RealGM

Baseball is a game of numbers.

And with all the changes the Toronto Blue Jays have made throughout the organization of late, they hope to be putting up big ones pretty soon.

Since Alex Anthopoulos took over as general manager in October 2009, the club is off to a pretty good start.

They've made vast improvements in the farm system with hopes of finding sustainable success and it seems to have paid off.

Heading into the 2011 season, Toronto is No. 4 in Baseball America's talent rankings, after being at or near the bottom third of the 30-team list in recent years.

"It's very difficult to turn around a farm system in just one year, but the Blue Jays have done just that," Jim Callis, executive editor of Baseball America said. "Between the Roy Halladay trade, reaping the benefits of having extra draft picks and being very aggressive internationally, Toronto now has one of the best farm systems in baseball. It shouldn't be long before they're competitive again in the American League East."

After three seasons of fourth-place finishes in what many consider the toughest division in baseball, the future looks bright in Toronto. Assistant GM Tony LaCava sees the strength on the farm as a tool the club can utilize.

"Our goal with the farm system is always to prepare our players to play in the major leagues," LaCava said. "That's the primary goal, but the other goal is to create a value in our players so that [Anthopoulos] can use them in trades, so that if something comes up, maybe that player won't play for the Blue Jays but he'll be used in a trade so that we can get something we need."