One of the chic sleeper teams in baseball for 2008 is the Toronto Blue Jays. If this club can stay healthy, it could be a player in the wild-card race and possibly even in the AL East.
In a way, it was the numerous injuries to the pitching staff in 2007 that gives this club optimism in 2008.
Led by ace Roy Halladay, Toronto's pitching staff enjoyed a strong finish last season, posting a 3.61 ERA in the second half -- the second-best mark in baseball. The Blue Jays cycled through 11 different starters, thanks in part to injuries to A.J. Burnett and Gustavo Chacin.
After all the early woes, the Jays eventually settled on a rotation that consisted of Halladay, Burnett, Dustin McGowan, Shaun Marcum and Jesse Litsch – a quintet that combined to go 56-38 with a 3.85 ERA over 128 starts. Heading into 2008, the only job that's up in the air is the fifth spot, which will likely be handed to either Litsch, Chacin or Casey Janssen.
It all starts with Halladay, who finished 16-7 with a 3.71 ERA and a Major League-leading seven complete games. Halladay's 225 1/3 innings ranked third in the league, even after he missed three weeks in May after undergoing an emergency appendectomy.
He and Burnett form one of the majors’ better 1-2 punches, but can Burnett stay healthy enough to make more than the 23 starts per year he has averaged in the two seasons since signing a big contract with the Jays? The 31-year was 10-8 with a 3.75 ERA last year.
McGowan went 12-10 with a 4.08 ERA over 27 starts and he'll likely serve as the Jays' No. 3 starter this year. On June 24, McGowan came within three outs of completing a no-hitter against the Rockies. He finished with 18 quality starts, including 11 in his final 14 outings, and limited right-handed hitters to a .198 average.
Marcum finished 12-6 with a 4.13 ERA in 38 games, but he shined as a starter, going 11-4 with a 3.91 ERA in that role.As for the bullpen, the Jays lost star closer B.J. Ryan early last season to injury and hope to have him back by Opening Day after Tommy John urgery. If he isn’t quite ready, Jeremy Accardo (2.14 ERA in 64 games last year) can serve as the temporary closer once again.
The biggest question mark on Toronto’s offense is the highest-paid player, Vernon Wells.
In 149 games, Wells hit just .245 with 16 home runs and 80 RBIs. That was a stark contrast to his showing in 2006, when he was a starter on the American League All-Star team and finished with a .303 average, 32 homers and 106 RBIs. The culprit behind Wells' woes turned out to be an injured left shoulder, although some question his motivation after getting a big contract.
Last season, Wells played through the injury, which first became an issue in May 2006. After struggling through much of the '07 season, Wells went under the knife on Sept. 25 and says he is healthy.
Toronto overhauled the left side of its infield in the offseason, bringing in shortstop David Eckstein and third baseman Scott Rolen from the Cardinals. Rolen was acquired in a trade for Troy Glaus, another of the many injured Jays last year.
However, Rolen has played in 115 or fewer games in three of his last five seasons, mostly because of a troublesome left shoulder. Rolen says he's feeling better than he has since 2004, a year in which he hit .314 with 34 HRs and 124 RBIs. If he can come anywhere close to those numbers, the Jays will have stolen themselves an All-Star.
Meanwhile, keep on eye on outfielder Alex Rios. Last year, Rios appeared in 161 games and hit .297 with 24 homers and 85 RBIs. Rios, who turns 27 in February, also stole 17 bases, tallied 43 doubles, scored 114 runs and collected 320 total bases.
"The sky's the limit for Rios. Rios can be anything he wants to be in this game," GM J.P. Ricciardi said. "Rios has a chance to become a really good outfielder and I think if he takes as much pride in his defense as he does with his offense, the sky's the limit for him."
The lowdown: Assuming Halladay is Halladay and that Wells bounces back and Rios continues to improve, and if Burnett, Ryan, Rolen and DH Frank Thomas can play a full season and the young pitchers show they form they did the second half of last season, this team can reach the playoffs. But that's a lot that has to go right.
Projected lineup
SS David Eckstein
1B Lyle Overbay
RF Alex Rios
DH Frank Thomas
CF Vernon Wells
3B Scott Rolen
2B Aaron Hill
C Gregg Zaun
LF Matt Stairs/Reed Johnson
Projected rotation
Roy Halladay
A.J. Burnett
Dustin McGowan
Shaun Marcum
Jesse Litsch
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