The Jays play their ace well in a game of high stakes

Sporting News, The, March 1, 1999 by Peter Schmuck

Blue Jays general manager Gord Ash finally played his ace. He kept his cards hidden for four months, hoping the pot would be sweetened, but he eventually had to put them on the table.

Why the tortured poker analogy when we're talking about the blockbuster trade that sent five-time Cy Young Award winner Roger Clemens to the rival Yankees for starting pitcher David Wells, reliever Graeme Lloyd and infield prospect Homer Bush?

Because poker is a game of steel will and subtle deception, in which things are not always as they seem. So is baseball, especially the way it is played at the front-office level.

On the face of it, it must appear to some that Ash simply served up the 1999 American League pennant to the hated Yankees, delivering Clemens as a symbolic instrument of surrender to the richest and most talented team in baseball. The Yankees were going to win anyway. The Blue Jays were just so many helpless villagers, offering up a sacrifice to the advancing giant.

It could be as simple as that, or it could be something else altogether.

I prefer to think of Ash as the evil genius, luring the unsuspecting Yankees into a devil's bargain that could be their undoing. Maybe this is just wishful thinking, but I can't help but wonder if the Blue Jays figured that the only way to beat the unbeatable Yankees in this high-stakes game was to get them to break up their hand.

Think about it: Ash had run out of options. No one was going to give up a package of top-quality prospects for an aging pitcher who wouldn't commit to staying more than one year-even if that pitcher was a can't-miss Hall of Famer with 233 victories.

The Blue Jays had only two remaining choices: retain Clemens, 36, and take their marginal shot at the A.L. wild-card berth or, perhaps, lower their expectations and take what they could get to improve their team overall.

The three players Toronto received from the Yankees should make the Jays a little better this year, but the deal only entrenched the status quo in the A.L. East. That is, unless you subscribe to the theory that this was all part of a diabolical plan to induce the Yankees to destroy their rare team chemistry-a togetherness that played a significant role in the club's 125-victory season and World Series championship a year ago.

It was enough to make Orioles manager Ray Miller wonder. When he first heard of the deal, he wasn't sure whether to take cover or take comfort.

"It's a little bit of a shock," Miller said. "Chemistry is a very important thing. I don't know how much that will be affected. My initial reaction is, `Wow, they're changing that club.'"

If you're not a conspiracy buff, you can look at the deal and see how it might improve the prospects of the Blue Jays in 1999--and beyond. The difference in production between Wells (an 18-4 record) and Clemens (20-6) last season was marginal. The addition of Lloyd, who had a 1.67 ERA in 50 appearances for the Yankees in '98, improves the bullpen. And the arrival of Bush, primarily a second baseman, adds long-term potential. Bush had only 82 at-bats in two years with the Yankees, but he made the most of them by hitting .378.

The Jays have the makings of a pretty good pitching staff. Wells, former Cy Young Award winner Pat Hentgen, newly acquired Joey Hamilton and promising Chris Carpenter are penciled into the rotation, and Lloyd adds to the lefthanded depth of the bullpen.

There also is plenty of offensive potential--even with the absence of slugger Jose Canseco, who signed with the Devil Rays. Carlos Delgado and Shawn Green are coming off huge seasons, and the club again hopes for a breakthrough season from promising Jose Cruz Jr.

Realistically, though, the Blue Jays figure to finish third-again-in the A.L. East. The Yankees are the only super team in the division. The Orioles are the likely runner-up after a busy offseason in which they acquired Albert Belle and several other veteran free agents, but they're not a lock to pull a dramatic turnaround after their disappointing fourth-place finish last season.

In the midst of the controversy surrounding Clemens and his hopes of being dealt to the Astros--Clemens eventually withdrew his trade demand and said he would report to spring training with Toronto--I wrote that the Jays would be best served by keeping him until it was obvious they wouldn't be in playoff contention. A trade-deadline swap in July seemed to make sense.

Ash did not take my advice, of course. But he may have gone me one better by stocking the roster with three quality players who arguably are more valuable in total than Clemens. Some question remains whether that was actually Ash's plan, but we're probably going to find out soon enough.

There has been speculation that Ash might turn right around and trade Wells (only nine months younger than Clemens) for prospects, strengthening the foundation of a club that probably is two or three years from reaching its playoff potential. Free agent-to-be Wells also will be able to move on after one year, but he figures to be easier to trade than Clemens, who had veto power over any deal he didn't like.