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I was listening to Brad Arnsberg talk about the lack of communication in the off season with AJ Burnett. He was the one who help convince AJ to sign with the Jays.

Is there more to this? I know AJ is in the last year of his contract. Or maybe this is just AJ. We all know he tends to march to his own tune.

If I was the Jays I would try to get rid of this guy. I am not so sure he's a real team player etc.

or maybe its the offseason and burnett is spending time with his family instead of calling his pitching coach every day

i love the way toronto media and fans almost make something out of nothing

but it wasnt toronto media. the pitching coach has said that AJ doesnt have enough communication with him which means that other pitchers do.

I never really liked AJ, injured and never seemed like he liked being here. Too bad Burnett for Bedard never worked.

He better pull it togethet this year because we got to win some games and he has to know its him that is going to take the heat. Even tho he has the money and the contract he wants to win too. Afterall hes also an athlete.

Its a contract year (he can opt out), I'm not too worried about his performance this year.

Let's look at the factors here:
- Burnett is 31.
- He has a chance to opt-out of his current deal after 2008.
- The market for starting pitchers has made AJ's current contract look like a steal.
- He had a 3.01 ERA in the 2nd half of 2007 and his strike out rate as a whole went WAY up last season.
- The Jays infield defense will be improved heading into the year with Rolen at 3B and a full year out of Overbay at 1B, with McDonald still on board for defensive subs.

To me, all signs point to a breakout for Burnett in 2008. Then he can opt-out, get his last big contract at age 32, and continue his frustratingly inconsistent injury-plagued career on another team. Then again, with Burnett, it's almost pointless to try to predict what he does.

But wow, did Ricciardi bend over for that contract or what? If Burnett has a very good/great year, he opts-out. If Burnett gets hurt or has a mediocre year, then he stays for $24 million over the final two years of the deal. He can't lose.

Michael Bradley wrote:Let's look at the factors here:
- Burnett is 31.
- He has a chance to opt-out of his current deal after 2008.
- The market for starting pitchers has made AJ's current contract look like a steal.
- He had a 3.01 ERA in the 2nd half of 2007 and his strike out rate as a whole went WAY up last season.
- The Jays infield defense will be improved heading into the year with Rolen at 3B and a full year out of Overbay at 1B, with McDonald still on board for defensive subs.

To me, all signs point to a breakout for Burnett in 2008. Then he can opt-out, get his last big contract at age 32, and continue his frustratingly inconsistent injury-plagued career on another team. Then again, with Burnett, it's almost pointless to try to predict what he does.

But wow, did Ricciardi bend over for that contract or what? If Burnett has a very good/great year, he opts-out. If Burnett gets hurt or has a mediocre year, then he stays for $24 million over the final two years of the deal. He can't lose.

That's pure JP right there.

I think JP has offically passed Babcock in terms overall sucking as a GM

i hope he pitches awesome, so we can either trade him, or he decides to opt out for more money...then we can either promote one of our younger pitchers or try to sign someone worthwhile in the next off-season

It's a lose-lose situation with Burnett next year. He does well... he opts out and we'll lose him to the highest bidder. He craps up and we're stuck with him. I was never a big fan of this signing from the start.

Michael Bradley wrote:
But wow, did Ricciardi bend over for that contract or what? If Burnett has a very good/great year, he opts-out. If Burnett gets hurt or has a mediocre year, then he stays for $24 million over the final two years of the deal. He can't lose.

The funny thing is, having a .500 high strikeout pitcher signed for 2 years 12mil per season is a steal right now, so its not entirely a bad thing. I wouldnt be surprised if Carlos Silva gets more than that.

I would like to see AJ stay healthy for an entire season, and see how effective he is. Then he might prove his value.