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Now that the season is over, the work is just beginning for Toronto Blue Jays president Mark Shapiro and general manager Ross Atkins. They need to prepare and execute the plan for the 2017 edition of the Blue Jays. There is no rest for the weary. They need to get a budget number for payroll from ownership and then make decisions about who is part of the solution and who is part of the problem.  

The Jays have the core of their very good team returning next season. They have all five starting pitchers returning to a rotation that had the best ERA in the American League. The rotation has balance and depth.  It has experience and a combination of power and finesse pitchers. No other American League team can compare. Plus, there is room for growth and improvement with Marcus Stroman and Aaron Sanchez. The Jays have a championship-calibre closer in Roberto Osuna. Josh Donaldson is a perennial MVP candidate. Troy Tulowitzki is the best defensive shortstop in baseball history. Throw in Russell Martin and Kevin Pillar with a hopefully healthy Devon Travis and the Jays have an extremely strong team up the middle of the field.  

Despite what people have said, the window to win is not closing on this team because Jose Bautista ($14 million) and Edwin Encarnacion ($10 million) are free agents. Sure, the two combined for 64 homers and 196 RBI this season, but they can be replaced if they are not re-signed. 

The Jays will likely extend both of their sluggers qualifying offers to protect their ability to receive draft pick compensation if and when they sign elsewhere. That offer is projected to be in the $17 million range. Bautista should accept the offer but I doubt he will.  

Bautista did not have his best year. He suffered a couple of injuries that didn’t necessarily stem from his age, but age will be blamed all the same. I expect Jose’s view of what his value is in the market has come down from spring training, but I think it will still far exceed what his actual market will be. Therefore, Jose probably won’t sign until late January or early February as he waits and reaches a place of acceptance as to what his value truly is. The Jays can’t wait around on Bautista to figure his situation out so they will move on, which is the right move.  

Encarnacion is coming off of a monster season. He thrived in the walk year of his contract. There will be plenty of interest in the 1B/DH slugger. The Boston Red Sox are highly interested in him. David Ortiz made that perfectly clear when he tampered with Encarnacion at the all-star game. He effectively declared that Edwin would be his replacement next season. Remember, manager John Farrell loves Edwin from his days managing the Jays. The reality is that there will always be one more Red Sox dollar than Blue Jays dollar.  

There is no hometown discount that likely makes sense for the Jays or Edwin considering that he only made $10 million last year and has a chance to more than double that in free agency. I expect Edwin to command a four or five-year deal at about $25 million a year. Considering how Mark Shapiro and Ross Atkins fear aging players and big contracts, they will get priced out of the market. I would take a flyer and offer Edwin a three-year, $60-million deal to see if he would bite.

The likelihood is that both Encarnacion and Bautista will be playing elsewhere next year. 

The good news is this team will be led by its pitching staff in 2017 and not its offence. It was actually the case this year. Veterans J.A. Happ, Marco Estrada and Francisco Liriano give the Jays three high-quality, playoff-proven starters. The staff has room to improve though because Stroman and Sanchez still have room to grow. Stroman needs to work hard on developing a changeup to offset his hard sinker and slider. Sanchez needs to also learn to throw a changeup and to gain confidence in his curveball so he can use it more. They both have another step to improve, which bodes extremely well for next season’s staff. They are both hard workers and competitors.  

I know there has been talk in the past of converting Roberto Osuna to a starter. I would eliminate any doubt or uncertainty about his role ever again. He is a closer. He has the stuff and the stomach to get the final out of a playoff game. Leave him alone. Don’t mess with a good thing.  

The rest of the bullpen will have to be rebuilt as Jason Grilli’s option will likely be declined and Brett Cecil and Joaquin Benoit are both free agents as well. I would consider signing all three for the right deal next season.  

The emergence of Joe Biagini this year was one of the highlights of the season. He was a Rule 5 draft pick from the Giants’ organization. He went from being a young guy to hide and protect and hopefully carry through the season to the answer for some of the most important playoff innings. I would again dismiss any consideration of sending him to the minor leagues and developing him as a starter. He is a reliever and part of the bridge to get from the starters to Osuna.  

One of the things that continues to surprise me is the need to discuss John Gibbons’ status as Jays manager. I mean, they just went to the ALCS in each of the past two seasons. He and Joe Maddon are the only two managers in baseball that have done that. And Maddon makes $5 million year. Now I am not comparing Gibbons to Maddon, but he is much closer to that end of the spectrum than he is to getting replaced.  

Each of the past two seasons Gibbons weathered bullpen struggles to rebuild his late inning staff on the fly. This was not an easy team to manage. There were some really big personalities and he constantly found himself running to the defence of his complaining hitters. His wallet took a number of hits from fines he received in doing so. Gibbons’ even temperament was the perfect fit for this roster. His team played hard and battled all season long. They showed grit and resiliency during their September struggles. He matched wits with some of the games’ best managers. He outmanaged Buck Showalter in the AL wild-card game.

I know that new executives like to hire their own managers, but Shapiro and Atkins have said Gibbons is their guy. They could have made changes and chose not to. So can the conversation end? Gibbons should get a contract extension and Jays fans should be glad he is at the helm.  

Spitting Seeds

- Earlier, I wrote that Troy Tulowitzki is the best fielding shortstop in the history of baseball. I bet you didn’t know he has the highest fielding percentage of any shortstop ever (who qualifies). His defensive prowess isn’t always recognized because he makes the hard plays look easy. He is the best I have ever seen on the groundball hit to his right. He gets around the ball and throws on the run accurately every time.  

- Poor Russell Martin ran out of gas down the stretch. I got tired just watching him. His legs were shot by the end of the season.  Plus, he was dealing with a knee issue a good part of the year. Next season, the Jays are going to have to take better care of him and give him rest even when he says he is good. The backup catcher will become more important each remaining year of his contract.

- Jays fans got enough left-hander Andrew Miller in the ALCS for a lifetime. The ALCS MVP threw 7.2 innings, only allowing three singles, while striking out 14 batters and walking none. Believe it or not, he is the highest paid Cleveland player heading into next season at $9 million a year for two more seasons. There is speculation in the baseball community that Cleveland will trade him this off-season. He is a luxury they can’t afford for a whole season.  

- Look for the Jays to consider left-handed and switch-hitters to replace Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista. They need far better balance in their lineup. The right-hand dominant lineup made it too easy for pitchers to get in a groove because they only faced hitters from one side of the plate. Good news is there are more than a few good hitters from the left side of the plate available in free agency: Josh Reddick, Chase Utley, Mitch Moreland, Brandon Moss, Pedro Alvarez, Nori Aoki, Angel Pagan (S), and Carlos Beltran (S) among others.  

- I completely agree with the Dodgers’ decision to not start Clayton Kershaw on short rest in Game 5 of the NLCS but to start him in Game 6. The Dodgers or Cubs are going to win two of the final three games of their series to advance to the World Series. The Dodgers have to win the Kershaw start. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it. They must win his start. He has already pushed himself to pitch on short rest in the NLDS and he came back in relief as well. Remember, he is pitching with a herniated disc in his back. Los Angeles has to protect him, even just a little bit. I expect that series to go a full seven games with the Cubs winning in a Jake Arrieta vs. Rich Hill matchup at Wrigley Field on Sunday.