The Jays’ potential starting pitchers for 2010

If there was a positive development for the Blue Jays last year, it was that a lot of potential starters got to make their debuts and gain some valuable introductory experiences in the Majors.

Obviously, with the departure of longtime ace Roy Halladay, there is a huge vacancy at the front end of the rotation.

Beyond that, though, the Jays can point to no fewer that seven possible arms to fit into the season-opening five man rotation. They hope to be bolstered later in the year with the hopeful return of more established starters Jesse Litsch and Dustin McGowan, who are both taking the long road back from arm surgeries that have sidelined them for over a year.

The possibles to break camp in April include:

Shawn Marcum, 28, who was 9-7, with a 3.39 ERA over 151.1 innings in the 2008 season, will get the chance to take a lead role in the rotation. He boasts a career 24-17 mark as a Blue Jay starter in parts of three seasons.

Ricky Romero, coming off an impressive rookie campaign where he was 13-9, with a 4.30 ERA in 178 innings last season, while striking out 141 and walking 79 batters

Brandon Morrow, a flame-throwing righty acquired from the Mariners, who is coming off a season where he was used in both the bullpen and in the starting rotation. It is worth noting that he struck out 63 batters in 69.2 innings. His challenge will be to harness the control that caused him to walk 44 batters. 

Mark Rzepczyinski started 11 games last year, pitching to a 3.67 ERA, probably deserving better than his 2-4 record. He allowed only 51 hits in 61.1 innings, while striking out 60 and walking 30 as well.

Scott Richmond, pitched a number of quality starts, which are obscured by his 8-11 record and more particularly impacted his 5.52 ERA, which ballooned in the final month of the 2009 season, when it was obvious that he was pitching with a tired arm. A full off-season to prepare for the 2010 campaign should be a real benefit for him.

Brett Cecil, a former number one draft pick, went 7-4 in his rookie campaign. He will be looking to improve on a 5.30 ERA in 93.1 innings but showed plenty of promise along the way.

David Purcey, another former first round pick, was pressed into service for nine starts and was knocked around to the tune of a 6.19 ERA. Despite that mark, he did show enough of a live arm which allowed him to strike out 39 batters in 48 innings last year.

There is still time to add more experienced starters in the free agent market, but at this time, the cupboard is far from bare.

Tags: Brandon Morrow, brett cecil, Mark Rzepczyinski, ricky romero, toronto blue jays