After the retirement of Cito Gaston, John Farrell has taken over as manager of the Toronto Blue Jays. Farrell inherits a team full of good young pitchers and a lineup of hitters with explosive power. But as fans know, the American League Eastern Division is perhaps the toughest in baseball to win win because of the presence of perennial contenders New York, Boston and recently, Tampa Bay.
Gone from last years team is closer Kevin Gregg who saved 37 games and also Jeremy Accardo, both of whom left to join the division rival Baltimore Orioles. Replacing them though are a cast of pitchers who once were closers on other clubs.
John Farrell is the new manager. Farrell was pitching coach of the division rival Boston Red Sox from 2006 to 2010, so he knows the A. L. East well. After working with star pitchers like Josh Beckett, Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz and Jonathan Papelbon, he will now oversee a nucleus of Blue Jays pitchers who could be on the verge of accomplishing great success.
Though they had to trade ace Roy Halladay a few years ago, the Blue Jays still have plenty of pitching. In fact, to make room in the rotation for potential Rookie of the Year Kyle Drabek, Toronto traded Shaun Marcum, who went 13-8 last season with a 3.64 earned run average in 195.1 innings.
Last season, third baseman Jose Bautista led all of baseball with 54 home runs. His former career best was 16 home runs, leading many to wonder if he can come close to his 2010 numbers. Even if he hits between 30 to 40 home runs, Bautista would provide a major force in the middle of the Toronto batting order.
While providing plenty of power, second baseman Aaron Hill and first baseman Adam Lind struggled with low batting averages. In an attempt to add more balance with speed and higher on base percentages, the Blue Jays traded away Vernon Wells while they brought in Rajai Davis and Scott Podsednik. Podsednik stole 35 bases last season while with Kansas City and Los Angeles. Davis stole 50 basses and hit . 284 with the Athletics. The veteran outfielders will add speed to the top of the Toronto order and will try to get on base for the big sluggers hitting behind them to drive them in. If this happens consistently, the Jays should score even more runs than last year.
Marc Rzepczynski 4-4, 4.95 era last year, rounds out the staff along with Drabek, with Jesse Litsch, Zach Stewart, and Dustin McGowan in reserve ready to be called on if needed. McGowan, however is recovering from two arm surgeries and has missed the last two seasons.
In addition to strong pitching and an improved bullpen, the Toronto Blue Jays feature one of the most powerful lineups in the American League. Leading the offense is third baseman Jose Bautista who had an unbelievable season in 2010, pounding out 54 home runs while driving in 124 with a . 260 average and a . 617 slugging percentage. The Jays are sure to score plenty of runs and with the potential contribution from Drabek, Toronto could contend with the Red Sox and Yankees in 2011.
Author Resource:
Mayhar Manninghansburger is a fitness trainer She likes SportsFanTreasures.com and recommends you check out their info on San Francisco Giants Watch and Arizona Diamondbacks Bedding
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