Blue Jays pitcher A.J. Burnett is going to be a free agent. On Tuesday, Darek Braunecker, Burnett’s agent confirmed that Burnett will opt out of his current contract. Braunecker met with the Blue Jays at the GM Meetings in Dana Point, Calif., on Tuesday to inform the club of the pitcher’s decision.

Burnett immediately becomes arguable the top available arm behind free-agent C.C. Sabathia. Last season, Burnett set career highs with 18 wins, 34 starts, 221 1/3 innings and an American League-high 231 strikeouts. By opting out, Burnett leaves the $24 million he was owed over the next two years on the table.

Maybe the biggest part of Burnett’s 2008 season was his absence from the disabled list. Only twice in Burnett’s 10 seasons has he avoided the DL — thanks to numerous arm injuries — and both happened to be contract seasons. His only other injury-free campaign was in 2005, when he won 12 games for the Marlins and then signed a five-year, $55 million deal with Toronto.

So Burnett comes with some risk, even with the sound season he just logged. Braunecker offered a no comment when asked if the Jays had already tabled a new offer to retain the pitcher.

It’s likely that Burnett waits to see what free-agent pitchers like Derek Lowe and Ryan Dempster can get on the open market, considering Burnett could make a case to earn more. The Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles are all rumored to have interest in Burnett, who makes his offseason home outside of Baltimore.

~JB

TORONTO — The Elias Sports Bureau has released its final 2007-08 MLB player rankings, identifying Type A and B players, and Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay ranks first among starting pitchers with a rating of 95.031.

Here is the breakdown of the top rated players at each position:

American League
• Outfield: Magglio Ordonez, Tigers (96.316)
• Designated hitter: David Ortiz, Red Sox (94.545)
• Catcher: Joe Mauer, Twins (89.401)
• Second base: Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox (85.714)
• Shortstop: Michael Young, Rangers (88.0)
• Third base: Alex Rodriguez, Yankees (95.031)
• Starting pitcher: Roy Halladay, Blue Jays (95.058)

National League
• First base: Albert Pujols, Cardinals (95.385)
• Outfield: Matt Holliday, Rockies (98.125)
• Catcher: Russell Martin, Dodgers (85.328)
• Second base: Chase Utley, Phillies (92.411)
• Shortstop: Jimmy Rollins, Phillies (85.714)
• Third base: David Wright, Mets (89.560)
• Reliever: Takashi Saito, Dodgers (88.678)

Other Type A and B Blue Jays:

A — A.J. Burnett (89.729): 4th among AL SP
A — Scott Downs (81.513): 11th among AL RP
A — Alex Rios (78.816): 10th among AL OF
A — Jeremy Accardo (70.798): t-25th among AL RP
B — Scott Rolen (70.186): 6th among AL 3B
B — Vernon Wells (67.632): 25th among AL OF
B — Dustin McGowan (63.178): 31st among AL SP
B — Casey Janssen (62.513): 37th among AL RP
B — Aaron Hill (61.491): 10th among AL 2B
B — B.J. Ryan (60.801): 40th among AL RP
B — Gregg Zaun (59.447): 12th among AL C
B — Brian Tallet (57.925): 48th among AL RP
B — Jesse Litsch (56.783): 35th among AL SP

~JB

TORONTO — Big news! As completely anticipated and expected, the Blue Jays picked up the $2.5 million club option for catcher Rod Barajas today. It was well known that Toronto planned on doing just that. What isn’t clear is who will be the backup behind the plate.

There’s Gregg Zaun, who is a free agent this winter and has been with the Jays for the past five seasons. He probably wouldn’t rule out a return to the Jays, but it’s not clear if the club wants to bring him back.

Beyond Zaunie, the Jays have Curtis Thigpen, J.P. Arencibia and Brian Jeroloman to maybe compete for the backup job. They could give it to Thigpen, allowing Arencibia to play every day in the Minors until he’s deemed ready to hit the big-league stage. Jeroloman probably has a future as a backup, so he could possibily push Thigpen for the job this spring.

There’s also the chance Toronto wants to add a veteran backup through free agency or via rade this offseason. If the club returns with only Barajas, there isn’t much depth at catcher. So it’d make sense to re-sign Zaun or to bring in a similar backup veteran type. Not a big storyline, but one to follow this offseason nonetheless.

Also, John Parrish filed for free agency today.

~JB

TORONTO — All right, so I haven’t been blogging as much as you all would probably like. Imagine, I’ve actually just been enjoying some time off for much of the past month. But, today there was actually some Blue Jays news that convinced me to head back to the ol’ keyboard here.

A few things, some of the lesser stuff out of the way first: Brad Wilkerson has filed for free agency and a report out of Puerto Rico confirmed that Alex Rios will indeed be suiting up for P.R. in the upcoming World Baseball Classic. The “big” news of the day involved A.J. Burnett.

A report on ESPN.com indicated that Burnett’s agent, Darek Braunecker, said the pitcher would make a decision about his opt out clause by Monday — prior to the start of the GM Meetings in California. I spoke with Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi, who was watching his boys play hockey back home in Mass., and he hadn’t heard about this new “deadline.”

As it turns out, Braunecker told me tonight that he was misunderstood. What he meant was that, in order for him to talk to other clubs about Burnett, the pitcher would need to make a decision before Monday. That didn’t mean that a decision was going to necessarily come this weekend.

We haven’t put a timetable on anything,” Braunecker said. “Obviously, his decision would need to be made in the next few days if indeed we wanted to have the opportunity to talk to people at the general managers’ meetings about him.

“I’m going to the GM meetings and we’ve got multiple free agents this winter. For us to discuss A.J. with anybody, then he would have to exercise the out at that time.”

Braunecker and Ricciardi both indicated that they’ve had general discussions, but neither side would going into specifics, or say that specifics — contract length or money — had been part of the talks. Toronto still has exclusive negotiating rights with Burnett until he decides whether or not to opt out.

So, a decision could be coming soon, maybe even this weekend. But Burnett could just as easily wait until Nov. 13 to make up his mind. Stay tuned…

~JB

TORONTO — After a nice break from baseball (as much as I love the game and covering it, it’s nice to get away every now and then), I’m back north of the border. Since I’ve been away, Paul Beeston is back as team prez, in an interim capacity, and Gibby got a job as a bench coach with the Royals.

I’ve been back home in Chicago until a couple days ago. Got to see lots of family and I took part in the Chicago Marathon. That was an amazing experience. I didn’t come close to my goal time of three and a half hours, but the temperatures soared to 85 degrees (what is that, almost 30 Celsius?).

I was on pace for a 3:30 finish until about 13 miles in — then the heat wore me down. But, being my first marathon and all, I didn’t get too discouraged about my time and just soaked it all in. I’m starting to look ahead to next year now. I might tackle the New York City marathon next November.

As for baseball, I did manage to watch that amazing Game 5 between the Rays and Red Sox on Thursday night. Mrs. Bastian fell asleep when it was 7-0 Rays, and I kept waking her when Boston insisted on climbing back in the game. What a great comeback. After covering the Rays in the first round, I don’t think that game will be enough to kill their confidence.

I don’t see Tampa Bay losing both of these games in St. Pete. I, for one, will be pulling for the Rays. They’ve been a great story all season long and it’d be nice to see them in the World Series. People might grumble about a Phillies-Rays Series, but I think that would make for a fun Fall Classic. We’ll see.

First things first, though, Michigan State is taking on Ohio State this aternoon. This will be a big test for my Spartans. This is the time of year they usually fall apart — maybe this year will be different.

And, don’t forget, every Monday I put together the Blue Jays mailbag. Send questions to bluejaysmailbag@gmail.com for possible inclusion. Stay tuned for more…

~JB

 

CHICAGO — The White Sox and Rays encountered quite the stubborn pigeon here at The Cell this afternoon. In the top of the second inning, the bird landed on the field down the first-base line and began walking back and forth all along the chalk line.

At one point in the inning, Rays first-base coach George Hendrick tried to shoo the bird away, but it flew a few feet before dropping back down to the dirt. The pigeon kept up the act, much to the amusement of those in the seats and in the pressbox, for the entire inning.

The feisty fowl made its way toward home plate in the middle of the second, but was scared when one of Matt Garza’s warm-up pitches zipped by above his head. So, he treated back down the first-base line, waddled on the infield grass, and made it almost to second baseman Akinori Iwamura.

Finally, when the bird moved back in front of home plate with Ken Griffey Jr. up in the bottom of the second, Rays catcher Dioner Navarro moved from behind the plate and waved his glove at the bird, who hopped toward the mound. Garza walked off and shooed the bird, too, and the fans erupted in a hilarious chorus of boos.

Garza’s attempt to get rid of the bird suceeded temporarily. After Griffey singled to center, the bird flew to near the third-base dugout, but refused to leave the field. Soon, a second pigeon joined him near the mound — though that one flew off when he heard the crack of Alexei Ramirez’s bat.

At the end of the inning, Tampa Bay third baseman Evan Longoria trotted off the field and ran toward the bird and scared him off, with the pigeon finally flying away. Is there anything that rookie can’t do? Man, it was pure entertainment. Oh, and the Rays are up, 1-0, in the third.

~JB

ST. PETERSBURG — About to hit the sack here to catch a few winks before hopping on an early a.m. flight to Chicago for tomorrow’s workout at U.S. Cellular Field. It’s been a busy week down hear in Florida, taking in the always-entertaining interviews with manager Joe Maddon and watching Tampa Bay make this playoffs thing look easy.

As much as I pull for my home town of Chicago, I’m going to be a tad selfish and hope this ALDS ends on the South Side. As a few of my loyal readers might recall, I’m running the Chicago marathon on Oct. 12, so I’d love nothing more than to chill at home until race day without making a return trip to St. Pete.

So far, so good, with the Rays being up 2-0 and all. It’s been a rough week for Chi-town. Watched as much of the latest Cubs debacle as I could tolerate the other night at dinner and have endured some phone calls from family in light of both team’s problems. Both teams are in a two-game hole. That doesn’t bode well for an October crosstown classic.

For anyone interested in what I’ve been doing this week, here are some of my contributions for the first two games of this American League Division Series:

Oct. 1, Workout:

James Shields Game 1 preview story

Oct. 2, Game 1:

Feature on Rays rookie Evan Longoria

Sidebar on Longoria setting rookie record

Scott Kazmir Game 2 preview story

Oct. 3, Game 2:

Feature on Tampa Bay’s Rocco Baldelli

Sidebar on Rays hoping for a sweep

Matt Garza Game 3 preview story

FYI, the next Blue Jays mailbag will land on bluejays.com come Monday. Get your questions in to bluejaysmailbag@gmail.com for possible inclusion. Feel free to ask whether or not Michigan State’s Javon Ringer should be a Heisman candidate. Because the answer is, “Without a doubt.”

With that, I’m off to bed. Goodnight all.

~JB

ST. PETERSBURG — It’s time to roll out this year’s annual Bastian Postseason Awards. I’m hanging at my hotel here in Florida, getting ready to watch the White Sox and Twins play for the right to join me at Tropicana Field tomorrow. In the meantime, here are my picks:

AMERICAN LEAGUE

CY YOUNG AWARD

1. Roy Halladay, TOR: 20-11, 2.78 ERA, 9 CG, 246 IP, 206 K, 39 BB, 1.05 WHIP, .237 BAA
2. Cliff Lee, CLE: 22-3, 2.54 ERA, 223.1 IP, 170 K, 34 BB, 1.11 WHIP, .253 BAA
3. Francisco Rodriguez, LAA: 62 saves, 2.24 ERA, 77 K, 34 BB, 68.1 IP

Apologies to: Daisuke Matsuzaka, BOS; Mike Mussina, NYY; Joakim Soria, KC; Mariano Rivera, NYY; Jon Lester, BOS.

COMMENT: No, I am not a homer. But, I will admit that it is a joy to watch Halladay pitch every five days. I give Doc the nod here based on a few things. One, I’m a sucker for innings and complete games. Second, Halladay received 4.72 runs or support to Lee’s 6.13, and pitched in a far tougher division. Consider that in Halladay’s 11 losses, he received just 23 runs to work with from his offense. Lee had a fantastic season, but if you look at everything but their records, Halladay should be the obvious pick — at least to me. I’ve included K-Rod in the top three as an honorary pick for setting the all-time single-season saves record. I realize he arguably wasn’t the best closer this season, but that record is too impressive to ignore.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

1. Dustin Pedroia, BOS: .326 AVG, 17 HR, 54 2B, 83 RBI, 213 H, 118 R, .869 OPS
2. Justin Morneau, MIN: .302 AVG, 23 HR, 47 2B, 129 RBI, .877 OPS
3. Kevin Youkilis, BOS: .312 AVG, 29 HR, 115 RBI, .958 OPS

Apologies to: Carlos Quentin, CWS; Miguel Cabrera, DET; Alex Rodriguez, NYY; Joe Mauer, MIN; Josh Hamilton, TEX; Milton Bradley, TEX.

COMMENT: Through August, Quentin seemed destined to take home the AL MVP — that was until he broke his wrist by slapping his bat in frustration. With Quentin missing the final month, this race became wide open. My first reaction was to give it to Morneau, considering Minny wasn’t expected to do anything this season and, without him, they wouldn’t have. But, upon further review, I bought into the Pedroia hype. He plays a strong second base, helped out in the heart of Boston’s order when David Ortiz was out, and put up some solid numbers for a little guy. One that I always look at is strikeouts to walks, and Pedroia fanned 52 times and drew 50 walks — almost even. He also stole 20 bases and was caught just once. Oh, and he led the league in hits and runs scored. Good enough for me.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

1. Evan Longoria, TB: .272 AVG, 27 HR, 31 2B, 85 RBI, .531 SLG, .874 OPS
2. Alexei Ramirez, CWS: .290 AVG, 21 HR, 77 RBI
3. Armando Galarraga, DET: 13-7, 3.73 ERA, 178.2 IP

Apologies to: Jose Arredondo, LAA; David Murphy, TEX; Jacoby Ellsbury, BOS; Mike Aviles, KC; Glen Perkins, MIN; Nick Blackburn, MIN; Jesse Carlson, TOR.

COMMENT: This is a no brainer. Longoria is practically the posterboy for Tampa Bay’s turnaround this season. From worst team in baseball in ’07, to AL East champs in ’08, with Longoria unaware of what it was like to play for a losing team in St. Pete. His numbers would be solid over a full season, but he missed time due to injury, and put up those totals in 448 at-bats. It’s similar to what Ryan Braun did last year for the Brewers en route to the NL’s ROY honor. Behind Longoria, there is a wealth of talent in this rookie class, but Ramirez and Galarraga stand out. Ellsbury could just as easily be among the top three as well.

MANAGER OF THE YEAR

1. Joe Maddon, Tampa Bay: 97-65
2. Terry Francona, Boston: 95-67
3. Ron Gardenhire, Minnesota, 88-74

COMMENT: Maddon should be a unanimous pick for this award. It’s one thing to show improvement, but to climb out of the cellar and jump over all four AL East teams to claim the crown? And on a $44 million payroll? The Rays should have shed the “Devil” tag a lot sooner. As for Francona, he’s done an admirable job with an injury-riddled roster all year long, and Garden hire took advantage of a surprisingly weak AL Central, putting the Twins within striking distance of the playoffs — maybe even in the playoffs with a win tonight.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

CY YOUNG AWARD

1. Tim Lincecum, SF: 18-5, 2.62 ERA, 265 K, 227 IP, 1.17 WHIP, .221 BAA
2. Brandon Webb, ARI: 22-7, 3.30 ERA, 183 K, 65 BB, 3 CG, 1.20 WHIP
3. Ryan Dempster, CHC: 17-6, 2.96 ERA

Apologies to: Johan Santana, NYM; C.C. Sabathia, MIL; Brad Lidge, PHI.

COMMENT: Anyone wish the Blue Jays would’ve swung that trade for Lincecum now? The young right-hander threw down some wicked numbers for a weak San Francisco squad this season, and no disrespect to Webb and his 22 dubyas, but Lincecum was the top pitcher in the league. Timmy had a 3.15 K/BB ratio and logged a quality start (at least six innings and no more than three earned runs) 79 percent of the time.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

1. Albert Pujols, STL: .357 AVG, 37 HR, 44 2B, 116 RBI, 100 R, .653 SLG, 1.114 OPS
2. Ryan Howard, PHI: .251 AVG, 48 HR, 146 RBI, 105 R, .543 SLG
3. David Wright, NYM: .302 AVG, 33 HR, 42 2B, 124 RBI, 115 R, .924 OPS

Apologies to: Chipper Jones, ATL; Lance Berkman, HOU; Hanley Ramirez, FLA; Carlos Delgado, NYM; Ryan Ludwick, STL; Manny Ramirez, LAD.

COMMENT: Why on Earth would Pujols want to get that elbow surgery? If it ain’t broke…you know? Prince Albert had (yawn) another season of .330/30/100 — his fifth such showing in eight years. This year, he did so with a team that wasn’t expected to do much. So they finished fourth, they could’ve been a lot worse off this season, and where would they have been without him? I don’t always buy into the “MVPs shouldn’t be on teams that don’t make the playoffs” argument. The Cardinals were within striking distance most of the season in a year no one thought they’d do anything. That credit goes largely to Albert. There’s a serious case to be made for Howard and Wright as well, and Jones should get some well-earned consideration, too.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR

1. Geovany Soto, CHC: .285 AVG, 23 HR, 86 RBI, .868 OPS
2. Joey Votto, CIN: .297 AVG, 24 HR, 84 RBI, .874 OPS
3. Jair Jurrjens, ATL: 13-10, 3.68 ERA, 139 K, 188.1 IP

Apologies to: Kosuke Fukudome, CHC; Johnny Cueto, CIN; Hiroki Kuroda, LAD.

COMMENT: There’s certainly a case to be made for Toronto native Joey Votto, but what Soto has done behind the plate has been integral to the Cubs’ success this year. Handing a rookie catcher a full-time job takes is a leap of faith in its own, but Soto came through in a big way. Offensively, he was strong all year. Behind the plate, Soto had a 3.80 catcher’s ERA, which was the second-best mark among qualified NL regulars. Now, the Cubbies are in the playoffs for the second straight year — a first since 1907-08 — and vying for their first World Series title in a century. Oh, and Soto was nails for my league champion fantasy team. Just saying…

MANAGER OF THE YEAR

1. Lou Piniella, CHC: 97-64
2. Charlie Manuel, PHI: 92-70
3. Cecil Cooper, HOU: 86-75

COMMENT: As noted in the previous section, Cubs fans are enjoying a type of success they haven’t witnessed in 100 years. Piniella deserves all the credit in the world for helping Chicago reach this point. The Cubs were the best team in the National League this year, making me wish I was still just a kid in Chi-town. Manuel and his Phils benefited from another Mets collapse and won the NL East for a second straight year, this time with 92 wins. It helps having a pair of MVPs in your lineup. As for Cooper, I’m including him for Houston’s surprise act in the second half. They came out of nowhere and ended up right in the thick of the Wild Card race.

So, there you have it. Comments and arguments are always welcome. Who are your picks?

BALTIMORE — So, this is it. The fat lady is warming up, while the Blue Jays get ready to play out Game No. 162 to complete this 2008 campaign. It’s been an interesting season — stellar pitching, subpar hitting, a managerial change and a fourth place finish for Toronto.

There were some silver linings: Doc Halladay doing what he does best, A.J. Burnett having a career year, B.J. Ryan coming back from Tommy John, the bullpen performing as baseball’s best, the promotion of Travis Snider, the emergence of Joe Inglett and Jesse Carlson, the versatility of Marco Scutaro and the return of Cito Gaston.

There were some forgettable items: Aaron Hill being knocked out for the year with a concussion, Alex Rios struggling to clear the fence, Vernon Wells landing on the shelf twice due to freak injuries, Scott Rolen battling a shoulder injury — again, the losses of Dustin McGowan until next year, the loss of Shaun Marcum until 2010, the canning of John Gibbons, and that mild war of words between J.P. Ricciardi and Adam Dunn.

Now comes the offseason: Jays trying to convince Burnett to stay, maybe going after a designated hitter or a shortstop, the possible resignation of president and CEO Paul Godfrey, and Toronto trying to avoid a bleak forecast for its rotation.

As for me, I’ll be following the Tampa Bay Rays in the first round of the playoffs and then running the Chicago Marathon on Oct. 12. I’ll be blogging throughout the winter and will be back at it again in 2009. Coming this week, I’ll dish out the 2008 Bastian Awards, providing my picks for the annual season-end awards.

And, one last time this year, here are:

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO (85-76) at BALTIMORE (68-92)
at 1:35 p.m. ET at Camden Yards

BLUE JAYS
Joe Inglett, 2B
Marco Scutaro, SS
Alex Rios, RF
Vernon Wells, CF
Adam Lind, DH
Lyle Overbay, 1B
Scott Rolen, 3B
Gregg Zaun, C
Travis Snider, LF

PITCHING: RHP Jesse Litsch (12-9, 3.67)

ORIOLES
Brian Roberts, 2B
Nick Markakis, RF
Melvin Mora, 3B
Aubrey Huff, DH
Adam Jones, CF
Luke Scott, LF
Ramon Hernandez, C
Kevin Millar, 1B
Brandon Fahey, SS

PITCHING: RHP Jeremy Guthrie (10-11, 3.57)

BALTIMORE — A source with knowledge of the negotiations confirmed on Saturday that the Blue Jays are preparing to offer pitcher A.J. Burnett two additional years at around $30 million on top of his current contract, which expires after 2010.

“I don’t think a number has been put down yet,” the source said. “That’s probably as good a guess as anything, though. But, terms haven’t really been discussed.”

Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi has repeatedly noted that he hasn’t been in contact with Burnett’s representative, but the pitcher said Saturday that his agent, Darek Braunecker, met with Ricciardi recently in Toronto.

Upon hearing that, Ricciardi altered his story.

“We talked, but it wasn’t about money or anything like that,” he said.

If the contract extension being offered is indeed four-years, $54 million through 2012, including the $24 million Burnett is owed over the next two seasons under his current deal, it will fall short of what the right-hander could command on the open market.

Another source indicated that Burnett could potentially fetch between $15-20 million annually over a long-term deal as a free agent. Burnett said he still hasn’t decided whether or not he’s going to opt out of his contract to test his value.

“I haven’t decided that. I don’t know,” Burnett said. “It depends on what these guys offer and on what me and my family think and then we’ll make that decision after that. But I’m not 100 percent going to opt out.”

Toronto’s best shot at signing Burnett is in October, before other teams can start talking to him.

“That’s the only way,” a source said. “If he declares the opt out, chances decrease tremendously.”

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO (85-75) at BALTIMORE (67-92)
at 7:05 p.m. ET at Camden Yards

BLUE JAYS
MaJoe Inglett, 2B
Jose Bautista, 3B
Adam Lind, DH
Lyle Overbay, 1B
Brad Wilkerson, CF
Kevin Mench, LF
Travis Snider, RF
Gregg Zaun, C
John McDonald, SS

PITCHING: LHP John Parrish (1-0, 4.10)

ORIOLES
Jay Payton, RF
Luis Montanez, LF
Melvin Mora, DH
Oscar Salazar, 3B
Adam Jones, CF
Ramon Hernandez, C
Kevin Millar, 1B
Alex Cintron, SS
Brandon Fahey, 2B

PITCHING: RHP Brian Bass (3-4, 5.08)