What's Wrong with Adam?

As this teams recent offensive struggles have shown on this road trip, wins can be hard to find for the 2010 Jays.

Where they just a tease? Are we now seeing the real Jays?

I don't think by any means that the Jays are as bad as they have looked on this road trip. There pitchers are getting hit (but even Doc gets hit), and there streaking hitters are slowly cooling off.

Really, I could care less about the wins and losses. After all, we are supposed to be rebuilding this year! Last place happens. Thank God we have the Orioles in our division though. They make any rebuilding process look easy.

But the the hell is up with Aaron Hill and Adam Lind? Could you imagine our team when our number 2 and 3 hitter are actually hitting? When was the last time Adam Lind had a good game?

JoBau said the other day in a pregame, that AA needed to add another piece, and they would be contenders. Well, no Jose, what you need is to figure out what the fuck is up with Lind's swing.

Aaron has been showing signs of life lately, and is coming back after injury - we can all respect that.

But what does Lind have to say? Not much.

Lind is on pace to crush his KO total from 2009. 110 in 2009, and he is on pace for 162. Yikes.

It isn't only he swings and misses, he looks silly at the plate much of the time, he rarely hits the ball with authority anymore.

When Adam started the year well, V-Dub was able to tear it up after him, with Gonzo, Buck, and JoBau behind him for protection, but with the slumping Lewis, Hill and Lind in front of him he has lost any protection.

Draft Update

I know we probably all know this already, but here is the breakdown of the Blue Jays 2010 Draft courtesy of Jordan Bastion.

First round:

No. 11

Comp round A:

No. 34 (Marco Scutaro free agent compensation)
No. 38 (James Paxton unsigned in 2009)
No. 41 (Rod Barajas free agent compensation)

Second round:

No. 61
No. 69 (Jake Eliopoulos unsigned in 2009)
No. 80 (Scutaro free agent compensation)

Third round:

No. 93

Comp round B:

No. 113 (Jake Barrett unsigned in 2009)

Fourth round:

No. 126

MLBTR Name Drops

MLBTR has reported Karston Whitson as a possible Jays pick (reporting him to possibly go 11th overall to the Jays).

Whitson is a "6-foot-4, 195 lb. frame that scouts can dream on, but unlike most other prep pitchers, he also offers command and poise beyond his years."

He will be fresh out of high school, and scouts have him ranked as high as 5th best player, and as low as 15th. He features a fastball in the "91-96 mph range, and also features a swing-and-miss slider, an average changeup and good command," however it is "Whitson's mound presence and polish that really separates him from the pack."

Here is some video of Mr. Whitson.

Update

Interestingly enough, MLB.com's mock draft of round one did not have Whitson going, and instead the Jays are taking Josh Sale, who plays okay right field, and who has better bat speed than Snider did at that age.

Jays Lose Series to Rays

Marcum Let Down By Hitters


Marcum pitched one hell of a game tonight, getting himself out of jam after jam. Marcum really is one of the nicer Jays pitchers to watch because he is really good (obviously), but he gets himself into the occasional jam, and busts his ass to get himself out of that jam.

For that he is my POG, despite surrendering 4 ER over 8.1.

It would have been nice to see Marcum go the distance and pick up the win, but tonight was one of those nights where the offense just couldn't really get anything going, and couldn't take Price deep.

Oh well, bring on them Yankees!

Gaston Defends His Crossing Guard

Cito Gaston defended his use of Kevin Gregg despite Gregg acting more of a school crossing guard than a MLB closer.

Cito Gaston had this to say:

I know people are giving me a lot of [grief] for leaving him out there. But if they want to come out of the stands and pitch, I'd be happy for them. Anybody wants to show up and pitch, come on.

Cito, I do understand you simply want to say you have your pitcher's back, and he's a veteran and he'll pull throw all this but... that's how you say it?!?!

Those shades and that mustache make you look like one smooth mo-fo, but I think we all agree you are no smooth-talker.

For the record, Gregg is 14 for 17 in saves - Rafael Soriano, the closer for the Rays the TV informed me today is 16 for 16, and that is one a several reasons the Rays are in first, and the Jays are not, despite having an offense scoring runs and starting pitchers who are performing excellently.

Thank you Kevin Gregg, thank you.

Blow A Save Once, Shame On You, Blow a Save Twice (3,4,5...), Shame On Me

Well there goes the draft picks...


The potential draft picks that we could have received for trading the AL leader in saves are seemingly disappearing faster a Brandon Morrow heater.

Gregg started amazing, turned mediocre, then to scary, and now to complete donkey-fucker. 0.2 innings in a two run game and he walks fucking FIVE BATTERS?!

If we weren't in the situation we are, I would maybe be okay with riding it out for awhile longer. But, we still find ourselves in the mix, and while I'm not saying trade for a legit closer, a move has to be made.

Use Downs. Use Frasor. Use the bat boy. Just do not use Gregg.

As I mentioned I do not think the Jays should trade to make the push that MLBTR suggested (see below article), however I am not really one to believe in rolling over. While still in the hunt, even if it's for second place in the AL East and bragging rights, the Jays have to put the best team possible out on the field right now.

This may be tough for Cito, because as we know he likes to let it ride, when dealing with veteran slumps.

As always, only time will tell. If in September we sit 3 games out of the WC, these blown saves will be re-opened wounds.

Tonight's POG is Fred Lewis for scoring three runs while going 3 for 5 with a HR.

Gonzo Saves the Game for Gregg

Kevin Gregg decided to make things interesting tonight, but the Jays managed to prevail, beating Tampa Bay 3-2, in a big part by Gonzo's heads-up play to get Longoria at the plate.

This next stretch of games are important for the Jays and Jays fans. With games against the Yankees and the Rays at both home and on the road, the Jays will let the MLB know just how "for real" they are, and will allow Jays fans to adjust any potential hope for this season.

So far this season, the Jays have not fared well against TB, or Boston, but so far in this stretch, so good.

Tonight's Player of the Game is Aaron Hill for going 3 for 4, with 1 run, 1 RBI and was one of only two batters with no LOB. This was nice to see for Aaron, hopefully he can start swinging the bat a little better.

The Jays only 3.5 game out of first place, and 9 games above .500 after 53 games, which is is almost one-third of the MLB season, and I wish I know what to think about expectations for this season.

Hechavarria Starts Road to the Jays

Adeiny Hechavarria, our new Cuban shortstop of the future, is off to a decent start for Class A Dunedin. So far his line after 18 games reads: .278 AVG, 0 HR, 6 RBI, 10 R, 2 SB, 11 SO, 1 BB, and a OBP of .288.

Perhaps not quite the start some were hoping for, but one has to greatly appreciate being in a new country, not to mention learning a new language, being away from his family, and playing against Americans (mostly). His complete season stats are here.

Bob Elliot wrote this on him. Bob Elliot is a complete retard, and I basically take nothing he personally has to say, I do value his sources of scouts and what they have to say. Seemingly, Hechavarria will be a strong Tony F., who will most definitely play a solid shortstop.

Jays Complete Sweep of Brutal Orioles

Jays 5, Orioles 0 - POG is Marcum
Jays 5, Orioles 2 - POG is Cecil
Jays 6, Orioles 1 - POG is Romero

Sorry about not writing much... weekend and I've been sick.

Blue Jays Are Buyers?

I love MLBTR.

For those of you who don't read it religiously, you should.

But this is a little absurd.

MLBTR lists the Jays as SP buyers this season, presumably for the post-season push.

I won't pretend to know as much about rebuilding as perhaps some, but I'm not sure the rebuilding process includes stocking up on veteran pitching at the first sings of a plus .500 team.

In fact, I'm pretty sure that's about the worst thing you can do.

I'm all for the Jays being competitive this year, and if they make the playoffs?! Fucking sweet!!!

But, being realistic, I know that to throw away our stockpiled draft picks for one year Roy Oswalt is pretty fucking dumb.

This year we will ride out whatever the team we have now happens to do.

So MLBTR, on behalf of Blue Jays nations, please remove us from the list of buyers.

The list of MLBTR SP sellers, is here.

A Game To Forget

Tonight was pretty ugly. Romero got rocked, and the Jays could only muster 4 hits against Ervin Santana who loves to pitch against the Jays this year.

Three out of the four hits were solo home runs, and JoBau launched his 15th earning him a POG.

"But you should be working banker's hours!!!"



I have to say that after tonight's game I am pretty fucking pissed off. I know it wasn't the best game, and it's a long damn year and loses are bound to happen, but I think it's the fucking commercials that Sports Net shows about 100 times a commercial break.

If I hear one more old man talking about banker's hours or one more garlic pizza add I will fucking kill myself.

Seriously Sports Net, wins don't feel as good as they should, and losses sting worse than they should after suffering through those fucking adds time and time again.

I would almost prefer Jamie Campbell in between the innings.

Almost.

Long Weekend Edition

Arizona In a Flash

Arizona 8, Toronto, 6 - POG Encarnacion
Arizona 8, Toronto, 5 - POG R. Lewis
Toronto 12, Arizona, 4 - POG JoBau

Cecil Dominates Angles



I agree. Thumbs up for Brett Cecil after a dominating 7.1 inning of ball against the Angels. For his effort, he wins another POG award.

Big Deal News Over the Weekend



Dana Eveland was designated to AAA, but of course his awesome stats will have to pass the waiver wire first. No real shock here. Although he did say this about the Blue Jays organization, "Top to bottom, it's the best organization I've been in."

With the demotion of Eveland, let the speculators speculate who will be the 5th starter. Purcey Lewis was called up, but he will be in the bullpen. This week the Jays have opted for a 4 man rotation, so no answers for a bit.

While perhaps the Jays will call up someone from AAA, my guess is that it will be our Weather Man, Brian Tallet. He is due for a return "late-May." Long shot off the DL would be Jesse Litsch who could possibly be back June 3. All injury updates here.

Lyle Overbay just recently has put his average over the two-hundy mark. Keep it up Lyle! Maybe we will be able to trade you for more than a roll of bubble tape and water bottle after all!

Aaron Hill just cannot seem to figure it out at the plate. I have the utmost faith that he can regain his stroke, but it would be nicer to see sooner rather than later.

Adam Lind has seen his average slowly drop the past 2 weeks. He hadn't hit a home run in awhile, but took one large in Arizona, and has been hitting a little better since then. Let's hope, he's out of his little funk.

My esteemed colleague found perhaps one of the internet baseball worlds most interesting websites. This website ranks all umpires on whether they are pitcher-friendly, or hitter-friendly. Most definitely worth a read.

Tonight's game features Slick Rick and rumor has it that the Angels may not even bother showing up.

Jays Split Again

Kevin Gregg Likes Balls (More Than Strikes)



Kevin Gregg, seemingly bored with being the AL saves leader, decided to allow fellow closers to catch up by blowing the fuck out of this save.

Romero is obviously the POG from that game. In line for his fifth win, but Gregg blew that game.

I know Gregg had pitched pretty solid until this, but I mean come on. 25 pitches, 13 of which are balls? 2 walks? Interesting strategy for a closer.

When Trevor Hoffman pitches now he gets hit hard, but at least he's not fucking walking batters. At least then you can say the hitters beat you, but this game, Gregg, you totally lost that one yourself. You cannot tell me that the Mariners beat the Jays tonight. The Jays were winning, Kevin Gregg lost.

The fucking Mariners. When you blow a save to a team that has Mike Sweeney as a clean-up hitter, well, let's just say you are buying the beers for the foreseeable future.

How long does it take me to forget Gregg as the the AL leader in saves?

One game.

Jays 3, Mariners 2

I know this is a game we won, but I'm still not sure who the POG goes to. Cecil was OK, Loverbay went 2 for 4, but had 2 KO. Call it a tie?

Good Luck To Ruiz

AA obviously gets his advice from The View, and even one upped me. Ruiz was released and signed to a Japanese team.

Good luck, Randy.

The Troubles of Randy Ruiz

When Randy Ruiz broke Spring Training with the team, I rejoiced, as many other Jays fans did.

Today, I stand here a broken man, almost begging for a demotion for Ruiz to AAA.

Ruiz came north with the team as a 33 year old, the first time he had ever broken Spring Training with a MLB job - I spare you the rest as I'm sure you have heard it before.

After the chains of Minor League ball were removed from Randy, and he finally thought he would get some serious time at the Major League level, Cito Gaston happened.

Ruiz knew he would be a bench player. But who knows, maybe an injury here, or an under-achiever there and he could take the job, and flourish. Enter Loverbay. Overbay is still struggling to find his bat, and his defense has not been as stellar as it should be.

And still, Ruiz rides the pine.

Ruiz is a slugger through and through. Sluggers don't ride the pine, especially not those that can DH and stand at first base.

Ruiz is not succeeding with the Jays because he doesn't get enough playing time, and is moved around in the lineup more than V-Dub last year.

So, AA, please. Send him down to AAA. Let him swing there, get his timing, rack up the numbers we all know hes capable of, and trade him. Trade him to someone who can use him. Someone who can use him full time, and let him get one season of 30 HR season before he is too old to swing. God knows he has nothing left to prove at the AAA level, but any numbers he gets there will look better than what he has now.

Randy, my heart truly feels for you. You manage to make the team, Overbay still struggles, and yet you still don't play.

I sincerely hope you get a full time chance in the Majors, but I feel that time will never come with Cito at the helm.

Minnesota Split

Marcum and Wells take the POGs for these two games. One was awesome, one was shit.

False Hope Once Again??

I am a virgin to the blogging world, so bear with me on my first ever post. Now that the Canucks have once again been eliminated from the playoffs in disappointing fashion, I can fully appreciate the over-achieving Blue Jays who remain in third place in the toughest division in all of sports.

While the Jays are all but destined to fall back into mediocrity as they have in years past following a quick start, there is reason to believe that these Jays who begin a new Doc-less era are a little bit different.

The Jays began season 1 A.D. (after Doc) without a legitimate staff ace, or a veteran presence in the rotation (unless you count Tallet.) However, this has caused pitchers such as Marcum to grow up quickly and take on the roll of teacher rather than student, which was never more evident than after hearing the news that Marcum actually helped tweak Morrow's delivery following his disastrous start at Fenway. This advice from Marcum at the very least gave Morrow the confidence that there was only just a miniscule problem with his inconsistent delivery and shows the camaraderie between the starters.

Often overlooked in reasons for the Jays success is their fielding. In fact, out of all the American League teams the Jays as of May 17, have the most TFC (Total Fielding Chances) with 1508 - yet hold the third LEAST errors. Furthermore, the under-rated Gonzo, Hill combination has helped the Jays surrender 43 Double Plays, good enough for the second most in the AL. Now that is how you help out a pitching staff that includes Dana Eveland, who holds no real skill yet somehow has managed a 3-2 record despite walking more batters than striking out. The Jays rotation also deserves some credit, along with the 'deadly' catching duo of John Buck and Jose Molina, who have allowed only 23 SB's this season and have thrown out over half that many. To compare, the Red Sox have allowed 46 SB's, while throwing out only 10 - so much for the acquisition of Victor Martinez, defensive catchers are highly under-appreciated, especially if they provide some unexpected pop ie John Buck. This is a nice change from consistently watching AJ Burnett willingly give up 2nd base to everyone he walked to put on first.

At the risk of being a stat nerd I am gonna whip out a few more numbers which help decipher just why the Jays are having so much success, despite boasting a .238 average, and without having a hitter above .300. Its easy to look at the 60 home runs and 102 doubles, which is unbelievable, but also note the 5 CS, and only 20 GIDP. The Jays simply do not give away outs. (Say what you will about their ridiculous strikeout rates, I still say that they are not as big a deal as everyone makes them out to be for both pitchers and hitters alike)

The 2010 Jays are also different because in years past their stats have been skewed by high averages, but no clutch performances. This year is the opposite and it is so much less frustrating to watch. It seems that every series, one or two guys come through in the clutch (see Bautista this past weekend, Snider against Boston, etc) Its not so much how many hits you get, but when you get them, and the Jays low LOB totals display exactly the clutch hitting that every competitive team needs to remain in the hunt well into the summer.

I know its still early, but there is a lot to like with the 2010 Jays so far, let us hope that the Red Sox continue to struggle, and the Yankees start to spend their ridiculously high contracts on hookers and blow - thus distracting them from their on field duties, to give the Jays a fighting chance for the ENTIRE season.

The Texas Series in a Flash

Blue Jays 16, Rangers 10, Friday's Game



Cecil and Harden disappointed as a potentially awesome match-up by neither lasting over 3 and both giving up way too many runs.

As the score would suggest, this was SlugFest 2010. Lyle Overbay had his best game to date this season, going 3 for 3, with 2 runs, 3 RBI, 2 BB, no strikeouts, and no runners left on base.

Congrats Loverbay on your POG!

Blue Jays 6, Rangers 0, Saturday's Game



Ricky Romero did his best Roy Halladay throwing a complete game shut out with 12 K (and only 1 walk!!!!) beating the Rangers. For another slick performance Rick gets another POG.

Blue Jays 5, Rangers 2, Sunday's Game



And the sweep is completed!

I know a little unorthodox but my POG is a three-way tie. Gregg, Downs, and Frasor all pitched scoreless innings surrendering only 1 hit with no walks.

That my friend, is what is expected of those three. Good job.

So the bullpen performance coupled with no one really hitting for the Jays, and Morrow being, well okay but not crazy good, the bullpen was the star of this game.

Jays Quietly in Third, 2 Games Out of Wildcard

Okay, I suppose it's still a little early to start the playoff expectations, but the Jays are quietly sitting in third place, 7 games above .500.

True, we were better last year and fell apart pretty quickly. I don't see how anyone can say that kind of epic fall apart is common for one team, yet alone common in baseball, or really any sport. I'm not saying we stay on pace to be way above .500, but so far, this rebuilding process has been okay.

While our rotation may not have as much experience as every other team, they are looking pretty stellar. Outside of Eveland and Tallet, our pitching has shown a ton, and look to be solid MLB starters.

The hitting is harder to get too excited about because most of the players in the lineup are not expected to be in Toronto's long term plans. Lind, Hill, Wells and Snider will unquestionably be around for awhile, but everyone else just seems to be inflating their stats to earn more than they should next year.

Anyways, I will stick by my predicted 4th place finish. Finishing 5th is going to be a disappointment regardless of a re-building year or not. Best place finish is 3rd, which would be sweet, but let's stay grounded.

Jays Finally Solve the Riddle that is the Red Sox

Er... Sorry, *Marcum and Snider* Solve the Riddle that is the Red Sox.

Marcum gets the POG award today for pitching lights out against the Red Sox. The zeros he put up over the 7 innings are impressive, but after watching Morrow and Eveland pitch like crossing guards, how nice is it to see a starter only give up 1 walk?

Very. That's how nice.

Hitters pretty much did fuck all, except for T-Snides, who is quietly and slowly raising his average, and general level of his at bats.

Beyond those two? Well, the hitters didn't really hit, and Kevin Gregg and the ump managed to save the game, albeit barely.

That strike on David Ortiz? Shit, I hate this guy more than I hate Youkilis, but that ump should get half a save for that call.

Anyone else hoping Gregg didn't start the season on a hot note and is starting to cool off? He started out amazing, and has slowly worked his way to slightly-scary.

Eveland Waits to be Released, R-Zep Waits to get Healthy

Dana Eveland is probably not a bad human being.

That be said, he has little place in Major League Baseball, not to mention the uber-talented AL East.

Eveland may be a guy that could be a 5th start for San Diego or maybe even the Indians but not the Blue Jays.

In his starts this year, he has pitched well against the Royals, Orioles, White Sox, and arguably the Athletics (6.2 IP, 4 ER).

Against a good team?

Boston? 7 IP, 7 BB, 14 H and 13 ER.

For a guy who has not part of the future, no part of the present (at least not after R-Zep is healthy, or perhaps even Tallet), he has got to be getting worried.

Jays, Like Eveland, Have No Problem Beating Shitty Teams

Well we haven't played the Yankees, we have played the Red Sox and Rays and got dumbied.

Tonight's POG is Fred Lewis.

Last night's game's POG goes to JoBau.

The View: Weekend Edition

Jays Take Series, Improve to 19-14, V-Dub the Man Once Again



Today's POG is Wells. He had over a quarter of the team's hits, had over a fifth the teams runs and RBIs, and did not strike out once.

Romero had a bad outing, but still managed 7 strikeouts, but a ridiculous 5 walks in 5.2 innings is simply garbage. I mean the 8 hits aren't great either, but 5 walks? A walk an inning? Recipe for trouble.

Freddy Lewis Makes Momma Proud

Fred Lewis has become an offensive rock and defensive bonus surprisingly quietly. His average is hovering around .300 and he is allowing Jays fans to take a big sigh of relief that we will never, ever, see JoBau in the lead off spot.

Falling Out Of First a Good Thing



Bad news everyone, we are no longer first in the MLB...

In strikeouts.

The Arizona D'Backs have taken the lead for strikeouts with 289, edging the Jays out by 7. So with a good game, we can have the lead back tomorrow!

While we are no longer numero uno in the league, we are however first in the AL by 42. Now I'm not saying we should sit back now that we have a solid lead, but that's a pretty good lead.

The Jays this year are striking out at an exponential rate, and tonight was no exception - 11 hits, 11 strikeouts.

Some of you may be that guy that always proclaims "Even if I strike out 9 out of 10 times at the bar, it's the one time I get a girl that I'll be remembered for."

Well... yeah I guess in a kind of sad way that really applies to the 2010 Jays. Yeah they strikeout a shit tonne, but that one time they don't, uh-oh. Home run.

Or at least a double.

Saturday's Recap




Cecil wasn't great, but kept us in the game until Roenicke pulled a Frasor.

Not of a log of greatness, or goodness for that matter, to be said about this game, but Freddy Lewis gets his first POG award for getting on base, and not striking out.

What a Game!

Wow.

Of all the games to miss because of a long Friday work day. The hockey game was on as well, but I didn't miss a damn thing there, but wow, I am really upset I missed this one!

After going over the boxscore, I was curious as to why a 2 for 3 Ruiz (with no strikeouts) was subbed out for an Adam Lind that hasn't exactly been on a tear lately, only to strike out 3 times? I know it's really easy for me to sit here and look at the boxscore and say it was dumb to sub in a guy who will strike out three times, but it's not like Ruiz wasn't hitting? I'm still a little confused on that one, did Ruiz try to catch another ball with his teeth or somethin'?

This game was absolutely filled with solid performances, Buck, Marcum, Gonzalez, Downs, Snider and even Wells.

Some not so stunning performances by Hill, Lind and Gregg.

So for our player of the game we have a slight problem. Marcum is deserved, but it would not have been a win if not for Gonzalez, even though 1 for 6 wasn't great. So for that, I will call it a push between Marcum and Gonzalez.

What Goes Up, Must Come Down

While the Jays continue to play longball, their HR totals are going up and up. Wells, 8, Gonzalez 9, and Buck 7 to name the top three, and Hill hasn't even hit his second yet.

In their new all-or-nothing batting mentality they basically hit a HR or double or strikeout, and as a result, their HR totals keep moving up, and their averages continue to plummet. With the exception of Wells who has hit all year, and Lewis whose average is going up (OK and Travis Snider - I still don't want to jinx it!!!) the Jays have some ugly, ugly averages.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Eveland

I missed an entry of Eveland's last game, of which he gets the POG.

Dana is doing his best to frustrate viewers by pitching like a monster (see first 2 starts and latest start) and then pitch like a everyday Joe throwing up meatballs all game (see every other game).

It Ain't Over 'Till Lindy Says It's Over!

With pure determination on his face, Adam Lind stepped into the batter's box in the 9th inning, and promptly knocked a 2-run off-field home run to take the lead by one.

The one run lead was surprisingly enough for Frasor not to blow it, helping him to even his record at 1-1.

The 24 LOB were pretty freaking ugly, but beyond that it was a pretty decent game offensively. For example, 11 hits were sweet and having 4 walks and only 5 strikeouts was nice.

The pitching being shown early this year for the Jays gives some hope of a potential 3rd place finish? I'm not willing to suggest that at this point, but if the offense can keep hitting and not striking out, what's to stop them from finishing ahead of the aging and struggling Red Sox?

That being said, Cito should make Loeverbay contribute $1,000 to the Jays Care Foundation every time he hits into a fucking double play. Frustrating!!!

5.1 innings for Morrow with 9 strikeouts and a disappointing 3 ER. I suppose not horrible, but consider that 2 of the runs scored were from runners put on by a walk, and a hit batter.

If Morrow can ever learn to have a little better control, and that is a big if, he could be a steal from the Mariners. He also seems to struggle in the startings of things, IE: start of a game, start of an inning.

But man can that guy throw.

Player of the Game is Lind for breaking out of his mini-funk in a big way and for just generally being awesome.

Romero Shows Signs of Being Human, Snider on Mini-Tear

Tonight Romero proved he is indeed human. 5 runs over 6 innings, albeit with 9 punchouts, was not that great of an outing and this inflated his ERA to a whopping 3.00. Nice to see his offense pick him up a win after wasting some of his previous starts.

I hate to say this, as I do not want to be a jinx, but T-Snides is on a mini-tear right now. He has been hitting the ball hard, and against today he had a 2-out RBI, and scored two runs. For that performance, and to keep his self-esteem high, he is awarded today's POG.

Cecil Fans 10 Over 8

Brett Cecil is looking good. Tabler and Martinez both say he has a new found confidence, feeling comfortable enough to throw any pitch in any count. I agree. Obviously so do the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians struck out 10 times in 8 innings of Cecil, and managed one hit, and only scored one because of two consecutive walks.

So, yeah, Cecil is looking damn good.

And for that, Cecil is awarded another POG award.

The hitters. Well they do what they have done all year. Hit doubles and homeruns with a dash of singles. 3 long balls, 1 double, 4 singles for 8 hits.

Speaking of the hitters, one has to like the way Snider hit the ball yesterday.

I don't think there can be much denying what Cito said said in Spring Training. You know, the Jays have 7 guys that can hit 20 homeruns? Well yeah. They probably do. Wells, Hill, Lind, JoBau, Snider, Buck, and Gonzalez seem like they will, and Overbay could if he ever gets hit shit together.

Questions of the Day

Considering the way Cecil is pitching, and the way Eveland pitches (or doesn't pitch), what does it mean when Tallet comes back?

The most logic solution is to say goodbye to Eveland, and give Tallet a rotation spot. That being said, there has been some turnover in the bullpen and maybe Tallet will provide another lefty arm?

Similarly, what does it mean for Randy Ruiz and Mike McCoy when EE is back?

Being frank, I don't think McCoy will be sent down because Cito seems to appreciate his speed and defense capabilities. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of Ruiz.

As much as I want to love Ruiz, and as much as I want him to crush 40, what team has a primarily DH on your bench? I mean, you can put him at first, but he's not the slickest fielder you ever did see.

A little random maybe, but I was thinking the other day.

It's Good To Be Back

Sorry to be so long in between posts, my week of cleaning, packing, moving, and unpacking has finally ended. Now, in a nice short blog, I will catch up with my POGs only. Be back tomorrow with a real blog!

Red Sox 2, Blue Jays 1 - POG is Marcum
Red Sox 2, Blue Jays 0 - POG is Cecil
Blue Jays 6, Athletics 3 - POG is Buck
Blue Jays 10, Athletics 2 - POG is Morrow
Athletics 4, Blue Jays 3 - POG is Freddy Lewis
Blue Jays 9, Athletics 3 - POG is Marcum

Again apologies about the delay.

Eveland Comes Back To Reality With A Crash

Dana Eveland lived up, er, down to our expectations tonight and showed us that, no, his sparkling ERA would not last. 7 ER over 3 innings will not do it.

We lost to my least favorite, no, most despised team in the league, but there are some pluses we can take out of this!

The Jays had 16 hits, and half were singles. My god, I have never been so happy to see the singles coming! I mean, yes, it was a game that also saw 8 extra base hits, but what the hay, we lost, but we hit. Also, Lyle Overbay gets his first POG award for finally having a good game! 3 for 5, with 2 runs, 4 RBI, and perhaps more importantly only 1 strikout. Yay.

Now, the bad.

One could read and deduct that if we got 16 hits, 8 for extra bases, and lost, the bad must be the pitching. Well, yes you are correct, but let's look for something shinny in this steaming pile of crap!

There's one! There's another!

Downs had a solid outing! 1 inning, 2 strikeouts, and zeroes across everything else.

Kevin "Chacin" Gregg had another solid outing. To this point and date, including today which cancels out Camp, Gregg has hands down been the best reliever thus far. Imagine that mid-offseason.

Jeff Blair Has Never Heard of You

Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail had an article about Jays hats being a top 3 seller in New York that I posted on a couple days back. Now I know that there is one reader because they asked if it was true.

Well, not I was not lying, and found it after looking a little harder. It was hiding here.

Well, Mr. Blair, here are my issues:

Are you going to seriously tell me that the Blue Jays have a "no-name roster?" Even if you are going to tell me V-Dub sucks, everyone has heard of his 3 years of JD Drewness. Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, who are Silver Slugger winners are not no-namers. What ever team you cheer for, if you are even a baseball fan, would welcome those two. So, no-name? No.

"Marketers are aware of the importance of “hook-ups” - matching the colours of one piece of sportswear with another." Holy fucking shit, whoever thought to match the colours of the things you are wearing? No more pick shirts and yellow pants with my Jays lid, I'm going to hook-up!

“The phenomenon of hook-ups is very much in play in Canada,” Blair says. So, matching the colours of what you are wearing is a phenomenon now?

Jesus.

Find something real to write on, sport or fashion, preferably fashion.

Monday Morning Thoughts

Some things to ponder this Monday morning.

Blue Jays Offensive Ranking.

AB.... 13th (638)
H..... 26th (148)
D..... 1st (52)
HR.... 1st (26)
RBI... 18th (78)
AVG... 28th (.223)
OBP... 29th (.297)
SLG... 12th (.429)
SO.... 1st (166)

Blue Jays Pitching Rankings

ERA... 17th (4.31)
W..... 14th (10)
SV.... 2nd (8)
SVO... 3rd (11)
H..... 20th (153)
SO.... 8th (138)
BB.... 19th (61)
IP.... 10th (171.1)

Analysis:

While our pitching has been up and down at certain times, the overall success of our pitching staff has been solid, at least average-above average in baseball.

Hitting however, well there are two things we very clearly excel at - striking out, and hitting extra base hits, sans triples.

Here's to hoping we can see some singles tonight against Beckett and the 8-11 Red Sox.

The Weekend Edition

Starting with Sunday's game and going back to cover Friday's game.


Frasor's Steve Irwin Impression



Morrow was pretty good again today. Would have been a great outing if not for one glaring issue - walks. The thing about walks is they are like shots of tequila, not every one is going to ruin your day, but one at the wrong time will leave you fucked.

Okay, so two runs over 6 innings isn't that bad, and perhaps the Jays could have gotten around to scoring some runs, but even if the Jays had managed a homerun, Frasor got absolutely killed by the Rays (get it? too soon, or is that okay?). Frasor has a very disappointing ERA at this time, a whopping 9.35 after allowing 4 runs in 0.2 innings pitched.

The Jays at the plate failed to do much better than Frasor. This offense can at times be like watching paint dry and today was one of those days.

Which was weird, because Loverbay was on the pine.

As for player of the game... Morrow? I guess?

Slick Rick Still Slick



Ricky Romero, our POG for Satuday's game had another gem ruined by the Jays batter and bullpen. Downs (WTF?) and Janssen got knocked around, and have been assigned bitch duty to Romero for a week.

Hitters did bup-kiss again. Loverbay homerun, but I'm not sure I really care that much.

Welcome Back Aaron Hill!



Aaron Hill hit his first longball of the season on his first game back from a DL stint. Brett Cecil made his 2010 debut and had a pretty solid outing if not for one pitch in the seventh that Kapler took deep for 2 runs. God damn Dave Kapler of all people. I mean, all the people in the lineup that are awesome and he's the one to do it. Damn.

The bullpen decided to play "blow-the-lead," their favorite game this series, but thankfully Frasor only gave up one. Kevin "Gustavo Chacin" Gregg bailed him out, and after all the hate for Gregg, he gets my kudos.

However, my player of the game is Brett Cecil. 6.2 innings with 4 ER is not really good, but his 8 punchouts and 1 walk is terrific. And I'm giving him the mulligan of the Kapler HR, so his line actually reads 6.2, 2 ER, 8 K, and 1 BB. Well done Bretty Boy!

This Just In.. A-Roid Proves His Douchebagery Again



Don't know if anyone else saw the little happening between Dallas Braden (Oakland SP) and A-Roid. A-Roid walked across the mound after making an out, and Braden took exception.

It's no rule, so I guess A-Roid can fall back on that, but it's called being a professional, and a good sport. I mean, that little trick he pulled on Howie Clark a couple years back isn't technically illegal, but why doesn't anyone else do it? Cause it's a greaseball play.

So, for that Mr. Dallas, you receive a shout out from The View. Congratulations.

BREAKING NEWS

JAYS @ RAYS

Loverbay just hit a homerun.

Cito Wants YOU!

Apparently Cito has recently appealed for help from the general public on where to hit Lyle Overbay.

When Cito was asked about if he should give Lyle a night off, or move him in the lineup he replied:

"He plays, he plays. I mean, he plays until he just gives up. I don't think he's going to give up. There's some suggestion to move him up and down the lineup. Well, anybody who can tell me where I can move him, please let me know."

The answers flow in this telling quote from Cito.

Presumably, unless Loverbay swings so hard that his follow through hits himself in the head, putting him in a coma, or he has a heart attack while hustling out a double play ball, he will be in the lineup.

Okay, okay you don't want to sit him Cito, we get it. How about moving the worst hitter on the team out of the middle of the order? You know, then we don't have him playing the roll of Buzz Killington every night after Gonzalez, Wells and Lind have done their job.

The problem with this logical train of thought is that Cito is unaware of other positions to move him.

Well Cito, I can make this easier for you. Whoever suggested moving him up in the lineup is on crack, so we can cross that off the list. That leaves us with down only. See? We are making progress already!

You moved JoBau down in the lineup. I know it hurt at first, but it's for the best! I'm more of a bandaide off at once kind of guy, but if you want to just lower him in the lineup and not take him out completely, that's fine too.

Lyle has the third most at-bats on the team, and the lowest average. So if you insist on leaving him in the lineup, I'm gonna say move him down, and move him down all the way.

See Cito! All you have to do is ask! Don't be shy about it next time and wait so long!

One Man's Misfortune...

While we here at The View would never wish ill upon anyone, we certainly would not for a Blue Jays. So, Tallet, we wish in all sincerity a speedy recovery, so you can rightfully claim what is yours: the bullpen long relief spot.

We know you like to start, but seeing as that isn't your strong point, if you do long relief, it'll be like starting except you won't have to "weather" through 6 inning of 6 run baseball - Cito can instead pull you before you fall apart!

And of course, one man's misfortune leads to opportunity for someone else. Bretty Cecil has been called up and will start Friday in Tampa. For the 51s in Las Vegas, Cecil was 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA, a 1.36 WHIP and 11 K in 11 innings. Obviously, we are all looking forward to Friday's game.

Another reason to get excited for Friday's game is a certain second basemen will start. Hill will make his return after missing time on the DL because of a hamstring. I don't think anyone will suggest anything other than Aaron will have a dramatic impact on the Jays offense.

Good News For Years To Come

Our AAA team, the Las Vegas 51s is full of players that are borderline Major League players, and that being the case they look like that video game team you used to stack.

Their stats are here, and I urge you to take a look, and get pumped up for future times!



Win Eludes Marcum, Again

Marcum surrendered a 3-run bomb in the first inning to Jose Guillen, and then settled in nicely to put up donuts for the next 6 innings. However, the Jays offense can be very selective of when they actually want to try (with the exception of Loverbay) and decided yesterday not to try until the 4th and 8th inning.

The Jays are managing to win more than they lose right now, and I still will say its only because of the homeruns. For example, yesterday's game they Jays got 4 measly hits along with 12 strikeouts.

My POG, once again, is Shaun Marcum. While he has had better outings, it was by no means bad, and when the offense wants to fuck it as badly as they did, what else can he do? Suggest a move to the NL so he can hit as well?

V-Dub Continues to Rake

Vernon Wells is hands down the POG for Tuesday's game. 3 for 4 with 2 R and 1 RBI. Oh yeah, did I mention his seventh home run? V-Dub is living proof that indeed three years can be forgotten in 15 games into a season.

15 games and they Jays are 9-6. Eveland got a ND and pitched not very well. For Eveland to be successful he has to be ahead of pitchers, and while only issuing 2 BB, he wasn't exactly pitching to strong hitters. That outing from Eveland could have gone very different against the Rays or Yankees.

Today's early morning game has a pair of aces in Marcum and Grienke, but things are not looking good early for the Jays. The Royals have put 3 runs on the board early courtesy of Jose Guillen and a fastball from Marcum.

Morrow Dominates, JoBau Hits

Today's POG awards are split between Brandon Morrow and Jose Bautista. Morrow went 7 strong allowing only 1 ER with 8 SO. Almost makes one forget about the two not-so-good starts he had, but after a quick look at his ERA those games come flooding back (7.31). Whatever Bruce Walton told Morrow to do seemingly worked as Morrow looked good.

Jose Bautista, our bench-converted starting outfielder-converted lead-off hitter- converted third basemen-converted 6 hitter had a heck of game today. 2 for 4, with 2 HR, 5 RBI, 2 R and 1 BB is nothing to scoff at, but despite not striking out once, he still had a 5 LOB to lead the team in that department.

While his high LOB was enough to consider not sharing the POG honours with Morrow, I'm feeling nice today.

Eveland goes again this afternoon. I don't know whether to insert a cynical comment or praise here... not yet anyways.

Blue Jays Lids are the Talk of the Town



Apparently Blue Jays New Era Caps are all the scourge of fashionable cities like the Big Apple and even outsell Mets (no way!) hats in some areas.

Well I suppose if we can't have a winning team we can have selling caps, but right now we have both!

I unfortunately do not have the link to this article from the Globe & Mail, but I'm very sure it was from that. It was in their British Columbia version that was in real print, not internet.

Sorry!

Also, I can neither confirm or deny these numbers, but apparently at least 50% of Jays hats being sold are having their stickers left on by wanna-be gangsters, skaters, and general bad-ass people, and even more rare, 60%% of Jays hats sold do not get a curve put on them.

Experts are suggesting peeling stickers on all hats you see (even if you do not buy them).

Weekend Edition

Jays Hitters Waste Another Romero Masterpiece



Romero went 8 giving up only 1 earned run. However the Jays only mustered up 4 hits. Ricky, you get the Player of the Game award this day, and I hope this is the only time you surrender one run and still take a "L."

What the fuck is happening to our bullpen? This was supposed to be the anchor of a young team! Downs today even? Jesus, please don't tell me that out bullpen sucks. That was the one thing we have going for us as a unit. Hitting, defense, and rotation have all taken their knocks, but the bullpen is supposed to be good, scratch that, great! Fuck!

Friday Features Tallet



Well, I had a History of India exam, and well usually Saturday exams are lots of fun, it meant I missed the game.

The boxscore tells me that Tallet sucked, and the hitters didn't muster up much of a showing against Saunders. For this reason, if anyone reads this blog and did watch Friday's game, leave your Player of the Game in the comments with your reasoning.

I think I would be more accepting of Tallet in the rotation if someone in management simply said "he's our best option at this point, everyone else we want to be in AAA," instead we are told he's their for his ability to weather the storm.

Perhaps attendence is low because guys like Tallet who repeatedly prove why they shouldn't be in the rotation, are.

Baseball dead in Toronto?



No. I'm not even in Toronto, but I agree wtih Paul Beeston's comments that there is no reason for concern. Professional baseball, is in its purest form, simply a product. For a product to be on the market, it must sell, to sell it must be a good product. Blue Jays baseball is firstly not expected to do much this year, and two, is in the process of rebuilding.

The Drunk Jays Fans have perhaps one of my favorite articles they've authored to date here, and addresses those that say baseball is no longer important in Toronto.

The Globe and Mail has this article saying that baseball is either dead or dying.

Put together a winning team, and the fans will come back. To steal from the Drunk Jays Fans, the Chicago Blackhawks are the perfect comparison.

I know it's still a ways away, but a future lineup that has the likes of Marcum, Romero, McGowan, Rzep, Morrow, Cecil, and Mills (to name but a few pitchers), and Lind, Hill, Wells, Wallace, D'Arnaud and Adieny, what isn't there to get excited about?

I, for one, am giddy just thinking about it.

Lastly . . .

The Loverbay weekend watch:

Still in the lineup and over the course of Saturday and Sunday's games went 1/8 with 1 RBI and 2 KO. A solid weekend for Overbay, his average has gone up after that awe-inspiring performance.

Season stats: 50 AB .084 AVG, but he still hustles!

Enough is Enough

At this point, I'm not really sure who I am more upset with.

Lyle is having a pretty awful year at the plate. They aren't getting better either, and that worries me. Loverbay doesn't really seem like a bad guy. Not much to go on, but I met his brother-in-law in Seattle a couple years back, and being decked out in my Jays gear he asked if he could give us Lyle's autographed card.

I can't help but almost feel bad for Lyle, I mean, how badly does Cito want him to crash and burn? Cito cannot seriously think at this point leaving him in the game, and in the five hole is showing his fucking confidence in him. Loverbay is in a pretty foul funk right now, and whatever we can say about him, we have all seen him hit before.

But Lyle was booed today. Lyle also played the role of Buzz Killington in an eighth inning rally. 43 AB this year for Lyle, and what does he have to show for it? 3 measly hits, and an astounding 13 strikeouts. Complete strikeout list here.

It's not like Cito doesn't have another option either. Randy Ruiz, who went large today while DHing, is praying for a shot. Randy is a .300 hitter in his small MLB career, but in 4103 Minor League at bats, he has hit .300 there too.

All I'm saying is that Lyle sucking is on himself, but Cito is not helping. Cito should be protecting him. Sit him, and let him figure out whats wrong, not letting him hit five and get fucking booed. As he did with Snider, Lyle should be sat for a game - one game is all I ask.

I for one, cannot see Lyle being grateful at this point for Cito's "faith" in him. So, Cito, do Lyle, myself, and all other Jays fans, and give Lyle a rest.

So he doesn't get lonely on the bench, maybe take Jose Bautista out of the lineup with him.

Tonight's game was tough one to watch. A decent outing from Marcum, long balls from Ruiz (!!!!), Lind and Wells, some hits from Gonzo, and a bunch of strikeouts from the rest. Player of the Game was Wells for going 3 for 4.

I really hope that Cito is the second person to ever read this blog, and goes with my lineup for tomorrow against the lefty Saunders.

1. Lewis
2. Gonzo
3. Lind
4. V-Dub
5. Ruiz
6. Snider
7. EE
8. Molina
9. McCoy

Eveland Sets New Record

Tonight Eveland set a new Jays record for longest shutout streak for a new Jays pitcher. For that, and for proving me wrong once again, Eveland gets the Player of the Game award.

Gonzo almost made the POG a push between the two, but to be honest I was pretty impressed with Eveland tonight. If he can keep locating maybe he will stick around with the team and be a successful pitcher. Then again maybe not.

Gonzalez is taking full advantage hitting in front of Lind and V-Dub while Hill is out. Of course it would be foolish to think that he will hit like this for the year, even though Tabler and Martinez seem to think so. Does anyone else have trouble sleeping at night because of Hill hamstring? Pray to whoever you pray to that it ain't all that bad.

Snider also had a good game, nice to see. His homerun was obviously sweet, but so was his diving catch. Do I smell a Gold Glove?

Lyle Overbay Stays Out Of The Sun Under His Sombrero, Of The Golden Variety

Cito is very much like a father to Jays fans. While we may kick and scream at some of his decisions, at the end of the day we have unconditional love for him. Even if we don't want to love him, we have to. Right? That being said, Cito is making it hard for even the truest of Cito fans out there by leaving Lyle in the lineup again.

Lyle got the Golden Sombrero today, and unfortunately for him that is by far his biggest accomplishment this year. Ruiz didn't save the Jays from a whoppin' Wednesday, but he did a shit tonne more than Lyle! Cito, please, please, please, give Lyle a seat. I mean, you put him on any other team and he's benched by now! At least put him lower in the lineup. I mean, come on!

And speaking of the lineup, what the fuck is up with T-Snides hitting behind fucking Jeremy fucking Reed?! Jesus!

MLBTR on Loverbay and New Blue Jay

MLBTR has this discussion on Lyle, and it basically points out that those that did want him, already found people, and those that may, also have the option of Carlos Delgado. However, they fail to mention that what Lyle was worth is no more.

Lastly, the Jays traded for Fred Lewis today. Really don't see this being much of an impact move. In one full season he didn't do much, his stats are here.

The only thing I could say about Lewis, is that maybe the brass think he could lead off? He seems to basically spell Jeremy Reed.

We Will Feel Better About This One In The 'Morrow

Morrow threw BP today for the White Sox. His line was 4 IP, 7 ER, 3 K, 1 BB, and 8 hits - 2 of which were homeruns. Marco quoted saying "at least he only walked one, I guess."

The Jays have seemingly made it their mission to show everyone that Andruw Jones is still a good MLB hitter.

Finally Randy Ruiz gets a start, nice to see him break up the no-no bid, and swipe a base. I don't care how out of reach the game is, good for Ruiz taking advantage of the defense. As for player of the game, the award goes to Randy Ruiz for playing OK and not totally sucking shit like every other player on the Jays this night.

Anyone else see the fly out to RF in Ruiz's third AB? I can't hold my breathe that long! Let's hope he gets some serious ABs so we can see what he can do.

I have an issue with something Tabler or Martinez said today. One of them pointed out that Lyle ran hard to beat out a double play in yesterday's game, and that, as Cito told him, is a way to earn respect and allows him to stay in the lineup despite being off to a "slow" start at the plate.

You know what? Fuck his hustle. I am not willing to seriously listen to anyone that is going to tell me his defense and Charlie Hustle enthusiasm is reason enough for him to start ball games at the moment. At the very least he needs a night off. Maybe at shortstop or catcher a player can get away with being solid defensively and hustling over hitting, but first base? Defensive retards play first base. People with "eating disorders" play first base.

Early still? Yes. But He is not getting better by the AB here. Every AB is useless, and even if he works the count a little, he swings a loops a little dinky thing to first base, or strikes out.

I fear that today's game may happen all too often this year. Not to the extent of course, I expect the pitching to hold the bleeding to a slight gush, but when Gonzo and Buck have cooled down (which is looks like they have), the Jays have Lind and Hill (when he's back) as "scary" hitters. I mean Wells too hopefully, and maybe Ruiz. The Jays lineup seems to have HR potential, but show me some average outside of Wells, Hill, and Lind.

More and more it looks like JoBau will not cut it as lead-off, but I guess we don't really have anyone else.

Yes I did this before the game was over. It is a shitty game, I'm in exam period and I have studying that isn't a complete waste of time.

In the 'morrow is Eveland against Garcia, see you then.

Slick Rick One Hits The White Sox

Slick Rick dominated White Sox hitters today. While he did seem to tire a bit towards the end of his start, he coasted through the White Sox lineup. For his performance this day, Ricky gets his second Player of the Game award. OK yes it stung a bit as Rios had the one hit (and a 2 run HR!), but seriously, who gives a fuck? Romero dominated the White Sox today. I'm not sure how the White Sox will sleep tonight, nightmares I'm betting.

Nice to see some runs that were not a result of the longball. EE is getting better by the game, as is Buck. Still not expecting too much from either, but I think EE could be an offensively solid third basemen.

Also, nice to see Gregg come in and handle the job quite nicely. Cito at least is one for three in knowing when to let a player "sit one out."

Be nice to see no-no not-not said until a hit has been given up Tabler and Martinez. That's twice this year.

Enough is enough. Sit Snider and Overbay for one game. All players need to be benched every once in awhile. Snider will not slide into a stupor - he will admit he's matured. In the Bigs, you don't perform, you don't play. Same with Overbay. Nice hit today, but you haven't exactly earned your ABs lately.

Ricky was interviewed immediately after the game on XM Radio. He seems like a great guy. He said things were pretty laid back in the dugout, but after his hit was given up he looked pretty pissed off. In the interview he took complete blame for serving one up to Rios.

Turning back time, Ricky would have opened the Home Opener, but Morrow is ready to show off his stuff for Torontonians (is that right Torontonians?) tomorrow for the series win, and may I point out third straight series win?

CBS Point of View on Lyle Obvery, 1B, TOR

Overbay, Lyle, 1B, TOR

News: From The Sports Xchange notes: 1B Lyle Overbay's struggles continued Monday. The left-handed hitter went 0-for-3, leaving him 2-for-26 (.077) on the season.


Analysis: Overbay is going to come around and be productive enough to consider at least in AL-only leagues, but obviously this stretch makes him a candidate to sit in any format right now. His days as a full-timer could be numbered. In fact, prospect Brett Wallace could take his job by June 1.

Home Opener and O-Dog

While, not quite the game I was hoping for.

Obviously exam period coincides with the start of the 2010 season. This means I have to prioritize and school rarely wins. The Jays lost their 2010 Home Opener 8 to 7. I hate to be too cliche but in a game where so much of each was seen, let's look at the good the bad and the ugly - though not necessarily in that order, let's leave the best until last.

The Ugly

Frasor blew his second game of the season. I don't really know what to say here other than some people, who are good pitchers, simply cannot handle the ninth inning. Frasor is starting to look that way. I know it's early, but even in the games he has saved he hasn't exactly looked dominating. Kevin Gregg, who if you ask me does a very very good Gustavo Chacin impersonation, should close (at least for now). I mean, he's white, but he got the goggles, he's got a funky delivery, and he's not exactly prince charming in the looks department. Maybe if we name Gregg the closer, but still let Frasor close the odd game he can perform again.

Loverbay. As a friend pointed out, is now 7 games into this season and he has an average well below the speed pitchers throw at. You know what? I don't even care that he did get 2 BB and scored a run. He looks completely out to lunch in the batters box. I swear he decides whether to swing or take before the pitcher has even received his signs. Like, honestly a good AB for him is making contact and sending the ball foul. Time for a seat Lyle, let Ruiz play.

The Bad

Brian Tallet. Well, yeah, I suppose the Weatherman did weather. I mean he never had to get mid-inning? And that's why he's there, right? A friend pointed out that Tallet does have good starts (like his first game) but they get washed away by the next 5 brutal starts. I mean, Jake Peavy gave up 7 ER in 5.2 - all Tallet had to do was give up like 4 in 6 IP and it would have been that much better. Oh well.

The national anthem singers were different. I swear they had a girl singing in there, however I'm still analyzing tape to locate her - I'll keep you posted.

Jamie Campbell asked Cito "if the Jays win 90 games this year, would you consider coming back?" Typical Campbell.

The Good

Lind had a good game relatively speaking. Three strikeout's isn't good, but 2 for 5 with 3 RBI a BB and a run is good. So for that performance, Lind earns his first POG award (which, yes, is much nicer than the Edgar Martinez or Silver Slugger award he received yesterday).

I SAW RANDY RUIZ BAT! I SWEAR IT! More rare than a Big Foot sighting, fans were treated to a Randy Ruiz at bat, and that my friend, is a good thing. I know I'm going out on a limb here, but I'm going to hope/pray/believe/beg/ask any god, spirit, or supreme being, that Randy Ruiz will be hitting 6 spot today.

Buck Martinez was back. Thank baby Jesus.

A Couple Bones To Pick


AJ Pierzynski is a douchebag. Tabler said on air that teammates love him, and the opposition hates him, while then I think that his teammates are douchebags too, and since Rios is a teammate, my point seems to be proven. Did anyone see him try to catch a foul pop-up that drifted in the the left side of the net behind homeplate? Some kid was nice enough to move out of his way, to let him try to catch it, and then went to pick up the ball after the catch was no-catch, and AJ fucking Pierzynski scooped it up, and tossed it higher into the stands. What a mother-fucking douchebag.



Orlando "O-Dog" (or possibly O-Dawg?) Hudson, a ex-Jay second baseman and crowd favorite came out, well kind of, with a bold statement the other day. It is here. Now, O-Dog/Dawg who I quite like, said this:

"You see guys like Jermaine Dye without a job. Guy with (27 home runs and 81 RBI) and can't get a job. Pretty much sums it up right there, no? ... A guy like Gary Sheffield, a first-ballot Hall of Famer, can't get a job. ... We both know what it is. ... I'm not gonna say it because then I'll be in (trouble)."

So Jermaine Dye is without a job because he isn't white - not because he's turned down like 3 or 4 contracts because he wants more money?

And Sheffield should totally be playing, but because he's black he can't. Nothing to do with his stats from the past two years. For an aging player, who can't really play defense anywhere yet isn't a good enough hitter to DH, and because he will be a Hall of Famer somehow thinks he deserves some outrageous sum of money, I'm really not surprised he didn't get a contract.

On Power Ally on XM Radio, with Kevin Kennedy and some other guy, they also pointed out Matsui (not white) signed for $5 million and is the World Series MVP. Johnny Damon (white and first nations I believe) signed for $8 million (1/2 of what he made last year). Hank Blalock signed with Tampa and is on minor league assignment - something I don't see Dye or Sheffield doing. I don't even like those talk show guys! They are way too Red Sox (Lester and Cameron guest appear on their shows alternating Mondays). Nonetheless, good points.

Anyways, O-Dog, I don't think you have much of a case... and anyways, you got a job, didn't you?

Our real #2 pitcher, Ricky Romero chucks tonight. Let's get back on a winning streak, hopefully, we are graced with a Ruiz start and a Overbay benching.

The Weekend Edition

As I'm just starting out, I don't really have set days when I can write, but it is more and more looking like Monday to Thursday will not be a problem, but the weekends may be condensed into a weekend edition covering Saturday and Sunday games, and sometimes including Friday.

The Comeback: Part I


This game's POG was Travis Snider, and here's why: Snider went 2 for 3 with 1 clutch RBI, 1 R, 1 BB and perhaps most importantly no strikeouts. Snider, who has not been off to a great start managed a clutch hit that tied the game, and was on base 3 times in 4 trips to the plate. While the long ball seems to be how we produce runs, getting on base is important, so for that, well done Travis.

Morrow was much as I expected. Flashes of greatness, with lots of walks. Walks piss me off - if a pitcher is getting rocked hard, fine, but when he gives up walks I have a short patience. Let your defense play behind you, and let the other team put it in play. Take out those 5 BB my Morrow, and give him 1, or maybe 2 and its a much different game. All in all, could have been worse, I'm nervously excited to see his next start.

Eveland 7 Scoreless, Molina Cashes in Two

Jose Molina was the hero of this game, and justly so is awarded his first POG award. Sharing the honour for this game is Dana Eveland. Molina had a great day at the plate going 2 for 3 with 2 huge RBIs and threw out the one potential base stealer. While Eveland put up 7.1 scoreless innings, I'm not totally sold, but there can be little to say about what may happen later down the road, as 7.1 scoreless innings is worthy of a POG anytime.

I'm definitely not going to hold my breathe until his next 7 plus innings of scoreless ball, and I still do not think he will finish the year with the team, but keep proving me wrong Dana! I'm going to be a little concerned about Eveland playing against the Red Sox, Yankees, or the Rays, but until then I'll keep it to keep it up.

The Comeback: Part II

Wow. The Blue Jays finished up the series in Baltimore with the second come from behind win today. The Jays are proving to be a team that you can never count out, and I know why. Cito said that seven hitters on the team had 20 HR potential, and so far, several people are off to a good start, and between Hill and Lind is only 1 HR. V-Dub and Gonzo have combined for 7 HR thus far, and EE (I'll refrain from E5 for a little longer) and JoBau had their first today. Teams that mash, can never be counted out, but I am still not sold the Jays are a mashing team.

My POG for today is Gonzo and McDonald.

Gonzalez today had one error that looked pretty bad until his second jack of the game tied it up at 2. Hard to not give serious consideration to a 2 HR effort, but in my opinion, McDonald had a game that was just as important. McDonald went 3 for 4 with 1 R. Okay, okay, not necessarily the most impressive of games, but lets consider that of the Jays 7 hits, 4 were HR, the other three hits were two singles and a double by J-Mac. Like I said a couple posts back, to live and die by the HR is dangerous, so nice job to J-Mac for getting on base.

Homerun = Bad?

Okay I am not naive enough to say that a HR is a bad thing. But the Jays look like they will win only when they hit HR. For example, today was 2-1 (and only because of a HR, by Gonzo), and the Jays won because of 3 more HRs. Now, if the Jays keep up this pace, they should finish the season rather well, but what happens when the Jays hitters inevitably go cold for a bit, and the HRs dry up and all of a sudden we are losing a bunch of 2-1, 2-0, 1-0 games? OK if the pitching holds up to, but I think regardless I have a point - the Jays need to have useful ABs the entire game, and I would love to see some singles and doubles.
Teams that are considered good hitting teams always hit for average and power. We do not want a team of Adam Dunn-type players who can hit their fair share of HR, but can't must up an average above .240. Case in point Rod Barajas last year. 19 HR and 71 RBI nice, but .226 AVG and .258 OBP baaaaaaaaaaaaad.

Time to Free Willy

My perscription for Cito on the flight back to Toronot tonight is to watch Free Willy. Now, substitute Ruiz for Willy.

Ahhhh, much better. Ruiz finally gets to play (yes, that's both italicized and bolded to show stress). Loverbay has played awful* this year. He has not: been hitting the ball hard, collecting walks, been getting robbed by the defense, and instead has been striking out rather pathetically, popping up in foul territory, or grounding out weakly. I'm a realist in that I know everyone has their ups and downs, and that striking out will happen - even for the best.

However, why we haven't seen Ruiz yet is baffling. This situation is getting pretty frustrating, so I'm not going to rant forever because I'll never get out of here, but all I say, is free Ruiz, sell Disney the rights to a movie, and get Loverbay to shave.

Sorry, I promise no rant on this, but Ruiz is the one Jay not to have an AB this season. Not one. Loverbay keeps going oh-for or one-for - what exactly do the Jays serve to lose by inserting Ruiz? And do not, I repeat DO NOT tell me his defense or remind me he is a LHP.

*minus two clutch hits

Home Opener Tomorrow

Okay, not really my home, but nonetheless Jays open their 2010 home schedule tomorrow. It will be The Weatherman starting tomorrow, so I'm hoping that Ruiz will play as compensation. Of course Im hoping that Tallet pitches well again, however I would be okay with a 5th inning ejection for his second beaning of Rios. Is it just me or does anyone else think Rios would be the guy to do a double-fingering of the crowd in Toronto?

Why do we hate Rios?