MLB Season Preview: Toronto Blue Jays

The Blue Jays, one of baseball's up-and-coming teams, could benefit most from the addition of an extra wild card to the playoff system.

Jose Bautista takes pleasure in destroying baseballs.

Offense: The lineup is essentially one superstar (Jose Bautista) and a bunch of question marks. Yet there's a ton of upside for an offense that already finished sixth in runs scored last season. Adam Lind is looking to rediscover the form that led to his .305/.370/.563 line three years ago. Former top Cardinals prospect Colby Rasmus is coming off a down season, but he's still a 25-year-old five-tool center fielder who could break out at any time. Yunel Escobar and Kelly Johnson compose an intriguing double-play combo. Edwin Encarnacion, Eric Thames, Travis Snider, and J.P. Arencibia are all young players with impressive power. And the most tantalizingly talented player of them all is 22-year-old Canadian third baseman Brett Lawrie, acquired from Milwaukee for Shaun Marcum, who is poised to become a superstar for years to come. There aren't many sure things besides Bautista, but there's youth, upside, and power at nearly every position.

Ricky Romero is no longer known as
"that guy drafted before Troy Tulowitzki."

Pitching: Like the offense, the Jays have one proven workhorse (Ricky Romero) and few other established starters. Brandon Morrow is the Colby Rasmus of the rotation--he's got ace stuff, but hasn't translated it into consistent success yet. He's struck out over 10 batters per nine innings the past two years, while his ERAs have stubbornly hovered in the mid-4.00s. The Jays need him to put it all together in 2012, because the pitching gets thin fast: Brett Cecil and Henderson Alvarez are promising but unproven, and Dustin McGowan just made his return to the majors last season after a series of major surgeries cost him several years. In the minors, Kyle Drabek still has a bright future despite struggling mightily with his command last year. The bullpen was a weakness last season and the problem was well-addressed with new closer Sergio Santos (13.1 K/9 in 2011), former Reds closer Francisco Cordero, and veterans Darren Oliver and Jason Frasor.

Brett Lawrie: Future Stud.

Breakout Candidates: They're all over the place on this roster. The most obvious candidate is Brett Lawrie, who has Ryan Braun-caliber upside but at third base. In two months and 150 at-bats last season, he hit .293/.373/.580 with nine homers and seven steals. The sky's the limit. On the mound, Brandon Morrow is the pick. His peripherals suggest that his ERA should be much lower than it has been and he's gotten terribly unlucky in his young career. The Jays signed him to an extension this offseason, so maybe they think a breakout is coming, too. You don't have to look far to spot other potential breakout players like Colby Rasmus, Eric Thames, Henderson Alvarez, Sergio Santos, and so on.

3 Key Questions: Will Rasmus and Lind become stars or disappointments? How will the young rotation settle in? And just how good will Lawrie be?

Best Case Scenario: Bautista and Lawrie go nuts, Brandon Morrow turns into Justin Verlander Lite, some young arms step up, and the Jays grab a wild card and return to the postseason.

Worst Case Scenario: The young arms are too young, the bullpen gets overtaxed, Lawrie can't live up to the hype, we don't see anything special from Rasmus or Lind, and the Jays finish fourth (though the future remains bright in Toronto).

Predicted Finish: There's a lot to like here, but Toronto doesn't have the established players to compete with New York, Tampa Bay, and Boston. They finish fourth and their promising young core takes a step forward.