SAN DIEGO — As the hunt for starting pitching continues for the Blue Jays at these so far sleepy Winter Meetings, perhaps there’s some good news coming from Puerto Rico.
Jays third base coach Luis Rivera has been spending his off-season in his homeland, and recently ran into a compatriot, Jose Berrios, and had an encouraging report.
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While much of the Jays’ focus is on external improvement for its rotation, there’s also the hope that Berrios will jumpstart to the form that earned him a seven-year, $131-million U.S. extension last December.
And Rivera likes what he’s seeing this off-season from the Jays right-hander, who had a frustrating first full season with in Toronto in 2022.
“He looked like he’s in great shape,” Rivera said at the media gathering for the World Baseball Classic where he will be part of Puerto Rico manager Joey Sola’s staff. “I think he’s going to be ready for the season. He’s better than what he pitched last year and we all know that and he knows that.
“He’s looking forward to having a better year.”
And Puerto Rico is looking forward to having Berrios as as a key member of its rotation. Sola said on Tuesday that he sees Berrios as his potential opening-game starter when the tournament begins in March.
MONTOYO A FIT WITH WHITE SOX
Chicago White Sox first-year manager Pedro Grifol said he will rely heavily on former Jays skipper Charlie Montoyo’s experience as the latter joins his staff as bench coach.
“He was a big key to this,” Grifol said on Tuesday. “When I was looking for a bench coach, I asked a buddy of mine if he had any names and it just so happened that he gave me Charlie’s name. And when he gave me that name, I was like ‘that’s the guy.’ ”
Grifol, clearly, was well aware of Montoyo’s long history as one of the most accomplished managers in the minors, followed by his big-league roles with Tampa Bay and Toronto.
“I’m superexcited to have him,” Grifol said. “He’s been in the dugout for a long time. He’s got managerial experience. He’s bilingual. He’s a versatile coach.”
A DOME PRODUCTION
Jays president Mark Shapiro said that renovations to the Rogers Centre are on schedule and that he expects them to be completed in time for the team’s April 11 home opener.
“We’re going to be ready to go,” Shapiro said on Tuesday during a meeting with the Jays beat media. “I can imagine next offseason is going to be more nerve-wracking for us (when more extensive work to the lower bowl is done.)”
Most of the work underway is taking place in the outfield, a major overhaul that will change the look and feel for fans.
“This phase is primarily focused on fan experience, which means not focused on revenue,” Shapiro said of the first phase of the $300-million renovation project at the downtown dome. “The hope would be that we create some amenities, some experiences that are so compelling that the revenue follows as more people want to be at our games.”
As for the look and feel of the actual field, Shapiro is reluctant to reveal details, though he noted that the baseball operations department has been in steady consultation.
“I can share that we modelled the changes and we expect it will look different and play different but we expect the outcomes to be neutral,” Shapiro said. “It will create some uniqueness.
“There won’t be a uniform fence all the way around, whether it be height or angles, that creates some interesting outcomes of balls in play.”
WELCOME MATTINGLY
Jays manager John Schneider has plenty to like about his new bench coach. But Schneider won’t see Don Mattingly as an underling.
“Offering suggestions and I think offering advice,” Schneider said when asked what he expects from the former Los Angeles Dodgers and Miami Marlins manager. “He’s been through more experiences than I have.
“I’ve said it from the get-go when we starts the whole thing — I wanted someone to disagree with me and tell me that I’m crazy at times. So I think that was appealing to me to have him in that role.
“We’re going to continue to work through the specifics on a day-to-day basis. But I think it was just a really cool opportunity I think we couldn’t pass up.”
OH CANADA
Greg Hamilton, the director of national programs for Baseball Canada, shared a table with manager Ernie Whitt on Tuesday, talking up prospects for this spring’s WBC.
The pair aren’t yet ready to reveal names for the team but remain hopeful that some of the top young Canadian-eligible players will be made available by their MLB teams.
“We’re going to try to get the best 30 players we can off the charts that we have and go from there,” former Jays catcher Whitt said. “We’ve got our fingers crossed.”
“There’s the obvious players we want,” Hamilton added. “I think everyone knows who they are.”
You can count players such as Freddie Freeman of the Dodgers and Josh Naylor of the Guardians in that group.
But not a Montreal-born slugger by the name Vlad Guerrero Jr.
“I didn’t talk to him directly, but I kicked some tires to see if there would be an appetite or an interest,” Hamilton said. “There wasn’t a disinterest, but I think it’s clear where he’s going to go. I understand.”
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