Bluebird Links, Links, and More Links

Lots of links today after an off day so I'll just throw them all up and let everyone discuss.  The Jays start a 4 game set in Boston tonight - how does everything think they'll do?  The 'wishful thinking'part of me is getting ready for a sweep but I'd be happy with a series split.  Happy Friday everyone!

Jays Links

Blue Jays reportedly promote Perez | bluejays.com: News
The Jays call up another pitcher. I guess they figure they need the extra arm more than an extra bat, but what's this - three pitchers in a week?

What Drabek has shown so far
The Hardball Times breaks down Drabek's pitch selection so far.

So, basically, Drabekis nasty with his ability to miss bats and get ground balls, though his control has been somewhat suspect. The curveball looks great so far, but the cutter keeps him around the zone more.

A Look At Ricky Romero’s Arsenal
Dave Gershman with a nice graphic showing Romero's stuff this year.

Blue Jays lose series to Seattle, season effectively over
Navinat Sports and the City with a great piece of fan fiction here. Really good stuff.

The Pains of Being Murph at Heart
Drew at Ghostrunner is wondering what happened to the opposite field homeruns. With a pretty graphic.

Developing the future stars
Shi Davidi has a good piece on the Jays new organizational plans for player development.

Carlos Delgado To Retire
Parkes with a photo journey of Delgado's career.

Delgado will be missed
Stephen Brunt with a nice piece on Carlos Delgado, who officially announced his (over-due) retirement this week.

Minor League Notes

51s lose in 11th on sacrifice fly
Brett Lawrie and Adam Loewen each had three hits, Mills pitched seven in a 51's loss.

John TolisanoDoubles In Ninth To Lift Fisher Cats Over Mets
The Fisher Cats won in the top of the 9th, propelled by a 3-4 showing by Mike McDade.

More Links after the Jump. 

Around the League

Relating to tale of beating flesh-eating disease
Fox writer Joe McDonnell, and Padre's CEO, Jeff Moorad tell a story of surviving flesh-eating disease.

Why Have Power Hitters Stopped Striking Out?
Dave Cameron wonders what happened to the K's?

Being a Twins Fan: a Fate Worse than Death
Ron Gardenhire asked Twins ace, Francisco Liriano to 'pitch to contact'. Check out his Wednesday results to see how that worked out.

Marcum keeps Pirates guessing for 7 innings
Sounds like Marcum is off to a good start.

Pedro Martinez Was Really, Really Good
He was...and I hated it when he played for the Red Sox. Him and Garciaparra were probably my least favorite players in baseball for a few years. But he could be fun to watch when he was on (Nomar was never fun to watch - especially batting).

Red Sox, Gonzalez agree to deal
Sounds like the Sox finally managed to extend Gonzalez. He'll be making a cool $154 million for seven years.

Jackie Robinson Day
The Hardball Times has an article about the life and career of Jackie Robinson - good stuff.