Closing the gap

TORONTO -- Sergio Santos, Darren Oliver and Jason Frasor thus far headline the winter's sparse bounty of external reinforcements for the Toronto Blue Jays, and manager John Farrell believes they will help close the 10-game gap between his club and the playoffs in 2012.

Santos should provide the sophomore skip with a steady and thunder-filled arm to finish off games. While Oliver, whose free agent deal with the team appears to be held up only by efforts to clear a 40-man roster spot for him, and Frasor, recently reacquired after a two-month stint with the Chicago White Sox, should form an effective duo to help nurse leads from starter to closer.

But in the absence, thus far, of a new impact starting pitcher and power bat, Farrell is also seeking internal improvement to push the Blue Jays toward post-season contention, and the two players he sees going "a long way toward doing that" are lefty Brett Cecil and centre-fielder Colby Rasmus.

"That's not to put the onus on them, I think they're very well aware of it," Farrell said Saturday afternoon, as the Blue Jays held an amateur baseball clinic for kids as the kickoff to their promotional Winter Tour.

"In the many conversations during the latter part of last season or the off-season, they're very well aware of where they stand and the things that took place (in 2011). Last year we came in and it was Adam Lind and Aaron Hill that we looked at as two guys would give us a huge boost toward making that next step. This year it's Brett and Colby."

Cecil, a 15-game winner in 2010 who lost his way last year, has earned his manager's praise for working himself into better shape this winter, improving his core strength and fitness level.

He'll need all he can bring to the table during spring training, when he'll join Henderson Alvarez, Kyle Drabek, Dustin McGowan and non-roster invitee Aaron Laffey in competition for the three rotation spots behind ace Ricky Romero and Brandon Morrow.

Unless GM Alex Anthopoulos works the trade market for another arm, the additional quality innings from the starting rotation the Blue Jays must get to step forward will have to come from that group.

"The guys I'm most excited about are Brett and Kyle," said Romero, who described last season as a wakeup call for several players, including Cecil and Drabek. "I feel like I've been in that situation, not in the big-leagues but in the minors when I struggled. And the way I was able to come back, I'm excited to see them and do what I know they're capable of doing because I've seen them at their best."

As for Rasmus, who arrived from St. Louis in the three-team July 27 trade that initially sent Frasor to Chicago, he gets a chance to wipe the slate clean after personality clashes with former Cardinals manager Tony La Russa and other coaches marred his season.

A potential five-tool talent, the 25-year-old looked headed for stardom after batting .276/.361/.498 with 23 home runs in 2010. Instead, he nosedived last year with a line of .225/.298/.391 and just 14 homers total, and was described by Cardinals GM John Mozeliak as "a distressed asset."

Farrell feels Rasmus will be more comfortable with the Blue Jays this spring with the transition from one team to another behind him, and with time to "reflect" on what happened in St. Louis, though not quite leave it all behind.

"I wouldn't write it off," said Farrell. "There was a reason those things happened, hopefully he's better for it as a player and as a more consistent performer."

The Blue Jays also find reason for optimism in having third baseman Brett Lawrie and second baseman Kelly Johnson around for the full season, and in having fewer question marks around the club than they did heading into camp last year.

Back then there were questions about whether Lind could handle first base full time, whether J.P. Arencibia was ready to catch on an everyday basis, if Juan Rivera could handle the outfield daily, how the bullpen would shape up, who would close, and who would fill out the rotation.

"Now it's a matter of what is left field going to look like, is that going to be Eric Thames, is that going to be Travis Snider?" said Farrell. "That is probably going to be our No. 1 position of competition in spring training. Are there going to be additions to our rotation and who lands those No. 4 and 5 spots? They're already in house, somewhat, but it's not major questions as we had a year ago."

Arencibia matured a great deal in 2011 and appears poised to make more progress this year. He worked relentlessly with bench coach Don Wakamatsu to improve all aspects of his defence, and feels the results will now show through even more.

"I feel like my controlling of the game is a lot better," he said. "Later in the year, there were situations when I knew I had to go out there and talk to the pitcher and say, 'Hey, how do you want to attack this guy? This is the way we're going to go.

"Little things that make a big difference that maybe before I wouldn't have done, not because I didn't want to, but because of not having that experience and knowledge."

Having Lawrie around all season should make a difference too, as he injected the clubhouse with both talent and a frenetic energy after his early August callup. His season was cut short when a grounder took a bad hop off the Rogers Centre turf and broke his right middle finger, but he's back at 100 per cent with his confidence riding at least twice as high.

"In my debut, as soon as I stepped into the box, I said to myself, 'OK, he's going to bring a fastball or something,' and I took the first pitch, and I said, 'That's a strike in triple-A but I don't think in the big-leagues,' and he called ball, I took a deep breath and I was good," Lawrie said of how he felt at the plate. "One pitch locked me in and I was good, after that I was ready to rock, that's how it's been ever since."

Farrell is hopeful his team's transition away from a swing-for-the-fences offence to a more balanced lineup is similarly smooth. The plan is to review much of that during spring training and to tailor the approach to the skills on hand.

"We did a lot of the heavy lifting last year in terms of changing the culture of our offence, becoming more diverse, not being so one-dimensional," he said. "This year, we're going to reinforce that style of play.

"We've got more continuity with our everyday lineup, now it's a matter of playing to the strengths rather than changing the overall mindset."

Shi Davidi is the MLB Insider for sportsnet.ca. Come back to read his insight and opinion regularly.