There are many reasons to look forward to the upcoming season as a Jays fan. Top to bottom, the organization is shaping up nicely. With continued hard work by AA and his staff success is hopefully not too far down the road.

One of the most intriguing things to me about the near future of the team is the continued development of our young talent. I am especially interested in looking at two players in particular: Colby Rasmus and Travis Snider.

The numbers above are from their MLB time only.

It has been well documented already this offseason that AA will largely avoid the FA market and look to improve the team through trades.

It is also well known that our outfield, both in the majors and minors, is very crowded.

I am not advocating getting rid of either Colby or Travis anytime soon. Both have had an extended run of success in the majors at very young ages.

Also, both haven't had a fair chance to prove themselves in Toronto. Colby has only been here for half a season. I'm not going to panic over the numbers he put up during his short time here after the midseason trade. Travis has been jerked around by the organization with all his call-ups and send downs. He needs to be starting in LF and given the whole season in 2012 to either sink or swim. If he plays well, that's obviously wonderful. If he struggles, he deserves the chance to work through his problems at the big league level. It's past the time where the Jays should know for sure what they have in Travis.

Im my opinion Colby and Travis are in similar situations. We all know about the issues Colby had in St. Louis. However, those issues stemmed from his relationship with Tony La Russa. If Travis were in a different organization he would fit the mold of young player with potential with some issues holding him back that AA would look to acquire.

My questions are these: Which player's issue, Colby and his mental/coach-ability one, or Travis, and the issues with his swing, would be easier to fix? Which player is more likely to regain their peak performance level and be able to stay there on a consistent basis? Also, if push comes to shove between the two, who would you keep and who would you feel more comfortable seeing used as trade bait?