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Toronto Blue Jays Roster

pitchers # Pos.
Jeremy Accardo 49 P
Shawn Camp 57 P
Jesse Carlson 39 P
Brett Cecil 27 P
Scott Downs 37 P
Dana Eveland 78 P
Jason Frasor 54 P
Kevin Gregg 63 P
Casey Janssen 44 P
Shaun Marcum 28 P
Dustin McGowan 29 P
Brandon Morrow 23 P
David Purcey 25 P
Josh Roenicke 17 P
Ricky Romero 24 P
Marc Rzepczynski 34 P
Brian Tallet 56 P
Merkin Valdez 30 P
catchers # Pos.
John Buck 14 C
Jose Molina - C
infielders # Pos.
Edwin Encarnacion 15 3B
Alex Gonzalez 3 SS
Aaron Hill 2 2B
Mike McCoy 18 2B
John McDonald 6 SS
Lyle Overbay 35 1B
outfielders # Pos.
Jose Bautista 19 LF
Adam Lind 26 LF
Travis Snider 45 RF
Me Use 11 CF
Vernon Wells 10 CF
designated hitters # Pos.
Randy Ruiz 21 DH

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Toronto Blue Jays News

Jays of the Day!

Adam Lind ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||

Scott Rolen ||||| ||||| ||

Aaron Hill ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| |||

Rod Barajas ||||| ||||| ||||| |

Marco Scutaro ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||

Ricky Romero ||||| ||||| |||

Travis Snider ||||| |

Kevin Millar ||||| |

Alex Rios ||||| ||||| ||||| |||||

Roy Halladay ||||| ||||| |||

Jason Frasor ||||| ||||| ||

Vernon Wells ||||| ||||| ||||| ||||| |

Jesse Carlson ||||| ||

Lyle Overbay ||||| ||||| ||||| |||||

BJ Ryan |||

Scott Downs ||||| ||||| |||

Scott Richmond ||||| ||

Shawn Camp ||||| |

Brian Tallet ||||| ||||

Jose Bautista ||||| ||||| |

Brandon League ||||| ||

Raul Chavez ||||

Bill Murphy |

Brett Cecil ||||| |

Robert Ray |

Casey Janssen |

Jeremy Accardo |||||

Marc Rzepczynski ||

Randy Ruiz |||

Josh Roenicke |

Edwin Encarnacion |||||

John McDonald |

 


Game Thread for March 21 Jays vs. Red Sox

I won't be around for the game today, my boy is in a hockey tournament and has 2 games way across town today. It will be great fun to watch, this is pretty much the end of hockey for this season. On to baseball for the boy.

The Jays are playing a split squad of Red Sox, the Sox also have a game at their spring home park, so don't expect many of the regulars to make the bus trip to Dunedin. Shawn Marcum is starting for the Jays. The line up:

Bautista 3B
Hill 2B
Lind DH
Wells CF
Overbay 1B
Reed RF
Snider LF
Gonzalez SS
Molina C

Brandon Morrow figures he will be ready to start the season, he says he would have pitched the other day if it was a regular season game. Dustin McGowan is being shut down for a week with a 'dead arm', which isn't something that's unusual for a pitcher to have after throwing everyday in spring, when he hadn't thrown for a long period before that. But we'll see how things go. Edwin Encarnacion is expected to play sometime this week, but then we've heard that since the start of spring.

Not much out there for Jay news this morning. There are a couple bits of news around baseball. It looks like the Tigers are ready to release Dontrelle Willis and eat the rest of his contract. And Twins closer Joe Nathan is going to have Tommy John surgery, so he is gone for the season and maybe part of next year. Twins have been rumoured to be asking about Jason Frasor

Enjoy the game today, if it happens, sounds like there is rain in the Dunedin area. Have a good Sunday.

17 comments  |  0 recs

Happy Birthday Aaron Hill

Our slugging second baseman turns 28 today. In his 5 year career he has hit .285/.337/.434 with 64 home runs (more than half came last year) and 296 RBI.

He's profiled in a piece by Richard Griffin, in the Star, this morning. He talked about leadership and the difference between last year's Roy Halladay lead clubhouse and this year's clubhouse. He referenced a story Jordan Bastian wrote which had a title that made it seem like the players were better off without Doc in the clubhouse. The headline said the Jays were "looser, relaxed" without Doc. Jordan doesn't write the headlines and Hill wanted to make it clear that he wasn't suggesting the team wasn't better off without Doc.

Anyway happy birthday Aaron. Have a good one.

1 comment  |  0 recs |

Quick Recap: Spring Game 15, Braves and Jays.

No pictures yet from today's game so here is John Buck on the follow through of one of his homers from yesterday.  (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

More photos » Gene J. Puskar - AP

No pictures yet from today's game so here is John Buck on the follow through of one of his homers from yesterday. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Braves 6 Blue Jays 7 (10 innings)

Jays came back twice in this one, tying it in the 9th, giving up a run in the top of the 10, then winning it in the bottom of the inning on a 2 run double by Michael McDade. We are 9 and 6, the 3rd best record of the AL teams this spring. 

Pitching:

  • Marc Rzepczynski: didn't have the best of days. 5 innings, 6 hits, 4 runs, 3 earned. No walks and 3 strikeouts. 9 ground outs and 2 fly outs. All-in-all he got his work in, kept the ball in the strike zone and the hits on the ground so can't complain too much.
  • Shawn Camp: 1 perfect inning, 2 K.
  • Scott Downs: gave up 2 hits to start his inning but then got the next three out.
  • Kevin Gregg: 1 inning, 3 hits, a run, 2 strikeouts. No walks and no homers, be happy for small things.
  • Jason Frasor: 1 perfect inning. 
  • Merkin Valdez: gave up the go ahead in the 10th, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 K. 

Batting:

  • Jose Bautista: had our first 2 hits of the game. 2 for 3. .542 for the spring. Can't complain about that.
  • Aaron Hill: 1 for 3 with his 2nd  homer of the spring. No walks for a change. .467.
  • Adam Lind: 1 for 3, a double. .261.
  • Jeremy Reed: 1 for 2. .400. Might be winning a job.
  • Vernon Wells: 1 for 3, a double and a K. .391.
  • Joey Gathright: 1 for 2. Important (well in a spring training sort of way) hit in the 10th and scored the winning run. .200.
  • Lyle Overbay: 0 for 3 with a K. .353.
  • Michael McDade. 2 for 2, both doubles, scored the run that tied the game in the 9th and drove in the winning runs in the 10th. Nice day for the young guy.
  • John Buck: 0 for 3, K. .316.
  • Randy Ruiz: 1 for 4, double and a K. .405. Is sad when you hit a double and still your average drops.
  • Travis Snider: 0 for 2 with a walk. .273.
  • Alex Gonzalez: 0 for 2. .211.
  • John McDonald: 1 for 2, drove in the tying run in the 9th with 2 outs. Would be a clutch hit if it wasn't spring training, nice to see. .333.

Bits of news from around the majors: Kerry Woods is out for 2 months with a strained back muscle. Momentary Jay Casey Fien has come full circle, the Tigers signed him to a minor league deal. He has gone from the Tigers to Red Sox to Jays to Tigers in 3 weeks. The Nationals have sent Stephan Strasburg to Double-A. Thought he might make the team.

16 comments  |  0 recs |

I just made the first team laugh: Game Thread March 20

Jays are playing the Braves this morning at Dunedin and since it is a 'home' game we get to see the A team:


Bautista 3B
Hill 2B
Lind LF
Wells CF
Overbay 1B
Buck C
Ruiz DH
Snider RF
Gonzalez SS

It should be Marc Rzepcynzski Rzepczynski starting, but then yesterday it was to be Brandon Morrow. Morrow figures he'll make his next start and all will be well for the season. 

They've sent a few more down to the minor league camp: Willie Collazo, Rommie Lewis, Steven Register and Jorge Padilla. Down to 40 now, so the cuts will start being a little harder soon. 

The Star has a nice story on Tom Tango who the Jays have hired as a statistical consultant:

"My work contributes far more in terms of evaluating baseball talent in terms of wins and dollars than anything else," he wrote. "(Coaches and GMs) can still use their instincts on things that have no data, but if the information exists, then I make sure they have it, in some digestible form. This way, they can make an informed decision."

I like anyone whose favorite player is Tim Raines, but the Jays couldn't have made a better choice.

The post title is from the Billy Bragg song The Saturday Boy, it would work better if the first team wasn't out there today but such is life. 

The game is on MLB audio today and should be on the Fan as well.

123 comments  |  0 recs

It's Only for the Things that Matter, Only for the Things that Really Count: Keys to the 2010 Season and Beyond, Part II

This is the second part of a series of posts on the keys to the 2010 season.  Part I, where we introduced and laid out all the keys is here.  In these next posts, we will be discussing each key in depth, elaborating on both its importance and how much we can reasonably expect and hope to see.

1. Kyle Drabek -- Even if Drabek doesn't throw one pitch at the major league level this season, his performance down in the minors is key to the Blue Jays future.  Fairly or not, the Doc deal will be scrutinized all season long and because Drabek was the centrepiece, from the perspective of many of the graders, it won't matter how well Brett Wallace and Travis d'Arnaud do if Drabek really falls flat on his face.  The fate of Alex Anthopoulos could rest on Drabek's performance over the next few years.

In my opinion, there are a few pertinent questions here.  First, why does it matter how well Drabek does if he's not pitching in the majors?  Second, how well should we hope for Drabek to do?  And the third and final question relates to how confident should we be that he will do that well?

Continue reading this post »

11 comments  |  0 recs |

SB Nation Survey + Chance to donate $500 to a charity of this community's choice

Tom here: SB would like you to take this Survey. Please do, it isn't very long and if we get the best participation they will give $500 to the charity of our choice. 

>> Take SB Nation Survey

Hello sports fans! We're always striving to provide you with the best experience possible and it's been quite some time since we checked in with you.

So we're rolling out this survey to learn more about you and your sports world. It should only take about 10 minutes to complete.

We really appreciate your time and this is also going to help make a donation to a good cause.

By next Thursday (3/25) at 11:59pm PST the site that has the highest percentage of their community filling out the attached survey about their sports interests and consumption will win $500 to donate to a charity of their choice. We will leave it up to the discretion of the community manager(s) of the winning blog to decide how to choose the particular charity.

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You can take the survey HERE

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/WYR2WQT

Thanks for your support!

5 comments  |  1 recs

Quick Recap: Spring Game 14, Jays and Astros

Getting these up before the pictures come thru so here is a catch by Travis Snider from yesterday. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

More photos » Gene J. Puskar - AP

Getting these up before the pictures come thru so here is a catch by Travis Snider from yesterday. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Blue Jays 0 Astros 2

The big news out of this one was that Brandon Morrow was a scratch with a 'sore shoulder'. Hoping it isn't anything serious but not good news. It is the time of spring for sore arms so maybe it is just that. 

The Jays didn't take many of their regulars with them on their bus trip. In fact they used a few guys that will start the season in the low minors. I can understand them not wanting to have to ride the bus when they can get swings at their own training facilities. 

Pitching:

  • Steve Register got the start in place of Morrow, pitched 3 innings, 4 hits, no walks, 2 K with a 2 run homer given up in the first inning. 
  • Casey Janssen: 1 perfect inning.
  • Jeremy Accardo: 1 inning with just a walk.
  • David Purcey got 2 quick outs, then gave up a single and 2 walks, but got a strikeout with the bases loaded to end the inning. 2 walks, 2 strikeouts. 
  • Rommie Lewis: 1 perfect inning. 
  • Willie Collazo: a perfect 9th with 1 K.

Batting:

Dustin McGowan pitched 1.2 innings in a Triple-A spring game. 2 hits, 2 walks, 1 K. They say he hit 88 on the radar gun so he's got a ways to go yet.

21 comments  |  0 recs |

Game Thread for March 19

Rushing out the door, game is on MLB audio. Likely will be back sometimes during the game. We have the B team out there today:


Gathright CF

McDonald SS

Reed LF

Ruiz 1B

Lubanski RF

Cooper DH

Molina C

Tolisano 2B

Ochinko 3B. 

Brandon Morrow will start. I get the feeling the Jays are skirting the rules about bringing some regulars on the bus trips but if no one complains, all is good. There is no reason Hill, Lind and all should have to have a 3 hour bus ride. They can get their swings in at camp.

89 comments  |  0 recs

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Definitions

Moonraker: Travis Snider

Snakeface: Scott Downs, for obvious reasons.

Suckage Awards:

   Hinske: Suckage Batter of the Day

   Towers: Suckage Starting Pitcher, named after Josh

   Batista: Suckage Reliever, named after Miguel

WPA: Win Probability Added, basically the amount a players adds to or subtracts from our chance of winning a game.

PQS: Pure Quality Start, means....oh heck just look here.

WAR: Wins Above Replacement, the number of more wins a season a team would have with a player compared to a mythical 'replacement' player, the kind that can always be found but isn't good.

UZR: Ultimate Zone Rating, the number of runs a fielder is above or below average for his position.

FIP: Fielding Independent Pitching, the runs a pitcher would allow not considering fielders contributions. Is based on walks, home runs and strikeouts.

BABIP: Batting Average on Balls in Play. Hits minus homers divided by at bats minus strikeouts and home runs plus strikeouts.

 

Send me a note for other terms that should be defined

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Current Series

3 game series vs Rangers @ Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

Wed 04/07 8:05 PM EDT
Thu 04/08 2:05 PM EDT

AL East Standings

W L PCT GB STRK

(updated 3.21.2010 at 2:08 PM EDT)

Toronto Blue Jays Injuries

Questionable

Player Injury Type Injury Date
Dustin McGowan shoulder 02/09/2010

60 Day DL / Out for the season

Player Injury Type Injury Date
Jesse Litsch elbow 02/19/2010
Dirk Hayhurst shoulder 02/21/2010
Scott Richmond shoulder 03/04/2010

SBNation.com Recent Stories

Chicago Cubs pitcher Angel Guzman, center, rubs the head of teammate Carlos Marmol, left, while chatting with Marmol and manager Lou Piniella, right, on the first day of baseball spring training Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010, in Mesa, Ariz. (AP Photo/Paul Connors)

SB Nation's 2010 MLB Previews: Chicago Cubs, Seeking Redemption

New York Mets starting pitchers Mike Pelfrey, left, Johan Santana, center, and Oliver Perez watch as teammates take part in drills during spring training baseball Saturday, Feb. 27, 2010, in Port St. Lucie, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

SB Nation's 2010 MLB Previews: New York Mets, The High Cost Of Low Expectations

Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg throws during the second inning of  a spring training baseball game against the Detroit Tigers Tuesday, March 9, 2010 in Viera, Fla. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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