JAYS NEED A GOOD START, BUT IT WON'T BE EASY
With the start of a critical season for the current iteration of the Toronto Blue Jays now just days away, taking stock of where the team finds itself isn't exactly an exercise in positivity.
An underachieving 2023 season was followed by a disastrous post-season which then led to a mystifyingly poor off-season.
During spring training there have been injuries to two thirds of the starting rotation and the top catcher.
Pitcher Alek Manoah won't be ready for the start of the season and projected ace, Kevin Gausman, will miss at least one start and perhaps more.
As a result of the ongoing renovation to Rogers Centre, the Jays once again begin with a 10-game road trip to open their schedule, a tough ask for any team but even tougher for one in somewhat desperate need for a decent start for reasons on and off the field.
It's not exactly a walk through the (baseball) park either, as the
Jays start with four against the Rays in Tampa Bay, move on to the perennially tough Houston Astros for three and then face their division rival New York Yankees in their home opener to start a three-game weekend series.
On top of that, the April 12 home opener will take place at a renovated Rogers Centre that the players will barely get to see, never mind get comfortable with, prior to launching their home schedule.
When opening day arrives next Thursday in St. Pete, the onus piles onto the players to get off to at least a reasonable start to help compensate for some of the organizational shortcomings. Without any big-ticket additions to the roster from the team that wasn't good enough last season, it's another dose of pressure.
Given the status of Manoah and Gausman and an additional injury to No. 1 catcher Danny Jansen, it feels like training camp has been more of a battle for survival than the usual grind.
The Jays took an 11-11 Grapefruit League record into Monday's off day and, with eight games remaining, we'll likely see a healthy dose of regulars getting in their final preparations.
The lineup is mostly set, with only the bottom of the 26-man roster decisions to be made, including the status of 40-yearold minor league invitee Joey Votto, who rolled an ankle moments after hitting a home run in his Jays debut on Sunday.
Perhaps the most pressing business is how manager John Schneider and pitching coach Pete Walker roll out the rotation.
The front-runner for the opening day assignment would have to be Jose Berrios, who has for the most part looked sharp in pre-season play, although his dodgy debut in that role two seasons ago may be a consideration.
Failing that, veteran Chris Bassitt would be the next logical choice with lefty Yusei Kikuchi rounding out the three remaining healthy starters.
Manoah is expected to return to the mound this week, but even if that happens, a mid-april return to game action might be the best-case scenario.
And even if he is throwing, will the right-hander be doing it well enough with his shoulder discomfort to return to the major leagues, or will he start in Buffalo or elsewhere?
Gausman, whose ailment has been described as right shoulder fatigue, has yet to throw in a game.
That's expected to happen this week, which won't be nearly enough to have him fit for the opening series. The best-case scenario for the 2023 AL Cy Young finalist is perhaps an abbreviated start at the back end of the rotation with the bullpen picking up the remainder. In other words, less than ideal.
Jansen will be absent for two weeks after breaking a small bone between his hand and wrist. That, of course, is the optimistic prognosis and the backstop depth beyond Alejandro Kirk isn't bountiful.
There has been some good in camp, but has it been enough? When Schneider marches out what looks like an opening day lineup of George Springer, Bo Bichette, Vlad Guerrero Jr. and Justin Turner taking the top four slots, the potential remains formidable. For what it's worth, the 144 runs the Jays have scored are the most of any Grapefruit League team this spring as Bichette, Guerrero and Springer have all looked solid at various times at the plate.
The mindset Jays players seem to have adopted is that of a group with something to prove.
That the players are the ones tasked to overcome an underwhelming winter from the front office is part of the challenge that awaits.
Every day, it seems, we see a new pitch for Jays ticket sales
(at jacked up prices in many cases) as ownership looks to fill a renovated building with a fan base that is justifiably skeptical.
Play ball, indeed.