Blue Jays Happy Hour

The last four, momentum-sucking games haven't been great for the Blue Jays, and this we're going to have to talk about it. Yes, from a mess to the masses, it's time for yet another round of Hoffmania. With a healthy heaping of Schneider discourse thrown in for good measure. Like a riot, like a riot, oh.

But that's not all! We've also got transaction talk, a discussion of the future of the rotation, a player-by-player confidence check for each of the Blue Jays hitters (spoiler: not a lot of confidence at the moment), and a whole lot more!

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The Blue Jays seem to be pointed in the right direction lately. They haven't lost a series to a team other than the Rays since they left Arizona back on April 19th. They seem to have escaped a nightmare injury scenario after Dylan Cease and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. both exited their finale against the Pirates back on Sunday. George Springer might be starting to figure it out. Jesús Sánchez is off of Bumwatch (TM) (OR IS HE?). Louis Varland is a demon. And reinforcements—Kirk, Barger, Bieber, Scherzer(?)—are on the way.

But at the fringes of the roster things are fluid. Davis Schneider is gone, Nathan Lukes is back, Brandon Valenzuela is legit, Charles McAdoo is on his way in, and there's been much churn in the bullpen—as there will continue to be as the team tries to figure out a way to cover for the (hopefully brief) loss of Cease as they push through their current stretch of 17 games in 17 days.

And that's where our focus mostly lies this week, as we talk about all of it! Plus, a check in on Sánchez, a look at how Daulton Varsho suddenly has become a more complete hitter (albeit worse than last year), and a whole lot more!

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The Blue Jays have a worse record all-time at the new (2009) Yankee Stadium than they do at cursed Tropicana Field, and this in this episode—recorded before yet another frustrating loss on Tuesday night—we talk about all about where these Blue Jays are at in the middle of this vital four-game set in the Bronx.

Is John Schneider the right man for the job? Can the Dodgers turn Eric Lauer around? And how are the teams your plucky hosts selected in our WAR projection over/under draft faring here as the season has passed the one-quarter mark?

This week we have a look at all these questions, and a whole lot more!

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We're back to remembering some guys for this week's bonus episode, talking about our favourite Blue Jays pitchers to watch over the years!

** THIS IS A SHORT PREVIEW OF THIS WEEK'S PATREON-EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE. TO HEAR THE EPISODE IN FULL, PLUS AD-FREE EPISODES OF THE MAIN SHOW, AND AVOID EVER SEEING THESE PREVIEW SHOWS IN YOUR FEED AGAIN, SUPPORT US AT PATREON.COM/BJHH **

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The Eric Lauer era is over. Long live 2025 Eric Lauer!

But, unfortunately for the Blue Jays, the 2026 version of Lauer—the version that could barely crack 91 on his fastball—was clearly not going to a the rotation's saviour for a second season in a row, resulting in him being designated for assignment earlier in the week.

Was his exit hastened by his weirdly public disgruntledness with his role? Is it fair to thrust Spencer Miles into the fifth spot in the Jays' rotation? Could Chad Dallas get a look? How close is Jake Bloss? Will Addison Barger really just need 10 days on the injured list? What on earth is up with Vladdy lately? And can Daulton Varsho's walk-off grand slam against the Rays maybe, finally be the turning point for this stuggling club?

This week we search for the answers to these questions, and a whole lot more. Have a listen!

** FOR AN AD-FREE VERSION OF THIS—AND EVERY—EPISODE, PLUS WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH **

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** THIS IS A SHORT PREVIEW OF THIS WEEK'S PATREON-EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE. TO HEAR THE EPISODE IN FULL, PLUS AD-FREE EPISODES OF THE MAIN SHOW, AND AVOID EVER SEEING THESE PREVIEW SHOWS IN YOUR FEED AGAIN, SUPPORT US AT PATREON.COM/BJHH **

The Blue Jays' farm system isn't yet among the best in the game, but there continue to be more and more good stories coming out of it, it seems. And with that in mind, we talked prospects in this one. And, for the first time in at least a couple years, worked out which player will be our new, official, Prospect of the Podcast. Have a listen!

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The Blue Jays are coming off a frustratingly typical series sweep at the hands of the Rays in the dreaded Trop. And with nine games now separating them and the Yankees, plus eight-and-a-half between them and the Rays, we've reached the point where another AL East title may already be untenable. (FanGraphs has their odds down to just 1.5%).

But the Jays' best baseball lies ahead. George Springer is already back in the lineup, Addison Barger will return against the Angels on the weekend, there's light at the tunnel for Shane Bieber, and Kazuma Okamoto and Myles Straw have had eye-opening stretches of late.

Soon—and it can't come soon enough—we'll be watching a Jays team that looks a whole lot more like the one it was supposed to be. But the bottom of the roster is awfully thin, and some big decisions about who stays, who goes, and who's a flat-out bum.

The vibes, in other words, are not so good.

** FOR AN AD-FREE VERSION OF THIS—AND EVERY—EPISODE, PLUS WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH **

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** THIS IS A SHORT PREVIEW OF THIS WEEK'S PATREON-EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE. TO HEAR THE EPISODE IN FULL, PLUS AD-FREE EPISODES OF THE MAIN SHOW, AND AVOID EVER SEEING THESE PREVIEW SHOWS IN YOUR FEED AGAIN, SUPPORT US AT PATREON.COM/BJHH **

With still-rookie-eligible Trey Yesavage back in the spotlight—and the Blue Jays' rotation—four our Patreon-exclusive bonus episode this week, we took some time to chat about the greatest rookie pitching seasons in Blue Jays history.

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George Springer and Trey Yesavage are back, José Berríos is on the way, the bullpen feels in great shape, Kazuma Okamoto is making strides, Jesús Sánchez is providing power, Ernie Clement can't stop hitting, and the Blue Jays are winners of three series in a row.

The Blue Jays are building momentum. Finally!

Plus: Talking Max Scherzer's injury, Tyler Heineman versus Brandon Valenzuela, a crazy shirt giveaway, and more!

** FOR AN AD-FREE VERSION OF THIS—AND EVERY—EPISODE, PLUS WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH **

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

** THIS IS A SHORT, FREE PREVIEW OF THIS WEEK'S PATREON-EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE. TO HEAR THE EPISODE IN FULL, VISIT US AT PATREON.COM/BJHH **

This week, with a certain struggling closer front of mind, we chatted more generally about the role, and some of the reasons we think it seems to have been so immune to change—unlike other areas of the game like lineup construction, and starting pitcher usage—despite modern analytics surely pointing toward more matchup-based deployment of relievers, rather than teams saving their top guys for the ninth inning no matter what.

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