Episodes

  • The Vlad Legacy Being Written

    The Vlad Legacy Being Written
    Apr 19 2025
    Should Blue Jays fans be encouraged by the solid start to the ’25 season, even though there have been obvious flaws and an offence not clicking on all cylinders. Mal and Griff discuss that, plus what to make of the Vlad extension press conference, Max Scherzer’s relationship with his replacement Easton Lucas and what it means to a new-look rotation, how high leverage bullpen pieces have come together and more. They talk about unusual injuries through the years, plus a Top 5 list of Jays strikeouts in a game, a list dominated by Roger Clemens. Finally, there’s the disappointing way Jackie Robinson Day handled by the Dodgers and by MLB. INDEX: 0:00 Intro 1:26 Attendance Concerns 3:45 Jays early success in AL despite flaws 5:24 Easton Lucas and Max Scherzer 6:57 Team concept and Lineup Construct 11:46 In praise of NL West 14:59 Hoffman and the bullpen 19:42 Clues from the Vlad Presser 24:43 Roster Moves and Springer 33:55 Rotation and Leverage 37:53 Jackie Robinson 42:45 Freak Injuries 48:13 Top 5 List Jays strikeout games 1:01:05 Ironbacks update ---- Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy ---- For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 3 mins
  • The Vlad Factor

    The Vlad Factor
    Apr 12 2025
    The biggest news of the Blue Jays week, of course, was the monstrous 14-year extension offered up to Vlad Guerrero Jr. In addition to outlining the dollar details, Mal and Griff explain the possible ripple effect of the third-largest total value contract in MLB history and what having Vlad, the face of the franchise, on board through 2039 could mean for Bo Bichette, to Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins, for attendance at Rogers Centre and the trickle-down benefitting future free agents like Kyle Tucker. Should the Jays trade Bo if they think they can’t afford both young stars. What about the Jays rotation and the improved length they are giving, compared to a year ago. Is Easton Lucas this year’s Bowden Francis and who are the Top 5 homegrown Blue Jays starting pitchers, signed and developed since 2000. Plus, another week in which EP offers apologies to backup catcher Tyler Heineman, who has started the season like an all-star. INDEX 0:00 Intro 0:31 Jackie Robinson Day and Clemente disrespect 4:00 Vlad tribute to victims of the DR disaster 9:22 Vlad’s Contract and its ripple effect 12:34 What about Bo Bichette 17:10 Vlad deal impact on Mark and Ross 20:34 Does Vlad make Jays destination of choice 22:41 The Stadium renos and no roster rebuild 26:59 Vlad’s contract details 34:30 Rotation impact without Scherzer 38:33 Internal surprises Roden and Lucas 41:37 Top 5 List Jays homegrown starters 1:00:41 Varsho update Heineman apology ---- Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy ---- For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 6 mins
  • The Fans Need More

    The Fans Need More
    Apr 6 2025

    The Blue Jays opening homestand was undeniably less than satisfying, even though the team finished up a successful 5-2 set at Rogers Centre before heading to New York for the Mets home opener. Maybe it’s because the attendance was disappointing. Maybe it was that the front end of the bullpen was abysmal in three of the games, led by the failures of secondary southpaws Richard Lovelady and his replacement Mason Fluharty. On this edition of Exit Philosophy, Griff and Mal discuss MGR John Schneider’s learning process with a team relying on its rotation and some spectacular defence to get by, evidenced by the warning signs of a negative team run differential. With rumours of an imminent Vlad extension floating around, mostly from Vlad’s own people, where do they think the situation stands with optimism tempered by the reality that the Jays could have and should have handled the Vlad and Bo issues long ago. They talk “torpedo bats”, a 10-game road trip, the suggested revision of the Jays lineup and much more.

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    Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube:

    https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy

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    For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    47 mins
  • The Opening Day Blues

    The Opening Day Blues
    Mar 28 2025
    Opening Day is about renewal, but there were things about Thursday that remain extremely disappointing for the Blue Jays, from the lukewarm reception accorded to players upon pre-game introductions at Rogers Centre, to the light booing of the US anthem, to a patriotic fan being thrown out of the ballpark for his choice of message on his baseball hat, to the on-field mistakes, both mental and physical, committed by the home team in a 12-2 loss to the O’s. Griff and Mal discuss the manager’s choice of Jose Berrios ahead of Kevin Gausman, the structure of the opening day batting order, Alejandro Kirk’s new contract, where Vlad stands at the moment regarding his own negotiations and more. Then there are Griff’s favourite opening day memories, the Top 5 Jays second basemen all-time, pre-season MLB Power Rankings and more. INDEX 0:00 Intro + Fan Ejection for red hat 4:23 Opening Day Summary 6:35 Griff’s Top 10 Openers 11:39 Mental and Physical opening day mistakes 17:27 State of the Bullpen 21:03 Lineup Construction 24:12 Kirk Contract 28:00 Vlad Contract Revisited 34:26 Top 5 Jays second basemen 42:47 Max Scherzer and options 50:32 MLB Power Rankings 58:24 Ironbacks update and signoff ---- Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy ---- For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • Vlad IS A Legacy Player

    Vlad IS A Legacy Player
    Mar 22 2025

    With a week to go before Opening Day, Blue Jays’ president Mark Shapiro held his annual spring media availability in Florida and offered a surprisingly optimistic outlook on the possibility of a long-term contract extension for Vlad Guerrero Jr. Following a dismal winter of fans pondering Shapiro’s early opinion that Vlad was good, but not a generational talent, the CEO now cites the perceived desire for a mutual outcome and wants to make the 26-year-old first baseman a “legacy player.” Mal and Griff discuss this welcomed turn of events, plus the Max Scherzer thumb issue and how did it get to this point. What does the injury that he says has bothered him since 2023, mean to the Jays’ rotation and what are the rotation options. Opinions of the season opening Dodgers-Cubs series in Japan, the prospect Spring Breakout games, predictions for the NL East and more.

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    Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube:

    https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy

    ----

    For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • The Good, The Vlad and The Ugly

    The Good, The Vlad and The Ugly
    Mar 14 2025

    With more and more information leaking out last week regarding Vlad Guerrero Jr. and his multi-year contract expectations, Mal and Griff discuss whether there is there any team in baseball that will meet the 26-year-old’s apparent demands for a “current value” contract extension for 14 years that would almost equal Ohtani and may start with a five? And what happens if Vlad posts numbers more like 2023 than his MVP level ’24 stats? Dave Roberts after years of being second-guessed was rewarded by the Dodgers making him the highest paid manager in MLB. How did he reach that point and is there any comparison of an early Roberts to Jays skipper John Schneider. The Top 5 list is a ranking of strength-up-the-middle for the AL. Can the Jays contend in a banged-up AL East and more. Like. Subscribe. Share.

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    Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube:

    https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy

    ----

    For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 8 mins
  • The Jays Fantasy Rotation Rank

    The Jays Fantasy Rotation Rank
    Mar 7 2025
    Although the Blue Jays, rotation depth is a strength, entering MLB’s Fantasy draft season, the 5-man starting group is only ranked borderline good enough to make the post-season. Mal and Griff discuss that, plus which Jay starter should be given the opening day nod, why the art of tanking for draft position means less in baseball, is it even possible to improve a bad Jays bench, and more. Leave a review, like and subscribe! INDEX: 0:00-Intro 0:31 Blue Jays advantage finally open season at home 6:00 Creative Trea Turner challenge of Scherzer first pitch 11:19-Why “tanking” doesn’t mean as much in MLB 18:47-Comp ‘16 Yankees who tanked at deadline got better to ’24 Jays 23:22-Trump pardoning Pete Rose to get him to Cooperstown 25:34-Highly paid free agents and bribes for uniform number 30:46-Who should be Opening Day starter for Jays 36:21-Ranking the 30 MLB rotations with Jays at No. 11 49:48-Pitchers earning $15M-plus and are they worth it 54:10 Trying to improve a bad Blue Jays bench group 1:02:36 The impact of Gimenez and comps to Alomar 1:09:48 Ranking the AL West 1:12:56 Weekly Niagara Ironbacks update ---- Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy ---- For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 16 mins
  • The Flow Goes What About Bo

    The Flow Goes What About Bo
    Mar 1 2025
    Switching up the Exit Philosophy gears, veering away from the all-Vlad all the time debate, Mal and Griff check in with their deep dive into the similar choices for 26-year-old Bo Bichette between a Blue Jays contract extension or should they move to explore a trade. They talk the impact on the Jays of Max Scherzer, early reports on the challenge system, the future impact of new hitting coach David Popkins and far more. Subscribe, like and leave a review! INDEX: 0:00-Intro 1:26 Tkachuk won’t let Four Nations controversy fade 3:31 Impact of Max Scherzer 7:41-Scherzer’s dislike of the challenge system 14:54-Huge spring rosters and how they sort themselves out 21:26-What to do with Bo in terms of ’25 then reaching free agency 23:19-What teams might be interested in Bo as a free agent in ‘26 33:09-Why Bo shouldn’t bat leadoff but then who 37:38-Two suggested platooning positions for Jays 44:45-Can Kirk start 115 games at catcher 48:31 The impact of the new hitting coach 57:11-is there wisdom in trading Vlad and Bo now 1:04:00-Niagara Ironbacks update ---- Get the video version of "Exit Philosophy" and "Conversations with Griff" on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ExitPhilosophy ---- For the full catalogue of Richard Griffin's work, including weekly Blue Jays/MLB columns, a weekly MLB Power Rankings column, exclusive conversations with some of the game's greats, past and present, and the Exit Philosophy podcast, visit https://www.griffsthepitch.com/
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    1 hr and 8 mins
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