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Toronto Blue Jays: 4 Reasons They Won’t Win the AL East

By Paul Taylor

Jun 24, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons (5) is ejected from the game by third base umpire Ted Barrett (65) in the ninth inning. The Chicago White Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-2.at U.S. Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 24, 2016; Chicago, IL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays manager John Gibbons (5) is ejected from the game by third base umpire Ted Barrett (65) in the ninth inning. The Chicago White Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 3-2.at U.S. Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports /
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Toronto Blue Jays
Oct 15, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Toronto Blue Jays left fielder Ezequiel Carrera (3) catches a fly ball against the Cleveland Indians during the first inning of game two of the 2016 ALCS playoff baseball series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

3) Left Field

The Blue Jays were the beneficiaries of a career year from Michael Saunders in 2016. He set personal single season highs in a whole host of categories, and received his first invitation to the All-Star Game.

Regardless, the Blue Jays declined to extend Saunders a qualifying offer for the 2017 season. This was influenced in large part due to his slump after the All-Star break.

As a result, the Blue Jays will go into the new campaign using some combination of Melvin Upton Jr. and Ezequiel Carrera. Neither option inspires much confidence at this stage.

To be fair to Carrera, he looked good during the Blue Jays’ postseason run in 2016. However, this came after a poor showing during the regular season, something which has been a trend during his Major League career to date.

As for Upton, he didn’t look particularly impressive after he arrived from San Diego last July, best highlighted by his .196 batting average. He then followed this up by doing virtually nothing in the postseason.

Depending on how things play out at other positions, Steve Pearce could get a shot, while Dalton Pompey is another possibility. Overall though, as things stand, left field looks set to be an issue during the 2017 season.

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