To put it lightly, not all Toronto Blue Jays fans were ecstatic when it was announced last week that J.A. Happ had signed a three-year, $36 million contract with the team.

The reason for this was that it signified a certain starting pitcher – who ended up signing a record contract with the Red Sox Tuesday – definitely wouldn’t be returning to the Blue Jays.

“I’m not going to try to be David Price. I’m going to be me and I think that can be a lot for this team,” Happ told Brady and Walker on Sportsnet 590 The Fan Thursday.

LISTEN: J.A. Happ talks expectations, David Price and much more

Some fans will inevitably view the left-handed starter as some type of replacement for Price, which would be a tall task for any pitcher considering Price is one of baseball’s true aces.

“I don’t know if there’s going to be some disappointment geared towards me,” Happ said. “There’s nothing I can really do about that, but I do know I have a lot of confidence in myself and I truly believe – as I said last year when I got healthy from a few kind of random injuries – I feel like my best baseball is ahead of me. I feel really good about what I can bring to the Blue Jays and help them get back to the post-season and where they were last year and hopefully further than that.”

Happ appeared in 58 games for the Blue Jays between 2012 and 2014 before being traded to the Mariners. After struggling with Seattle at the start of 2015, the 33-year-old was sent to the Pirates at the trade deadline. He thrived in Pittsburgh, posting a 7-2 record with a 1.85 ERA over 11 starts.

His improvements during his time there were noticeable and Happ said it came down to minor adjustments.

“I just got a little more consistent with my mechanics,” he explained. “I was able to locate the fastball better. That gives you confidence and that can go along way.”

The makeup of the Blue Jays roster has changed significantly since Happ last suited up for them, but Happ said he had no hesitations in returning to the city.

“I enjoyed the people and I enjoyed the atmosphere in Toronto when I was there,” Happ said. “I got the phone call last off-season that I was gonna be traded and I was bummed out at the time.

“You never know how free agency is going to go, but the Blue Jays showed interest early as well as several other teams…but I thought Toronto would be a great fit.”

Happ described witnessing his former team’s playoff run as “a little bittersweet” because he knew the 2015 Blue Jays would be a good team and wanted to be a part of it.

“That second half run was really impressive to watch and then watching them in the playoffs was [exciting.]…To see that atmosphere that Toronto was during playoff time was really incredible.

“I’m definitely hoping for more of that these next few years.”

Happ added that he is excited to work alongside a young pitcher like Marcus Stroman as well as catcher Russell Martin after hearing great things from his former Pirates teammates.