Blue Jays Happy Hour

The Blue Jays can afford to spin their wheels no longer. Or, well, if we're being real, they couldn't afford to spin their wheels the way they did over the last week either—squandering multiple opportunities and losing multiple winnable games, just as they've done far too often all season. But here we are. Three massive weekend games with the Texas Rangers, then we'll see on Monday just how much hope remains. Can Dylan Cease hold it together? Will Vladdy finally show up? Should John Schneider use his bench more? Does Anthony Santander exist? Are we ready to talk about Ernie Clement? The AL mid-off continues! And this week we're talking about all of it—plus a quasi-traditional vibe check, a rotation check-in, and a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Jays did themselves—and the vibes surrounding them—no favours this week, dropping two of three to the battered Athletics in Sacramento. Fortunately, the Orioles did do them a favour, taking a pair from Cleveland, meaning they're right back where they started the week, a game back of the third AL Wild Card spot—only now there are just 15 games to go. And this week we talked all about it! Plus: Rampant doomerism, a rotation in tatters, Josh Smith, Kazuma Okamoto, the Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of it all, and a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Blue Jays have started September the way they ended August, taking a crucial series in Cleveland—including the biggest game of the year (so far) on Thursday afternoon—to pull within a half game of the Guardians in the AL Wild Card race, while also securing the tiebreaker against them. Vlad had a huge game, Cease is incredible, Brett Bateman has been an enormously unexpected surprise, and the bullpen is holding it all together. Even the rotation, which remains messy, got good news this week in the fact that Trey Yesavage is progressing from knee surgery and may be able to return before the playoffs. He’s pitching this year. And this week we talked all about it! Plus roster churn, Ricky Tiedemann, Sean Keys, John Schneider, the club’s new Hall of Excellence, and a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They're in the thick of it now. The Blue Jays have made it to the cusp of September still within striking distance of a playoff spot. But the field they're competing with is large, which means that the margin for error could be very small. And even with a number of games still left against teams vying for the same spot, it's going to be a challenge—especially with a rotation once again in shambles after this week's Shane Bieber news. Whichever team makes it through will have to be better than just "OK" down the stretch. Meaning that the time to get it together is now. And this week we talked all about it! Plus Vlad discourse, a semi-traditional vibe check, an update on our pre-season over/under picks, and a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alejandro Kirk is on a tear and finally looking like the hitter we’ve been waiting for all season. And, along with a surprisingly stable rotation, a lockdown bullpen, and unheralded pick-ups punching well above their weight, he’s keeping the Blue Jays in the thick of the American League playoff race. This week we talk all about it, plus Vladdy’s imminent return, Daz Cameron, transaction corner, and the Jesús Sánchez of it all. Have a listen! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Instead of closing up shop and selling off all their veterans at the trade deadline, the Blue Jays picked up some interesting new toys to play with. And so far it’s worked! They now sit just 2.5 games back of the final AL playoff spot, despite continuing to receive far too little from their established stars. The rotation looks like it will become a major issue again soon, but for the moment things are looking up. And guys like Brett Bateman, Charles McAdoo, and Josh Smith have been—along with the bullpen, of course—big reasons why. And on this week’s episode we’re talking all about it! Plus a fascinating rumour that might have seen the Jays flip José Soriano before he ever threw a pitch for them, obligatory lockout talk, and a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Blue Jays successfully pulled off a buy/sell hybrid trade deadline, but did they successfully reshape their roster with a view to 2027 while still keeping them basically in the same place in terms of their likelihood of making a late run toward the 2026 playoffs? This week we ask exactly those kinds of questions as we go through every single one of their deadline deals. ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Blue Jays are not in the position they wanted to find themselves as the trade deadline approaches, but there's nothing that can be done about that now. They'll have some big decisions to make, as they mostly begin to look toward 2027. Does that mean a full-on, 2024-like sell-off is on its way? Maybe not. And for this week's episode we entertained all sorts of different possibilities, as we examined the likelihood of each of their rental players—and several with some term left, too—actually getting dealt by 6 PM ET on Monday. ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we briefly wrestle with the question of the moment when it comes to the Blue Jays, before talking about the grim state of the team, visiting Transaction Corner, discussing the state of the rotation, and generally starting to look toward the upcoming trade deadline—and not in the good way that you'd like. PLUS: Draft stuff! And a whole lot more! ** FOR AD-FREE EPISODES AND WEEKLY BONUS SHOWS, FIND US AT patreon.com/BJHH ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Blue Jays have a magic dragon! They also have a marquee starter, Shane Bieber, who has raised a lot of questions with his early performances since returning from injury last month. And this week we talk about all that, the trade deadline, Vladdy, Spencer Miles, Jonathan Clase, and a whole lot more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Perhaps you've heard, but Sean Keys has had a meteoric and completely unexpected rise through the Blue Jays system so far this year, reaching the majors by the end of June and making his name known throughout the nation on Canada Day with an impact home run to help propel the club to a series win amid what has easily been their worst stretch of a dismal season. The 23-year-old now has more home runs at Rogers Centre this year than Vladimir Guerrero Jr. In other words: things could be worse. Well, maybe except for that last bit, I suppose. But they were a whole lot worse just a few days ago! Unfortunately, they could certainly go south again quickly. Vlad is still a mess. Springer and Kirk aren't much better. Bieber and Yesavage, despite some positive steps, have questions still to answer. And even though the Jays could theoretically coast somewhat into the All-Star break with series against the disappointing Mariners, Giants, and Padres, all nine games against those foes will be played on the road, as they're about to embark on a difficult three-city west coast road trip. And the week we talk all about it! Plus the return of Bo Bichette, a check-in on Arjun Nimmala and JoJo Parker, obligatory fifth starter stuff, 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 PREVIEW OF THIS WEEK'S PATREON-EXCLUSIVE BONUS EPISODE. TO HEAR THE EPISODE IN FULL, PLUS AD-FREE EPISODES OF THE MAIN SHOW, SUPPORT US AT PATREON.COM/BJHH ** With the Texas Rangers in town, in this week's Patreon-exclusive bonus episode we're talking all about the Blue Jays' rivals of the past—or, often, the lack thereof—and potentially the future! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Jays are coming off maybe the most frustrating series of a frustrating season, losing two of three at home to the Astros in ugly fashion. They continue struggling to pull themselves above the .500 mark whenever they get a chance, and more and more the righteous anger of the fan base—which is different than the dopey anger that keeps being heaped toward the likes of John Schneider, Jeff Hoffman, etc.—is landing at the feet of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Vladdy is the key here and, when you get right down to it, the primary reason this campaign has felt maddening and baffling in equal parts. It's not great! And this week we're talking all about it. PLUS: Shane Bieber's return, the fifth starter spot, Luis Urias, Atkins Speaks!, 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 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 ** For this week's Patreon-exclusive bonus episode, we considering the cases of Blue Jays free-agents-to-be Kevin Gausman, George Springer, and others, through the lens of the club’s recent history of deciding whether to retain beloved players—like Bo Bichette, Teoscar Hernández, Robbie Ray, etc.—or to move on. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In an episode recorded just before the Blue Jays completed their sweep of the Red Sox at Fenway, we were already feeling some good vibes starting to poke through. Kirk is here, Bieber's on his way back (as are Barger and Yimi), Springer's started turning it around, and the back-end of the bullpen—particularly Louis Varland and Tyler Rogers—is looking absolutely lethal. The Jays may still have a fifth starter problem, their bullpen may be overtaxed, and their position as a would-be playoff contender remains precarious, but there is still a lot of talent here if they start playing up to their capabilities. The rest of the league better hope they're not getting hot. PLUS: A ridiculously stupid hat! ** 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 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 Alejandro Kirk set to return from the IL this weekend, we used our latest Patreon-exclusive bonus episode to discus the Blue Jays catching situation, the club's knack for finding good ones, the potential long-term future of the Kirk-Valenzuela pairing, and to make peace how things worked out the last time the Jays traded from a catching surplus. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Blue Jays continue to tread water, bobbing up and down in the murky waters of a comprehensively underperforming American League. And though they seem to have a Max Scherzer problem on their hands, they'll soon have a catching problem on their hands, and they definitely have Vlad- and Springer-sized problems on their hands, overall, things could certainly be a whole lot worse. And this week we're talking about all of that, plus some love for Alejandro Kirk and Ernie Clement, the official removal of Jesús Sánchez from Bumwatch (TM), and more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the Jays just having visited Atlanta, for our Patreon-exclusive bonus episode this week we decided to look back at the Blue Jays tenure of Alex Anthopoulos—the Atlanta GM who, I assume you remember, was formerly the architect of the Blue Jays. ** 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 ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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! ** 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.

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