- Commissioner’s statement on Ventura, Marte
- Ronnie O’Sullivan: Masters champion ‘felt so vulnerable’ in final
- Arron Fletcher Wins 2017 WSOP International Circuit Marrakech Main Event ($140,224)
- Smith challenges Warner to go big in India
- Moncada No. 1 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- Braves land 2 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- Kingery makes MLB Pipeline’s Top 10 2B Prospects list
- New Zealand wrap up 2-0 after Bangladesh implosion
- Mathews, Pradeep, Gunathilaka to return to Sri Lanka
- Elliott hopes for rain for Poli
Looking back … and ahead
- Updated: October 25, 2016
It should have been a helluva season — maybe not winning the World Series, but at least getting there.
What happened?
While the starting pitchers were performing much better than expected, the relief corps was awful as it posted a 10-14 record in the first half and then went 13-18 in the second.
Roberto Osuna was great, no bones about it. And when Joaquin Benoit and Jason Grilli were added to set the table, they became a very good trio for the last three innings when the Blue Jays were ahead. Joe Biagini was better than expected in the middle innings.
Defensively, the Blue Jays were on par with 2015 as they committed the same number of errors, 88.
The big letdown was on offense as it posted a .248 average, with 221 home runs and 728 RBIs while piling on 1,362 strikeouts. In 2015, the Blue Jays had a team average of .269, with 232 homers, 852 RBIs and 1,151 strikeouts.
Jose Bautista spent time on the disabled list, but he did not hit as expected and Russell Martin had a very disappointing season at the plate. Martin had some good spurts, especially in the second half of the season, but he faltered badly in the playoffs.
The best offensive surprise was Ezequiel Carrera. He hit well, showed some power, good speed and could drop a bunt whether …
