Aaron Hill

The Toronto Blue Jays started off the year with their named closer Frank Francisco and their second starter Brandon Morrow on the DL. After that came their recently acquired centre fielder Rajai Davis, who went down with a leg injury. Aaron Hill, their second baseman, was working through a hamstring injury in spring training and then re-injured it stealing a base.

Sitting at a cool 9-11 record, the Toronto Blue Jays have started out fairly well this season, despite a very difficult schedule, injuries, and lastly, an infusion of young talent into a relatively unsettled lineup.

With that young lineup and changeover on the Jays roster, there is bound to be some bumpy parts of the road right?

The season is only a few weeks old, but already teams have began to separate themselves from the pack, while others have shown once again that they still do not have what it takes to compete for a playoff spot.

Injuries and under performing players will inevitably create a need for some contenders to make a move to bring in a player to shore up their lineup as they make a push towards the playoffs, with the Chase Utley injury in Philadelphia a perfect example of that.

One week into the regular season, and Aaron Hill’s numbers are on the egregious side; .259 SLG (ranks 302), and .207 OBP (ranks 350). 

Given that it is early, and granted he was a little behind his teammates in spring training due to injuries, those numbers are still an area of concern. 

With what Hill produced last season, a definite improvement is needed when considering Brett Lawrie is waiting in the wings in Las Vegas. 

Our 2011 fantasy baseball projections will be released one-by-one until the top 100 players have been revealed. These rankings consider past achievements, current performance and expected future results based on standard 5×5 H2H settings.

Aaron Hill ascended into the elite ranks of second basemen in 2009, posting a ridiculous line of: 103 runs, 36 HRs, 108 RBI, six steals, .286 batting average.

The Blue Jays have undergone great change the last few years and the franchise has taken on a new, fresher look for the 2011 season.

Gone are players like Vernon Wells, Lyle Overbay, Scott Downs, Kevin Gregg, and, from a season ago, Roy “Doc” Halladay. In their place are a younger, cheaper players who are hopefully the long-term solution for the Jays going forward.

The American League East is the best division in baseball. It really isn't close. The Red Sox are arguably the best team in baseball and the Yankees aren't too far behind. The Rays had the best record in baseball last season. The Toronto Blue Jays were over .500 and even the Orioles didn't play too poorly down the stretch.

The headache was more like a jackhammer slamming around in my skull. I could barely walk, barely think, as I stumbled into Wal-Mart to find some relief. The first pain reducer I came to was Aleve. A 100-count bottle of 220 mg pain-fighting assistance.

I grabbed them, coughed up the $8.38 plus tax and popped a pill as soon as I got to the car.

During my current series, I will be examining the relative strengths and weaknesses of the teams in the American League East, on a position-by-position basis.

The players at each position will be ranked in relation to their peers within the division, with each team being assigned points based on where their player ranks in comparison to the other players. 

Today, the series continues with a look at the second basemen.

The Toronto Blue Jays have been going in the right direction ever since Alex Anthopolous took over as General Manager.  Alex Anthopolous has put great emphasis on developing young talent and has invested time and money into ensuring that the future is bright.  At the same time, AA has managed to put a fantastic product on the field that has remained competitive even in the toughest division in baseball.