The Toronto Blue Jays’ 2018 Season So Far

By: Adamo Marinelli

July 24th, 2018

    More than halfway into the 2018 MLB season, about a week after the All-Star break, the Toronto Blue Jays sit fourth in their division of five teams, the American League East at a 46-54 record including today’s blowout 5-0 loss to the Minnesota Twins and they look like they will miss the postseason for the second consecutive year after losing 4-1 in the ALCS to the Indians in 2016.

     They started the year great, they finished April 16-12, not far back of the Yankees and Red Sox for first in the AL East, despite Marcus Stroman’s April struggles. But ever since their all-star closing pitcher Roberto Osuna was arrested on May 8th, 2018, the Blue Jays have derailed. Their pitching has suffered greatly and as a result, their defence struggled and their bats also stayed quiet. To add insult to injury, their offence created (runs and home runs) were in the bottom half of the league, which is not like the Blue Jays. To add more salt to the wound, ever since they lost their all-star hitter Jose Bautista at the end of last season to free agency where he made his way to Atlanta to play for the Hawks and then to New York to play for the Mets, the Blue Jays have not been as potent on offense ever since. Same deal with Edwin Encarnacion who left before the start of the 2017 campaign.

     Despite all of this struggle in Toronto, Kevin Pillar has turned a few heads with his incredible defensive play, robbing batters of home runs game after game, the best of which was against the Detroit Tigers on July 1st, 2018. But this amazing play from Pillar is not enough to get the Blue Jays back to the playoffs all on its own.

     Marcus Stroman, a Blue Jays pitcher when talking about his recent struggles (similar to the struggles he faced in April at the beginning of the season) and the team’s struggles, said that he isn’t performing as well as he hoped to be and that neither is the team. “But I and the team can perform better and we will.” He also said that he loves the city of Toronto and will do all he can to help the Blue Jays make another visit to postseason baseball in October. But the media only took the part where he said himself and the team aren’t performing as well as they should be and interpreted it as if he said his team sucks right now and so does he. Stroman took to Instagram saying he never said anything the media claims he said, then he said “he and the team are just not playing our best baseball and can improve. We have been great in the past and will be great again now. I do not think I nor our team sucks. We just have reached a bump in the road but will overcome it”. He then added, “I love Toronto and want to win a championship here.”

    This drama between Stroman, the media and the entire Blue Jays organization is the last thing the Blue Jays need in a season in which they have been struggling, at least from May onward. But it’s here anyway, one more thing for the team to focus on.

    In other news, unless, the Jays win 75% of their remaining games this season, which is unlikely based on their performance so far this year which has been taunted by a lack of starting pitchers (especially due to Osuna’s arrest), a lackluster bullpen and very limited offensive capabilities, the Blue Jays look like they will be missing the playoffs for the second year in a row, which is not like the Blue Jays and the team, fans and manager John Gibbons, know this.

    Should the Blue Jays wait until next year and try to make the playoffs with the same team, just they’ll have Osuna amongst others back from suspension and injury, etc., or should the Blue Jays blow it up and just trade all their players away for draft picks and young prospects to start rebuilding? The problem with rebuilding is that it will take a few years to be relevant again and to be a real playoff contender but the Blue Jays will have to rebuild eventually, as I don’t think they can win with their current core, even with Osuna back, especially with the release of Joey Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion despite they have a good amount of talent on their current roster with Josh Donaldson, Roberto Osuna, J.A. Happ, Marcus Stroman, Troy Tulowitzki, Kevin Pillar, Russell Martin and Aaron Sanchez, etc.