TORONTO -- What's old is new again for the Blue Jays as they welcomed a familar face back into the fold Friday night, signing left-hander J.A. Happ to a three-year contract worth $36 million.Happ spent parts of three seasons with the Blue Jays from 2012-14 but was traded to Seattle last year for outfielder Michael Saunders. He went 11-8 with a 3.61 ERA in 32 combined appearances for the Mariners and Pirates before hitting free agency. 
Toronto has been in the market for at least a couple of starting pitchers, but Happ's signing Friday night still came as a complete surprise. He previously wasn't linked to the team in rumors, and there had been little to no speculation about a possible return.Happ's first tenure in Toronto also wasn't completely smooth sailing, which adds to the intrigue. In 2013, Happ didn't have a starting job until Ricky Romero faltered, and in 2014 he lost his spot during Spring Training, only to regain it in early May. Overall, Happ went 19-20 with a 4.39 ERA in 58 games for Toronto.The renewed interest in Happ likely can be tied to the second half of that 2014 season, when he changed his arm angle and displayed much better command. His walk rate has continuously improved, from 4.4 to 2.9 to a career-best 2.4 in each of the last three seasons, while his strikeout rate has remained relatively consistent.Happ has never tossed more than 172 innings in a season so there may be critics of the deal, but perhaps the final cost shouldn't come as a huge surprise after his value soared during the second half of the season. Following a midseason trade to Pittsburgh, Happ went 7-2 with a 1.85 ERA and clearly entered the open market at the right time.Toronto currently has a projected rotation of Marcus Stroman, Marco Estrada, R.A. Dickey and Happ. Jesse Chavez, Drew Hutchison and Aaron Sanchez are among the top candidates to compete for the final spot, but it also seems likely the Blue Jays will look for additional upgrades.That technically could leave the door open for top free agent David Price, but he is expected to receive upwards of $30 million annually on a long-term deal. That's likely too expensive for the Blue Jays, but they could look to add another second-tier pitcher or explore other scenarios through trade.Happ has spent parts of nine seasons in the big leagues and has a career 62-61 record with a 4.13 ERA. He was originally acquired by former Toronto general manager Alex Anthopoulos in a multi-player trade with Houston prior to the deadline.
Gregor Chisholm/ MLB.com
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