Did you remember back to when Twins pitchers batted?

The Designated Hitter rule came into play in the American League for the first time in 1973 and pitchers in the AL had to put their bats into storage where they still sit today. Since 1973 very few AL pitchers have had to dust off  and apply pine tar to their bats before walking to home plate to try to get some wood on the ball.

Do you know what pitcher got the last hit for the Minnesota Twins before the DH cane into play? How about that last Twins pitcher to bat before the DH?

The rest of the story can be found at Twinstrivia.com

Blue Jays Get Another Year From John Gibbons

The Toronto Blue Jays manager, John Gibbons, had an option triggered in his contract that will see him in Toronto for the 2017 season too!

The Toronto Blue Jays made a move while the rest of us were recovering from our New Year’s celebrations. More accurately, they made a move without doing anything at all. Manager John Gibbons picked up an extra year on his contract and will be back in 2017. He earned it by not getting fired.

As you may be aware, he has a nifty little clause in his agreement that says if he is not fired by January 1, an option is triggered that gives him another year of service. Many feel this is to avoid being in a “lame duck” manager position. It certainly is a clever aspect of negotiating.

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Remaining Free Agent Options for Blue Jays

Jays From the Couch looks at remaining free agents and whether they are options for the Toronto Blue Jays and their pitching needs.

So far this offseason, the Blue Jays haven’t made the free agent splash some would have thought they would. With starting pitchers this offseason having the same price tag attached to them as a Christopher Nolan movie would, some smaller market teams are having a tough time justifying spending $100 million plus on a player. It’s why guys like Chris Davis and Alex Gordon remain on the market, there’s simply only a handful of teams who are willing to make those moves.

As days go on, the markets have gotten thinner and thinner, and the leftover players are still looking to be signed, and for some their asking price has no doubt gone down. With a quality arm like Scott Kazmir, signing to a 3yr/$48 million dollar contract to the Dodgers just a few days ago, maybe it’s time for the Blue Jays to finally pounce on one of the quality left over free agents, and make some offseason noise the fans are hoping for.

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Blue Jays 2016 AAA Infield Depth

The Toronto Blue Jays’ AAA club, the Buffalo Bisons, saw much of its infield move on. That means they will have several new faces which need introducing.

The 2015 Buffalo Bisons infield consisted of Jonathan Diaz, Munenori Kawasaki, Matt Hague, andAndy Burns.

Matt Hague won the International League Most Valuable Player Award after finishing near the top in most offensive categories with .338 BA, 11HR, 33 doubles, 92 RBI, and 177 hits. Matt received a brief cup of coffee with the Toronto Blue Jays getting in 10 games. Hague is taking his line drive power to Japan for the Hanshin Tigers.

Defensive wizard Jonathan Diaz hit .223 while posting a .970 fielding percentage. Diaz played 30 games in Toronto over the past two season and remains a free-agent.

In Munenori Kawasaki’s year 34 season, he split 2015 between Buffalo and Toronto showing excellent plate discipline and diminished range. Muni continues to provide comic relief and is an interview highlight reel, but it appears his time in the Toronto Blue Jays organization is coming to a close.

The new additions to the 2016 Buffalo Bisons infield have the potential to score a bunch of runs and provide the Toronto Blue Jays with depth in case one of the regulars go down for any length of time.

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Blue Jays Organizational Power Depth

A look at the Toronto Blue Jays farm system reveals a disturbing lack of power options

At the end of the 2016 season the Toronto Blue Jays management team of Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins will need to decide if they can sign Jose Bautista and/or Edwin Encarnacion or if they will let them or both walk away.

There is a consensus among Toronto Blue Jays bloggers and fans that one will be signed and the other will be allowed to enter free agency. Even if one is retained and one leaves, that is a lot of power leaving, power that isn’t easily replaced.

So how will management fill the void of losing such a prestigious bat in the powerful Toronto Blue Jays lineup?

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Blue Jays are in Good Shape for 2016 and Beyond!

Despite the disappointment of this offseason, the groundwork has been laid for the Toronto Blue Jays be successful now and in the future.

When Alex Anthopoulos left the Toronto Blue Jays, it sparked an outrage in the fanbase. After all, he was departing as the Bringer of Banners. How easy it was to forget the years of calling for his removal as GM. But that is what winning can do for you. Now, the Blue Jays are the defending American League East champions and people miss AA.

His departure was really just the start of a series of disappointments Blue Jays fans would suffer this offseason. From losing David Price to failing to address the bullpen (thus far) to bringing back J.A. Happ, fans of the Blue Jays can’t help but wonder just how this team will repeat its 2015 success.

But, that line of thinking is missing several factors that make the Toronto Blue Jays a competitive team…now and in the future. This team has been put in a solid position moving forward.

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Blue Jays Fans: Welcome to Jays From the Couch!

Welcome to Jays From the Couch!

Welcome to your new “go to” spot for Toronto Blue Jays coverage and the home of the Jays’ Nest Podcast. We know that there are several great places out there. However, over time, we are confident that you will enjoy your time at Jays From the Couch.

Founded by Shaun Doyle, Jays From the Couch is dedicated to providing Blue Jays fans with the best experience possible. Building on the success seen as Senior Editor at Jays Journal, Shaun is focused on the reader’s experience. When you come to Jays From the Couch, you can expect to read quality analysis and opinions without being inundated with ads, popups, and other distractions.

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The Top 5 Home Run Hitters In MLB For 2015 + Homer Stats

Giancarlo Stanton should contend for the NL HR championship crown in 2016. He is capable of cracking 40 – 50 HRs if he can play a year completely healthy. The Marlins are lucky to have one of the best young hitters in the game.  In 2015, he clubbed 27 HRs in just 279 AB for the season.  That is about a HR every 10 AB. If he could play 150 games in a year, he may easily crack the 50+HR mark.

Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer/Part-Owner) Follow @stokes_hunter21

Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports

There were 9 guys who tallied 40+ HRs in the Major Leagues and 6 of them came from the AL and just 3 came from the NL. Furthermore, out of 20 players that cracked 30+ HRs, only 6 came from the Senior Circuit.

The National League has also seen that Todd Frazier joined the White Sox in the offseason.

Top 10 Active List: Homers Per At Bat

Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer/Part-Owner) Follow @stokes_hunter21

Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports

I guess I was pretty surprised to that despite 181 HRs in just 2567 AB – Giancarlo Stanton doesn’t have enough AB to qualify for the career lead in this category.

For the record Stanton has gone deep for every 14.18 AB thus far, including his 2015 year where he did yard work 27 times in just 279 AB – which is just 10.33 AB per jack.

Mike Trout is operating at a Home Run so far at 1/17.61 AB.  Bryce Harper is just 3 HRS shy of the 100 Homer plateau.  He has a HR/per 18.86 AB in his career, but he was at an incredible 1 longball per 12.40 AB last season.

Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 2, 2016

Major League teams should have a Triple A team that can expand their regional appeal. Some teams have their teams way too far away.

Send them to the farm on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.