Ricciardi On Burnett, Manny, Shortstop

Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports talked to Toronto GM J.P. Ricciardi today.

Re-signing A.J. Burnett is one of Ricciari’s primary goals, but Rosenthal says J.P. won’t spend $15-18MM on another free agent starter if Burnett leaves.

The Jays also want to add a hitter.  Ricciardi’s take on Manny Ramirez:

"Manny is not priority No. 1. I can’t even say he’s priority No. 2.  It would really be a long shot for us to bring him to Toronto. He’s on our radar, but maybe not on our radar like some people will report.  I don’t see us getting involved in unbelievable, astronomical numbers. We would not go down that path."

The Jays are expected to add some kind of hitter, with free agent Raul Ibanez a person of interest from July.  Rosenthal has also mentioned Jason Giambi as someone to consider.  A shortstop signing seems unlikely.  Ricciardi said he would "really need to be knocked over" to replace Marco Scutaro as the starter.