Blue Jays' Myles Straw recalls being shocked by trade from Guardians.
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Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Myles Straw recalls being shocked when he found out he was traded by the Cleveland Gaurdians in exchange for $2 Million in international bonus pool money.
In a recent interview with Sportsnet's Ben Nicholson-Smith Myles Straw reflected on the trade that brought him to Toronto and how he felt about it.
Soon afterward, he was on the phone with Cleveland president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti and Blue Jays GM Ross Atkins in quick succession, and they confirmed what Kwan had read online: he'd been traded to Toronto for $2 million in international bonus pool space designed to improve the Blue Jays' chances of acquiring Sasaki.
«I was shocked, and pretty excited about it,» Straw told Sportsnet. «New beginnings are always nice, especially with this team. I think it's a fantastic team to be playing for, and I'm looking forward to the opportunity.»
Before long, Sasaki chose the Dodgers and the Blue Jays were left with $11 million committed to Straw but no pitching phenom.
The move was a calculated risk on the part of the Blue Jays, and when it didn't result in a deal with Sasaki, a challenging moment followed for the organization and its fans.
Thankfully for his own peace of mind, Straw isn't one to spend too much time reading comments on social media.
«I try to stay off that as much as possible,» Straw said. «It'll pop up here and there, but at the end of the day it's like whatever, it is what it is.
Come here, play baseball and try to prove myself again with a new team. Control what you can control. Everyone's always going to say stuff. Every fan base has their thoughts, and it is what it is. I try not to look into that too much.»
Come here, play baseball and try to prove myself again with a new team. Control what you can control. Everyone's always going to say stuff. Every fan base has their thoughts, and it is what it is. I try not to look into that too much.»
A month and a half later, Straw is making a strong impression in Blue Jays camp with a .474 batting average and strong defence through nine Grapefruit League games.
He's not on the team's 40-man roster, which makes his path to a roster spot more challenging, but with Daulton Varsho still rehabbing from shoulder surgery, it's possible Straw will be needed sooner rather than later.
"We all know what he can do in the outfield and on the bases,» Blue Jays manager John Schneider said recently. «And I think his at-bats have been pretty consistent. He's been better than we had hoped in the batter's box."
That's something, and the $2 million in international bonus space is valuable, even if the Blue Jays won't use it the way they'd hoped.
Already, they've been scouting internationally in the hopes of spending that pool money on young international players.
Of course, the hope was that the Blue Jays could use that money on Sasaki, and their plan didn't work as intended.
Some rival executives felt the Blue Jays took on risk needlessly with the Straw trade, while others noted that the risk was actually rather modest in scale.
«We're obviously disappointed that we didn't land the player,» Jays GM Ross Atkins said in a recent interview. «But there was a lot to be proud of being in that position. Our entire baseball operations department approached it from a leave-no-stone-unturned perspective.
And in the end, recognizing that we were competing with the West Coast, competing with some very strong and successful markets, we knew we had to be creative and exhaustive.»
And in the end, recognizing that we were competing with the West Coast, competing with some very strong and successful markets, we knew we had to be creative and exhaustive.»
Regardless, you either get the player or you don't. Beating 28 teams doesn't impact the roster if the Dodgers still swoop in at the end.
But for whatever it's worth, it appears that Sasaki's interest was as real as it ever could have been, considering the Dodgers were likely always in the lead.
"You come out here and try to prove yourself,» Straw said. «Just having a nice, fun atmosphere makes it all just a little bit easier. So, I'm just enjoying every day.»
SOURCE: Sportsnet
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MARS 12 | 172 ANSWERS Blue Jays' Myles Straw recalls being shocked by trade from Guardians. Do you think Myles Straw will make the Blue Jays 40-man roster? | ||
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| Too early to tell | 23 | 13.4 % |
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