Sep 6, 2011; Toronto, ON, Canada; Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos talks to media before the game against the Boston Red Sox at the Rogers Centre. The Red Sox beat the Blue Jays 14-0. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

In season, we saw the arrival of Colby Rasmus and the first number retired in team history: Roberto Alomar‘s number 12. We may not have been too competitive on the field but the fans bought into AA’s plan to build for 2013 and beyond. To be sustainable. He brought the minor league system from 25th best to 3rd best according to Baseball America. He drafted well and the prospect pool started to deepen. We, as fans, were hoping for the best but realistic that to fix what J.P. Ricciardi had left would take some time. A new philosophy always needs to bleed into the fabric of a team over time. So the 2011 Home Opener was a celebration of not only a new season but a new feel to our beloved Blue Jays.

Date: April 1, 2011
Location: Rogers Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada
Game: Minnesota Twins vs. YOUR Toronto Blue Jays
Weather:…there is no weather inside a dome…ain’t figured that out yet? Hehe

We would see the maturing process of Ricky Romero reach it’s pinnacle in 2011 as he is named the number 1 starter for this team. With Romero and Brandon Morrow we saw two fixtures in the rotation. The next three were a mish mash of Brett Cecil, Kyle Drabek, Henderson Alvarez, Jesse Litch et al. The offence seemed primed for a great season with Jose Bautista blowing the cover off the ball, Adam Lind showing early promise and Brett Lawrie looking to impress. The pieces were falling into place at certain positions.

The game was a laugher from the start. We tallied fours runs in the first off a resurgent Carl Pavano and added six more before the start of the sixth. Romero was tossing donuts and looking every bit the number 1 he was designated to be. He would go 6.1 innings, 3 runs given up but only 1 earned and 7 strikeouts. Add to that the killer night of J.P. Arencibia (3-4, 2 runs, 5 RBIs, including 2 home runs). The game was well in hand as we trounced the Twins 13-3.

Coming off the type of surprise season the team had in 2010 this looked to be a great omen…an omen that went in the crapper as we finished 81-81…a mediocre line but underneath that failure to win were the seeds being planted of a winning team. We just needed to be patient. With a few more moves over the off-season this looked like a team being built properly, with no excuses. All we needed was to wait…

May 1, 2011; Bronx, NY, USA; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Jesse Litsch (51) during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-US PRESSWIRE

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Jesse Litsch has come a long way since being a bat boy for then Tampa Bay Devil Rays. A lifer pitching in the Jays organization, he has amassed a 27-27 record with a career 4.16 ERA and 1.31 WHIP in the major leagues since first appearing for the club in May of 2007. In fact, this writer happened to be present for Litsch’s first career start, in which he allowed only 4 hits, 2 walks and 1 run over 8.2 innings. It was also the first time that the stadium got to see “Jesse’s Girls”, a group of animated male Jesse Listch cheerleading fans dressed in drag. They served as a token of good luck, as Jesse finished the year going 7–9 with a 3.89 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 50 K/36 BB over 20 starts.

While never seemingly having the stuff to get past being a projected 4-5^th starter, his first two years with the team served the Jays with a reliable pitcher, starting 48 games over that span of time. However, the injury bug began its manifestation in 2009 after sitting on the DL. What started as a simple right forearm strain became something much more serious; his season was shut down on June 9^th after the announcement he was to undergo Tommy John surgery.

He would never completely recover from that injury.

The following year in 2010 he would only make 9 starts for the Blue Jays, going a dismal 1-5 with a 5.79 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and a paltry 16K/15BB ratio over 46.2 innings. The beginning of 2011 didn’t fare too well for him either, as he fell from the 5^th spot in the rotation to all the way down to A level ball in the minor leagues. After putting in enough time throughout A-AAA, he eventually take over long relief duties back in the majors. He looked destined to be a career reliever, a humble path for even the likes of colleague Casey Janssen, who has thrived from the experience before him.

Jesse Litsch never got the chance to do so, as he was sidelined in 2012 spring training with a shoulder inflammation. The injections given to him to help speed the recovery process caused an infection that would place the pitcher on the DL for the entire season, his last with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Where does that leave the Blue Jays? It leaves the organization with 37 players on their 40-man roster (Update: Since Litsch was on the 60-day DL he did not count against the 40-man roster), enough space to add some of the players Alex Anthopoulos has talked about getting in the offseason. It leaves Jesse Litsch to test his hand at free agency, one where he is likely to sign a minor league contract with another club. It leaves the fans a sense of sadness on what could have been for the troubled pitcher if he had the opportunity to turn it around. It also leaves everyone wondering what will happen with Dustin McGowan.