The Toronto Blue Jays have assembled a solid collection of talent over the past half-decade, and with a more talented roster comes bigger and bigger expectations. After a few disappointing years of flaming out in the playoffs, the Blue Jays looked at 2024 as a fresh start as they sought to make it back to the postseason and win their first playoff game since 2016. However, this season has been one straight out their nightmares, as they currently have a 52-62 record, which has them in last place in the AL East.
All the Blue Jays brass could do now is throw their hands up in the air and admit that 2024 isn't their year. But as is usually the case, failure is the greatest teacher, and Blue Jays president and CEO Mark Shapiro is imploring his team to learn from their shortcomings this season.
“We just need to get better. In the nine seasons I've been through, this is the biggest disconnect from expectations. It doesn't mean we haven't had difficult endings to seasons and it doesn't mean we haven't had seasons where we knew we were going to have a challenge competing, but this has been, by far, the biggest disconnect from our expectations and the biggest disappointment. We need to learn. We need to get better from it,” Shapiro said, via ESPN.
Blue Jays to go back to square one?
Mark Shapiro's first year at the helm for the Blue Jays came in 2016, the year when they last won a playoff game. From 2017 to 2019, the Blue Jays were clearly rebuilding, but the roster's lack of depth made it clear that they were destined for the bottom of the standings. In 2024, they were coming three playoff berths in four seasons, and the only season they failed to make to the postseason, they won 91 games — a sign of a franchise in good condition.
But it looks like the Blue Jays may have to go back to the drawing board after this season. As Shapiro said, he does not want to call the process they're going through a “retool” or a “rebuild”, and they don't exactly have to make too many changes to the roster. There has just been a pervasive underperformance up and down the roster — can a new season in 2025 help turn things around for their struggling everyday players?
Some regression to the mean and a few additions here and there to plug some roster holes could have the Blue Jays right back in playoff contention next year.
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