Okay, Now I Get It
Am looking forward to a chance, hopefully in the near future, to meet and chat with Blue Jays baseball boss Alex Anthopoulos for the first time.
That said, I feel like I know Anthopoulos better than I did last week, or at least I better comprehend his intentions with this ball club.
See, when J.P. Ricciardi was running the Blue Jays, whenever it seemed like his plan was clear, he went to a different plan. One day he was promising the Jays would become Minnesota East, all about developing players and being resourceful and playing the right way, and the next he was signing A.J. Burnett and Frank Thomas.
Maybe it was Ricciardi, maybe it was Paul Godfrey, maybe it was the changing motivations of ownership. Who knows? But the "plan" shifted and changed, and not only did tomorrow never come, today never did either.
Which brings us to Anthopoulos. When the ball club managed to do a fair sight better last season than many believed it would, there were suggestions in many corners than bolstering this position or that position would vault the Jays into a playoff spot.
Given that Anthopoulos had been preaching restraint and a gradual rebuild, I was intriguing to see what his response would be.
Well, first starting pitcher Shaun Marcum was peddled to Milwaukee for young second baseman Brett Lawrie. Okay, that went with the get young, grow-as-a-group mentality, but immediately there was speculation that the Jays would pursue Kansas City's Zack Greinke, which would be precisely the chasing-your-tail move that Ricciardi would have pulled off.
But that didn't happen. Instead, last week came the Vernon Wells deal with Anaheim. It wasn't about getting kids back, but it was about moving a gi-normous contract held by a good to very good player who didn't seem too bothered he was only good to very good and never great. Two players, an aging outfielder and a catcher who doesn't seem to quite fit, came back, but they were certainly not the kind of ballplayers who fit the win-now mentality. This was about clearing the decks.
So barring some sideways move between now and spring training, I get it. Anthopoulos appears to have a plan and a timetable, and despite the suggestions of many, it wasn't to win in 2011. Once the Jays decided not to take at run at Florida 2B Dan Uggla - and they looked at it hard - it was in essence a vote of confidence in the slow, gradual build.
Jays fans who have been waiting for a winner for getting on 20 years, naturally, might find this all a tad annoying. But with the AL East in a bit of turmoil, and with Tampa Bay having proven that you don't have to spend with the Yankees to compete with the Yankees, the logic of the Jays choosing this path was indisputable.
They might not win this way. But they were never going to win the other way.
I suppose it will take the Leafs 20 years of playoff futility before they engage in such intelligent, long-term thinking. I think the Jays just usurped the Leafs on my depth chart.
Posted by: Sean | January 24, 2011 at 05:46 PM
AA is doing what Ricciardi promised he would; build, not buy, a winner. I don't understand what the big deal is in buying a winner. Grow the players and win with your own stock not those developed by somebody else.
Posted by: Bruce Antonello | January 24, 2011 at 09:01 PM
During the early 90's Toronto was one of the greatest sports cities around. The Jays were champs, the Leafs were exciting and competitive, and we hadn't heard of the Raptors yet. It would really be nice to see our teams giving us something to cheer about.
The Jays were a great team to watch last season, I'm excited to see them over the next few years with AA at the helm.
Posted by: Simmer | January 25, 2011 at 11:45 AM
wow! the blue jays are finally getting some attention, and from a hockey commentator at that. guess this 'hockey town' has finally realized there are other sports teams to pay attention to! burke is getting SCHOOLED by AA on the proper way to rebuild. we'll just have to see if the star, and every other single media outlet, will finally start giving the jays their due, and stop treating toronto like a one-sport town!
Posted by: Julie | January 25, 2011 at 12:53 PM
The Blue Jays have proven once again that they are a semi-pro organization feeding players to NY, LA, Philly, etc that will never win again, unless by some fluke. Last year, 85 wins. But how many would there have been if you drop the combined record of the #5 starters and add Roy Halladay at the top? Playoffs for sure. Chris Carpenter, Carlos Delgado, Shawn Green, Shaun Marcum, Halladay, Wells and others. All salary dumps, all for next to nothing in return. I stopped going to Jays games in 1994. Wise decision.
Posted by: Tony Delville | January 26, 2011 at 08:31 AM