OverDrive - Kurkjian on the Blue Jays' roster views, Guerrero Jr.'s outlook in Toronto and Bichette's next steps

Episode Date: December 11, 2024

ESPN MLB Analyst Tim Kurkjian joined OverDrive to discuss the latest around MLB, the Blue Jays' roster foundation and the addition of Andres Gimenez to the lineup, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s role with the Blue Jays and his contract next steps, Bo Bichette's stance in Toronto, the star pitching in the league and more.

It's a brand new year. Time to review last year's financial decisions and set new priorities for 2025. Kelvin the Money Guy suggests the three-step approach. One, clearly define your goals for the new year. Two, create a plan tailored to your needs and ambitions. And three, make sure your portfolio is designed to serve that plan. Goal. Plan. Portfolio. Contact Kelvin the Money Guy and set your plans in motion. Call 416-457-PLAN

or visit askkelvin.ca here is longtime usb and mlb analyst and co-host of is this a great game or what podcast here's tim kirchhen back on overdrive how you doing tim i'm well fellas how you doing we're doing well we're uh we. How are you doing? We're doing well. We're waiting for the Blue Jays to get cooking here. They made a deal yesterday with the Guardians, and I guess we'll begin there. You know, Jimenez comes in. He's maybe the best defensive second baseman in the league.

A few years ago, he had an all-star level season. He had some pop in his bat. He runs the base as well. But he also comes with a certain amount of money left on his ticket i'm curious what you made of that move by the blue jays and why they would attack that first over what a lot of people have been waiting for them to do is go out and find a power bat yeah i totally agree um but he's not just the best second baseman in the league he's one of the best defensive players in the league.

And Stephen Vogt, the manager of the Guardians, told me during the Yankee series last year, which I covered for radio, that Jimenez is the best defensive player he's ever seen at any position, ever. That's what Stephen Vogt said about the second baseman. He made three plays in that Yankee series that no other second baseman in the game can make. And he's going to be a tremendous addition defensively for the Jays, who at this point are going to have to pitch and defend their way as far as they can possibly go. So even though they picked up a lot of money there,

I think it was a really good move by the Blue Jays to get an elite defensive player who, as you said, was a pretty good offensive player a couple years ago. I still think there's something in there, but there's no doubt they won on that trade. But now they have a lot more to go. Yeah, they sure do. And if it's going to be pitching and defense, and it does feel like that's likely going to be where they're going to have to really thrive here, it feels like they need another arm in the rotation, and they might need to rework, well, they do need to rework their

bullpen. They sign Garcia. They bring him back into the fold. They lost on romano he leaves for philly they didn't tender him but you look at what else has happened in the division with freed signing in new york and now the socks they acquire crochet today would you expect do you believe the jays are legitimately in on corbin burns uh and if not what other options could they have to try to bolster the the top end of the rotation well they have to be in on corbin burns if they're going to make a run in this division because the

orioles are going to get better at some point i mean they played poorly down the stretch but they're still a really good team the yankees are going to use all the money they saved on soto and go fill the gaps, starting yesterday with Max Reed. And the Red Sox got the best pitcher available in the trade market today with Garrett Crochet. So even though the Blue Jays did well yesterday, they're going to have to do much more from here in order to get with this group. And as you guys have already said, they need another big-time hitter

in their order. This has been a subpar offensive team for the last couple years. They need some help, and part of the problem is some of the help is at the position where Vlade plays. You don't want to just tie up the DH. So they've got some work to do offensively, and you're right. They have to rebuild this bullpen because even though there's some power arms out there and some swing and miss stuff, they have some work to do in the bullpen because even though there's some power arms out there and some swing and miss

stuff um they have to they have some work to do in the bullpen the one thing they have obviously is a pretty darn good starting rotation but you can always add another one because we know no one gets through a season with five six seven even eight starters anymore you need more than that and that's why corbin burns would fit but you know baltimore is in on him the uh the giants are in on him there's a lot of competition for corbin burns and after yesterday uh he's going to command something close to 250 million after max reed got 218 million tim what is the perception outside of toronto of vlad vlady jr as far As far as what he could potentially get paid if he chooses to stay or move on, go to free agency.

I mean, we think the world of him here in Toronto, but from the outside market, you see what Soto got. I mean, what could this guy's next contract look like? And where is he in the pecking order of of importance of guys who who need a contract soon yeah he had a great year last year not a good year a great year and he's re-established himself as one of the best hitters in baseball and he's going to be 26 years old next year so there's a lot of soto in there he's not sotooto, but he's had two spectacular seasons. I think everyone looks at him and says that's one of the huge free agents to reckon with after this season.

And with so many teams needing a hitter these days because it's so hard to score runs against the pitching that we see, I got to to think Vladdy has tremendous value out there. But the most value comes from the Blue Jays, since that's where he started out. That's where they need him so badly. So he's not going to get $765 million, but at his age, with his track record, he's going to get an enormous contract next year. Does the trade that the Blue Jays make yesterday, do you have any belief that that would open up the door to possibly a Bo Bichette trade? And if that were the case,

what does the return on Bo Bichette look like? Is that where you bring in a power bat into your lineup? How would that whole scenario play out? Well, I don't know if the two are connected. I think having that double play combination for a full season would be really fun to watch. And if the Blue Jays are going to get back in this thing and become a good offensive team again, they're going to need Bichette and another bat to add to this lineup. So I'm not sure it makes sense to trade a guy who can get 200 hits and win a batting title to go get another hitter when you need both hitters. So I think they should hang on to Vladdy and Bichette, try to make the team better, and see what happens after the season. Now, it's risky because free agency is impending but um i wouldn't trade him i'd hang on

to him and hope that he plays really really well again and then go find a new another hitter somewhere else without trading bichette with tim kirchner of espn yeah bo's the story of bo bichette's a fascinating one tim as i'm sure you're aware of i mean he's he when he came on the scene it was vlade and Bo. They were basically a package deal. And Vlade was the number one prospect in baseball. But the way Bichette hit the ground running, and just the last couple of years, last year was just a miserable season for him.

Partially injury-related for sure, but when he was playing, the production completely fell off. Tons of strikeouts. He never looked comfortable, Didn't hit for power. I think he had four home runs last year. Plays a prominent position, though. Marketable guy. Legacy name with Dante as dad.

I mean, if he gets it back together, if he gets back to that kind of batting title vibe that you were talking about and he starts running the bases better and plays every day, hits for some pop, like how quickly can he get back, in your opinion, to where his reputation was, let's say, two years ago? Do you need to see him do it for a month, two months, a full season? Where do you stand on reevaluating Bo Bichette? Well, I think he needs a full season, but that's why I wouldn't trade him

because I just refuse to believe that anybody with this kind of track record, this kind of background, and this kind of talent who's had these kind of seasons before, this just could not have been him last year. And again, a couple of years ago, we were saying the same thing about Vladdy. Is he just a good hitter now? And then last year, he became a great hitter again. There's no reason that something like that can't happen again with Bo Bichette, and I think it will. I think he'll become a really good offensive player this year, but you can't just gauge that on spring training or April.

You've got to see it for the whole year, and they're going to need it for the whole year if they're going to be a dangerous team in the AL East. So I'm curious how you reacted to the Max Freed contract based on history. I remember growing up, pitchers were not getting more than two, three-year deals, four- or five-year deals. Now here's a guy who's 30, and he's had some injury issues like every pitcher, and there's always concerns, and he gets an eight-year contract.

Is that a sign of the times? Is that a sign of the Yankees reacting to missing out on Soto and saying, screw it, we're going to get the guy we want. We don't care what we have to give him. How do you react to such a long-term deal for a starting pitcher? Yeah, well, it's all of the above. After you lose Juan Soto, after offering $760 million, you can't just sit there and not do anything,

especially when you're the Yankees. So they went out and got, I believe, the second-best starting pitcher on the free agent market, Burns first, Freed second. He is 73-36 lifetime with a 3.07 ERA. The only pitchers who've made more starts since 1920 for the Braves than Freed and have an ERA that low are Warren Spahn and Greg Maddox. This guy is really good.

Is it an overpay? Of course it is. Almost everything is an overpay. And the lesson that we've learned, especially this offseason, is what an amazing starting pitcher's market it has been. Look at Luis Severino. Got three for 67 from the A's. You look at Nate Evaldi, who was a world champion two years ago

and a really good pitcher, but 25-year for three years. And look what Blake Snell got. And now look what Max Free gets. That's the most that any left-handed pitcher has ever gotten in the history of free agency. And again, it was part because the Yankees look at things and say, all right, we just lost the best hitter in the league. We're going to have to win now with pitching and defense. And I really liked what they did, but you have to check back in about five years

and see how that contract looks then. Do you think Steve Cohen is just like, has he got it out of his system? And what I mean by that is, like, if there's someone he wants, he's going to dig deeper into his pockets, and he's going to throw more money than anyone, and he's probably going to get that player. Like, is he done now that he's got Soto, or do you think he's just going to continue that player. Is he done now that he's got Soto, or do you think he's just going to continue doing that with whoever comes up? I don't think he's done, and I don't think it will be out of the system

until the Mets win the World Series for the first time since 1986. He's a Mets fan. When he came in, he said, you know, we're going toe-to-toe with the Yankees. We're going to take them on, and we're going to take everyone on. And the Soto deal is a perfect example of what he's talking about. So I wouldn't be shocked if they went and re-signed Pete Alonzo, who has more homers since his debut in 2019 than anyone except for Aaron Judge. And they're in on all sorts of pitching, including Corbin Burns.

So I don't think the Mets by any means are done because Steve Cohen's just not built to say, all right, we did the one thing, now we're done, that's it. We'll figure it out from here. No, they're going to go do some more things because Steve Cohen's not going to rest until the Mets win the World Series. Who do you think has more pressure on them to win a World Series in New York? Aaron Judge with the Yankees or Juan Soto with the Mets?

Well, that's a really good question. I think given the contract that Soto just got, it now might be even more so on him. And, you know, he's won a World Series. He's been to two World Series. So maybe that takes some of the pressure off. Judge has not only not won a World Series, but he hasn't been a particularly good postseason player. So it's equal pressure. But when you give a guy $765 million, I think the pressure just adds from there.

So it's enormous on both. They'll hear it every single day. But I would say there's slightly more on Soto at this point, given a historic contract. Great catching up with you, Tim. We always appreciate you doing this. Thank you. Okay, fellas. See you.

Tim Kirchhen of ESPN.