The MLB season for the World Series pre-season favourite Toronto Blue Jays is mercifully winding down and even for some stalwart Jays fans the end can’t come too soon.
It was supposed to be a pennant winning season for the Jays given all the off-season moves made by Alex Anthopolous but 2013 has been anything but the year of the Blue Jay. More like the year of the Blue Fan.
Pitching was the target of improvement for the team and Josh Johnson has been a bust, R.A. Dickey was nowhere near being the Cy Young award winner he was in 2012.
Mark Buehrle has been the only starter in the new look lineup who has been somewhat consistent.
The bullpen has been nothing short of a horror movie each time someone comes in from the outfield with Casey Janssen the only bright spot posting 32 saves in 34 chances to this point.
The tell-tale sign once again is 19 games tossed away by the pen so far with a week left.
Offensively the Jays have not scored enough to offset a very poor defense which gave up plenty of runs early in games and then had to try to rally in order to get a win.
This team kicked more balls than FC Toronto (soccer in case you were wondering) and so far have chalked up more than 65 errors from their infield starters. That’s without counting the ones Emelio Bonafacio was responsible for before being traded and he had a glove full.
So is it time to cut loose some players and allow the next generation of Jays like Goins, Gose and Pillar take a shot?
Maybe it’s time to get something for Jose Bautista while he is still a force and cut loose J.P. Arencibia. Even though Adam Lind has come through with a solid season is his time as a Jay passed?
What about Dickey and Johnson who make about $18 million a year between the two of them? Time to scratch that experiment?
Does John Gibbons get a pass as a manager who took a team with talent and stayed in the A.L. East basement essentially all year long?
There will be plenty of questions asked in the coming months and the Jays faithful are hoping AA has the answer this time around.
Or maybe his time in Toronto is over?
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