Blue Jays have been aggressive off-season spenders. Will a high payroll win them a World Series?

The Blue Jays have been spending to the hilt to secure top talent as the ballclub aims to mount another deep playoff run this year after narrowly missing a World Series title last fall.

And while Toronto has already signed some of the most in-demand free agents in Major League Baseball (MLB), the reigning American League champs may not be done just yet.

"We'll always be open to making our organization and team better, if there's a way to do that," general manager Ross Atkins said Monday, the day the Blue Jays formally introduced Japanese star Kazuma Okamoto to Toronto.

Okamoto, a three-time home-run champ in Japan, signed a four-year, $60-million US deal with the Blue Jays — a commitment accounting for only a portion of the more than $300 million in fresh contracts Toronto has added this off-season.

Blue Jays continue signing spree with Okamoto and may not be done

But even with the Blue Jays' big spending, the road to a potential World Series return remains tough as a lot can happen during the long and gruelling MLB season.

"Spending doesn't guarantee you anything," Arash Madani, a national sports broadcaster and former Blue Jays sideline reporter, said in an interview.

"It all has to come together — health, chemistry, timing," Madani said, noting these must endure for 162 games of a regular season before the playoffs even begin.

That said, Madani added, a willingness to spend to contend at least puts a team like the Blue Jays in an advantageous position to compete.

The Game 7 World Series loss in early November — an 11-inning nail-biter that the defending champion Dodgers took 5-4 — was tough for Toronto. But in the off-season, Canada's only MLB team has aggressively moved to bring in additional talent.

First came the