A Little Perspective On A Sluggish Start

Simply put, this has not been the start that anyone was expecting.

September 23, 2012; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie (13) in the dugout against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Tampa Bay Rays defeated the Toronto Blue Jays Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

For those of you feeling rattled because your unquenchable thirst for immediate success has not been satisfied, I’d like to invite you to reflect on a period of darkness for the Toronto Blue Jays organization.

It’s the fall. The summer is long gone and the playoffs are now a thing of the past. The Blue Jays have traded their skipper to the Boston Red Sox – a move he referred to as his “dream job.” The rotation is showing little promise. No one knows what the next move is for a young GM.

The year is 2012. The month is October. The aforementioned period of darkness is a mere six months ago.

With a fan base standing on the ledge, prepared to jump and give up on a team that is only 23 games in to a 162 game season, I feel like it’s important to remember where we were at the end of the 2012 postseason.

Hopeless, defeated, modest – these are all words that come to mind. It was downright depressing.

Then came The Trade. The signing of Melky Cabrera. The acquisition of the 2012 National League Cy Young Winner.

Hope, playoffs, swagger – these words came rushing to us faster than Brett Lawrie chugging a Red Bull on a quiet night at home. We weren’t ready. It came too quickly.

Do you remember when Corey Patterson was batting second in the order? Have Jays fans forgotten how much our success depended on an Adam Lind bounce back?

Dare I mention the likes of career hitting .238 John McDonald as an everyday shortstop?

A couple of trades, a new coach, and a free agent acquisition later (at a relative discount, I might add), and now all of a sudden, we’re on top. Playoffs or bust. Success now, not later.

The Blue Jays may very well not make the postseason. All the hype may not translate to the kind of success we were all pining for.

But why the short-term memory?

Consider a time not long ago when such expectations were a pipe dream. When we begged for ownership to cough up some dough and put us into contention. When Jose Bautista was all alone, with no true leadoff man ahead of him to get on base.

Regardless of what happens from here on out, Blue Jays fans should at least appreciate where the team is now in this, the early goings of a long season: highly talented and waiting to put it all together.

Enjoy the team. Would you prefer less talent with the same old result?