Oakland A?s general manager Billy Beane was tabbed in 1998 to take over the franchise and return them to glory of their championship runs in the 70?s and late 80?s. Three years later, after studying under Beane, J.P. Ricciardi headed north to Toronto to do the same for the Blue Jays. With similar philosophies and desire to use statistical analysis, Ricciardi has gone about rebuilding the Toronto franchise and making them legitimate contenders once again in the American League East. With more financial resources than Beane has in Oakland, Ricciardi has made it a trend of making the big move in free agency to improve the talent level at the big league level. Over the past two winters, he has added starter A.J. Burnett, closer B.J. Ryan and designated hitter Frank Thomas. He has also added third baseman Troy Glaus and first baseman Lyle Overbay via trades in a direct effort to create a more potent offensive attack around his superstar centerfielder Vernon Wells. These moves, as well as others, make it clear Ricciardi?s plan to build a team is through power hitting. Pitching though has been a question mark for Toronto during Ricciardi?s tenure, even though he has made many efforts to improve it. He signed Burnett, who had injury problems in the past, and fortunately inherited his ace in Roy Halladay. They let Ted Lilly walk last winter, but the overall pitching staff is more talented than when he inherited it, which is a sign of success. Ricciardi had a top-10 farm system in 2003 and 2004, according to Baseball America, and they did produce some quality big league talent, such as outfielder Alex Rios and pitcher Gustavo Chacin. With more cash on hand than he assisted Beane with in Oakland, Ricciardi hasn?t relied on his minor league system much in his tenure and instead has entered the arms race with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. Ricciardi has shown to be a bold general manager who isn?t afraid of making the big move, no matter what backlash might come his way. He is still though financially responsible and has a keen sense of where money should be allocated to over the whole roster. He had some struggles early in Toronto, but ownership?s confidence in his has been rewarded with a very competitive team with a bright future for many years to come. Signature Move: In December, J.P. Ricciardi made the decision to build his team around centerfielder Vernon Wells. Much like Beane, who is the best at identifying his franchise cornerstones, Ricciardi saw and identified Wells as that man for him in Toronto. He signed him to seven year contract and assured the main man in Toronto?s plan to get back to the World Series. It is easy to miss when making a decision like this, but Ricciardi?s keen sense of talent leads you to believe this move will work for the Blue Jays going forward. Douglas Benton can be reached at [email protected]