Three months into his tenure, Blue Jays President & CEO Mark Shapiro "seems more comfortable in his surroundings" after an "initial frosty reception" in Toronto, according to Robert MacLeod of the GLOBE & MAIL. Shapiro "readily admits that his arrival in Toronto has not unfolded as smoothly as he would have liked," but he claims those circumstances "were beyond his control." He also "understands the exalted status" that former GM Alex Anthopoulos "had risen to in Toronto." Shapiro said of fans' reception of him, “I definitely did not anticipate it. When I was going through my decision-making process (on whether or not to leave Cleveland) to come here, it was not what I expected." Shapiro said that he "would have been delighted to work with Anthopoulos, that they would have been able to complement each other." He said, "Not having the opportunity to do that with him -- disappointing. But the day that decision’s made, we’re moving forward." MacLeod noted with the dropping Canadian dollar "currently under the 70-cent U.S. mark," the team might be unable to re-sign RF Jose Bautista and 3B Edwin Encarnacion to new deals. Both are free agents after this season. Shapiro said, "Without talking about (what) the lower dollar does in terms of specific people, it’s a significant challenge. And if it lowers further, which it looks like it might, it becomes a bigger challenge. But it’s just one you’ve got to manage against" (GLOBE & MAIL, 1/16).
MOVING THE NEEDLE FORWARD: In Toronto, Richard Griffin writes free agency "will be a big issue" for the Blue Jays. In addition to Bautista and Encarnacion, other pending free agents on the roster include Ps R.A. Dickey, Drew Storen, Brett Cecil and Jesse Chavez, RF Michael Saunders and 1B Justin Smoak. That is an estimated $59M "in guaranteed salary that could disappear from the books." If the Jays wait until November before dealing with their free agents, "it will already be too late." But time "is running out and any momentum is being lost." The goodwill with fans following the team's run to the ALCS "has been torpedoed." The "only player acquired at the trade deadline who remains" with the team is SS Troy Tulowitzki, and there was "no effort to retain" P David Price. Additionally, the team "stalled on grass at the Rogers Centre," and ticket prices increased (TORONTO STAR, 1/17).
RULES WERE MEANT TO BE BROKEN: FOX SPORTS’ Ken Rosenthal noted the Blue Jays are taking 3B Josh Donaldson to arbitration "over a difference of $450,000.” The team “will not negotiate further on a one-year contract after arbitration numbers are exchanged,” and they “very likely have damaged their relationship with Donaldson, a proud, emotional sort who will not forget this slight.” Considering how “small the split is this time, it’s the Jays who look small-minded, taking a business-first approach to an extreme.” The team’s success in arbitration “is well-known throughout the industry.” But now they are “in a box with a popular player who will remain part of the team’s core” if Bautista and Encarnacion “depart as free agents at the end of the season.” Rosenthal: “Why not just settle with Donaldson at the midpoint? Because Shapiro would establish a dangerous precedent if he made an exception in a club policy so soon after taking over on Nov. 3” (FOXSPORTS.com, 1/18).
