Jays So Far: Report April 13th

Wow, I can't say enough about how great this last week has been. With all the let downs in Toronto sports recently, the Jays have been the lone bright spot since that 3-0 start we saw with the Raps back in September. Now I know that its extremely early in the season, but who would have thought that after 7 games the Jays would be leading the headlined AL East? Definitely not me.

Since the 1994 lockout, the Jays have been plagued by inconsistency. Any Jays fan has had the difficulty of watching a team finish with a mediocre 70-80 win season for the last decade and a half. We've seen stars like Clemens and Delgado come and go, but never a team with a real shot at placing ahead of the stacked Sox and Yanks.

Last year, I thought coming in we had a legitimate shot at fighting for the AL East. We had the rotation, and a lineup that was solid enough to make a serious run. But plagued by injuries and a horrific showing by Frank Thomas, we finished 4th in the AL East.

After finishing with one of the best pitching staffs last season, we now have the fortune of relying on an inexperience rookie staff. I would say we have the BEST ace in baseball. Doc is a workhorse, who gives it his all day in and day out, and is the most under appreciated athlete in Toronto sports. He IS the Toronto Blue Jays.

But today, I am gonna cover our hitting.

I love Vernon Wells, but 126 million? Come on J.P., talk about over spending. I wouldn't compare that deal to Barry Zito's (worst contract in MLB history), but that money is what you pay for a superstar. Is that what Wells is, because that is what were paying him to be. The only way I see that contract being worth it, is if I see him hit 40 dingers, and about a 0.330 avg. I hope this is the year we see him shine again, yet those stats seem far out of reach. Hes good for about 30 this year, hoping that hamstring doesn't fail him again.

Rios. All I can say is that there is a special place in my heart for him. Being a season ticket holder, I have watched him come up, and slowly, and I mean SLOWLY, bloom into a great everyday right fielder. Nothing brought me more joy that to watch him 2 years ago show the potential we all know he has. But since an injury that caused him to miss some time, he has yet to fully regain that beautiful power stroke of his. My belief is that Rios holds the key to the future of the Blue Jays. He can either be the player who almost garnered a trade for Tim Lincecum, or be the above average player we all saw last year.

Guys I like on the Jays:

Lind. Thank you. You have shown me that the Toronto organization did have at least some plan for our future. I love seeing a Jays player knock the ball around at a godly .467 average. Hitting with RISP (runners in scoring position) is something that we never saw next year, and seeing him hit behind Wells and Rios, he will have plenty of opportunity to do that all year.

Hill. The next Roberto Alomar. He looks great this year, and should be a mainstay at 2B for the Jays for a large part of our future. He is tagging the ball with authority, and making nice defensive plays to boot.

Scutaro. A great utility player that has finally been given a shot to be a starter. He has shown that putting him at leadoff was no mistake. He is getting on base, and giving the Jays a chance to win.

Rolen. I hate Troy Glaus. Period. With a smile on my face, I can now say that the Jays won that trade. With Glaus on the IR again to no ones surprise, Rolen has been a key ingreadient to the Jays early potent offense.

Snider. Best pure power hitter I have seen come up in the Jays organization since Delgado. I still think he is way too young and inexperienced to be up with the Jays. Hopefully he can prove me wrong, and start killing the ball like he did in the opener.

Our hitting has been superb, and keeping it up is most likely not going to happen, but we can all pray right?

MVP? CITO GASTON. He is the man. Fuck Gibbons, if we had Gaston last year, we would have won the Wild Card.

Pitching up next, but there is little optimism there.