Looking for a team that could pull off a surprise this season?
The Dodgers are upwardly mobile with Magic Johnson at the top of the organization chart. The Nationals are a surprisingly confident bunch. But the team to watch is the one that has crushed the opposition in Florida, the Blue Jays.
Despite a schedule that is heavy with games against the Yankees and Phillies, they were 22-5 through Friday. Their latest victory provided the seminal sequence of the spring.
Anthony Gose, a 21-year-old center fielder intent on getting to the big leagues soon, stole second base, third base and home in the eighth inning off Bobby Valentine's Red Sox to break a 2-2 tie. Branch Rickey would have loved it.
Gose's steal of home came when he saw catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia lobbing the ball back to pitcher Justin Thomas. He broke when the ball left Saltalamacchia's hand and slid across the plate in front of a throw from the shocked Thomas.
"He is obviously exciting,'' Blue Jays manager John Farrell said. "He can take over on the basepaths. He has a combination of pure speed, plus the ability to read some things. You just turn him loose.''
Gose's presence on the Blue Jays speaks to how aggressively third-year general manager Alex Anthopoulos has gathered talent. Gose was with Philadelphia when the Blue Jays traded Roy Halladay there two years ago but the Phillies wouldn't give him up then. They later traded him to the Astros for Roy Oswalt, and Anthopoulos acquired him from the Astros the same day, sending first baseman Brett Wallace to them.
The Blue Jays haven't been to the playoffs since winning the second of back-to-back World Series in 1993, and haven't finished higher than fourth in the American League East since 2007 but have been more competitive than most realize in the last six years, with '09 the only losing season in that span. The Jays were 81-81 last year, prompting Anthopoulos and others on his staff to believe the Jays could be a playoff contender this year, especially if MLB added a second wild-card spot.
Jose Bautista anchors a lineup that includes highly productive shortstop Yunel Escobar and potential young stars in third baseman Brett Lawrie and center fielder Colby Rasmus. All of those guys were acquired after they slid out of favor with the Braves, Brewers and Cardinals, respectively.
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