Here is an absolutely true fact about the Blue Jays right now: every player who is in a crucial position for the team as a starting player has a WAR of over 1.2. That includes every member of the starting lineup, every member of the team's rotation, the backup catcher, and two backup outfielders. The median WAR among batters is 0.6. The median WAR among those starting pieces is 2.0. Of the statistical Top 12 players on the Blue Jays, the 12th highest WAR belongs to Nathan Lukes, who has a 1.5. This would be the fourth-highest on the White Sox, the eighth highest on the Braves and the third highest on the Rockies.
The Blue Jays are good. Not only that, they've worked it out where basically everyone on the team is good. There are no weak links in the lineup, and you'd have to go to the bullpen to find an area of this team that doesn't look impressive.
That the Jays have built an impressive, consistently productive lineup out of a lot of small pieces is all the more impressive. Ernie Clement was a cheapo free agent signing that became one of the most lethal swiss army pieces of this team. Myles Straw was practically a giveaway from Cleveland who got back to his old tricks and became a fan favorite. Barger and Schneider were organizational also-rans who turned call-ups into big years. Barger has 18 homers already this year, while Schneider's been hot as hell this month. Nathan Lukes was a career minor leaguer in the Rays organization, got a shot as a backup in Toronto and has become a really impressive bench guy. It's very crazy that so many pieces of this team [Straw, Gimenez, Lukes, Clement, now Shane Bieber] were developed by Cleveland only to soar here.
The Guardians couldn't take down the Yankees by themselves, but several Guardians are now high above the Yanks playing for the Jays. Incredible.
The most impressive turnaround this Jays team was capable of has to be Eric Lauer. Lauer was no slouch as a depth starter with the Brewers, but he hit some injuries and eventually had to recoup some playing time in Korea. This year he comes back with a vengeance and, despite missing playing time early, he's called upon as a starter in Toronto after Bowden Francis gets hurt. Lauer...has been one of the Blue Jays' best pitchers since then. In 14 starts, Lauer has a 3.25 ERA, a 6-2 record and 70 Ks. He's been consistently strong, and a surprising rock in a strong-but-slightly-unstable rotation. Like...it's while that Eric Lauer is more trustworthy than Max Scherzer in this unit.
The Jays lucked into some easy series' this week, and have their heroes surging. I have no doubt they'll make the playoffs, and they have the momentum to potentially win the AL East. It's really only a matter of if the Sox or Yanks can catch them, and at this juncture that is looking exceedingly difficult.
Coming Tonight: One of the best relievers of his generation. Maybe not one of the best closers though...
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