Halford & Brough in the Morning - Olympic Update + Blue Jays Make Moves

Episode Date: July 30, 2024

In hour one, Josh Elliott-Wolfe and Jason Brough give an update of the Olympic Games on the heels of some spectacular Canadian performances (4:00). The guys discuss who they have in their list of top ten Canadian athletes in the 2000's and how some people in these Olympic Games could crack that list soon. Later, Sportsnet's Zach Worden joins the show to break down what moves the Toronto Blue Jays have made with the trade deadline being today and what is next to come for the club (27:00). This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

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Good morning, Vancouver 601. It is Halford. It is Brough. It is not Halford. It is Halford. It is Brough. It is not Halford. It is Josh Elliott-Wolf here with you. Coming to you live from the Kintex studio. And Halford and Brough brought to you by the Dilawri family of Honda dealers. Experience the Dilawri difference today.

Visit your nearest Dilawri Honda dealer today. Jason, how are you? Good morning. How are you? Doing well. Basketball Ben, good morning. Good morning. Laddie, good morning. Hello, hello. I did it. Look at that. I did it. Look at that. Dialed in. Just like Halford. We are coming to you live from the Kintec studio. Kintec, Canada's favorite orthotics provider, powered by

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We got four guests today. Big show. Starting at starting at 6 30 it's going to be zach warden we're going to talk blue jays they made a couple trades again yesterday it's been an active deadline for the team so far and uh the actual deadline at three o'clock today today yeah yes okay all right so who's leftikuchi? Kikuchi got traded. Right. Reportedly or is that official? I believe it's official. It's a done deal. Yeah, the Astros put it out first, I think.

All right, okay. First we thought it was just one player and then three players. There was a lot of players in it. So they got anyone left? They can, like Chris Bassett's name has been out there, but we'll talk to Zach about that and see who else is out there. At 7 o'clockclock Devin Heroux he is in Paris covering the Olympics on the ground for CBC's the poolside reporter so it's going to be a lot of swimming talk Summer McIntosh with a gold medal yesterday her first

it was a really good win okay is there anything i need to know about devin has he ever had anything i don't think so devastating happened to him if he has career you'll find it i don't yeah i don't want to ask him a question like has this ever happened to you uh yes famously it happened to me and it was devastating because i don't want to go through what we went through yesterday no i think you'll be okay i think you'll be okay. I think you'll be okay. All right. 730 Brady Henderson covers the Seahawks for ESPN training camp underway and new coach, new offensive coordinator, a lot of changes for the Seahawks. So we'll get into how this training camp looks, how they're shaping up ahead of the season as well. And at eight o'clock, TJ Lee, defensive back for your BC Lions.

He's back from injury and BC Lions in action this week against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. So we'll get into all of that with TJ Lee. So working in reverse, 8 o'clock, TJ Lee, 7.30, Brady Henderson, 7 o'clock, Devin Heroux. And 6.30, Zach Warden. That is what's happening. Now let's tell everybody what happened. Hey, did you guys see the game last night? No. What happened?

I missed all the action because I was... We know how busy your life can be. What happened? You missed that? What happened? What Happened is brought to you by the BC Construction Safety Alliance Making safety simpler by giving construction companies the best in tools, resources, and safety training Visit bccsa.ca

And we mentioned it, I think we start with the Summer McIntosh gold medal win She destroyed the field in the 400 individual medley. It's not a surprise that Summer is having success at these Olympics. It was largely expected that she would be one of the good stories for Canada, but it's still awesome that she's actually doing it. She is just 17 years old. She's got two individual events left along with potentially two more relays. I heard the announcer yesterday call her a generational talent.

And, you know, when you start inlympics at 14 and you're winning gold medals by a considerable margin too yeah um at the age of 17 um you know i think that's that's a fair term to to use to describe her now she still has a long way to go to catch someone like katie ledecky who's swimming in these olympics as well ledecky has won seven Olympic gold medals and 21 world championship gold medals. That's the most in history for a female swimmer. But I do wonder if Penny Oleksiak's records could be in trouble. And Penny Oleksiak has won one gold, three silver and three bronzes. Um, now she started out as a very young swimmer

as well. I think she was 16 years old in her, in her first Olympics. So, um, you never know what can happen to a career and you don't want to sit here and put expectations for the next, you know, 12 years on summer Macintosh. But what we're seeing, uh, in the pool is, is really impressive. want to sit here and put expectations for the next, you know, 12 years on summer McIntosh, but

what we're seeing, uh, in the pool is, is really impressive. And I know that, um, uh, this is something I found out about Josh Elliott Wolf. He keeps a running power ranking of the greatest Canadian athletes since 2000. Yeah. Uh, so of this century of this current century,

he keeps a running power ranking of those athletes on his bedroom wall. My fiance hates it. Yeah, and it's being updated quite constantly. So I don't know if you've got the most recent 10 athletes in front of you right now. I don't know if you've started to write out Summer McIntosh's name. She's probably not on that list quite yet, but she might be on it. She's on the board. She's a prospect for Josh Elliott Wolfe's power ranking in his bedroom.

Yeah, so here's the top 10 that I'll throw out there. So you've got the current list right now. I've got the current list. Is it in order? I wouldn't say it's in order, but it's maybe kind of in order and we can maybe figure it out. Okay. All right. But I know at the top, number one is Christine Sinclair.

Okay. Then I would have Sidney Crosby. Okay. Steve Nash is on the list. George St. Pierre is on the list. Okay. Andre Degrass, I think I would put on the list. Marie-Philippe Poulin.

Haley Wickenheiser. I had Tessa Virtue and Scott Moyer as one. They're like the Sedins. They're just going to count as one. Okay. And Connor McDavid, Joey Votto, Damian Warner. That feels like more than 10. Right.

It's around 10. So how many hockey players are on there? I had Sid, Connor McDavid. Wickenheiser, Poulin. Okay. Sid, Connor McDavid. Wickenheiser, Poulin. Okay, so Hayley Wickenheiser has five Olympic medals, four gold, one silver. She's ashamed of that silver. Mary Philippe Poulin has, I think she's got three gold.

Not 100% sure of that. I think she's got three. Yeah, she's got three gold and one silver so that's four medals and also just terrific hockey players and then you mentioned sid's on there and conor mcdavid's on there conor mcdavid conor mcdavid's already in there i think so okay the the other thing i think that's right the other questionable ones you would put in there for hockey would be like maybe Jerome McGinn, maybe Joe Thornton, Chris Pronger, but he was kind of...

I mean, there's a lot of great hockey players that could be on that list. But I kind of think the others deserve more of a spot or at least... Right, right. So you've got Steve Nash and that's the only basketball player? Yes. If you're watching these Olympics right now, he's SGA in the conversation. That's what I was going to say.

He and Nata, we won't give out the score yet, but if we're talking about the whiteboard that I have at home, he is listed faintly on the side, like slightly below Summer McIntosh, I think. SGA. And he's in the conversation for sure. I think he has to do a little bit more both in the NBA and potentially at the international level.

But if Canada was to like unexpectedly win gold in this tournament, beat the US. Right, and he's a massive part of it, which he's expected to be. No, that would vault him up high. Now, someone texts in, where is Donovan Bailey? Donovan Bailey is in the previous century.

Yes. That was 1996 Atlantic Games where he won gold for Canada. It's an interesting conversation to have, especially during the Olympics. Do we have any judokas on the list? Because I found out that word yesterday. You found out that word yesterday? A judoka?

I did not know that a person who did judo was called a judoka. Yeah. And then I was like, well, they must call someone who does karate something, and they call them a karateka? That doesn't sound right. No, I don't know. Thomas Trance? Karateka? Thomas Trance. Karatika? That doesn't sound right. No, I don't know. Thomas Jans? Karatika?

Thomas Jans? Karatika? No, but that's... Karatika? Karatika? I don't know. Karatika. I think that's...

If it's a judoka... Yeah, I guess that's right. Karatika? I have no idea, but I know that we've got the first gold medal in judo in Canadian history. Chris Dantagucci. We watched it and we had no idea how it happened or why. Yeah. I figured it out later.

Did you figure it out later? How did they award points? Because we were like, that looks like a point. Yeah. It's not a point. I don't even know if the points ended up factoring in. What happened was her opponent penalized. Penaltyed out.

So, like, the yellow cards that appear. And here's the thing as well. We were watching this without audio. So, the commentators are probably describing it very well. Right. And giving everyone all the information. Right. We get to guess.

But the two yellow cards that come up, I believe you only get three penalties before you are disqualified. Okay. And her opponent got three penalties. What were the penalties for? Did you figure that out? Didn't get to the bottom of that one. I believe it's like places you're not. I think I read that.

One was hooking. There was a holding. Maybe a trip. I think there was a puck over glass at one point. No, you want to be tripping them. Oh, yeah. Tripping is good. Oh, okay. Right, right, right. want to be tripping them oh yeah oh okay right right professional tripping right okay all right i just i read that the the opponent had trouble or was going to have trouble taking her down so she was trying to goad her into all

sorts of like school schoolyard nonsense right and that's why it ended up going the way it did she was she was enacting hijinks yeah it didn't work it didn't work wow so i guess that's how uh that's how she went uh there's a bunch of texts coming in about your uh list where's all the soccer players on the list well he mentioned christine sinclair are you gonna put alfonso davies on that list you know what the the guy i was gonna i don't know potentially put was atiba hutchinson yeah i i i understand that one just for the the length of time that he committed to the team but he never correct me if i'm wrong he never played in like one of the major he put he started in turkey yeah he in Champions League, but that's because he played in Turkey. In Turkey, yeah.

I mean, I would consider putting Alphonso Davies before Atiba. We're talking about great. It was impressive that he played as long as he did for Canada, but this is the high bar here, right? This is a high bar. We're talking about this is a list with Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid, and we're talking high-level players, and I think the only male player that you could probably consider putting

is Alphonso Davies, certainly, and Josh had her on the list. Christine Sinclair is on that list. I just don't know if there's enough male players to put them on that list of specific athletes and do you look at anybody on there and you're like oh yeah Alfonso Davies should be above them like Damian Warner maybe you can make an argument for Joey Votto but like Damian Warner to me is just so impressive that it's it's it's almost tough to quantify where you should put him because he's just an unbelievable athlete um but yeah like i'm not putting he would be who on that list of yours who is the least famous on that list probably damien damien warner right yeah i would assume so he's not just i'm on a box of cereal cereal. And yet he's the defending gold medalist in the decathlon,

and he could win it again this year. And decathlon, when you think about it, isn't that kind of by nature the greatest athlete in the world? Exactly. That has to be the definition, like the fastest person in the world. It used to be a massive event. Right. It used to be, but I don't know.

Maybe we as Canadian media need to do a better job of hyping up Damien Warner because I remember when he won it and I was kind of surprised. I was like, wait a minute, a Canadian male athlete just won the decathlon? Yeah. That's incredible. We should be making a bigger deal of this. Yeah. I remember we were watching it

because they do the events on different days and it was like, hey, he's actually probably going to win or up there with a very good chance to win. And it was wildly impressive. So Krista Degucci won a gold medal. If you're listening right now and you've recorded the Canada-Australia game, turn it away for a few minutes.

Turn it off the station for a few minutes. Turn it to silence, though. Don't turn it to a different station. Just turn it off, listen to your thoughts, and then come back. Meditation. Just a three-minute morning meditation. Yes. So here's the score.

Canada beats Australia 93-83. 2-0. 2-0. Likely moving on. We're moving on. Yeah, it's moving on. So Canada, it was a back-and-forth game, especially in the first half.

Australia was actually leading by four points after the first half. Shea Gildas Alexander got in a bit of early foul trouble. I believe he had two fouls in under two minutes to start the game. And that's what he finished with, two fouls. Yes, he got very conservative after that. But he still ended up with 16 points. He looked like Shea Gilgis-Alexander.

He looked really, really good. He was definitely one of the stars for Canada. R.J. Barrett also had a really good game, really good. He was definitely one of the stars for Canada. R.J. Barrett also had a really good game, 24 points. He led the Canadian men. Dylan Brooks, 16 points, and fantastic defense. And he stayed in the game, which was good. Had four fouls, but he stayed in the game. Was never really in foul trouble, I don't think, for Dylan Brooks.

Jamal Murray, five points. Five points. Two for seven. Right. So the questions about Jamal Murray and Josh and I haven't really, I mean, we weren't able to watch this game closely, but I imagine the questions about Jamal Murray will continue. Yes. I can't see that subsiding before their match with Spain,

who, by the way, Spain beat Greece 84-77 today. So it's Spain and Canada atop the table? Or no, Australia beat Spain, so Canada's all alone? Right, all alone at 2-0. All alone at 2-0. The other teams are 1-1. So Australia is going to be a common theme today because the Canadian women's rugby sevens team

is going to be playing Australia in the semifinals. And that comes after a huge victory over France, in France, in front of 69,000 people. Nice. I guess those games are at Stade de France. Um, and Piper Logan scored two tries for Canada. And she said, it's really hard to describe. The crowd is incredible to play in front of, uh, whether they were with us or against us,

they were against you. It was really incredible to play that game. So that makes two really big victories for Canadian women's teams over France, in France, again, uh, you know, facing, uh, not only really good French sides, uh, but also the crowd because the Canadian women's soccer team famously beat France two to one, came from behind, scored very late in that match to win that one, setting up their big match against Columbia, despite the six point total or the six point punishment that they were levied. So the Canadian women's rugby sevens team came into this tournament with metal aspirations like this isn't an upset this isn't a massive surprise or anything it is still impressive that they beat france on french soil

because france is a very good rugby nation but uh now canada has to play australia which is going to be a very tough game for them um they're going to play for a medal regardless. They're either going to play for a gold medal or they're going to play for a bronze medal. And that game goes at 7 a.m. So we'll probably should have the result at some point during the show. Also Canada playing Australia. Three Canada versus Australia matchups today and women's three on three basketball. That's at 9 a.m. In terms of other medal chances, notable things today, Kylie Massey and Ingrid William are in the women's 100-meter backstroke final. That's at 11.56. Kylie Massey, she is a backstroke specialist,

so maybe keep an eye on her. University of Toronto, shout-out. Shout-out. Well, that's just for you. That was a personal shout-out. Let's keep those two a minimum, please. Canada. U of T, shout out. Shout out. Well, that's just for you. That was a personal shout out. Let's keep those two a minimum, please. Yeah. Canada.

U of T. Come on. I'm wearing the shirt today. Yeah, I can tell. Canada, one of eight teams in the women's artistic all-around gymnastics final as well. That starts at 9.15. I don't know if they're expected to medal in that, but they're at least in the final for that. So potentially, keep an

eye on that. Do we want to move on to the trades the Toronto Blue Jays made? Yeah, do the Blue Jays stuff. You and Laddie, and are you a Jays fan basketball, Ben? I mean, you went to U of T and everything, apparently. Are you a Jays fan? Jays fan. I'm not as into it maybe as these two

are. Okay, well, why don't you and Laddie talk a little bit about the Jays trades that were made. Talk about how happy you guys are or unhappy you guys are with the returns on all this and how things are shaping up. And maybe a note about Vladdy because Vladdy is on fire. He was hitting the ball hard yesterday in that doubleheader against the Orioles. Yeah, let's start with that, and then we'll move on to the trade. So, Vladdy, yeah, two games yesterday. He had a couple home runs.

In his last nine games, he's batting.452, has five home runs, nine RBIs. He has been on fire, not only for the last two weeks, but for the last month. In the last eight hours, he brought his OPS from 869 to 904, which at this point in the season should be impossible. I know he played a doubleheader, but that is amazing what he's doing. So yeah, Vlade's been hot. He's probably not getting traded. But the Jays did make two trades yesterday the

minor one was uh justin turner to the mariners that was the first one they made justin turner the return for him outfielder rj shrek that's a fun name uh he plays in double a not a light a lot to write home about with him they're saying his hitting tool is the sharpest tool yeah yeah he that's your strength yeah there we go uh hits for contact doesn't strike out a lot but not a lot of pop not very fast and he's like fine defensively so kind of a long shot to be an impact player in the majors but the bigger trade of the day you say kikuchi the left-handed pitcher going to the houston astros and i talked about prospects yesterday on the show in baseball and i was like most of them are whatever you can just kind of forget about them this one was kind of a fleecing for the blue jays and a lot of people

around the league think the same a lot of people that are fans of the astros cover the astros are like man what are they giving up for you say kikuchi and the return was jake bloss who is their ninth ranked prospect very good right-handed pitcher 23 years old taking in the third round last year um he has pitched in the majors this year though it's been kind of rocky. He's pitched 11 innings, given up nine earned runs. He struck out 11, though. He spent a lot of time in AA, though he has played in AAA Sugarland as well. That's where Candy comes from, so I just wanted to mention that. 44 innings pitched in AA, only eight earned runs, 35 strikeouts.

In terms of his stuff, good fastball. He's developing off-speed stuff. He's now the Blue Jays' number two prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, behind Ricky Tiedemann. Okay, so I have a question for you guys. If you could only sign one of Vladdy or Bo long-term, take the money out of the equation, which one would you choose? Vladdy, probably.

You look at the month he's had. I don't know how you can go against Vladdy. I know the ceiling on the shed is so – Just doing recency bias, are we? Yeah, that's what you're worried about, right? The thing about Bo is that there's always felt like there's kind of like a disconnect and if any of them was were if either of them were willing to leave it's always felt like it would be boba shit yeah he's always seemed to not be one foot out the door but at least more open to pursuing other opportunities and you want a guy that wants to

be there yes especially if you're the blue jays. I also don't really know what his long-term prospects as a shortstop are. Honestly, I know he's received a lot of flack and he's gotten better over the last few years, but I still see him as a second baseman, but I just don't think his ego can handle it, that move to second base. Long-term, I don't know where exactly he might fit in

as a Blue Jay, where Vladdy, it's quite clear where he's going to fit in as a Blue Jay. That's probably what's going to happen though, right? Like if there's going to be one of them signed long-term, it's going to be Vladdy and they can make that decision and they probably will make that decision this offseason, right? I mean, that's- ASAP.

They have to do it. And I guess if they're going to make a decision on Bo, it's sign him or trade him? Yeah. I guess if they're going to make a decision on Bo, it's sign him or trade him? What are the chances that Bo is in a Blue Jays uniform next season? Are they above 50% or below 50%? You wouldn't want to sell him the way he is right now. I almost wonder if there's a world where they come back with him to start the year and they're like, hey, maybe it all works out.

Maybe this season is a good season and he's a key part of it or they're out of it again by the deadline and they can move them by the deadline but what the what would they be able to move them for then i would assume depending how he's doing i guess yeah it depends on how he's doing but what if they're doing well and they've got them but then they're probably not trading right so i i would if i were to put a percentage on it, I would say personally, I think there's like a 40% chance he starts the season with the Jays next year, which is still pretty high.

But I would assume that they would want this all to be figured out by the time next season starts. Okay, we can talk about this. Coming up next was Zach Warden. We did get a very angry text into the Dunbar Lumber text line about your top 10 Canadian athletes. Awesome.

It's unsigned. It says, this list of top Canadian athletes of the 21st century is so flawed and ridiculous. How can you rank athletes of different sports ahead of each other? Stop it. Halford is gone only for a few days and the show is in chaos. Two things on that. only for a few days and the show is in chaos.

Two things on that. When Halford is here, the show is in constant chaos. And number two, that's the idea of ranking the athletes. Yeah. It's hard. That's the fun.

You can't just be like, hockey, here's the list. Yeah. Dragon field, here's the list. That's the challenge. And it's only a list. So don't worry about it. It's too early to get excited about lists, but we appreciate your comments and questions into the Dunbar Lumber text line.

650, 650. You're listening to the Alfred and Ruff show on Sportsnet 650. 632 on a big band Tuesday. It is Halford. It is brought up. Josh Elliott will fill in for Mike Halford today. And Halford and Halford and Brock is brought to you by the Delari family of Honda dealers. Experience the Delari difference today. your nearest delari honda dealer today text in 650 650 dumb bar lumber tax line and we are coming to you live from the kintec studio

we bring in our next guest the jays making a few trades we want to talk about said trades associate editor for sports net zach warden joins us now thanks for taking the time zach how are you yeah i'm doing well thank you how are you guys we are doing very well and uh wanted to start with the the big trade yesterday the the trade of yusei kikuchi to the houston astros i labeled it kind of a fleece scene from everything i've seen do. Do you agree with that? Yeah, I think so. I think it's funny because the original report is that it's just for Jake Bloss, and everybody kind of seems to think that that's an acceptable return for Yusei Kikuchi in

itself. And then, of course, more comes out that they add another two pieces, including Joey Loprafito. And it seems like it's just like the highway robbery, basically, by the Blue Jays there, where they're able to grab three pieces who not only have future value at the major league level, but are also already close to the major leagues and could probably be contributors in the next one or two seasons. So I think the way that they came away from the Yusei Kikuchi trade, I mean, is more than I think anybody was expecting, for sure.

Has this been the theme for... I know starting pitchers have been going for a pretty penny. Has this played a part into that, or is this an outlier on the trade market so far? Yeah, I think it maybe has been a little bit of an outlier to start here, just based on Yusei Kikuchi being a rental compared to some of the other guys who have been dealt with a little bit more control. But I think just the way that the market will shape up today, and it seems like things have been shaping up. I mean, there was a report out there that the Detroit Tigers had asked for more

from Houston for Jack Flaherty, who's probably the top rental available right now. But it seems like the top rental available right now. But it seems like the prices might only go up, but I think the Blue Jays did really well and really excited to see kind of what else happens today with some of the bigger names. Outside of these, before we move on to what might happen today, but outside of the prospects gotten back in the Kikuchi trade, are there any other prospects they've acquired

in any of their other trades that are intriguing to you? I think Cutter Coffee, the main piece in the Danny Jansen trade, is fairly interesting. Being a second-round pick a couple years ago, he's performed really well age to level in the minors this year, and it seems like he's kind of a left side of the infielder

or left side of the infield defender who can do some damage with some power. I think he'll be an intriguing piece to follow over the next couple years, especially as he starts here in Vancouver. And then I think Jonathan Classe, I mean, the main piece in the Jimmy Garcia trade, he'll be an interesting, just the way that his profile is with some power that he really hasn't touched all that much in games. And then, of course, the huge speed numbers, the huge stolen bases. Kind of a different player than what we've seen in Toronto the past few years.

So it will be interesting to watch him as well. And I think he'll probably be up this season as well to help them eventually. MLB trade deadline today at 3 o'clock pacific is there anybody else on the jays i know that like they made a few trades already but is there anybody else you're keeping an eye on that could potentially be on the move today yeah i i think kevin kiermeier and trevor richards are the two easy ones that they will be seeking trades for and then i think the ones that they will be listening on are kind of like a Chad Green and then we'll see with Chris Bassett I think it's realistic at this point that he will

not go even though you know you talk about seeing what you get for Yusei Kikuchi now imagine what you can get for Chris Bassett I think there would be a pretty robust market out there for a guy like that with another year control who has a really long track record of being a solid major league pitcher so I think Bassett will be interesting to watch and then um chad green as well just kind of seeing what what some of the other relievers with control have gone for he'll be another one that i think would make sense for them to move uh potentially a little bit more than than a chris bassett and uh well so we'll see there how do how do all these moves and what they could potentially do at this deadline kind of play into what they do this offseason because i i think kind of the bigger question for a lot of jays fans that are looking at this is how far away is this team from being legitimately

competitive because you look at it you have vlady jr and you have bo bichette you don't know how long either of them are actually going to be on the team for. But outside of that, outside of the pitching staff, it's kind of, there's a lot of question marks. And when you look at this deadline, how does that play into this offseason? And if you were to answer the question, how far away is this team from being legitimately competitive, I guess? Yeah, it's an interesting question because I think what you were looking for at this deadline is guys that can maybe come in and be contributors next season

if they do really want to compete in 2025, which all the indications point towards. I think that with what they've done, it does kind of give them a footing to stand on in terms of bouncing back next year a little bit. I mean, you look at bringing in a Class A, bringing in a Loper Fito, like those are two guys that you can kind of slot in your outfield, and then you kind of wrap that up.

I mean, I think that one thing that they are going to need is to make some free agent additions offensively, and maybe that comes in the infield. Maybe that does come in the form of another outfielder but they do have some work to do and i think doing some of that shopping at this deadline was was realistically smart for them if they were planning on contending next season or at least trying to compete for a playoff spot and what they've done i mean they've they've added um some pieces who are further away but i think that those are kind of the lesser pieces in the trades and then some of the the guys that they've added that are closer to the majors those are kind

of the the pieces that they've paid more for like obviously the whole Astros trade and then the some of the main pieces in the Mariners trades I think those are the guys that you look at being able to contribute next season and hopefully that those are guys that you look at getting into your lineup this year so that you can see if you actually have something there as far as players who can step up and at least show you that they'd be able to contribute over the course of a full season.

Zach, this is something we were discussing just a few minutes ago. When do you think the Jays are going to make decisions on Vladdy or Bo? And those decisions are obviously just a few minutes ago when do you think the jays are going to make decisions on vladi or beau and those decisions are obviously um sign them long term or trade them yeah i i think that'll be the this off season for sure i mean yes they can enter the year with them uh as pending free agents i i think that that would be um a mistake from an organizational standpoint. I mean, for two guys who are sons of former major leaguers, I think they understand the business,

and I think that they understand once you're one year away from free agency that there's probably not much of a point in not at least reaching free agency and testing the market and seeing what they're worth. But if the Blue Jays can get a deal done with them this offseason, then they could maybe avoid that a little bit but as soon as the season starts I don't expect either of them to be willing to negotiate in season in their final year of team control and even if they do decide to trade them I mean you would never get more value for

them this winter than you would going forward I mean I think if they were to trade Bobachet today, that would be pretty shocking based on the way that he's performed and him being injured. I think that would just be the lowest point of his value. So I think in the offseason, teams would maybe be able to talk themselves into him being a bounce-back player and somebody that they can extend and slot into their core long-term.

And as far as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. goes, I just don't expect there to be um a trade scenario for him based on the way that he's talked about wanting to stay in toronto and and the way that he's performed recently yeah how much money has vladdy made this month oh my god i did i i almost want to say like 100 million the way that he's looked it's been it's been crazy he's been so good and it, the confidence that he's shown at the plate, and just it seems like every pitch that's over the plate is going back the other way at like 110 miles per hour.

It's been amazing to watch, really. Is the consensus that Vladdy's going to stay and Bo's going to go? That's kind of what it seems like to me, and kind of what it seems like the feeling around the team maybe is a little bit um i i think you know you kind of see bobeshad uh out there doing interviews with with opposing media where he's like you know not saying that he wants to be traded but um kind of like dropping hints you know like oh i want to be a winner or there's reports out there saying that he would welcome a trade so i i think it does feel like you get him saying that stuff

and Vlade repeatedly saying that he wants to stay in Toronto. So I think if I had to guess today as far as what the two of them would be doing in 2026, it would be that Vladimir Grigory Jr. will be a Toronto Blue Jay and Bobichette will be playing elsewhere. There's been a lot of questions about Ross Atkins this season, and maybe some of it is quelled a little bit for now after that kikuchi trade people have a little bit more faith in him but is ross atkins the guy to have the have an execute the long-term vision for this team it's a good question i mean it depends on i guess how you feel about a general manager getting to

execute a long-term vision twice because right now we're looking at the execution of his first long-term vision which was the evolution of this team from an offensive monster and kind of the debuts of vladdy and beau into this defense first team which obviously hasn't gone all that great so i i think it makes sense that they they obviously held on to him throughout the season i think that there will have to be some serious talks as as far as what happens in 2025 i mean i i think again he has one more year on his contract so maybe they they do see the way that he operated this deadline and they let him uh run out his contract and see what he can do with the team next year.

I know, obviously, like all the calls, there's fans in the stands at the Rogers Center chanting fire atkins, but I think the closer we get to the offseason, the more likely that it actually may seem that he will be back, even if that's not what people do want to hear. Zach, I know there's nothing that the Jays can do about the division they're in, but what is your insight on their competitors in the AL East? Baltimore, the Yankees, Red Sox, Rays.

How hard is it going to be to make the playoffs in this division? Yeah, it's a tough division. They definitely have their work cut out for them. in this division? Yeah, it's, it's, it's a tough division. Um, they, they definitely have their work cut out for them. I mean, the Yankees, if they're able to bring back Juan Soto, I think that you're going to look at them,

um, potentially maybe returning to, to a phase in the organization where they're spending a ton of money and being in on, on almost every free agent. I mean, I think that they're going to be one of the more active teams today as far as adding.

And, and of course Baltimore isn't going anywhere with the way that their farm system is. And they obviously have new owners who might be willing to spend a little bit more money now, which would be terrifying to build around Adley Rushman, Gunnar Henderson, and those guys with pieces that you bring in off the free agent market. The Rays, I mean, you never know what's going to happen. I mean, they just obviously have traded away a ton of pieces right now and moved away, you know, some of their key offensive contributors. So we'll see how long it takes them to be back.

But, I mean, you look at their rotation next season, they have kind of an all-star cast coming back off the injured list, so they should be able to compete almost as soon as next season again. And then the Red Sox are almost kind of like an Orioles light right now where they've got a really deep farm system coming up. And, of course, there will be the money there. Eventually, you have to figure that they'll be looking to spend to complement that core as it gets to the major leagues.

So realistically, you look at the division, and it's almost like you can't plan for there ever to be a year off in AL East. You can't look at the other four teams and find a window where you can maybe be the team at the top. It seems like you're always going to be competing with somebody. There's always going to be somebody in the mix. And seeing Tampa Bay, I mean, obviously in the mid-2000s, early 2010s, I mean, it's the Yankees and the Red Sox. And there's really no point for anybody else. But now that the Orioles and Rays have emerged as probably consistent contenders,

that's just going to make things even tougher. And for the Blue Jays, I think that you almost just have to look at what you do and not really worry about your division because if you sit there trying to find a window with these four teams, I just realistically think that you're not going to be able to find it,

and you're going to be searching for that for a long time. Are the Red Sox kind of the wild card of the division? Like, you don't know if they're going to spend or not, but if they do, you could be in trouble? Yeah, I think so. I think if the Red Sox were to return to kind of the top of the market spenders, it would be really scary because they do have, like, a really good farm system, a lot of guys right at the top there.

And if they were to go out and start bringing in some of the top free agents again, spending some more money with the way that their pitching development has developed here, I think that they are a wild card as far as being able to punch above their weight right now. And then as we go forward with those guys uh reaching the major leagues that they're going to kind of become a scary team hey zach really appreciate you taking time uh enjoy the deadline today and have a good one thanks you guys as well appreciate you having me on no problem that is zach warden associate editor editor for sportsnet on the toronto blue jays so we're watching some rugby sevens right now.

I guess there's a spoiler alert on this, but the Kiwis are taking care of business as expected over the Americans. The Kiwis are heavy favorites in this one. Australia and Canada are next, and the Aussies are fairly heavy favorites over the Canadians. So maybe Canada can pull the upset over the Aussies are fairly heavy favorites over the Canadians. So maybe Canada can pull the upset over the Aussies and get into a gold medal match with the Kiwis. But what's likely, if you're asking what's likely,

it's that Canada will play the United States for bronze. And even though it's for bronze and not gold, it would still be pretty cool for Canada to play the United States for a medal at the olympics yeah it would be fun do you go to the sevens do you go i've wanted to go i have not you've not you haven't gone yet i know you're big into it right yeah i love the rugby sevens i go pretty much every year i've been to other competitions around what do you dress up as uh it depends on the year. It depends on the year. Sometimes, well, for years, I used to host a show at the other station during the day.

So I would go in the morning, and then I would go back and do the show, and then I would come back to BC Place, and I would be like, everyone is much drunker here than when I left, and I wasn't necessarily dressed up for that. But yeah, the Rugby sevens is a good time. I've been to, like I went to Vegas.

They used to have a sevens tournament there. We did a bachelor party there where we did a sevens tournament there. I went to the World Cup down in San Francisco. It's just a fun time. So, you know, it's not that I'm like following the rugby sevens tour or anything like that, but I think it's a great game.

I think it's an awesome game for schools in the province to get into if they don't have enough students or athletes who can play full-side rugby. They can play Rugby Sevens and still get into the game. The Canadian women, uh, are a good team. The men have had their ups and downs as the full side has. Um, but, um, it would be pretty cool if we

could see, and we're going to see Canada play for a medal regardless today. It's again, it's probably not going to be for, for gold. If you look at the odds makers, the Aussies are heavy, heavy favorites, but even if they just play the Americans for bronze, it'll be pretty cool.

So I know you, you've already gone over, but, but what else do we have to look forward to today for the, uh, Olympics viewing experience? So if you're just worried about medals and hey, where can Canada medal in uh the Olympics today Kylie Massey and Ingrid William again both in the women's 100 meter backstroke final that's at 11 56 to be precise and again Kylie Massey her specialty is the backstroke so she would be the one to keep an eye on there but to have two in the final I mean doubles your doubles your chances. So we'll see how they do. And then Canada, again, one of eight teams in the

women's artistic all-around gymnastics. And then I'm trying to get the full news here, but it looks like Maggie McNeil was supposed to swim in the 100- meter freestyle semifinal, but she has scratched herself from that. She's not injured or there's not any health concerns. She is resting up for the relay race later on. Okay. I got an email yesterday from a sports gambling operation. It wasn't PlayNow, but PlayNow is our chosen sports betting site. But it laid out the odds for every NHL team to make the playoffs. And I want to have a discussion about this perhaps even throughout the show because the odds of the Canucks making the playoffs in this email, and the odds were similar at playnow.com, were minus 240 to make them and plus 190 to miss. And if you still don't understand all that terminology, that means that the Canucks are fairly heavy favorites to make the playoffs next season.

It means at minus 240, you would bet $240 to make 100 that they would make the playoffs. And if you thought they might miss, you could bet 100 bucks to make $190. Six teams in the West have better odds to make, and Edmonton is right at the top. They're minus 1,200 at this website to make the playoffs. Colorado and Dallas are at minus 550. Nashville, minus 300 after their additions this offseason. Vegas minus 400. And L.A. right around Vancouver minus 250.

And there are two other teams that are close to Vancouver. Winnipeg minus 200. And Minnesota minus 150. So there are nine teams in all that have fairly significant minus odds to make the playoffs. So one of those is going to upset. That leaves seven unlikely qualifiers, according to the odds makers. Seattle plus 160, St. Louis plus 180, Utah, remember they're in Utah now, plus 190. And then there's some long shots, Calgary plus 300, Anaheim, Chicago plus 800, and the San Jose is the longest of the long shots at plus 1800.

And one of the discussions I wanted to have today throughout the show is, are those odds accurate? Minus 240 for the Canucks to make the playoffs because I'm still experiencing a bit of whiplash. I know it was a year and I know the Canucks deservedly made the playoffs last season. They played very well. They've made the playoffs by a considerable margin, but I'm still experiencing this like, wait a minute, this turned around in just a year and now we're basically just saying yeah they're probably going to make the playoffs they're a playoff team now yeah they're they're

a playoff team are you comfortable with that assumption that the Canucks are basically very likely to make the playoffs next season yes and unexpectedly so I would think because I've kind of been hesitant and maybe in the same boat as you where I'm like, well, this feels like it's all happening very quickly. Yeah. But also, the reason I would say I am confident is I look at the moves the teams around them, especially in the Pacific Division, made, and I'm just not very inspired. Right. right whereas the Canucks I feel like they made a lot of changes and I kind of look at their team as a whole overall talent wise and they feel around the same as they ended last season and there are obviously things that were going very right for them last year that will be question

marks going into the season and we'll see if those things keep going right for them but in terms of hey I just comparing talent levels of each team like to me i think they are clearly better than the la kings who added warren fogel they added tanner you know but they lost victor arvidsson i've just kind of find them you think they're clearly better than la i think that the kings are frauds like i don't think they are all that good they've made the playoffs yeah three straight seasons but they haven't been like good at least i mean they lost the oilers and now yeah all three i feel like the oilers have just broken them at this point and that's fair now they're trying to figure out how to beat edmonton and in doing so they've kind of lost their own identity right

and that i just don't i don't like the way the kings are building their team anymore i used to okay uh what about winnipeg minnesota seattle st louis are you confident that the canucks are better than those teams winnipeg is the one i question um just based on like connor halibut has another season like this but for the most part i would say i'm confident i think the canucks have better talent than winnipeg for sure um so text text into the Dunbar Lumber text line. We can have this conversation. Who are we chatting with next? We are chatting with Devin Heroux live from Paris.

Okay, so we're going to talk a little swimming with Devin Heroux, and we'll talk to him for about 10 or 15 minutes, and then we can continue this conversation. I want to hear from the listeners. How confident are you right now that the Canucks are a playoff team and you can talk about this team and plan accordingly? Like you can start planning for the playoffs and start to talk about how the Canucks can better what they did this season

as opposed to just like, come on, maybe just like get back to the playoffs again and we'll see how they do. You're listening to the Halford & Brough Show on Sportsnet 650.