Dark Horse: Brandon Morrow

After three relatively mediocre seasons on an underperforming Blue Jay's team, posting no lower than a 4.39 ERA, Brandon Morrow had flashes of brilliance amidst an injury plagued 2012 campaign.  By season's end, Morrow pitched 124 and 2/3rds innings and posted 103 K's with a 2.96 ERA and a 10-7 record.  

Now it's 2013, and the team that hasn't seen the playoffs since 1993 is poised to end their decade-long postseason drought with a bang.  Brandon Morrow is no longer part of a flailing rotation after Alex Anthopoulos made major moves that include acquiring Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson from the Marlins and 2012 NL Cy Young R.A. Dickey from the Mets.  Not only do these moves bolster and help repair a previously unreliable rotation, but they provide a veteran presence that can help mentor young pitchers like Morrow.  Additionally, Morrow won't be playing on a team that isn't going anywhere.  The initiative of meaningful competition could logically push Morrow to strive even harder to win.  Assuming Morrow can keep is oblique healthy and keep is K rate up, he will be geared up to complete the break out season that 2012 should have been for him .

Offseason Review: The Miami Marlins

Miami Marlins

If you've ever wondered what the
poor man's Jack Nicholson looks
like, Jeffrey Loria.

Fuck this team. Last year the Miami Marlins attempted to make a run at the playoffs by being impatient and signing every big name they could their stupid little hands on, which resulted three huge contracts for closer Heath Bell, shortstop Jose Reyes and veteran pitcher Mark Buehrle. Miami also signed notorious short-sighted loud mouth manager Ozzie Guillen, built a hideous new stadium and designed some weird ugly Nickelodeon uniforms to complete the makeover. This offseason they doubled down on all that impulse by firing Guillen and shipping all three of those major contracts out as well as unloading homegrown ace Josh Johnson.

The logic offered up by owner Jeffrey Loria for all this erratic behavior was that the team finished last and needed to be made over again. This was met with extreme backlash from fans, players and media. Mark Buehrle claimed that the Marlins lied on multiple occasions and violated the verbal no-trade contract agreed upon by the pitcher and the team. Giancarlo Stanton, arguably the only remaining player of any real value angrily tweeted  "Alright, I'm pissed off!!! Plain & Simple." He never apologized or went back on the tweet and is now being listened on by other teams who are more deserving of the raw talent that Stanton has to offer.

Giancarlo Stanton does not like this
WHACK SHIT.

The Marlins suck and I feel bad for all the young talent they acquired or claimed off of waivers, because I can't imagine a worse or less deserving team for that young talent to come up in.  I also feel bad for all of the fans who actually invested hope in this joke of a franchise. The only good thing Miami has done in the offseason is unload Yunel Escobar (acquired from Toronto in the Reyes/Buehrle/Johnson trade) to the Rays who were apparently looking to fill the mediocre prejudiced douche void left by Luke Scott, other than that it's all been bad. They need to do what's right and trade Stanton while he can utilize his vast talent. I'd also say that Jeffrey Loria should sell the team but since he's a soulless dickhead I can pretty much count that out. Logic says: Marlins finish in last place.