Appreciating the 2009 Toronto Blue Jays

As the Blue Jays take the field for the last time at Rogers Center, the debate by experts, fans, and management will all center around if 2009 was a success. This year’s Blue Jays were not supposed to have a good year, and they did not. They are more than 20 games out of a playoff spot, and will probably finish 12-15 games below .500. In terms of a competitive season, this was not one of them. However, the Blue Jays were not supposed to make the playoffs and were supposed to finish exactly where they stand today (fourth in the AL East). Was this a successful season for the '09 Jays? Absolutely it was. They got in the first fight at New Yankee Stadium. They saw firsthand when Ichiro Suzuki get tossed. Seriously. Not only did the Blue Jays surprise out of the gate, but they shed salary and established their core of young players as legitimate big leaguers. For the first month and a half of the season, the Blue Jays were the best team in the AL East. Of course, the Major Lea...