Hurry up, please. It's time

According to Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail, the Toronto Blue Jays have struck again and signed starting pitcher A. J. Burnett, their second premier free agent of this offseason. This comes relatively hot on the heels of the Jays signing relief pitcher B. J. Ryan to be their closer. The Ryan deal (5 years, $47 million — the most total dollars ever given to a reliever) has been widely criticized. I'm sure the Burnett deal (5 years, $55 million) will be too. Yet I can't help but think these are the best deals the Jays have made since they traded Fred McGriff and Tony Fernandez to the Padres on December 5, 1990, for Joe Carter and a young secondbaseman named Roberto Alomar.

Why do I think these are good signings when it seems like a lot of years and a lot of money in both cases? A few reasons (the stats are based on the the last three seasons):

1. Both pitchers are entering what should be their prime years. Ryan will be 30 when the 2006 season starts, Burnett will be 29.
2. Ryan murders opposing batters. He has struck out 12.23 batters per 9 innings pitched. That's a high ratio even for a reliever.
   
3. Burnett is no slouch with the Ks either. His ratio is 8.41 K/9. Considering that 7 K/9 generally points to an effective starter, Burnett is already looking good (Roy Halladay's ratio is 6.77).
4. Neither Burnett nor Ryan allow many home runs, their HR/9's respectively are .68 and .37.
5. Why so few home runs? Maybe it's because they give up more ground balls than fly balls: Burnett's G/F ratio is 1.73 (it was 2.42 last season), Ryan's is 1.34.
   

And one more reason: these two signings now allow the Jays to trade some pitching for two more hitters their offense sorely needs. It won't be long (spring at the latest) before we see Miguel Batista and some combination of Ted Lilly, Gustavo Chacin, David Bush, Dustin McGowan, Russ Adams, Aaron Hill, and Orlando Hudson traded for home run power. (I'm pretty sure the Burnett signing rules out a Hudson trade, he'll be needed for all those ground balls that Halladay and Burnett induce).

Burnett and Ryan. As a Jays fan down here in the Maritimes I feel roight foine today. I ain't been this excited about the Jays since '93. I'm hungry to see who the hitters are that Ricciardi comes up with to complement these pitching moves. I'd love to see Jonny Gomes in Jays uniform. I'd do Batista for Brad Wilkerson in half-a-second. Would JP? How about about Chacin and Alexis Rios for Wilkerson? I'd do that one even quicker. But what do I know? Nothing, that's what -- except that JP ain't done and I ain't gonna bitch and moan about who he trades and whoever the hitters are that he comes up with until I see how the '06 season plays out. I do believe I learned a little from the Hillenbrand deal. The Jays are halfway to where they need and want to be and I don't think the GM is geared for halfway measures. Might be spring before we see how the lineup and rotation shake out. I can wait, and I'll be waiting with anticipation rather than trepidation.

I only have one question. With Halladay and Burnett at the top of the rotation, how often is the the infield carpet at Rogers Centre scheduled to be changed?