Toronto Blue Jays Stand Pat With Starting Rotation

Mandatory Credit: David Manning-USA TODAY Sports

Now the veil appears to be off the mask of Alex Anthopolous’ cunning plan. The Toronto Blue Jays will not go after Masahiro Tanaka and perhaps no one else. Could it be that “The Ninja” will stay pat with all the pitchers he has? He is standing pat with Ryan Goins. Perhaps he agrees with a Toronto clairvoyant who predicts the Jays will do well in 2014. Why spend more money?

GM Anthopolous has stated he will only trade for pitchers or go for free agents if he is sure he can improve the team and the price is right. Right now, good top-of-the-rotation starters are few and at a premium and you could not get more premium than Tanaka. Good bye to that dream of Munenori Kawasaki and Tanaka dancing in the dugout.

For Anthopolous, the Toronto Blue Jays rotation represents the best dependability and depth he can get for the buck. Ever heard of a fellow named William Lamar “Billy” Beane III and money ball? Saving money seems more important to Rogers and the Jays than star power, power pitching and potential upside. It is understandable, the Jays were burned with stars-in-his-eyes Josh Johnson who turned out to be more lemon meringue than a rock.

Of course we know that Alex Anthopolous likes to keep everyone guessing. It’s part of his job. So with Tanaka out, is there a chance of trading and or getting a free agent? Yes, but it seems less likely with each passing day. One thing is for sure, it is not beyond Anthopolous to go into spring training with what he has. What does he have in his starting rotation? He has a combination of two inning eaters in Mark Buerhle and R. A. Dickey, a power pitcher in Brandon Morrow who has not met expectations, a near rookie in Drew Hutchinson and a fifth hole man J. A. Happ. It ain’t the best and it ain’t the worst. It’s middlin’.

The team is no longer in the mood to take as many chances as it did last year by trading off pitching prospects for strong upside star players or paying top dollar for them. It appears, so far, that the Jays most likely are staying pat and going with in-house pitchers instead of making trades or going after pricey free agents.