All the best in Wisconsin, Shaun

Maybe the most impressive part of last season’s Toronto Blue Jays team was not the 257 home runs, but the young and talented pitching staff. Ricky Romero, Brandon Morrow, Brett Cecil, and Shaun Marcum combined to post a record of 52-31 and an ERA of 3.98 across 117 starts. The best part of it? All of this done with an average age of 25. Yes, it certainly seemed like the Jays had a solid core of pitching talent with which to build their team around. Now the question is: Do they still have enough?

            Shaun Marcum was officially dealt to the Milwaukee Brewers today for AA prospect Brett Lawrie; a high ranking 20 year-old second baseman in the Brewers farm system. This seems to fall into the pattern of GM Alex Anthopoulos’ moves since taking over the Jays. Toronto has moved proven veterans Alex Gonzalez and, of course, Roy Halladay in the past year in exchange for a wealth of, well… basically potential. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. With a payroll that will never match that of the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox, the Jays must build internally and through well scouted trades; i.e. the Rays’ way. But is it ever a good sign to see a team trade its Opening Day starter two winters in a row?

            Ricky Romero will take over as the pseudo “ace” of the staff now that Marcum is gone, although the point can be made that he already was. Romero possesses ace talent, but there’s still a question of consistency and maturity. He has made just 61 career starts and shown a tendency to struggle with his accuracy at times, leading the league last year with 18 wild pitches. But I think it was just a matter of time before Toronto asked Romero to step into this role. He was even considered for the Opening Day start last year before it was given to Marcum. One of just 21 AL pitchers to throw over 200 innings last season, Romero will again be asked to shoulder a heavy burden.

            Brandon Morrow and Brett Cecil also remain and will be looked upon to increase last year’s success. Morrow finally got the opportunity to consistently start for a team after coming to the Blue Jays from the Seattle Mariners; where he was used mainly as a back-end bullpen guy. Morrow was up and down during the beginning of the season, posting a 5-6 record and a 4.86 ERA, but finished off the year strong going 5-1 in his final 8 starts. A stretch that included a complete game 1 hitter, that saw Morrow take a no-hitter 8.2 innings while striking out 17. He was shut down early in an attempt to not stress his arm, but as the lone remaining right-handed starter, Morrow will be key to any Jays’ success.

            If Romero and Morrow have the best stuff in the rotation, Brett Cecil certainly is the most consistent member of the staff. Cecil led the team in wins with 15, and though some of it might be accounted to his tendency to pitch with great run support, he also only lost consecutive starts twice. Cecil, like Morrow, also closed out the 2010 campaign with style, winning four of his final 5 starts.

            So it’s now a matter of who’s left to round out the rotation, and I stress the word “left”. Top prospect Kyle Drabek is an obvious choice for a spot in the staff. He pitched 17 innings last season across three starts with a 4.76 ERA, but maybe more importantly, he represents the only foreseeable (the next 3 seasons) payoff of the Halladay deal. Brad Mills made three starts in 2010, Jesse Litsch is an option when he’s healthy again, and even Marc Rzepczynski won his final three starts last year; though the fact his constant short outings were a main cause of Brian Tallet seeing actual game time doesn’t bode well. Nothing says “we’re giving up” more than a Tallet appearance in the 3^rd inning. Who knows? Maybe a player even breaks out in Spring Training.

            Or maybe this is all part of something bigger. It’s not exactly a secret Toronto’s been looking into Zack Greinke, and it doesn’t take much more than common sense to realize how hefty his price tag would be (too hefty if both Travis Snider and Drabek are involved).The Jays have a young shortstop in Yunel Escobar and have much money and hope tied up in second baseman Aaron Hill. They also have touted middle infield prospect Adeiny Hechavarria in AA. So the move to acquire another middle infielder in Lawrie, however talented he may be, is suspect. As much as it would pain me to see Lawrie traded (I find Toronto constantly trades or has no interest in getting Canadian talent; note the Trystan Magnuson deal earlier this off-season), I’m under the impression this is the first in a long line of transitions for Anthopoulos.

            Is the current rotation good enough to get the Jays to the playoffs? No. But that's not saying it can't develop into one effective enough. Romero and Cecil will be entering just their 3rd full seasons as major league starters, as for Morrow, it'll be just his second. Another thing to consider is how the staff gels with not just new manager (and former MLB pitcher and pitching coach) John Farrell, but also with new and expected everday catcher J.P. Arencibia. That's right Morrow, Jose Molina can't be your personal catcher forever.

            But remember, the off-season is as young as the pitching staff and there will be a lot of interest in what the Jays do during the rest of the winter. Maybe the most since the names Lyle Overbay, A.J. Burnett, and B.J. Ryan meant excitement and hope to Toronto fans, not disappointment and betrayal.