Blue Jays - Brent Cardy looks to the future of Vladdy Jr, Bo Bichette & Max Scherzer

Toronto Blue Jays Spring Training & AL East Outlook

Toronto Blue Jays Front Office 

Do You Miss Alex Anthopoulos? -  "Every freaking day."

• Anthopoulos and Beeston were more transparent & connected with fans
• Atkins is more of a spokesperson, while Shapiro makes the decisions.
• Blue Jays' High Payroll & Poor Roster Management
  • Payroll is around $271M, making them the 5th highest-spending team.
  • Despite spending, the team lacks major offseason upgrades.
  • Concerns over failing to extend Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette.
• Luxury Tax & Future Uncertainty & Aging players
  • Future of MLB’s luxury tax and potential salary cap/floor in 2027.
  • Rogers invested $300M in stadium renovations,
  • Leadership shakeup could be imminent 
  • Pitching staff (e.g., Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt) is among oldest in MLB.
  • George Springer and other key veterans are aging.
• Farm System 
  • Ranked around 23rd-24th in MLB
  • The team could face a major decline in 2026-2027 i

Trade & Deadline Implications

• If Jays struggle by midseason, major trades (Guerrero, Bichette) could happen.
• "It feels like a one-year prove-it-or-lose-it situation."
•  Jays seemingly pursued top players like Shohei Ohtani & Juan Soto but didn’t land them.
• Fanbase is already fed up with Shapiro & Atkins, especially after the 2023 playoff controversy (José Berríos decision).

Bright Spots in Spring Training - Alan Roden (OF, Triple-A prospect)

Discussion on Tampa Bay Rays Attendance and Team Developments

Expects Better Attendance in 2025 in Tampa - highlighted the limited stadium capacity of around 15,000-16,000.

Attendance fluctuates, it often spikes when teams like the Yankees come to town. 

Rays should take over George Steinbrenner Field in Tampa rather than remain in St. Petersburg or move to Ybor City.

Blue Jays Roster Outlook newly acquired second baseman Andrés Giménez and veteran pitcher Max Scherzer, including Jeff Hoffman and Chad Green and the re-signing of Ryan Yarbrough.

• Brent Cardy expects a strong season from Bichette if he remains healthy.
• Bichette has a history of leading the league in hits and could do so again.
• Defensive ability at shortstop, though he may have some DH days.
• Bichette’s bat speed decline in 2024, potentially linked to concussion issues
• Bichette is still a tough out and a crucial piece of the Blue Jays’ success.

Farm System ranked 24th - Notable prospects include:

• Jonatan Clase (expected to start in Buffalo).
• Addison Barger & Davis Schneider (potential minor league assignments).
• Kendry Rojas (high swing-and-miss potential, could be a future impact arm).
• Josh Kasevich
• Chad Dallas, Ricky Tiedemann, & Alek Manoah (injury setbacks affecting pitching depth).
• Jays’ pitching has been depleted, requiring improvements in drafting and scouting.
• Catching Depth & Alejandro Kirk
  • Expected to play around 115-120 games.
  • Backup options include Heineman, Bethancourt, and Phil Clarke.
  • Kirk could be a 3 WAR player, with Guerrero Jr. potentially at 7-8 WAR, & Bichette at 4 WAR if healthy.
  • Overall Blue Jays Expectations -  Cardy predicts 83-84 wins
    Follow Mat on Blue Sky at https://bsky.app/profile/matgermain.bsky.social, Mark on Blue Sky at https://bsky.app/profile/baseballbizondeck.bsky.social
    Special thanks to XTaKeRuX for the music “Rocking Forward

Transcript

280 Blue Jays Spring Training Toronto BaseballBiz On Deck

[00:00:00] Mark Corbett: Welcome to Baseball Biz on Deck. I am Mark Corbett. And with me of course, is Mr. Mat Germain. And joining us today is Mr. Brent Cardy of the Cardy Show. Hey Brent. How you doing man?

[00:00:16] Brent Cardy: Corby. Matt, thank you so much for having me. Great to see you guys. Great to talk to baseball. 

[00:00:21] Mark Corbett: Absolutely. You know, I. I have the great fortune of living down here in the wonderful world of Florida.

[00:00:28] Mark Corbett: But you know, the best thing about it is spring training. And my gosh, you know, going over to Dunedin and, and seeing what's going on with the Blue Jays, uh, I missed my trip the other day, but my gosh, whole lot of fun, whole lot of excitement, and you guys got a lot to answer for

[00:00:48] Mark Corbett: No, give you a little grief you know, looking at the AL East earlier today. Matt and I had a chance to talk with, uh, Nat Gordo, who is a podcaster for the Boston Red Sox, uh, Play Tessie. And we had some questions. We had some questions about the Toronto Blue Jay, so we, we will ask you some of that.

[00:01:10] Mark Corbett: Perfect. Matt, is there anything you wanna start with before we, I, I just start rolling down the road? Is there any nuggets that you wanna address 

[00:01:19] Mat Germain: i, I just have one. Do you, do you miss Alex Anthopoulos 

[00:01:24] Brent Cardy: every day? Every freaking day? I mean, it's just, uh, it's been something different, right?

[00:01:31] Brent Cardy: Like obviously. Anthopoulos. And Beeston. I mean more, I would say more Beeston than Anthopolous. 'cause Atkins is just, Ross Atkins is just a face, right? He just says words, you know? It's really Mark Shapiro making the decisions with Rogers. It's, uh, you know, when Beeston was there, you got a little more clarity.

[00:01:49] Brent Cardy: You know, you always felt like Beeston was a common man. He wasn't talking down to you. Every time Mark Shapiro gets in front of somebody, it just feels like, you know, the arrogance just comes off, right? It, it, it's insane. Uh, you could kind of see the same about Ross, but I think Ross is in a tough spot, right?

[00:02:06] Brent Cardy: Like there's only 30 general managers jobs.

[00:02:14] Brent Cardy: Spin a story about, you know, what he did or didn't do. , Anthopoulos & Beeston were different though. You know, they could relate. Relate to the fan. They relate to the fan. Sorry. They could relate easier to the media. They. Just more well liked. Right. So, sorry. Long story short. Yes, Matt, I miss Alex Anthopoulos every day.

[00:02:34] Mat Germain: The, the reason I ask is mostly about Vladdy, right? I think we would all agree that if Alex Anthopoulos had stuck around, he would've locked up Vladdy a long time ago, uh, before he got extremely pricey. Yeah. And I think he would've made that the focus so that. He can bring others aboard like he has done in in Atlanta.

[00:02:55] Mat Germain: That's his sort of, you know. His mode of operation. Yeah. And I think it's the right way to go about it regardless of whether or not you're stuck to a budget or not. . And it's funny 'cause you, you talk about the Blue Jays and this off season, nobody, I don't think considers them a winner of the off season yet.

[00:03:13] Mat Germain: They're scheduled to be above the luxury tax at the, at the moment. So what are your thoughts on that one? 

[00:03:19] Brent Cardy: Well, it's interesting you bring up Anthopoulos, right? I mean, you look at all the deals he signed from Strider, uh, especially Matt Wilson, Matt, Matt Wilson deal. Remember he let Freeman walk and that, you know, that was just a thing of beauty, right?

[00:03:32] Brent Cardy: This team is, I think, just under, or maybe they're just over the second luxury tax of all the stuff. And $7 million of that is from Myles Straw , this season, which is insane, right? Like. That, that was the Sasaki thing. Everybody. I don't know if everybody, I think, I feel Ross felt he had Sasaki. I don't know why. I think we all thought, you know, most people thought he was gonna, the Dodgers, you know, to play at the Yamamoto & Ohtani

[00:04:00] Brent Cardy: that makes a lot of sense. Man to be $271 in payroll. And I don't know if you remember Matt, the JP Charlie era, but man, he would've, Jeff Blair always says this, he would've walked naked across the glass to have the payroll that Blue Jays had today. And, um, just to see the way it's being spent to, , have the conversations Vladdy & Bo to not have them sign and have this high of a payroll.

[00:04:27] Brent Cardy: Mind boggling at the end of the day, you know, there's nothing to show for it. And, , meaningful games in September and $270 million payroll to me, just doesn't add up. And I think it goes to show we're in 2025 now. Mark Shapiro does not have an extension to this point. Ross Atkins. You would have to assume if the Blue Jays don't make any progress this year, he'll be gone as well.

[00:04:49] Brent Cardy: I mean, so there, there may be a light at the end of the tunnel, but that being said, you trade Guerrero, you trade the shadow deadline. If this team's out of it, there's gonna be some hard times ahead. 

[00:05:02] Mark Corbett: , I think what I'm looking at this, 'cause you're talking about the, the pocketbook and looking at the payroll tracker on SportsTrac

[00:05:09] Mark Corbett: when I look at the top five, I mean, I look at Dodgers, Mets, Phillies, Yankees, but I did not anticipate seeing that the fifth one, what's going to be the Toronto Blue Jays was, you know, spending 232 million. Uh, and behind you guys it's the Rangers and Astros, Atlanta and the Padres just kind of give you a sense, but I, I, I get the sense of, you know, you all feel comfortable that you have the funds to get a team.

[00:05:39] Mark Corbett: Yeah. So what guidance would you give the front office right now as far as saying, Hey, you've got this big bucket of money. Use it properly. Here's, here's what we the fans see is how it should be used. 

[00:05:53] Brent Cardy: See Corby, it's hard because is there going to be a luxury tax in 2027? 

[00:05:58] Mark Corbett: Ah, 

[00:05:58] Brent Cardy: that's the other question, right?

[00:06:00] Brent Cardy: We don't know, you know, will there be a salary floor. A salary cap, will the luxury tax be gone? So if you have a salary cap and you have 55 million a year, you know, allocated to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 

[00:06:16] Mark Corbett: Yeah. 

[00:06:17] Brent Cardy: Well, what happens then? Right? Who can you surround Vladdy with? That's the other question. So. Unfortunately, as Matt kind of alluded to, if Alex Anthopolous was here, this would've been done after 2021.

[00:06:31] Brent Cardy: Yeah. You know, there would've been some sort of seven or eight year deal buying out the arbitration years buying out the free agent years. But here we go. They, they painted themselves into a corner. Here's the other part, if your ownership for Rogers, you put $300 million into the stadium, obviously you wanna see.

[00:06:51] Brent Cardy: So more people come out. You wanna see the stadium full, you wanna get your return on investment. So yeah, you have the money, but what's gonna happen? You, you, Rogers should not have gone into the season with a lame duck president, a lame duck general manager, and a lame duck. What a mistake. So they're gonna have to figure out what they wanna do going forward.

[00:07:14] Brent Cardy: They have the funds, do they wanna spend the funds? There's a lot of unknowns. It, it's an interesting year in the St. Louis. 

[00:07:21] Mat Germain: Yeah. The, the other problem, uh, that I see with the Blue Jays is twofold, age and poor system. Yep. When you have a, a really old. Roster like the, the oldest rotation by far in Major league baseball.

[00:07:37] Mat Germain: Uh, a lot of star players like George Springer and others that are getting longer in the tooth. Um, and then you combine that with a really weak system. It's not a recipe for success. Uh, I mean, you can only trade off so many pieces in season. Let's say the Jays are in contention this year and there is the chance that they would be sure.

[00:07:56] Mat Germain: Then it, what do you have to increase at the deadline? Like then you're selling more and there's a good chance that by the end of the season, you know, you could have gossman out. You could have Scherzer out, you could have, um, uh, who's the other, uh, Bassitt? 

[00:08:12] Brent Cardy: Bassitt Rios. Yeah. 

[00:08:14] Mat Germain: So, so I mean, you, you have a lot of these aging pitchers that could end up being not really in the, in the forefront of 2026.

[00:08:21] Mat Germain: So it is sort of this one year go for it, kind of prove it or lose it, sort of feeling that I get with the Blue Jays. 

[00:08:30] Brent Cardy: I agree, and I mean you can look at Jimmy Garcia's contract. It's kind of the same one that Isiah Kiner-Falefa signed last year. Now we're talking about two different players, but exactly the same amount of money.

[00:08:41] Brent Cardy: Exactly the same contract. Tructure, it's two, two years, 15 million. You can't tell me there's a team that wouldn't pick up Garcia, the J's are out deadline and, and buys the extra year and a half, right? Same with obviously it's got a no trade clause, but I mean, obviously. If you offer the Dodgers Max, Scherzer.

[00:08:59] Brent Cardy: Scherzer are gonna say no, definitely not. So I mean, you have the assets to move if it doesn't work out. But to your point, Matt, you're absolutely right. They could play those meaningful games in September and going to 2026 with absolutely nothing to show for it. Like you said, Bassitt, Guerrero, Bichette could be gone.

[00:09:19] Brent Cardy: , who else gets moved in the off season if you have a new general manager? What if he wants to tear it down? Then what? Right. Like I said, a lot of unknown. And here's the other problem. For a long time, , Atkins and Shapiro would always say, we're contenders. We wanna, you know, build championship teams.

[00:09:37] Brent Cardy: We wanna have that depth, right. They'd always kind of put themselves up here when really they're in the middle, that murky middle, which where you do not want to be in this game. Now it's kind of, pardon my language, Corby, can I swear? Uh, please do. Shit. Or get off the pot, right? You have to shit or get off the pot and, , make a decision.

[00:09:59] Brent Cardy: Are you going to rebuild this system that is 23rd, 24th in baseball or are you gonna sign guys and are you gonna add around those GLAD balls? Are you going to make an actual attempt with the funds that you.

[00:10:15] Mat Germain: That's what makes the off season so baffling. Like I look at what the Yankees did in terms of who they targeted as making way more sense than what the Blue Jays did. Even the Yankees said, you know, we're probably outta Juan Soto, so we're gonna go after like a button, a trio. Quintuplet, whatever you want to call it, of guys that are gonna make us deeper and better because we spread it around.

[00:10:39] Mat Germain: Uh, the Jays seem to be all in the basket of, you know, we throw all the money in these guys and if they don't come, then we're done. Like, we're not looking at anything else. Um, and I don't understand that aspect of it. It's really strange. Uh, it almost seems like they didn't want to go there. They really didn't want to land Ohtani, they really didn't want to land Soto.

[00:11:01] Mat Germain: They just wanted to look good. As in making an attempt to, to kind of dive into that bull. 

[00:11:07] Brent Cardy: That's right. Because, because then they can say, oh no, we tried. We tried really hard. 

[00:11:14] Mark Corbett: But that, that only plays for so long. I mean, fans say after a while there's, it seems like it's more of a strategy of trying to say, yeah, we tried and fans are gonna get, they could get, get tired of that.

[00:11:26] Brent Cardy: Uh oh. They're already tired of it. Mark, they are already fed up those two. It is not even funny. They were done with the, after the 2023 playoffs in that whole Jose Berrios. Yeah. Like they're done. Shapiro and Atkins. It just keeps, I, I'm surprised they, they walked into 2025. I'm surprised they walked into, yeah.

[00:11:45] Brent Cardy: Honestly, I don't know what Edward Rogers is thinking. 

[00:11:49] Mat Germain: So let's talk some positive. So in spring training, there's always, we talked, you know today about some guys that have come in, like for the Tampa Bay Rays. Curtis Mead blowing the doors off of things. He looks great. He's hitting everything. He's looking strong defensively, really surprising and opening up at a lot of eyes.

[00:12:07] Mat Germain: Is there somebody in the Jay's camp that is doing the same? 

[00:12:10] Brent Cardy: Yes, uh, there are a couple guys I wanna highlight. Alan Roden would be one of them. He is a corner outfielder. He's, uh, played a couple months in Triple A. , my buddy, my pal, Doug Fox from the Old Future Blue Jays website. I dunno if you guys have checked that out, but he does great work.

[00:12:25] Brent Cardy: He's interviewed Alan Roden's parents, and I believe they are Harvard professors. Don't quote me on it, but they are very smart. This guy is very smart as well. I believe he would've been a physicist if he wasn't playing baseball and no joke. Very smart guy. , he's dropped his arm elbow a bit. He's made more contact with Ball.

[00:12:44] Brent Cardy: He's got speed. He can actually play all three outfield positions. Uh, so I think he will be a factor. Maybe not to start the year. But, uh, may, June would not be surprised to see him at least get at bats against right handers in the big clubs he was on Road Alejandro, Kirk Kirky, everybody's favorite catcher. Uh, one of the best framers in baseball is trimmed down.

[00:13:09] Brent Cardy: He looks great. He's getting the bat the barrel through the zone, uh, very quickly. He's gonna probably be catching 110 this year, but it looks like he's worked very hard. Uh, to, to be able to handle that. , Orelvis Martinez is another guy that's a prospect. People like to talk about. Obviously Orelvis Martinez got suspended last year with PEDs and uh, we're gonna see Orelvis Martinez maybe get some time at third, maybe get some time at second, but will the the bat carry And so far it hasn't.

[00:13:38] Brent Cardy: Spring training, of course, it's February 26th as we record this. So there's, uh, about a good month left of spring training. Maybe he starts in Buffalo. It depends what early er, Ernie Clement and Will Wagner do. But Martinez is intriguing because of the power. He's had most home runs of the minor leagues for the past three seasons.

[00:13:55] Brent Cardy: Right. So those are a couple guys. I mean, if you're a Blue Jays fan, you're, you're watching and you're watching very closely. 

[00:14:03] Mat Germain: Yeah. One guy that I think that you guys will end up liking a lot, like he, he's somebody so. The, the Red Sox issue last year was they weren't athletic enough. Mm-hmm. And I think days fall a little bit into that, especially when Bo Bichette isn't on the field.

[00:14:18] Mat Germain: The athleticism just wasn't as elite. Some guys here and there, there some of them work really hard and you can tell they're putting it all in the field. It's great. Varshow falls into that category. Absolutely. But he can't be the only one. Right. So, . So Jonathan Clase is the one that I would point out that you guys acquired, I think last year.

[00:14:36] Mat Germain: Last year, yep. For, uh, Jimmy Garcia actually. Right, exactly. So he's one of those guys that I think to keep an eye on. Uh, 'cause I mean, he's a guy that could steal 30, 40 bases if he gets enough playing time has enough power that it plays, uh, how much hitting, you know, the hit tool comes through in ma in major league baseball.

[00:14:55] Mat Germain: That's the big question. But, uh. I, I think that the Jays do have a few of those that are, you know, you could call MLB ready, uh, that are able to chip in. It's just the pressure. How much do they, you know, hit right away? And then how much back and forth do they do? But the Rays acquired, uh, or signed, you know, the, a catcher for the first time that you guys had for quite a while.

[00:15:20] Mat Germain: Aw man. Tell us about what to expect in Danny Jansen. 

[00:15:23] Brent Cardy: I was really looking forward to this question, so thank you for asking it. Um, so Jano is, uh, a guy that Raysd fans are going to love. If he's healthy, you're gonna love him if he's not healthy, but you're really gonna love him if he is healthy. Very good with the pitching staff, number one.

[00:15:38] Brent Cardy: And you guys have a phenomenal pitching staff of your health, plana, McClanahan, um, to all those guys, right? Bradley's still with you guys. I mean, when you guys are healthy, you're going to be very good. Jansen Um. Clutch, man. He, he's got that sweet, easy swing. If he's pulling the ball to the left field, I mean, if you need a eight inning hole run that puts you ahead.

[00:16:03] Brent Cardy: He is your guy. He's missed. He's gonna be missed by Jason. I mean, I talked to Kirk earlier, trimming down looking great, but there's just something about 'em, and everybody loves them in the clubhouse media, nobody has a bad thing say about, knock on. You can't really control now. Tampa Bay has enough smart people in their organization to help 'em work on that.

[00:16:27] Brent Cardy: Mm-hmm. Uh, so that'll be interesting. But the important thing for Jano is to stay healthy. He is one of those guys to root for you, even if he's playing for the Rays. Just a good man. And, uh, he is dearly missed, uh, for sure. 

[00:16:40] Mat Germain: That's great to hear. I want to know if you can stay hydrated because the rays are gonna be playing in some warm stadium weather.

[00:16:47] Mat Germain: I know. How's that gonna work? 

[00:16:49] Brent Cardy: Corby? I mean, outdoor stadium in Florida all year long. 

[00:16:53] Mat Germain: Mark's gonna go to every game. He said I Oh yeah. A behind home plate, 

[00:16:57] Mark Corbett: right? Geez, I'm bringing my umbrella with me. You know, one of those little spray water fans and a couple of gallons of Gatorade in my back. Yeah. I should be okay.

[00:17:11] Mat Germain: Your umbrella is grounded. 

[00:17:13] Mark Corbett: Oh, that's right. Good lord. I mean, now you wanna hear something funny that. About, uh, four blocks away from there. Where my son goes is went to high school. It is supposed to be the lightning capital of the Northern hemisphere. Uh, that's, there was a street corner. It's like Hillsborough and something, I forget what it is, but it's like a mile away from.

[00:17:34] Mark Corbett: From where this is gonna be taking place. So, yeah, it's gonna be fun. Uh, I can't wait. I mean, it looks like, I mean, I, the tr looks like a, an umbrella that's just been shredded, you know, is what it looked like when I, I went over a few months ago after the whole disaster. But the team playing in this kind of heat, uh, MLB was kind enough to try to put more of the season at home.

[00:17:57] Mark Corbett: Toward the first of the, you know, the year. And, uh, so later on there won't be as many August games and such. I couldn't tell you the exact metrics on that print, but, uh, they are trying to make some kind of accommodations. Uh, one last thing I'll say that I got a friend who's worked with the team as, and I have, I did years ago as a fan host.

[00:18:18] Mark Corbett: I think this year he's gonna take a hiatus as somebody working, uh, with the rays out there. So. 

[00:18:25] Brent Cardy: Not to hijack things, mark, but do you think attendance will be better? 

[00:18:30] Mark Corbett: I don't know. I mean, this, the one thing that we complain, the one thing we complain about the most is the proximity to the most amount of people.

[00:18:39] Mark Corbett: Sure. And you have to go across a bridge and it's a lot less than you got it here. Yeah. It'll, it'll certainly increase, uh, the, the. Fans that are gonna be coming, there's no doubt. But the thing of it is, even at the, what is it? I think capacity, Matt, correct me if I'm wrong, but it's around 15 or 16,000 tops, uh, so you know.

[00:18:59] Mark Corbett: The rays did actually hit 15 or 16,000 some days and more 

[00:19:03] Mat Germain: so. So what I would say is it'll be more consistent. Yeah. Right. I think, I think the Rays averaged the way they did, as Mark said, because for the first, correct me if I'm wrong, mark, but the first series of the year, or when the Yankees come to town, they opened up the top portions of the trop and they're able to get the 25,000.

[00:19:20] Mat Germain: So that boost right. The numbers up. So what'll happen this year, I think, is you'll see it more consistently full. The the intriguing part, and I've said this to Mark, like I'm wide open about this, the rays should take over that field and that stadium area, and that should be where they plant their next stadium.

[00:19:38] Mat Germain: It should not be in St. Petersburg, it should not be in Ybor, just. Use that. There's no reason to have an A team in Tampa when the Tampa Bay Rays play in St. Pete. It doesn't make any sense logistically or people wise. So I, I, I would move their Yankees over to St. Petersburg. I. Either at Al Lang or at the, you know, Trop site, whatever they want to do.

[00:20:00] Mat Germain: And then I would have the rays take over the George Steinbrenner field and set, set up shop there. I think that's the long term solution. If they stick around in the area, uh, nobody wants to hear it, but I think that's the way it should go if. The politicians in Tampa weren't such big Yankees fans. Oh, I think it would've happened a long time ago.

[00:20:21] Mat Germain: Yeah. 

[00:20:21] Brent Cardy: Well it makes sense 'cause Raymond James Stadium. Stadium is right there. So what? Why you do that? Ford Field, America Park, Detroit. Like that's perfect example. 

[00:20:29] Mat Germain: Exactly. 

[00:20:30] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Yeah. It, it, it makes sense. I mean, and you've and Brent, if you were down here, you would see that where the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play, the Yankees, uh, George Steinbrenner Field is virtually across the street from them.

[00:20:41] Mark Corbett: Yeah. So this is, people know where to come to, to come to this place, so that, that's gonna be there. Of course, I can tell you when I've gone in the past to see the Yankees during spring training. Traffic getting in there was a beast. It still seems, rather you'd all winnows down to, seems like one or two little lanes to get in there.

[00:20:59] Mark Corbett: And that's just me being a, a pain and crying boo hoo hoo. But, uh, there, there'll, there'll be, I think it's gonna be exciting to see, um, as many fans in there that you will this year's, no doubt about it. Hey, I, I'd not to go too far off on this, but had Matt had you hear what this is it JP Peterson talking about the, some new buyers for the team?

[00:21:21] Mark Corbett: I. No, 

[00:21:23] Mat Germain: I did not hear that. This is new. Oh, 

[00:21:26] Mark Corbett: yeah. I don't know. I'll, I'll dig it up. He 

[00:21:28] Mat Germain: Montreal 

[00:21:30] Mark Corbett: really? But, uh, I don't know. He is on Brody, Brazil as well as JP Peterson. I've, both of 'em are just kind of skipping over, not really saying any meat and potatoes, but, uh, we'll see what happens. I don't know. Now, Brandon, I did, I 

[00:21:44] Mat Germain: didn't mean to, go ahead.

[00:21:46] Mat Germain: I'll have to look it up. But the, the, the Jay's ownership issue, like. Who do you think they're gonna go for? Let's say that the, the leadership falls astray and they get replaced. Is there anybody kind of in mind in terms of the Jays fans? 'cause I know this gets talked about quite a bit, once it becomes an issue, um, that they're, that's in the forefront of their minds that they would like to see as gm, you know, once the change is made.

[00:22:16] Brent Cardy: You know, my wife actually asked me the same question, Matt. I didn't have a good answer for her, but now I'm thinking about it. What about Theo Epstein? I have a buddy, um, that wants to watch shop around here and he keeps going. Well, Theo Epstein, he's gotta be the guy that, you know, come out of retirement, help the blue Jay, you know, leave major league baseball, maybe a Theo Epstein if Roger wants to pay him.

[00:22:42] Brent Cardy: Um, as far as the general manager, pick your, pick your poison. But at the end of the day, it just seems like the presidents nowadays call the shots, right? You look at Freeman with the Dodgers, um. Obviously, uh, Cashman of the Yankees is the exception who's done it for years, right? So I'm thinking it's the Epstein would be it.

[00:23:02] Brent Cardy: But I don't know. I mean, I don't know too many people out there, too many great general managers unless you call us at the office back and say, Hey, do you want be president? I mean, that'd be cool, but it's, it's a weird market right now. 

[00:23:15] Mat Germain: Hmm, because I, I ask because the rays have a unique situation where they're actually allowing four people to be assistant GM and they have no gm and Erik Neander is actually assumed the overall role of guiding these four, uh, perfect assistant GMs until they decide that one is the front runner and needs to be.

[00:23:37] Mat Germain: Name the gm.

[00:23:39] Brent Cardy: So it's like GM survivor. 

[00:23:41] Mat Germain: Exactly. Yeah. So I think Carlos Rodriguez would have a good, uh, chance of, of winning that role. And he's the one that recruited a bunch of the Rays stars, uh, over in Latin America. But the, um. The, the reason I also ask is because the, the Blue Jays, you know, they, they tend to go back to the same horses.

[00:24:00] Mat Germain: They go go back to John Gibbons, they go back to CDO Gaston, they go back. Like, they seem to always wanna go back in time to when the glory days were, or when their better days were. 

[00:24:10] Brent Cardy: So I was, I was gonna say Houston right back. Paul, be one more time. You know, what's a third time He's 70, he's got a couple good years left.

[00:24:17] Brent Cardy: Right? Like, that's just what, that's just what we do, you know? I mean if we a hitting coach, we'll call, he is 81 now, but you know what? He's still sharp as T and he looks great. 

[00:24:30] Mat Germain: Yeah, the, the, there's, there is a carousel as well of, of GMs that go around Major league baseball. So you kind of, you know, you see the same guys pop up here and there.

[00:24:39] Mat Germain: Oh yeah. Is actually part of the owner of the Red Sox right now, so I'm not sure he could take on that role. Mm-hmm. Um, so yeah, it is just an intriguing question. I do think there'll be a change to get talked about more in season, but, um, I think the Blue Jays renovations were a big hit last year and they were, yep.

[00:24:57] Mat Germain: Fans did enjoy the stadium itself. And you have one, you have a stadium, so you're already well ahead of the Tampa Bay race. 

[00:25:06] Brent Cardy: Yeah, I mean, we're thankful for that. I mean, we do have a good ownership, right? I mean, Rogers has been the owner of this team for 24 years now. There is a time. I, you remember, I mean, you saw the Expos go, but in the mid nineties, the Blue Jays were owned by Belgium Brewery after lab bats, right?

[00:25:24] Brent Cardy: We didn't know if they were gonna make it. You know, we had 12 to 13,000 people showing up every game. I mean, it was, there's some hard times there. There was dark times until Rogers came over. So, good 

[00:25:35] Mat Germain: spot. 

[00:25:36] Mat Germain: I actually wrote about the Blue Jays during the J. P. Ricciardi days, and I can tell you that I was pretty hard on them.

[00:25:43] Mat Germain: Yeah. And when Alex and Thou came and revamped the scouting system and made all the changes he did, um, it was like a breath of fresh air, which is why, you know, you look at the ramp up of attendance over the course of the years that Alex Anthopoulos was there. He got them up above 3 million, I think it was 3.2 or 3.3 million.

[00:26:03] Mat Germain: Uh, the last year he was there or the year after with the roster that he had built. Yeah. But when you get that many fans in the seats, you would think that you would get, you know, the leeway to run the team as you want. And sometimes that doesn't, that doesn't turn out. The other beef that I kind of came to know over that span was that the Jays have never had the first overall pick ever.

[00:26:24] Mat Germain: No. In their whole history, you know, 48 years never had the first overall pick. So now like, let's say you do have a down year in some way, shape or form, and you win the lottery and you get to pick first sort of like what the Cleveland Guardians did there recently. So 

[00:26:41] Brent Cardy: yeah, 

[00:26:43] Mat Germain: that, is that something that, uh, that, that you foresee as a possibility if the ra, if the Jays do fall off?

[00:26:51] Mat Germain: And, and they have a sell off. And, and you think that they can actually, you know, for the first time in their history, bring in a star that they can control using the draft and not the international market. It would be the first time ever. I think 

[00:27:05] Brent Cardy: it would be even 77. They didn't get the first pick. Even 78, 79.

[00:27:09] Brent Cardy: 79 is a terrible team, by the way. Um, but man, I, I'm okay with that. I, I do foresee it. I just hope there's somebody that. Is not Ross Atkins driving the bus. I I do think there's gotta be a different scouting staff too. I know they made some changes during the off season to that and it's all about the process and calibration and khakis and all that.

[00:27:33] Brent Cardy: Right. But it, it's about some it somebody else running the show, so somebody else's team, I'm okay with it, but if it's Ross Atkins, keep, you know, not getting them one pick. 'cause they'll screw it up. You just will. That's just how we feel Trump, all of us.

[00:27:49] Mat Germain: In terms of the product on the field this year, who are you most excited about that they brought in from other sources, whether it's free agency or trade? 

[00:27:58] Brent Cardy: I'm really excited to watch, Andrés Giménez, plays second base. I mean, this guy was an all star. Um, his war was five. He's projected for about a four war this year.

[00:28:08] Brent Cardy: Solid, solid player. I think he is durable too. You know, you get 152 games last year, I think. Um, so I think that's gonna be fun to watch. I'm excited for Scherzer. I mean, I watched his first spring start. I know he's 40. I get that. But I mean, his stuff did look really good yesterday. And if he's healthy, hell, let's see what happens.

[00:28:28] Brent Cardy: Right? 

[00:28:29] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Well he, he puts two innings and four strikeouts. That's, uh, that's, that's pretty good. 

[00:28:34] Brent Cardy: It, it's, right. Can't complain about that. Then, um, from a bullpen piece. I know he failed a couple medicals, but what did a Jeff Hoffman, you know, what's that look like? You know, in the back end? I'm excited. I don't watch poor Chad Green

[00:28:51] Brent Cardy: try and figure out his way into the ninth inning this year. I mean, that guy kind of, you know, got the shaft last year towards the end. But I like Chad Green, seventh or eighth. I'm good with that. I, you know, Garcia was solid to bring him back. Um, in the eighth or ninth and, uh, yeah, we've got Kevin Kiermaier.

[00:29:09] Brent Cardy: How's outfield? How about that? Tampa, Tampa Bay Ray legend. So, and we got yas back, Yarborough's back. So I'm excited for that. 

[00:29:16] Mat Germain: Yep. I, uh, I was telling Mark before this happened, I think it was the week before I, I was telling him that the Rays should do the same thing with him and Evan Longoria. 

[00:29:26] Brent Cardy: Oh yeah.

[00:29:26] Brent Cardy: He's out 

[00:29:27] Brent Cardy: there right. I 

[00:29:27] Mat Germain: had the bench coach or something like that. 'cause I feel like Kevin Cash sometimes loses his way a little bit. Needs to be a little bit better grounded. Yeah. And so that would be nice to have Evan as part of the mix. Maybe it'll happen in the future, but yeah. You guys are lucky to have, uh, Kevin Kiermaier, the, um, the other guy that I want to ask you about and because.

[00:29:47] Mat Germain: You know, if he plays to his potential, he's an MVP candidate. Mm-hmm. And yet, you know, Bo Bichette's stock, I don't think could be any lower than it is currently. I don't know if, if the concussion issues he's had in the past have resurfaced in some way, and he's not talking about it much, but, you know, in 2024, uh, but he definitely wasn't himself.

[00:30:10] Mat Germain: So what do you foresee going forward in, in 2025? 

[00:30:14] Brent Cardy: I'm expecting a big year from him, to be honest. I, um, I feel that if he's healthy, he's gonna hit, the guy gets hits, right? How many years does he love the league and hits? So if he's healthy, he's gonna leave the league and hits. Um, his defense is okay. I'm okay with him playing shortstop every day.

[00:30:30] Brent Cardy: I do feel that there's gonna be some days where he dages. Will there be an IL 10 or two? Sure. Slide Jimenez over. Put Wagner at second. Bob's your uncle. But, um. Again, I mean, this team will not play meaningful games in September. If Bo Bichette is not playing ball, if he's not hitting the ball and, and mark my words, if he is struggling, this team is as good as done.

[00:30:54] Brent Cardy: If he's going, then we're for sure gonna play some meaningful games. Do we make the playoffs? There's no guarantee. Mm-hmm. Who knows? I mean, obviously Tampa Bay is gonna be better this year. Love the house on Ha-Seong Kim signing, by the way. A little bit. Jelly not gonna lie. Um, Detroit, Kansas City, Cleveland. I mean, they're better this year.

[00:31:12] Brent Cardy: Minnesota. What are they gonna be? We don't know. I, I mean, last year I didn't expect much to look what happened. The west is kind of a toss up, so lots to again, I mean, it's my favorite word. Lots of unknown, but it there, it's 50 50. Bo's gonna have a great year. Who's gonna have a bad year? We're, we're about to find out, but I'm leaning towards, he's gonna have a.

[00:31:37] Mat Germain: The things that I noticed with him last year is that his bad speed was way down, which is why I say that it might be linked to concussion issues. 'cause usually if you have, you know, headache is, is kind of, you're not willing to swing as hard as you normally would. Uh, yeah. It's sort of, there's that pain at the end of it that just won't go away.

[00:31:55] Mat Germain: So the, his iso, I think dropped below 100, uh, last year. So I, I think, you know, you look at somebody that swings as hard as Bo usually does, that's not really normal, uh, that he has that kind of drop off. Now, having said that, it strikeout rates, walk rates, all that stuff is still the same. He's still tough out.

[00:32:16] Mat Germain: So he is not somebody that you wanna face in their lineup. So like he, he. If, if he plays a lot, I think he makes the blue Jays better regardless. Yeah. Because he is a good hitter. Uh, I just am curious to know, you know, those concussion issues knocked Justin Moreno out, uh, a while ago and they can be, you know, pretty persistent once they start coming around again in a game like baseball.

[00:32:40] Mat Germain: 'cause there is a lot of jostling in everything that you do. People don't think of it as much as as hockey, but you know, a swing is violent. Uh, yeah. When you fall down the ground and you turn and, uh, double play, that's violent. That's there, there's a lot of movements that happen in baseball where your brain is, is sort of like exposed a little bit in that, in that way.

[00:33:02] Mat Germain: Now it could be other issues. I'm not a doctor and I haven't spoken to his doctors. I'm not, I'm just saying what I know has happened with him in the past and usually concussion issues tend to. Quite a bit. So it's a little bit of hearsay on my part, but I, I hope the best for him this year and I want to see the best for Bo.

[00:33:20] Mat Germain: I think that he's, uh, he has the potential to be a good player going forward for a lot of years. So that's all you want to see. I. 

[00:33:29] Mark Corbett: He's a passionate player. I mean, he, he gives it, he gives it all. And, and that's another reason why you just don't wanna see some physical impediment stall, the energy and the, the passion that he has for the game.

[00:33:41] Mark Corbett: So, I, I hope he's, hope we see better as far as his health. 

[00:33:45] Mat Germain: Absolutely. 

[00:33:48] Mark Corbett: Had I kind of turn it for a moment here, I did see something different. Oh one. I'll leave that other thing alone. One thing I I saw is you guys had a very special bat boy the other day in spring training. 

[00:34:00] Brent Cardy: Oh yeah. Chris Bassitt. He, uh, went four in 10 in fantasy, I guess.

[00:34:04] Brent Cardy: Yeah. Yeah, I saw that Tim Maza had to do the same thing last year. Man, most fantasy football pools are, they're pretty competitive. I mean, you either get slapped or you have to be a bad boy, 

[00:34:15] Mark Corbett: and he wore the score on the back of his jersey. It's like four dash 11 or four dash 10, whatever it was. Yeah.

[00:34:23] Brent Cardy: That's funny. 

[00:34:25] Mat Germain: Callier in a lot of. Of trouble if you make the wrong trade. So you get you that. 

[00:34:30] Brent Cardy: Yeah. I mean that's why the Jays haven't got Tommy Pham they don't want him in their, uh, football pool. Right. 

[00:34:36] Mark Corbett: Yeah. 

[00:34:37] Mat Germain: That's funny. 

[00:34:38] Mark Corbett: Yeah. That could be a little, there'd be a little anger involved if things weren't going just so well.

[00:34:43] Mark Corbett: Wow. So kinda jump to, to something else though. I know a lot of systems, they look to the future through their farm system and. Earlier today, like I said, we had Nat Gordo on from Boston, and they're very fortunate. They have the top team as, uh, as far as evaluating the farm system with by Baseball America, and I know a lot of other teams having some challenges.

[00:35:09] Mark Corbett: What, what do you see for the farm team, uh, for the, uh, blue Jays for the future? Well, 

[00:35:15] Brent Cardy: this year, I mean, they have some outfield death. Matt brought up Jonatan Clase. I mean, so I imagine the Class A starts in Buffalo and the J have options, you know, whether they start Allen Road there. Addison Barger, did he put David Schneider down there, uh, to get him going?

[00:35:32] Brent Cardy: Um, as far as guys, you know, we talked about Vancouver. New Hampshire? Well, there's Kenry, there's a couple pitchers. I mean, there's Ken's Rojas that's there. Um, they brought back out Adam C and seen, but the Jay's just like everybody else in baseball, had been decimated by pitching. Right. Ricky Teman is out for the year, Manila's out till probably the summer.

[00:35:54] Mark Corbett: Mm-hmm. 

[00:35:55] Brent Cardy: Uh, you know, Chad Dallas is another guy that people, I don't wanna say had high hopes for, but you know, he was going to be a respectable piece in a rotation at some point. He ain't gonna be around for a bit. So the pitching's kind of decimated offensively. The outfield has some depth. They got Jo Josh ca Vic runs his name up the middle playing shortstop as well.

[00:36:17] Brent Cardy: So what's he gonna do? So they do have a few pieces, that's why they're 24th rrg Shrek comes over, uh, in the Justin Turner tree. You mentioned Boston to get Carter Coffee, Edison Paulino as well. I mean, there's a couple more guys. So they got the pieces. Sorry, I've been battling the cold, uh, from, uh, the trades from the last year to kind of bump them out.

[00:36:40] Brent Cardy: Maybe they move a couple of them. Maybe they stand Pat, maybe they don't. , but there's still a lot of work to do, mark. There's still a ton of work. Drafting still needs work. Amateur scouting, obviously. Um, what's he gonna be this year? We don't know. A lot of work still needs to be done. There's a lot of work, so let's see what happens.

[00:37:01] Mark Corbett: One guy you, you all mentioned earlier, but I think Bears repeating and that's Alejandro Kirk. Yeah. As far as somebody who does a lot for that team, and I look at him as a career catcher in the sense that he's not gonna be in there for three year innings or four innings.

[00:37:14] Mark Corbett: He's gonna be there for full games and probably a good portion of those for the entire year. I mean, what, what do you think? Over 162 games, you think you'll be there for like 130 of them? I think 

[00:37:25] Brent Cardy: 15, 20 max. 

[00:37:27] Mark Corbett: Okay. 

[00:37:28] Brent Cardy: I mean, they've got, they've got Heineman & Bethancourt, uh, to, to help him. Yeah. I saw 

[00:37:33] Mark Corbett: Heineman , I saw Heineman the other day.

[00:37:35] Mark Corbett: He was really looking good. I saw him fire one off over the second to get a guy out the other day. I said, yes, that's great. And I didn't realize Bethancourt's with you guys too, so he can uh, he can be quite something on his good days. 

[00:37:47] Brent Cardy: Yeah. No, that's right. So you, when you got got Heineman & Bethancourt, , we got Phil Clark as well.

[00:37:51] Brent Cardy: He's a guy that's kind of moved up in the system. So there's three guys to support Kirky if he gets hurt. Uh, what do you do? Do you go out and get somebody? Well, and then you gotta take your farm system for 24th, back to 20 minutes. So, depends where you're at. The deadline depends where you're, if he gets hurt.

[00:38:10] Mat Germain: Yep. Right. I think the point is more like Alejandro Kirk could be a three F war player. Sure. A walk year. Vladi Guerrero could be a seven or eight war player, and, uh, and Bo if he's healthy and plays to his caliber, could be a four F war player. So, so you're looking at three guys that could seriously elevate the season.

[00:38:33] Mat Germain: And you men mentioned Giménez before, like, I like him as well and, and he does have more offensive potential. I just don't know if it'll be. You know, insanely, like most of his value is more defensive based, uh, than really as a hitter. But he, even if he does his job and he, he's just, you know, 110 WRC plus or 120, that, that's plenty.

[00:38:54] Mat Germain: Like they, they don't need him to carry the load offensively. Um, so I, there is the potential, like the ceiling for the Jays is high. Mm-hmm. It's just a matter of where is that floor and where is the, the mean, um, the, I would, I do wanna go back on the question that, that, um. Mark asked you about though, in terms of the, the prospects, there's one guy that I own in all my leagues, uh, is Kendry Rojas?

[00:39:17] Brent Cardy: Yeah. Oh, he is good. 

[00:39:19] Mat Germain: Yes. He's one of those guys that, like the Rays had brought onto the roster, Yoniel Curet for, you know, who may. We may see him this year. He's probably the guy that gets the most swing and miss. He's got the most life on his, on his pitches. Kendry Rojas is that kind of pitcher, whereas his slider and fastball are probably good enough to keep him alive in AAA and and majors right now.

[00:39:42] Mat Germain: And if he was in a relief role as a lefty, he could really do a lot of damage. Um, so if they need to call him up early, because I think. Good chance he starts in aa. If he does really well, he could end up, you know, getting a look at some point in 25, uh, if they need him. But, uh, he's somebody that I'm really excited about for, for the Blue Jays and for my fantasy teams.

[00:40:04] Brent Cardy: Yeah, I mean, like you said, the stuff can still carry. I mean, imagine him in a Leaf role, right? Like, that'd be something, I mean, multi eating kind of guy, right? Mm-hmm. Man, that'd be, that'd be sweet. Um, as a starter, right? Like I'd be. I guess we'll see after July, it won't win. Yeah, that's, that's the intrigue, you know.

[00:40:27] Brent Cardy: Let's see what happens after the deadline. Yep. 

[00:40:32] Mark Corbett: The health of every team's gonna be measured by an all-star break. You know, you're looking at this and saying, you know, who's still there? I mean, the rays have had such challenges within the last couple of years, so many injuries. And this year, as far as the rays go, it looks like we're gonna have a healthy group of pitchers.

[00:40:48] Mark Corbett: So fingers crossed, whatever. But, uh, it's, it's challenge for every team. And you're only as good as your depth too. So, um, I'm. I don't know. What are, what are your, what is your anticipation for the, uh, the Blue Jays this year? With what, you know, I mean, as far as how many wins, losses, if you had to put something up right now, would you expect 

[00:41:08] Brent Cardy: Well, it's, I just wanna touch to your point of pitchers, health.

[00:41:10] Brent Cardy: I mean, we've been really lucky in the start of rotation with all the older guys, Bassitt, Gausman, Rios. Sure. They made three to three, two starts, right? Yeah. I mean, bass a little bit less because he likes to have eight days rest in between starts. But it's just ridiculous. But. They're good. You know, you can count on 'em and take the ball.

[00:41:30] Brent Cardy: Um, but I, I'm curious to see what happens with Scherzer love what bad in France did last year, man, I mean, that was fun. Baseball to watch. As far as wins and losses, man, mark, I would say 83 wins. 84 few meaningful games in September. Yeah, 

[00:41:53] Mark Corbett: I'd like to break 500, you know, we didn't do that 

[00:41:55] Brent Cardy: last year. 

[00:41:56] Mark Corbett: We just.

[00:41:57] Mark Corbett: One Short 

[00:41:58] Mat Germain: one. Sharp. It's definitely a fair, uh, total to go with. Uh, the, this, I, I want to go there just because I, I think it's funny as a Canadian, but do you think the Blue Jays will will wear a 51 on the side of their hats? 

[00:42:11] Brent Cardy: Uh, no. God no. Oh my Lord. What, what's that situation gonna look like too? The anthems for every game.

[00:42:20] Mat Germain: Good Lord. 

[00:42:21] Brent Cardy: Yeah, good Lord is right.

[00:42:26] Mark Corbett: Yeah. Are there, are there gonna be 81 home games where there's booing going on at the beginning of each game? 

[00:42:33] Mat Germain: Or 51 with a circle around it and that would be more, uh, apropo, right? Oh yeah. No. 

[00:42:38] Mark Corbett: No. Oh, no, no. Yeah, it's good 

[00:42:44] Brent Cardy: question. 

[00:42:46] Mark Corbett: God, grant wisdom and common sense to some people, please. Oh my gosh, boys, I'll tell you.

[00:42:54] Mark Corbett: So it's always fun when we get together. Yeah. But, uh, any other fun stuff you can think about? You wanna talk about Brent? 

[00:43:04] Brent Cardy: Ah, shit. Not really. I mean, red, the Red Sox are gonna be good. The Dodgers are gonna be great. Uh, baseball needs expansion. Um, especially if they're gonna go into a salary cap. The fact that the NHL is the only league expanding is a shame.

[00:43:20] Mark Corbett: Mm-hmm. 

[00:43:21] Brent Cardy: Uh, more jobs equals more money. 

[00:43:24] Mark Corbett: Amen. You know 

[00:43:24] Brent Cardy: why, why not Nashville? I mean, everybody want, everybody talks about Montreal. I don't care where they are. You just need two teams somewhere. Right now, you know, whether it's Nashville, Charlotte. Um, I don't know. Bring it back to Oakland. I don't care. You just need expansion right now.

[00:43:41] Brent Cardy: More guys need more work. I wanna see some 110 lost teams on a regular basis. You know, if you have a couple expansion teams, we'll get there. Uh, I wanna see some 45 year olds playing. Like, let's go. Enough of this stuff. 

[00:43:53] Mat Germain: Rich 

[00:43:54] Mat Germain: Hill needs another shot. That's what you're saying. Rich Hill needs a home. Let's find Rich a home.

[00:44:00] Brent Cardy: That's right. That's right. Rich wants, he's gonna be somebody's fifth starter at some point. Right. That curve ball, you can still spin that curve ball. 

[00:44:09] Mat Germain: It's, 

[00:44:09] Mat Germain: it's life in itself. Uh, the, the Montreal, uh, situation to me is very interesting 'cause they have an $890 million roof in a time. A lot of teams can't get 890 million from locations where they have a team.

[00:44:25] Mat Germain: Yeah. So, you know, the government's already shelled that out. They gave it a new roof. So how much would an internal rental, like in the the Rogers Center cost how much to renovate inside 

[00:44:36] Brent Cardy: 300 million. 

[00:44:37] Mat Germain: There you go. So 300 million plus the fee to, to get a new franchise. That's it. So they've, our, the government would probably give Bronfman a interest free loan to expand to Montreal.

[00:44:50] Mat Germain: And there you go. They can steal Alex Antholoupos away from the Braves sign. Vladi Guerrero Jr. And Bob's your uncle. They're back. You mentioned back long ago. Easy as that. Yeah. I've solved all the world's problems. 

[00:45:03] Mat Germain: That's right. All the Expo fans are happy again. And then, you know, 5,000 people show up on a Wednesday and it's all good.

[00:45:11] Mat Germain: No big deal. No big deal. Oh, 

[00:45:14] Mark Corbett: kumbayas baby, kumbaya. 

[00:45:17] Brent Cardy: What did Chuck Blair say about Olympic Stadium? He said, if you know, whenever you know whether the asteroid hits the Earth or we get N Olympic stadium's gonna be the stadium that still. 

[00:45:27] Mat Germain: That's right. That's right. I mean, it's the, it's the most expensive stadium ever, ever built.

[00:45:34] Mat Germain: So I mean, the, the trucks going through there with cement and rocks and everything else, and driving all the way around and then back through and getting counted as if they had offloaded, but they didn't. And then they go back through and then they go back through and then they go back through it. It was ridiculous.

[00:45:50] Mat Germain: Like they've showed videos of it. It's insane what they got away with in terms of the cost of that stadium. But anyway. I don't want to take it too far into Montreal route, but I do agree expansion needs to happen. Yes. I don't think we have the right commissioner for it. Uh, no. But you know, hopefully it happens.

[00:46:07] Mat Germain: As soon as we get a new one, that'd be great. We need it. 

[00:46:10] Mark Corbett: Amen. Amen. Well, guess I'll tell you what, it's been another great week and, love talking spring training, and still a lot of fun coming up this season. We'll see what these teams actually look like by the time of opening day, but there's a lot of, you know, interesting players out there that we may not have seen otherwise and who wouldn't have had an opportunity, you know, to be batting against max shirts or, or who else.

[00:46:34] Mark Corbett: So, uh, I'm looking forward to the rest of it. I wanna thank you guys. Is there any other parting words, Matt, that you'd like to share? 

[00:46:41] Mat Germain: Uh, no, just, you know, keep your head on a swivel with the whole tariff things. I don't know if they're gonna charge the Blue Jays more to go across the border every time. Uh, and I know for a fact they won't be able to send their, uh, radio announcer on the trip still with the team.

[00:46:55] Mat Germain: 'cause I mean, that's just gonna break 'em, uh, if they did that right? Like they can't afford that kind of, uh, cost. So, you know, I, I wish the Blue Jays all the best. I think the, uh. The season's gonna be an interesting one, the in the AL East. It's gonna be lots of storylines, lots of ups and downs, but it always is interesting.

[00:47:13] Mat Germain: And really, I think we are, we all need to be thankful that we are in the best division in baseball. 

[00:47:18] Brent Cardy: Yeah, 

[00:47:18] Mat Germain: absolutely. Well 

[00:47:19] Brent Cardy: said. Well said. 

[00:47:21] Mark Corbett: Hey, and, and Brent, , the Cardy show, is that live and running, or are you gonna be coming opening day? What are 

[00:47:27] Brent Cardy: Oh, the card show. Semi-retired Corby. I've, uh, you know, shut her down, shut down the social media.

[00:47:33] Brent Cardy: . For now. I mean, this world is just wild. So it's, it's best if I just go out and live my life, do what I do, and uh, just be a regular guy for a bit. So, yeah, no, it's semi-retired. I'm working on a book. Let's see. If I publish it in two years, I'll update you. But other than that, the Cardy Show is still there for everybody to listen to.

[00:47:51] Brent Cardy: . Semi-retired, who knows? Who knows what the future brings. It's another, it's my favorite word. Unknown. The unknown, Corby, the unknown. 

[00:48:00] Mark Corbett: Well, we're very grateful that you joined us here today, Brent. It's always a pleasure and a friend, and we, we thank you for that, my friend. So I wish you all the best and wanna thank everybody for listening here today, and we'll talk again real soon.