Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins did their part.
They were successful in keeping most of the stars from 2015 on the team for the 2016 season.
David Price got away, but management retained manager John Gibbons, a lot of the big bats and many of the starting pitchers for another playoff run.
I get the sense they tried to do that same for 2017.
Free agent Jose Bautista is likely gone after rejecting a $17-million qualifying offer.
Management reportedly offered Edwin Encarncion a four-year $80 million deal. That’s a legitimate offer in my mind, but with no progress, the team opened the vault for Kendrys Morales.
If the Toronto Blue Jays fail to make another playoff run this season there will be heat on Shapiro and Atkins.
That shouldn’t be the case. They understand that Bautista and Encarncion played key roles in playoff pushes.
Like in any pro sport, roster turnover is inevitable.