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TORONTO - Twenty playoff-free seasons and counting may lead one to conclude the Blue Jays are stuck, spinning their wheels, in a culture of defeat. Just dont expect general manager Alex Anthopoulos to wade into this particular fray. "I guess it depends what you define it as," said Anthopoulos during Tuesdays media gathering. "When youre losing, youre losing but I dont define it that way. To me, it comes down to none of those players in there dont not want to perform and not want to do well and not want to win games. You guys are in there when we dont win. I dont think anyones happy about it. No one likes coming to the ballpark. Wed prefer to win. I think that goes without saying." With 60 wins in 134 games, the Blue Jays are on pace for 72 or 73 victories. That 73 number is key in two areas: first, it would mean 89 defeats and the avoidance of the clubs first 90-loss season since 2004 and only the sixth in franchise history (the first four happened in the post-expansion years from 1977-1980). Anthopoulos routinely consults with manager John Gibbons, Gibbons says hes offered repeated input on the teams shortcomings over the course of the season, and feels he has a handle on some of the intangible issues plaguing the club. The problem is different people have different opinions on something like leadership and whether the clubhouse lacks a true spokesman. How should leadership be defined? Does leadership matter in a sport like baseball? "Weve talked about that," said Anthopoulos. "We just dont know how far to take it. There have been some subjective things. "Ive been here in years past where players get a label of this or that and then they go somewhere else and they do well," he continued. "I just think its a dangerous, slippery slope and you have to be careful. I think a lot of it comes down to production. When a players production slips now the other aspects of his game come out. Its amazing how much our opinions of players change when the production changes." Anthopoulos, for as long as its his choice, appears prepared to stand behind his manager. It will be up to the general manager, more than anyone else, to ensure 2014 isnt a repeat of this lost season. "I still believe we have the makings of a good team that needs work, that needs changes and that needs health," said Anthopoulos. "We didnt play the way we expected to. I think that goes without saying. Id say not only the way that we as an organization did, I think almost everybody across the game, in baseball, expected us to be a good team." JANSSEN ON RIVERA From one closer to another, Casey Janssen marvels at the continued success and the career put together by Yankees legend Mariano Rivera. "Just how professional hes been on and off the field," said Janssen. "How hes carried himself in arguably the biggest baseball city in baseball. Not only that, hes come through more times than not in his career. To have the saves lead is great for him and just an honour to watch him and a pleasure to be able to play on the same field as him." Rivera spent an hour with 20 Blue Jays employees before Tuesdays game. Hes conducted similar audiences in each road city over the course of this, his final season in baseball. Janssen, like almost every pitcher in the history of baseball, has more than one pitch in his repertoire. How does he feel about Riveras ability, since 1995, to get hitters out with his one pitch, the cut fastball? "Its amazing," said Janssen. "I wish I could learn that pitch I guess. I dont know what he does. Id love to stand in the box one time. Its not going to happen, but just to see what makes it so different. Hes got a gift. Its effortless. He seems to pitch in every situation that hes called upon to pitch. Hes the best." INJURY UPDATES - Colby Rasmus (strained left oblique) didnt begin baseball activities on Monday, as scheduled, after suffering a setback. The Blue Jays cant set a timetable for Rasmus return until his injury heals. At the moment, the club believes Rasmus will play again this season. - Steve Delabar threw a scoreless inning for the Gulf Coast Blue Jays on Wednesday morning. It was Delabars first game action since August 2 in Anaheim. He was placed on the disabled list the next day with right shoulder inflammation. - Dustin McGowan was scheduled to throw a side session in Dunedin on Wednesday as he rehabs a strained oblique. - Josh Johnson visited with famed orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews, who confirmed the previous diagnosis of a strained right forearm. Andrews has ordered Johnson two weeks of rest, effectively ending any chance the right-hander will return to the Blue Jays this season. - Brett Cecil, who missed the Yankees series with a tired left shoulder, says hell be ready to pitch when the Jays open a series with Kansas City on Friday. Cheap Blue Jays Jerseys . - Veteran Kings defenceman Robyn Regehr, sidelined since Game 1 of the Anaheim series, says hes close to returning. Blue Jays Jerseys China . Playing in his fourth major league game, Polanco broke a tie in the 13th inning with his first homer, helping Pittsburgh to an 8-6 victory over the Miami Marlins after the Pirates had a ninth-inning meltdown. https://www.cheapbluejays.com/ . That time around, the cage is as much a part of baseballs daily routine as a beer and a hotdog is to a fan in the stands. Coaches, scouts, broadcasters and other media hover, tossing verbal barbs, telling stories and sharing laughs. Occasionally, especially in spring when the atmosphere is relatively laid back, the list of invited guests expands and on this day, Gibbons welcomed two men strongly influential in his life. Toronto Blue Jays Store . The Montreal Canadiens goaltender has won three of his four games since returning from a lower-body injury that kept him out from the end of the Olympic break until March 15. Stitched Blue Jays Jerseys . - Mark Sanchez found out the New York Jets had acquired Tim Tebow on a conference call with team management. FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Fumbles plagued Stevan Ridley even when the ball was dry. A steady rain presents another challenge to the New England Patriots running back. It wasnt a problem for him Thursday. The Patriots continued their organized team activities on a soggy day and Ridley gripped the ball as if his job depended on it. It might if he keeps fumbling. "I told one of the young guys today, thats the quickest way to get off the field," Ridley said. "You can ask me first." Hes speaks from experience. Ridley lost fumbles in three consecutive games last season. After the third, in the first quarter against the Denver Broncos on Nov. 24, he was benched for the rest of New Englands 34-31 comeback win in overtime. He lost a total of four fumbles last season leading to three touchdowns and a field goal. So hes been focusing on avoiding a repeat this year. "All you can do is really squeeze (the ball) high and tight," Ridley said. "I think that was a lesson I had to go through and, hopefully, I wont have to go through it again, but who knows? "A little bit of adversity never hurts anybody. ... You take your mistakes, you learn from them and you grow and you just keep on pushing." The third-round pick from LSU fumbled just once as a rookie in 2011, but the Patriots recovered it. He lost two of his four fumbles in 2012 before the problem escalated last year. And his rushing production dropped -- from 1,263 yards and 12 touchdowns on 290 carries in 2012 to 773 yards and seven touchdowns on 178 attempts. So hes concentrating on improving his overall focus on every play. "I think if I can do that I can become a better player," Ridley said. "When you lose focus on the small things -- whether its small assignments, whether its carrying the football, whether its running a route, whether its blitz pickup -- those are things that cost you your playing time." LeGarrette Blount emerged as the top back late in the season, rushing for 431 yards and eight touchdowns in tthree straight games before both runners were shut down in a 26-16 loss at Denver in the AFC championship game.dddddddddddd Blount left for the Pittsburgh Steelers as a free agent, leaving Ridley, Shane Vereen and Brandon Bolden as coach Bill Belichicks veteran backs. "You can go out there and be a starter one game and the next game youre two or three guys behind," Ridley said. "Thats what Coach stresses to us every week. We have to go out there and be as competitive as we can be. Hes going to play the matchups game and we just have to be unselfish enough to capitalize on the plays that we get." Ridleys four fumbles last year came on dry days. It rained during the last regular-season game, a 34-20 win over the Buffalo Bills, and the first playoff games, a 43-22 win over the Indianapolis Colts. Both games were at Foxborough. On Thursday, three months before the regular season, rain fell throughout practice. "Theres no contact so you should be running your routes perfect. You should be catching every ball thats thrown to you. You shouldnt be dropping anything on the ground," Ridley said. "Rain, sleet, whatevers out there, whatever the conditions are, you have to find a way to fight through that." Some had trouble. One receiver fell while trying to cut. "When you have a wet surface, you have to stick to your fundamentals," wide receiver Julian Edelman said. Wet or dry, Ridley knows he must do that all the time. "Were practicing either way. Coach says he doesnt care about the conditions -- rain, sleet, snow -- were playing in them," he said. "You just never know, but whatever it is there are no excuses." Ridley is entering the final season of his contract and tries not to think much about it. "I have to go out there and play football and hit it hard and run the ball and get wide open," he said. "I just have to be the same player Ive been." Anything else? "Try to go out there and be mistake-free." ' ' '