Did the Blue Jays "Knuckle" under the pressure?

Huge news in the T-dot today as the Blue Jays have reportedly agreed in principle to a deal that would send reigning N.L Cy Young winner R.A Dickey to the Jays. In exchange for Dickey’s services, the Blue Jays will send veteran catcher John Buck back to New York, along with two prospects that are rated first and third in the farm system, that being catcher Travis D’Arnaud and Noah Syndergaard. The Blue Jays are acquiring a front of the rotation pitcher, but on a team that it’s safe to say now has plenty of starting pitching depth, was this deal really necessary? Secondary to that, if you’re of the opinion that this deal is good for the Jays, at what point do “prospects” get over valued when it comes to building a successful on-field major league winning product?

So on the surface, Jays supporters should be rejoicing over the fact that they have reeled in a cy young calibre pitcher, right? I’m just wondering whether this is just the first pylon to get knocked over in a series of elaborate moves that pertains to restructuring this pitching staff. As it stands right now(and we should keep in mind that this reported deal is contingent on Dickey and Anthopoulos agreeing to an extension), the Jays rotation will consist of Brandon Morrow, Josh Johnson, Dickey, Mark Buehrle, and Ricky Romero finishing it out. Are they really going into April with last year’s supposed ace as the number five guy?? My theory is the following, and keep in mind this is just a theory is that Mark Buehrle may be getting shopped behind the scenes. It was originally thought that due to the Ontario government’s law stipulating that homeowners in Ontario cannot possess Pitt bull’s, and that Buehrle is the owner of one, that him coming to Toronto may not be a match made in heaven. In all media interviews conducted with him since the trade, he’s put on a brave face and has said all the right things, but who really knows how pressing of an issue the, what I will now refer to as “Pitt Bull gate” really is behind closed doors. I look at their depth chart and see a gaping hole, holes actually in the bullpen. Who really is the closer? Are Jays fans really going to have to endure through another campaign with incumbent Sergio Santos as the ninth inning general?  I wouldn’t support that however I wouldn’t be opposed to giving the closing reigns to either Casey Janssen or Jason Frasor, two pitchers who in my eyes have proved more than capable to handle such a post. Another wild idea that bench boss John Gibbons could explore is attempting Romero as closer especially if there isn’t going to be any future movement with the rotation. I believe Romero has the velocity to handle such an assignment and his services would be better utilized in this role compared to him rotting away in the number five slot.

So as previously discussed, the necessity of the deal could come into question, but what I really wanted to talk about was fan’s concerns of shipping away prospects at the expense of bringing in established talent.  This deal has risk written all over it, but once again give credit to Anthopoulos as he is putting his neck out on the line to provide the city of Toronto with a winner, something it has craved for nearly twenty years. We must engage in the philosophical debate of whether it is justified to trade away prospects who may or may not be ready for the big leagues for two or three years , basically ignoring the long term outlook for immediate short term gain. Over the years, Jays management could be accused of always looking out for the future, and  never doing enough to make sure the team was competitive for that year. I’ll never forget when they hired J.P Ricciardi, he was adamant in stating that he had in a five year plan in place. The problem was however that It seemed every year we would hear excuses aplenty and the so called” five year plan” was stagnant and we were always in year one of the five year cycle. Ricciardi was an excellent talent evaluator and to this day the Blue Jays are reaping the benefits of a flourished farm system that has allowed the team to sacrifice some of these cherished pieces to the likes of the Miami Marlins, and now the New York Mets. The team brass is confident enough that even this trade won’t empty the cupboards and the Blue Jays still have an above average farm system. People on message boards have been crying in disbelief that D’Arnaud is on the move, some referring to his talent comparability with the likes of Joe Mauer and Buster Posey. This is simply a projection, and although he had a great year in AAA, knocking out sixteen homers and hitting for a stellar .333 average that doesn’t guarantee major league success. For every Mauer and Posey out there, there’s always going to be a few Matt Bush’s and Rich Ankiel’s floating around. The bottom line is that the Jays may suffer long term but so what! The time is now and as evidenced from the Marlins blockbuster, Anthopoulos isn’t scared to ruffle a few feathers and think outside the box. I for one am personally excited that for the first time in what seems an eternity the Blue Jays are EXPECTED to win, something no Canadian baseball fan has said since 1993! I hope it works out but even if it doesn’t, even though the media will scrutinize the decisions that were made this off-season I would ask that we all take a step back and appreciate the boldness for which Alex has displayed and appreciating his willingness to put Toronto baseball back on the map.

That’s all for now, and I truly hope that you are all enjoying these entries and I am crossing my fingers that as this evolves, my reader base will continue to expand.