New Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Brandon Belt has high expectations for team: "We should be World Series favorites this year"

New Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Brandon Belt is wasting no time laying out the expectations for his team.

"We should be World Series favorites this year," Brandon Belt of Toronto Blue Jays said, via TSN.

Belt signed a one-year, $9.3 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on Jan. 10, leaving the San Francisco Giants after 12 big-league seasons. The 34-year-old figures to spell Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first base in Toronto, as well as see his share of designated hitter duties.

With the Giants, Belt won two World Series championships, starting at first base as San Francisco won titles in 2012 and 2014. He said he sees similarities between those championship teams and the Blue Jays -- which was a deciding factor in signing with Toronto.

"I'm really excited about joining the Blue Jays this year. I think, at the end of the day, when it came time for me to decide where I was going to play, Toronto just excited me the most," Belt said. "A lot of it had to do with the roster. They have a lot of good ballplayers and a lot of good young ballplayers, too."

The Toronto Blue Jays finished second to the New York Yankees in the American League East last season with a 92-70 record. Toronto claimed the top Wild Card slot, but were swept in a first-round playoff series by the Seattle Mariners.

The team lost starting pitcher Ross Stripling via free agency to the Giants, but replaced him by signing hurler Chris Bassitt from the New York Mets. In addition to signing Belt, the team further enhanced their position heading into 2023 by signing outfielder Kevin Kiermaier and trading for outfielder Daulton Varsho, while also naming former Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly as a bench coach.

The Blue Jays are expected to contend for division and league titles this coming season. They are among the favorites to win next autumn's World Series.

"Anytime you think about having a chance to win a World Series, it's impossible not to get excited, and that's how I feel about the Blue Jays," Belt said.

Bo Bichette #11, Matt Chapman #26, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. #27 and Whit Merrifield #1 of the Toronto Blue Jays stand on the field

The World Series is a long time coming for Toronto Blue Jays

It has been three decades since the Toronto Blue Jays last played in the World Series. Toronto last represented the American League in the Fall Classic in 1993, when the Blue Jays won the second of their back-to-back championships.

Since then, Toronto has only made the playoffs four times, losing back-to-back AL Championship Series in 2015 and 2016, and losing in the Wild Card round in both 2020 and 2022.