Greg and Josh discuss the return of Alek Manoah to the rotation and what changes they did and didn't see in his excellent outing against Detroit, the changes José Berríos has made to his repertoire to reclaim (and even exceed) his former glory, the still somewhat struggling offence beating up on bad pitchers while having issues with solid ones and the pending return of Hyun-Jin Ryu, the confusing roster situation that it could create and how it could really affect the Jays' deadline plans.

They also answer listener questions.

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Dennis Gilbert, the architect of the Bobby Bonilla contract joins the podcast (37:00) to discuss how he got into the agent business, how the Bonilla contract came about and why he encourages all players to take some deferrals in their contracts to protect their futures.

Greg and Josh also discuss Yusei Kikuchi's excellent June, Chris Bassitt rebounding when reuniting with Kirk and the change in his pitch mix/calling, Vlad finding his power stroke for a still-underperforming offence, and some injury updates for Hyun-Jin Ryu, Chad Green and Zach Pop and what can be expected of them in the near future.

They also answer listener questions and give out a Gold Star to Brandon Belt's dry sense of humour.

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Host Tyler Zickel (Canadians) is joined by the wonderfully mustachioed rookie Chris Valentine (Dunedin Blue Jays) and the reliable veteran Bob Lipman (Fisher Cats) to talk about the state of the Blue Jays minor leagues. Chris nominates Ryan McCarty as the D-Jays' hitter of the month and updates us on Rafael Ohashi's return to form, Alex Amalfi's new curveball, Irv Carter's phenomenal changeup, and tells us that Brandon Barriera is throwing bullpens and is feeling good. Tyler's first-half champion Vancouver Canadians love Ian Churchill both on and off the field, Gabby Martinez needs to work on his two-strike approach, Dasan Brown's bat has warmed up with the weather, and Adam Macko (the return for Teoscar Hernández) had his best start since joining the Toronto organization. Finally, Bob makes his 2023 Around The Nest debut by recapping a heartbreaking 14-inning Fisher Cats loss on a balkoff and he tells us to ignore T.J. Brock's ERA because he has been lights out. We end the show with Bob telling us about Orelvis Martinez's amazing turnaround including improvements to his plate discipline and situational awareness.

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Greg and Josh discuss the latest in Blue Jays land. They cover the offensive approach that is limiting their power output and thus run production, the bad luck with RISP exacerbating the issue, the lineup shakeup to try and increase offensive production, the depth/roster construction issues being highlighted by Brandon Belt's injury, the extreme (mostly) highs and lows of Kevin Gausman and Chris Bassitt, Jose Berríos turning back into the guy the Jays acquired and how a bullpen game can be mitigated by swapping the rotation order.

They also answer listener questions and give out a Gold Star to the fans of the Oakland Athletics.

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Pat Malacaro (Bisons) speaks about the Bisons' low-slugging lineup, Cameron Eden's role as a second leadoff guy, and Paxton Schultz's solid debut. We welcome new Nester Chris Valentine, the voice of the Dunedin Blue Jays, who talks about the ebbs and flows of hitting and pitching in low-A, Brandon Barriera's performance ahead of his injury, Ryan Jennings preventing barrels, and some tough times for Tucker Toman and Manuel Beltre. Gareth Kwok (Fisher Cats) returns and give us an update on the double-A team that is now five games over .500 on the road, Leo Jimenez's bat heating up since an IL stint, and chats with Tyler Zickel (Canadians) about the "Shake & Bake" duo of Mason Fluharty and T.J. Brock. Tyler then tells us about Garrett Spain's game-winning grand slam.

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Greg and Josh discuss the latest in the Anthony Bass saga including a Ross Atkins interview that was immediately undone by Bass' clear lack of growth, and announcement that Bass would catch the first pitch on Pride Night then a live reaction to the sweet release of the Bass DFA.

They also talk about why the Alek Manoah demotion needed to happen, what he'll have to work on and potential timelines for his return, what Bowden Francis could bring to the club, the vastly improved defence across the roster and its impact on recent games, the continued excellence of Gausman, Bassitt and Berríos despite entirely different approaches, the power starting to return and Danny Jansen beginning a rehab assignment.

The guys also answer listener questions and give a Do Over to Keith Hernandez.

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Greg and Nick open the show by discussing the ugly actions of pitcher Anthony Bass and the team response to the issue. ATW stands with the 2SLGBTQ+ community in full and condemns all forms of hate speech and actions.

When they move onto the play on the field, the guys talk about the incredible contributions from the pitching side especially Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt - who seems to never pitch under normal circumstances - and Jose Berrios in the rotation and the stabilizing force of Nate Pearson in the bullpen. On the hitting side, the team is still struggling to score runs so the guys look at Bo Bichette carrying the club, Brandon Belt's odd production, Vlad's power outage and George Springer moving up a special leaderboard.

Finally, they answer some listener questions and give out a Gold Star

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Pat Malacaro (Bisons) speaks about the return of Bowden Francis, Yosver Zulueta emerging as a bulk guy, Rafael Lantigua and Davis Schneider's grit, Paul Fry, and the automatic balls-and-strikes system in triple-A. Gareth Kwok (Fisher Cats) makes his Around The Nest debut and earns his wings by providing coverage of Chad Dallas' flaming start at double-A, Adam Kloffenstein finding his command and great breaking balls, Hagen Danner and Luis Quinones in the bullpen, and the smiling Steward Berroa's steals. Host Tyler Zickel (Canadians) gushes about Alan Roden's 21-game on-base streak, Josh Kasevich hot streak since hitting the road, Rainer Nunez raking, and T.J. Brock providing high heat from the Vancouver 'pen.

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Greg and Josh take a look at what has gone wrong during a really rough stretch of intra-divisional play for the Blue Jays. They point to some poor timely hitting from certain parts of the lineup, depth problems and mental/defensive lapses at the worst times. Not everything has been bad though, as they give shout outs to Chris Bassitt and Brandon Belt for really doing their best to carry the club and to Nate Pearson for carving out a key role in the bullpen. They also run down the injury returns and exits.

Finally, they answer questions and give out a Gold Star and TWO Do Overs.

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Greg and Josh discuss the up and down road swing that saw Daulton Varsho and Brandon Belt start to heat up, the position player roster starting to show cracks, Jay Jackson joining the club after an injury to Zach Pop, the odd, extreme swings from the 2-5 starters on the club and a Alek Manoah's continued struggles. They also answer listener questions.

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