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Did Rogers Communications, owner of the Toronto Blue Jays, invest in a news wire service or take over a string of baseball websites during the off-season?

That’s about all I can come up with to explain the abundance of optimistic Jays spring training stories coming from varied sources, with the recurring theme that Toronto is again ready to contend in the tough American League East.

I’ll concede that young general manager Alex Anthopoulos has done an admirable job in his Blue Jays makeover, especially as he wasn’t given carte blanche to buy his way to team success.

Most importantly, he repaired the bullpen. He finally added a legitimate closer in young Sergio Santos and valuable closing insurance in setup man Francisco Cordero.

He re-signed power man Jose Bautista, who hit 54 homers in 2010 and 43 last season and rates with the best sluggers in the game.

He also acquired the team’s best young talent, 22-year-old Canadian Brett Lawrie, who showed huge power in his short stint in Toronto last season.

But don’t let a few good moves mislead you about the chances of success for Canada’s only team.

Remember, this was a .500 club that ranked 20th in batting average and 24th in ERA last season. Many answers are needed before I’ll be convinced that this team will be in late-season contention.

Where, for example, is the depth in starting pitching? Ricky Romero is an ace, but after that it’s not so pretty.

Brandon Morrow is at times intimidating. But he’s an inconsistent starter with an 11-11 record and a high 4.72 ERA. Brett Cecil has talent, but that 4-11 record and 4.73 ERA can’t be ignored. Henderson Alvarez, at age 21, has great potential but it’s unfair to ask too much of him too soon. And the once strong Dustin McGowan is now more of a project than a certainty in his comeback from shoulder surgery.

The club’s hitting is also questionable.

Shouldn’t Colby Rasmus be much better than a .225 hitter? Will Kelly Johnson top his woeful .222 average? Can Eric Thames improve on his horrendous .313 on-base percentage? Will Adam Lind ever again hit like he did in 2009?

flatjacket1 wrote:Any article that uses ERA or BA to try and prove a point isn't worth reading into.

Schadenfreude wrote:

flatjacket1 wrote:Any article that uses ERA or BA to try and prove a point isn't worth reading into.

Chris Cochrane is a hockey-and-sometimes-boxing guy who now also does baseball because the Chronically Horrid has slashed staffing. Their business reporter now also reviews books, and the guy who reviews restaurants doubles as something else...can't remember what.

Tyrone Slothrop wrote:How long do you think it will take for beat reporters to finally stop talking about traditional baseball statistics? ERA and BA aren't awful statistics (like RBI's and Wins are), but it seems strange to me that with the great statistical analysis that's going on online there are still articles that only reference these traditional stats. Every year, for the past few years, I cringe on the first day of Blue Jays broadcasts when I see the old "BA/RBI/HR" statline when a hitter comes to the plate.

I guess it just comes down to the fact that serious baseball fans can find real MLB analysis online, and that casual fans don't give a **** about real stats like OPS, UZR, and FIP, so there's no need for beat reporters to research it.

CZAR85 wrote:I personally do not understand and do not care to learn what the new stats mean. You are right that this casual fan could not care less about the new stats all the young fans love.

flatjacket1 wrote:

CZAR85 wrote:I personally do not understand and do not care to learn what the new stats mean. You are right that this casual fan could not care less about the new stats all the young fans love.

Not necessarily young fans but fans who want to understand baseball better. Its like a science.

Tyrone Slothrop wrote:

flatjacket1 wrote:

CZAR85 wrote:I personally do not understand and do not care to learn what the new stats mean. You are right that this casual fan could not care less about the new stats all the young fans love.

Not necessarily young fans but fans who want to understand baseball better. Its like a science.

But not even that complicated of a science. If you want to keep things simple, just look at OPS and FIP.

Schadenfreude wrote:the Chronically Horrid .

flatjacket1 wrote:Any article that uses ERA or BA to try and prove a point isn't worth reading into.

Tampa Bay was 25th in BA and they made playoffs. The top 11 ERA teams in the MLB didn't win the WS.

Schadenfreude wrote:

flatjacket1 wrote:Any article that uses ERA or BA to try and prove a point isn't worth reading into.

Chris Cochrane is a hockey-and-sometimes-boxing guy who now also does baseball because the Chronically Horrid has slashed staffing. Their business reporter now also reviews books, and the guy who reviews restaurants doubles as something else...can't remember what.

HangTime wrote:

flatjacket1 wrote:Any article that uses ERA or BA to try and prove a point isn't worth reading into.

Tampa Bay was 25th in BA and they made playoffs. The top 11 ERA teams in the MLB didn't win the WS.

I love Joe Maddon's unorthodox style of play (lineup, defensive, getting SH to bat Right-Righty, Lefty-Lefty sometimes), you never know what he'll call for.

Also, why do people put stock into position. For example people say Escobar has more trade value as a SS than a 2B. If he could duplicate what he did last year + play 2B wouldn't that increase his value, because a team that trades for could easily move him back to SS.