Blue Jays Talk

Sho Alli breaks down the Blue Jays' 2-1 loss to the Mariners out in Seattle. He takes your texts, and discusses the lack of run support once again, as the bats go cold during a terrific pitching performance from Alek Manoah that saw him work into the eighth inning. He gets into the top of the fifth inning, one that saw Robbie Ray escape a bases loaded no out jam completely unscathed, and discusses a potential trade for one of the big bats in the middle of the order. Plus, a conversation on whether or not the team needs a serious veteran voice in the clubhouse, and if Bo Bichette can eventually become that guy.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Sho Alli breaks down the Blue Jays' 5-2 loss to the Mariners in 11 innings out in Seattle. He takes your texts, discusses the runners with scoring position issue rearing its ugly head at the worst possible time, and highlighting some of the awful baserunning that has cropped up as of late. He gets into the start from Ross Stripling, the quality work from (most of) the bullpen, and how additions to the arm barn could allow for more flexibility. Sho also gets to some less-heralded bullpen additions around MLB that could be made at the trade deadline, and once again discusses how much culpability Charlie Montoyo has after losses like this.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Blake Murphy opens the show recapping the series opener between the Jays and Mariners, who's next to get called up from Buffalo to fill Yusei Kikuchi's spot and if Kevin Gausman will miss another start, and how the team sits in the early race for the AL wild card. American poet Hanif Abdurraqib joins the show to chat about his Ken Griffey Jr collection, his fascination with sneakers, and if there's an MLB player that can help market the game more (23:49). Blue Jays TV play-by-play voice Dan Shulman gives his perspective on the mood in the clubhouse as the losses mount up, if there are any concerns with George Springer missing time, if the pitching struggles are bleeding into the offensive struggles, and which areas of the team should the front office focus on to get better (50:03). Spin Rate podcast's Drew Fairservice weighs in on Cavan Biggio's role on the roster and how he's performed this season, if Shohei Ohtani could fit on the team and what kind of package would the Jays include for a trade, which pitchers around the league should Toronto aim for and if there's any optimism in Kikuchi turning around his year (1:17:44). 

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Sho Alli breaks down the Blue Jays' 8-3 loss to the Mariners to begin the four-game series in Seattle. He takes your texts, and gets straight to the decision to have Anthony Banda be the opener for Casey Lawrence - why not Max Castillo? He discusses the three innings of relief work from Castillo, and how despite being saved for an emergency start on Sunday (if Kevin Gausman can't go after all), the whole weekend of relief work has now been tossed into disarray. Plus, a discussion on Vladimir Guerrero Jr. powering down after scoring Bo Bichette with the RBI single in the third inning - should he have run it out?

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Baseball Prospectus' Mikey Ajeto joins Blake Murphy to chat about how Robbie Ray turned around his season following a rough start, his reliance on the sinker and slider, the optimism surrounding the Mariners' rotation, and why Logan Gilbert may be close to a breakout (04:54). Co-host of Intentional Talk and AppleTV+ announcer Stephen Nelson stops by to discuss his experience calling the weekly games on Friday night, Shohei Ohtani's greatness, and his standouts from the Jays this year (28:39). Then, The Athletic's Keith Law looks at his Jays prospect rankings at the midway point, what he makes of Spencer Horwitz, and which areas of the prospect pool would be included in a future trade (49:33). Sportsnet.ca's Shi Davidi discusses where he ranks the road trip to Seattle to cover the Jays games, how the team will approach their rotation without Kevin Gausman, how to handle Yusei Kikuchi's struggles, and when Toronto could start addressing the pitching staff ahead of the trade deadline (01:13:33).

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Jeff Blair and Kevin Barker break down the Blue Jays' 2-1 win over the Athletics to wrap up the series in Oakland. They take your calls, and they discuss six strong innings from José Berríos to (somewhat) stabilize the starting rotation. They get to the great outings from Adam Cimber and Jordan Romano, and how the Jays' closer had the velocity up in Oakland to wrap things up. Plus, a conversation on trade value for prospects and when you should trade them (or not).

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Sho Alli breaks down the Blue Jays' 5-3 loss to the Athletics as the losing streak ties a season-high. He takes your texts and gets to the main source of consternation: Yusei Kikuchi going less than three innings, walking five batters and hitting two more. Sho discusses how nothing can be off the table at this point, from having an opener, to benching him, or even releasing him outright. Plus, a discussion on the 'movie' that is the 2022 season, and whether or not there's still time to turn things around for the third act.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Blake Murphy is joined by Chris Black and Joe Siddall for another edition of "Explain It Black" as they touch on Alek Manoah's first bad start of the season to begin Toronto's West Coast trip, if a drop in Manoah's velocity is a concern, catchers framing pitches, and if Yusei Kikuchi should continue to throw cutters within his pitching arsenal (01:53). Next, FanGraphs' Dan Szymborski discusses the race in the AL East being dominated by the Yankees, how Hyun-jin Ryu's injury affects the Jays' playoff projections, and how he would handle carrying three catchers at a time (27:52). Then, Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith stops by to give out grades for the team at the halfway point of the season, look back at Alejandro Kirk's emergence, and discuss Jose Berrios inconsistency (50:14). Finally, the guys share their wish lists for the second half, who could be the biggest swing piece for the rest of the season and the top targets the team should eye ahead of the trade deadline (01:13:34).

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Sho Alli breaks down the Blue Jays' 5-1 loss to the Athletics in Oakland. He takes your texts, and gets to the listless performance from the offence, one that saw only four hits over eight innings off opposing starter Cole Irvin. He discusses the lack of quality at-bats from the Jays offence, and how the velocity on Alek Manoah's fastball just wasn't there to kick off the series in Oakland. Plus, a discussion on if the Jays got 'baseballed', and Sho asks if we can chalk this up to a long stretch of games without time off.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.

Blake Murphy is joined by The Athletic's Kaitlyn McGrath to chat about the most disappointing aspect of the Blue Jays' weekend series against the Rays, the importance of bolstering their pitching staff after Kevin Gausman suffered an ankle contusion, and who the team can look to target in the trade market (04:28). The Athletic's Melissa Lockard stops by to discuss what makes Frankie Montas a special pitcher for Oakland, how the return packages for Matt Chapman are performing, and previews what to look for from A's starter Cole Irvin in their series opener (27:11). Afterward, Ben Shulman of the "Locked on Jays" podcast recaps the rare doubleheader at Rogers Centre, takeaways from Casey Lawrence's relief appearance after Gausman left the game, and the state of the AL East (50:02). To wrap up the show, Blake answers your texts about Yusei Kikuchi, Danny Jansen, and the pitching woes (01:14:53). 

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Sports & Media or any affiliates.