Our counterparts at Bluebird Banter have a fun segment in which they reach out to the opposing team’s SB Nation page before an upcoming series. Accordingly, before the upcoming Toronto Blue Jays/Dodgers series, which is the second-fastest rematch in MLB history, Bryant Tefler asked me some more questions he had about the current state of the Dodgers.
Here are the discussions from last year and the other half of this conversation posted on Bluebird Banter.
Question Time
The following is my conversation with Bryant Tefler, with light editing for clarity and brevity:
Last year, with context, I asked how you felt about the Blue Jays’2025 season. Knowing what you know now and how it ended, how do you feel about the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays with the benefit of hindsight? And what would you tell past-you, knowing what you know now?
I’d be pretty impressed with how many things did go right for this team. What really solidified during the second half of the season and into the postseason about this team wasn’t just fluke; rather it was a set of interlocking pieces that reinforced each other in unexpected ways and once it settled into place turned into a very good team that was tremendous fun to watch because of the excitement associated with all the things they did really well.
I would also preview that not only were the Jays going to face the Yankees, Mariners and Dodgers in the post season – three teams that are all arguably higher levels of true talent than the Jays – but they would they take it to extra innings in Game 7 but only missed walking it off three times on flukey situations that broke the Dodgers way instead of the Jays. It was one of the best seasons since 2015 as a fan just to enjoy the different ways they found to win every night.
The Blue Jays mostly brought the band back in 2026, after coming so close last year. What are the expectations for the fanbase from your perspective? Do folks expect another run at this point?
I think the Jays are well-positioned to contend in 2026. We lost Bichette and Bassitt from the core, but replaced them with Okamoto and Cease. And it was a different team in many small ways that ended 2025 from the one that started it. The Jays, quite smartly as it is now apparent, brought on plenty of starting pitching with Cease, Ponce, and bringing back Schzerer at significantly less cost. Neither Yesavage nor Berrios is expected to miss significant time, and Bieber is a bit of a question mark, but he is throwing. If they get one or two back soonish, that’s not only going to upgrade the rotation, but it will also help the bullpen as well.
The biggest questions to contend with are ‘are we going to get 2025 Springer or 2024 Springer?’, ‘how close will Okamoto’s numbers look to his NPB production?’, and, of course, ‘will they stay healthy?’. If the Jays continue to play their brand of baseball, which is low strike-out, lots of traffic on the bases with power, superiour defense, and durable starting pitching, they should have a very high floor to their production. However, we also play in the ALE, so the Yankees, Red Sox, improved Orioles, and even this slightly bizarre collection of the Rays can’t be counted out. If the Jays don’t make the postseason, something serious likely went wrong, but how deep that postseason goes is always a crapshoot.
The tandem of Bichette and Vlad Guerrero, Jr. was integral to this core. What does Bichette’s departure mean to you and to the fanbase from your perspective? Accordingly, what does the emergence of Vlad Guerrero, Jr. mean to you and to the fanbase from your perspective?
When Bo and Vladdy came up (and the sadly forgotten Cavan Biggio) there was a tendency to look at them as a unit. It was three potentially homegrown franchise cornerstones, the kind of potential dynasties that you don’t often get in the MLB these days. While Biggio struggled, both Vladdy and Bo seemed to build from success to success, even facing the usual ups and downs of all young players.
They were also always depicted as close friends, so there was a strong appetite for both of them to be career Jays. But by 2022, the FO clearly valued Guerrero more, and according to reports, the relationship with Bichette was significantly frostier. Obviously, I don’t have any insider knowledge or know what offers were made, but their inability to extend either before their final year set off alarm bells with the fans, and the bringing in of Giminez really set the rumour mill working overtime.
Unfortunately for Bo, that injury he suffered against the Yankees gave the Jays weeks to essentially testrun an infield without Bichette and it was a significant improvement defensively. So there was always a bit of skepticism whether the Jays would get into a bidding war and whether Bo was willing to move off short. The Mets actually bailed the Jays out because the offer he accepted was wild enough that a lot of fans agreed the Jays shouldn’t match it. The infield will be significantly better defensively in 2026 and if Okamoto just has an offensively positive year, much less a star one, the team is likely better in the aggregate.
Personally, it’s a shame, and I’ll miss seeing Bichette every game. He was always one of my favourites, and I was hoping he’d make a move to second to make a long-term deal work. On the other hand, Bichette’s offense is a profile that relies heavily on bat speed, and his foot speed has slowed significantly, so I always saw his long-term risk being higher than Vladdy. If I had to predict, I would expect his bat to remain excellent in New York, but taking over the hot corner defensively is going to be a bit of a roller coaster for Mets fans to watch.
As for Vlad, this has been his team basically since he was called up. He’s had some growing pains along the way, but between his effortless charisma and the FO’s push in their marketing to make him the face of the franchise, it has always been him front and centre. The fanbase let out a collective breath when they announced his new contract, and by the time it is done, the expectation is that he’ll own a lot of the Jays’ career leaderboards by a wide margin.
Cody Ponce and his fluke injury is a blow, but I have seen the Blue Jays fans really attach themselves to him during his short tenure. What will the Blue Jays do to eat the innings with the ongoing injuries to Berrios et al?
Jays fans love a feel good story. They love roleplayers and the supposed ‘lunchbox’ players that aren’t stars but have a great story. Guys like Sal Fasano, John McDonald, Munenori Kawasaki , and Kevin Pillar are guys who maybe only did one or two things well on the field that fans loved. Ponce already fits that narrative; a guy who struggled in the Majors and then in the NPB, but unlocked something to make him a record holder in Korea. He’s a big, goofy seeming Star Wars fan who has finally earned his way back to the bigs. Now, since even the most optimistic view is the second half at the earliest and more likely a lost season, there’s a lot of disappointment and feeling for the guy.
Eating those innings is a good question. As mentioned, Berrios and Yesavage are already throwing off a mound and both are expected to be available at some point before the end of April. Bieber is a little more of an x-factor. Now, as of writing this, the Jays have signed Patrick Corbin’s corpse to a one year deal so he’ll likely get a few starts and there’s some AAA depth they can draw on if necessary. I think they’ll try and work between him and a few bullpen games to align with off days to keep as many starts on the front four.
I reviewed Rogers Centre based on my visit in 2024 and updated it with my visit in 2025. When exactly does the roof generally open, and how different is the ballpark between open and closed?
There is a metric for opening the roof. As I recall, the rule of thumb is something like five straight days without rain and temperatures above fifteen degrees. So it typically doesn’t open before May on a regular basis. Because of our location on the Great Lakes, we tend to have quite wet springs and because it takes time to open and close the roof, getting caught during a storm with it open causes all kinds of problems the stadium doesn’t want to risk if they don’t have to.
As for the atmosphere, I’m not necessarily the best person to talk to because I actually don’t really give a flip about the stadium in general. I go to the ballpark to watch the games first and foremost and the Rogers Centre is quite good for that. They have good unobstructed sightlines for most of the seats, concessions and bathrooms are never more than fiftish meters from your seat, every game starts on time which I can watch comfortably warm enough in just my jersey and I can get to it from my home in West Toronto in a half hour for $3.7 5CDN. [Author’s Note: About $2.70]. I don’t care about promotions, stadium specialty foods or special bars or activities at the ballpark that involve anything other than the game, so my perspective isn’t like the average fan.
So the biggest difference, I’d say, is that the dome does amplify the sound and light shows, so during a sellout games with it closed, Rogers Centre thunders in a way that other stadiums I’ve visited don’t. On the other hand, I remember many games in the 2000s on a weekday with the dome closed and an anemic crowd making the place echo like a mausoleum. When the fans are there, it’s a fun, dynamic atmosphere to watch baseball if that’s your priority, and I’ve heard from many people that the renovation areas creating unticketed bars and patios and watching spaces are very popular if you want more of a party experience.
Trey Yesavage: one-hit wonder or the real deal?
Rookie pitchers will always break your heart so I will never declare anyone a sure fire star. In fact, the two greatest pitchers in Jays history were a former corner outfielder and a guy busted from the majors all the way back to A ball before they turned into the immortals they were destined to be.
That said, Yesavage has the tools to succeed.
His four seamer sits middle 90s and touches 97. There’s ten-twelve MPH of separation between that and his splitter which is nightmarish for hitters and his unique arm angle makes him very hard to square up. The biggest challenge I expect him to face is that his splitter carries out of the zone a lot so at some point, hitters are going to start to lay off it more and wait for him to challenge them in the zone with the heater. So it will depend on his ability to adapt to that and to refine his control.
His slider isn’t consistent yet and I think if he can turn that into a plus pitch, he’s got the ceiling of a front of the rotation pitcher. It helps that he’s got Kevin Gausman’s brain to pick and help refine that splitter.
Lastly, fill in the blank. The 2026 Toronto Blue Jays will _________________________ mostly because of ______________________.
The 2026 Toronto Blue Jays will make the postseason mostly because of their starting rotation and a massive year by Guerrero at the plate.
Once again, a very kind thank you to Bryant Telfer for his time. I do not think I will ever be able to top my last visit to Toronto, but I am sure my travels will eventually take me that way again. It’s always fun to go to a game with friends, even if they are from the other side.
Matthew Pouliot
Eric Samulski