Dear Marcus

I'm sorry Stro.

First, let me wish you the best in your new city of (insert team location of organization trying to win).

I'm sorry because most of this never appreciated you. Most of this being the (current) front office, some media, and twitter eggs. I'm sorry that every bit of emotion you ever showed got grinded into word mush about how you're too this and that; all because you were Marcus god damn Stroman, the best pitcher the Jays have developed since Doc and someone who always left it out on the field your way. I'm sorry you must depart a town you seem to love because of all this bullshit.

Back when you were drafted, you had to deal with questions about your height. And then, when you finally made it, you played with that rightful chip on your shoulder while the narrative about you not being able to pitch because of your height shifted to how you carried yourself about studding it because #HDMH. Most of this never appreciated this; the fact you came back from a disastrous injury to contribute during the most exciting time for the Jays in decades, how you embraced the city and became an ace in the toughest offensive division in baseball, and how you gutted through starts on this absolute dogshit team in 2019 and still tried to bring that attitude that made this team so good a few years ago.

That attitude. A quality that makes dusty fourth line hockey players cult heroes in this country. Instead, an attitude that brought you scorn from most of this. Not an attitude that should have been appreciated by most of this as a winning attribute; a fucking competitor that every god damn (insert team location of organization trying to win) should love at the top of their rotation. No, that attitude just had most of this barking in your direction after starts instead of appreciating the performance you brought this team that day.

I watched you today, the date of this letter, pitch a gem on the road against those loathsome Boston Red Sox. A cleat belonging to a member of the Toronto Blue Jays even crossed home plate during your start, allowing you to get a stat win for once. But instead of talking about how good you were today; we again were forced to listen to everyone talk about that attitude from fossils like Dennis Eckersley and Jerry Remy and whatever mouth breathing moron is drafting a column for the Toronto Sun right now. That attitude that those same mouth breathers are praising the Toronto Raptors for having and the same attitude that they wish their dearly beloved peasant Maple Leafs had.

Fuck them all. I hope (insert team location of organization trying to win) can appreciate you in a way most of this never could, a way that we all should have.

Signed, Blue Jay fans that will always root for you.