How and Why the Jays Lost the Yu Darvish Bid

As Blue Jays fans deal with the disappointment of losing the Yu Darvish sweepstakes, eyes now turn to GM Alex Anthopoulos in anticipation of his next move.

Anthopoulos has always been upfront regarding his team's willingness (or lack thereof) to spend money. As he explained at the winter meetings, the Jays are sitting on their wallets until attendance justifies a big spend. Apparantley at that point the floodgates will open, and the Darvishes, Fielders, and Pujolses of the world will come spilling onto the Jays 25 man roster.

For now, Blue Jays fans must be content with the fact that the Jays apparently did place a bid for Darvish - they just didn't bid enough.

So while Anthopoulos has spent the last two years building a name for himself with his shrewd trades and fiscally creative moves, his inability to land the Japanese hurler may be proof that he's losing his golden touch.

Insiders cite the below picture, taken at the 2011 winter meetings, as conclusive proof as to why the Jays were not able to land Darvish.



Apparently Anthopoulos thought by bidding $1 he'd come closest to the actual retail price, without going over.