With a record of 51-51 and the trade deadline just hours away, the Blue Jays need to decide whether they are in re-building mode or see themselves as a contender for a play-off spot. Anthopolous has already swung 3 deals by pulling off the most low key 10-player trade you will see in acquiring pitcher J.A. Happ from the Houston Astros, trading for another pitcher in Steve Delabar from the Seattle Mariners & also trading away Travis Snider to Pittsburgh for yet another pitcher, Brad Lincoln. But, these 3 deals do not conclusively say which direction the team plans move toward. The Jays have to go one of 3 ways: 1) Re-build 2) Stand pat or 3) Stock-up & go all in.
 |
| First J.A. Happ, now Brad Lincoln. Will another new face be playing at Rogers Centre? |
- Re-build: This is likely the road least desired by Blue Jay fans. With this option, the Jays could shop their higher paid players like Jose Bautista, Ricky Romero & Adam Lind to name just a few. There is certainly a market for Romero, as the Rangers & Dodgers are both in the market for starting pitchers. The Dodgers would make sense, since Romero is from the L.A. area. But do the Jays want to give up on him this early? In exchange, Jays fans can expect for more of the same: prospects.
- Stand pat: All things being equal, the Blue Jays have suffered from an injury bug like no other in Major League Baseball this season. With the likes Dustin McGowan, J.P Arencibia, Jesse Litsch, Sergio Santos, Adam Lind, Jose Bautista, Brandon Morrow, Kyle Drabek & Jason Frasor all on the injured list right now, it's surprising that the team has a .500 record in baseball's most competitive division. Would this team have been front-runners if the injuries hadn't occurred? That's debatable, but Anthopoulos could look to improve his team via free agency in the off season, instead of trading prospects or his stars away before the deadline. May be a healthy Jays team would be battling the Angels & Athletics for the Wildcard spots?
- Stock-up: The Torontonians are 4.5 games back of the final wild card spot in the American League. Not quite Everest. But, after getting clobbered by the wild card leading Oakland Athletics last week, the hobbled Jays clearly need to inject some new blood into their squad if they want to make a run at the playoffs this season. Despite being without their feared slugger Jose Bautista, the Jays are still respectable at the plate (ranking atop the MLB in runs scored). It is at starting pitching is where the bluebirds require the most help with Ricky Romero struggling, and Brendan Morrow and Kyle Drabek on the mend. James Shields, Ryan Dempster (likely going to the Dodgers), Kevin Millwood & Matt Garza are just some of the names being thrown around. But, which one of these hurlers is most likely for the Blue Jays? Shields & Millwood are the most realistic options here, but the Jays would still have to part with some top prospects, such as outfielder Moises Sierra, and/or shortstop Andeiny Hechavarria, in order to acquire a veteran pitcher.
 |
| James Shields: Likely to moved tomorrow. But, where? |
So, which one of these 3 directions do Alex Anthopoulos and the Blue Jays choose? It's hard to say, but by looking at the 2 early trades that the GM has made it seems as though the Blue Jays would be better suited to continue to build up depth at the pitching position during the off season. After tonight's loss to the Mariners, the club still sits near the bottom of the AL East with a pitching staff that ranks 26th in ERA & that has given up 132 long balls so far this season (ranked 27th in the majors). Even despite the injury crisis, the Jays need pitching depth to compete....next year. So no need to trade away prospects and stars this year, because it's almost certain that only the Athletics, Angels, Orioles, Tigers and Rays will duke it out for the wild card this season.
Let's see what happens!
Quote of the Week:
If it wasn't for baseball, I'd be in either the penitentiary or the cemetery.
Babe Ruth
No comments:
Post a Comment