The Blue Jays should round the bases plenty in 2013. Photo courtesy of Flickr user James G.
Toronto Blue Jays – Predicted Finish: First Place, AL East
As the 2012 season was nearing it’s end, we randomly assigned each Crackerjack some teams to cover for this set of previews. When I got the Blue Jays, I have to admit that I was less than excited.
Well, the Miami Marlins changed that in a pretty big way with their massive talent dump. It didn’t even stop there for Toronto, who also traded for 2012′s Cy Young Award Winner in the NL.
The Blue Jays are loaded with star power and will certainly not fly under anyone’s radar in 2013. So, let’s take a look at what to expect from the Great White North’s lone Major League Baseball team.
Blue Jays Offense
| Player Name | Pos. | Age | Hand | AB | R | HR | RBI | SB | AVG. |
| Jose Reyes | SS | 30 | S | 580 | 112 | 14 | 62 | 36 | .293 |
| Melky Cabrera | LF | 28 | S | 584 | 89 | 15 | 77 | 13 | .291 |
| Jose Bautista | RF | 32 | R | 505 | 92 | 36 | 109 | 8 | .275 |
| Edwin Encarnacion | 1B | 30 | R | 530 | 88 | 31 | 99 | 12 | .277 |
| Colby Rasmus | CF | 26 | L | 525 | 73 | 19 | 68 | 5 | .236 |
| Brett Lawrie | 3B | 23 | R | 545 | 66 | 17 | 77 | 16 | .281 |
| Adam Lind | DH | 29 | L | 478 | 48 | 20 | 64 | 0 | .251 |
| Emilio Bonifacio | 2B | 28 | S | 505 | 55 | 3 | 41 | 37 | .277 |
| J.P. Arencibia | C | 27 | R | 410 | 45 | 21 | 65 | 0 | .224 |
Crackerjack Fantasy Options: Literally the entire lineup with the exception of Lind. Even he’ll bring good power in deeper leagues. I wouldn’t rush to grab Arencibia, but he does brings a lot of power to the catcher position.
Blue Jays Pitching
| Role | Player | Age | Hand | IP | BB | W | K | SV | ERA | WHIP |
| 1 Starter | R.A. Dickey | 38 | R | 215 | 60 | 17 | 220 | 0 | 2.93 | 1.16 |
| 2 Starter | Josh Johnson | 29 | R | 180 | 55 | 14 | 188 | 0 | 3.55 | 1.23 |
| 3 Starter | Mark Buehrle | 34 | L | 206 | 47 | 13 | 102 | 0 | 3.89 | 1.24 |
| 4 Starter | Brandon Morrow | 28 | R | 175 | 60 | 13 | 165 | 0 | 3.60 | 1.20 |
| 5 Starter | Ricky Romero | 28 | L | 185 | 70 | 10 | 130 | 0 | 4.28 | 1.30 |
| Closer | Casey Janssen | 31 | R | 65 | 15 | 4 | 70 | 31 | 3.32 | 1.15 |
Crackerjack Fantasy Options: Everyone. Buehrle pitches to contact, so he’s a guy you have to be careful with at times and injuries are a factor with a few of these guys, but that is an absolutely brilliant rotation.
Fantasy Star: Reyes
This was not an easy choice on a team with this much talent, but Reyes gets the nod here because he’s shortstop. As good as Jose Bautista is, you can come close to his numbers with many different outfielders. Troy Tulowitzki, Hanley Ramirez, and possibly Starlin Castro are the only shortstops in the league who can match Reyes’ overall value.
Fantasy Bust: Rasmus
I listed him as a good option because of where I think he’ll start the year in the batting order, but I really don’t trust this guy at all. He’s only a .243 career hitter, and even that was bolstered by 2009 and 2010, as he’s hit .225 and .223 over the last two seasons, going a whopping .213 since being traded from the Cardinals to the Jays. Draft him if you want, but you can do better in the outfield.
Fantasy Sleepers: Bonifacio
You’d grab him mostly for steals, but this guy can play pretty much anywhere on the diamond, which really helps his value. Also, if Rasmus slumps (which I expect) it wouldn’t floor me to see Bonifacio to move up towards the top of the order (likely second). That would bring him more at-bats, and plenty of really good pitches to see.
More American League East Previews
