DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) -- New York. Boston. Toronto.

That was the order of finish in the American League East in seven of the last eight seasons.

Tired of chasing the Yankees and Red Sox, the Blue Jays spent a ton of money on quality players in the offseason and enter spring training with a legitimate chance at making the playoffs for the first time since winning consecutive World Series titles in 1992-93.

Given an opportunity to increase the team's payroll from $45 million to $75 million, general manager J.P. Ricciardi signed closer B.J. Ryan ($47 million, five years), starter A.J. Burnett ($55 million, five years) and catcher Bengie Molina ($5 million, one year). He also added third baseman Troy Glaus and first baseman Lyle Overbay in trades.

Toronto dealt away Gold Glove second baseman Orlando Hudson, key reliever Miguel Batista and starter David Bush.

"I never thought in my wildest dreams we'd get everybody we went after," Ricciardi said Saturday as pitchers and catchers took the field for their first official workout. "We were real fortunate."

Ryan, who got the largest contract ever for a relief pitcher, solidifies an underrated but deep bullpen. A hard-throwing left-hander, Ryan converted 36 of 41 save chances for Baltimore last season, going 1-4 with a 2.43 ERA.

Burnett upgrades a starting rotation considered among the best in the league. He went 12-12 with a 3.44 ERA for Florida before being banished from the team in the final week after criticizing manager Jack McKeon and his coaching staff.

Former Cy Young Award winner Roy Halladay (12-4, 2.41 ERA) returns from a season-ending leg injury to anchor a staff that also includes left-handers Gustavo Chacin (13-9, 3.72) and Ted Lilly (10-11, 5.56) and right-hander Josh Towers (13-12, 3.71).

Glaus, Overbay and Molina strengthen a lineup that scored the fifth-most runs in the league. Glaus had 37 homers and 97 RBIs for Arizona. Overbay hit .276 with 19 homers and 72 RBIs for Milwaukee. Molina, a two-time Gold Glove-Award winner, hit a career-best .295 with 15 homers and 69 RBIs for the Los Angeles Angels.

Those moves have generated excitement among fans in Toronto and thrust the Blue Jays into the national spotlight. A larger-than-normal contingent of reporters turned out to see the first practice.

"It's different this year," center fielder Vernon Wells said. "We are being talked about coast to coast and country to country. It's fun to see, fun to sit back and watch, but I said from our first acquisition, it doesn't matter what's on paper; you have got to go out and prove yourself day in and day out, especially in our division."

For manager John Gibbons, the entire offseason nearly felt like Christmas morning.

"We knew what we needed to do to improve," said Gibbons, who replaced Carlos Tosca during the 2004 season. "We targeted some guys and we were hoping to get one or two of them. You never expect to get your whole wish list and we almost did that."

Ricciardi's spending spree still doesn't put Toronto in the fiscal class of the Yankees and Red Sox. New York's payroll is projected to be about $196, down from $207 million on opening day last year. The Red Sox should be close to last year's total of $120 million.

However, four of the last five teams to win the World Series had a payroll under $100 million, including the Chicago White Sox last year.

"In our division, $50 million is unrealistic to think you can win. I don't think $75 million means you're guaranteed to win either," Ricciardi said. "Just because you spend money doesn't mean you're good. I don't think spending is the answer, but it narrows the gap a little bit."

The Yankees and Red Sox have an advantage during the season because they have the flexibility to add high-salaried players. Ricciardi hopes his team has a comfortable cushion in the standings so he won't have to make any deals.

"We know they will always have more resources than us, but spending isn't the absolute reason you're going to win," he said. "We just want to have a chance and that's what we have now. If I had that kind of money, I'd use it, too. I don't blame them for what they do. It's just that $75 million is a realistic number for us."

At least Ricciardi didn't have to rebuild from scratch. He had a solid core of players to build around. Toronto went 80-82 last season, even though Halladay and Lilly missed about 26 starts combined.

While pitching should be the Blue Jays' strength, the offense could be exciting. Wells, Glaus and Overbay are a formidable trio in the middle of the lineup. Designated hitter Shea Hillenbrand (291, 18 homers, 82 RBIs) and Molina provide punch lower in the batting order.

Shortstop Russ Adams and second baseman John McDonald are the middle infielders. Frank Catalanotto (.301, 8, 59) and Alex Rios (.262, 10, 59) likely will platoon in right field. Reed Johnson (.269, 8, 58) and converted infielder Eric Hinkse (.262, 15, 68) probably will split time in left field.

"We expect to compete all year long," Gibbons said. "In saying that, we haven't done anything yet. Talk is cheap."

Cheap shouldn't be a word associated with the Blue Jays in any other context.
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