If you were one of the over 48,000 fans at the opening day of the Blue Jay’s season, you probably thought you were watching the sinking of the Titanic rather than newest contender for the World Series. R. A. Dickey, who I spent watching all winter waxing poetic about anything and everything, looked less the elite guru and more the wandering hippie. Toronto’s big bats fell silent and the Cleveland Indians quietly won 4-1 behind reliable pitching from Justin Masterson. Dickey pitched solidly but far from a Cy Young winner. The Jay’s big bats fell silent as is usual when it is time to step up.
So if it smells like smoke on the bandwagon, don’t worry, it’s not on fire yet. You still have time to evacuate. Of course we should not base the Jays’ season on 1 simple game, however this 1 game is something like a microcosm of what the Jays are. A team that has many abilities and potential but when it’s time to step up, they fade away. It’s not because they don’t want to win, it’s because they can’t. Simply put, for all the high priced talent Jays management has signed, they are not up to par with the American style of baseball team building. Compare it to buying two products that are of the same type. One product is more expensive than the other, but upon testing, the cheaper product turns out to be more reliable and performs better. Yet most fools people will buy the more expensive one because they equate expensive with better.
Jays management does not know how to put a contending baseball team together. More specifically GM Alex Anthopoulos is no George Steinbrenner. His idea of putting a good team together is by spending as much as possible. Making a knuckleballer your ace is a bad way to start off. Dickey won the Cy Young in New York because he won 20 games. Great. Did the Mets even make the playoffs? No. Okay then. Moving on. Reyes also joined the Jays because Anthopoulos dangled $10 millions dollars in front of his face. By the way, Reyes scored 57 RBI’s for the Miami Marlins last year. Enough said. We could go on and on, but it’s clear that the evil Rogers corporation doesn’t give a damn about winning. It’s not because they don’t care. They just don’t know how. A winning team is put together by good leaders and players who back each other up. Chemistry is a huge part of winning. Chemistry is not bought, it evolves. Winning a World Series also requires a good amount of luck just for good measure. These are all things that cannot be bought.
What is perhaps most bothersome is the initial hype that the “new” Jays team got before a single game was played. Anytime the media declares a team a contender before they step onto the field or court, you know that is a team going down in flames. It’s almost like a curse. Personally I think that Ted Rogers spirit has returned from the netherworld to wreak vengeance on the fools that is running Rogers Corporation into the ground with their money hungry, shareholder pleasing ways.
I don’t want to be a party pooper but check out our Leaf Magazine’s team preview on the Jays well before the season started. The signs were clear and present, but Toronto fans tend to be tragically hopeful. Just like lemmings that fall to their deaths by the masses.
As of this writing the Jay’s just lost their second game with Morrow on the mound. The Indians pulled out a late win 3-2. The Jays bat once again were silent. Don’t worry we only have 158 games left. Nothing to worry about. I say the Jays pull out 75 wins this year and Dickey quits to go live in the mountains with Bear Grylls and starts a reality show about survival and becoming one with nature.
