{"id":33748,"date":"2011-02-10T16:38:00","date_gmt":"2011-02-11T00:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.capperspicks.com\/blog\/?p=33748"},"modified":"2023-02-07T07:38:15","modified_gmt":"2023-02-07T15:38:15","slug":"odds-2011-toronto-blue-jays-predictions-gambling-preview-10211","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/mlb-baseball\/odds-2011-toronto-blue-jays-predictions-gambling-preview-10211\/","title":{"rendered":"Toronto Blue Jays Predictions | 2011 Season Betting Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

2011 MLB Team Preview: Toronto Blue Jays<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Hard to believe, as many of us watch the snow fall outside, that the Boys of Summer are almost back. But it\u2019s true; teams will report soon to 2011 Major League Baseball training camps and it\u2019s time to start our team-by-team baseball gambling<\/a> previews for the year. <\/p>\n

SIGN UP TODAY With MySportsbook.com – 10% Sign UP Bonus – 10cent Baseball Lines – Gamble On 2011 MLB Future Odds and 2011 World Series Championship Lines<\/a><\/h3>\n

Blue Jays Calender<\/strong><\/p>\n

FEB. 1-18, 2011 – Salary arbitration hearings
\nFEB. 14, 2011 – Voluntary Spring Training reporting date for pitchers, catchers and injured players
\nFEB. 19, 2011 – Voluntary Spring Training reporting date for non-pitchers and catchers
\nFEB. 26, 2011 – Mandatory Spring Training reporting date for all players<\/p>\n

It\u2019s too bad the Blue Jays weren\u2019t a year further ahead in their youth development. The general consensus around Major League Baseball is that, while the Red Sox have improved, the Yankees and Rays have gone a bit soft over the offseason. That means there could\u2019ve been a hole for an 85-win team like the Blue Jays to exploit in their division. Will Toronto disappoint? Or will the young guns arrive ahead of schedule and bring the city to its feet?<\/p>\n

TORONTO BLUE JAYS<\/strong>
\nWorld Series odds: +6000<\/p>\n

After new general manager Alex Anthopoulos shipped Roy Halladay to the Phillies, 2010 was supposed to be a disaster for the Toronto Blue Jays. Many pundits picked them to finish among the very worst teams in all of baseball. Low and behold, the team exploded to lead the majors in homers and finish eight games over .500.<\/p>\n

What happened? Some of it was fluke luck. Jose Bautista hit 54 home runs and knocked in 124. I repeat, JOSE BATISTA HIT 54 HOME RUNS. There\u2019s just no way we can expect a repeat performance from a guy who was a borderline part-time player prior to last season.<\/p>\n

Still \u2013 two of the Jays\u2019 stars, Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, regressed significantly. Travis Snider developed slower than expected. So how did this team get better?<\/p>\n

The answer: the young starting pitchers delivered far more than expected. Ricky Romero, Shaun Marcum and Brandon Morrow all flirted with no-hitters at various points in the season. Marcum is gone but Romero and Morrow both have the pedigree to become solid No. 2 big-league starters. Morrow in particular has a high ceiling; the enigmatic youngster struck out 17 in a game last year. You can whiff 10 guys in a game by fluke but you need special ability to strike out 17. \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The underrated Brett Cecil also looks like a solid mid-rotation contributor. The key for the Jays this year is if Kyle Drabek can step in and fill the void left by Marcum. Drabek was, of course, the main return in the Halladay deal. He has the reputation of being a young Doc, a fiery competitor who wants the ball in key games. He has ace potential.<\/p>\n

Toronto\u2019s bullpen looks more like a strength than a weakness this season, with Jon Rauch, Frank Francisco and Octavio Dotel joining the fray. All three have big-league closing experience.<\/p>\n

2011 OUTLOOK<\/strong><\/p>\n

There\u2019s plenty for Toronto Blue Jays fans to get excited about on this roster. Lind, Hill and Snider should bounce back. J.P. Arencibia is one of baseball\u2019s top catching prospects and could start this year. Even if Batista regresses by 25 homers, 30 would be plenty useful. And Yunel Escobar could show sneaky-good pop as a shortstop.<\/p>\n

Still \u2013 the rotation could take its lumps if Drabek isn\u2019t ready. The Jays\u2019 starters are young and talented but still inexperienced. Also, the team\u2019s aggressive, undisciplined approach at the plate isn\u2019t a blueprint for consistency. If they stop making contact, their offense could swoon.<\/p>\n

Alex Anthopoulos is doing a nice job assembling good prospects, making the Jays reminiscent of the pre-breakout Tampa Bay Rays. However, in the vicious American League East, this team probably needs more seasoning. 2012 could be Toronto\u2019s year \u2013 assuming the Yankees and Rays don\u2019t retool before then.<\/p>\n

Prediction<\/strong>: 4th, American League East<\/p>\n

TEAM BY TEAM MLB PREVIEWS —-><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

View The MLB Cappers Leaderboard For 2010 \u00a0– Picks Packages for 2011 On Sale! \u2014\u2013><\/strong><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Shea Matthews weighs in with his Toronto Blue Jays 2011 Team Gambling Preview. The Jays are on the rise but in the vicious American League East, this team probably needs more seasoning, look out 2012. Do your MLB betting with Cappers Picks MLB expert picks in 2011…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":195,"featured_media":33762,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[670],"tags":[44479,43915,24742,10737,10736,10863,24739,10864,10865,44481,66513,10729,66497,678,681,10860,10861,10862,44480],"class_list":["post-33748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb-baseball","tag-2011-blue-jays","tag-2011-mlb-team-preview","tag-al-east","tag-al-east-predictions","tag-al-east-preview","tag-blue-jays-futures","tag-blue-jays-mlb-picks","tag-blue-jays-odds","tag-blue-jays-predictions","tag-blue-jays-world-series-odds","tag-handicapping","tag-handicapping-baseball","tag-mlb","tag-mlb-betting","tag-mlb-gambling","tag-toronto-blue-jays","tag-toronto-blue-jays-picks","tag-toronto-blue-jays-predictions","tag-toronto-world-series-futures"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/195"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33748"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107854,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33748\/revisions\/107854"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33762"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/capperspicks.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}