Ken Fidlin of the Toronto Sun spoke Tuesday with Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston, who laid out his "wish list" for the upcoming offseason. GM J.P. Ricciardi (if he's still around) and the Jays' ownership group will ultimately make the final decisions this winter, but who knows a team's needs better than its skipper?
"A lot depends on free agency," Gaston said. "It depends on who leaves and who sticks around. We might need a new shortstop [if Marco Scutaro departs via free agency], we might need to replace Rod (Barajas) at catcher. And John McDonald is a free agent, also."
Gaston said he's hoping for "some help in the starting rotation" as well, and there should be a decent free agent market for mid-rotation starters.
To summarize, the Jays are at risk of losing Scutaro, who's having a fine season, first baseman-designated hitter Kevin Millar and, as Gaston mentioned, Barajas and infielder John McDonald. Toronto probably won't have a ton of payroll flexibility, but there's plenty of room for improvement and the club has a decent nucleus to work around.
