The next five weeks could go a long way to determining who's at second base for Toronto in 2012.
TORONTO – Alex Anthopoulos is thinking of popping the question to Kelly Johnson this off-season, but before he does, the general manager wants to take a deeper look at what life with him would really be like.
So the Toronto Blue Jays and the second baseman, acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for Aaron Hill and John McDonald in an intriguing waiver deal Tuesday featuring three looming free agents, are shacking up for the rest of the season, an opportunity to get to know one another, discover what makes each other tick.
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That way, if Anthopoulos does go through with it and asks the 29-year-old to sign with him this fall, both parties will have a pretty good idea of what they’re getting into.
The Blue Jays have made a pass at Johnson before, trying to sign him after the 2009 season to play left field, but he rejected their advances.
They remain attracted to his left-handed bat, above average power for the position, and his on-base skills, but they’re uncertain whether or not he’s the one.
“He could be, and that’s what I don’t know,” said Anthopoulos. “I know one way or another we have a need at second base in the off-season. … It gives us a chance to bring a player in here, he gets a chance to get to know us, see how he plays, and it allows us to explore opportunities in the off-season.
“A lot of times when you’re looking at a free agent, you do as much homework as you can, but you know the player a lot more when you have him, even if it’s just for a four-week period. There was really no downside for us, it just made a lot of sense from a baseball standpoint, and at the same time being able to reward these two.”
Those two would be Hill and McDonald, two loyal, long-time flames who get to explore a new side of themselves in a pennant race with the NL-West leading Diamondbacks as they try to unseat the defending World Series champion San Francisco Giants.
Both had conflicted feelings about leaving after long and mostly successful stints in Toronto, but they were excited about chasing the playoffs.
They also spoke of how this goodbye may not last forever.
For Hill, 29, the move is a chance for a late-season rebound after two down years, and a strong finish could position him to do well in free agency should the Diamondbacks opt to buyout his contract options for $1 million at season’s end.
He heads to the desert in a positive frame of mind having recently made a mechanical adjustment to free up his hands and get them through the strike zone quicker.
“It’s a fresh start and who knows?” said Hill. “I know I can help them out and I look forward to it.”
For McDonald, 36, the deal is a chance to make a late-career trip to the post-season, a desire that becomes more pressing as each year passes. In the final year of his deal, he told Anthopoulos that if an opportunity came up, to run it by him.
As a player with 10 years of service time, five of them with the same team, any trade would have required his approval. He couldn’t turn down the Diamondbacks.
“It’s a great opportunity, an opportunity I wake up every morning thinking about, it’s what every baseball player wants,” he said. “I’m extremely excited for that opportunity.” Also exciting for McDonald was the possibility of returning to Toronto after the season. He spoke of it so often, it almost seemed like a fait accompli.
“The door isn’t closed on being a Toronto Blue Jay,” he said, adding later: “Alex has made it clear to me there’s an opportunity for me to be back here and that’s what made it easy for to go through this process.”
Less easy were the machinations required to make the deal happen through August’s revocable waiver period.
MORE TRADE COVERAGE: Press conference audio | Jays acquire Kelly Johnson
The Blue Jays, as a matter of club policy, place all their players at the start of the month on waivers and both Hill and McDonald cleared, meaning they could be traded to anybody. Talks between the Blue Jays and Diamondbacks picked up soon after.
The Blue Jays, as a matter of process, place all their players on waivers at the start of the month and both Hill and McDonald cleared, meaning they could be traded anywhere. Talks between the Blue Jays and Diamondbacks began soon after but things didn’t really get going until Arizona put Johnson on waivers Friday.
The Blue Jays put in a claim, McDonald was consulted and granted his approval, an agreement between the two teams was finalized Monday night, and then all involved waited for the waiver period to expire Tuesday.
Once it did and the Blue Jays had won the claim for Johnson, the trade was completed. “It will just give us a little more clarity and information on the second base class next (off-season) knowing we’ve had Aaron and now we’ll have had Kelly for a month,” said Anthopoulos. “It will help us in our off-season plans at that spot.”
Hill and Johnson will be among the most appealing free agent options at the position this winter, so the competition for them could be fierce.
Other notables eligible to hit the open market this winter include: Orlando Cabrera, Clint Barmes, Mark Ellis and Omar Infante.
By then the Blue Jays will have some history with Johnson, and perhaps that familiarity tips the scales when push comes to shove in the winter.
Or maybe things don’t work out and Anthopoulos decides life was better with both Hill and McDonald. Things can still go back to the way they were, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing since both players will be missed.
“We’re open to bringing them back but I couldn’t make commitments to either one right now because I just don’t know what the off-season is going to bring, let alone the next five weeks,” said Anthopoulos. “We’re open-minded, they’re great teammates and the one thing is I know we’re getting younger in the clubhouse and in the back of my mind, I want to make sure we don’t get too young, that we don’t have that balance and that’s where these guys come into play because they’re so good with young players.”
Those, of course, are all matters for down the road.
For now, there is business at hand; Hill and McDonald in a pennant race, and the Blue Jays and Johnson figuring out whether their relationship is simply a fling, or the start of something more.
