Weekly Takes - Monday, August 3 Edition

Weekly Takes - Monday, July 13th Edition 

1. The summer of John Chyaka continues in Toronto.

He and Rogers took unfounded criticism (common occurrence) when he fired the likes of Hayley Wickenheiser in July, with people saying he is slashing the staff budget at the direction of Ed Rogers.

Shockingly, it turned out, he was just wanting to bring in his own people after a decade of failure.

Wild!

2. The issue with the Blue Jays in 2026 rests solely on the shoulders of their stars.

Ross Atkins nailed the offseason, replacing an expensive Bo Bichette with a cheaper Kaz Okamoto, while signing arguably the best pitcher in the American League in Dylan Cease and one of the better relievers in baseball in Tyler Rogers.

So, blaming Atkins (and thereby ownership) is ridiculous.

Likewise with blaming the supporting cast, as despite everyone thinking they would, the likes of Ernie Clement, Nathan Lukes, and Myles Straw have not declined at all.

It has come down to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. having the worst season by a Toronto superstar in my lifetime, George Springer looking washed, Addison Barger being a total non-factor due to injuries, and Alejandro Kirk being injured/nowhere near good enough since returning. 

An all-time disappointing season in Toronto sports history.

3. What was also disappointing was the return for Kevin Gausman, but that is the going rate for a non-ace rental.

Depending on how he looks down the stretch with the Cubs, the Jays should absolutely look at bringing him back in the winter.

4. The Tarik Skubal trade is disappointing for everyone involved.

The fans of baseball lose, seeing how boring the National League playoffs were a year ago. Other teams lose and players lose, as why would any team enhance their payroll right now when they have next to zero shot of beating the Dodgers?

The most boring dynasty of all-time. Forgettable championships, just like the two the Warriors won with Kevin Durant.

The only difference is the Warriors did not cause a lockout.