Thursday Bantering: MLB The Show, Relief Interest

Not much news, but it appears the Blue Jays are winding up for a relief acquisition:

• The Blue Jays are interested in left-handed reliever Craig Breslow after he “opened eyes” with a new delivery, per Rob Bradford of WEEI. “[He] has emerged as legit backup plan to Boone, Blevins in free agent market.” The Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, Minnesota Twins, Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland are all “in” on Breslow, a 36 year old who threw just 14 innings with the Marlins last season.

• Aaron Sanchez is to be featured on this year’s Canadian cover of MLB The Show, to the apparent distaste of some fans. As the American version of the video game features a gold-styled Ken Griffey Jr., the somewhat boring cover of Sanchez against a totally black background is disappointing. Who would you like to see on the cover?

• The Blue Jays and Jerry Blevins have remained in contact throughout the offseason, per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet, although there does not appear to be an imminent deal. Nicholson-Smith states that Boone Logan and Travis Wood remain alternatives to Blevins, while Craig Breslow has emerged as an additional left-handed option. In my opinion, the Blue Jays should prioritize signing Blevins. He had the best 2016 season and is clearly willing to remain in the bullpen. On the other hand, Toronto should not prioritize the signing of Travis Wood, as he is seeking a chance to start (although, some extra starting depth would not be a bad thing).
• As Tom mentioned on Sunday, J.P. Arencibia has retired from baseball. With yesterday being #BellLetsTalk day, I thought it was fitting to bring up this: Arencibia suffered from anxiety through his time at the major league level, and, in a recent interview with Sportsnet, he discusses how he got help. Reading about the painful few seasons of Arencibia’s career helps you realize that players are human, and that, perhaps, we should be a little lighter on judgement next time around.