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Toronto Star
4 days ago
- Sport
- Toronto Star
Myles Straw knows who he is as a player, and it's just what the Blue Jays have needed
July 19, 2025 3 min read Save By Mike WilnerBaseball Columnist Mike Wilner is a Toronto-based baseball columnist for the Star and host of the baseball podcast 'Deep Left Field.' Follow him on Bluesky: @wilnerness Myles Straw was already in love with Toronto when he got here. It just took Blue Jays fans a bit to feel the same way about him. Acquired in January for far more than was required in a badly misplayed attempt to land coveted free-agent starter Roki Sasaki, Straw — an elite speed-and-defence outfielder who had been waived through the league with no takers the year before — didn't even know if he would make the team. He just wanted to be a part of the puzzle. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Opinion articles are based on the author's interpretations and judgments of facts, data and events. More details Related Stories Gregor Chisholm: Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins has been in charge of nine trade deadlines. A breakdown of his moves Mike Wilner: The Blue Jays have shown a knack for overcoming a blown save this season: 'You've got to counterpunch' Blue Jays take offensive shortstop in the first round, hoping he becomes 'the gem' of the draft The Blue Jays haven't hosted an MLB all-star game since 1991. That could soon change Report an error Journalistic Standards About The Star More from The Star & partners
Hamilton Spectator
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
There's a good coach behind every great defensive catcher. Ask the Blue Jays' Alejandro Kirk
Alejandro Kirk is headed back to the all-star game after a two-year absence, having finally put every facet of his game together. He came to the Blue Jays as a raw, 21-year-old, bat-to-ball savant with a lot of work to do behind the plate and slugged his way to the midsummer classic in 2022, just his second full season in the majors. The next two years, though, the Mexican native transformed into a light-hitting defensive stud, the best catcher in the game at turning balls into strikes and adept at blocking pitches in the dirt. This year, he has added a killer throwing arm and the bat is back . The package is complete. But he needed help to get there. The Blue Jays confirmed Clancy's death in a social media post Monday. A cause of death was not After a last-place finish in 2024, a season in which Kirk posted full-season career lows in home runs, walks, on-base percentage and OPS, the catcher took six weeks off and then reported to the Jays' player development complex in Dunedin, Fla., in mid-November for an intense month of work with bullpen catcher and coach Luis Hurtado. 'We were working on defence,' Hurtado said in an interview that can be heard on the July 10 episode of 'Deep Left Field,' the Star's baseball podcast . 'We were working on hitting, we were doing a lot of stuff.' Hurtado won't take credit for Kirk's evolution into the game's best defensive catcher, but there's no question the former minor-league manager had a lot to do with it. '(Kirk is) a guy that I work with every day,' Hurtado said. 'I've been working with him since 2022 and, since then, he's been having great defensive seasons and he's one of the best catchers in Major League Baseball right now. He's really dedicated to his routines, he's really smart, he works hard and right now we're seeing the results of all the hard work that he's been putting in.' The transformation behind the plate has been astounding. 'I remember in 2020 him coming up,' said manager John Schneider, who was a major-league coach without portfolio at the time. 'We were literally writing down on his wristband what (pitches) the pitchers threw.' Working intensely with Hurtado, in season and out, the fast-learning Kik became great at framing pitches and blocking of balls in the dirt. But he knew he needed to improve his throwing. 'I worked on my arm, strengthening my arm (in the off-season),' Kirk said, through club translator Hector Lebron. 'That was one of the things I wanted to get better on. Of course, you've got to work with the timing, with the pitcher, holding the runners. You've got to get all that together. That allows me to get more runners.' Hurtado had a willing pupil. Toronto's former ace averaged 94.2 m.p.h. on his fastball, an increase from the 93.3 he averaged 'We put our attention on the little details behind the plate,' Hurtado said. 'How can we be better at framing? How can we develop his arm strength, which (has been) our main goal since 2023. You can see the results right now; he's one of the top catchers throwing guys out in the big leagues. 'It's just him dedicated to his work, dedicated to his routines and always positive. He's a fearless guy, a calm guy who always wants to get better and wants to help the team win.' The numbers back up the claim. Kirk is leading all major-league catchers in the Statcast defensive metrics of fielding run value, framing runs and blocks above average, and he is fourth in caught stealing above average. While Hurtado hasn't had as much of a hand in the breakout performance of another of the Jays' budding stars, he managed Addison Barger on his way up through the system, both in rookie ball in Bluefield, W.V., in 2019 and in Dunedin, which was then the Jays' high-A affiliate, in 2021. And even then, he saw this coming. 'No matter what was happening in an at-bat, he always had the mindset to swing hard,' said Hurtado, for whom Barger hit 20 home runs in 104 games over those two seasons. 'I saw some flashes in 2021, when he hit for the cycle.' It was more than just a cycle. Barger went 5-for-5 against the Tampa Tarpons, a Yankees affiliate, in a May 28 game, with a single, a double, a triple, two home runs and seven RBIs in a 14-7 Blue Jays win. Future big-leaguer Randy Vazquez started for Tampa. It's been 34 years since Toronto last hosted a Midsummer Classic, and a report suggests that the 'It was one of the best games I've ever seen in the minor leagues,' Hurtado said. 'And that was his first full season. He finished that year with 80 RBIs (in 91 games), so we know (it's in there) and I saw this kind of success was going to come sooner or later.' Hurtado might only be working with the pitchers and catchers now, but he's also getting to enjoy some of the kids he managed on the way up, like Davis Schneider and Leo Jimenez along with Barger, having success at the highest level. Kirk is going to his second all-star game, thanks in part to Hurtado's help. Barger may not be far behind.
Hamilton Spectator
06-07-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Blue Jays notes: Training-room injury shelves Yimi Garcia, fears for Andres Gimenez
Some news and notes about the red-hot Blue Jays , who have turned a three-game deficit in the American League East into a three-game lead in just six days: After just one outing — in which he gave up a game-tying home run to Aaron Judge in Wednesday's 11-9 win over the New York Yankees — reliever Yimi García is back on the injured list. García missed six weeks with a right shoulder impingement and made one appearance before going back on the IL before Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Angels with a left ankle sprain, suffered after that Wednesday night outing when he slipped getting into the hot/cold tubs in the training room. He was brought back this season as a free agent to be closer Jeff Hoffman's primary setup man, and before his first injury had notched six holds and three saves in 12 total opportunities, with a 2.99 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. The unheralded Yariel Rodriguez and Braydon Fisher have stepped up to fill the void in a big way, combining for a 1.71 ERA and 0.80 WHIP in 58 appearances out of the bullpen, the latest being Fisher's two shutout innings Saturday to pick up the win. Reliever Chad Green had a rough start to the season. The right-hander gave up a tiebreaking home run to Max Kepler in the eighth inning of what wound up a 3-2 loss to the Phillies in Philadelphia on June 14, bloating his ERA to 4.60. It was the ninth home run he had allowed in just 29 1/3 innings of work. 'The homers are the one thing ... it drives me nuts, to be honest,' the 34-year-old Green said on a recent episode of 'Deep Left Field,' the Star's baseball podcast . 'But then again ... I'm never going to be afraid of (hitters). Regardless of the situation ... I'm going to go at guys.' Green has turned things around since mid-June, allowing just one run (yes, a solo homer) on three hits in his last nine appearances, including three scoreless outings in last week's four-game sweep of the Yankees and a hitless 10th inning Friday to pick up the win in the first of consecutive 4-3 victories over the Los Angeles Angels . Max Scherzer was in and out of trouble over most of his four innings Saturday, but was nearly untouchable in the second. He started by missing low with a first-pitch fastball, but the next nine pitches were all strikes, resulting in strikeouts of Logan O'Hoppe, Luis Rengifo and Chad Stevens. Scherzer has thrown three immaculate innings (nine pitches, three strikeouts) over a Hall of Fame-calibre career, the same as the Jays franchise total. Roger Clemens (1997), Steve Delabar (2013) and, of course, Thomas Pannone (2019) had one each. Myles Straw scored the winning run Saturday, after coming on defensively in centre field in the seventh inning. He made an impact in the field as well, sprinting in to snag an O'Hoppe blooper with two on and one out in the 11th. The eight-year veteran has been getting plenty of run in the absence of Daulton Varsho, starting half of the 32 games since Varsho went down with a hamstring strain . But when the Jays star centre-fielder returns some time in the next two weeks, Straw will go back to being a valuable 26th man on the roster. When the Jays have both Straw and Varsho for late-inning defence 'it's going to be so hard for anybody to find grass out there,' said infielder Ernie Clement. Second baseman Andrés Giménez was in a walking boot Saturday, nursing a left ankle injury suffered in Wednesday's game and aggravated while running the bases Friday night. As of Saturday evening, the Jays were waiting for the results of an MRI to determine the severity. Giménez missed almost a month earlier this season with a quadriceps injury. With Clement filling in more than ably at second, the Jays have gone 22-10 in games Giménez doesn't start.
Hamilton Spectator
16-06-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Baseball and bloodlines lead Don and Preston Mattingly to the same place on Father's Day
This Father's Day comes with a bit of an edge for Preston Mattingly and his dad. The Phillies are trying to sweep the Blue Jays: the son looking to best the father. Blue Jays coach Don Mattingly has been looking up to the executive suite at Citizens Bank Park this weekend and seeing his son Preston, who became general manager of the Phillies last fall. 'Preston has always loved sports,' said proud papa Don in an interview for the current episode of 'Deep Left Field,' the Star's baseball podcast. 'One of those kids that wakes up in the morning and has (ESPN's) 'SportsCenter' on and all that kind of stuff. He's been around not just this game but sports in general, and loves it. To see him doing well is really good.' Having a father who was not just successful in the game but a borderline Hall of Famer gave Preston a leg up, no question. But the Mattingly name can be a heavy one. When your nickname is Donnie Baseball, that comes with certain expectations for the progeny. Mattingly saw that when his three older sons were playing. Preston is the middle child from Mattingly's first marriage. 'I was out of the game for a while and going to (Preston and older son Taylor's) games,' said the Jays' third-year bench coach. 'I felt for them. When they were playing baseball, I think the parents and other people think: Oh, he supposed to be good, he's supposed to be this. They don't allow them just to play.' Preston said he doesn't remember people treating him any differently as the son of a New York Yankees legend, but looking back he can see it. 'Obviously being who he is, people probably look at me a little bit differently,' said the 37-year-old GM. 'But he was always great in letting me be myself and do my own thing. Never forced me or any of my brothers to play or do anything, and so with that there was no added pressure. Anything other people put on us externally, nothing came from him or my family.' But Preston played anyway. Drafted 31st by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2006 — two years before his father became the team's hitting coach — the younger Mattingly got a million-dollar bonus and played six seasons in the minors (never reaching Double-A) before returning to school and playing college basketball at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Preston stayed in touch with Logan White, who was the scouting director with the Dodgers when he was drafted and had since moved to the San Diego Padres. 'He was kind of in-between, like what he was going to do,' said Don, who was managing the Miami Marlins at that time. 'He came down to spring training with me for about a week and then San Diego called to interview him.' Preston picked up the story. 'I flew out to Arizona (to the Padres' spring training facility) and met with (White) and some of the members of the front office and they offered me a job. I started in scouting and worked my way into different various front-office roles ... It was more just getting my feet wet and understanding the ins and outs and ebbs and flows of the front office. It was very indicative early on that it was something I wanted to do because I just love that side of the game, too.' Nearly a decade later, Preston Mattingly has his own team to run in Philadelphia, while his father (drafted 493rd by the Yankees in 1979) is in his 47th season in professional baseball. The senior Mattingly, having played with Ken Griffey Sr. for the first five years of his career, remembers Ken Griffey Jr. running around the Yankees clubhouse and believes kids learn baseball through osmosis. 'Being around the game, they see what it looks like,' Mattingly said of all the big-league juniors. 'They know how these guys talk, they're not intimidated by players. I'm going into the Yankees clubhouse as a 20-year-old, I'm scared halfway to ... don't know what to do. He's been getting autographs from guys since he was six years old hanging around the locker room.' It helps, being born into the game. The Blue Jays know this well, and have even made bloodlines part of their development strategy over the past few years. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Daulton Varsho are current Jays whose fathers were big-leaguers. Vladdy's was a Hall of Famer, while Bichette and Varsho's dads (Dante and Gary) combined to play 22 seasons in the majors. The Jays recently t ook two out of three from the Phillies at the Rogers Centre, while Preston watched his dad from the suites above. 'The passion he has for helping players, that's always been the biggest thing,' said the Phillies GM. 'He never lost sight of how hard the game is — even how great a player he was — and just shares that passion for helping players achieve the goals and dreams they want to achieve.' On Father's Day in Philadelphia, the dad will be looking up at his son. 'I'm pretty impressed, honestly,' said the Jays coach. 'He's good with people, which you have to be. He's good with all the numbers and everything, all the technology today ... but still, there's a human side, and I think he's got a pretty good balance of that.'
Toronto Star
15-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Toronto Star
Baseball and bloodlines lead Don and Preston Mattingly to the same place on Father's Day
This Father's Day comes with a bit of an edge for Preston Mattingly and his dad. The Phillies are trying to sweep the Blue Jays: the son looking to best the father. Deep Left Field Jordan Romano, Don Mattingly and son, Phillies GM Preston Mattingly Mike Wilner Blue Jays coach Don Mattingly has been looking up to the executive suite at Citizens Bank Park this weekend and seeing his son Preston, who became general manager of the Phillies last fall. 'Preston has always loved sports,' said proud papa Don in an interview for the current episode of 'Deep Left Field,' the Star's baseball podcast. 'One of those kids that wakes up in the morning and has (ESPN's) 'SportsCenter' on and all that kind of stuff. He's been around not just this game but sports in general, and loves it. To see him doing well is really good.' ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Having a father who was not just successful in the game but a borderline Hall of Famer gave Preston a leg up, no question. But the Mattingly name can be a heavy one. When your nickname is Donnie Baseball, that comes with certain expectations for the progeny. Mattingly saw that when his three older sons were playing. Preston is the middle child from Mattingly's first marriage. 'I was out of the game for a while and going to (Preston and older son Taylor's) games,' said the Jays' third-year bench coach. 'I felt for them. When they were playing baseball, I think the parents and other people think: Oh, he supposed to be good, he's supposed to be this. They don't allow them just to play.' Preston said he doesn't remember people treating him any differently as the son of a New York Yankees legend, but looking back he can see it. 'Obviously being who he is, people probably look at me a little bit differently,' said the 37-year-old GM. 'But he was always great in letting me be myself and do my own thing. Never forced me or any of my brothers to play or do anything, and so with that there was no added pressure. Anything other people put on us externally, nothing came from him or my family.' But Preston played anyway. Drafted 31st by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2006 — two years before his father became the team's hitting coach — the younger Mattingly got a million-dollar bonus and played six seasons in the minors (never reaching Double-A) before returning to school and playing college basketball at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Preston stayed in touch with Logan White, who was the scouting director with the Dodgers when he was drafted and had since moved to the San Diego Padres. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Gta From rib festivals to car shows, here are ways to celebrate Father's Day in Toronto Kristjan Lautens, Daniel Opasinis 'He was kind of in-between, like what he was going to do,' said Don, who was managing the Miami Marlins at that time. 'He came down to spring training with me for about a week and then San Diego called to interview him.' Preston picked up the story. 'I flew out to Arizona (to the Padres' spring training facility) and met with (White) and some of the members of the front office and they offered me a job. I started in scouting and worked my way into different various front-office roles ... It was more just getting my feet wet and understanding the ins and outs and ebbs and flows of the front office. It was very indicative early on that it was something I wanted to do because I just love that side of the game, too.' Nearly a decade later, Preston Mattingly has his own team to run in Philadelphia, while his father (drafted 493rd by the Yankees in 1979) is in his 47th season in professional baseball. The senior Mattingly, having played with Ken Griffey Sr. for the first five years of his career, remembers Ken Griffey Jr. running around the Yankees clubhouse and believes kids learn baseball through osmosis. 'Being around the game, they see what it looks like,' Mattingly said of all the big-league juniors. 'They know how these guys talk, they're not intimidated by players. I'm going into the Yankees clubhouse as a 20-year-old, I'm scared halfway to ... don't know what to do. He's been getting autographs from guys since he was six years old hanging around the locker room.' It helps, being born into the game. The Blue Jays know this well, and have even made bloodlines part of their development strategy over the past few years. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette and Daulton Varsho are current Jays whose fathers were big-leaguers. Vladdy's was a Hall of Famer, while Bichette and Varsho's dads (Dante and Gary) combined to play 22 seasons in the majors. Blue Jays Opinion Mike Wilner: The Blue Jays take a stand for the anthems, for each other, and maybe for their season Mike Wilner The Jays recently t ook two out of three from the Phillies at the Rogers Centre, while Preston watched his dad from the suites above. 'The passion he has for helping players, that's always been the biggest thing,' said the Phillies GM. 'He never lost sight of how hard the game is — even how great a player he was — and just shares that passion for helping players achieve the goals and dreams they want to achieve.' On Father's Day in Philadelphia, the dad will be looking up at his son. 'I'm pretty impressed, honestly,' said the Jays coach. 'He's good with people, which you have to be. He's good with all the numbers and everything, all the technology today ... but still, there's a human side, and I think he's got a pretty good balance of that.'
