or a fine line between, youknow, playing with joy and and
screwing around. But again, it's self-awareness,
self knowledge maturation, however you want to phrase it.
Springer knows where the line isas well.
And that is why he is a lot of the time the spark plug for this

(33:04):
team, another player that's, that's had a pretty nice bounce
back seasons, Bouchette. And you know, it's, it's funny
cause before the, the season I took him at 50 to 1 odds to, to
lead the league in hits. And he's doing just that right
now. I mean, he's got a three hit
lead. And it's, it's pretty cool what

(33:26):
he's doing this year. So is there a chance that the
Jays can keep him in the off season?
And if so, or even if not, like what's his, what's his number
going to look like when it's allsaid and done?
Yeah, that one is anyone's guess.
I mean, we've seen so many different estimations and

(33:47):
guesses as to how long that contract is going to run for and
how much it's anywhere between, I don't know, 160 and 210 or 220
or whatever it may be for 7-8 years.
I, I don't, I don't know. It's, it's such a, it's such a
tough one to sort of say there'sso much left, there's so much

(34:07):
season left. And you look at, and I know that
these are different positions, but Kyle Tucker is a free agent.
Cody Bellinger is a free agent. Trent Grisham is a, is a free
agent. And I, again, I know these are
all outfielders and Bo is not anoutfielder.
He is a shortstop, at least for right now.
This is shaping up to be maybe abit of a a more competitive free

(34:31):
agent class than we previously anticipated.
He's going to get paid and there's a legitimate chance that
there is a a team that swoops inout of nowhere and just makes an
offer that is way too good to pass up and that may be way too
high for the Blue Jays to match.But all of that said, yeah, I

(34:52):
think there's a legitimate chance that the Blues can keep
Bouchette. That's that's been circled as an
offseason priority for Ross Atkins and his staff.
Those are Mark Shapiro's words. Bo is going to be a priority in
the offseason. And Beau himself, a guy who
doesn't talk very much, who doesn't really like the
spotlight, doesn't like to talk about himself, he has said that

(35:17):
playing with Vladdy for his for their whole careers and winning
together is something that matters to him.
And I think honestly, that does matter.
At the end of the day, the market is going to shape up like
it does. But you know, if we're talking
about is there a chance? Absolutely there is a chance.
And that's pretty interesting tosay as well, given the way that

(35:39):
last year went and and the rumors that were flying around.
But I forget who it was that hadthis one.
Maybe it was Nightingale, but don't quote me on it.
The Bouchette had no interest. Maybe it was John Heyman, but he
did. He had no interest of staying in
Toronto whatsoever. And at the time I said, yeah,
first of all, sure, right. Person familiar with the camp is

(36:00):
saying that Bichette has no sure.
And also, even if that is 100% true, things change.
Things change. And listen, winning goes a long
way in changing things. And now that Beau is getting a
real taste of that. I mean, I don't know.
I think I think the the the the chance is real.

(36:22):
And it gets bigger with everyonethat the Blue Jays tally up
here. It's so funny that you mentioned
about Bob Nightingale too, because remember you mentioned
about Vlad and this is a very similar ripple effect that oh,
the Red Sox would be favorites if we were to test the market
this and that. And you saw how they reacted
immediately. Edward Rogers stepped up, pony
up and he was on the presser andhe said he wants to win a World

(36:45):
Series. So I think I think with that,
it's like, don't you think he's so motivated?
He's like, I know his father wasthe one who owned the team.
And then, you know, and now it is it is all of a sudden more
bullish about trying to win. And you could see the way
they've been spending with the renovations are like, isn't that
important for as the owner like to try to win as well.

(37:09):
Oh, very much so. And that's something that
Shapiro himself in his latest media availability with us, he
was pretty categorical in, you know, someone asked what is it
that is allowing you to go afterfree agents and to go after big
names at the trade deadline and things like that.
And that's that's what Shapira pointed to his ownership is the
fact that they are very much in this together.

(37:32):
Now it takes, it's a case by case basis, it takes presenting
the business case for each of these guys and what it is that
they are going to offer now and long term for sure.
But you know, the Blue Jays havemade some pretty good business
cases so far and they have gone after guys that maybe we didn't

(37:56):
even expect them to go after, right.
So I think that there's no indication that that is going to
slow down or change. And that is very good news, not
just for the team, but for the fan base.
We we, we know how much the cityis sort of starving for, for
championships and for titles. We also know how fun it was when

(38:16):
the rafters were were NBA champions a few years ago,
right? So I think this is a good time
to be a Jays fan. And it's kind of exciting to
hear Shapiro and Atkins and people like that talk about the
the real partnership that existswith ownership right now.
I want to talk about the depth of this team itself and you're

(38:40):
seeing a little bit of contribution from everybody and
you're seeing guys like the Miles straws that David
Schneiders, the Thai friends as we will get to later on, but the
the interesting one and this kind of caught me off guard.
I don't know if it caught you off guard is a reunion with IKF
as well. And what are your thoughts about

(39:01):
acquiring them? And I know that he had his track
record with Toronto and he was really good.
And he's also known for defence as well.
But I know that he had some blunders against Cincinnati and
maybe it's something to do with trying to try to regroup himself
coming back to Toronto and, and how do you look at at this depth
as a whole and, and, and contribution factors for this

(39:25):
team moving forward? Yeah, but there's another one
that you can point to and say where were the Blue Jays offence
be or where would the Blue Jays be without, right.
I mean, so much has come from the bottom of that lineup from
different guys. It feels like when they were
going on that run, they're they created that separation in the

(39:45):
AL East and and A10 game-winningstreak and things were going
very, very well. It was very much a different guy
every single night delivering the big hit, coming up with the
with the clutch play on the defensive side.
There was never a shortage of guys to talk about Bernie

(40:06):
Clement to Nathan Lucas to MilesStraw to Joey Loperfido when he
came in and he was just hitting everything right.
OPS saying north of 900 and you know, depth is good.
Depth can also be a little bit heartbreaking because now you
have a guy like Loperfido still in AAA and and trying to pick up
a new position at first base to sort of give the Blue Jays a

(40:28):
little bit more of that flexibility that they are
looking for. I was.
Shined of surprised but not really by the IKF move.
I mean, as soon as he was put onwaivers, I think we kind of all
knew that it was a possibility because he really did make a
mark on this team last year. And he does maybe add another

(40:52):
layer of of possibilities for for John Schneider and what he
does with his bench and when he goes to his bench.
Blue Jays have been very aggressive with that this
season. I KF is another option now.
He needs to perform, he needs tohit and he needs to play good
defence in whatever role he is given.
Because if he doesn't, the Blue Jays do indeed have other

(41:15):
options and good options at thatto, you know, test out or bring
back or whatever it may be. Loperfido is kind of struggled
since he went back down, but that's not gonna last either,
right? And so it's been pretty awesome.
It's been awesome to see just how important the the depth of

(41:37):
the Blue Jays has been. And it really shows you that you
can't go for it without that level of just just backfill for
for for your position players especially.
I mean, the pitching side is what it is, especially right now
as we talk about, you know, who's next and how how to fix

(41:59):
things and whatnot. But you really cannot go
anywhere without contributions from up and down.
That's exactly what the Blue Jays have gotten, especially on
the offensive side for most of the season.
Another important guy that that the bougie signed this offseason
was Anthony Santander. He gets hurt, he's missed most
of the season, but apparently he's he's, he could start a

(42:23):
rehab assignment as soon as Tuesday.
So in your opinion, if it all goes well, what would a rehab
for him look like? And could we see him back in
when could we see him back in the majors?
And just how important can they can he be in the playoffs if
he's if he shows he's healthy and he can get into that rhythm
that we're all used to down the stretch?

(42:45):
Yeah, I think, I think those orders welling who said or who
tweeted out that it would be at least A5 game rehab stint for
for Santander there, there's so much that we can point to,
right? He's a switch hitter.

(43:06):
So one side apparently is comingback a little bit faster than
the other side for him when he started hitting off of the
trajectory machine and hitting off of velocity or whatever it
may be. So that's the number one thing
that we need to to look out for #2 in my mind is OK, say he
comes out of this rehab assignment healthy and good to
go. Looking a lot about the fact

(43:27):
that Anthony Santander is a slowstarter.
It takes him a little bit to getinto a rhythm of play.
So how does he look coming out of that rehab assignment?
Is he actually hitting or are wetreating this as a, a new fresh
start to the season, which meanswe can expect him to take a

(43:48):
little bit to get going in the middle of a Pennant race in
September with a ton on the line?
The question marks are pretty large, pretty intense and I wish
I had a better answer than we kind of just need to wait and
see and see how he looks and andand how he comes out of these of

(44:09):
these at least five games on hisrehab assignment and kind of go
from there. Would he lengthen this lineup
were he to be healthy and and hitting?
Would he be a tremendous addition for a late season push?
Absolutely he would. I'm I'm waiting, I'm going to
wait and see. I'm not ready to make any claims

(44:29):
about Anthony Santander, his status come playoff time.
Nothing. To me it's all going to depend
on is he hitting or is he starting slowly again?
Addison Barger is playing his first full season with the Blue
Jays. Yes, he did get called up last

(44:50):
year. And you know, for a guy like
him, he's still relatively younginto his career.
And he was a big part of of thisoffence earlier in this year.
And he's been struggling a little bit as of late.
But these last couple games he'sstarting to hit again.
And how much of a factor is he going to be moving forward,

(45:11):
especially in this month and perhaps beyond?
Because I know for a guy like him, he he's very selective
certain pitches and and and he'sknown to for his bat speed.
And I think it's important for aguy like him.
But how do you look at? How do you look at larger in
that sense? The Blue Jays would love,

(45:31):
absolutely love to see Barger get into a rhythm again like he
had in the middle months of the season.
He would, in a very important way, I believe, stabilize that
number 2. Spot right in the lineup, we've
seen the buddies be pretty aggressive with their with their
platooning of that spot and that's kind of what to what

(45:52):
they're going with. Sometimes you're going to see
any Clement there. Sometimes you're going to see
David Schneider as the righties,Sometimes you're going to see
Nathan Lucas as a lefty and Addison Barger as well.
Now think about breaking up the righties in that lineup in
Springer. Bo.
And Vladdy, you couldn't ask fora better guy to do it than

(46:14):
Addison Barger. But if he's hitting right and
and you guys said it, I mean, it's it's been a little bit of a
struggle for him. I think that a game like like
the finale in Cincinnati can indeed go a long way to sort.
Of. Get a guy back on track and
believing in himself and in his swing again.
He's definitely talented and smart enough to to do it.

(46:38):
These ebbs and flows are part ofthe baseball season and a part
of your development in going through a full Major League
season. It also has to be dealing with
with these ebbs and flows and, and when you know, maybe your
luck comes and goes a little bitand your swing comes and goes a
little bit. All of it is, is, is really part

(46:59):
of going through that first fullbig league season.
All of that said, if we see moreof what we saw in the finale and
Cincinnati for Madison Barger, Iexpect him to be the number 2
hitter for the Blue Jays like hewas a little bit earlier in the
season. It one game is not going to get
him there, but it's a fine placeto start.

(47:20):
And then it allows the Blue Jaysto get creative at the bottom of
the lineup. It allows them to get the most
out of those guys as well. But it starts with stabilizing
the number two spot, which, yeah, I think it's in.
It's in Bargers hands here. I think Blue Jays would
absolutely love to have that spot locked in and and it be
Barger, he kind of needs to get back into form a little bit in

(47:44):
this final month of the season. Another guy I'd like to bring up
here and talk about a little bitis the other guy that was
involved in that Louis Varland deal and it was Thai France.
And when I saw that we acquired Thai France, I didn't really, I
was like, OK, you know, it's OK,good, like some depth, right?

(48:04):
And but he's been fantastic since he's been a Blue Jay.
I mean really he's like in 26 games, 71 at bats.
I mean the guys hitting 338, youknow, you know, he's he, his OS
is 852. He's been phenomenal.
And you know, he brings along those, the experience and all
those other intangibles along with it.

(48:25):
So how important of a piece has he been to this team?
And, well, he continued to be heading towards the playoffs.
Yeah, it's yeah. I can't believe the difference
has been hitting as well as he has since joining the Blue Jays
because we've kind of seen him do this before.
But it had been a while. It had been maybe a couple of

(48:47):
seasons that we've seen this from from Thai France, right?
And it's funny that he and DavidPopkins did not indeed overlap
in in Minnesota. So this is the first sign that
they're working together. And it's just, you know, it's
it's about sort of getting friends to do certain things
that he was doing when he was a successful hitter in this

(49:10):
league. And it's working out extremely
well. And that's great news for the
Blue Jays, honestly, because no matter who you ask, who has
played with friends or been around him in any capacity, he's
a huge clubhouse guy. He's just a dude.
He brings in the energy. He brings in the sense of humor.
I mean, you know, when the the Tommy fan, Tyler Heineman stuff

(49:33):
happened, it was Thai France andGeorge Springer escorting fam to
first base and and calming things down.
That stuff matters. It really, really does.
When you're talking about, one, a very long season and two, what
the Blue Jays expect or hope to be a very deep playoff run.
You need the guys who can stay at an even keel and who can
still be their delightful selvesin those moments of that makes

(49:59):
sense. So one, the Blue Jays needed a a
true first baseman to back up Blatty, right?
They just needed it. Love or any Clement, I think he
deserves a utility Gold Glove this season.
He's not a first baseman. So that was #1 and, and then the
turnaround offensively, huge positive.
And when you're talking about the group, the chemistry, so

(50:23):
much of the stuff that we that we spoke about when things were
going very, very well for the Blue Jays, Ty France adds to
that too. And there are these little
moments that are very visibly, you know, tie France just being
the good clubhouse presence thathe has been for his whole
career. So how do you compare this
offence to the 2021 offence? I know that Jay's 2021 offence

(50:48):
is was the best that year. However, they missed the
playoffs. Weather for this team.
It's not really known for hitting for home runs, but they
do hit for power, right? It's in various occasions.
But if you look at, if you look at the factor, it's like there's
a lot of versatility. Like how do you compare those
two offences as a whole? Yeah, it's that's a a good

(51:10):
question. I mean.
I don't think the 21 offence wasall the way home run or bust
like they were definitely not the 2025 New York Yankees, but
there was a lot of slugging purely for the sake of slugging
is for lack of a better of a better terminology here.
That's not this offence. And I think that that's part of

(51:33):
why it took them a little bit tofind their power.
This is an offence that is builton the little things, not
striking out, not giving away atbats, not chasing out out of the
zone. If it's a pitch that you
absolutely can't handle, it's find the pitch that you can
drive and put your best swing onit and the power will come.

(51:56):
So many how many times did we hear them say that guys this
season, it'll come, it'll come, it'll come.
Just be patient. Just trust the process and it'll
come. I mean, here's the thing, home
runs are cool for sure. But doing a radio show in which
we talk to personalities and analysts and whatever it may be

(52:16):
from other places, the one thingthat gets brought up over and
over again is, man, this team doesn't strike out.
They keep fouling off paycheck to pitch after pitch and
everyone is standing there waiting for that at bat to be
over. And you know that it's going to
be over probably by then puttingthe ball in play because that is
what they do. And it's just so frustrating for

(52:40):
opposing pitchers. So I don't know, I think it's a
more dynamic offence because there are so many different ways
that the Blue Jays can hurt you and if the power isn't there.
For a portion of. Time or for one game or whatever
it may be, you better believe that they're going to put
pressure on the on that defence in different ways and they're

(53:02):
going to utilize their bench aggressively and they're going
to put the ball in play and they're going to run the base as
well and they're going to make the most of whatever situation
they're put in. You know, obviously, obviously
the Blue Jays haven't been the juggernaut that they were in in
June and July, but man, there's just still so much to like about

(53:24):
this offence And and just look back at the Cincinnati series,
right, They just kept on scoring.
It's five home runs, but it's also the big double and it's
also running hard down the line and preventing the defence from
making a play with the bases loaded.
So it's just staying locked in and not giving up on any abat

(53:45):
and putting the ball in play. It is true, guys, Good things
happen more often than not when you put the ball in play.
Jade has been leading the leaguein come from behind victories
this year. Seems like they just get this
extra, you know, they just get this.
They lock in after the 8th inning for some whatever reason

(54:05):
it may be. And what is this year's team
like? What are they doing differently
on this year's team compared to previous years?
Yeah, there's no beating trafficwith this team.
That's what I keep saying. I mean, you cannot, even if they
allow a couple of runs in the late innings and it's, you know,

(54:26):
you kind of realize, OK, the gardener is gonna be a pain in
the ass if I don't leave now. Don't leave, don't go.
Because. Because you're right.
I mean, there is always a chancethat these guys are going to
mount a comeback. And that's listen, I hate to
sort of preach to the choir and to echo what we've heard a

(54:48):
million times, but to Pop Lou and Hunter, right, it's the Blue
Jays are prepared in a way that we we hadn't seen in a few
years. And that does start with the
with the coaching staff and the buy in from players and just the
mentality of we we heard Ernie Clement talk about this.
We heard Bouchet talk about thisDalton bar show.
There is no panic, there is no feeling of OK, we're out of this

(55:14):
game. The mentality is important.
I know that what wins games is is going out there and doing it.
But if you enter in a bat with aconviction that everything is OK
and you still have 6 outs or whatever it may be to to make
something happen and you trust your talent and you trust your
teammates and you're OK with taking a walk because you know

(55:36):
that the guy behind you is always.
Is also going to have a team at bats on his mind to sort of keep
the line moving and keep the thethe.
Good things. Rolling that's.
Huge. And I know that it's kind of an
individual sport when you think about it, because yeah, they
take turns at the plate, right? But if you go in with the
selfish mindset, it's probably not going to be good for your

(55:59):
team and for your team's chances, especially when you are
indeed playing from behind and trying to mount a comeback.
I think that's so important. And it does speak to the buy in
that the players have shown in the game plan, in the philosophy
in what it is they're trying to do much easier when it starts
yielding results and you start mounting those, those big
comebacks and you're like, oh, OK, well, there's a there's a

(56:22):
legitimate reason for me to keepdoing this and and for me to
keep coming in with the selflessmindset.
I have to say it's it's props tothe team, props to the players
and and to the coaching staff and the manager for really
putting that information forwardin a way that allows everyone to
be at their best when those moments present themselves.
John Schneider has been a manager of this team since July

(56:46):
2022. And you know, there was moments,
if we remember that in 2022 thathe regret pulling Kevin Gosman.
And there was moments this year that some people thought it was,
there was some question moves, pulling certain guys or youth,
certain guides and and how how capable he can manage a game.

(57:07):
Is he capable? Of doing that, because I know
that there are moments like somepeople ask and some and there is
moments that he gets. He gets it right.
So how do you look at him? Do you think he has enough
experience to overcome things, especially heading into the
playoffs? Yeah.
I mean, it's so tough, right? Because when you're a manager

(57:29):
and you make a move, it is either going to work.
Or it is. Going to not work.
It's there's very little in between and and with that you're
put under a microscope. Every decision that you make is
going to be analyzed based on what happened afterwards.
And that's in a way, part of thejob.

(57:51):
In a way it's pretty unfair because men, you know, you, you
kind of have the numbers in front of you.
You kind of know your guys and, and what they're able to give
you and what matchups on paper would be more beneficial to your
team and you're going to manage accordingly.

(58:11):
I don't think this year at leastthat you can really accuse John
Schneider of being overly concerned with analytics.
We've we've seen them try different things and in
different spots. If anything, you know, maybe a
little bit heavy on let's bring a lefty reliever to face a
lefty. And especially these days with
the struggles of of of Brandon Little that has backfired.

(58:35):
So maybe an adjustment right forthe final month, the season and
something to sort of look out for.
Maybe you leave the writing in there and and see what he can do
and see what if see if he can get the the lefties out if
you're if you're lefties in the pen are struggling.
But yeah, I think John Schneiderhas grown a ton from from the

(58:56):
time that he took over this team, he has had a lot of
heartbreak. Last year I'm sure was a big
learning moment for him with theway that things went and what
I'm seeing right now is a manager that is very sure of
himself and that does trust his staff a lot and the preparation

(59:17):
that goes into it. The Blue Jays leave no stone
unturned. They are prepared for every such
game situation you can think of.Sometimes things are going to go
exactly as you drew them up and sometimes baseball is going to
do its random baseball thing. Being a good manager is also

(59:40):
being OK with that and understanding that that's why we
play the game, because if everything were to go exactly
according to what the predictions and the stats say,
we could just simulate the wholething on a computer and call it.
Let's take a look at the schedule ahead and it's a bit of
a gauntlet coming up like tonight you got the Yankees and
then the Astros. The Orioles raised twice Royals,

(01:00:05):
Red Sox. So most of them teams are are in
right in the thick of this wild card race.
So how important is it for the Jays to really lock in and play
some of their some of their bestbaseball here down in September?
I think he's usually surged in September and the leaders would
be wise to at. Least.

(01:00:26):
You know, play above 500 baseball.
This is going to be crucial. This month is going to define
the regular season and the division and playoff seeding.
The Blue Jays still control their own destiny here for sure.
It will take an effort and a half guys to get there still at

(01:00:46):
the top of the division, which honestly is what the Blue Jays
should be vying for right now. Get that by, get the division
lead, get rid. Don't even think about the wild
card series. Don't even think about a 36 or
48 hour playoff run. Just get ready for the DS
control. You know who you're matching.

(01:01:06):
Your pitching matchups are goingto be put.
Put forth your best guys. There's so much riding on this
final month of the season. It's time to lock in.
So to wrap up this episode, so the Blue Jays right now are
playing meaningful September baseball at the moment.
And right now, like you said, there's a gauntlet, there's a

(01:01:29):
schedule and, you know, teams are fighting.
What do the Blue Jays need to doin order for them to play
meaningful October baseball? Yeah, yeah, yeah.
It kind of goes back to. Number one.
Take the division number one. It the the heartbreak of the

(01:01:52):
wild card series. We've been that.
We don't want that. Right, right.
Let's just get. To the DS in a way that you can
indeed line up your best starters.
You're taking you're going to face a team that is coming from
a wild card series and the rotation may be in a bit of a
disarray. Guys already have some some

(01:02:13):
innings on their on their feet and on their shoulders and
whatever it may be, that's that's me.
It all starts here. It all starts in September.
I cannot overstate how importantI find that just taking the
allies and guaranteeing that guyis for this team.
Well, Julia Krutz, we appreciateyou doing this.

(01:02:35):
We appreciate you taking your time and effort and and great
insight, great information. Where can we find you in social
media and everywhere else? Nice.
You guys can find me on Twitter,although I don't really go on at
all that much until the time youcan find some tweets there.
Just search my name and you should you should be able to

(01:02:56):
find it and then on Instagram, same thing, just just my name
with the weird spelling with theKRUZ for the last name there and
that is pretty much it guys. I gotta say I'm not to, I try
to, to, you know, social media to have that be just the, the B
plot in my life, if you will. But every now and then, every

(01:03:19):
now and then there's a, there's some good stuff there.
I I kind of save it for when accounts if you will.
Well, thank you again for joining us.
It was awesome to have you and, and it's, it was exciting to
talk to you, you know, getting to see on TV all the time and
get to talk to you now. So it's, it's pretty cool.
And we're just, we're just honored to have you and, and you

(01:03:42):
know, and hopefully the Blue Jays can get themselves to
October in a comfortable position as you guys.
Thank you so much for. Having me and good luck success
with everything in the future. Thank thank you, We will place
the description below where you can find Julia Court.
Till next time, take care, be kind to each other.

(01:04:02):
Signing off to Blue Jays Ave. podcasts on Friday, September
5th, 2025. Yeah.