Week 2

Another week has come and gone for the Toronto Blue Jays, and it still feels too early to call anything as to where they would fit in the standings come September. Decent results against the AL East are already promising (5-5 against the East, second to New York’s 6-4), yet there are still holes to be filled. One day hitting would be extremely dominant with pitching coming up short, and then vice versa. However, after yesterday’s 11-3 win over Baltimore, it’s easy to overlook all of that.

Everything that could’ve gone right did, for once. Buehrle had yet another dominant start, giving up one earned run over seven innings of work, allowing only five runners on base, all of which were hits. He was relying heavily on his fielders to back him up, as he only pitched two strikeouts. But when your team has the third-highest fielding percentage in all of baseball, it helps ease a pitcher’s nerves knowing their whole team is supporting them. Fielding has been the biggest improvement so far for the Jays, considering they had the fifth-lowest fielding percentage in all of baseball last season. Unnecessary errors can cost a team very important runs, and despite how well everything else could be going, poor fielding could cost the one or two runs that lose a game for a team. As long as this keeps up, it should bring in many big wins for the Jays. As far as hitting goes, 11 runs speaks for itself.

Melky Cabrera has also been a pleasant surprise up until now, picking up right where he left off before his suspension at the 2012 All-Star break. He has been batting for average like he’s been known for, along the way also picking up four home runs so far this year, tying him at second place for most home runs in the MLB currently (Bautista is first).  His speed (if you want to call it that) has also been improving since last season. While dealing with lower-body issues last season, watching Cabrera run was one of the most painful parts of the Jays season last year. And while he’s no Jacoby Ellsbury by any stretch, you can tell he’s always hustling to the fullest extent of his abilities. He’s even caught some outfielders off guard and stretch routine singles into doubles. If this keeps up, you can expect to see the Jays sign him to an extension.

Altogether, Blue Jays fans should be pleasantly surprised with how their squad is performing up until now. Is it going to last past April? Who knows. All we can tell is that they look a hell of a lot better than last year.