The baseball world is buzzing over the mammoth trade completed between the Blue Jays and the Florida Marlins. There is a genuine feeling amongst Blue Jays fans that the time has now really come for this team to be a playoff contender and there is good reason to think that. However, as I look at the guts of this deal, I can't help but wonder if somehow the Marlins have long-term gotten the better of this deal and that the window is a short one for Toronto.
The Jays get shortstop Jose Reyes---arguably one of the most exciting players in the game today. He is the key. Reyes hit a league high .337 for the Mets in 2011 and is can motor around the bases. He will be in Toronto for a long time, but his contract is a heavy one. After that, its not that rosy.
Josh Johnson has apparently not fully rebounded from a shoulder injury that limited him to just nine starts and he is apparently a free agent after the 2013 season. Mark Buehrle isn't getting any younger, but he should give you 200 innings. He is a guy though that has said he wants to be pitching closer to home in Missouri so I'm guessing this move doesn't thrill him. John Buck hit .192 last year and Emilio Bonifacio is a guy that now fits in that Rajai Davis mode and is someone you throw in the starting lineup from time-to-time.
Getting rid of Yunel Escobar is not going to hurt the team. He had to go after his stupid stunt with the eyeblack late last season. It was thought Adenny Hechevarria would take his spot, but he is off to the Marlins as are prospects Jake Marisnick and Justin Nicolino who are all ranked quite high on the team's prospect list. In fact, they are all top 10 in an organization that is loaded with talent.
Toronto baseball fans should be excited about the deal, but they should also tone down the optimism just a little. There is no doubt they have improved themselves short-term, but they have clawed out some of the jewels of their minor league system for some guys who may only be in Toronto for a short while. If the Jays win, no one will care about the future, but if they don't get to the playoffs this year and that will be tough in what is a competitive AL East, lets look and see where the Marlins are in three years time and then determine how good this trade was.
1 comment:
Don't know how you can think Toronto loses this trade. Reyes will be there for a long time and should flourish and the pitching staff is greatly improved. Don't think three to five years down the road. Think in the now.
JN
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