Well, another season is almost in the books, and once again, the post season has eluded the Blue Jays. While there were some bright points, Vernon Wells unfortunately wasn’t one of them. A .706 OPS doesn’t even come close to warranting that huge contract extension he got last year so you hope that he begins to step it up in 2008.
Alex Rios, on the other hand, showed that 2006 wasn’t a fluke. He leads the team in hitting (.297) and runs (107) and he’s right behind Frank Thomas with 24 homeruns. Frank Thomas was also worth the price of admission. He leads the team with 25 homers and 91 RBIs. Those two guys were the lynchpins of the offense. Matt Stairs was also a pleasant surprise.
On the pitching side, it looks A.J. Burnett and Roy Halladay were really good and even Dustin McGowan and Shaun Marcum showed some promise. So I like the way the rotation is shaping up. Jeremy Accardo was also a nice touch after B.J. Ryan went down with the injury.
So once again, Jay’s fans are left wanting more. .500 is nice, but in the AL East, it won’t cut it but this team, with a 2006 version of Vernon Wells, should be a lot better then that.
