DUNEDIN, Fla. -- The Blue Jays and Red Sox were rained out on Tuesday afternoon, which led to a slow day at Spring Training, but with almost two weeks officially in the books there is enough of a sample size to start breaking things down.
Here are five early observations from Blue Jays' Spring Training:
A call for arms
The Blue Jays are only three games into their Grapefruit League season schedule and it's already pretty evident they need more help in the bullpen.
Ken Giles, Ryan Tepera and David Phelps are the only relievers with guaranteed jobs, while Tim Mayza and John Axford are early favourites for two more spots. That still leaves at least two, possibly three, positions up for grabs from a group that currently includes Joe Biagini, Jacob Waguespack, Sam Gaviglio, Mark Leiter Jr. and Elvis Luciano.
Toronto remains in the market for more pitching and the club would be well served to add another veteran arm or two. If not, this team is going to struggle bridging the gap to Giles at the back end of the bullpen.
The battle in left
The battle for playing time in left field is shaping up to be the competition to watch. Teoscar Hernández and Billy McKinney are expected to duel all spring for the starting job, and this race should go down to the final week of camp. Hernandez is 3-for-4 this spring, including a double off the wall in straightaway center field. McKinney has two hits in six at-bats and also is getting some reps at first base to increase his versatility. Not to be forgotten in all of this is Dalton Pompey, who has been an early surprise with a home run and a stolen base. He's out of options and will have to beat out either McKinney or Hernandez to secure his spot.
The rookie
Toronto is going to provide Luciano with every opportunity possible to make the team. The 19-year-old would become the youngest pitcher in franchise history if he does so, and so far it looks like he probably will. Luciano, who was taken in the Rule 5 Draft, has a tendency to scatter his fastball and a lack of command could be his downfall. He's also pitching with nothing to lose and the Blue Jays love his ceiling. It's going to be difficult for Toronto to keep him on the 25-man roster all year, but he's going to have to really blow up for the team to abandon this mission. Luciano pitched a scoreless inning in his debut and if that trend continues, he'll become a lock for the roster.
Culture change
There's a different feel around Spring Training this year and it's a direct result of the coaching change. Manager Charlie Montoyo has made a lot of adjustments to the way the Blue Jays prepare for the start of the regular season. They pushed their daily starting time back by a couple of hours, the coaching staff is utilizing new technology to understand and disseminate advanced stats and lineups are being mapped out days in advance. Rapsodo machines, which monitor spin rates, are around for every bullpen session. There's nothing traditional about this Spring Training.
The Vlad factor
Everybody knows Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is going to hit at an elite level. There is less confidence about his baserunning and defense, but so far in camp he has looked just fine doing both. Toronto spent a lot of time last season emphasizing these two aspects of his game and it's possible the extra reps have helped smooth out some of the kinks. In Guerrero's first spring appearance, he made a nice pick on a very difficult throw from home. His range at third base has also been acceptable in drills and he has displayed quite a bit of mobility for a guy his size. The 19-year-old is probably never going to win a Gold Glove, but based on the early eye test he also should be able to stick at third for at least a few years.