The last four years for the Toronto Blue Jays’ fans have closely resembled the last four decades for Maple Leafs fans – boom and bust cycles of optimism, some well-deserved, some the product of hometown blindness
Ten months removed from the firing of long-time General Manager J.P. Ricciardi, the Jays are in the midst of yet another rebuilding effort under rookie GM Alex Anthopoulos.
Of course, many around the organization argue that this is more of “building” project than a “rebuilding” one.
The foundation is well in place and has exceeded all expectations this season, as a young cast of players have led the Jays to a record that hovers near five games over .500 so far, a shock to nearly every fan and analyst.
The Jays now boast an army of young starting pitchers that can keep the team in any game at the major league level, and two more high-ceiling prospects are poised to the join the staff in the coming years.
Kyle Drabek, acquired in the earth-shaking trade for Roy Halladay last December, is poised to play for the big league team next season after a successful career in the minor leagues. Zach Stewart remains in the minors, but he is surely not far from contributing in the major leagues.
They will join Shaun Marcum, Ricky Romero, Brett Cecil, Brandon Morrow, and Mark Rzepczynski in a very potent starting rotation.
The true shocker this year, however, has been the squad’s power-driven offense. They lead the league by a comfortable margin in home runs, which, if predicted before the season, would have made the Jays’ dismal odds of winning the World Series look impressive. Leading the charge has been Jose Bautista, a career backup utility player who is close to hitting 40 home runs.
Other players have emerged to contribute as well, including Vernon Wells, who was largely ineffective last year after signing a $20 million a season mega contract.
Anthopoulos, who began his career in baseball answering fan mail for the Montreal Expos and slowly worked his way to the top of the Jays, has made a handful of shrewd trades that improved the team dramatically.
His swap of Brandon League, a dime-a-dozen relief pitcher and a minor leaguer, for Brandan Morrow now looks ingenious as Morrow thrives as a starter.
More recently, he traded career journeyman and intended one-year stop-gap shortstop Alex Gonzalez to Atlanta for Yunel Escobar, who was once regarded as one of league’s elite players at his position before a weak start to this season lowered his trade value. Like Morrow, he has thrived as a Jay and the trade was brazen robbery in hindsight.
The argument has been made before, but with a bit of time for their young pitchers to mature and their jaw-dropping offense to further gel, Canada’s only remaining Major League Baseball team could be in contention for the title well before Barack Obama runs for reelection.