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It's possible I'm making too much of yesterday's game, but when Lyle's hit back up the middle deflected off Rafael Betancourt's arm and allowed him to reach base and Stairs to reach 2nd, it seemed like the Jays finally got a break and that perhaps now things would be better. I guess today will give some indication as to whether that's true.

Certainly until that play, it didn't seem like anything had changed. The Jays lost the first game 3-0, wasting a fine effort by A.J. Burnett and a 3-hit night by Matt Stairs. In the second game, things looked to be even worse. Between the unassisted triple play off Lyle's bat earlier in the game and the two fantastic defensive plays in the 9th off the bats of Alexis Rios and Kevin Mench, it looked like the Jays would surely squander another terrific start by Shaun Marcum. Marcum went 8, striking out 5, walking none (though hitting one), and yielding only 2 hits.

Then luck bounced the Jays way, and a Stewart sac fly, Aaron Hill 2-rbi single (1 of which was scored due to a heads up play by Brad Wilkerson to tag to 2nd on the sac fly), and Snakeface save later, the Jays had snapped their losing streak. B.J. Ryan got the win by pitching a fine 9th inning, though Marcum was the hero, lowering his ERA to 2.22.

Today, the Jays head to Minnesota to take on the Twins, who have surprised many by playing quite well so far. The Twins are coming off a series in which they took 3 of 4 from the Red Sox, and are scoring runs despite not hitting for much power. The Jays unique combination of lack of power and absolute putridity with runners in scoring position has really put a lot of pressure on their pitchers, but by and large they seem up to the task. Still, it'd be nice to score a few runs early for once.

Today's pitching matchup features two young arms: Jesse Litsch and Kevin Slowey. Litsch has been just fine so far, particularly of late, and is 2-0 with a 2.53 ERA over his last 3 starts. He has been going deeper into games and hasn't been walking anybody - in fact, he hasn't walked a batter since Gibbons inexplicably exploded on him - which is vital for a pitcher of his ilk. Slowey is a year older than Litsch and has only made two starts this season due to a biceps strain from which he recently returned. In limited action, Slowey's problem has been the long ball this season, and man would it be great for the Jays to hit a few homers.

I'm a big fan of the Twin Cities, the Twins have always been my favourite AL Central team and their music scene has produced some amazing bands, including the Replacements, Husker Du, and the Hold Steady (graciously supplying our title). And I am an even bigger fan of Bob Dylan (actually from Hibbing, Minn. but his musical career began in Minneapolis in large part) and Prince.

I'll be around for the game, but will also be writing a little piece about Stewart, who's apparently not a happy camper, during the game. Let's go Jays!

So the lineups for the game being showed by SB Nation's content carrier are just the same as last game, which has got to be wrong, I'd imagine. But since the Jays haven't scored over the last 2 games and in fact have only managed 1 run in the 3 games so far in this series, it doesn't really matter what the lineup is, does it? Put it this way, to be watching the Jays at this point, you've got to have some pretty deep-seated emotional and/or mental issues. Allright, see everyone at gametime!

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If you actually watched the entire game on Saturday, you're a far better man than I. I got in from my gig at around 8:30, saw the Jays down 12-0, and immediately put in a Netflix (The Fisher King, which I liked a lot). Between that and the bad news regarding Wells, things are looking pretty bad right now. Newcomers Wilkerson and Mench haven't exactly lit things up. Once the 10 days have passed, I hope the Jays send someone down and recall Lind - the way the offense is going, it's not like Lind can make it any worse, so we might as well give him some regular MLB at-bats and see if he shows himself to be a major-league hitter, since he will be 25 in July.

I won't be around for the game today, as it's Mother's Day and I have a feeling Mrs. Hugo might prefer, well, pretty much anything to watching the Jays flail uselessly against another left-handed pitcher. The Jays will throw Shaun Marcum, while the Indians counter with Cliff Lee, who is pitching even better this season than Marcum is. Maybe that drubbing will wake something up in the Jays, who knows? At the very least, ruining their pythagorean record will hide their pathetic performance in the clutch.

Update: 5.12.2008: Let's go ahead and use this game thread for this afternoon's 4 pm game. Torgen is, as usual, right on the mark, and I jumped the gun one start. It's A.J. Burnett against Fausto Carmona this afternoon, and then the 2nd half of the trad. doubleheader will be the Marcum-Lee matchup.

 

Now I know why Ichiro hates Cleveland. I, too, want to punch myself in the face after yesterday's game. Doc was left in for at least one batter too long, a fact made obvious by his walking Asrubal Cabrera, who wished only to sacrifice himself for the good of the team, to load the bases. You can't really blame Doc - I expect he was trying to get Cabrera to pop up the bunt because he felt like the Jays couldn't even afford to give up the one run the way they were playing. I know C.C. Sabathia is a good pitcher, but he hasn't exactly been lights-out this season and the Jays certainly had their chances, they just did nothing with them. Newcomer Kevin Mench got in on the act, grounding into a double-play on the first pitch of a key at-bat with runners on 1st and 2nd and no out.

To make matters worse, Vernon Wells injured his wrist making a great diving catch and also had some hamstring tightness. The Jays are saying that Wells' wrist is just jammed, but I don't know that he's had any tests yet, so how they could know that, I'm not sure. But if it is a fracture, it certainly didn't look very gruesome (though quite painful) so perhaps it is just jammed. I hate to say it, but it's not like losing Vernon is a real loss at this point - although he hasn't been hitting badly, it's hard to imagine the Jays as a team hitting any worse. I'd be shocked to see Wells reappear any earlier than next series, and I think that's being optimistic. But we will know more later today.

Instead of reaching .500, and freeing us of our obligation to find appropriate They Might Be Giants lyrics, the Jays are moving in the other direction. (Although I considered titling my post about the Wilkerson and Mench acquisitions "Minimum Wage...Heyah!")

Dustin McGowan tries to turn things around today, while Aaron Laffey, yet another left-hander, pitches for Cleveland. With lefthanders neutralizing Overbay, one of the few Jays who has been hitting well over the past little-bit, we could be in for a long night. I have a gig at 5 pm today so won't be around for lineups, though I'll be making my way home at some point during the game. Whether I can bear to watch it is another story.

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Sigh. More They Might Be Giants. Was it asking too much for a better finish to last night than we got? Oh well, Litsch pitched well and Overbay continues to hit the ball well.

The Blue Jays, apparently believing they need more offense, have added a veteran platoon. They traded cash considerations for Doc-femur-shatterer Kevin Mench, the righty half, and signed former Expo standout Brad Wilkerson as the lefty half. Both players are in the starting lineup tonight. Joe Inglett has been sent down to make room. In addition, the Jays have reportedly cut ties with Gustavo Chacin and Sergio Santos .

Mench is a good platoon option against lefties, but doesn't play good defense and doesn't seem to offer more than, say, Reed Johnson, who also has hit lefties well over his career and offers more on defense and on the bases. Wilkerson has really fallen off since his days in Montreal and it looks to me like injuries have really messed up a once-promising career. I've always liked Wilkerson, but it's hard to imagine him hitting better than, say, Adam Lind would over the rest of the season. I will post more tomorrow morning on the two players, since it's almost gametime and I just got in from work.

Doc Halladay pitches today against C.C. Sabathia and let's hope the Jays can score some runs with their new faces.

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Hey all. Today's title comes courtesy of one of the first bands I ever dug, Chicago's Smoking Popes, and their song "Megan." Those guys were awesome. Today's post is in honour of my sister (of the same name as the song) who is graduating from college in two days. Congrats, Megatron!

Anyway, the Jays won a great game yesterday behind some masterful pitching by Shaun Marcum. Marcum was just unbelievable, taking a 1-hit shutout into the 9th and striking out 9 to move himself up to 4th in the league in K/9. He's not been walking them either, and that's a recipe for success, especially given that he's been keeping the ball down much more (8 groundouts yesterday) and not yielding the long ball.

Scott Rolen added a HR and Lyle Overbay hit another double to hopefully continue his march toward a .400 SLG and walked as well. He also hit another long opposite way flyball that almost made it out. Marco Scutaro wasn't much with the glove in his first game as the regular SS, but he had 3 hits, which was great. The Jays called up journeyman Jorge Velandia for added infield depth (Torgen was right, I was wrong (I said Inglett, who continues to tear up AAA)) and sent down Adam Lind, a move that has been inevitable since Gibbons started playing Stewart against righties. I, for one, hope Lind is back soon, but he needs to have better at-bats when he returns.

In injury news, there is reason to be optimistic regarding both David Eckstein and John MacDonald. Eckstein's MRI came back negative and Mac reportedly felt "great" yesterday, which is surprising. It's not clear whether either will be placed on the disabled list, but the Jays should decide by tomorrow at the latest.

Tonight, Jesse Litsch faces the team for which he once served as batboy. Edwin Jackson opposes him for the Rays.

I have rehearsal but hope to make it back in time for the second half of the game. Of course, I also thought I'd do so yesterday, but it didn't work out. Although it was great to find out that I've still got the baseball skills as I had a great game! Let's go Jays!

I'm hoping this is the last They Might Be Giants title for the season and that the Jays can get back to .500 soon. Yesterday, they came up just short, with A.J. Burnett having ths stuff for a dominant start but just not being able to get it done, and the Jays offense coming up just short. It was a frustrating game, and the worst part wasn't the Scutaro dp, or Wells getting picked off, or the numerous first-pitch outs, but the fact that both David Eckstein and John MacDonald hurt themselves and had to leave the game. Eckstein appeared to strain his groin, while Mac's injury looked like it could be more serious. On the plus side, Tallet was good, Camp was great, and Lyle looked locked in at the plate, walking, sharply singling, hitting a long sacrifice fly, and just missing a HR when his RBI double bounced off the top of the dead centerfield wall and back into play.

The Jays look to strike back tonight as two fine young pitchers face off. Matt Garza goes for Tampa while Shaun Marcum looks to keep his excellent season going for the Jays. Marcum's Whip is under 1 and he's struck out an impressive 35 in 40 innings, while only walking 15.

I won't be around for lineups today, as I'm playing softball after work. But I'll be back for most of the game. Let's go Jays!

Wow. An exciting game last night, wasn't it? It looked exactly like one of the Jays' frustrating games of late April until Matty Stairs strode to the plate in the 7th and took a Javier Vasquez pitch deep to give the Jays a 1-0 lead they would never relinquish, though not for lack of trying. B.J. Ryan, only annointed that day as capable of going two consecutive games, walked the bases loaded with 1 out in the 9th, only to end the game in dramatic fashion on a comebacker he turned into the old 1-2-3 double play (hence the Jackson 5 reference in today's title). It was a little worrisome to see Ryan with such poor control of his slider, but hopefully it was just a one-time thing. Ironically, Ryan's walk to Konerko was the first walk issued by Jays' pitching since Friday. His walk to Dye was the second, and his walk to Swisher the 3rd.

Dustin McGowan was magnificent, going 7 1/3 innings and walking no one, surrendering just 4 hits and striking out 6. He extended the Jays incredible streak of effective pitching performances to 9. In other notable news, Shannon Stewart looked decent at the plate, and Sir John MacDonald was used as a defensive replacement.

Today, Little Rock's finest, A.J. Burnett, will face off against the Rays' Andy Sonanstine and looks to keep the Jays fabulous streak going. Burnett has been up and down and has showed little of his improvement in control from the second half of last season, striking out 26 and walking 20 over his 37 1/3 innings, en route to an ugly 1.61 Whip. He was great last time out (though he did add to that walk total by 5) so perhaps he can continue his effectiveness. Andy Sonanstine has been quite good for Tampa Bay, with a 21/8 K/BB ratio over 38 2/3 innings and a 1.16 Whip. He's certainly taken advantage of the Rays improved defense, surrendering only 37 hits in his 38 2/3 innings despite not having many strikeouts.

I'll be running after work today and won't be around to post the lineups, but I will be back for the game. If we win, we're back to .500, as quickly as we plunged from it. Let's go Jays!

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Dustin McGowan ("No Run-DMC" to some, thanks SuckaMD!, a nickname I as a born-and-bred New Yorker am quick to adopt) faces off against fellow hard-thrower Javier Vasquez tonight as the Jays attempt to seal the 4-game sweep that would bring them all the way back to a game below .500.

Yesterday's game featured Doc Halladay finally getting a little run support. Doc pitched great - he had one bad inning which was helped along by an Eckstein throwing error - and gave up only 3 hits and no walks (one HBP) over 7 1/3 innings, while striking out 7. Doc was using his pitches to fine effect and, though he failed to record his 5th straight complete game, it was much more satisfying seeing him finally pick up a well-deserved win.

Offensively, Adam Lind continues to struggle - he had a couple of terrible at-bats yesterday, and finds himself on the bench today against the hard-throwing righty. I find this to be a bit annoying since it's not as if Stewart has done anything to earn the start (in the 2-hole, no less) but perhaps a day off will give the youngster a moment to recollect himself and find his stroke. The slumping Eckstein has been moved to 9th in the lineup.

Today's post comes from a question posed by rincewindw yesterday - What's your favourite Ontario-bred band? My answer was The Band (so far as that counts), but also mentioned Metric, the Constantines, and Kathleen Edwards. I already hit up the Constantines the other day with "I Will Not Sing a Hateful Song" and Kathleen Edwards only writes about Hockey, so that leaves Metric, a fantastic band. The title comes from their lovely song "Soft Rock Star" and certainly seems to fit today's game.

I'll be running and then back to watch the game, which I'm looking forward to. Let's go Jays!

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Don't look now, but our azure-coloured heroes have won 3 in a row and are looking to inch closer to .500 today against the White Sox. The Jays took yesterday's game behind an extremely strong performance by Jesse Litsch, a good day at the plate by Vernon Wells, and Marco Scutaro's first homerun of the season. Litsch was wonderful, yielding only 5 hits over 7 1/3 innings, striking out 3 while walking no one, and surrendering just 2 runs, both on solo shots.

After Litsch, who is now 4-1, left the game, Downs and Ryan kept things close, finishing out the game with 3 Ks, no walks, and just one single off Ryan. It's good to see Downs pitching effectively, and Ryan still has yet to yield a run.

Today, Doc Halladay faces off against Jose Contreras. Halladay has tossed 4 consecutive complete games but, due to horrid run support (8 runs over those 4 games), has lost the last 3 of them. The Jays really need to score some runs in support of Doc today.

I did end up going to the Nats game yesterday afternoon (hence my not being around), and it was pretty great - beautiful warm weather and an exciting game. There was a sizable contingent of Jays fans in my section, visiting DC from Canada, so that was fun. The only thing was that the game dragged a bit with all the offense. Let's go Jays!