New York Yankees (27-16 overall, 4-3 last week)

The Yankees will gladly welcome back Granderson (Photo: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports)

The Yankees had eight scheduled games this week because of a doubleheader that was serving as make-up games against the Cleveland Indians. Luckily, only seven of those games were played as Sunday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays was rained out, ironically. The Yankees came into this week only a game up on the Baltimore Orioles, and it stayed that way to end the week. The club traded shutouts with the Indians to start the week, lost their series to the Seattle Mariners, 2-1, but did take both games against the Blue Jays in the weekend series.

The game I wanted to showcase was the beatdown the Mariners put on the Bronx Bombers, 12-2 back on Wednesday. Phil Hughes started the game and recorded only two outs while giving up six hits, seven runs (all earned), two walks, and surrendering one home run. Sadly, Brett Marshall was the sacrificial lamb in his Major League debut, going 5.2 innings giving up nine hits, five runs (all earned), five walks, and two home runs.

• Analysis:

The team did see the return of Curtis Granderson to the lineup, and manager Joe Girardi isn’t just slotting him into his regular center field position. Instead, Granderson has seen time in both left and right field, while the team takes advantage of Brett Gardner‘s defense. General manager Brian Cashman made a few moves this week to help bolster the middle infield. Alberto Gonzalez was designated for assignment after the Yankees acquired Reid Brignac from the Rockies. Meanwhile, earlier in the week, infielder Chris Nelson was also designated for assignment when the club called up 3B/2B David Adams. The team is beginning to get some of their injured starters back, so it’ll be interesting to see how Girardi manages the lineup in the coming weeks.

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Boston Red Sox (27-17 overall, 5-1 last week)

After a week in which the club went 2-5, the Red Sox turned it around on their most recent road trip. First the club made a stop down in Tampa to take on their division foes the Tampa Bay Rays and took two of three. They outscored the Rays 16-10 in the series, and Jon Lester won the battle of the southpaw aces when he defeated reigning Cy Young Award winner, David Price, 12-2. Lester went seven strong innings giving up eight hits and two runs (both earned). Meanwhile, the Sox continued their great week by sweeping the Minnesota Twins in the weekend series. The game to pick out of this three-game set is the final one, where John Lackey pitched six innings while only surrendering one hit and one run, while striking out five.

• Analysis

Our friends at BoSox Injection said it best by saying the key difference between last year’s Red Sox and the current team is resolve. It’s difficult to argue that point because injuries piled up for last year’s team and when they started to head south record-wise, they couldn’t seem to recover. However, this year’s team has seen two of their best bullpen arms (Andrew Bailey and Joel Hanrahan) go down with injuries, as well as David Ortiz and Shane Victorino on the DL for an extended period of time. They have fought through it each time and are now only a half game out of first place. Their starting pitching continues to pace this club.

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Baltimore Orioles (23-20 overall, 0-5 last week)

Rough week for a pitcher who has been dominant since the O’s got out of the cellar last year (Photo: Joy R. Absalon-USA TODAY Sports)

It was a rough week to be an Orioles fan. If you had to pin it on something, it would be the pitching staff, most notably the bullpen. Closer Jim Johnson had his worst week in recent memory in which he blew a one-run lead against the San Diego Padres with two outs in the ninth. Then, against the Rays with a two-run cushion, he gave up five runs on three hits and blew another save opportunity. It was truly tough to watch, and O’s fans have to be holding their collective breaths knowing a big part of closing is confidence, after being shellacked twice in as many tries, one can make a case that Johnson might see more regression before he turns it around.

Not all is lost though, third baseman Manny Machado is still raking. He had another good week, hitting .304/.304/.565 including four doubles and one triple in 23 plate appearances.

• Analysis:

Weeks like this happen to every team. It just goes to show how precious the back of the bullpen can be, they can either lose it or keep teams in games and this week they just couldn’t keep it together. Perhaps the most alarming story out of O’s camp is that this five-game losing streak all came at Camden Yards where they now hold a losing record (9-11) They’re even being outscored, 102-96, at home. All that said, the O’s are still a young team, and young clubs are prone to bouts of inconsistency. We could just as likely see them go on a 6-0 tear next week as we are another 0-fer.

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Tampa Bay Rays (23-20 overall, 4-2 last week)

The Rays are still a full four games out of first, but they have gained three games on the division leaders since May 1st. This past week they took four games against division foes, which included a sweep of the Orioles. The Red Sox ended the Rays six-game win streak earlier in the week, and ended up losing back-to-back games. Young upstart, Matt Moore is pitching out of his gourd in the early going this season and he pitched another good one this week. He gave up five hits and one run against the Orioles, while striking out only three against one walk in seven innings. Those numbers have pushed his totals to 8-0 with a 2.29 ERA (4.19 FIP).

On the hitting side, Matt Joyce had a good week batting .300/.364/.700 including two home runs, two doubles, and eight runs batted in 22 plate appearances.

• Analysis:

The old adage is, if the Rays are going anywhere, it’ll be because of their pitching. Ironically, the Rays bats are second in baseball in wRC+ (112) trailing only the Cleveland Indians. Meanwhile, their pitching is 22nd in FIP (4.19) and has generally disappointed in the early going. To make matters worse, their ace, David Price, is now on the disabled list with triceps issues. Luckily, the club is stocked with young fresh (and good) arms in the minors and have since called up Jake Odorizzi, whom they acquired from the Kansas City Royals in the James Shields trade.

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Toronto Blue Jays (17-26 overall, 2-2 last week)

Because of how the schedule worked out, and how Mother Nature intervened, the Blue Jays only played four games this week. First they invited the reigning World Champions, the San Francisco Giants, to the Rogers Centre for a two-game series, winning both with their bats. The Jays pulverized Giant pitching to the tune of 21 runs, while only giving up nine. It seems as though Jose Bautista has gotten his groove back, he’s hit .306/.422/.583 over the past two weeks. Meanwhile, his partner-in-crime Edwin Encarnacion has one-upped him hitting .343/.444/.657 over that same span.

However, for as much firepower they displayed against the Giants they looked punchless in the rain-shortened weekend series against the Yankees. They scored only two runs while giving up 12, and looked like much of what we’ve seen so far from the Jays this season. Consistency has evaded the team to the north this year.

• Analysis:

It seems for every step forward the club makes, they take a step back. The momentum the bats they gained in the series against the Giants were just as quickly washed away against the Yankees, which is why they are in last place in the East and a full 10 games out. It’s difficult to win when your run differential is -45 and your pitching ranks 29th in both ERA (4.81) and FIP (4.69). The Jays are also in the middle of the pack in hitting, placing 18th in wRC+ (94), which is tied with the Yankees. If the Jays want to shoot for the division, or even one of the Wild Card spots, they need to play like they did earlier in the week, rather than the latter half.

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Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference and FanGraphs

New York Yankees (23-13 overall, 5-1 last week)

Wells continues to exceed expectations (Image: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports)

The Yankees continue to fight through injuries on their way to the top spot in the AL East. They faced the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field earlier in the week and scored only six runs in the three-game set, while being shutout in one of them. The Yanks haven’t had much luck at Coors, but they scratched out two of three behind some great pitching from Hiroki Kuroda (tough-luck loser in the first game), David Phelps, and CC Sabathia/Adam Warren.

In the second series of the week, the Yankees swept the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Phil Hughes and Andy Pettitte got back on track after a few poor starts each, and Kuroda pitched another gem and was rewarded with a win. Meanwhile, Vernon Wells, who had previously been lost at the plate for the better half of two weeks, collected six hits (two home runs) in 21 plate appearances (.286 batting average).

• Analysis:

Coming into the season the Yankees needed to rely on their veteran-laden pitching staff to carry them until their power came back. With Curtis Granderson currently on a rehab assignment in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the club will be glad to have him back. The question becomes, which one of Ichiro Suzuki or Wells takes a seat? The pitching staff has done their job for the most part, and the scrap heap free agent pick ups have exceeded expectations in order to help navigate through the early season injury disaster.

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Baltimore Orioles (23-15 overall, 4-2 last week)

The O’s were second the AL East last week, and they haven’t moved this week. Their consistency is indicative of how the culture has changed in Baltimore under manager Buck Showalter. They took both series’ this week facing both the the Royals and Minnesota Twins. Against the former, they were outscored 12-11, but won two of three. Meanwhile, Tommy Hunter pitched very well out of the ‘pen for the O’s this week by collecting two wins and striking out four hitters in 3.2 innings of work.

The bats came to life in the Twins series as the O’s plated 20 runs en route to another series win. Third baseman, Manny Machado, continues to rake in his first full season by collecting nine hits in 16 at-bats (.563 batting average), which included two RBI and three runs scored. The kid has a solid .331/.370/.521 slash line this season. The bats exploded in the first game against the Twins when the O’s spotted them six runs before they clawed their way back into the game and eventually won it in extras, 8-6.

• Analysis:

While hitters carried the team in the second series of the week, it was the pitchers who kept the team in their first series. Speaking of pitchers, FanSided’s own Randy Buchman of Birds Watcher opined that the O’s have stockpiled a ton of pitchers lately under GM Dan Duquette, which has helped after injuries to some of their starters. Again, the O’s are following the same formula they did last year, pitching keeps them in the game, and the batters get timely hits. They are a pesky bunch of youngsters, and as long as Showalter and Duquette are running the show, the club will always contend.

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Boston Red Sox (22-16 overall, 2-5 last week)

It was a rough week for the Red Sox as they lost a four-game series to the Twins and a three-game series to division rivals Toronto Blue Jays. Perhaps the worst part was both series’ were at Fenway. Twice last week their pitching staff gave up more than 10 runs, which is the exact opposite of how Boston won their games earlier in the year. Overall, in their last ten games they’ve gone 2-8 and have lost their slim lead in the AL East.

After an excellent April in which Ryan Dempster held opponents to a paltry .187/.279/.364 slash line against him in 122 plate appearances, he has regressed toward the mean. Last month he allowed four homers, but in May, he’s already given up five, including three in yesterday’s game against the Blue Jays.

• Analysis

The Red Sox were hit with an injury bug this month. First, Andrew Bailey goes down with a bicep injury that’ll likely keep him out until sometime this week, maybe a little longer. Meanwhile, closer Joel Hanrahan is out for the season after it was found he needs his flexor tendon repaired, which he might opt to have Tommy John surgery if there’s damage to the UCL as well. Finally, outfielder Shane Victorino (.308/.370/.393, 108 wRC+) crashed awkwardly into the right field fence at Fenway and injured his ribs; his status going forward is unknown. Good teams find a way around injuries, and last year the Red Sox buckled when player after player went down. However, this is a different team under manager John Farrell, one where pitching is paramount to their success, not hitting. Losing two of your best bullpen arms in successive weeks is very tough to overcome.

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Longoria continues his hot hitting this season (Image: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports)

Tampa Bay Rays (19-18 overall, 5-2 last week)

Don’t look now, but the Rays just might be making their yearly push to the top. After a disappointing April in which they went 12-14, they’ve started May with a 7-4 record. Saying that, they rattled off five wins against below-average teams in the Blue Jays and the San Diego Padres this week. Only one starter earned a win (Matt Moore), as many of their wins came from runs scoring in the 7th inning or later. Against the Padres on Saturday they were down 6-5 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth before Evan Longoria launched a two-run home run into the left center field seats at the Trop. All in all last week, they scored 44 runs and surrendered 34 in seven games, which is a shade below giving up five runs per contest.

• Analysis

This is how the Rays got to the playoffs in years past, timely hitting in the later innings coupled with great starting pitching. They have a tough road for the rest of the month as they face all AL East competition. They’ll play the Red Sox and Yankees at home, while the series against the Orioles and Blue Jays will be on the road. Longoria continues his dominance at the plate, hitting .333/.403/.610 with nine home runs and 26 RBI. However, outside James Loney‘s .376/.429/.560 slash line, the Rays offense ranks in the middle of the pack in the AL.

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Toronto Blue Jays (15-24 overall, 4-3 last week)

It’s been a rough year for the Jays, but they recorded a winning record against AL East opponents this week against the Rays and Red Sox. Ricky Romero made his second start of the season and he continues his descent by giving up three runs on four hits while recording only one out in his start against the Rays. Not much else to say other than this team has the pieces to make some noise, but they just haven’t put it all together yet, but this week was a positive step in the right direction.

• Analysis

While they still remain 9.5 games back in the division, their bats are beginning to make some headway, especially Jose Bautista‘s. He lifted his average nearly 20 points (from .228 to .246) after going on a tear this week (.318/.407/.727) including two home runs and three doubles. Likewise, Edwin Encarnacion had a good week, hitting .286/.407/.571 with two home runs and six RBI. On the hitting side, these two need to come to life a bit more if the Jays want to make a run at the playoffs. This lineup has the potential to put up some gaudy numbers, it’s the pitching that needs to limit the runs a tad more.

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Food for Thought

• With Grandersoncoming back for the Yankees, who takes seat in the outfield: Wells, Brett Gardner, or Ichiro?
• Are the O’s the same team as the Rays were circa 2008-2011?
• Bad pitching hurt the Red Sox last season, with the new injuries to the back end of the pitching staff, is the club doomed again?
• If a long-term injury to Longoria were to occur, would the Rays season be done for?
• Outside Bautista, who is one player that really needs to get it going for the Jays?

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference and Fangraphs. Injury notes courtesy of Baseball Prospectus

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher J.A. Happ was rushed off of Tropicana Field by medical personnel Tuesday night after being hit in the head by a line drove that struck by Tampa Bay Rays center fielder Desmond Jennings. He was listed in stable condition Wednesday. Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The ball rocketed off the bat like a missile at his head and J.A. Happ had perhaps a second to react. No one is that fast and Happ couldn’t duck or cover up quickly enough.

In a dangerously frightening moment Tuesday night, the Toronto Blue Jays pitcher was felled by a line drive clouted by Tampa Bay’s Desmond Jennings, dropping to the ground at Tropicana Field as if shot.

It was a stunning thing to witness. The ball hit Happ’s head so hard that it bounded into foul territory on the right side as if caroming off a much harder surface like an outfield wall. The shock of the scene silenced the fans. Jennings ran all of the way to third base for a triple and then medical personnel ran onto the field to treat the stricken Happ.

This is one of the great hazards of baseball. Once the pitcher unleashes his throw to the plate he almost always lands in an off-balance position on his follow through, for a brief time leaving himself exposed to a 100 mph smash off the bat if the ball is hit in just such a way.

It is one of the miracles of the sport, with the National League going since 1876 and the American League in business since 1901, that no pitcher has ever been killed by a batted ball in this manner during a game. Standing just 60 feet away a full-swing connection to the ball propels it out faster than it came in.

The only on-field fatality in a Major League baseball game came on a pitched ball by Carl Mays of the New York Yankees in 1920 that hit the Cleveland Indians’ shortstop Ray Chapman in the head. There have been numerous concussions and hospitalizations over the decades, but Chapman is the only batter who died from injuries incurred from a pitch.

It is surprising that more pitchers are not harmed by batted balls and it is only because of God’s good grace that none have been killed from the impact of a swatted ball. Only last season Brandon McCarthy, then throwing for the Oakland A’s, was the victim of a scenario very similar to Happ’s.

McCarthy was taken to the hospital and it was later announced that if he had not been treated swiftly swelling could have resulted in his death. McCarthy recovered and this year is pitching for the Arizona Diamondbacks. When he reported to spring training McCarthy admitted he had times when he wondered if he would ever be able to play again. Being smacked in the head by the line drive led most people to wonder if he would be able to walk, talk and be normal again.

Now Happ is in the same situation. The first reports from the Bayfront Medical Center are that he is in stable condition.

The play happened during the second inning of Toronto’s 6-4 win over the Rays. As soon as trainers examined Happ, who lay on his left side covering his head with his gloved right hand and bare left hand, they called for a stretcher. Happ was gently laid on the stretcher bed, strapped down, and had his head and neck stablized by straps.

Happ, 30, is in his seventh year in the majors. A southpaw, he is 2-2 this season and his lifetime record is 37-37.

The sight of Happ being struck stole the breath away. One minute a simple ball game was being played, the next a player’s life was threatened. The horror of the accident was powerful, but with good fortune, in the earliest stages of this accident, immediate medical attention may have helped prevent worse damage.

The next step is to hope for Happ to get well.

Seconds after the bad-news play in a game against the Kansas City Royals that could destroy his 2013 season,Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Jose Reyes was writhing on the ground with an ankle injury as third base coach Luis Rivera tried to help him. Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

In case you haven’t noticed since the Blue Jays are so far away that they need passports to play games in the United States that the season thus far peaked for Toronto the day before opening day.

At that point everyone (me included) thought we were looking at the American League East Division champs revving up for their best performance in years. Less than two weeks later we’re all wondering if the team needs to be pondering some kind of curse explanation like the Boston Red Sox lived with for years and the Chicago Cubs still live with.

The huge boost that the Blue Jays received from the influx of talent that came as courtesy of the Miami Marlins has worn off and now everyday problems in the long, 162-game season seem to be taking over. The good players are off to slow starts and some starters are off to injured starts.

Just the other night Blue Jays shortstop Jose Reyes, a four-time All-Star who came over from the Marlins in that team’s dump-salary deal, and who is batting .395, slid into second base and didn’t get up. Instead he rolled on the ground screaming in pain with an injury to his left ankle that at first glance mimics Derek Jeter‘s injury suffered in the playoffs last October. Six months have passed and the New York Yankees’ shortstop has not played an inning since.

There was a lot of excitment in Toronto leading up to the season and the Blue Jays have been packing the fans into the Rogers Centre. But the players that were expected to lead the charge to infinity and beyond didn’t get the memo.

The last couple of years when the Blue Jays were floundering their brightest spot in the lineup was slugger Jose Bautista. He ended the 2012 season injured, but is back. After a win Saturday, Toronto was sitting at 5-6, he was batting .194. Going into Saturday Edwin Encarnacion was hitting .132 and Adam Lind was batting .136.

After being patted on the back for making such smart front office moves in the off-season the Blue Jays have been grimacing because the three most important pitchers they acquired have done bupkis so far.  R.A. Dickey, the 2012 National League Cy Young award winner, was 0-2 with an 8.44 earned run average going into Saturday, but picked up his first win of the year. Josh Johnson‘s ERA is 11.05 and Mark Buehrle‘s ERA is 10.24.

All of these problems could be transitory. The hitters could get hot, the pitchers could find the plate, and five games from now we could be pretending we never had this conversation. It’s not impossible. A little streak like that can do wonders for morale–of players and fans.

But the one problem that’s not going to go away very quickly is the newest problem–Reyes’ ankle. Reyes got hurt sliding into second in the sixth inning against the Kansas City Royals during an 8-4 victory in Kansas City. He hesitated making up his mind whether to go into the bag standing up or sliding. He chose the slide approach late and got his leg caught underneath his body.

Reyes left the stadium in a wheelchair, and apparently taking a page from Louisville basketball guard Kevin Ware’s cheery outlook on life tweeted, “Sunny days wouldn’t be special if it wasn’t for rain. I put everything in God’s hands.”

And the Blue Jays thought they were protected from the elements because they play in a domed stadium. Given his superb skills at short, the Blue Jays have put a lot into Reyes’ hands, too.

The early medical reading was that at the least Reyes will be out for a month. If the injury is worse than a sprain, with broken bones or ligaments involved, Reyes could be sidelined for months. Jeter is still proving it’s not that easy to bounce back from that type of injury.

The Blue Jays did everything right in the off-season to make this a special team, so it doesn’t seem quite fair now that so much is going wrong to wreck it.

Opening Day is officially here. (Image Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)

Opening Day is without question one of the greatest days of the year and there are plenty of notable moments that have happened on the day if you look back through the halls of baseball history.

In 1940, Bob Feller threw a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox. Hank Aaron swung at the first pitch he saw of the 1974 season, connecting on his 714th career home run. Walter Johnson started 14 Opening Day games for the Washington Senators, throwing nine shutouts. Tom Seaver started 16 (with New York, Cincinnati, and Chicago). George Bell (1988), Tuffy Rhodes (1994), and Dmitri Young (2005) hit three home runs on Opening Day.

As we’ve mentioned in the past, Call to the Pen is just one part of a broader network of sites – the FanSided Network. There are some very talented writers across our collection of sites, particularly the other 31 that make up FanSided MLB, so we’ve decided that coinciding with Opening Day it was time to start a new weekly feature here at CttP to bring you to some of that work. Each Monday morning we’ll be bringing your attention to some of the best work from the previous week. Since these will lead off the week for us, we hope it will for all of you. It’s your Starting Lineup of all that’s gone down in the past week, setting us up for the week ahead. It’s just one more way we can be sure we’re bringing you all of the MLB coverage that we possible can. Feedback is welcomed and encouraged.

One of the many additions to the Cleveland Indians roster is outfielder Drew Stubbs, who’s had as some have called it, a “strikeout problem” over the course of his career. Brian Heise of Wahoo’s on First (click to read the post in full) took a stab at dissection this “problem”, openly wondering (and answering) if the high strikeout rate is really the chief cause for Stubbs’ terrible 2012 season.

From Brian:

The bottom line in here is that while Stubbs was still striking out a lot, it wasn’t significantly more than his career strikeout rate and was only marginally higher than 2011 when he struck out 205 times yet still hit a reasonable .243/.321/.386. In other words, while everyone likes to point at strikeouts for the cause of Stubbs’ problems in 2012, the numbers show that simply wasn’t the case.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the AL Central Brad Swanson of Puckett’s Pond runs through some quick predictions, touching on a couple of subjects, for the upcoming Twins’ season, sort of a good news/bad news type of thing. Here’s more from Brad on part of Minnesota’s bullpen:

As far as late-inning relievers go, I think Glen Perkins and Jared Burton are extremely good values. Both have great talent and both are signed to a reasonable contract.  I am not a huge fan of the “closer role” because I think that certain players are overpaid because they can close games.  However, both of these players can close out games and aren’t overpaid when doing that job.

There are countless questions facing the Boston Red Sox this season, but few have talked about a potential sophomore slump for third baseman Will Middlebrooks. That’s just the subject that Aidan Flynn of BoSox Injection attempted to tackle, examining whether his strikeout rate and BABIP will improve enough.

From Aidan:

For those that haven’t yet figured it out yet, what scares me the most regarding Middlebrooks’ sophomore campaign is that he won’t hit for a high enough average to maintain an even acceptable on base percentage. By now, most understand the importance of on-base percentage in today’s game and even with secondary skills such as power and strong defense, a player can lose a ton of value if he cannot get on base at a decent clip. For some, Middlebrooks is expected to be an all-star and anchor for a lineup that could be without David Ortiz for some time. This year I just don’t see that happening.

Toronto made a number of big moves this winter and made another bold one this past week, sending left-hander Ricky Romero down to the minor leagues to work some things out in his mechanics. The move received some mixed reviews, but Daniel George at Jays Journal thinks that it could ultimately prove to be a good thing for both Romero and the Blue Jays.

More from Daniel:

There are some positives to this news. First off, this means that fans won’t have to see 2012 staff ace Ricky Romero get completely shelled every 5 games for the club. Nothing hurts more than to see an organization keep a guy in the majors to protect his ego while he continues to get smacked around.

Finally, we’ve got one more for you this week. John Burgess at Climbing Tal’s Hill thinks that enough is enough. There’s too much talk about the historically low Opening Day payroll of the Houston Astros (who look like they might be a fun team to watch this year after last night’s win against their new division rivals). So John looks to justify the process as we await the results.

From John:

While losing really sucks, I would rather my team be horrendous for a few years than to go on a 20-year losing streak like the Pirates. Luhnow has decided to go with the “quick band aid removal method” to rebuilding so that we only have to deal with the pain for a short while instead of feeling each hair and piece of scab being ripped off with the slow rebuild.

Mario Rivera, baseball’s all-time saves leader, pulled his injured body together for one last run with the New York Yankees in 2013 before retiring. Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Just who will start on opening day for the New York Yankees? I don’t mean on the mound since the team announced it was going to be CC Sabathia. I mean at all of the fielding positions. While other Major League teams have qualified for revenue sharing payments the Yankees may be the first team to qualify for an EPA superfund site grant to clean up the mess.

First of all, given their years of dominance and the arrogance ascribed to the franchise I don’t sense too much sympathy amongst baseball  fans. There is a certain amount of delight in writing off the Yankees even as playoff contenders, never mind American League East Division champions. Still, it has been a bit stunning to watch the casualty count climb as if the pinstripe wearers were auditioning for an appearance in an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie, not on the baseball diamond.

On the good news side, as far as I can tell Mariano Rivera fooled me. I never thought he would come back from his season-ending knee injury last year.  What neither I nor any other baseball fan anticipated was the epidemic of health woes that have afflicted New York, almost as if broken bones and strained muscles can be contagious.

How fragile are the Yankees? Let us count the ways. Shortstop Derek Jeter, who dazzled us with his late-in-career play in 2012, worked diligently to come back from his damaged ankle suffered in the playoffs, only to rejolt it seriously enough to start the regular season on the disabled list. Outfielder Curtis Granderson is out with a broken arm. First baseman Mark Teixiera is out with an injured wrist. Alex Rodriguez is out with a hip problem and a variety of other problems such as a bruised ego and tarnished reputation. Pitcher Michael Pineda is on the 60-day disabled list and I am wondering what Andy Pettitte‘s situation is, at least long-term. He was sidelined for a while, but is he at full strength now?And now starter Phil Hughes is on the DL, too.

Maybe the Yankees will put the entire team on the DL and take a leave of absence for this season to give everyone a chance to get well.

Meanwhile, the rest of the AL East will play on. The Toronto Blue Jays had the best makeover in baseball during the off-season, beefing up a team that was potentially average-good with so much help that they loom as the favorites to win the division title and perhaps make a run at the World Series. While the thank-you notes to Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria will keep on coming for his largesse in handing over all types of presents, these guys now have to play.

After adding Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle to the rotation from Miami and signing R.A. Dickey as a free agent, Toronto should have a very solid mound crew.  Jose Reyes was another big add from the Marlins at short and slugging right-fielder Jose Bautista should be back at full strength from injury. I don’t know what to say about the addition of Melky Cabrera from the Giants after he humiliated himself by getting caught cheating with drugs. Now a Blue Jays outfielder, this was a jarring signing. Cabrera deserved to twist in the wind a bit, not be awarded a new contract. How do you gauge his potential effectiveness? The guy cheated his way to an All-Star game MVP and a .346 batting average, the best performance of his career. Now all is forgiven just like that? Maybe he’s a .246 hitter again.

The surprise of the division last year was the Baltimore Orioles. They seemed like overachievers whom everyone (me included) kept waiting to see falter at the season. But they didn’t, winning 93 games and qualifying for the playoffs. The problem is, I’m still not sure about whether the Orioles turned in a one-and-done showing or if manager Buck Showalter has made them into annual playoff contenders.

Under the steady hand of manager Joe Maddon the Tampa Bay Rays keep hanging in there, even with the kind of payroll reductions that force them to surrender good talent each year. They should be in the mix, as they always have been lately.

Trying to demonstrate to the fans that the 2012 season was unacceptable to management, too, the last-place Boston Red Sox supervised a winter-long personnel shuffle. A large number of new faces populate the roster, but the team and the fans would feel a lot better if one of them was a slugger like Josh Hamilton, who went elsewhere.

The Sox starting rotation has promise with Jon Lester, Clay Buchholz, Felix Doubrant, perhaps a healthy John Lackey, and newcomer Ryan Dempster, and new closer Joel Hanrahan could thrive. Acquisitions Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, Johnny Gomes, and Stephen Drew may all start, but Boston needs big years from Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury, and above all recovery from injured designated hitter David Ortiz.

This could be a wild division, but this is how I see it: 1) Toronto Blue Jays; 2) Tampa Bay Rays; 3) Boston Red Sox; 4) Baltimore Orioles; 5) New York Yankees.

With some time in the minor leagues, Toronto will let Ricky Romero work through some issues. (Image Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports)

Left-hander Ricky Romero has been optioned to High-A Dunedin by the Toronto Blue Jays, according to Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca. Romero has been dealing with a number of issues on the mound and there has been ample debate about whether or not he needs some time in the minor leagues to “work out some issues”. Most expected he’d be sent to Triple-A, if anywhere, but by sending him to Dunedin the team will be able to keep a closer eye on things as their Spring Training facilities are right there.

Romero hasn’t looked good in four Spring starts, posting an 0-1 mark and 7.27 ERA. He’s walked seven with just six strikeouts. He’s been hit hard as well, allowing three home runs. All in just 8.1 IP.

The move is surprising only considering where Romero stood in the public’s eye upon the completion of the 2011 season. He’d just finished a 15-11 season with a career-low 2.92 ERA and 1.138 WHIP. He made the All Star team and was in the Top 10 in AL Cy Young consideration. Romero had signed a five year, $30.1 Million deal with the Blue Jays the previous offseason (a deal which will pay him $7.5M this season and each of the next two, with a $13.1M team option for 2016) and he was immediately performing. The wheels fell off in 2012 for Romero. He fell to 9-14 as his ERA ballooned to 5.77. His control went missing, as he walked a league-high 105 batters (5.2 BB/9). The only solace was that he was consistent, making 32 starts for the Blue Jays for the third season in a row.

No timetable has been offered as to when Romero might return to the Toronto rotation. The team appears willing to let him figure some things out as they do have options to fill the rotation. J.A. Happ was named as the 5th starter initially. He’s shown flashes of ability, including his rookie season in 2009 when he went 12-4 with a 2.93 ERA, but he’s also had trouble with being consistent throughout his career. Toronto acquired Happ last summer from the Houston Astros, using him out of both the rotation and bullpen during the final two months of 2012. In 40.1 IP he had 10.3 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 with a 1.289 WHIP. He’s openly stated that he’d prefer to be a starter so the Blue Jays have to be hoping that he’ll be able to produce at the backend of what should be a strong rotation.

A back injury has led the Blue Jays to release David Cooper and it seems his career could be in jeopardy depending on how rehab continues to go. (Image Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports)

Tough roster decisions are always a part of any team’s Spring Training, particularly when that team spent the winter stockpiling talented players as the Toronto Blue Jays did. Toronto made the first of those decisions today, though it appears that this one wasn’t quite in the “tough call” category. First baseman David Cooper has been released by the Blue Jays, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.

Cooper didn’t report to Spring Training with the team, still suffering from a bulging disk in his back that cut his 2012 season short. Cooper is scheduled to undergo additional rehab that could potentially last through the 2013 season. It’s unknown why the team elected to release him outright, rather than simply transfer him to the 60-day DL. However, it is possible the injury could be career ending without improvement. Toronto could look to re-sign him to minor league deal if they believe he will be able to return in 2014.

With 226 PA over the past two seasons in Toronto, Cooper is a career .270/.310/.441 hitter. The former 1st Round pick (#17 overall in 2008) holds a .301/.376/.473 line in 2,243 minor league plate appearances.

Feb 28, 2013; Tampa, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Jose Reyes (7) waits to bat against the New York Yankees during the top of the first inning of a spring training game at George Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Blue Jays went from perennial fourth place finisher to front runner with two bold trades by GM Alex Anthopoulos this offseason. The Blue Jays acquired a superstar infielder and three solid starting pitchers while parting with a number of promising young players in the deals. The additions, added to an already formidable lineup, make the Jays an early American League favorite.

In November Toronto and the Miami Marlins completed a 12 player trade that brought Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle and Emilio Bonifacio to the Rogers Centre in exchange for shortstop Yunel Escobar and highly regarded prospects Adeiny Hechavarria and Jake Marisnick.

Reyes is a unique offensive weapon who combines a lifetime stat line of .291 BA/.347 OBP/.433 SLG with the ability to steal 50 bases. He is also a gold glove caliber defender at a premium defensive position. Manager John Gibbons sums up the complete nature of his game.

Once he gets on, you can’t stop him really. He’s got game-changing speed. And look at his defense, man. He can go get them with anybody and the arm he’s got.

Reyes is still in his prime and is under Toronto’s control through 2017.

Starting pitcher Josh Johnson is an enigma. If Johnson is healthy, he is one of the top pitchers in baseball with a lifetime 3.15 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. However Johnson has missed extensive time in the past with a number of injuries. Last year he did manage to pitch 191.1 innings with a 3.81 ERA.

Mark Buehrle is a master of consistency, a perfect number three or four starter. He has pitched at least 200 innings every season since 2001 with numbers that are usually consistent with his lifetime ratios of 3.82 ERA/1.27 WHIP.

Anthopoulos wasn’t finished, in December he acquired the reigning NL Cy Young winner R.A. Dickey from the New York Mets. The price to get Dickey was steep as the Jays had to part with their top two prospects Travis d’Arnaud and Noah Syndergaard.

The rags to riches story of the mountain climbing knuckleballer Dickey is one of the best stories in baseball. A former first round pick who transformed his career with the floater, Dickey led the NL with 230 strikeouts while posting a 20-6 record with a 2.73 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. Not a one year wonder, Dickey has been impressive since his 2010 Mets debut.

Anthopoulos took a 2 year $16 million chance on outfielder Melky Cabrera. Cabrera was on his way to the NL batting crown and possible MVP consideration when his PED suspension was announced in August. Is the “Melk Man” closer to his pre-2011 numbers or is he the .850 OPS All-Star he has been since the 2011 season? Cabrera is slated to start in LF for Toronto.

Middle infielder Maicer Izturis was signed to a $10 million 3 year deal to form a  gold glove caliber double play combination with Jose Reyes. His main competition for playing time will come from fellow utilityman Bonifacio.

The presence of new leadoff man Reyes plus the established offensive cornerstones of Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion give the Toronto Blue Jays one of the top lineups in the American League. Center fielder Colby Rasmus hit 23 HR in 2012 but will have to battle speedsters Rajai Davis and Anthony Gose for playing time. Third baseman Brett Lawrie and catcher J.P. Arencibia are underrated offensive contributors in the lower part of the order.

The rotation led by Dickey and Johnson has the potential to be elite, if Johnson can remain healthy. The Achilles heel of the Blue Jays could be their bullpen. Casey Janssen will serve as the closer and the ageless lefty Darren Oliver will need to play a major role.

Anthopoulos has given the Toronto Blue Jays a realistic shot at winning the AL East. The additions of Reyes and Dickey make them the favorite in baseball’s most competitive division and they should be viewed as a legitimate World Series threat.

Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-USA TODAY Sports

Cabrera, 28, was in the midst of a career season in 2012 before being suspended. The outfielder hit .346/.390/.516 in 133 games for the Giants, and were it not for the suspension and subsequent controversy, he might have signed a contract for considerably more than the two years, $16 million he wound up getting from the Blue Jays. FanGraphs values Cabrera’s season at 4.6 WAR, a career best despite having played in so few games.

It’s not know exactly what Cabrera’s motivations for withdrawing are at this point, but the outfielder likely doesn’t want to be a distraction in the WBC tournament, and with his name continuing to come in PED conversations, that’s an understandable desire. Provided he manages to stay out of headlines for the wrong reasons, he has a very good chance of providing Toronto with a solid return on their investment, and perhaps in time he can begin to repair his reputation.

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