It took all of one at-bat to bring back that sinking feeling.

Shortstop Jose Reyes didn't even make it to first base before pulling up lame with that same balky hamstring that troubled him in spring training.

The TV crews didn't notice it but when the defensive replacement was announced at the bottom of the first inning, all those fears came rushing back.

Just like that, the premise that the Blue Jays couldn't possibly be as injury-ridden as a season ago melted away.

Moreover, R.A. Dickey's performance was also eerily similar to last year. The only difference was that a year ago, he handled the Rays with ease. There was no open air to disturb his knuckleball. No J.P. Arencibia to let passed balls hit the screen behind home plate while runners danced along the bases.

The season-opening 9-2 loss to the Rays in Tampa was a sobering reminder that this season already looks a lot like last season. They were dominated by a front-line pitcher in David Price, and their ace was in turn abused by a solid-hitting team.

Can they bounce back?

One man does not make a team but Reyes means so much that his loss can not be understated.

When healthy, and so far that has been not quite 80 games, Reyes has proven to be the team's most valuable player. Offensively, he's the table setter, the disruptor, the game changer. A faster version of Robbie Alomar but with a little less pop.

Defensively, he's the heart of the unit, an above average fielder at a most premium position. Great glove, great range, fantastic arm. He's the proverbial five-tool player.

And losing him cuts the Jays both ways because they don't have anyone who can match his offensive or defensive skills.

Moving Ryan Goins to shortstop creates a hole defensively in what was going to be a superior unit. Maicer Izturis simply can't cover as much ground at second base.

Last season, Reyes was injured two weeks into the season. As a result, everyone moved up a spot in the batting lineup. Melky Cabrera batted leadoff, Jose Bautista second, Edwin Encarnacion third, and so on.

It took the team's speed out of the equation and it became a plodding unit that needed the long ball to produce runs. 
 The question now is how long will Reyes be out and can the club survive his absence. The Jays placed Reyes on the disabled list Monday night and face a division-heavy schedule in the first month of the season.

It means the pitching will have to be that much better and the hitters need to grind out better at-bats. Neither of which was accomplished on Monday night. 

Why the Toronto Blue Jays are wild card contenders in 2014

A year ago, the Toronto Blue Jays were odds-on favourites to win the World Series.

Today they're favoured to finish last in a very competitive AL East and rate as the 15th best choice among MLB teams to capture the Commissioner's Trophy.

What a difference a year makes, huh?

Funny thing is that the team brings back nearly the exact same roster as a year ago with the exception of two players, both of whom had rather large hands in severing the hopes of Blue Jays Nation a season ago.

Catcher J.P. Arencibia, who turned in one of the worst offensive campaigns (.194/.227/.365 avg./obp/slg/) for someone who hit more than 20 homers (21) in the history of baseball, and whose defence was in the nether regions below average, was summarily dimissed and replaced with Dioner Navarro.

Pitcher Josh Johnson, one of the handful of "gems" acquired by GM Alex Anthopoulos in the previous offseason, turned in one of the worst performances by a starting pitcher in 2013 (2-8, 6.20 ERA) before he was mercifully shut down with injury. Drew Hutchison, who's coming back from Tommy John surgery and was the team's best hurler in spring training, takes his spot.

Fifth starter J.A. Happ, who was fooling no one in Florida, is another addition by subtraction. He starts the year on the disabled list, with the fragile former flamethrower Dustin McGowan taking his spot.

Should either Hutchison or McGowan struggle, the club's top prospect, Aaron Sanchez, showed in spring training (2-0, 0.00 ERA, 1.04 WHIP) that he's ready for a trial run. Buck Martinez, the club's broadcaster and former catcher, thought Sanchez - not Hutchison - was the team's best pitcher in Florida.

Regardless of that debate, the point is that the Jays may be less proven but better armed to this season to compete in the rugged AL East.

The club was ravaged by injuries to stalwarts Jose Reyes and Brett Lawrie in the early part of the season, creating a massive gap on the left side of the infield, and, in the second half of the campaign, to outfielders Jose Bautista and Melky Cabrera. Throw in a season-ending injury to No. 2 starter Brandon Morrow and you get the idea that the club did not enjoy the best of baseball luck in 2013.

The underlying faults in Anthopoulos' master plan, however, turned out to be a lack of attention to team defence. Emilio Bonifacio, part of the blockbuster trade with the Marlins that brought in Johnson, Reyes and pitcher Mark Buehrle, was a disaster with the glove at second and had a terrible time trying to get on base to utilize his speed. He was dealt to Kansas City during the season.

Free agent acquisition Maicer Izturis proved to be a step too slow on the Rogers Centre turf at second base. So much that when Reyes went down a month into the season, the club turned to minor league free agent Munenori Kawasaki, whose kamikaze effort and offbeat personality turned him into a cult hero among the fanbase.

It wasn't until the end of the season that the club got a lift defensively at second base with the arrival of Ryan Goins. The former shortstop played a flawless second base and hit well enough to earn an "audition" for the full-time job in spring, which he "earned" by hitting .169.

Newcomers R.A. Dickey and Buehrle had trouble initially adjusting to pitching in the AL East's bandboxes and they were also hampered by teammates like Cabrera, hobbled by what would turn out to be a tumor in his back, Arencibia, Bonifacio and Izturis who provided too many extra outs -- outs which they discovered are harder to erase in the AL.

This year's Jays team is, safe to say, better defensively. And if injuries don't rain down again, provide the most dangerous bats in the division, anchored by the game's most underrated player, first baseman Edwin Encarnacion. Only two players have hit more home runs than Encarnacion (78) in the last two seasons, Miguel Cabrera (88) and Chris Davis (86). 

The starters may rank at the bottom of the division (not by much) but they are bolstered by one of the game's better bullpens. The Jays' two set-up men made the all-star roster last season, Steve Delabar and Brett Cecil.

 
Put together, they club is a wild-card contender. They're a more cohesive group defensively and have a chance, with breakout seasons from players like Lawrie or Hutchison, to create a lot of discomfort in Baltimore, Boston New York and Tampa.

Are they favoured to win the World Series? No, but paper champs rarely make it to the final dance. You've been warned, Dodgers.