Righty Dave Stieb was the first real ace starting pitcher the Blue Jays ever had. He pitched 15 seasons with the Blue Jays appearing in 439 games (408 starts) in which he was 175-134 with a 3.42 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. Personally, I think his best year was in 1985. He pitched in 36 games (all starts) for the Jays that season and he was 14-13 with a 2.48 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. He finished tied for 7th in the Cy Young voting because of his won-loss record and it’s quite shocking that his record wasn’t better than it was because the Blue Jays were 99-62 that season. Stieb is the Blue Jays’ career leader in wins (175), games started (408), innings pitched (2,873), strikeouts (1,658), complete games (103) and shut outs (30). He is also #3 in games pitched (439) and he is #3 in career ERA with a 3.42 mark. All of Stieb’s team records will stand for a while since the Blue Jays traded Roy Halladay to the Phillies over the winter.

The Blue Jays have been trying to trade 32-year old lefty swinging 1B Lyle Overbay all winter to no avail yet. That doesn’t mean they will quit looking to trade him because they are moving 23-year old lefty swinging Jeff Wallace to 1B from 3B. He was a big part of the Roy Halladay trade so there will be pressure to get him on the field. Overbay played in 132 games for the Blue Jays last season and he was 112 for 423 (.265 avg, .838 OPS) with 57 runs scored, 16 homers and 64 RBIs. Overbay only made 2 errors in 130 games at 1B as he is a really solid defender there.

23-year old lefty swinging Brett Wallace played in 138 games in AA+AAA ball last season and he was 156 for 532 (.293 avg, .822 OPS) with 76 runs scored, 20 homers and 63 RBIs. Wallace was a solid defender at 3B so there is no reason to think he won’t play well at 1B. The question is: Does he have enough power to play full-time at 1B? I have a feeling that will be found out at some point in 2010 by the Blue Jays.

PROJECTED GRADE AT FIRST BASE FOR 2010: C

The Blue Jays have signed 28-year old righty starting pitcher Shawn Hill to a minor league deal. Hill had Tommy John Surgery last June so he will miss at least the first half of the 2010 season. Hill pitched in 3 games (all starts) for the Padres last season and he was 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He has now pitched in 40 games (all starts) in his major league career and he is 8-16 with a 4.95 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. Hill just has never been able to stay healthy despite having big time stuff. It was worth the minor risk for the Jays to take a chance on him.

The Blue Jays have acquired 28-year old righty reliever Merkin Valdez from the Giants for cash considerations. Valdez pitched in 48 games (0 starts) for the Giants last season and he was 2-1 with a 5.66 ERA and a 1.72 WHIP. He has now pitched in 67 games (1 start) in his major league career and he is 3-1 with a 5.24 ERA and a 1.68 WHIP. Valdez has great stuff so maybe a change of scenery will help make him a better pitcher. Only time will tell if he will start to pitch better or not but the price was right for the Blue Jays to take a chance on him.

The Blue Jays have inked 26-year old righty reliever Steven Register to a minor league deal. He pitched in 1 game (0 starts) for the Phillies last season and he was 0-0 with a 4.50 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP. He has now pitched in 11 games (0 starts) in his major league career and he is 0-0 with a 8.25 ERA and a 1.92 WHIP. Register also pitched in 50 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last season and he was 2-5 with 13 saves, a 3.92 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. The Blue Jays continue to stockpile arms for the 2010 season.