Why it's 'Prime Time' viewing now for J.A. Happ

Steve Phillips

TSN Baseball Insider

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The MLB All-Star Game is scheduled to be played on Tuesday, July 17, in Washington, with the rosters announced on Sunday night on TSN. 

The most recent balloting shows no Toronto Blue Jays among the top five vote-getters at any infield position or catcher. And there are no Jays among the top 15 outfielders in voting in the AL.  
 
In many regards, that speaks to the disappointing season Toronto has had so far and the underwhelming performance they’ve gotten from their position players.  
 
It also speaks to the apathy felt by Jays fans. There are plenty of players on other teams receiving votes that have no business being All-Stars, but their fan bases are rallying to support their guys. Cleveland Indians outfielder Lonnie Chisenhall is ranked 15th in outfield voting and has only played in 29 games this season due to injuries. Boston Red Sox outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. is hitting a meagre .202/.296/.332 with six homers and 25 RBI and is ranked 12th in balloting.  

Houston Astros fans are representing their team quite well, as outfielder Josh Reddick is ranked eighth in the balloting and only has eight homers and 25 RBI. Sure, when teams play well and have good attendance numbers their players get more All-Star votes regardless of their individual performance. But not a single Jays player is getting love from his fans. Kevin Pillar and Teoscar Hernandez aren’t having All-Star seasons, but both are more worthy than Reddick, Chisenhall and Bradley. 
 
Every major club is represented at the All-Star game, so there will be a Jays player participating.  
 
But who?
 
Remember - the fans vote for the starting player and the backups are selected by player balloting and commissioner‘s office selections. My gut tells me that J.A. Happ is the most likely-to-be-named as the Blue Jays representative. He’s 10-4 with a 4.03 ERA. He’s been the Jays most consistent performer on the season. Unfortunately, his last start he gave up seven runs in 5 2/3 innings which jumped him from a 3.62 ERA to his current 4.03 ERA, so his numbers don’t look as worthy as they had. Another complicating factor will be if Happ is selected as the Jays representative and is traded before the All-Star game, which very easily could happen.  

 
If not Happ, then the only other Blue Jay that makes any sense as an All-Star is infielder Yangervis Solarte. The first-year Jay is only hitting .250 but he does lead the club in hits (82), runs (41), home runs (16), and RBI (48). He has played all four infield positions and could offer AL All-Star manager A.J. Hinch, some versatility and a switch-hitter off the bench.  
 
Speaking of Happ, his next two starts may be the most important of his Blue Jays career. He’s scheduled to pitch this Saturday against the New York Yankees and their ace Luis Severino and then he is scheduled to face the Red Sox in his next turn through the rotation. It’s no secret that Happ is on the trading block. He’s a free agent at the end of the season and is on a non-competitive team. Going into a trade deadline that’s light on starting pitching, the Jays lefty is one of the hottest commodities. Or at least he was until his 5 2/3 inning clunker against the Detroit Tigers last weekend in which he allowed seven runs on 10 hits. In his start against the Yankees, he has a chance to redeem himself and audition for one of the clubs that most needs a starter for the playoff run.  
 
Last year in Game 3 of the NLCS, Yu Darvish dominated the Chicago Cubs while pitching for the :Los Angeles Dodgers. He had a nasty slider that literally took a left turn at home plate. He struck out seven Cubs while only allowing one run. That performance in a head-to head match-up against Chicago motivated the Cubs in the off-season to sign Darvish to his six-year, $126 million deal despite his horrific struggles in the World Series.  
 
The head-to-head impression is powerful. If Happ can neutralize the Yankees’ big bats in a start against Luis Severino, it could make a significant impression which could lead to a potential deal.  
 
And his next start after the Yankees game that may be even more critical. If he’s not traded before then, Happ is scheduled to start against the Red Sox.  Sure, it would make an impression if he can shut down the Yankees, but if they trade for him he won’t have to face that lineup. The Yanks will be getting him to win as many games down the stretch as possible, especially when they play head-to-head against the Sox. 
 
Two solid consecutive solid starts could provide big dividends for the Toronto Blue Jays.  
 
Every year there are players who surprise everyone and come out of nowhere as All-Star candidates. Nineteen-year-old sensation Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals, has been their best hitter (.306/.419/.552) since being called up. But he isn’t even on the All-Star ballot and has only appeared in 40 games so far.  So, he may not have been up long enough to secure players’ votes. One wonders whether the Commissioner’s Office would reward him with a position. With the game being played in DC he has a better shot than he might in a different year.  

Max Headroom in L.A.

Another guy who wasn’t on anyone’s radar this year - including his own team’s - is Dodger slugger Max Muncy. Muncy, 27, has literally come out of nowhere to lead the Dodgers’ offence in homers, on-base and slugging percentage.  
 
Muncy had played parts of two seasons (2015-16) in the majors with the Oakland A’s in which he hit a measly .195/.290/.321. He was designated for assignment in January 2017 and was outrighted to AAA that same month. Any team in baseball could have claimed him on waivers but no one did.  
 
He was released by the A’s at the end of spring training in March of 2017 and signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers. He played at AAA all season with the Dodgers and something clicked for him as he hit .310/ .414./.491 and he walked 54 times in 320 at bats. He also had 33 extra base hits. But even then, the Dodgers didn’t think he could help their big club and didn’t call him up to LA.  
 
The fifth-round selection out of Baylor re-signed with the Dodgers on a minor-league deal this past off-season. This spring, he only had 14 at-bats and had four hits (no homers). His lack of at-bats in spring training was a statement by the Dodgers that he really wasn’t part of any plan on the big club. But undeterred, he got off to a good start at Triple-A Oklahoma City and was called up to the majors on April 17. Since his call-up, he’s been red hot - hitting .280/.419/.640 with 20 homers and 38 RBI. The 20 homers in his first 183 at bats is the fastest ever by a Dodger. He even acknowledged being shocked by his ability to hit so many homers in such a short period of time. Pirates manager Clint Hurdle has compared Muncy’s run to that of Babe Ruth. Writers in L.A. are referencing LeBron James. “We knew Max was a good hitter, but I don’t think anybody in the world would expect this,” said Dodger ace Clayton Kershaw. “He’s the best hitter in baseball right now. I don’t think anybody could argue with that.”
 
The Dodgers have had a knack of finding journeymen like Muncy and turning them into stars. Heck, Max Muncy sounds more like an old-time baseball writer than a baseball player. 
 
Some say it is luck, I prefer to believe it is good scouting and even better development. The Dodgers have done this before. Dodger third baseman Justin Turner was older (29) and an afterthought when the they signed him as an insurance policy in 2014.  He had played parts of five seasons with the Orioles and Mets. He was only a .260 hitter with very little power. In fact, he had only eight homers and 89 RBI in 841 at bats. But as a Dodger, he has blossomed and hit .300/.377/.496 since his call-up in 2014. He’s slugged 76 homers and 279 RBI during that time. He has been the Dodgers’ most clutch hitter and toughest out.
 
The Dodgers had another reclamation project last season as centrefielder Chris Taylor had a breakout season (.288/.354/.496). He scored 85 runs and drove in 72 while slugging 21 homers among his 60 extra base hits  He also stole 17 bases. Taylor was acquired in a deal with the Mariners in June of 2016. He had very little time in the majors with the Dodgers that season and didn’t do much. In fact, prior to his breakout season at age 26, Taylor had hit only .234/.289/.309 with one homer in parts of three major league seasons. This season after a slow start, he’s hitting .264/.347/.476 with 19 doubles, a league-leading eight triples and ten homers. He’s also playing shortstop now, filling in for the injured Corey Seager.  
 
The key for all three of these turnaround stories is plate discipline. For example, Muncy has the second-highest walk rate among hitter with 200 or more plate appearances and he only chases 14.8 percent of pitches out of the strike zone which is the fifth-best rate.  Turner and Taylor, like Muncy, have seen an increase in walks which leads to their getting more 1-0, 2-1, 2-0, 3-1 counts and better pitches to hit. That, coupled with a better swing path has led to more run production as well. It is amazing what happens when hitters swing at strikes and take pitches that are off the plate. Dodgers hitting coach Turner Ward is among the best in the game and he has pupils to prove it. 

Spitting Seeds

- Injuries this time of year are a general manager’s worst nightmare. With the non-waiver trade deadline just around the corner clubs that are buyers don’t want to lose important pieces to injury, adding another need. Clubs that are sellers don’t want to lose out on trading an asset to a potential contender and potentially adding prospects to their organization. When Jays starter Marco Estrada left his last start with a left glute strain after just three batters, Ross Atkins and Mark Shapiro had to be pounding their desks. Estrada had strung together five excellent starts with a 2-1 record with a 2.35 ERA in June. He tossed 30.2 innings allowing only 23 hits and striking out 27 batters in the month. He was emerging as a decent middle of the rotation option for a contender. Now, we wait and see if he can come back and make his next start and if he can pick up where he left off.

  
 
- Did you know there were close to 30 relievers traded last season in the month of July? That should give hope to Atkins and Shapiro that they may be able to get a prospect or two for guys like Seung Hwan Oh, Tyler Clippard, John Axford, Aaron Loup and possibly Ryan Tepera. There is no shortage of relievers available but the demand is there as well. The Jays should be able to make a few deals.
 
- Yankees slugger Aaron Judge made his major league debut on Aug. 16, 2016 and has yet to accumulate two full years of major league service. He was Rookie of the Year as well as the runner-up for MVP last season. And he’s having another great season this year. Interestingly, Judge has a career .976 OPS - in line with some Yankee greats. Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio had a career .977 OPS. But amazingly Judge is likely to do something this weekend that took DiMaggio his 13 major league seasons to achieve. Aaron Judge has 364 strikeouts in 932 at bats in his young career. DiMaggio struck out only 369 times in 6,821 at bats in his entire 13-year career. Judge will likely pass DiMaggio in career strikeouts this weekend in less than two full seasons. The game sure has changed. 
 
- The Washington Nationals held a players-only meeting on Wednesday after getting swept in a series by the Red Sox seeing their record drop to 42-43 and having lost 17 of 22 games. The reports are that veterans Max Scherzer and Adam Eaton spoke with passion. The result of the meeting seemed dubious at first, as the Nats were trailing the Marlins 9-0 going into the bottom of the fourth inning on Thursday  Not quite the response the guys were hoping for. But, sometimes in baseball things can turn on a dime. And they did for the Nats. By the end of the sixth inning the Nats had remarkably taken the lead 10-9 and went on to win 14-12. Whether this is a turning point for their season or not, time will tell. What’s clear is that if a team is struggling, it’s always good to schedule the team meeting before playing the worst team in the division. You’re likely to win anyways and now Scherzer and Eaton look like geniuses.  
 
- Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak’s frustration over the struggles of veteran outfielder Dexter Fowler came to a head when he questioned Fowler’s effort and energy. Fowler who signed a five-year 82.5 million deal before the 2017 season is hitting a pitiful .171/.275/.276. Afterwards, Mozeliak backed off his comments a bit by saying, Fowler "has a different approach with how he deals with stuff … I know Dex is working." The veteran outfielder has lost playing time, starting only six of the last 18 games. 

Fowler had a conversation with his boss about his comments and told reporters, "Everybody is entitled to their opinions," Fowler said. "He told me it wasn't directed towards me, but obviously my name was in it. If your name is in it, it's kinda towards you, whether it's rescinded or not. I want to win more than anybody. I want to get the chance to help win." Mozeliak should not have called out his veteran publicly. If he doesn’t like Fowler’s effort or energy then call him in the office and tell him. I get that he’s angry at Fowler’s struggles because it is making his decision to give him all that money look ill-conceived. But don’t do it publicly. As for Fowler, he needs to understand there are no scholarships in professional baseball. You earn your playing time. You don’t have a right to it.  When he does play, he needs to perform. That is how he gets more playing time.  

- Look out for the Oakland A’s. Has anybody noticed they are nine games over.500?  They went 17-10 in June and had a plus-27 run-differential. They tied the Astros for the most runs scored with 144 in the month. Look for Billy Beane to add a pitcher or two and make a run at the post-season. They’re still 7 1/2 games behind the Mariners, who have won nine of their last 10 for the second wild-card position.  

- Angels phenom Shohei Ohtani was activated this week from the disabled list, but only to participate as a designated hitter. His elbow injury has calmed enough for him to swing the bat., but it remains to be seen whether he will recover enough to pitch again this year. The club said they will test it in about three weeks to see how it responds. My expectation is that if he is unable to pitch, he will likely head to Tommy John surgery by the end of the season.