MLB insider offers hopes for rest of the Blue Jays' season

Fans of the Toronto Blue Jays are once again wondering whether or not the Blue Jays can reach their full potential.

Even though the regular season is still young and no team in the division is running away and hiding, the Blue Jays have to start making the proper adjustments after a rough week where they dropped below .500.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic recently penned an article (subscription required) where he outlined reasons for optimism and and pessimism for each team.

When discussing the Blue Jays, Bowden mentions the signing of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the additions of Anthony Santander and Bo Bichette as a reason for optimism, saying that it's "a trio of hitters opponents can't pitch around."

Blue Jays fans would love to agree with that rosy sentiment, but a funny little thing has happened on the offense's quest to be a demolition derby.

Santander is barely making a dent from a power perspective. The guy who clubbed 105 home runs over the last three seasons has just three through one month of action. He's hitting .179 and his Baseball Savant page is bluer than the uniform he wears.

Santander is in the 59th percentile in average exit velocity and the 20th percentile in barrel rate. While he's a notoriously slow starter, Santander has not been the integral piece of the offense that we all expected him to be.

Guerrero has been fine so far this season, but it feels like his impact has been muted. Bichette, on the other hand, has as many homers as the broadcasters calling the game. He clearly wants to notch his first long ball of the season every time that he swings of his shoes in the batter's box.

The team's offense has been horrendous so far this season — so much so that they made some history thanks to their offensive futility. To wit, they are next-to-last in home runs (29th), and bottom ten in both OPS and on-base percentage. Something has got to change in order for opposing pitchers to start sweating bullets on the mound.

Bowden further mentions that there's optimism about the rotation. That assessment largely holds up under further examination. The pitching staff ranks 16th in MLB with a 4.06 ERA. Clearly, there is room to grow, but the the club can feel confident about a couple things.

Chris Bassitt and Kevin Gausman have been the most consistent, as they each have a sub-four ERA and a FIP that is in line with the actual numbers. José Berríos has been a roller coaster through his first six starts of the year, while Easton Lucas and Max Scherzer have exposed how thin the rotation depth can be. Then there's a guy like like Bowden Francis, who is proving to a piece worth dreaming about.

The biggest question is how long the rotation can hold up while the bullpen waits for reinforcements like Erik Swanson. If Swanson's replicating his production from 2023 (he had a 2.97. ERA in 69 appearances) would help stabilize a shaky unit.

Bowden mentions that the signing of Jeff Hoffman is looking very prudent in hindsight. Think of where this team would be without him at the back of the bullpen.

If the baseball season were a chapter book, we're at a point where the first chapter has been written. There are still five chapters remaining. Incredibly, there is still time to showcase the level of consistency that made them a preseason pick to make noise.