Toronto: From Worst to First?

The Miami Marlins latest payroll purge was approved on Monday by Commissioner Bud Selig. This blockbuster deal, paired with other lopsided deals the Marlins have made throughout the year, continue to alienate the shrinking Marlins fan base.

Since midseason, when they started trading away players from a sinking ship, 12 major leaguers have been traded. These 12 players aren't just anybody. Two-time Silver Slugger™ Award winner and former Rookie of the Year Hanley Ramirez was sent to the Dodgers, and former NL batting champ Jose Reyes was recently sent to Toronto.

With these trades, the Marlins have eliminated huge salaries. The amount of money in guaranteed salaries associated with the 12 traded players is $163.75 million dollars. In 2012, only three teams – the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Philadelphia Phillies – had a higher total payroll than that. Of that, $96 million belonged to Jose Reyes, one of the Marlin’s big free agent signings last season.

Reyes was the centerpiece in the recent trade to the Blue Jays, a trade involving 12 players and an extra $8.5 million in cash that Miami sent to Toronto. This trade has sent the Blue Jays payroll through the roof. Last year, the Blue Jays had the 19th highest payroll in the league. After this trade, their Opening Day payroll could be the 5th highest in the league, behind teams like the Yankees and the Phillies.

The various Marlin deals have dramatically shaken up the Major League Baseball landscape going into the 2013 season, particularly the AL East. Here's a look at the potential impact.

Miami Marlins

 What are they doing? Since mid season they have shipped out player after player, getting rid of so much in guaranteed contracts that there opening day payroll is expected to be only $36 million for active players. Even though its only November, not many free agents are expected to sign multi-year deals after none of the players Miami signed last year remain. Without any more players coming in, there payroll will be the lowest in the league since 2008. In comparison, the smallest payroll in 2012 was the AL West champion Oakland A’s $59.5 million. It might be a good path for Miami, after their huge spending spree in the offseason didn't work, as they finished with a 69-93 record.

The loss of Jose Reyes will especially hurt the team, as he was a key part in keeping the team afloat after they traded Hanley to the Dodgers.  Losing starters Buehrle and Johnson is going to hurt their rotation a lot as well. With a rotation where the #1 pitcher might be Ricky Nolasco, they will struggle to win games. Also, having guys like Bryan Petersen in the lineup, trying to set up Stanton will be a problem. Without solid support for Stanton in the lineup, both he and the Marlins will falter.

They are coming off a tumultuous season involving former manager Ozzie Guillen, who they fired, and quickly replaced with Mike Redmond. Redmond retired from baseball just two years ago, so it isn’t clear what management is thinking. The 41-year old Redmond is not the right choice for manager. They need an experienced, veteran manager who can right the ship.

If the team stays on this track, they’re potentially heading to the same place the Astros find themselves: the cellar.

Toronto Blue Jays

 All of a sudden, the AL East has become more competitive, building on the 2012 season which saw three teams with over 90 wins. The Blue Jays will now likely join that elite group, instead of being the team that has been near the bottom of the division since winning the division title (and the World Series) 19 years ago. The future is looking up because of the fleet of talented players from Miami, including former All-Star shortstop Jose Reyes, talented starting pitchers Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson and utility players Emilio Bonifacio and John Buck. On paper, they are arguably the best team in the East; ahead of last year’s division Champion New York, 93-win Baltimore, and 90-win Tampa Bay. Sure, they don’t have a true No. 1 starter, but with the ever-reliable Mark Buehrle, the talented Brandon Morrow, and Ricky Romero, along with the addition of Josh Johnson, you have a decent rotation. According to a multiple baseball executives (Terry Ryan, Andrew Friedman and others), Toronto has a lot of number twos and number threes on the mound, which makes their rotation competitive.  Pair that rotation with a bullpen of live arms and a decent offense, and you have a much-improved team. Their offense, which fell after Bautista was hurt, gets rejuvenated when you mix in the leadoff power of Reyes and Bonifacio. With those two at the top of the lineup, you have two guys who will get on base a lot. Then, with Edwin Encarnacion coming off a strong season- the Blue Jays have a potent offense. With all these pieces in place, they have a chance at there first AL East title since 1993.

AL East

The AL East just got very interesting, as there are now five teams in contention, assuming the Red Sox can turn things around. Last season, there were three teams with over 90 wins, which did not include the Red Sox (who had a terrible season under now-fired manager Bobby Valentine) and the newly revamped Blue Jays.

Perhaps the AL East’s new slogan should be “where good teams go to die.”  There are five teams in the East capable of making the playoffs, but only a maximum of three spots these teams can fill: division champion plus two wildcards. Given that the whole division clearly has talent, the large number of divisional games will make for some exciting baseball. Out of the division, all of the teams are going to have to win a lot just to get close to the playoffs. This lopsided trade by the Marlins really took the AL East’s already competitive division and somehow made it even more competitive: five teams in playoff contention.

Looking Ahead

Many people believe the Marlin trade will have a big impact now, but in the long run, the impact could be even greater. Divisional realignment and/or more wild card teams are possibilities that could leave a resounding impact on Major League Baseball. Its time for Jeffery Loria to take a long look at what’s going on around the league, as he’s alienating his team’s fans and killing the Marlins future dreams as a contender in this league, as well as, potentially, affecting the league’s future.