The best part about the Jays releasing Frank Thomas is that it should put an end to the chants of "Frank the Tank" at the Rogers SkyDome. Because that had gotten more than a little tiresome.While we think it is possible that there was still a little fight left in the Big Hurt, chances are that he wouldn't have reached either the 26 homer or 96 RsBI plateaus from last year. The Jays were facing a situation where they either cut bait soon, or ended up stuck with a seriously diminished asset. With the depth that was assembled in the off season, and Adam Lind on the outside looking in, they made the proper decision.
oh please, Tao. This is completely 100% about the money next year. It has nothing to do with what Thomas would or wouldn't do. And this also is total bullshit on the part of the front office.
ReplyDeleteDo you really think they can afford to wait three months to for him to get his groove on? The only stats he was challenging the lead on was GDP and Ks.
ReplyDeleteI think it's a good move... It saves $10M on an aging and slow masher. We can expect similar production from Lind et all at a fraction of the price.
ReplyDeleteI hope he signs with the Royals and leads them to an above .500 finish. I kinda hope this isn't how he finishes his career though...
similar production from lind et all? i'm not so sure about that. this guy hit 26 home runs and drove in 95 runs. he led the team, for crying out loud. why not stick him in the 8-spot in the lineup until he gets his groove back?
ReplyDeletemoney shouldn't be a concern right now if we're trying to win. and joanna is bang on, this is only about the $$$$$$.
i can't say i'm too pleased with how all this went down. i understand it, to a point, but i still think the hurt was worth waiting for.
Can you imagine Frank Thomas accepting the 8-spot?
ReplyDeleteNo, it's probably better this way.
it seems like the idea wasn't even explored. frank's the first one who would admit that he's struggling at the plate. as long as he's in the lineup everyday, i don't think it would have been so bad for him to be in the 8 spot. who would you rather have? frank thomas or marco scutaro/rod barajas/adam lind...?
ReplyDeletelind is great, got a bright future, but frank is proven.
You can't look at this as a straight trade of Thomas for Lind or Scutaro or whatever.
ReplyDeleteIt is the roster flexibility that is going to make the difference. If Rolen gets an owwee again, or if you want give Wells a day off but keep his bat in the lineup, you can.
And for those who are calling bullshit on this, remember that the Jays went to Thomas and told him what was going to happen, and he agreed to leave as much as they agreed to let him go.
This isn't pretty, but all's fair...
What DH hits in the 8 spot? This isn't only about money, it's about winning. The Jays are better without him, as it frees up a spot in the lineup, for either Lind or Scutaro when Rolen gets back.
ReplyDeleteAs a lifelong Sox fan, nothing hurts me more than when Frank gets dumped on... Mostly because when he communicates his disdain for forces working against him, he is largely misunderstood and usually looks worse.
ReplyDeleteI've been pulling for the Jays since his arrival but now I guess they're just that team that had that Juan Guzman guy that couldn't make it past five innings but always got a win against us in '93.
you're right Tao, JP was open with Frank about what the situation was, and if he'd rather walk, then he'd rather walk...i guess i'm just still a little surprised...$18 million for one season of frank seems like way too much right now. and i expected him to play such a huge role this season. but, onwards and upwards. i'm looking forward to rolen making his debut in the jays lineup.
ReplyDeleteToo bad the Big Hurt had to leave Toronto especially since May 25 is Frank Thomas Bobblehead day.
ReplyDeleteI do see some team picking him up though and looking at the Rays team a veteran bat might do the trick. Since the rumour of them grabbing Bonds continues, grabbing Thomas instead of Bonds makes a little sense...no leagal baggage.
Maybe we'll see Thomas batting against the Jays in the near future.
I don't think it's 100% about money. If he was producing they would have no problem paying him the 10 million. The issue is that they would be forced to pay him way above his market value.
ReplyDeleteOne question: Is the production gained in the next 6 weeks going to outweigh the superior production Frank could have provided for the rest of the year?
it's sad because frank's such a class player and a hall of famer, but no way the Jays can afford to lose a red cent if they can't get dividends on their investment with fairly clear certainty, especially if we're going to keep up with the payrolls of BOS & NYY by being cost-efficient, plus our new club doesn't need any in-house chem. problems a la the shea hillenbrand experience, besides, rolen is going to come off soon and dios knows how much that would neutralize his leadership ability
ReplyDeleteI think Frank is a borderline HOF player anyway.
ReplyDeleteGood riddance to bad garbage.
Bring on Barry Bonds.