Optimism ran high for the Toronto Blue Jays heading into the 2013 season, but they dug themselves into an early hole in the ultra-competitive American League East Division that they could never climb out of with an overall record of 74-88.

However, they still gave their fans something cheer about with a 15-3 spurt in June that included a stunning 11-game winning streak and a 10-3 run in late August/early September. Everything in-between was pretty much forgettable for a team that had been opened by some sportsbooks as the favorite to win the AL East last year.

Turning to this season’s prospect for a turnaround, the Blue Jays still have quite a few pieces in place to remain competitive for the entire 162-game season as long as they can avoid the devastating injuries and inconsistent play that plagued them last year.

Sportsbook.ag 2014 Betting Odds

Odds to win the AL East: +1500
Odds to win the AL Pennant: +2500
Odds to win the World Series: +6000
Projected Win Total: 79.5

Key Additions/Departures

After making a number of personnel moves before the 2013 season in hopes of contending in the AL East, Toronto took a more subtle approach to this past offseason with just one major free agent signing. It added former Tampa Bay catcher Dioner Navarro to replace the departed JP Arencibia, who was coming off a very disappointing season.

The Blue Jays also parted ways with pitcher Josh Johnson and outfielder Rajai Davis. Johnson will not be missed after posting a 6.20 ERA in 16 starts.

Projected Starting Lineup:

Jose Reyes (SS)
Jose Bautista (RF)
Edwin Encarnacion (1B)
Adam Lind (DH)
Colby Rasmus (CF)
Melky Cabrera (LF)
Brett Lawrie (3B)
Dioner Navarro (C)
Ryan Goins (2B)

The key to turning things around could be the health of Reyes and Bautista. Reyes missed almost half the 2013 season with an ankle injury, and Bautista was in and out of the lineup with a number of various health issues. Cabrera was also sent to the DL with a tumor in his back, so all and all a good deal of the expected production from this star-studded lineup never materialized.

The Blue Jays still ended the season ranked ninth in the Majors in runs with 712, and they were 15th in hitting with a team batting average of .252. When it came to hitting home runs they ranked right up there with the best teams in the league with 185. Encarnacion led the way with 36, and Bautista still managed to bang out 28 in 118 games.

Projected Starting Rotation

RA Dickey
Mark Buehrie
Brandon Morrow
JA Happ
Kyle Drabeck

The starting rotation was a major weakness for Toronto last season with the second-highest ERA in the American League. Dickey was a prized free agent signing from the Mets after a stellar 2012 season in which he won the NL Cy Young award. He came nowhere close to matching those numbers last season while hampered with a sore shoulder.

Overall, the Blue Jays pitching staff was ranked 25th in the Majors with a team ERA of 4.25, which is not going to win all that many games. If the top third of the starting rotation can stay healthy and return to form and Casey Janssen shines as the team’s closer, this staff has no choice but to turn in a better performance this year.

2014 Toronto Blue Jays Picks and Predictions

The Blue Jays remain a very talented team, especially when it comes to putting runs on the board, but they are stuck right in the middle of the most competitive division in all of baseball. While it is true that almost everything that could go wrong did last season, too much would have to go incredibly right to pull off a worst-to-first turnaround. In looking at their posted odds by Sportsbook.ag, the best play would be the “over” on 79.5 wins as Toronto should end up being a .500 ball club in 2014.

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Read more articles by Dave Schwab