Toronto Blue Jays 2018 Season Preview

For years, the Toronto Blue Jays were firmly stuck in the middle, better than .500, but not good enough to reach the playoffs. They are back in that position once again.

There was a time when the Toronto Blue Jays were stuck in no man’s land in baseball. They had a solid team in the late 1990s and into the 2000s, routinely finishing between 75 and 85 wins. However, they found themselves in the same division as the Yankees and Red Sox, who were making the postseason virtually every year, and even in those good seasons, were unable to get over the hump. Even with the Wild Card, the Blue Jays went over 20 years without a playoff appearance, sitting firmly in the middle of the pack.

One could forgive Blue Jays fans if they had a sense of deja vu last season. They were expecting to contend for a playoff spot, looking to finally reach the World Series again. Instead, injuries and regression led to a rough year. Jose Bautista looked old and slow. Marco Estrada was victimized by the long ball, serving up 31 homers in 186 innings. The Blue Jays rotation was so bad, that Mat Latos even got three starts.

This offseason, the Blue Jays made moves to address those problems. They have addressed their depth problems in the middle of the infield, and made moves to fix the rotation. However, none of those moves rival the Yankees or the Red Sox made this offseason. Add in the lack of moves made by the Orioles, and the Rays salary dumps, the Blue Jays appear to be solidly in the middle of the AL East once more.

Can the Toronto Blue Jays take that step forward and contend? Or will they fall by the wayside, making for a long summer north of the border?