The Next Level

via Geoff Baker's Marinerblog.
This is former Jays beat guy Geoff Baker doing two things at once. Firstly, Baker shows off his on-camera skills as he somewhat nakedly pursues a higher profile in the talking head sportsworld. Good for him, I say. Get those Baseball Tonight screenminutes.

Secondly, it shows the Mariners going where &mdash if they aren't already &mdash the rest of the baseball world needs to go. Especially the Blue Jays. Focusing on health and wellness and building better baseball players is nothing short of good business for mid-level teams unable to bury expensive mistakes in the dumpster behind old Yankee Stadium. The Mariners and Blue Jays have no recourse but to do everything in their power to keep Felix Hernandez or Aaron Hill on the field at all times. If they can hold off the decline phase of aging players until they reach free agency, teams are only maximizing their already razor-thin return on investment.

If stronger hips and cores allow Ricky Romero and Brett Cecil to pitch more effective innings sooner and sooner, the team MUST pursue every advantage they can get. Look at all the recent discussion of Vernon Wells' (perceived) weight fluctuations. Had the Jays stepped in and mandated a better, more holistic health approach, who knows if he'd suffer from the same nagging injuries that continue to plague him.

The Jays and their concrete jungle-playing surface need to make this their business about 10 minutes ago. Which isn't to say they haven't; Alex Anthopoulos doesn't seem like a guy to leave a single stone unturned. We can only hope the Jays recognize an opportunity to gain a minute edge before it's too late.

I, for one, welcome our new age of cyborg baseball players. Long may they reign.