The Toronto Blue Jays have already had a busy offseason with the revamping of several front office positions by new general manager Alex Anthopoulos.

However, from a physical Blue Jays roster standpoint nothing has occurred as of yet.

Anthopoulos has let Toronto fans, as well as Toronto players know that the current situation in Toronto will rely heavily on the direction the franchise chooses to go.

This offseason will determine whether a) The Jays keep their current roster of veterans and try one last time to compete next season before the contracts of said veterans, as well as coaching staff expire at the end of the 2010 season or b) Teardown the roster early trading off veteran players for as much as they possibly can get from opposing teams early, so that the players values being traded remain high.

Anthopoulos has let the baseball world know that a “domino effect” of events will most likely take place whether positive or negative that could dramatically shift the way Toronto handles itself as a team come next season.

But, the Jays have some matters that they need to take care of this offseason, matters that could let fans know the club’s direction sooner than they anticipate.

The Toronto Blue Jays currently have three players destined for free agency this offseason, the likes of which are 2009 starting shortstop Marco Scutaro, 2009 starting catcher Rod Barajas & utility “jack of all tradesmen” and fan favorite John McDonald.

All three player’s statuses with the Jays are currently up in the air.

Today I plan on focusing solely on the shortstops Scutaro and McDonald, concluding with Barajas in the future.

Scutaro had his best season of his career in 2009, hitting for an average of .282 with 12HR, 60 RBI, 14SB, 90BB and an on base percentage of .379 in 574AB across 144 games.

Scutaro also played a solid shortstop for Toronto, boasting a .984 fielding percentage with ten errors across 143 games.

Due to the impressive numbers created by Scutaro, he is listed as a Type A free agent, which means that any team to sign the player away from Toronto would have to supplement the Jays with two high level draft picks, which along with a possible high asking price by Scutaro for a new contract may be too much for the aging shortstop.

Will a ball club other than the Jays give up two high draft picks to give a contract to Marco Scutaro?

The popular McDonald on the other hand rarely played this season for the Jays, appearing in 73 games batting .258 with 4HR and 13RBI. The defensive wizard veteran could come on the cheap for a team in need of defense at the shortstop position, but don’t necessarily need the sure fire hit, as McDonald is below average in the batter’s box.

At the beginning of next season there are teams that will need to fill their shortstop positions.

The Minnesota Twins, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros & Seattle Mariners will be in need of a starting shortstop the most.

The Twins picked up Orlando Cabrera late in the season from the Oakland Athletics to help with their playoff push and might choose to re-sign the crafty veteran as his mentality and attitude fit in well with the club. Cabrera hit .289 with 5HR and 36RBI for the Twins across 59 games and was an energizing force helping lead the Twins to an American League Central crown.

If the Twins choose not to sign Cabrera they could go with veteran hard-noser Nick Punto at shortstop, but that experiment did not pan out at the beginning of last season as well as the Twins had hoped.

The Twins also have Brendan Harris available to play the position if they can re-sign the 29 year old, as he too is a free agent this offseason.

Internally, the Twins have up and coming 23 year old shortstop Trevor Plouffe currently residing on the Triple A affiliate Rochester Red Wings. Plouffe hit .260 with 10HR and 60RBI across 116 games for the Red Wings this season.

The Detroit Tigers Adam Everett is destined for free agency as well. Everett, a defensive specialist occupied most of the playing time for the Tigers at short last season playing in 118 games, batting just .238 with 3HR and 44RBI in 345AB. The Tigers seemed to turn to Ramon Santiago more at the position as the season wound down as he had more pop in his bat than Everett did, so the Tigers may choose to let Everett go, looking for an upgrade to join Santiago at short, whether in a starting or backup capacity.

Aside from Santiago the Tigers auditioned 26 year old Brent Dlugach at shortstop as well as third base very late in the season. Dlugach struggled in his short stint with the club, striking out twice in three at bats across five games for the Tigers. Dlugach also hit .294 with 9HR and 59RBI across 125 games with the Tigers Triple A affiliate Toledo Mud Hens.

The Houston Astros Miguel Tejada hits the free agent market this offseason as well. The former American League Most Valuable Player had an above average year for an aging slugger hitting for an average of .313 with 14HR and 86RBI across 635AB. Tejada is a very pricey player earning $13 million his last two seasons, so the Astros may look to go via a cheaper route possibly bringing back the likes of the cheap, but effective Adam Everett who had a successful run earlier in his career with the Astros rather than re-signing the expensive Tejada.

Tejada played 158 games for the Astros at short rarely needing a backup. The Astros have 26 year old Tommy Manzella in wait at Triple A Round Rock. Manzella hit .289 with 9HR and 56RBI across 133 games for the Express of the Pacific Coast League.

Is the defensive wizardy portrayed by John McDonald worth a contract to a new ball club?

Finally, the Seattle Mariners are also in the hunt for a shortstop. The Mariners dealt for Jack Wilson at the July 31st trade deadline this past season, acquiring the veteran as well as his large contract. The former Pittsburgh Pirate batted a meager .224 with 1HR and 8RBI in 31 games for the Mariners after the trade. Wilson has a 2010 club option with a payout of $8.4 million, but they may take the $600,000 buyout option of his contract instead leaving them open to test the free agent market for a new shortstop.

The Mariners also have Mike Morse, Erick Monzon & Oswaldo Navarro playing the shortstop position at the Triple A level. Morse showed promise hitting .312 in 66 games with 10HR and 52RBI, while Monzon hit .250 with 0HR and 8RBI across 31 games and Navarro hit .252 with 0HR and 12RBI across 48 games.

These teams are the best options for Scutaro and McDonald if Toronto chooses not to re-sign the two players, but obviously the players will have the option of filling in as a utility infielder amongst several Major League ball clubs in 2010.

Tomorrow I plan on analyzing Toronto Blue Jays starting catcher Rod Barajas as well as the Major League catching situation in 2010, as I try and pinpoint possibilities for Barajas if he does indeed leave Toronto.