When you think of Cuba, you often think of the missile crisis, embargoes, and the cigar-smoking, bearded Presidente, Fidel Castro. That may be glossing over the details, but for all intents and purposes it's an interesting country.

To see Aroldis Chapman go to the Cincinnati Reds is a bittersweet pill. But the time spent contemplating his merits was an interesting time to be a Blue Jays fan.

His price tag was far too high for the Toronto Blue Jays, and this was an acceptable pass; but it was fun to be involved with the process. It was like being bumped to first class for a day. Large sums of money were being figuratively thrown around and Jays fans got to feel like a big shot for a day.

Chapman is a (platonically) sexy player. He was the toast of the World Baseball Classic, the Cuban Gumby, who threw serious heat. Chapman is also a defector on the run from his Communist overseers. It's an interesting story at the very least.

For the Jays to insert themselves into the conversation tickles the interest of any fan. This is a team trying to start anew, and the idea of tossing around serious coin was a serious contradiction to the current path. Images of the Daisuke Matsuzaka bidding war were conjured up (on a smaller scale albeit) and Toronto looked like a player.

It was a confusing, but intriguing, process; and who knows what the point of it all was.

Was it to placate fans who wanted to see that their franchise had a pulse? Was it the front office of Toronto tossing a bone to friendly agents? Was there actually some serious interest in Chapman?

The Reds are a team that would appear to be in the same boat as Toronto. They claim to be cutting payroll but their actions to secure Chapman say different. Maybe the cost cutting was to add a piece like Chapman, but it's a weird move regardless.

Will Toronto try to lure Randy Johnson out of retirement next? Is Yu Darvish the next item on the auction block? Is it possible to ask one question without immediately firing off two more hastily prepared ones?

Alex Anthopolous is still unclear with his plan for the Jays except that the end point will be winning. Give the man some credit though, he knows how to grab headlines. One thing he's building is fan interest in a team that is promising a dip from mediocrity.

Another insight that might be gleaned is Toronto's willingness to pursue any avenue to victory. If it takes the departure of Roy Halladay or a Cuban defector, so be it. The ends will justify the means somehow.

A worse turn would be this signaling Toronto's penchant for waffling. This has been a team that has been stuck in the middle for a long time and this latest news might renew familiar feelings. The Jays could be a team that is prepared to go only so far before they turn tail and return to their offices to scheme doomed plans.

There is no definitive response to Toronto's brief affair with Aroldis Chapman. It could (and probably was) a passing fancy that just didn't mesh with current plans. But for a team that hasn't tasted success for a while, it would be foolish not to at least look at an interesting prospect like Chapman. Whatever it takes to win.

It piqued fan interest for a day, but it was a failed venture overall.

You have to admit that it was fun, though.