The Toronto Blue Jays finished with 89 wins in 2017 to qualify for the show as one of three teams from the American League East that made the playoffs. After a busy offseason, the Blue Jays will hope their additions help make up for some key losses as they attempt to make it back to the postseason in 2017.
Key Additions: DH Kendrys Morales, OF Steve Pearce, RP Joe Smith, RP J.P. Howell
Key Losses: 1B/DH Edwin Encarnacion, OF Michael Saunders, RP Brett Cecil, SP R.A. Dickey, RP Joaquin Benoit
Strengths
Morales, Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista and Troy Tulowitzki still lead an impressive offensive cast in Toronto. The Blue Jays will need those four hitters to stay healthy and produce with Russell Martin another key cog that will need to step up. Toronto’s rotation has the potential to be among the best in the American League if Marcus Stroman, Marco Estrada and Aaron Sanchez can build off what they did a year ago. The Blue Jays starters quietly led the AL in rotation ERA, WHIP and opponent OPS last season and a strong season will take the pressure off of the offense and the bullpen. Meanwhile, Toronto’s outfield defense should be solid once again led by Kevin Pillar, who led all major league center fielders in Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating en route to winning his first Gold Glove last season.
Weaknesses
Since the start of the 2012 season, Encarnacion is second in the majors with 193 home runs and he owns the sixth-best OPS over that span. Encarnacion has been the one consistent in the Blue Jays offense over the years and now Toronto is hoping he could be replaced by Morales and Pearce. The Blue Jays rotation was solid a year ago but they need their offense to continue to produce in order to keep the pressure off of them. Meanwhile, the Toronto bullpen is a major question mark once again following Brett Cecil’s departure. Jason Grilli, Joe Biagini, J.P. Howell and Joe Smith will be tasked with the middle innings and they need to perform at a high level in front of closer Roberto Osuna.
Toronto Blue Jays Depth Chart
| Catcher | Russell Martin | Jarrod Saltalamacchia | Juan Graterol | ||
| First Base | Justin Smoak | Steve Pearce | Kendrys Morales | ||
| Second Base | Devon Travis | Darwin Barney | Ryan Goins | ||
| Third Base | Josh Donaldson | Darwin Barney | Ryan Goins | ||
| Shortstop | Troy Tulowitzki | Darwin Barney | Ryan Goins | ||
| Left Field | Ezequiel Carrera | Melvin Upton Jr. | Steve Pearce | Dalton Pompey | |
| Center Field | Kevin Pillar | Melvin Upton Jr. | Ezequiel Carrera | ||
| Right Field | Jose Bautista | Ezequiel Carrera | Melvin Upton Jr. | Dalton Pompey | |
| Designated Hitter | Kendrys Morales | Jose Bautista | |||
| Starting Pitcher | Aaron Sanchez | Marco Estrada | J.A. Happ | Marcus Stroman | Francisco Liriano |
| Relief Pitcher | Jason Grilli | J.P. Howell | Joe Smith | Joe Biagini | Mike Bolsinger |
| Closer | Roberto Osuna |
Projected Win Total: 86.5
World Series Odds: +1500
Outlook
The Blue Jays will once again rely heavily on their star players and that means they will need them to stay healthy and perform at a high level in order to contend once again this season. The offense should be able to minimize the loss of Encarnacion but this is still a unit that took a big hit. Remember, they ranked first in Major League Baseball in runs scored two years ago, but then dropped to ninth last year. The offense should still be strong but it’s hard to imagine that they’ll be better than ninth after losing such an integral part.
That puts more pressure on the rotation and there is no guarantee that it’ll be is as good as it was a year ago. Meanwhile, the bullpen isn’t any better on paper. Toronto has the tools to get back to the postseason but it won’t be easy in a reloaded AL East in which they Boston Red Sox, Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees are all better on paper. The combination of improved competition and a minor drop off in overall performance could lead to the Blue Jays taking a small step back in 2017 as they fall just short of their projected win total with an 85-77 record.
Prediction: 85-77
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