Somewhere out there, there's a team about to turn into Next Year's San Francisco Giants.
And by that, we don't mean a team that's looking to lead the league in fortuitous waiver claims, scrap-heap excavations or most playings of "Don't Stop Believin'."
By that, of course, we can only mean one thing:
Pitching.
5. TORONTO BLUE JAYS
THEIR YOUNG GUNS
Ricky Romero, 25 next year
Brandon Morrow, 26
Brett Cecil, 24
Marc Rzepczynski, 25
Jesse Litsch, 26
Brad Mills, 26
Kyle Drabek, 23
Only the A's got more quality starts this year by pitchers 26 or younger than the Blue Jays (65) did. Morrow threw a 17-strikeout one-hitter and would have led the league in strikeout ratio (10.95 per 9 IP) if the Jays hadn't shut him down on Labor Day. Romero would have gone 14-7, with a 3.25 ERA, if he hadn't allowed 17 runs in five innings in his last two starts before the All-Star break. Cecil won 15 games in a breakout year. And Drabek, the Eastern League Pitcher of the Year, should make an impact at some point next season.
So this group's only issue, much like the Reds, is that "there's no clear-cut No. 1," said one scout. Romero is viewed as an excellent No. 2. That's probably Drabek's upside, too. Cecil tops out as a No. 3. And while Morrow "can dominate, I wouldn't put him ahead of a Price or a Cahill," the same scout said.
ODDS OF ACHIEVING GIANT-HOOD
This is a rotation on the rise and a team building around young players. But this is also a staff that's been dragged down by health issues. And -- stop us if you've heard this before -- it's a lot tougher to sneak into October when you play in the AL East than it is in the NL West. Put the Blue Jays in any other division in baseball, and they'd have all the makings of a Next Year's Giants kind of team. Put them in the AL East, and all we can say is: Lots of luck to you.
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