Of course there have been other occasions during the Toronto Blue Jays' history when getting into that blissful frame of mind required a rather significant suspension of disbelief, other years when everyone understood pretty much from the first pitch that there would not be a grand payoff come October.

But even in that context the 2009 opener stands out for its clear-eyed rationalism.

No, the Jays are not expected to contend - those who run the organization have been remarkably forthright about that, considering theirs is a ticket-selling business necessarily built on hopes and prayers.

No, the fates were not on their side, with injuries felling both Shawn Marcum and Dustin McGowan, eliminating for this year the possibility Toronto might again have the best pitching staff in the major leagues.

No, attendance will probably not increase as it did, miraculously, during every season when Paul Godfrey was at the helm. The arrival of Paul Beeston as "interim" boss, the crashing economy, the death of Ted Rogers (though he was no Baseball fan) all seem to have inspired ownership to strip things down to the wood in order to better see what it is they really have in this franchise.

There will be some exceptionally small gatherings this season - small enough to inspire, in those old enough, memories of tiny spring crowds at Exhibition Stadium - but just about everyone in a seat will at least be an honest-to-god paying customer.

Perhaps Beeston could have persuaded the Rogers folks that it was in their commercial interest to take advantage of the softest free-agent market in modern history by going out and picking up a few familiar names on short-term contracts, throwing a bone to the fans. And perhaps he's telling the truth when he says, under the right conditions, with a real shot at winning something, ownership would be willing to increase the payroll from $85-million (U.S.) to a historic high of $120-million.

But what this smells like right now is a company opting to cut its losses and take its chances, paring the Baseball part of the Rogers business down to its essence: dates for their stadium, programming for their television network, diversion for the faithful, and maybe next year, maybe if everything falls into place, they'll take a shot at getting past the Yankees and Red Sox and Rays.

Not much dream fodder there.

Instead, the Jays loyalists will have to make do with the pleasure of watching arguably the best starter in the game take his regular turn in the rotation, with the fun of listening to straight-talking Cito Gaston, who in his second go-round acts like one of those rare managers or coaches who doesn't live in constant fear of losing his gig.

And they will have the chance to pass final judgment on the J.P. Ricciardi era. Much has been made of the shifting game plans and philosophies since he rode into town as Godfrey's big hire, about the fact that his Jays have never recaptured past glories, about his occasional lapses in truth telling, and about whether whoever succeeds Beeston will keep him around.

This season, it will be Ricciardi's kids making up the back half of the Blue Jays rotation, it will be Travis Snider and Adam Lind in the lineup every day, it will be other young players advancing to the major leagues as the season progresses and the Jays almost certainly fall out of contention. Any winning strategy in Toronto by economic necessity has to have more to do with the farm system than with flashy free agents, and for J.P. this is the put-up or shut-up moment: ready or not, here they come.

That could be a good thing, if the youth movement provides encouraging returns, suggesting a time in the near future when everything magically falls into place, or it could be absolutely dispiriting, if the newbies fail to live up to their most optimistic advance billing.

With expectations intentionally tamped down, with the bottom line all too evident, that's the closest thing to a happy fantasy this particular Blue Jays spring allows.

sbrunt@globeandmail.com