Toronto Blue Jays

Contributor: Matt Soteroff, mvn.com/mlb-bluejays

2007 Record: 83-79

2007 Summary: The Jays finished in their usual third place in the AL East this past year, sporting an 83-79 record.

The Blue Jays posted a strong lineup at the beginning of 2007 with a new cleanup hitter, Frank Thomas coming to Toronto. He put up decent power numbers: 26 HR, while leading the team with 95 RBI. Many fans will consider his play disappointing because it seemed like he was never able to come up with a clutch hit. The other presumed offensive bright spots, Vernon Wells and Troy Glaus turned in injury-plagued lackluster seasons. Glaus had difficulty staying on the field, while Wells revealed his disappointing offensive numbers were due to a nagging shoulder injury.

The main offesive bright spot was young RF Alex Rios who batted just below .300 and earned his first All-Star appearance.

The pitching staff suffered the same kind of injury woes that the batting lineup faced. Toronto's top three starters to begin the year, Roy Halladay, AJ Burnett and Gustavo Chacin all spent time on the DL while 4th and 5th Starters Tomo Ohka and Josh Towers were awful. The inconsistency and injuries allowed the Jays to throw youngsters Dustin McGowan, Sean Marcum and Jesse Litsch into the fire and they performd well, earning themselved starting roles to start the '08 season.

The Blue Jays' bullpen never really got going as its ace, BJ Ryan underwent season ending Tommie John surgery in April and the Jays had to scramble and use Jeremy Accardo in the closer role, who was talented but inconsistent.

2008 Key Additions: The Blue Jays main additions this offseason came when they picked up two former World Series winners. David Eckstein was brought in to finally bring some stability to the shortstop position and the Jays and Cardinals swapped first basemen as Troy Glaus was shipped off to St. Louis in exchange for Scott Rolen.

2008 Key Losses: Troy Glaus via trade to St. Louis for Rolen; Reliever Casey Janssen is out for the season with a torn labrum

2008 Starting Lineup:
1. David Eckstein SS
2. Alex Rios RF
3. Vernon Wells CF
4. Frank Thomas DH
5. Scott Rolen 3B
6. Lyle Overbay 1B
7. Gregg Zaun C
8. Aaron Hill 2B
9. Reed Johnson LF

2008 Starting Rotation: Roy Halladay, AJ Burnett, Dustin McGowan, Sean Marcum, Jesse Litsch

2008 Closer: BJ Ryan

2008 MVP: Vernon Wells. Wells had a disappointing, injury-plagued 2007 season after signing a 7 year/$126 million contract, batting only .245 and belting a measly 16 home runs. Look for Wells to bounce back offensively and continue playing gold-glove defense in center.

The Blue Jays will be successful if: They can stay healthy. The Jays do not have the depth or finances of their opponents in the AL East, and because of this, every injury is costly. For the Jays to make a serious run at the division, Halladay and Burnett have to turn in great healthy seasons and the offense needs to perform to their capability. Otherwise, Toronto fans will have to get comfortable loking up at the Red Sox and Yankees once again.

2008 Season Prediction: The Blue Jays will win the AL Wild Card. The emergence of Alex Rios of one of the top outfielders in the AL, matched with a hopefully rejuvenated Vernon Wells and Frank Thomas should give the Jays a solid offense. Halladay and Burnett could be one of the top 1-2 punches in the AL if Burnett could stay healthy and the return of BJ Ryan gives the Jays the ability to lock games down nightly. The Yankees' dependence on aging stars and a mediocre pitching staff will allow the Jays to finally leapfrog them and capture the Wild Card. I look forward to seeing the Jays play in October.

Standings Prediction:
1. Boston Red Sox
2. Toronto Blue Jays
3. New York Yankees
4. Tampa Bay Rays
5. Baltimore Orioles