How good are the Jays

scronnyjohny · 02-05-2007, 08:27 PM

How do the Jays stack up against the rest of American League if they were ranked?

robb · 02-06-2007, 02:06 AM

5th - maybe 4th

GNick · 02-06-2007, 05:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robb

5th - maybe 4th

On paper....we will be lucky to ranked that high. Red Sox and Yanks are better....White Sox....Twins....A's....Angels

RickJay · 02-06-2007, 11:56 AM

I'm unconvinced the White Sox will be all that great, but Toronto doesn't look much better than it did last year, when they finished sixth overall, so I'd stick with that.

Bjindaho · 02-06-2007, 02:49 PM

On paper, I'd say we're better than New York.
But one injury fixes that.

Kris · 02-07-2007, 03:15 PM

5th-6th sounds right.

Twins are going to take a hit without Liriano and Radke in the rotation. They have some good young starters to help cover but none of them will be what Liriano was in 2006. The lineup is getting better with the young hitters but the Jays lineup is better.

Whitesox's rotation is overrated. The lineup took a major step up last year. But can Dye post another 1.000OPS?

I think the Indians and Tigers will be be fighting for 1 and 2 spots in the AL Central.

Angels and Oakland both have problems and will be looking at 85-90 wins next season.

I see 4 90-95 win teams next year Indians-Yankees-Tigers-Red Sox. Then there is a large group of Jays, Oakland, Angels, Whitesox, Twins in the 85-90 win range.

scronnyjohny · 02-10-2007, 02:22 PM

McGowen Rosario or League have to step up and pitch like a Bonderman type number 3 starter. Otherwise we'll be last years Cleveland Indians.

GNick · 02-10-2007, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kris

5th-6th sounds right.

Twins are going to take a hit without Liriano and Radke in the rotation. They have some good young starters to help cover but none of them will be what Liriano was in 2006. The lineup is getting better with the young hitters but the Jays lineup is better.

Whitesox's rotation is overrated. The lineup took a major step up last year. But can Dye post another 1.000OPS?

I think the Indians and Tigers will be be fighting for 1 and 2 spots in the AL Central.

Angels and Oakland both have problems and will be looking at 85-90 wins next season.

I see 4 90-95 win teams next year Indians-Yankees-Tigers-Red Sox. Then there is a large group of Jays, Oakland, Angels, Whitesox, Twins in the 85-90 win range.

Not much one can say after that post

Zen653 · 03-07-2007, 01:28 AM

It appears I'm a lot more optimistic about the Blue Jays than the rest of you ladies and gents. They could be the best team in the AL East, or they could be no higher than third. It's really too close to call.

The more I think about it, the more I think this will be Boston's best chance at winning the division - not that they will, just that they finally have a legitimate chance. The Red Sox have Ramirez, Ortiz and Drew. We've got Lugo as an upgrade on Gonzalez. We've got Cora as a defensive replacement if things get really bad with Lugo or Pedroia. We have four starters you could reasonably project 15+ wins for - and it wouldn’t be shocking if two of them won 20+. The only glaring hole is the bullpen and even that could work out. For all the flak the Sox caught in ’03 for closer by committee, they were within 5 outs of making the World Series that year. Maybe they’ll start with Donnelly who has looked good in the spring, and then make a deal at the deadline for Chad Cordero, or some other closer. Or maybe Clemens signs with the Red Sox, and Papelbon goes back to the bullpen for the playoffs. Either way, it’ll work itself out. Most teams don’t have established high-priced closers, it’s an evolving process and they eventually find one from within the organization.

The Yankees are going to be quite good too. You have three guys who should win at least 15+, and it similarly wouldn’t be surprising if two of them won 20+. You’ve got the best closer in baseball in Mariano Rivera. You’ve got the deepest offense in the league, with 8 All-Stars in your starting lineup. In AAA, you've got someone whom many scouts project to be a future HOF pitcher in Phil Hughes. You've got the best chance at signing Clemens because of the Pettite factor, and the increased need for starting pitching. You’ve got a bunch of other usable young arms at the high levels of the minors. You have an energized Alex Rodriguez who might be playing for a new contract. You've got a gold glove first baseman who will make the left side of the infield’s job a lot easier by getting to several balls that would otherwise go for errors. The only slight weakness is the bench, and even that’s pretty good with Melky Cabrera as the fourth outfielder.

The Jays have a great 1-2 combo in Halladay and Burnett. Chacin isn't bad as a No. 3 guy. The offense is lethal with Frank Thomas added to a mix that already includes Troy Glaus and Vernon Wells. BJ Ryan turns games into 7 or 8inning affairs. Alex Rios is entering his prime and will be a menace both offensively and defensively. The Blue Jays always seem to beat the Red Sox in recent years. The bullpen is full of young power arms with strong minor league credentials. Poor team chemistry players like Hillenbrand and Lilly, both of whom publicly clashed with the manager last year, are gone, which should be an addition by subtraction. You still have money to spend come July. You finished in 2nd place last year despite being without your top two starters for long stretches of the season. Assuming those guys are healthy, the Jays should only add to what was a relatively successful 2006 campaign. The biggest question marks are the 4 and 5 guys in the rotation. Can someone like Marcum make the transition to major league starter? I find it odd that the Jays haven’t signed Mark Redman for one of those spots. You've got the money now and he’s still waiting for a team. He’d be serviceable with that strong lineup behind him.

scronnyjohny · 03-07-2007, 10:59 PM

The Redsox have a god awful bullpen that is a major liability. We don't have any problem areas that will lose us games.

ofhdhdy · 03-07-2007, 11:30 PM

I just hope Brandon League is healthy soon. I want him to prepare for being are setup man!

02-05-2007, 08:27 PM	#1 (permalink)
scronnyjohny Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Vancouver Posts: 20	How good are the Jays How do the Jays stack up against the rest of American League if they were ranked?

02-06-2007, 02:06 AM	#2 (permalink)
robb Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 12	5th - maybe 4th Last edited by robb; 02-06-2007 at 02:27 AM.

02-06-2007, 02:49 PM	#5 (permalink)
Bjindaho Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Saint John, NB Posts: 67	On paper, I'd say we're better than New York. But one injury fixes that. __________________ God is Dead - Nietzsche Nietzsche is Dead - God Death arises only for those who refute themselves - Me

03-07-2007, 10:59 PM	#10 (permalink)
scronnyjohny Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Vancouver Posts: 20	re The Redsox have a god awful bullpen that is a major liability. We don't have any problem areas that will lose us games.

02-06-2007, 11:56 AM	#4 (permalink)
RickJay Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 50	I'm unconvinced the White Sox will be all that great, but Toronto doesn't look much better than it did last year, when they finished sixth overall, so I'd stick with that.

02-07-2007, 03:15 PM	#6 (permalink)
Kris New Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 5	5th-6th sounds right. Twins are going to take a hit without Liriano and Radke in the rotation. They have some good young starters to help cover but none of them will be what Liriano was in 2006. The lineup is getting better with the young hitters but the Jays lineup is better. Whitesox's rotation is overrated. The lineup took a major step up last year. But can Dye post another 1.000OPS? I think the Indians and Tigers will be be fighting for 1 and 2 spots in the AL Central. Angels and Oakland both have problems and will be looking at 85-90 wins next season. I see 4 90-95 win teams next year Indians-Yankees-Tigers-Red Sox. Then there is a large group of Jays, Oakland, Angels, Whitesox, Twins in the 85-90 win range.

02-10-2007, 02:22 PM	#7 (permalink)
scronnyjohny Member Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Vancouver Posts: 20	McGowen Rosario or League have to step up and pitch like a Bonderman type number 3 starter. Otherwise we'll be last years Cleveland Indians.

03-07-2007, 01:28 AM	#9 (permalink)
Zen653 Hall of Famer Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 6,902	It appears I'm a lot more optimistic about the Blue Jays than the rest of you ladies and gents. They could be the best team in the AL East, or they could be no higher than third. It's really too close to call. The more I think about it, the more I think this will be Boston's best chance at winning the division - not that they will, just that they finally have a legitimate chance. The Red Sox have Ramirez, Ortiz and Drew. We've got Lugo as an upgrade on Gonzalez. We've got Cora as a defensive replacement if things get really bad with Lugo or Pedroia. We have four starters you could reasonably project 15+ wins for - and it wouldn’t be shocking if two of them won 20+. The only glaring hole is the bullpen and even that could work out. For all the flak the Sox caught in ’03 for closer by committee, they were within 5 outs of making the World Series that year. Maybe they’ll start with Donnelly who has looked good in the spring, and then make a deal at the deadline for Chad Cordero, or some other closer. Or maybe Clemens signs with the Red Sox, and Papelbon goes back to the bullpen for the playoffs. Either way, it’ll work itself out. Most teams don’t have established high-priced closers, it’s an evolving process and they eventually find one from within the organization. The Yankees are going to be quite good too. You have three guys who should win at least 15+, and it similarly wouldn’t be surprising if two of them won 20+. You’ve got the best closer in baseball in Mariano Rivera. You’ve got the deepest offense in the league, with 8 All-Stars in your starting lineup. In AAA, you've got someone whom many scouts project to be a future HOF pitcher in Phil Hughes. You've got the best chance at signing Clemens because of the Pettite factor, and the increased need for starting pitching. You’ve got a bunch of other usable young arms at the high levels of the minors. You have an energized Alex Rodriguez who might be playing for a new contract. You've got a gold glove first baseman who will make the left side of the infield’s job a lot easier by getting to several balls that would otherwise go for errors. The only slight weakness is the bench, and even that’s pretty good with Melky Cabrera as the fourth outfielder. The Jays have a great 1-2 combo in Halladay and Burnett. Chacin isn't bad as a No. 3 guy. The offense is lethal with Frank Thomas added to a mix that already includes Troy Glaus and Vernon Wells. BJ Ryan turns games into 7 or 8inning affairs. Alex Rios is entering his prime and will be a menace both offensively and defensively. The Blue Jays always seem to beat the Red Sox in recent years. The bullpen is full of young power arms with strong minor league credentials. Poor team chemistry players like Hillenbrand and Lilly, both of whom publicly clashed with the manager last year, are gone, which should be an addition by subtraction. You still have money to spend come July. You finished in 2nd place last year despite being without your top two starters for long stretches of the season. Assuming those guys are healthy, the Jays should only add to what was a relatively successful 2006 campaign. The biggest question marks are the 4 and 5 guys in the rotation. Can someone like Marcum make the transition to major league starter? I find it odd that the Jays haven’t signed Mark Redman for one of those spots. You've got the money now and he’s still waiting for a team. He’d be serviceable with that strong lineup behind him.

03-07-2007, 11:30 PM	#11 (permalink)
ofhdhdy Banned Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Saskatoon, SK Posts: 378	I just hope Brandon League is healthy soon. I want him to prepare for being are setup man!