Perfect 10

The Jays continued their mastery over the visiting Baltimore Orioles, with their 10th straight win over their AL East rivals as they won a 9-5 slugfest at the Rogers Centre last night.

The best part of this win was seeing homers fly off the bats of Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, who are unfortunately viewed as the biggest underachievers on the club.

We have noted that they are defending Silver Slugger award winners who combined for 71 homers and 222 rbis last season.

Including last night’s totals, they have combined for 28 homers and only 83 rbis.

When considering that the ballclub is leading the majors in power hitting totals, can you imagine what they might be if these guys posted repeats of their 2009 stats?

The Orioles proved a great remedy for them last night but they had their own highlight-reel effort from Matt Wieters, who hit homers from both sides of the plate.

I have to tempt fate and get a closer look at this mastery of the O’s so I will be in attendance.

The pitching matchup is another favorable one for the home side as Ricky Romero is 2-0 against Baltimore this season, pitching impressively both times out.

For Baltimore, it will be veteran Kevin Millwood, who is a pitiful 2-9, with a horrendous 5.82 ERA, the worst of his 14 year career in the big leagues. Against the Jays, he’s 0-2 this season.

If I were a betting man, this one looks too easy.

Should the Jays lose tonight, I will accept my share of the blame.

Posted in Baltimore Orioles, aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, ricky romero, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

Recipe for success returns for Jays

A landmark announcement by Lebron James has rocked the entire pro sports landscape. Last night in an unprecedented prime time proclamation, James stated that he was going to join fellow superstar basketballers, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, and form an unprecedented triumvirate on the Miami Heat.

This is the first time in the history of the pro sports world that a group of players, in the prime of their careers, has orchestrated the joining of their forces on one team.

While some readers may claim that the Celtics had Paul Pierce and brought in Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to lead their team to a championship a couple of seasons ago, that grouping was orchestrated by GM Danny Ainge.

In hockey, we once saw the Hartford Whalers bring Gordie Howe, Bobby Hull and Dave Keon together, but that was much more of a gimmick because all three Hall of Famers were in the very late stages of their long careers, with an average age in their late forties.

In baseball, the closest thing we have seen is the over-the-top spending of the New York Yankees. This is also different because it remains a team-driven initiative in a flawed system, where that sport has no real, hard salary cap. Instead, MLB has a high salary ceiling that only a couple of teams exceed and willingly pay a luxury tax. To teams at the other end of the salary spectrum

Could this kind of thing happen in hockey?

The short answer is “no”.

In basketball, team rosters are smaller than in any other major sport and the fact is that there are only five players on the floor, some of whom average upward of 30-35 minutes of a 48 minute game. These three megastars will certainly be expected to fill out three spots in this manner and that represents a percentage of playing time that no three players can approximate in any other major sport.

The other unprecedented aspect of this historic union is the fact that the players decided to exercise their unique opportunity, rather than be brought together by a proactive management team. Pat Riley may get some credit for this event, but make no mistake, these three Dream Teamers came up with this plan.

In this era of player unions, this is truly a landmark event.

It could lead to a real polarization in the NBA.

There is very little chance of that happening in the NHL, because of a hard salary cap and the roster size, so hockey fans can take some solace in those facts— for the time being, anyway.

Posted in Boston Red Sox, Fred Lewis, Jose Molina, adam lind, blue jays, brett cecil, jose bautista, lyle overbay, ricky romero, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

Jays lose another one run game; that story is getting old

When you lose by a run you can look at a number of issues that get magnified in the wake of defeat.

Jesse Litsch was very efficient for four innings but soon afterward, he weakened quickly as he yielded back to back homers to allow the Twins to get back into the game.

Later Jason Frasor, the eventual loser and Scott Downs couldn’t keep the opposition from getting another run.

Offensively, the Jays hit three home runs, but because they are the team with the worst batting average in the AL, and have the league’s lowest on-base percentage, those blasts only brought in four runs.

The top of the Jays order featured speedsters, Fred Lewis and Dewayne Wise and yet they only managed one stolen base on this night. The club has a different look with these two in the lineup and would do well to consider having them flank Vernon Wells, to see if that injection of speed can improve the club’s fortunes.

At the very least, the Jays could be more entertaining. They need to think about that focus because they are fading badly and are out of contention. They have to inject a new dimension to try to snap out of their current 2-9 slide.

With an injury to Shaun Marcum along with the struggles of Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, this season suddenly looks to be in jeopardy.

With a couple of tough opponents visiting during this homestand, Minnesota and Boston. This slide could get a lot worse before it gets better.

Posted in Fred Lewis, Jesse Litsch, aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, dewayne wise, shaun marcum, toronto blue jays, vernon wells | No Comments »

Some Jays’ batters have figured it out while others haven’t…yet

Last year, there was a growing concern about the decline of Vernon Wells. Here was a batter who seemed lost at the plate and to make matters worse he had nagging injuries that troubled him through much of the season.

He got healthy during the off-season and he also figured out the fact that he had a mechanical flaw in his swing. He has regained a nice level stroke and the results have been impressive.

Last season he stroked 55 extra base hits and this season, not only has he already exceeded last year’s home run total (19 vs. 15), but he has accumulated 44 extra base knocks in only 76 games.

He has also raised his batting average to a .288 clip which also exceeds his career average of .281.

Nobody even talks about his fat contract anymore and many expect him to make the AL All-Star Team.

Early this season, Lyle Overbay was similarly mired in an awful slump where his batting average was well below the .200 mark. Overbay has always been a solid line drive hitter with power to the allies. He also has a career batting average in the .280 range. There were loud complaints that the slick fielding first baseman was a lost cause that should be dumped during the last year of his contract.

That talk has also quieted, with his scorching month of June, where he’s also done some homework to produce a .298 average, by correcting a mechanical flaw.

Now the focus of under-production is squarely on the shoulders of Aaron Hill and Adam Lind, two of the Jays young sluggers who are struggling mightily to combine for a batting right around the .200 mark.

They are both much better than that.

The All Star break may be coming at a good time for these guys, whom the Jays count on in their every day lineup.

Some time away may be all that they need to regroup and find their way back to their expected level of productivity

Posted in aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, lyle overbay, toronto blue jays, vernon wells | No Comments »

Jays complete rough stretch

The Jays have come through a 24 game stretch, which figures to be one of their toughest on the 2010 schedule and produced a 10-14 mark.

On the surface, that may be disappointing but looking beyond and focusing on the big picture, Cito Gaston and Alex Anthopoulos have to be pleased.

Apart from a total of six games against the Yankees and Red Sox, the Jays have a much softer schedule in July than the gauntlet of plus .500 clubs that they have just completed.

They can also look forward to the return of Travis Snider, around the ALL-STAR break. That will bring yet another power bat into a lineup that continues to lead the Majors in home runs and extra base hits.

Shockingly and finally, Gaston has moved Aaron Hill and Adam Lind from their formerly etched in stone two and three holes in the lineup. Hill is now in the sixth slot and Lind has moved to number five. There is a growing theory that they are both uncomfortable with the focus of this team’s hitting approach, which is to go up to bat and swing away. Both of these guys are more patient in their temperament and need to do what worked for them last season. Hopefully, this move will take some pressure away from them.

In their place Alex Gonzalez and Jose Bautista are both enjoying career-best power surges and are now seeing more at bats at the top of the order. They have both thrived and been key cogs in the Jays’ offense.

On the flip side, a young five man rotation, made up of starters who, between them, do not boast even one pitcher who has pitched a complete season in the majors. This group has matured and proved that it can hold up the itching end of the bargain and keep the team in games every night. In fact their front end of the rotation, which features Shawn Marcum and Ricky Romero, is among the very best in baseball.

The Jays can now look forward, with this mix and a decent short-term schedule, to being in a position to be a selective buyer at the trade deadline, with no worse than an outside shot at the playoffs.

There remains a lot to like about this team.

No one expected that profile for the 2010 Blue Jays.

Posted in Alex Anthopoulos, aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, cito gaston, jose bautista, ricky romero, shaun marcum, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

E-5 is shown the door

For a couple of weeks there has been a bad trend in Edwin Encarnacion’s play. He was not able to shed a growing image as the Jays’ own version of Dr Strangeglove at third base and his erratic batting was not helping matters.

He failed to build on a flurry of homers when he made a late season debut.

Recently, he wasn’t even running at, or even near full speed whenever he hit ground balls.

It all added up to an inevitable result yesterday, when the Jays designated him for assignment.

The DFA move was necessitated by the fact that he refused to be sent to the team’s Las Vegas affiliate. So the Jays have 10 ten days to try to work out a trade. That would likely mean that they will have to eat a large charge of the remaining money on the final year of his $4.75 million salary for the 2010 season.

Should a team claim him, they are only going to be on the hook for a small portion of that stipend, with the Jays picking up the balance.

In his absence the Jays will lean on Jose Bautista to pick up the starts at third base, while Adam Lind gets to play more outfield starts. Recent veteran addition Dewayne Wise may also see more playing time if Cito Gaston prefers to bolster his outfield defense and leave Lind at DH.

Down the road, this situation will improve as Travis Snider continues to rehab and is expected to rejoin the Blue Jays around the All Star break.

In other news, the bad luck continues for Dustin McGowan, as he will have another surgery on his ailing right shoulder. This next procedure will be aimed at increasing his range of motion and will probably represent his last chance at salvaging his Major League career.

Posted in adam lind, blue jays, dewayne wise, jose bautista, toronto blue jays, travis snider | No Comments »

Not much happening in this 3-2 win? …look again

In a baseball game that saw the Jays and Giants combine for a total of nine hits in this game, there was a lot more going on.

Consider,

Starter Brandon Morrow was wild in the first inning, throwing 33 pitches and being fortunate to allow only one run. He settled down to limit the visitors to only one more run through his six innings.

A trio of  relievers, Jason Frasor, Scott Downs and Kevin Gregg retired the Giants in order with perfect relief work over the final three innings.

Edwin Encarnacion drove in all three runs and made a couple of spectacular plays in the field, punctuating his performance with a game-winning homer in the eighth inning, before he pulled of a “webgem” fielding play to end the game in the ninth.

Great infield defense, with amazing glove work by the keystone combo of Aaron Hill and Alex Gonzalez, along with some nice running catches by Adam Lind and Fred Lewis also made the highlight reel.

Jose Bautista made a heady play in the field, during the 6th inning, when he deked Aubrey Huff on a fly ball, freezing the runner long enough, that he was able to buy enough time to throw him out at the plate, denying the Giants of a third run.

For the Giants, starter Barry Zito went the distance, baffling Jays’ hitters all night and keeping his team in the hunt all night long.

The pace of the game was quick, as it only took 2:17 to play.

That’s just some of what went on at the Rogers Centre last night, in a very entertaining ball game..

Posted in Brandon Morrow, Fred Lewis, Jason Frasor, Kevin Gregg, aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, jose bautista, scott downs, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

Jays 0-for Colorado

The Blue Jays limped out of Colorado after being swept by the Rockies in a three game set that underlined a glaring deficiency with the current lineup that the Jays throw out on the field.

They simply do not manufacture runs.

They are a station to station team that rarely seeks the extra base when a ball is on play. The preference is clearly to wait for the home run.

The club is still over .500 for the year because they still lead the Majors in home runs and extra base hits.

The sand seems to be running out of that hourglass though and Adam Lind and Aaron Hill are both mired in season-long slumps that have them hitting a combined .200 over the first third of the season.

The pitching staff also got roughed up as “co-aces” Shaun Marcum and Ricky Romero were battered in their last appearances on this road trip.

With a 1-5 mark on this road trip, the Jays are looking at four tough opponents over the next two weeks as they will begin a series with San Diego, before hosting St Louis and San Francisco, concluding with a “home” series against the Phillies.

This could the stretch that naysayers have been waiting for, to herald the demise of the 2010 Blue Jays.

In the clubhouse, the players know this is a big test for them. We’ll all see what they are made of, in the next two weeks.

Posted in aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, ricky romero, shaun marcum, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

Oh well, at least Jesse’s coming back

For the second straight night, the Jays took a beating in Tampa, dropping them into fourth place in the AL East, 6.5 games behind the Rays and 4.5 behind the Yankees in the wildcard race.

Is this the beginning of the “inevitable” slide from contention that many have been anticipating?

I hope not.

We can still point to the fact that Adam Lind and Aaron Hill are not even hitting their weight, so far this season.

In addition, the pitching staff is going to get a boost from the return of Jesse Litsch to the starting rotation, when his makes his season debut on Saturday in Colorado.

The trickle down effect on the pitching staff is another veteran lefty in the pen, as Brian Tallet moves back into that group. Rommie Lewis was sent back to Las Vegas to make room for Litsch on the Jays’ roster.

Tonight, Brett Cecil hopes to salvage the third game and prevent this series from being a complete debacle. The big lefty is on quite a nice streak of his own in building his record to its current 6-2 mark, on the strength of four straight wins, which have all been quality starts.

At least the Jays waited until the Stanley Cup Final, to play their worst consecutive games of the season.

Maybe nobody noticed.

Posted in Jesse Litsch, aaron hill, adam lind, blue jays, brett cecil, brian tallet, toronto blue jays | No Comments »

Talking about the Doc and the Jays

In today’s post, I was planning to do a little update about our departed pitching ace. Coincidentally, he helped draw more attention to his first year in Philadelphia with the 20th perfect game in Major League history on Saturday.

The Florida Marlins were the victims of the Doc’s 1-0 masterpiece, during which he struck out 11 batters and threw a total of 115 pitches in going unscathed during this entire route-going performance.

The National League is already getting a real sense for just how good this guy is after only two months in the Senior Circuit.

He stands at the top of the list in innings pitched (86), complete games (5) and shutouts (3). His ERA is at a career low 1.99 and he has 70 strikeouts and 12 walks to date.

We remind you that his career win/loss percentage ranks him 17th in major league history among pitchers who have registered at least 100 career decisions. Most of those decisions were earned with your Toronto Blue Jays who posted a win/loss mark of three games under .500 during his time in Toronto, making his record even more remarkable.

He is really that good.

Surprisingly, the Blue Jays continue to soar with the “eagles” of the American League as we approach the one third mark of the 2010 season. Following an impressive weekend sweep of the dreadful Baltimore Orioles, the Jays are 30-22, and are about to close out the month of May with a franchise record for homers in one month.

They lead the majors in homers and extra base hits on offense and have had a number of impressive individual performances of their own.

Jose Bautista continues to be the big surprise on offense, with his 12 homers in May, tying a franchise high for any month in the club’s history. He has already tied his career high 16 homers, the total which also leads all major league hitters at this time.

When the Jays signed Alex Gonzalez to take over as their starting shortstop, observers thought they were getting a light-hitting, but slick-fielding player to replace the departed Marco Scutaro. Well, Gonzalez has been great in the field, as expected, but he is on an offensive tear that could well lead to career best power numbers. He already has 11 homers, 32 rbis and a career-best .822 OPS.

Throw in a resurgent Vernon Wells (.301 ave, 13 hr, 36 rbi), added surprise power sources like John Buck (8 homers and 26 rbis) and a bona fide, leadoff hitter in Fred Lewis (.290) and you have the makings of an outstanding offense. The fact that Adam Lind and Aaron Hill, last years offensive leaders have struggled, along with  Lyle Overbay, is merely a reminder that this offense may even get stronger. Throw in the nearing return of Travis Snider, who was just starting to get untracked offensively and you almost drool at future offensive possibilities.

The story on the mound is just as positive, with a combination of a high percentage of quality outings supported by a deep late relief squad.

So, despite the Doc’s departure, the remaining Jays are proving that they just might be that good, too.

Posted in Fred Lewis, aaron hill, adam lind, jose bautista, lyle overbay, roy halladay, toronto blue jays, travis snider, vernon wells | No Comments »