It is most certainly a trying year if you are a fan of the Toronto Blue Jays.
That said, the wreck that the team currently is, was something wise baseball fans could see coming before the first pitch was thrown on the current season.
The Jays struggled in 2017, and the optimistic, or perhaps the ridiculously naive, chalked that showing up to the team missing starting pitcher Aaron Sanchez for most of the year, and Roberto Osuna blowing a few too many saves. You could do some creative math around the pitching pair and push the Jays into distant contention.
So Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins spent the last off season bolstering an already shaky Jay’s squad with aging bandaids. He signed pitchers Seung-hwan Oh, Tyler Clippard and John Axford, all bit pieces that on a good team could have been useful, but weren’t collectively a bullpen to boost a team into contention.
Ditto adding outfield Curtis Granderson, a nice veteran presence, but not a piece in a winning outfield.
Atkins made other moves, but none brought a piece to the puzzle that ensured a better season in 2018.
In terms of moves Atkins has made many since assuming the GM role, but none have brought a significant piece to TO, at least yet. In dumping Oh, Axford, Osuna, and J.A. Happ at the trade deadline he did acquire a pocket full of assets, although none suggest blue chip prospects either.
And, frankly Atkins’ trade deadline blow out was not inclusive enough, although injuries likely prevent Marco Estrada from being dealt, and the same is the case for third baseman Josh Donaldson.
Donaldson is a sad case. He should have been traded in the off season when he had some real value. Holding on to some misguided hope the Jays could contend kept him in TO, but he has been hurt and a non-factor. The injury meant no trade, and now he will likely depart via free agency with no pay back for the Jays.
Why Clippard and Granderson weren’t dealt, even for a single ‘A’ long-shot is a mystery.
Ideally, Troy Tulowitzki, Russell Martin and Kendrys Morales, would have been moved too, but all three are far overpaid compared to their actual play value, so a move is all but impossible.
The bloated contracts, and left overs such as Granderson, leave the Jays stuck in something of a no-man’s land. They clearly are rebuilding, but are stuck with a handful of pieces that just don’t fit into short, or long terms plans for change and improvement.
There are some intriguing pieces in the TO farm system; Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, Anthony Alford, Rowdy Tellez, Danny Jansen and Cavan Biggio, all position players with promise. That is the scary part the Jays players of promise rarely achieve super stardom, the last position player to do it was arguably Carlos Delgado and that goes back years.
But let’s dream this group bucks the history and blossom, it still leaves huge issues in terms of pitching with Marcus Stroman showing he might be a solid fourth starter, not the staff ace, and the aforementioned Sanchez showing signs he may be a bust. The prospect cupboard for pitchers is pretty thin in Jaysville.
And, the Jays are in the toughest division in baseball with both the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox with great young cores, and deeper pockets to fill holes. That reality would suggest, barring major injuries, at best the Jays are fighting for the second wild card position. That is not a particularly enticing place to be.
The face of the Jays is changing, but whether it becomes a prettier face in terms of success is hard to tell when looking at things in August 2018.
