Blue Jays fans owe Edward Rogers a round of applause

Now, I'm not one to go around shaking hands with billionaires, but Rogers-chairman of Rogers Communications and son of the late Blue Jays owner Ted Rogers-has certainly played his part.

After a disappointing season last year, followed by the decision to sell off players at the trade deadline, the general consensus was that the Blue Jays needed more than just one upgrade-they needed several. The only way to do that? Spend.

And yet, at the end of a press conference, Jays President Mark Shapiro stated he didn't foresee a significant increase or decrease in payroll.

Plot twist. The Jays' aggressive pursuit of Juan Soto seemed to suggest they had more financial flexibility than Shapiro initially let on (or was willing to admit).

While the Blue Jays ultimately missed out on several high-profile players, they still spent big-landing Yimi Garcia, Jeff Hoffman, Max Scherzer, and AAnthony Santander. On top of that, they avoided arbitration with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., locking him in at $28 million per year.

This didn't just push the Blue Jays past the first luxury tax threshold; it took them past the second one as well.

Edward Rogers is behind all of this, and he deserves more credit than he gets.

During the pandemic, when many owners were tightening their belts, Rogers made a significant investment in the team, keeping the money flowing at a time when others were hesitant to spend. And he's kept those resources coming ever since.

Maybe next time he shows up at Rogers Centre, he'll get a round of applause instead of boos.

SOURCE - Toronto Star

For all your current Toronto Blue Jays and MLB baseball news check out BlueJaysCentral.com on Facebook, X and Blue Sky.