Stay Don't Go

On Sunday, as the Jays beat up on Phillies pitching (although former Jay Frankie Rosary pitched well), Jesse Litsch made the statement he hopes will keep him under consideration for the 5th starter spot. Litsch, who got beat on his first time out but looked better in his second start, turned in an impressive start against a Phillies team playing mostly regulars. Litsch went 4 innings, yielding 2 hits and one run (on a solo shot to Ryan Howard). Perhaps most importantly, Litsch struck out 6 and walked none.

Litsch really needed a good start today to keep himself in consideration for the 5th starter role and he pitched very well, keeping the Phillies off balance and working around the zone before Brian Wolfe took over in the 5th and got into some trouble. Reed Johnson had a fantastic catch and Sergio "el carnicero" Santos yet another error. Many Jays hit well, with Aaron Hill, Vernon Wells, Lyle Overbay, Greg Zaun and David Eckstein all reaching base multiple times.

Meanwhile, the Jays won a 4-3 game yesterday behind some great pitching. Scott Rolen hit his first hr of the spring, while Shaun Marcum struggled with his control but made it through 3 innings despite a run scoring on a Scott Rolen error on a 2-out, bases-loaded grounder. John Parrish pitched 3 effective innings, striking out 7, and Gustavo Chacin, Jason Frasor, and Davis Romero pitched scoreless innings.

Good to see the Jays putting some runs on the board, and the pitching has generally looked pretty good. By the way, the Phillies announcers think that Curtis Thigpen is Bobby Thigpen's son.

Well, I'm off to South By Southwest for the week - incidentally, our title today comes from a tune by one of the many bands I will be seeing, Spoon, off a record that I still think is their best (Kill The Moonlight). Reader, I leave you in the capable hands of our other writers. I'll be back in a week, and will be bringing my laptop so as to listen to more Jays games!

By the way, All Your Base Are Belong to Rios is the greatest name for a Jays blog ever. The blog is also fantastic, so check it out sometime soon!