Even before Robbie Ray and Steven Matz officially departed this off-season, the Blue Jays were poised to make a big splash in the free agent starting pitching market. Toronto accomplished its first goal when the club officially signed Jos Berros to a seven-year, $131-million contract on November 18. Then, the big news came Sunday evening, when first reported the Blue Jaysafter multiple years of tryingreached an agreement with Kevin Gausman on a five-year deal worth $110 million ($22 million per season).With Gausman officially joining the squad Wednesday, Toronto now po se ses an excellent crew of arms. But is it the division's best? Let's see.*1) Jos Berros, 27 3.90 ERA, 196 IP, 24.2 K%, 6.7 BB%, 3.4 WAR2) Kevin Gausman, 31 3.86 ERA, 188 IP, 26 K%, 6.7 BB%, 3.4 WAR3) Hyun Jin Ryu, 35 4.04 ERA, 177 IP, 20.5 K%, 5.8 BB%, 2.6 WAR 4) Alek Manoah, 24 4.06 ERA, 147 IP, 26. Michael Fulmer Jersey 0 K%, 8.3 BB%, 2.3 WAR5) Nate Pearson, 25 4.31 ERA, 103 IP, 24.7 K%, 10.0 BB%, 1.1 WAR**Total projected WAR: 12.81) Gerrit Cole, 31 3.29 ERA, 199 IP, 32.9 K%, 6.9 BB%, 5.4 WAR2) Jordan Montgomery, 29 4.08 ERA, 164 IP, 23.6 K%, 7.6 BB%, 2.6 WAR3) Luis Severino, 28 4.06 ERA, 156 IP, 23.7 K%, 7.3 BB%, 2.1 WAR4) Jameson Taillon, 30 4.67 ERA, 152 IP, 22.0 K%, 7.0 BB%, 1.7 WAR5) Nestor Cortes, 27 4.55 ERA, 139 IP, 24.5 K%, 8.1 BB%, 1.3 WARTotal projected WAR: 13.1Gerrit Cole is the difference-maker here, contributing a whopping projected 5.4 WAR in 2022 and giving the Yankees rotation a higher WAR total than Toronto's. For comparison, Robbie Rays 2021 Cy Young season produced just 3.9 WAR.There are very few true ace pitchers like Cole, and if he returns to his 2018/2019-season form, hell be in the AL Cy Young running again in 2022. Toronto doesnt have a guarantee like that, but they do have a 1A-1B situation with Berros and Gausman at the top of the staff, plus a significantly deeper group of afterwards. Fangraphs is high on Jordan Montgomery, estimating hell produce as many or more wins (2.6 WAR) than either Ryu (2.6 WAR) or Alek Manoah (2.4 WAR). Maybe its close, but I imagine most front officesand their clubs Blank Jersey respective fanbaseswould rather have wild child Manoah or the veteran Ryu in their rotation for 2022.Verdict: Its narrow, but after each teams No. 1 guy, Toronto has better options. 1) Shane McClanahan, 24 3.60 ERA, 159 IP, 26.1 K%, 8.6 BB%, 2.6 WAR2) Shane Baz, 22 3.71 ERA, 118 IP, 27.2 K%, 8.1 BB%, 2.1 WAR3) Drew Rasmu sen, 26 3.91 ERA, 151 IP, 24.1 K%, 9.3 BB%, 1.7 WAR4) Corey Kluber, 35 4.32 ERA, 148 IP, Jack Morris Jersey 21.9 K%, 8.1 BB%, 1.4 WARScroll to Continue5) Ryan Yarbrough, 30 4.79 ERA, 140 IP, 15.7 K%, 5.9 BB%, 0.7 WARTotal projected WAR: 8.5Tampa Bays WAR total is underwhelming, but thats not to say the Rays cant outsmart the rest of the division. The Rays bottom few starters arent superstars, but with their use of openers and a very strong bullpen behind them, Tampa usually finds ways to squeeze extra value out of its one-through-five guys. It's worth noting that the young talent in Tampas rotation is frightening. McClanahan and Baz are both in their pre-arb years and, like the Jays rookie Manoah, showed flashes of why their ceiling is so high. Verdict: Lets revisit this in two years time. For now, the Blue Jays boast a more established rotation. 1) John Means, 28 4.46 ERA, 181 IP, 21.9 K%, 5.4 BB%, 2.6 WAR2) Bruce Zimmerman, 27 4.84 ERA, 138 IP, 21.5 K%, 9.2 BB%, 1.2 WAR3) Keegan Akin, 27 4.94 ERA, 131 IP, 20.7 K%, 9.5 BB%, 0.9 WAR4) Dean Kremer, 26 5.13 ERA, 86 IP, 19.5 K%, 9.1 BB%, 0.7 WAR5) Zac Lowther, 25 4.95 ERA, 118 IP, 19.0 K%, 9.9 BB%, 0.6 WARTotal projected WAR: 6They call Baltimore Charm City, but theres nothing lovable about the rotation the Orioles will trot out in 2022. Coming off a season where Baltimore allowed a league-worst 5.85 team ERA, Fangraphs estimates the clubs No. 1 starter, John Means, to be just as valuable as Ryu, the Blue Jays third or fourth starter, with little Omar Infante Jersey promise beyond that. Theres also no guarantee Baltimore doesnt trade Means at some point in 2022. Verdict: Sorry Orioles fans. Toronto, along with most of baseball, has you beat here. 1) Chris Sale, 33 3.57 ERA, 171 IP, 29.8 K%, 7.1 BB%, 3.6 WAR2) Nate Eovaldi, 32 3.94 ERA, 183 IP, 24.2 K%, 5.7 BB%, 3.5 WAR3) Tanner Houck, 25 4.18 ERA, 148 IP, 24.5%, 8.7 BB%, 2.2 WAR4) Nick Pivetta, 29 4.61 ERA, 162 IP, 24.3 K%, 9.2 BB%, 2.0 WAR5) Michael Wacha, 30 4.70 ERA, 125 IP, 21.0 K%, 7.1 BB%, 1.2 WAR*Total projected WAR: 12.5The Red Soxs trip to the 2021 ALCS showed us their rotation is sneakily talented. Full seasons out of Chris Sale, a suming he can stay healthy, and young gun Tanner Houck, who flustered the Blue Jays last year, will be the real deciding factors. Fangraphs WAR favors the Yankees, but Bostons rotation is deeper than New Yorks and boasts a one-two punch of Eovaldi and Sale, similar to the Jays Berros-Gausman duo. Verdict: Lets call this a wash. If Berros and Niko Goodrum Jersey Gausman stay healthywhich their track records suggest they willand one of Eovaldi or Sale mi ses a chunk of time, Toronto gets the upper hand.Its a futile effort to predict how a starting rotation will play out over the course of a full season. Injuries, inconsistency, and potential post-lockout signings make these projections ever me sier, but right now, Toronto looks strongest. The future is promising, tooapart from Ryu, all four of Torontos remaining projected starters are under contract through 2026. The band is going to stick together for a while, and with pitching coach Pete Walkers influence and some mighty bats to drive in runs, the Blue Jays are a dangerous team in 2022 and beyond.h/t Jeff Pa san, Chad Dey