Toronto Blue Jays Midseason Update

The Toronto Blue Jays are gliding on the wings of strong pitchers and Gold Glove caliber 3B Scott Rolen.

Toronto Blue Jays: Season Overview
Last season Roy Halladay was at the top of his game for the Toronto Blue Jays. The roster boasted quality young names including Aaron Hill and Alex Rios. This season, the lineup sorely misses the power of Carlos Delgado, which combined with an injury to Vernon Wells has left the Toronto Blue Jays without a batter that can clear the bases on any given trip to the plate. Aaron Hill has been recovering from an injury since early May and the Toronto Blue Jays, simply put, are struggling.

Toronto Blue Jays: Offense
A lack of offense has plagued the Toronto Blue Jays all season long. As an indicator of their hitting woes the Toronto Blue Jays are the only team in the American League without a player with over 10 home runs. Center-fielder Vernon Wells leads the Toronto Blue Jays with nine home runs. A broken wrist in early May caused Vernon Wells to miss 25 games of the season. If he had been healthy perhaps Vernon Wells would have a larger homerun total, especially batting in the clean-up spot. This injury comes after a subpar 2007 in which Vernon Wells earned a career-worst batting average. Once Vernon Wells recuperates from his injury, expect his power and his aggressive batting to return and his homerun total to rise once more. The entire blame for a disappointing offense does not rest on the shoulders of Vernon Wells. As a team the Toronto Blue Jays have batted .259, one of the worst averages in the American League, and have only batted in 341 runs, the second lowest total in the American League. Across the board the Toronto Blue Jays rank near the bottom of the American League in every offensive statistical category.

Toronto Blue Jays: Defense
Pitching has been one of a few bright spots for the Toronto Blue Jays in 2008. SP Shaun Marcum has the lowest ERA of any pitcher who has pitched in over 50 innings for the Toronto Blue Jays; following him is Roy Halladay who has been solid all season long. The team ERA of 3.63 is good enough to earn the Toronto Blue Jays the distinction of being the team in the American League with the fourth lowest ERA, and they have the second-highest total of strikeouts in the American League. When considering the Toronto Blue Jays you have to wonder where they would be if it were not for the skill of players such as Shaun Marcum, Scott Rolen, and Roy Halladay.

Toronto Blue Jays: Season Standings
With just a week before the MLB All-Star break, the Toronto Blue Jays have fallen to 4th place behind the Tampa Bay Rays whose rise to prominence has been the biggest story of the season, the defending champion Boston Red Sox, the New York Yankees who are always threatening to make a run, and the rebuilding Baltimore Orioles who have had a surprise season of their own.

Toronto Blue Jays: Standout Players
Starting pitcher Roy Halladay has been solid for the Toronto Blue Jays all season. Roy Halladay will be the lone representative of the Toronto Blue Jays at the MLB All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, NY. Scott Rolen is considered by many one of the best fielding third basemen in the entire history of Major League Baseball, and with seven Gold Gloves it is hard to argue that he isn’t. Right fielder Alex Rios has 21 stolen bases prior to the All-Star break, giving him the most stolen bases of any player since Raul Mondesi had 21 in 2000.

Toronto Blue Jays: 2nd Half Outlook
While they are not completely out of the race for the AL East Crown, it is safe to say that soon the Toronto Blue Jays will be irrelevant to the pennant race in the AL East. Unless the Toronto Blue Jays make a miraculous push and the other three teams above them have complete breakdowns it is likely that the Toronto Blue Jays will miss another postseason. Fans at the Rogers Centre should not be discouraged. The Toronto Blue Jays have a firm foundation of solid pitching and a great third baseman in Scott Rolen to build upon, and 2009 will be even more promising if the correct moves are made between now and then.