That was fun. One of those rare games when everything went the way it was supposed to, the guys at the top of the order got on base, the middle of the order drove them in. Even the bottom of the order kept things going. Maybe the best part was that Ricky Romero got a hit and scored a run.
Brett Lawrie got on base each of his first 4 times up (including a triple to start the game) and scored each time. Jose Bautista scored 3 and drove in 3, including a solo home run. Kelly Johnson drove in 3, 2 of them on sac flies. J.P. Arencibia drove in 2 with a double down the line. Everyone in the starting lineup had at least 1 run or 1 RBI.
Ricky Romero didn't have to be great, and he wasn't. But he got us 7 innings when he was important to get us some innings. 7 hits, 4 earned, 4 walks, and 5 strikeouts. Totally not great but when you get 12 runs, you don't have to be great.
We also got to see our new Jay, David Pauley. He gave up a walk and a single, but got out of the inning with the help of a could of nice plays by Lawrie.
Jays of the Day are Brett (.160 WPA), Jose (.127) and Ricky (.130). I really don't think Ricky deserves JoD, but I doubt we'll see any other starter get us 7 innings this next week, so I'll let him have it. No suckage Jays.
There was a play I didn't like. In the 2nd innings, with 2 out, Ricky Romero at bat, Rajai Davis stole third. That's just a dumb, selfish move, just to pad stats. You really don't want to be caught stealing with the pitcher at the plate, because then he has to bat to start the next inning. You really don't want that. Much rather have Lawrie leading off the next inning. And, if you are safe, it really doesn't improve your chances of scoring. Odds are slim that your pitcher is going to get a hit. If he were to, Davis would have scored from 2nd anyway.
Tomorrow Brett Cecil gets his second start of the season for us. A 4-5, 4.18 Josh Johnson starts for the Marlins. It is a 1:00 Eastern start. Odds are I won't be around tomorrow, I have to head up to Edmonton. An old friend of our passed away, so I'm going up to pay my respects. The good part, if there is a good part, is I can listen to Dave Van Horne do the radio broadcast on XM radio. He was the 'voice of the Expos', back when I was a kid, so there is a lot of nostalgia hearing him again.