2:51pm: Toronto has announced that Saltalamacchia was designated for assignment to make way for Maile.
2:38pm: The Blue Jays have decided to make a move to swap out reserve backstops, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. The precise move isn’t yet clear, but Jarrod Saltalamacchia will be removed from the roster to make room for Luke Maile.
Saltalamacchia, who’ll soon turn 32, had struggled badly early this year. He made the club after joining on a minor-league deal, but had recorded just one hit and one walk over his first 26 plate appearances — with a dreadful 16 strikeouts on his ledger. Saltalamacchia was also struggling to control the running game, as Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith notes on Twitter.
As for Maile, he only just joined the organization in a waiver claim. The Jays’ front office suggested it was high on the 26-year-old, so it’s not particularly surprising to see him earn an opportunity. Though he hasn’t hit much in his brief time in the majors — or in his time at Triple-A since arriving from the Rays — Maile is valued for his glove.
thank god
He hasn’t hit much? No worries, he’ll fit in perfectly with their lineup.
Lol. He can go back to Boston and catch for Chris Sale so that the Sox especially won’t score.
“that oughta show him” – common jays fan
I never saw the hype
An all star in Boston when they won the ws
Signs a massive deal and… he couldn’t hit, he couldn’t frame, or did he throw out a good percentage of base stealers
I’m truly lost why anyone thought he was good
> I’m truly lost why anyone thought he was good
The seductiveness of power.
Myself, I would have taken switch-hitting (but D-first) catcher Tyler Heineman in the Rule 5, though I was impressed by the Juan Graterol claim (unfortunately, he’s already gone).
2013 was by far and away his best year, That was an interesting team–unquestionably very good as a baseline, but also a lot of role players who had career years who helped push them over the top. Career BWAR of 6, 2.9 in that season alone.
Absolutely an amazing year. Basically all of the one year deals they signed had had career or near-career years in 2013.
I loved you in your one year in Chicago
Never was an all-star and 3yrs/20 million isn’t exactly a massive contract.
I thought it was twice that in dollar figures to the marlins
Wasn’t? I thought he was
Just asking
Figuring out how and why he is still around
fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=5557&posit…
Cot’s and B-R have him as 3 yrs/21mm with the Marlins, although they released him halfway through the contract. So i was off by a million bucks. But, yeah, basically a standard going rate for a post-arb catcher who was coming off a career year in 2013.
The first of many moves likely to come, after the 45-55 game mark the floodgates could open. Some veterans will have to improve their play and TO will have to eat salary but, it’s coming. What a completely dreadful start to the season.
Didn’t the blue jays get someone that wasn’t salty, martin or maile in the off season? I thought they did and he was supposed to be decent but I suppose I’m wrong?
No, you are not wrong. They never were going to be decent. I have been calling for Salty to be cut since spring training. It is stupid to have him on the roster. That must have been the influence of cherington who used to be the BOsox GM, now in the Jays front office. The best catcher they had in the minors isn’t Maile it was graterol, but they sold him to the Angels. The Angels are smart. Graterol could frame well and call a game. I suppose we need to give the Maile a chance, but the bottom line is the backup catcher is just a spare part and this move won’t do anything to improve the club. The Jays need to ride this out for may and june and then decide to be all-in buyers or all-in sellers. I predict that they will be sellers. I called for them to acquire an ace starter and 2 allstar relievers before spring training ended and I got trolled for my suggetions. But that is exactly what the jays needed then and now and what they will likely need at the trade deadline to make a run. It will cost them a lot of prospects and I don’t see the current jays front office doing that. We need AA back or an AA type running the baseball operations.
Looks to me like the Jays need to hit, not acquire more pitching. Also, I don’t think they have the pieces in the farm to swing a trade for your ace.
There are lots of pieces in the farm system for trade, more than enough to get an ace and all star relievers. They get calls regularly for prospects in trades. As for pitching, that is exactly what they need now and will need. at the deadline. When a team goes into a hitting funk or has injuries to it’s all star hitters, it is great pitching that pulls them through, not acquiring another hitter, that doesn’t work on all the other guys. More pitching though will hold them close to opponents until they start hitting again, and they will hit again, Bautista is waking up and so is Martin. Smoak has been unusally good, but we have seen his act before where he starts hot and then fades as the season goes on. They really need travis to hit. Pilar has been great and goins and barney have chipped in, but they are just minor pieces. No, great pitching and depth that is great is what they needed back at the start of the season, it is what they need now and likely what they will need at the deadline.
every post you male is about you calling for the Jays to get an ace and elite bullpen arm, like they grow on trees or something. give it up man. what planet are you from?
I am from the planet called “Expert”. It’s population really know baseball and know what they are talking about. When a suggestion is right, it is right. Time has born out my ideas as correct for the Jays. .As I also called, because the Jays didn’t acquire the pitching needed, the Jays will be bigtime sellers at the deadline. Time will prove this too.
Ok mr expert. Please provide your examples of trades they could complete for an ace and elite pen arm.
ESPN has cleared a lot of space and needs just such “Experts”. I’m sure they’ll be calling to replace Jayson Stark, Mark Saxon, Doug Glanville, and the like. Can’t wait to see your articles and prognostications.
Expert that just cruises the MLB trade rumors and doesn’t have a job in MLB or in sports media.
Having a job in MLB media shouldn’t be any sort of credential for being an expert in baseball. Bill Ripken and Harold Reynolds are in sports media.
That would be a Murderers’ Row of baseball expertise, if they teamed up Billy Ripken and Harold Reynolds with jimmertee.
Get Hawk Harrelson to anchor it.
Sorry no examples of trades. I don’t know the MLB inside markeplace at the moment. Prior to the Bosox deal, the Jays could have played in the Chris Sale sweepstakes, but didn’t want to pay the price [Guerrero jr to start]. Chapman or Jansen or Wade davis would have looked good in the Jays bullpen but the Jays didn’t want to pay the price for one of them either. I was calling for the Jays to go after these guys at that time. Who cares about the money or the prospect capital if it will improve things now? This is a very old team that needs to win now or be blown up. The mgmt strategy of filling up the minor leagues with talent and marginal free agent signings to fillout the major league roster absolutely stinks. Salty is gone, who will be next? Howell? Leone? The current Jays core, even if everyone is healthy, is not good enough to win.
Solid plan. Let’s trade away youth and the future to acquire older veterans to add to a team that you already say is too old
I guess it depends on the goal. Is the goal to take a shot to win now?
Then there is only one way to do it, trade prospect capital for players and go for it, like AA did. Otherwise if the goal is “longterm competitveness” then don’t trade and have year after year of mediocre performance likely winning nothing. Other than the last year, the Indians did the “competitiveness” thing under Shapiros watch since 2001 and won nothing but they finished okay in the divison every-once-in-a-while and were competative. Let’s hope we don’t get the same thing in Toronto..
“Sorry no examples of trades. I don’t know the MLB inside markeplace at the moment.”
Expert, eh?
By Expert, you mean Captain Obvious, right? An ace starter and a couple AS relievers would really improve ANY team you bozo
jimmertee7 hours ago
“I am from the planet called “Expert”. It’s [sic] population really know baseball and know what they are talking about.”
(Except for any examples of how to improve what you obsessively criticize.)
I think that planet is really named “Hubris 1”. Or it could be a Gas Giant, aka “Windbag”.
NO. They simply could not have played in the Chris Sale sweepstakes. Cuz their farm isn’t good enough.
Absolutely they played in the Chris Sale sweepstakes. The Jays checked in with the WHite Sox during the trade process but when they heard the price the Sox were asking from the Jays system, they Jays said no, it was too much to pay. Yup. it happened.
You sound like they were supposed to listen to you. I’m not saying your suggestions are wrong but come on. They kept the wrong guy, Edwin was the heart of that team not Bautista. As a Yankee Fan I’m beaming anyway.
I agree with you about Edwin, total heart of the Jays club. Big mistake rushing to signing s and losing him. As for the Yankees, Cashman is a genius. The Yanks are my #2 team to go to when the Jays collapse. I hope that the Yankees starting rotation holds out for them because everything else looks great. I can’t see their rotation holding up all year though. However, they do have talented depth at starting pitching but time will tell how good it is.
PS, And if the Jays did listen to me, they would be in good shape and probably much closer to the divison leaders and not lost an entire year….
Acquiring an ace and signing 2 all star relievers would make any team closer to division leaders…. not exactly a ground breaking idea.
If they get better players they will be a better team. Also, if they win more games than the other teams they will win the division.
Good Lord, Chesteraarthur! You might be onto something! Get Shapiro on the phone, pronto!!!
You suggested they get an ace and 2 all star relievers to improve the team? Wow you’re good.. you should be a GM.
Well they were at it they probably should have traded Goins for Mike Trout.
Figured it out, A.J. Jimenez, but they released him. Anyone know why? I know his hitting seems pretty basic but I thought he was supposed to be good defensively. Idk anything about maile so I’ll assume he’s better?
Jimenez is batting .149 in AAA for Texas.
Rip
I always thought Salty was just a minor variation on Arencibia
Hasn’t hit over an extended period in years. never could catch, nor throw, yet team’s keep giving this guy a job for some reason. Kelly Shoppach a few years back had Salty’s power (all salty ever had) and shoppach was plus defense with a good arm, yet Shoppach couldn’t find a job at the end.
it’s funny how some of these guys.. Przinski (spelling) is another that teams won’t kick out the door and long ago should have been that are of no use.
If this is the end for Salty we have seen the end of the man tied for the longest full name (first and last) in baseball history! So there’s at least that!
Somebody else is going to make him an offer. They only need to pay the min. now, Jays have to pay him out.
OK, I’ll bite. Who’s Salty tied with for the longest name record?
He had a chance at loosing it to a kid cpl years back name of Seth Schwindenhammer, only the kid had severe problems striking out and never figured things out massive swing with huge holes.
William VanLandingham, a scrub pitcher for the Giants in the 90s.
Yeah, I remember that name but not much about his game. Looks like Salty only tied by virtue of that less-common-than-Jared spelling of his first name.
This is the same team that had Josh Thole for 2 years and made the playoffs. Seems like Navarro has retired , he wasn’t very good last year, now Maile. At least Maile is young still but yeah Salt was pretty bad, should try pepper.
Well they kinda needed Thole with Dickey since Martin flat out refused to catch him and Navarro flat out couldn’t catch him.
Surprised they didn’t call up Ohlman(sp) from Buffalo. Very good defensively and huge OBP and power guy and has an ops of .880 right now.
The Blue Jays should designate the entire bullpen. Talk about useless
Maile is a decent defensive catcher who can call a game but as we have seen, he cannot hit much. I wish there was a little bit more aggressive deal making right now from the Jays upper level management for a backup catcher with talent that can grow into a fulltime role. How do you get one of these? Trade multiple prospects for one, that’s how. Who cares about a long term competative goal. Let’s get rid of that long term “process” goal. There are too many off-the-scrap-heap just-cut-from-another-club or marginal players on the Jays. Salty, Maile, Howell, Travis, Smith, Lawrence, Leone, Grilli, Coghlan, Pearce, Latos, etc etc. I am getting tired and impatient watching subs and watching the executive decisions to put these subs on the MLB level field somehow beleiving that a competative team will be the result. Make some trades, send guys down to work it out, or blow this thing up now! I am passionate and care about this team, rant over.