If you’ve read any of my editorials, you probably know by now that I’m a big sports fan, and one of my favourite teams to follow is the Toronto Blue Jays, who just began their season.
It’s going to be a fun year for Canada’s lone MLB franchise, one that could end with a trophy.
It’s only been a week and a half into the season, but things are really looking good. The Jays came into this year with very high expectations, with a core of young hitters that makes up the most potent offence in the league along with a whole crop of new expensive pitchers now in the fold, lots of people believe they could win the world series.
Last year, they were one of the best teams in the league over the second half of the year, led by MVP runner up Vladdy Guerrero Jr. Vladdy, as they call him, is the best hitter in baseball right now, and the Jays will only go as far as he takes them.
The key this year will be the performance of pitchers Jose Berrios and Kevin Gausman. Berrios was acquired at last years trade deadline and signed to big money this offseason. In his first full season with the club he’ll be their number one pitcher, and despite a terrible outing on opening day when he couldn’t even get through the first inning, he should be up for the challenge come playoff time.
Gausman was signed to a big deal from Baltimore this past offseason. The Jays made pitching a priority to support the team’s juggernaut offence. The additions will also take pressure off of Hyun-Jin Ryu, who was overextended as the team’s ace last year, and now can return to a more comfortable spot as the third pitcher in the rotation.
Now, they have seemingly no weaknesses, at least on paper anyways.
The Jays will always have to contend with the likes of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox in their division, which makes things difficult. But this team has the talent to not only make the playoffs, but to win the whole thing.
I’m not a betting man, but I’d go so far as to say they’re the number one favourites in the all of Major League Baseball right now.
Let’s hope this season turns out the way so many people believe it can, and a world series title comes home to Canada for the first time in 30 years.
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Eddie Huband
Multimedia Reporter
eddie.huband@ldnews.net
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