Blue Jays rotation boosted by Ramon Ortiz in 5-0 loss to Red Sox: Griffin

BOSTON-It was only the Blue Jays' 37th game of the 2013 season, but it has already come down to a scheduled start by a journeyman righthander named Diogenes Ramon Ortiz, a 39-year-old whose best seasons -- 44 of his 86 wins -- were with the Angels from from 2001-03. It should be noted, historically, Diogenes was a Greek philosopher who pioneered Cynicism -- which is the frame of mind many Jays fans have arrived at. It did not help Friday with the Red Sox 5-0 win over the Jays.

It was no surprise that lefthander Jon Lester dominated the Jays, tossing a one-hitter, carrying a perfect game into the sixth inning before a two-out double by Maicer Izturis broke up the bid. Lester already has a career no-hitter to his credit, May 19, 2008 vs. the Royals at Fenway. He had tossed seven shutout innings vs. the Jays on April 7 and had no decision on April 30.

“He was on and he's their ace and he can do that to you,” manager John Gibbons tipped his cap to Lester. “He mowed us down. We've always seen him good. He's one of the better ones in the game. Especially as those first few innings were going along, from the side it's tough to tell but then you look up at the replays and the balls are cutting, good changeup. He carved us up pretty good.”

But what was surprising was the tenacity with which the Jays' venerable retread, Ortiz kept his team in the contest through five. Ortiz had runners in scoring position in every inning, overcoming two errors, four hits and five walks to keep the game close. The only run Ortiz allowed came on a Will Middlebrooks fielder's choice in the second.

The Sox were 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position facing the crafty veteran righthander. But they added three runs in the seventh vs. Brett Cecil and righthander Mickey Storey in his AL debut, after 26 games with the Astros last year.

“(Ortiz) did a tremendous job,” Gibbons said. “He kept us right there. He did more than we wanted to and expected, so good for him. I don't know how he could have done more. He got some groundballs and that's what you need. A lot of pitches were borderline pitches that I don't think he got tonight. But he pounds the strike zone. That's his game. Those crafty veterans.”

Gibbons claimed that Ortiz had good control, even though the pitching line showed five bases-on-balls. But the Red Sox are known for their patience and grinding at-bats and umpires are awre.

“It's hard pitching here in Boston, the same as New York,” Ortiz said when asked about being more efficient in his pitch count the next time out, if there is one. “The umpire, I throw a lot of good pitches down, inside and we don't get any pitch. It's not excuses, but when the umpire gives me the pitches it's a different story. But today that didn't go and we have to come in tomorrow and win.”

What has happened to the Jays rotation depth? Each spring training, GM Alex Anthopoulos uses the month of March to determine a depth chart of possible starting pitchers should there be injuries or failures at the major-league level. The Jays have averaged 12 different pitchers per year with at least one start over the past three seasons. So why was Oritz number eight? Where's the beef in 2013?

In addition to the Jays' original starting five pitchers coming out of spring training, both Aaron Laffey and Ricky Romero have started games. Now, with Josh Johnson and J.A. Happ both sidelined until at least the end of the month and with Brandon Morrow, Sunday's scheduled starter, remaining in Florida to have his back spasms checked out the Jays are going to have to dig deeper into the shallow end of their starting pool – unless GM Alex Anthopoulos is working on a trade or a waiver claim.

“I'll tell you, (Alex) never sleeps, he's always looking for different ways to make the team better so I'm sure he's looking that route as well,” manager John Gibbons said prior to Friday's loss.

“But it's not easy to do, especially this time of year, teams don't want to give up players because most of them still think they have a shot as well. I would be very surprised if we ended up going that route if (Morrow) couldn't pitch. He was throwing his bullpen and had muscle spasms in his upper back and the next day it moved up towards his neck. Just have to get that out of there. Yeah, until Sunday gets here we won't know for sure but we think he'll make it.”

So who's got next of the Jays have to reach down for another starter by Sunday? Finding veteran help is not a problem for the Jays, even just tapping into AAA-Buffalo. Romero suddenly has become the youngest member of the Bisons' rotation. Anthopoulos would be able to choose from Miguel Batista, 42, Claudio Vargas, 34, Justin Germano, 30 and Edgar Gonzalez, 30.

If you're rounding up the usual suspects in terms of potential starters, you always have to include a pair of former first round draft picks, Chad Jenkins (June '09) and Deck McGuire (June '10). Jenkins was slated to be converted into a reliever, but just now is coming back from inflammation of his right shoulder and has gone into the Double-A Fisher Cats rotation. McGuire, who was not invited to major-league camp this spring, is 2-3, with a 5.11 ERA in seven starts at New Hampshire.

“You know something's going to go wrong, you're never going to get through the season with five guys,” Gibbons said. “They brought in some veteran guys who had success in the big leagues, they've been there. It's definitely coming into play.

“A lot of them haven't had any starts here but they've been on that shuttle back and forth to cover off some of the rough starts earlier. (Jenkins) is throwing well. He's a little bit limited right now but he's on track. He's building himself up right now. But he's a guy the organization really likes.”

If it is determined Morrow cannot make the start in the series finale on Sunday, the Jays will make that decision on Saturday and yet another pitching injury will step up to cost them.

And it's not just the pitchers. Rajai Davis left Friday's loss in the fourth inning with a strained left oblique that he had first felt in Tampa and been getting daily treatment.

“It's just nagging,” Davis said. “It's not progressing like I was wanting to. It was a manager's decision and I think it's a wise decision and it's in our best interest.”

And thus it continues.

 

 

 

Blue Jays struggling Emilio Bonifacio finds seat on the bench: Griffin

And on the third day, he rested.

The Blue Jays' struggling Emilio Bonifacio has had a tough time mastering the nuances of his new position, second base. The problem came to a head in Game 2 of the Tigers series on Wednesday at Comerica Park, failing to turn a double play with Prince Fielder trundling down the line, booting a grounder by Matt Tuiasosopo, being one of three fielders surrounding a short RBI popup by Jhonny Peralta and allowing a rare infield single to Fielder. No one could argue that a day off in the series finale would not do him good.

“I'm not saying it's a mental thing," manager John Gibbons said. "He's had a couple of games where it's a tough go. I don't know him well enough and I'm not in his head, but he's showed no signs of it really affecting him because he's getting after it. He's playing hard. I don't think he has that personality to really get him down. We'll give him a day off, but I'm not worried about Emilio."

It was another dark, overcast, threatening day with temperatures just above freezing in the Motor City as the tarp covered the infield with a forecast for heavy rain around 3:00 p.m. Twenty hours earlier in the Jays' energizing come-from-behind 8-6 victory on Wednesday, Mark DeRosa had contributed a pinch-hit two-run double and then drew a key bases-loaded walk in the seventh. His reward was a Thursday start at third-base, with Maicer Izturis moving over to his more natural second base position, replacing Bonifacio behind starter Josh Johnson.

“I want to be out there for my teammates," Bonifacio said, refusing to use cold weather or an unfamiliar position as excuses. "I'm going to be available when Gibby wants to use me. It's worse when you put your head down and something happens for that reason. The game's going to continue so you're going to have another chance. That next one can be worse if you let it. So you just have to keep your head up and keep going."

The former Marlins' utility man has made four errors, including a natural hat trick of miscues the first time Johnson started at the Rogers Centre. In addition, the Jays have turned just four double plays, even with the slick fielding Jose Reyes at shortstop. That low total of DP's is tied for 13th with the Red Sox in the AL, just ahead of the Angels.   

"He's playing a position now that he played once in a while,' infield coach Luis Rivera said. "He's moved around but now he's in one spot. I think he just needs to relax. I don't think there's anything wrong with him. I cannot say his hands are like rocks. He's got soft hands. He's got good feel. Maybe it's a little lack of concentration, I don't know what it is. He's got plenty of arm to throw. Sometimes he's just goes back and forth from the outfield to the infield, he throws long, short. I think sometimes he's too short (arm) when he throws."

Gibbons refused to indicate whether this was simply a one-and-done day off for Bonifacio or if the defensive alignment might remain this way with Izturis and DeRosa until Brett Lawrie is ready to return. Lawrie was scheduled to play an extended spring training game at the Jays' minor-league complex in Dunedin on Thursday.

“You get DeRosa in, he had a nice game yesterday," Gibbons said. "He's a good defender over there and you get Maicer in at second base. It'll probably do Bonny a little bit of good to get away from it for a day. Nothing jumps out at me. He doesn't quit playing hard. He doesn't drop his head. But he's got to be feeling it. It's been a tough go for him lately. He's going to be a big part of this team and we're going to need him if we're going to be successful. A day off's not going to hurt."

Or perhaps a few days off. Barring any physical setback, Lawrie should be back with the Jays sometime on the next homestand at the Rogers Centre, before the end of April.  

 

 

 

 

 

Blue Jays game vs. Tigers threatened by rain: Griffin

DETROIT-The infield diamond at Comerica Park was uncovered by the grounds crew just once on Wednesday morning, around 10:00 a.m. to work on the home plate area, to make it dry and playable. That's optimism. The hope was that weather forecasters were wrong with their prediction of 100-percent chance of rain all day. Even to the most mathematically challenged observer, that sounded like trouble in Motor City.

Meanwhile, inside the Jays' compact, spartan clubhouse, an offensively challenged team was left to ponder the reason why this potentially potent batting order ranked last in base hits and runs scored. First-year batting coach Chad Mottola believes patience is required.

“As the season progresses we're going to see our lineup so stacked with relaxed at-bats that we're going to be able to mix and match parts based on maybe matchups or stuff like that,” Mottola said. “But the bigger concern, the thing we have to do now is get everybody to be themselves. When we get rolling it won't matter where everybody's hitting. It will be a consistent lineup throughout. From there we can worry about who's batting where. Right now we just have to get guys to be themselves.”

Mottola is also of a mind that any offence spins off a productive 3-4 hitters and that Edwin Encarnacion batting cleanup was affected by the strange spring, including WBC duty with the victorious Team Dominican. When he returned, it was with a bruised right index that kept him out of action until there was just several games remaining.

“It's a pretty big combination of having few at-bats before the WBC, having the time off, probably six or seven at-bats before the season and wanting to hit 40 home runs,” Mottola observed. “He knows this. He needs to start being a little more patient, getting his pitch and be ready when his pitch comes. He wants to succeed like the rest of the team and it's almost a case of wanting it too bad.”

Encarnacion headed into Wednesday's matinee at Comerica Park on an alarming 0-for-17 slide. Meanwhile, Bautista, the focal point of the Jays' lineup the last three seasons, missed the final three games of the homestand and showed rust when he finally returned on Tuesday. He was a little late on his swings, going 0-for-4 with his final at-bat being a warning track liner to centre field. On Wednesday, he was back in the lineup in right field. The Jays need Encarnacion and Bautista to lead the charge.

“Absolutely it can affect the other guys,” Mottola said. “This game is very contagious. Once we get a few balls to drop, whether it's Jose yesterday, had three line drives didn't drop, Edwin, (Adam) Lind had some good at-bats early on (that didn't result in hits). You see everybody pressing. Everybody wants to win so bad. It's a good problem to have. As the season progresses, you play day-after-day, you realize just be yourself, we'll be fine.”

The game was still on as scheduled, but the weather forecast was gloomy, with rain predicted all the way through Tursday's scheduled afternoon game.    

 

 

Blue Jays with another horsehide version of Great Expectations: Griffin

Ever since the glory years of the Blue Jays, their unbelievable back-to-back World Series championships in 1992-93, ever since the great strike of '94, this may be only the third time that an off-season of Jays' wheeling and dealing, of team building through trade and free-agency, has provided such great expectations for a local baseball season.

In '98 you may recall, former Red Sox and Expos coach Tim Johnson, a one-time Blue Jays and Brewers utility player had been brought in by Gord Ash to replace the fired Cito Gaston. The Jays had won just 76 games the year before and Ash was tired of losing and maybe ownership was getting a little tired of Ash. So he made a splash, which naturally, considering the GM, was a big one.

The '98 Jays were entering the second year of Roger Clemens, who had been charmed into coming to Toronto by president Paul Beeston and was just coming off a Cy Young Award, capturing the pitching triple crown -- ERA, wins and strikeouts. The Rocket had replaced the '96 Cy winner, Pat Hentgen who was still with the team giving them a formidable 1-2 punch. They were joined by an emerging young righthander, Chris Carpenter.

In addition, Ash also added closer Randy Myers from the O's, outfielder/DH Jose Canseco from the Red Sox (never suspecting he was into PEDs, uhh, yeah!!), catcher Darren Fletcher to bring some experience to handle all that pitching talent and utility man Mike Stanley with playoff experience and a veteran presence.

The results were good -- 88 wins -- but not good enough to make it to the post-season. Recall there was one wild-card at the time and the Yankees dominated the league with a record 114 regular season wins and a Series sweep of the Padres.

There have been other much-anticipated seasons due to an unexpected finish in the mid-80s total in victories, like in '04 and '09, each following an 86-win season, but those were more born of hope than anything real. Fans and management were counting on the development of prospects and lightning in a bottle. They got fireflies.

The only other time that a Jays' GM created the buzz of a contender was in '06, when J.P. Ricciardi seemingly lost his equilibrium for five months and gave then (and now) manager John Gibbons a roster that had the city talking baseball.

In 2005, the Jays had won 80 games. That may not seem like much, except it was a 13 victory improvement over '04, led by starters Roy Halladay, Ted Lilly, Josh Towers and Gustavo Chacin, plus 31 saves from the surprising closer, Miguel Batista.

Thinking that another 13-win improvement would give them 93 and a likely playoff berth, Ricciardi went out and signed a couple of high-priced free agents, righthander A.J. Burnett and lefthanded closer B.J. Ryan. In addition, the GM made trades for third baseman Troy Glaus and first-baseman Lyle Overbay. The buzz in the city was palpable. That Jays team went out and competed, winning 87 games. The Jays have not won as many since.

That history of the Jays going for the gold is a positive sign that a 2013 win total in the mid-80s as in 1998 and 2006 is a realistic floor for fan expectations, but they need more.

In those two years of great expectations, the Yankees and Red Sox dominated the division even as the Jays were loading up on secondary talent. In 2013, the window of opportunity is wide open with the Bronx Bummers looking not like the Great and Powerful Oz, but instead like the man behind the curtain to whom we're supposed to pay no attention.

The Jays have a nice mix of veterans and of players under 30, of homegrowns and imports, of speed and power. Yes, this is the year that the Jays must prove to their fans that the four-year plan of GM Alex Anthopoulos has been as wise as club president Paul Beeston keeps insisting it is. Of course it helps the city's enthusiasm that the Maple Leafs are playoff-bound, a heady fifth overall in the Eastern Conference.

As Beeston like to say of pro sports success in the city: "A rising tide lifts all boats."   

 

Blue Jays manager John Gibbons Unplugged: Griffin

The recently re-hired Blue Jays' manager, John Gibbons, sometimes misunderstood but never misleading, had just returned to his family home in south Texas after fulfilling key off-season obligations to his new/old employer. It was a bright and sunny mid-January mid-morning in San Antonio, following the bone-chilling experience of a winter weekend in Edmonton on the Jays' winter tour.

The Star had flown in from Toronto the night before to meet with the 50-year-old former MLB catcher, the unexpectedly-reprised Jays' skipper, to find out what may have changed for him in the past four-plus years since he was fired mid-season in 2008, what had remained the same, since that mixed-bag experience as manager the first time around.

Following a walking tour of the downtown, remembering the Alamo and the Riverwalk, we stopped in for lunch at a place called The Esquire Tavern, billing itself as the oldest drinking establishment in San Antonio, with the longest solid wood bar in town. It was dark, quiet, the beer was cold. They had me at "Hello."

San Antonio is also home to former Jays' skipper Cito Gaston, former Jays' DH Cliff Johnson, late Jays' super-scout Al LaMacchia, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur, former Mets catcher Jerry Grote, actor Tommy Lee Jones, four active U.S. military bases and the NBA powerhouse Spurs. It seems a perfect match for Gibbons, low-key, friendly and seemingly underappreciated.

Following is the totality of that Gibbons unplugged interview, offering a relaxed, reflective, realistic look at his life and career.The headings here are merely for purposes of navigation, although the full read is well worth it. 

1-GIBBONS FAMILY SAN ANTONIO CONNECTION

2-SURPRISE FIRST-ROUND DRAFT PICK BY THE METS

3-DISAPPOINTING PLAYING CAREER LEADS TO CAREER IN COACHING

4- “NOT MY JOHN GIBBONS”: DAVEY JOHNSON

5-FAMOUS CONFLICTS WITH JAYS PLAYERS

6-FIRED FOR THE FIRST TIME; STAYS BUSY BETWEEN JAYS STINTS

7-QUE SERA SERA CAREER -- BLOND AMBITION

8-DEVELOPING KEY RELATIONSHIPS FOR THE FUTURE WITH METS

9-GIBBY'S DEVELOPING RELATIONSHIP WITH ALEX

10-HANDLING A DIVERSE BLUE JAYS CLUBHOUSE

11-COULD HAVE BEEN A LONGHORN WITH CLEMENS 

                                        * * * * * * * * * 

1-GIBBONS FAMILY SAN ANTONIO CONNECTION

RICHARD GRIFFIN: You're from a military family. Is that the reason your birthplace is in Great Falls (MT)? There's a major NORAD military base there. I flew in when Tim Johnson was named Jays' manager in '97. And there are military bases in San Antonio too. Is that why your dad (Bill Gibbons, a Boston native) moved here?

JOHN GIBBONS: My sister and I were born in Great Falls. My father was stationed out there for two years, 1962. We bounced around when we were really young. Then he got stationed here in San Antonio when I was in the fourth grade. I've been here ever since. He had an assignment that was 13 years, which is unheard of in the military. I ended up spending my whole school years here. He finished it up in Bolling Air Force Base in D.C., then retired. San Antonio is one of the bigger military towns.

RG: What was his top rank?

JG: He retired a full-bird colonel. Thirty years.

RG: You said your mom's still here. Did your parents move back here after he retired, or did they always make San Antonio home?

JG: When they finished up in D.C. he came back here and retired here. You get everything you need with the (military) bases here.

RG: And by then you had already been drafted (by the Mets) and moved ahead with your career.

JG: Yeah, by then I was out playing ball and would come back in the winter.

RG: Did you ever think of moving the family anywhere else or is it that you just loved this area?

JG: This is home. I've been here for so long. My wife (Julie MacFarlane) grew up in El Paso, Texas. She went to high school right outside here, so it's kind of a natural fit for us. It's a good town. We've enjoyed it.

RG: What about your kids?

JG: My daughter's my oldest one. She's 20. There's Jordan. Middle son, Troy, 18. And then Kyle, my little one, 13.

RG: The relationship with your dad, when he was sick, it seemed that – and I know father-son relationships are close – but it seemed to affect you tremendously at the time.

JG: In 2006 he found out that he was sick. Everybody goes through it. It's part of life. You get older, everybody's touched by it. Just being away. You know, the end's coming and you're not there. That adds...that takes it's toll on you. You don't know if you're going to see him again. I was able that one year to sneak home for a couple of days (during the season). The team went to Kansas City and (GM J.P.) Ricciardi told me, 'Go ahead, take a couple of days,' so I met the team back in Kansas City. He hung on 'til I got home then he died in January, 2007.

RG: Your mom has come to grips with it and she's doing fine now?

JG: Yeah, she's fine. She's a very independent woman. Life goes on. It gets us all sooner or later. One thing is nobody gets out alive. She's always been into horses her whole life and so that's kind of her thing. She's still riding, actually, at 74.

 

2-SURPRISE FIRST-ROUND DRAFT PICK BY THE METS

 

RG: That 1980 draft the Mets had three choices in the first and four among the first 35...

JG: The Mets hit it (in the draft) the year following (laughs). They had some pretty good drafts. (Darryl) Strawberry (first overall) turned out to be a pretty good player. He may have had other issues. Billy Beane (No. 23 overall), he struggled like I did and turned it into something else (as GM of the A's).

RG: That first minor-league spring training (in '81) with the Mets...was J.P. at that training camp, or was he signed after that?

JG: No, J.P. would have been there because I played with him in '81 in Shelby, North Carolina.

RG: So it would have been you and Billy and Straw and all those young guys in that signing class. What was your thought about your future being a hotshot draft pick and all that, at that point?

JG: You're on top of the world. You think you're guaranteed to be a major-leaguer, but that's not the reality. I've always been a humble individual I think, for the most part. I never really got carried away with myself. But you could see it.

Coming out of high school, I was pretty good. I got drafted high. But you look at a guy like Strawberry, I mean there's something different about it. Everything's easy. Myself, I had to work for things. Even Beane. He was a very talented kid, but mentally it just got away from him. You think the sky's the limit. You don't think it's going to be easy, but here it is, a dream come true, now do something with it.

I actually moved up through the system on a good pace. Then in 1984, going into spring training (the Mets) threw the catching job up for grabs. I came into camp, there was myself, Ron Hodges, Mike Fitzgerald, Ronn Reynolds and Junior Ortiz. Those were the five guys that were there.

I had had a good year in Double-A in '83. Davey Johnson was the (Mets) new manager and he'd seen me play. He liked what I did, apparently. I had a good spring training, they gave me the job and then two days before we broke camp, I took an elbow in the cheek on a play at the plate. Joe Lefebvre was with the Phillies at the time. It was kind of a cheap shot. There was a throw coming up the line. He was trying to score from third. The ball was kind of drifting into him. He threw an elbow at me and cracked the cheekbone. So I started the year on the DL, a couple of weeks, maybe.

But when I started playing again I wasn't hitting anything. I think I was 0-for-15 (actually 0-for-12) and then we played you guys (the Expos) at Shea Stadium (on April 17, 1984), the Mets home opener. (Gary) Carter hit a grand slam (off Ron Darling). It was Bryn Smith or Charlie Lea, whoever started (it was Smith), I got my first hit. They say that after the first one they come in bunches. Well, that wasn't the case (laughs). It was kind of downhill from there. Then I injured my elbow, partially torn ligament. That winter they traded for Carter, sending Hubie (Brooks) and those guys. That was kind of it. Floyd (Youmans) had as good an arm as any of them. He had as good an arm as Gooden did. The (Mets) drafted some boneheads...talented though (laughs). Herm (Winningham) had a nice career.

RG: What was your initial reaction when they traded for Carter? Could you see writing on the wall?

JG: I thought, you know, I'm done here. I can remember Steve Schreyver was the farm director at the time, he called me after the trade and said, 'Listen, don't let this influence you.' (laughs). I said OK. This guy's the best catcher in the game. He's still a young man. I knew then that my chances of playing here...there might be a shot at a backup job. So I went to the next couple of spring trainings and there was really no shot at backing up.

They wanted me playing every day. In '84 I was 21, so I was still a young guy. They wanted me playing. Then the game started getting tougher on me. Finally, Ed Hearn and Barry Lyons. (The Mets) went through a few backups that did a pretty good job for them. Well I got called up a couple of Septembers. That was it.

I was there in '86, I got called up in August. Carter was playing first base and dove and dislocated his thumb. I got called up from Triple-A and Ed Hearn and I were the catchers. I was there two months and stayed with them through the playoffs catching in the bullpen. I wasn't on the active roster.

The following year, I got called up just in September, in '87. I couldn't sniff an inning. Not even a blowout backup game. Throw me a bone, catch me an inning. I think we were in St. Louis end of the season, I thought this is it. I've gotta go somewhere else. I've gotta figure out whether I've got a career or not. So I told the GM, Frank Cashen, that it's time.

They brought me to camp in '88 with the Mets and eventually at the end of the spring they traded me for (infielder) Craig Shipley, to the Dodgers. I went to Triple-A with the Dodgers in Albuquerque and split time with Gil Reyes. That was kind of it, then bounced around a couple of years in Triple-A. Basically what I was doing was hanging on.

RG: So, what was the whole experience like in the '86 World Series? Pretty exciting for a 24-year-old guy, even though you weren't on the active roster, you were part of it.

JG: The first (playoff) series was in Houston and my job was to warm up the pitchers. In Houston (at the Astrodome) you're on the field warming up and that place was rocking. It was such a great, classic series. You want to be part of the action, but in a lot of ways it was intimidating at the time too. We ended up squeaking that out somehow. Then, of course, in the World Series against the Red Sox I can remember in Game 6 just as all hell broke loose (with Bill Buckner's error), Gooden was warming up right after we started to get something going, just in case. I can remember, they had the police with all the horses in the bullpen. Gooden was throwing to me and every time the ball would hit the glove, you'd have the horses getting jumpy (laughs). Oh, hell man, then the miracle happened. That series was sort of the highlight of my career. Didn't get to perform in it, but I played a very, very small part on some pretty good teams.

RG: That was a time in baseball where many of the off the field temptations seemed bigger than ever and grabbed some guys' careers by the throat. Did you sort of have to push those temptations aside. There was all sorts of things going on in the early '80s. (The Star's baseball writer Mark Zwolinski) talks about his couple of years in the Mets farm system being unusual and exciting...

JG: Yeah, I didn't know he was (in the Mets system) until you told me that at the winter meetings.

RG: Yeah, Dr. (Ron) Taylor scouted him for the Mets.

JG: Is that right? I'll be damned. He never mentioned a word about that.

RG: He never does.

JG: Yeah, (as far as the partying) I was a nobody and in a lot of ways I'm a loner. I keep to myself. It wasn't like I had earned anything to be in the middle of that team. I was a part of it, but I wasn't an integral part of it. So, I just kind of kept to myself, did my own thing. Back then, in the olden days, you had to earn your stripes. Nowadays everybody just kind of hits it from Day 1, even if you're not. So I kind of kept to myself. On the outside, you witness a lot of crazy stuff. That was a wild bunch.

 

3-DISAPPOINTING PLAYING CAREER LEADS TO CAREER IN COACHING

 

RG: The experience of not going on to establish the career that people expected obviously doesn't mean that you weren't paying attention, because you did manage in the Mets farm system afterwards and you've managed twice now for the Jays. Did you realize at the time, that you were in fact paying attention to details, to guys like Davey Johnson, maybe for a future role. You have mentioned Johnson as a major influence as a manager. Did you consciously pay attention to detail or was it just something that you absorbed?

JG: I'm one of those guys. As a catcher you've got to pay attention day-to-day. But consciously, I don't think I was sitting there going, I want to manage in the big leagues, I've got to pay attention to what this guy's doing. No, but you can tell who's got it, who doesn't. The thing I got most from Davey is Davey's a very confident guy, I'm sure you know that. The players picked up on that. That helped those guys getting to the task.

He believed in it and that's kind of what rubbed off on me. He's very smart, always on the ball. He let you do your thing. He didn't talk very often directly to a player. He very often came through a coach, especially for the young guys. But there was something about him, this guy's on the ball. That was kind of it. But I don't really remember noticing, saying 'God, that's what I want to be.' I thought I wanted to get into coaching, but it could have been high school, it could have been college, it could have been professional. But, at that time it was sort of open.

RG: But those attributes that Davey has, of never letting your players see you react, never showing your players when you're behind, staying on an even keel when times are tough in a game...

JG: Yeah, that's him.

RG: Communicating with players, not necessarily face-to-face. I mean you're going to have to do a lot of that with the number of Latin players this year to get the proper message across.

That's something you said Davey already did. Being in charge, letting guys play the game, just get out of the way, you've said that's one of your attributes. Are you just putting guys out there letting them play the game? Is it your goal to just not get in the way?

JG: I think so. The biggest mistake people make in this game is they try to control too many things. As a manager you have your job. You have to run the pitching staff, the bullpen and all that. There's got to be some structure there. You call the shifts, but, eventually, guys that are control freaks, it catches up with them. The players are the show. When you bring in the type of players we've got this year, guys that have been successful, there's a reason they're successful. You've got to let them do their thing.

RG: Is it easier to manage that way, let them play, easier when you have a very talented team compared to a very mediocre team? Just observing Cito (Gaston), those '92-'93 teams are relatively like the team you have this year. But then later on, in the mid-to-late-'90s, Cito, the same manager, was given younger teams that didn't already know how to play. He wasn't able to perform the same magic with those groups. Do you agree that with a team that's talented and self-motivated it's easier for the description you've given.

JG: Everybody wants to manage a team they don't have to coach so much. It makes things easier.

RG: Hey skip, stay out da way.

JG: Yeah. It's the old 'push-button' club. I don't mind people saying that, we've got a push-button club. That's great. As long as you're winning.

RG: Was it different the first time (with the Jays), because those weren't push-button clubs.

JG: I wouldn't say that. We had some very talented guys. I don't want to say something was missing, but there just wasn't enough with us to get over the hump. Whatever the expectations were, we went into a couple of years expecting a lot, whether that was legit or not. Sometimes you think you're better than you are.

There were some times we achieved our level. There were times we underachieved too. We hung in there, but to be honest with you, I don't know if there was enough to get over the hump. We had the Yankees and Red Sox, the way they were built. That's not an excuse, taking the easy way out on my part, but that's the way it was.

 

4- “NOT MY JOHN GIBBONS”: DAVEY JOHNSON

 

RG: I don't know if you've ever heard the story. When you got named to replace Carlos Tosca, it was an Olympic year. It was Athens, the end of '04. Davey Johnson was an adviser for Team Netherlands.

JG: Yeah, I remember reading that.

RG: The news came out over there that you had taken over. His reaction was, 'Not my John Gibbons!!??'

JG: (laughs, laughs again) He said that. (laughs again)

RG: Do you find it humourous that Davey would say that spontaneously?

JG: Yeah.

RG: Like you said, you weren't necessarily sitting next to him in the (Mets) dugout...

JG: I rarely got on the field and when I would do anything it would be down there warming up in the pen. And let's face it, you don't get recognized in this business until you've accomplished something. If you're successful as a player, it carries some weight, it buys you some time. If you haven't accomplished anything, you get the shot but then if you don't do anything great, everybody and their brother in the baseball world is going, 'How did this guy get that job?' You know how it is.

So, I mean it doesn't surprise me (with Davey). I had some good people on the way that gave me some opportunities, you know. Let's be realistic. The odds of coming back here a second time, you gotta have a charmed life in some ways. But that is kind of funny.

 

5-FAMOUS CONFLICTS WITH JAYS PLAYERS

 

RG: The other thing that I wanted to know, if you found surprising, was when Brendan Kennedy called Shea Hillenbrand after you got the job, he was totally complimentary and wished you the best and thought you were a great person, a people manager and stuff like that. Does that surprise you?

JG: It shocked me 'cuz I read it, but the point is that Shea and I had a pretty good relationship from the get-go, when he first showed up. I had great respect for him. I knew he had some problems (with the Red Sox) in the past. But with us early on, everything was fine. He was a big part at first. He played very well for us. Then the thing with playing time (in the field at third and first) when we got Troy Glaus and Lyle Overbay. I mean that soured him. But you know there's nothing you can do about it. That's the way it was set up. Those guys were our position players. Things happened and things came to a head. I hadn't run into him since, but to read that it kind of shocked me a little. I didn't know how he was going to react. He didn't have to say it, but it was pretty nice.

RG: You also weren't big on Hillenbrand's 'country-club' comment (at spring training '06) when he said there was too much of a country club atmosphere.

JG: You know, every spring training I've been at, whether it's the Mets or the minor leagues, you get to a certain level, a certain point in the game and – I don't want to say it's a country club, but baseball is a relaxed, get-after-it type game. It's not football where you're beating people down, rah-rah type. Country club? I don't really understand what that means. The manager's not sitting there screaming and yelling, 'Go run a lap, you missed a ball.'

RG: I agree. I remember as late as '72, guys would show up to spring training totally out of shape. They needed spring training for that. These days, they come up and the first day they're throwing 90 miles-an-hour in the pen. So, like, now you have them do their work and then they go home.

JG: You know what I've always believed, too. I tell the players I've been with whether it's managing in the minors or the big leagues, 'Hey, if you've got a beef, got a problem, come see me. Let's hash this thing out. You know you may be right.'

The back-biting and the bullshit, that get's you nowhere. (The player) might be right. Even sometimes as coaches, you get blinded to some things. You're doing the same things over and over. Somebody might have something to say. You know what, we're a little lax, we need to push this, push that. I have no problem with that, but take your shots elsewhere. You come and see me first.

RG: At what point during the (Ted Lilly) pitching change did you decide that you were going to go down the tunnel.

JG: It was kind of just a reaction thing. I got to the mound, Ted wouldn't give me the ball. He was barking. We were barking a little bit back and forth. He gave the ball and then we kind of bumped on the way off. So I was walking off the mound and I just looked into the dugout – there's stairs going up to the clubhouse – and he's just standing there and he was going back and forth like a shooting range with a duck, or something. That's what I remember. I just walked there.

RG: So you saw him as you were coming off the field.

JG: Yeah. It wasn't like pre-meditated on the mound saying, 'I'm going to get that sucker,' you know. It was like I walked down (the tunnel) and he said something to me first and I said something to him. We were grabbing each other and that was that.

 

6-FIRED FOR THE FIRST TIME; STAYS BUSY BETWEEN JAYS STINTS

 

RG: When J.P. decided to replace you with Cito -- and at one point much earlier, J.P. had said when he gave you the extension, if you weren't managing the Jays, there'd be seven or eight teams lining up to hire you -- do you think that reputation as a hothead made it seem, in your mind, that you were going to be a one-and-done kind of manager. Like you talked about earlier, guys that get one chance then gone.

JG: I figured that's not going to help me. When you get fired and you're seen as carrying some baggage now, regardless of how it got there, it's going to be tough.

I've never been one of those guys. I love this profession. I love managing, but I wasn't obsessed that I've got to manage. I'm content. I always believe that if your reputation is good out there and the right thing opens up, somebody will give you a shot.

I'm never one to pursue things to promote myself. I'm not good at that. But, yeah, your first shot, you're nobody, no name, if you get to the post-season that carries a lot of weight. It can carry you for the rest of your career. That didn't happen, so (in your own mind) there may not be another shot. Then I got the bench job (with the Royals) and I was very, very happy with that.

RG: How did the bench job come about? Were you interested in a managing job in the time after you left the Jays? Did you ever apply for anything after you left the Jays?

JG: I was fired in June ('08) and at the beginning of September I started calling different teams. I talked to a couple of GMs directly and then I left some messages. But I basically said, 'You know if you have any openings on the staff, I'd like to throw my name in there. I'm not looking for anybody's job, but if something comes up, what have you.'

Trey Hillman was managing the Royals. His bench coach was Dave Owen. He didn't really have much coaching experience. So they were looking to change it. I knew Trey. It's like DeMarlo Hale. We all managed together coming up through the minor leagues. Fellow Texan, that ain't all bad. He called and said, 'Listen, we're going to put our bench coach over at third base, why don't you come in for an interview.' It was kind of a natural fit. We knew each other. He went through a tough year and he probably wanted somebody that he knew. So, they called and I met with Trey and Dayton Moore at the airport in Austin (TX). We sat down for an hour and that was when he called me and said do you want the job? Knowing him in the past, that's big. That put it over and, I'll tell you, I had a blast doing it (for three years).

RG: Do you think that Royals job kept you in the public eye enough that when Alex was looking again...do you think it was important that you had that major-league bench coach stint?

JG: Yeah. Just being out of the major-leagues for one year is probably pushing the limit. I could go back and I'm managing here in San Antonio for a second year, you know that. But maybe, you might not be able to sell yourself next year, you know what I mean. You've got to be around (the major leagues). If it's the other way you get lost in it.

RG: San Antonio could have been like coming home for good. When Felipe Alou was passed over when the Expos hired Buck Rodgers (in '85), at that point, Felipe said, OK, I'm still in the organization but you're obviously not interested in me as a (major-league) manager, so have me manage in the Florida State League. I live in West Palm. Have me manage West Palm. I'll be at home. When you said at your (Blue Jays) press conference that San Antonio was your dream job, was that in your thinking, that I might as well manage at home if I'm going to do anything.

JG: Yeah. You know, what happened...you know how you drag, you bat things around when you're young, not a whole lot of stability. They won't say it, but they get tired of that too. As you get a little older at this point last year, my middle son's going off to college next year. I'm not going to have much time left with him. When I got cut loose at Kansas City, if this job was open and I heard it was, I thought I'd love to do that, go home for a year, maybe two. I had my 10 years (service time) in, so the pension was set. Things were good. I pursued that.

If that hadn't happened, I had talked to Toronto about a fulltime scouting job. I talked to other teams about scouting, roving type jobs, so I was perfectly content with that. I didn't give much thought that this may be it for me. I better not do this, but I understood that that was possibly the case.

 

7-QUE SERA SERA CAREER -- BLOND AMBITION

 

RG: I'd like to do a small exercise with you. I have a list here of John Gibbons post-playing career jobs that you have had. If you could respond whether you applied for each one or not.

JG: OK. I can do that.

RG: Jays bullpen catcher.

JG: No.

RG: Jays first base coach.

JG: No.

RG: Jays manager – first time.

JG: No.

RG: The contract extension with J.P.

JG: No.

RG: You didn't demand an extension?

JG: No (laughs).

RG: Royals' bench coach.

JG: Yes.

RG: San Antonio manager.

JG: Yes, I had a couple of people call (the Padres).

RG: This time around as Jays manager.

JG: No.

RG: That's pretty good. That's a pretty good record of landing on your feet.

JG: Yeah. You know that (Jays) bullpen catching job. When (J.P.) got the (Jays' GM) job, he was helping make calls for me because I'd walked away from the Mets and the Triple-A team because I wanted to get closer to home with my family. I would have taken an A-ball job, anything.

RG: So you just didn't go back to the Mets (after '01). You didn't want to be there anymore.

JG: Yeah, I'd been with the Mets as Triple-A manager for three years. (Bobby) Valentine was managing at that time. Every year they were going through at least one coach, maybe two. I didn't get one of the jobs and, I mean, that's the way it goes. He wanted one of his people. But usually a Triple-A manager slides in there after a few years. That didn't happen.

So, I applied again that following year after the 2001 season. I think Valentine was looking for a third-base coach. They called and said, we don't need an interview. We interviewed the year before. Then I didn't get it, so I told them, you know what, I'm going to move on. It's time. It's no big deal. (Mets beat writer) Marty Noble called me and wrote an article and (GM) Steve Phillips called me the day after it came out and said 'I think we definitely need to part ways.' I told him, 'Well I told you that' (laughs).

Billy Beane was out in Oakland and he always told me when I was in the Mets system as a coach, to keep in touch. He said if you ever want to come over and are looking for a job, just let me know. So I thought that was my ace in the hole. But around this time (when I quit), I hadn't even checked with him. He told me and I didn't think he was bullshitting me.

They were having some success at the time. I can remember with J.P. (an assistant at the time to Beane with the A's), they were in New York playing the Yankees in the playoffs and I walked up and said, 'Do you guys have anything over there?' And he goes, 'No, we don't' (JG laughs). I thought, well, OK. So J.P. started making some calls around the game for me. Nothing broke.

Let's see, I had two weeks left on my contract with the Mets. I had been living in New Mexico for a couple of years and had just moved back to San Antonio. I had three kids and just bought a new house and had two weeks left on my job. So, yeah, I needed to find something.

One day I called Beane and he told me, 'Hey, I'll call you back. J.P.'s having a press conference (in Toronto).' That's when (Ricciardi) got (the Toronto) job out of the blue. My thought was, you know he's been trying to help me find a job, he should at least have something over here for me. I don't know what it is but I need something. So, he called me back and he said, 'Hey, listen, we've got the third base coaching job here and the bullpen catcher.' I don't even remember if he said bullpen catcher right away. He said, 'I'm bringing in Carlos Tosca up here.' They had a connection from the Yankees. He said come on up and interview. I said alright.

So I went up there and met with him and Buck Martinez. At the end of the interview they say, 'Well we have the bullpen catching job. Do you have any interest there?' I said, 'No I can't do that.' I'm going a little better than that. Right then I realized, well, they've already settled on this (as the best offer). There goes my coaching interview. So I get home and I'm thinking, damn, you know I need a joB. I've got 10 days left. So, I called him back.”

RG: Basically at the time you would have qualified as a minority hire in that you're an idiot for quitting your Mets job before you had another one lined up.

JG: (laughs) Exactly. So I call him back and I say, hey, you know what, the more I think about it, it makes sense. I've spent my whole life as a bullpen catcher and now I'm going to do it again. So, he gave me that job. I go to spring training – I haven't squatted in 10 years – the first day my knee breaks down. So now I'm the only bullpen catcher in the big leagues that can't catch. I remember Greg Myers was there. He was ragging me too. Tom Wilson and those guys.

Honest to God, I'd be down in the bullpen catching, once the season starts and it's, man, we've got 10 guys (warming) up every game. We're getting beat down pretty good. Nobody can get anybody out and my knee's killing me. I'm catching on one knee. I thought, I might not be able to make it to June. I can't do this. Maybe I should get into scouting. I may have to go to J.P. and say something. Then June came around. He ended up firing Buck and putting in Tosca to manage. I took over at first base. That's how it all started. It was a relief physically and professionally.

RG: The good thing is you didn't have to go to one knee too often coaching first base.

JG: Yeah.

 

8-DEVELOPING KEY RELATIONSHIPS FOR THE FUTURE WITH METS

 

RG: When all you guys were coming up as prospects through the Mets organization, there's all sorts of random stories about who was playing with who in the New York-Penn League.

JG: That was Beane and J.P.

RG: Beane and J.P. and then...

JG: 1980

RG: Were you and J.P. on the same team at one point?

JG: In '81, Shelby, North Carolina.

RG: But it wasn't New York-Penn?

JG: No, that was a short-season draft year. I don't remember exactly how it happened, but J.P. eventually ended up with the Yankees. I think that's how he connected with Tosca. But then, I didn't hear from him or see him for years. I was roving (instructor) around '90 with the Mets as a catching guy. I'm in the Boston airport, I'm walking through Logan and I come to the gate and J.P.'s sitting there. He's going down to scout some player in Richmond, Virginia, I'm going to Norfolk. We sat next to each other on the plane, got to talking and I want to say we kept in touch a little bit after that.

But I hadn't seen him in a while and when he became Beane's righthand man we talked a few times. Then he actually came when I was managing the Mets' Triple-A team, he came to town to watch a couple of players. (The A's) were making the trade for (Jason) Isringhausen for Billy Taylor. So he came to watch (outfielder) Terence Long who was on my team. We got together and it was like old times.

 

9-GIBBY'S DEVELOPING RELATIONSHIP WITH ALEX

 

RG: Alex told me when he was an assistant GM that he'd go down...and I even remember him on trips that he went on -- he would hang around the coaches room and this and that. Obviously, he was paying attention too, but are you surprised at how adamant he is at how strong he is in publicly backing you and your player evaluation ability and the (personnel) suggestions you've made that he knows about and how he says they've always been bang-on? Did you realize that talent evaluation was one of your strengths?

JG: You never know. I've always believed that you tell it like you see it. You don't ride the fence and give the easy answers. That mainly stays within the organization stuff that I've mentioned. When he's asking about outside guys, I don't see that as much. It's a crapshoot anyways, but you just do what you can and hope you're right on. You don't stick your neck out for guys unless you believe they can do something. It's easy to (go with the crowd) when everybody else is against something. If you back (a player), he better do it or he may never get another shot. Who knows if you're going to be right. I thought I could evaluate decently, but you're lucky if you're right half the time anyway.

RG: Did you think, in hindsight, after you got the manager's) job in November, that Alex knew something ahead of time. It's kind of unusual for a GM to ask someone to fly up just for an advance scout job or a bench coach job without having a manager in place yet. In hindsight, did you think maybe he had an idea about you as manager?

JG: No, he's so tightlipped nobody knows. What I thought was happening was he committed to a veteran manager, a guy with some experience and I thought, well you know he's not matching up with a guy, whoever he's looking at. It's not working, so he might have to go back to one of the young (candidates), the inexperienced guys. This might be my chance to, you know, I wouldn't have minded, I wouldn't have had any problem being a coach.

RG: A bench coach.

JG: Yeah. You like to be in positions where you can call your own shots and of course the money's good, but I'm not so stuck on myself that you've got to be the guy.

 

10-HANDLING A DIVERSE BLUE JAYS CLUBHOUSE

 

RG: Again, this question comes down to, completely going back to your youth growing up, but it seems that there's not one prejudgmental bone in your body in terms of dealing with a diversity of players, dealing with Latin kids, African-Americans. I mean you grew up in the deep south in the '60s and '70s where that (tolerance) wasn't always the case, societally. Who do you credit for your even-handed vision of race and of handling the people that you are around?

JG: Some of my best friends have always been minorities. There's a big Mexican community down here. We're all the same. We're all equal. We just look different. But you know my mom and dad, I don't remember them saying anything, but they managed to keep their kids level-headed and appreciative of what they have, that they're no different than that other guy.

RG: Does athletics play a part in acceptance?

JG: No doubt. It's kind of the way we were brought up, with my friends.

 

11-COULD HAVE BEEN A LONGHORN WITH CLEMENS 

 

RG: Was your high school experience good for you in terms of developing who you are today, or was it a tough time in your life? Did you have college options.

JG: Yeah, I was going to go to the University of Texas to play. I actually would have been up there with Roger Clemens. I talked to Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., Stanford, those kind of places. When (Longhorns head coach) Cliff Gustafson called, he never saw me play but he had scouts who told him, hey we've got this kid down here. He offered me a scholarship. I was going to be there. But I wanted to get into pro ball. Something was drawing me. Then, when I had a chance to be a first-round pick. That helped.

RG: When you came back home after your first pro year, was it hard when you came back and you're hanging around with the same kids that you went to high school with to stay level-headed with all that pro money. How much of a bonus did you get?

JG: Fifty-five (thousand). Straw was picked No. 1 and he got $230,000 I think. Beane, who was picked right in front of me, got $130,000. (Pitcher) Jay Tibbs, who was picked (first by the Mets in Round 2 got like $90,000. I signed in three days. Those guys all signed in the middle of June, July or something. I couldn't believe it. I asked them and they all got the same first offer – 45 grand.

After the scout drafted me to the Mets – he came to the Blue Jays later, his name was Jim Hughes – so I don't know, if he got fired for signing me or got a big promotion from the Blue Jays (laughs).

The Blue Jays had come around and gave me a private tryout at my high school. (Fellow San Antonio native Jays scout) Al LaMacchia would have been there, but they brought some other guy. They came here and gave me a tryout, then they went to Austin, same thing for Kelly Gruber. There were four or five guys they were looking at. It was kind of that group they were looking at and the settled on (shortstop) Garry Harris.

RG: (laughs) It shows you the imprecise nature of scouting.

JG: Yeah, you're right.

RG: Thanks John and good luck.

 

 

The Bullpen: Hectic offseason ahead for Blue Jays' Yan Gomes

For the first time in its brief history, the World Baseball Classic has an expanded field of 28 countries, with 16 of those national teams playing in qualifiers for the final field of 16 to be staged in March 2013. A dozen teams were given automatic byes out of the last tournament in 2009, but the four countries that were winless in the double elimination tournament were placed as the top seed in four-team pools that were forced to compete for one spot, rounding out the field.

Already there has been one change to the field, as Spain went to extra innings to beat Israel 9-7 in the championship game of Qualifier 1 in Jupiter, Fla. The host team that had been to the first two versions of the WBC was South Africa, now eliminated. Israel's line-up featured former Jays outfielder Shawn Green who came out of retirement to DH and was 1-for-4 in the final game.

In Qualifier 2, Canada plays host-country Germany in the championship game on Monday afternoon in Regensburg. Earlier in the tournament, Canada beat the hosts 16-7. Manager Ernie Whitt's team was relegated to a qualifier because of losses to Team USA and Italy in '09 at the Rogers Centre. Whitt's team was handicapped by the fact the qualifier was in September, thus forced to use minor-leaguers, rather than any of the 17 Canadian major-leaguers that will be available should they win the pool. There are 147 Canadians in baseball's minor-leagues.

PREVIOUS BULLPEN BLOGS:

Baltimore Orioles top Oakland A’s as AL’s surprise team, Sept. 17

Jays manager John Farrell wants Chad Mottola as associate batting coach, Sept. 10

Meanwhile there was one player in the Jays clubhouse looking forward to his kick at the WBC can. Catcher Yan Gomes spoke enthusiastically about his upcoming experience as a member of Team Brazil, entered into a Nov. 15-20 qualifier with Colombia, Panama and Nicaragua. Brazil is ranked 33rd among baseball countries in the world, making them the long shot in Pool 3.

“It's going to be a huge honour, just kind of how it was being the first Brazilian in the majors – even bigger, just representing the country on the stage of the WBC,” Gomes said on the weekend at Tropicana Field. “I still have a lot of friends down there in Brazil that played and get in contact with me a lot. They kept up with me and my career.”

Gomes, a native of Sao Paulo, became the first Brazilian-born player in the majors when he made his debut on May 17 vs. the Yankees. In a four-game series in early August in Oakland, Gomes showed his versatility appearing in left field, at first and third base and behind the plate. He will be a huge part of manager Barry Larkin's plans to pull off an upset.

“I think that's really awesome,” Gomes said of the chance to play for a hall-of-fame player. “I'm looking forward to it too. I'll probably get to learn a lot from him.”

Starting at spring training, where Gomes impressed manager John Farrell with his versatility as a non-roster player, through his various stints at the major-league level, it's been an eventful year.

“It's definitely been a huge year,” Gomes said. “To top it off I'm getting married in a couple of weeks. It's just been a great year. It started off last year, just working hard and trying to get something going. I started off pretty good in spring training and just kept going. It's been a great experience.”

The key game for Gomes may have been a March contest in Sarasota against the Orioles. He travelled south with the team and drew a start at third base for an injured Brett Lawrie, banging out a couple of hits and making some nice defensive plays.

“It was big in some ways, but I wouldn't say it was the biggest game,” Gomes recalled. “But it definitely made them think that I can play some third too. That was the first time I had played third in my career. It happened to be in a big-league game in Sarasota. I don't want to take just one game out of that spring training. Just the whole experience, even off the field, while we were training and doing stuff on the side. Just the little things, being with big leaguers.”

In some ways, it was a difficult summer for Gomes, back and forth to the minors, with the travel to Las Vegas and the disappointment of being sent down again both being factors.

“At first I was upset, but it wasn't really that big of a deal,” Gomes said of each demotion.

“No matter how I was doing, it did take me a couple of days to get it going. Me and ('51s batting coach Chad Mottola) would work very hard at trying to get it going, back to where I need to be to get back up here. It worked out all right. To me it was really important (to finish the season back in the majors), not just to get the feeling of being comfortable up here. I know for my fiancée (Jenna) it wasn't nice, she hated the travel back and forth, but it just kind of kept the experience going.”

Yan and Jenna plan on being married in October, at which time Gomes will head south for a month of winter ball in the Dominican Republic and from there straight to Panama City to meet his Team Brazil mates. It will be a hectic offseason for the Jays' rookie.

“I'm sure we have a chance,” an optimistic Gomes said. “It just comes out of who's playing hot. It's just like any kind of match-up is. We'll see how we look. We'll give it our best that's all we can do.

BLUE JAYS WEEK IN REVIEW

SEASON: The Jays concluded a horrible week, losing all six games on the road trip, three at Yankee Stadium and three at Tropicana Field, heading to Baltimore. The Jays had an off-day Monday, then were rained out on Tuesday with a split doubleheader on Wednesday. The Jays were outscored 42-16 in the six games. They scored more than two runs in just two of the games, but the pitching did not respond in kind, losing 10-7 to the Yankees on Thursday and 11-5 to the Rays, Saturday.

The Jays enter the week with a sad 6-14 September mark. Since July 29, the Jays are 15-36 and have scored two or fewer runs in 25 games. Before the streak began, they had been one of the top offences in the AL in terms of home runs and runs scored. How tough has it been? At spring training, Ricky Romero and Brandon Morrow were the clear 1-2 starters in the rotation. In the last 81 Jays games, a full half season, since June 23, the two men have combined for one victory.

YUNEL ESCOBAR: The Escobar press conference at Yankee Stadium to announce Escobar's fine, suspension and mandated interaction with the gay community was ridiculous, not in what it was trying to do but in how it was presented. Three days later, however, the follow-up Escobar press conference at Tropicana Field, called informally after manager John Farrell kept him out of the starting line-up his first game back as an eligible player vs. the Rays was far more sublime.

It seemed, at the very moment he was being punished in New York, the Jays' shortstop was totally unaware of the far-reaching societal impact that his stupid, homophobic actions of Saturday at the Rogers Centre had created. He seemed bewitched, bothered and bewildered by the enormity of the moment. He looked confused as he was escorted by club officials down the tunnel to the Yankee interview room on Tuesday.

The first problem was the translator was not good. His choice of words made Escobar look like a  cliché-spouting idiot, but the worst aspect of it was that the inept translator was handpicked by the Players' Association.

The second unhelpful decision was that club president Paul Beeston did not fly to New York, leaving the responsibility of representing the organization to young GM Alex Anthopoulos. This was not a player personnel problem, it was a franchise issue, a societal issue, a community problem over which Beeston should have presided. The Jays are Canada's team. Escobar appeared bewildered, unconvincing, simple and unapologetic. The fact is he was simply overwhelmed and without preparation or the proper support, given the quick turnaround.

But in front of a much smaller group on Friday in Tampa and with three days to ponder his own situation, having flown to Florida ahead of the team, able to go virtually one-on-one with a more familiar group of media and with the writers able to ask more specific questions and able to look into his eyes as he gave his answers in Spanish, translated by Jays' coach Luis Rivera, this briefing appeared to show far from a smug, smirking pro athlete deflecting questions with a wink and a nudge.

Escobar may not fully understand why what he did was so wrong, but he does understand, now, that a large group of people, an important segment of society with which he had been totally unfamiliar, felt demeaned by his actions. Escobar on Friday was still not able to properly express his regret, but that may be because he still has never understood the repercussions that his thoughtless actions of putting Sharpie to eye black patches, a feeble attempt at humour, had created. Farrell met with Escobar on Friday afternoon, deciding he needed another day to regroup. He was right. 

OMAR AND THE BABE: Omar Vizquel will never be remembered as a Blue Jay, but he has had two memorable moments in the last two months that will live forever in his mental scrapbook. On Aug. 15, the future Hall-of-Famer tied Harold Baines for 42nd on the all-time hit list at the Rogers Centre. It came on a hit off Gavin Floyd of the White Sox with Baines sitting in the dugout as a coach. Then on this current road trip, at Yankee Stadium on September 19, at the son of The House That Ruth Built, Vizquel tied the Babe himself at 2,873 with a hit off Andy Pettitte. The bronze bust of Ruth in Monument Park smiled. Vizquel was overwhelmed to have not only tied the legendary Bambino, but to have done it in New York. Vizquel started the final game he played at Fenway Park and will likely do so on Wednesday in Baltimore, if Farrell has the opportunity. He will be a first-ballot Hall-of-Famer. 

BUTTER AND BELICHICK: Jays' third base coach Brian Butterfield, a resident of New England, is such a huge Patriots fan that it's believed the Pats consult him before every college draft, or if not, then he calls them and adds to his immense knowledge of all things Pats. On Sunday after the Jays played the Rays in Tampa, Butterfield had plans for the evening when the team charter arrived in Baltimore. He had arranged for a limousine to take him to the Ravens stadium where he had passes to stand on the Pats sideline. He was hoping to make it for the second half. The Pats lost on a last-second field goal.

INJURIES:  The Jays have had 18 disablements this year. RH Dustin McGowan, RH Drew Hutchison, RH Sergio Santos, RH Robert Coello, LH Luis Perez, RH Jesse Litsch, RH Kyle Drabek, 1B David Cooper and LH J.A. Happ are all out for the season.

HUTCH UPDATE: Perez, Drabek and Hutchison were all enthusiastic visitors to the Jays clubhouse in Tampa, with hugs all around. Hutchison spoke to writers in the Jays clubhouse about his rehab.

“Right now I'm just going a day at the time, doing what they say to do,” Hutchison said. “Right now it's just range of motion stuff. Shoulder exercises.”

Hutchison won't even pick up a baseball for about 20 weeks from the moment of the surgery at the beginning of August. Recall that he had at first tried to rehab through exercise and rest before he was forced to undergo surgery, putting him a month behind Drabek on his rehab schedule.

“I'm working with Kyle and the training staff down in Dunedin right now, just taking it slowly,” he said. “There's not very much you can do. Kyle's been through it once already, so he knows what to expect. Obviously if you have any questions, you can always ask him and he has a pretty good idea what's going on.”

When will he be back? “It's early to predict. They're all different. Right now I'm just worried about getting healthy. I don't really have a time frame of when that is. But I'll take my time and get it right and get healthy.”

It would be an obvious, if futile exercise for Hutch to think back and wonder why it happened to him at the tender age of 21, with things going so well in his rookie year. He avoids that self-flagellation.

“It is what it is, it's over with, there's no reason to,” Hutchison said. “It happened it's time to move on and get right and get healthy. You do something and it's what you love to do, it is difficult.”

THE RANT

I consider myself a baseball traditionalist. For instance, I think W's matter for a pitcher and batting average matters for a hitter. But I'm also open minded, unlike some of those that have declared WAR on the game.

But here's where I break away from tradition. The second wild card has been a fabulous idea. Far from ruining the integrity of the game, far from allowing undeserving teams into the mix, the second wild-card has juiced the month of September like nothing before it. It's been great for the game.

In fact, I have this unorthodox theory that the second wild card is why the Jays have sucked so badly in September this year. The Jays are 6-14 in the final month. Recall in past years, the Jays have continued to play hard in September, using a regular rotation and regular position players in the annual period of expanded rosters, while their opponents, the majority of which are usually out of contention, have played minor-leaguers and started Double-A arms looking ahead to next year.

I may not have exact numbers, but the feeling is always that the Jays in the past have been playing to win September games much harder than have their opponents. This year there is a difference.

With more teams in contention, three from the AL east and seven overall in the league, teams are not in cruise control. The Jays are competing vs. teams that are still playing to win and, in Toronto's specific situation, with injuries having wounded their offence and a rotation still missing two of five starters, the Jays are being crushed. With one wild card they would have already met teams playing out the string and competed hard to get as many wins as possible. Even John Farrell admits that September is no longer like September where nobody takes performance seriously preferring to evaluate young players.

“In the case of our schedule this month, everybody we played has been a contender so it's not like we're seeing guys make starts against us as we're evaluating our hitters,” Farrell said, referring to the usual plethora of AA and Triple-A studs they normally face. “It's not like we're seeing guys come out of AA and start against us. We're seeing their regular turn in the rotation.

“We're seeing playoff intensity thrown at us and the game played like that at us. (The Jays have) done a solid job in competing against that and competing with it. The fact is they're getting valuable repetition and experience this month.”

There's one wild-card possibility of which MLB is totally scared but that I would love to see. It is primarily a possibility in the National League wild-card race.

As of Monday morning, there remained the mathematical possibility that there could be a six-way tie for the second NL wild-card spot at 84-78. How, you might ask? Here are the necessities for the remainder of the schedule to create MLB's deliciously uncontrolled chaos: Cards 2-7; Brewers 5-5; Dodgers 5-4; D-backs 7-3; Phillies 7-2 and Pirates 9-1. Just looking at those numbers, maybe a six-way tie is a long shot, but the possibility of a 2, 3 or 4-way tie for the new wild-card is not beyond the realm of possibility. Baseball better start explaining how that's going to work. Halloween is coming soon.     

MLB POWER RANKINGS        

Last Week's rankings in parentheses   

1. Washington Nationals (1)

Just like happened to the Rays in '08, finishing last often enough pays off 

2. Texas Rangers (2)

Are using September to sort out pitching rotation for playoffs

3. Cincinnati Reds (4)

Taking advantage of being in a bad six-team division but hanging in

4. Oakland A's (3)

Emerging as this team's MVP is Cuban rookie Yoenis Cespedes 

5. New York Yankees (6)

CC came back strong in last start and they'll need more of that to advance  

6. San Francisco Giants (7)

Nice call on batting crown. If you're caught cheating on exam they don't give you that mark

7. Baltimore Orioles (4)

Showalter easy call as manager of the year. Maybe Duquette as executive

8. Atlanta Braves (9)

Locked in at WC-1 and no chance at division, so nobody paying attention

9. Detroit Tigers (11)

Cabrera shouldn't win MVP 'cuz his 3B defence helps cost Verlander Cy Young

10. Chicago White Sox (12)

Ventura proving Sox genius for letting Ozzie swim with the Fishes

11. Los Angeles Angels (10)

Critics questioning whether Scioscia will be back. It should be his decision

12. Milwaukee Brewers (17)

No Prince, no Greinke, inconsistent Ax, no problem. They surged anyway

13. St. Louis Cardinals (14)

Carpenter comeback is feel-good story. This year they have spot and are holding on

14. Philadelphia Phillies (15)

All they needed was a little offence. Manuel must have become smarter 

15. Los Angeles Dodgers (13)

Magic Johnson has gone underground after promising championship post-trade 

16. Tampa Bay Rays (8)

Pitching staff sets AL record for strikeouts. Unfortunately hitters lead AL too

17. Seattle Mariners (16)

This is an organization with no major stars other than Felix but plenty of talent

18. Arizona Diamondbacks (20)

D-backs not making a move when the door was opened to them 

19. Kansas City Royals (24)

Will be a lot of off-season interest in some of their young arms

20. San Diego Padres (19)

Another organization that received no attention but on the way up

21. Pittsburgh Pirates (18)

Didn't Travis Snider say how great it was to be traded to a contender? 

22. Boston Red Sox (22)

Valentine developing a knack for putting his players in a position to fail  

23. New York Mets (23)

Nice ballpark, great baseball town, not a very good team 

24. Toronto Blue Jays (21)

Have never seen a Jays team deal with so many embarrassing moments

25. Minnesota Twins (25)

They can't give up on this roster because of promise to fans when Target Field built

26. Miami Marlins (26)

Girardi was let go after NL Manager-of-the-year. Where does that leave Ozzie?

27. Cleveland Indians (27)

Once promising starting pitching has been shredded as season goes on 

28. Chicago Cubs (29)

Anthony Rizzo will become a big-time player. But they need more 

29. Colorado Rockies (28)

Could this be the end of the road for manager Jim Tracy as well?

30. Houston Astros (30)

'Stros take heart looking at Nats role model of building through losing 

ONE FOR THE ROAD:

I regret, for myself, that I missed this week's trip to the Big Apple because of another conflicting assignment from The Star back in the GTA, that unfolded mostly on Wednesday as the Yankees series was Tuesday to Thursday. Staying home, as part of a team of seven Star news reporters, I found this week's GTA assignment for a future special section in our paper very rewarding. Upon further review, as I outline the day, to the casual observer it may seem this pleasure with the 24 hours is because I'm a little different than most people and sleep and food are an afterthought. Hey, life is too short.

Consider that I left home on Tuesday evening at 11:35 p.m. I drove to Greenwood in Scarborough for a 12:40 a.m. interview, then to Keele and Sheppard at 2:15 a.m., then to Black Creek and Eglinton for 4 a.m., then to Appleby and the QEW for 6 a.m., then to Acton for 7:10 a.m., then to Brampton for 9:30 a.m. then to Keele and Lawrence for 11:15 a.m. then to Kennedy in Scarborough for 6:00 p.m. I had five Tim Horton's medium coffees, black, one iced cappuccino, one large Monster energy drink, four bottles of water, one bag of pretzels (cuz I had to use the washroom at a Shell station at 3:45 a.m.), a Burger King Devil Whopper and a piece of apple pie. The breakfast of champions, is I believe what they call it. I got home from this odyssey around 9:45 p.m. making it a 22-hour tour of duty, logging a total of 540 km without ever leaving town – except for Acton, which was worth the drive.

In any case, I missed on TV most of the Jays' split doubleheader in New York, although I did see the Escobar saga play out on Tuesday. I caught up on the baseball action via late night highlights and the fine reporting of Mark Zwolinski in The Star. I physically caught up with the Jays in Tampa on Friday.

Ah, Florida. Other than Tropicana Field being such a joke of a ballpark, the trip to Tampa is usually quite pleasant. My modus operandi is to rent a car at the greatest airport in the world, Tampa International, stay at a hotel just across the Courtney Campbell Causeway on Gulf to Bay in Clearwater and make the 20-25 minute commute straight down I-275 to the Trop for games. Life is good.

The personal preference of staying in Clearwater is pretty much for the familiarity of being in the Jays' spring training sphere of influence, plus the occasional need to drive up to the Mattick Complex to see some minor leaguers, or some rehabbing major leaguers, or, one time, it was some guy named Vlad Guerrero, who looked like a pretty good prospect at the time but who ended up being too demanding.

Friday, I landed in Tampa and rented a 2013 Ford Escape. A review of the Escape? Too many blind spots, a sound system slanted at a weird 80-degree angle and one of those difficult computer screens that make you want to wear sunglasses at night when you turn it on and likely could lead to a Thelma and Louise cliff dive while you're trying to find a local hip-hop station or sports news using the seek buttons which are disturbingly flush to the console and hard to spot. Plenty of get up and go.

This is probably the easiest MLB ballpark to access if you have a car. South on I-275, veer off on the exit to old St. Pete, a quick right along Martin Luther King and another right on Central. I always try and get there early enough before a night game -- around 1 p.m. -- to be able to stop at historic Ferg's on Central Ave. for lunch. Clam chowder and a chicken wrap, all live sports on TV and always an available parking spot right in front of the popular pre- and post-game venue, especially at that late-afternoon hour. Oh and you can leave your windows down and the motor running because it's right across from a bustling police station. Parking lot, just flash your press pass, walk across the street into the press gate, elevator up one floor to the press box, ready to go. Did I ever say life is good?             

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL HISTORY:

9/24/57 The final game at Ebbets Field as the Dodgers pack up and move to L.A. It's a 2-0 win over the Pirates in front of 6,702 fans... 9/24/74 The veteran Tigers' star Al Kaline collects his 3,000th hit off Dave McNally of the O's on a 5-4 win... 9/24/85 The Expos' Andre Dawson bangs out three homers, including a pair of three-run shots in the fifth inning in a 17-15 win at Wrigley Field. He ties Willie McCovey as the only players with multiple home run innings twice in a career... 9/24/92 Jays' DH Dave Winfield becomes the oldest player in history with 100 RBIs, in his 2,700th game at 40... 9/25/55  Tigers' Al Kaline becomes the youngest batting champion in AL history at 20... 9/25/61 a homer off Jack Fisher of the O's gives Roger Maris a tie with Babe Ruth at 60 home runs... 9/25/81 Astros' Nolan Ryan facing the Dodgers tosses his fifth no-hitter, an all-time high... 9/25/86 Mike Scott tosses a no-hitter vs. the Giants the first time a clinching game has had no hits... 9/26/83 Cards' RH Bob Forsch no-hits the Expos 3-0 at Busch Stadium. The Expos are embarrassed when Forsch hits Gary Carter in the butt in the seventh inning and laughs... 9/26/71 O's RH Jim Palmer wins his 20th game, joining teammates Mike Cuellar, Pat Dobson and Dave McNally as only the second staff in MLB history with four 20-game winners. First was the 1920 White Sox... 9/26/79 Phil Niekro of the Braves beats his brother Joe Niekro of the Astros to join him as the only NL pitchers with 20 wins. The only other time two 20-game brothers happened was '65 with Gaylord and Jim Perry... 9/27/83 Expos' Tim Raines joins Ty Cobb as the only players in history with 70 steals and 70 RBIs in a season... 9/27/96 Barry Bonds steals his 40th base joining Jose Canseco as the only 40-40 men in history... 9/27/98 Mark McGwire crashes homers No. 69 and 70 vs. the Expos on the final day of the season. No. 70 is against Carl Pavano... 9/28/41 Ted Williams chooses to play both ends of a DH sitting on a .400 average and goes 6-for-8 to finish at .406... 9/28/60 Ted Williams hits the final homer of his career against Jack Fisher of the O's... 9/28/95 Greg Harris of the Expos becomes the first player to pitch with both hands in the same game, facing two Reds right-handed and two left-handed... 9/29/54 The iconic catch by Willie Mays of the Giants off Vic Wertz of the Indians in Game 1 of the World Series at the Polo Grounds... 9/29/68 Red Sox star Carl Yastrzemski, coming off a Triple Crown season the year before, wins the AL batting title with a .301 average the lowest in history. Runner-up is Danny Cater of the A's at .290. It's just one of the reasons MLB lowers the mounds in time for the '69 season... 9/29/71 Expos' pest Ron Hunt is drilled by Milt Pappas of the Cubs, the 50th HBP of the season, a MLB record... 9/30/27 Babe Ruth hits homer No. 60 off Tom Zachary of the Senators... 9/30/72 Legendary Roberto Clemente strokes his 3,000th career hit off Jon Matlack of the Mets. Three months later on a New Year's Eve on a mercy flight to Nicaragua, his plane goes down off the coast of Puerto Rico ending his life... 9/30/88 Dave Stieb of the Jays loses a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth on a Jim Traber double ripped inches over the glove of 1B Fred McGriff.                 

BIRTHDAYS: 9/24 Johnny Mac 38, Kevin Millar 41, Paul Spoljaric 42, Jim Acker 54, Hubie Brooks 56... 9/25 Dave Weathers 43, Sal Butera 60, Phil Rizzuto 95...9/26 Dave Martinez 48, Dave Duncan 67...9/27 Mike Schmidt 63, Gary Sutherland 68, Johnny Pesky 93...9/28 Charlie Kerfeld 49, Todd Frohwirth 50, Dave Rajsich 61...9/29 Warren Cromartie 59, Ken Macha 62.      

AL ROUNDUP

The Rangers have the classic situation in which they control their own fate. The A's are visiting Arlington for a four-game set and with a magic number to clinch the division of seven, a sweep of the A's would do it for them. Even a split would reduce the magic number to three games. OF Josh Hamilton has been dealing with vision issues and was not even in Seattle. He is battling Tigers 3B Miguel Cabrera and Jays' 1B Edwin Encarnacion for the home run title. Wondering how RH Yu Darvish is doing? He leads the staff with 214 Ks and is one the Rangers pitchers that seems to be getting stronger as the playoffs approach. Last year's post-season hero, C Mike Napoli is batting .389 with three homers since his return from the DL with quad issues... The Tigers' Cabrera did not homer on Sunday but his two doubles gave him 40 for the year. He and Hank Greenberg are the only Tigers ever with 40 doubles and 40 homers. If the Tigers make it to the playoffs, MGR Jim Leyland should insist that CL Jose Valverde give up that silly choreography when he enters a game, the dramatic pose, the hop, the dance and sprint to the mound. That's great if you never blow a save, but he lost again in extra innings on Sunday and even to teammates it must be getting old... It's a pennant race and it's Alex Rodriguez, so why else should Yankees rookie Melky Mesa feel bad. Pinch-running at second base he raced around third with the winning run on a 1B in the 14th against Oakland. But he felt he missed third, screeched to a halt and scrambled back to the bag. The Bombers went on to win, thankfully for the kid. A major factor in the AL East race? The O's are 27-9 in one run games and 16-2 in extra innings. The Yankees 21-23 in one-run and 5-3 in extras. Jays MGR John Farrell talked about how the O's are helped in the future by their success in the past. He spoke of the streak of extra inning wins the Jays put up last year at the Rogers Centre: “You would be in the dugout saying, 'Just tie this game up and we'll win it.'...Following Sunday's oh-fer, A's RF Josh Reddick ran his hitless streak to 28 at-bats. He is batting .138 in September. LF Yoenis Cespedes has emerged as the A's MVP. He slammed his 20th homer on Sunday. He and Reddick are the first A's teammates with 20 HR each since Nick Swisher and Jack Cust in '07. The A's brought up RH Jeremy Accardo to bolster the bullpen for the final week. The former Jay was released by the Indians in August and had been pitching in a holding pen in Phoenix just in case, since the Triple-A Sacramento season ended.

NL ROUNDUP

It was a decision of the player, that was presented to MLB by the union, but when Melky Cabrera announced that he would withdraw his eligibility for the NL batting title it was the proper call. Rule 10-22 (a) states that a player can qualify for the batting title if his required plate appearances are shy of the number, however if you were to add the required number of hitless at-bats to his numbers to get him to 502 PA, and his average still leads the league, he wins the title. Cabrera was one appearance shy and would just lose a point from his .346 average. The addendum states that the procedure cannot be done for a suspended player under the Joint Drug Program for PEDs. In 1955 Ted Williams would have won the batting title if the rule had existed. Instead a 20-year-old Tiger Al Kaline became the youngest batting champ in history... After the Giants clinched the division on Saturday, MGR Bruce Bochy announced LH Barry Zito would be included on the post-season roster. He was left off in 2010... Cards' RH Jake Westbrook, a 13-game winner, has been shut down due to discomfort as he was attempting to come back... When LH Gio Gonzalez won his 20th game on Saturday he became the first wearing a Washington uniform since Bob Porterfield in 1953. Tyler Clippard has struggled lately in his role as closer, allowing eight runs in his last seven innings. Meanwhile former CL Drew Storen has 10 straight scoreless appearances and may get his job back... Brewers 3B Aramis Ramirez stroked his 49th double on Sunday. The club record is 53 by former Jays' 1B Lyle Overbay... Phillies' RH Roy Halladay was knocked out of Saturday's start vs. the Braves after 1-2/3 innings. He was examined and told reporters he has spasms in his right shoulder. His status for the rest of the season is to be determined... Reds MGR Dusty Baker returned to Cincy after four days in a Chicago hospital diagnosed with irregular heartbeat. The 63-year-old swung by the ballpark on Saturday but did not stay for the game. Chris Speier continued as acting manager in his place as the Reds clinched their second division in three years. CL Aroldis Chapman returned on Saturday from a club-imposed 11-day sabbatical to keep him rested for the post-season... RH Kris Medlen has been tabbed by Braves MGR Fredi Gonzalez as the starter for the wild-card game on Oct. 5. He is their hottest pitcher. Likely RH Tim Hudson would start NLDS Game 1 if they advance... If Dodgers LH Clayton Kershaw can stand the pain, he can pitch a couple more times as long as the Dodgers are still in the wild-card race. Kershaw pitched five innings Sunday with an injured hip that specialists say will not suffer any more damage if he continues to pitch. It does hurt though.

JAYS MINOR LEAGUE ROUNDUP

The Blue Jays' eight farm teams combined for a 427-395 record.

Triple-A Las Vegas (79-64)  on Thursday the Jays announced that they were ending their affiliation with the '51s and were signing a two-year agreement with the Buffalo Bisons. The Bisons had been courted by the Jays after their agreement with Syracuse ended following the '08 season. But the Bisons, who had ended their relationship with the Indians, chose the Mets' bid, with the New York connection and all that. In four seasons at Las Vegas, the Jays affiliate was a combined 287-288. 

AA-New Hampshire (61-81) ended the EL season in last place.

A-Dunedin (78-55) posted the best record in the FSL's North Division and second overall. Jays lost the first round playoff series to Lakeland. MGR Mike Redmond was named to the FSL all-stars...

A-Lansing (82-55) posted the best overall record in the Midwest League.

A-Vancouver (46-30) won second straight Northwest League championship.

A-Bluefield (29-37) finished last in their division.

Rk-Gulf Coast Blue Jays (22-38).

Rk-Dominican Summer League (30-35).

The bullpen: Baltimore Orioles top Oakland A’s as AL’s surprise team

As part of the major league power rankings that can be found further down in The Bullpen, the teams ranked Nos. 3-4 overall are the Oakland A’s and the Baltimore Orioles, two teams currently holding the first and second wild-card spots in the AL standings.

The two surprise contenders faced off on the west coast on the weekend with the A’s taking two out of three. The A’s enter the week with a record of 84-62, trailing the Rangers by three games. Meanwhile the O’s are 82-64 and have been battling the Yankees for first place, trailing by one game. Which team is the bigger surprise?

PREVIOUS BULLPEN BLOGS

Jays manager John Farrell wants Chad Mottola as associate batting coach, Sept. 10

Blue Jays fans should never forget the Expos and baseball in Montreal, Sept. 4

The A’s have done this before under GM Billy Beane, parlaying great young pitching and a mix-and-match offence to create a contender out west. The formula is simple. Just hire a manager that’s not one of the elite, that doesn’t consider himself part of the show, a strategic genius, in this case Bob Melvin. Then give him a developing young rotation and a sturdy if no-name bullpen. Add a line-up with patience and power, with unofficial platoons at several positions. Mix for 162 games over a low heat and voila, if things work out, you have a contender.

Still, this is an amazing story. The A’s lost their only two veteran starting pitchers, Bartolo Colon to a 50-game suspension for performance-enhancing drugs and Brandon McCarthy to a life-threatening head injury, a fractured skull suffered on a vicious line drive back through the middle.

That leaves the rotation with 23-year-olds, Jarrod Parker (11-8) and Dan Straily (2-1); two 24-year-olds, A.J. Griffin (6-0) and Brett Anderson (4-1) and 25-year-old Tommy Milone (13-10).

The former closer, Ryan Cook went to the all-star game representing the A’s, then in July was replaced by Grant Balfour, the saves leader among Australians. Middle relief is now manned by Cook, lefty Sean Doolittle, a former first baseman, lefty Jerry Blevins, side arming right-hander Pat Neshek and another nondescript but effective righty, Evan Scribner.

As for the batting order, the A's traded catcher Kurt Suzuki at mid-season and replaced him with rookie Derek Norris and Canadian George Kottaras. Third baseman Brandon Inge was signed after being released by the Tigers, was injured and has been replaced by Josh Donaldson. First baseman Chris Carter has been an A’s prospect for too many years to be considered a prospect, but is now a prospect. Shortstop Stephen Drew was a key acquisition obtained from the D-backs.

But it’s the outfield that has remained key to the A’s offence with Josh Reddick, obtained from the Red Sox in the winter, Cuban defector and rookie Yoenis Cespedes, signed partly as a result of his eye-catching YouTube scouting video, and veteran Coco Crisp, who provides whatever speed there is at the top of the line-up, for an organization that doesn't really value speed,. Second baseman Jemile Weeks was displaced by the former shortstop Cliff Pennington.

The A's rank 29th overall in batting average, 19th in runs scored, 25th in on-base and 18th in slugging percentage. Reddick and Cespedes are the only A’s that may reach 130 games for the year.

The Orioles must be considered the bigger surprise of the two clubs. They have not been a contender since 1997, in fact, have not won 80 games in any of the past 15 years until this one. The O’s have allowed 20 more runs that they have scored, rank 16th in runs scored, 21st in average, 23rd in on-base and 12th in slugging percentage.

The O’s farm system has not been productive and had very few good looking prospects when GM Dan Duquette took over, so he went about mixing, matching and looking for bargains. Compared to the A’s, the Orioles were plugging holes more than building towards contending.

The O’s have just one pitcher with more than 10 wins, 27-year-old Wei-Yin Chen (12-9).But they do have 19 pitchers with at least one victory. The current rotation includes Miguel Gonzalez, 28, who’s is 6-4, Jason Hammel, 30, who is 8-6, Zach Britton, 24, who is 5-3 and journeyman left-hander Joe Saunders, 31, who is 2-2 since being acquired in August.

The bullpen has been a no-name strength, led by closer Jim Johnson and setup men Pedro Strop, Luis Ayala, Darren O'Day and Brian Matusz. Consider that the O’s tried Randy Wolf and Dana Eveland in the rotation. It's been a work in progress.

As for the line-up, they have lost Nick Markakis for the season and long ago signed and then lost Jim Thome. Oh, the farm system did send them one blessing in rookie Manny Machado to play third base. He has seemed to come up huge more often than not and has solidified the defence. Other keys are catcher Matt Wieters, centrefielder Adam Jones and shortstop J.J. Hardy.

They did not know that Mark Reynolds could play a decent first base and Chris Davis could play right and they went to the scrap heap for left fielder Nate McLouth.

But the key that should have been the biggest clue to any potential 2012 success for the O's was the presence of manager Buck Showalter entering his second full season at the helm of the O's. In his second year with the Yankees he went from 76 to 88 wins; with Texas he went from 71 to 89 wins, with the Diamondbacks he went from 65 to 100 wins and with the O's, he has gone from 69 to 81 and counting. Yes, he took over during the season in 2010, but last year was his first full season.

It's a tossup, but because the view of the AL East as the strongest division in baseball during the winter, the choice as the biggest surprise between the two contending teams would have to be the O's.

BLUE JAYS WEEK IN REVIEW

SEASON: The Jays won their 66th game on Sunday with a 5-0 shutout of the Red Sox, ending the season at 11-7 against Boston. It was their first season series win vs. the Sox since 2005. The 66-79 record heading into Monday's off-day puts the Jays on pace to go 74-88 this year, the lowest win total since '04, when they were 67-94. Coincidentally, '04 was the third season under J.P. Ricciardi, while this is the third season under Alex Anthopoulos.

JAYS GM STANDINGS: Sunday’s win gave the Jays 232 victories in the first three seasons of Anthopoulos with 17 games remaining. Ricciardi had 231 wins in his first three years (2002-04); Gord Ash had 206 his first three (1995-97) with '97 being a shortened season after the strike settlement. Hall-of-Famer Pat Gillick won 166 in his first three years (1977-79).

HOMESTAND: The Jays were 2-4 on the just-completed home stand, losing two-of-three to the M's and then two-of-three to the Red Sox, salvaging the final game of both series. The Jays outscored opponents 25-21 in the six games, dominated by pitching, especially the bullpens. The Jays have won 10 of the last 19. Between July 29 and August 25 the Jays were 6-20, pretty much the season.

If there was one highlight starting performance, one that will stay with the young man the rest of his life, it was RH Henderson Alvarez outpitching his idol, Felix Hernandez on Thursday for an 8-3 win. Alvarez is four years younger than Fernandez, both growing up in the same area in Venezuela. Alvarez allowed three runs in seven innings, while the Jays pounded King Felix led by a two-run Adam Lind homer in the first and a three-run blast by Edwin Encarnacion in the fifth. It was Edwin's 40th home run, with 102 RBIs. Encarnacion becomes the eighth different Jays' player with 40 homers in a year. The club record is 54 by Jose Bautista who also hit 43 in '11. Carlos Delgado hit 40-plus three times, topped by 44 in '99. George Bell hit 47 in '87; Jose Canseco 46 in '98; Shawn Green 42 in '99; Tony Batista 41 in '00 and Jesse Barfield 40 in '86.

BULLPEN: The Jays bullpen is 5-2 with four saves in the last 19 games, since their last visit to Yankee Stadium on Aug. 26 – Brandon Lyon (2-0); Brad Lincoln (1-0); Darren Oliver (1-1); Steve Delabar (1-1); Casey Janssen (4 saves). Janssen in his last 14 games has a 4.50 ERA, allowing seven runs in 14 innings, on 11 hits, with two walks and 15 Ks. He has allowed two homers and blown two saves. The Jays have won both those games.

DISABLED LIST: 1B David Cooper (back strain) aggravated his injury and has been shut down. The Jays have had 18 disablements this year. RH Dustin McGowan, RH Drew Hutchison, RH Sergio Santos, RH Robert Coello, LH Luis Perez, RH Jesse Litsch, RH Kyle Drabek, Cooper and LH J.A. Happ are all out for the season. The club is currently battling the flu.

THE RANT: FUNDAMENTAL BASEBALL? ARRGHH!

I'm as much a fan of aggressive baseball as the next person. I grew up in the National League. But the Jays lack of understanding of the fundamentals of aggressive base running, who, what, when, where and how, and this club’s consistent lack of being able to execute and carry out what is being asked of them in terms of small ball and being smart has been both frustrating and appalling.

This is the major leagues. Usually to reach the major leagues, when you are possessed of above average speed, you know when and when not to be aggressive on the basepaths. And, oh yeah, you know how to bunt. The biggest culprits of ignoring game situations have been Brett Lawrie and Rajai Davis.

The other day, with already one out and already standing on second base, Lawrie chose to challenge a ground ball right in front of him. He was thrown out easily at third base with Yunel Escobar reaching first base. After the game, manager John Farrell was seen standing at Lawrie's locker, likely explaining his gaffe and why he should not have run. Minutes later when speaking to the media, Lawrie made no apologies for his overaggressive base running. In fact he was defiant. His logic? Well Escobar reached on a fielder's choice and made it to second on a passed ball, so what's the difference. Besides, it's the way he plays the game and he's not going to change. It's who he is.

This from the same guy who thought it was okay much earlier in the season to try and steal home with Jose Bautista batting with two strikes. Two strikes!! On that occasion, Lawrie was thrown out on a close play at the plate by the pitcher, but the fact is that with two strikes, Bautista on a pitch in the zone would have been compelled to swing the bat and could have injured Lawrie. Besides, he's your best RBI man. The third baseman did not see anything wrong there, either. He thought he could make it.

The Jays are apparently third in the league in successful steals of third (32 of 39) but that's not the point. You had better be safe when you are going with two outs. There is not much advantage in that situation. You are already in scoring position. There was a play recently with two out and Edwin Encarnacion batting where Davis took off to steal third. Seeing the lead runner on the move, Colby Rasmus took off for second as the trail runner, a beat late because it wasn't a called play. The centre fielder was thrown out easily, being tagged standing up not even at the dirt cut-out yet.

That's a lack of understanding of game situations. Even if Rasmus is safe, he's taking the bat out of the hands of Encarnacion. How often with nobody out have the Jays been thrown out at third base or home plate on a fielder's choice, replacing the runner in scoring position with a guy on first.

Then there was the game in Oakland where Davis was called into the game to bunt with runners on first and second. He popped the bunt towards third, failed to run and watched as the A's turned a double play. There was a game on this homestand in which Davis and Lawrie each fouled off two bunt attempts before being forced to swing away with two strikes. There was the game in which Farrell asked Lawrie to bunt the two runners over, opening up first base so the Red Sox could walk Edwin intentionally instead of pitching to Lawrie and Encarnacion with two men on.

How about Rasmus being doubled off of third base by second baseman Robinson Cano, throwing across the diamond on a play that Farrell praised as a stunning, athletic, instinctive gem by Cano. The manager was protecting his runner, because 12-year-olds learn that on a line drive with less than two out you freeze, lean back towards third because if it falls in you score anyway. If it’s caught you’re back to the bag. In no circumstance, no matter how sure you are it's a hit, do you get doubled off.

Winston Churchill said “Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” It would be one thing if the Jays base runners and hitters showed that they had learned, or that they are good bunters, but they don't and they aren't. Tim Johnson's '98 Blue Jays were an undisciplined base running bunch that ran at odd times. But they at least paid attention to the basics of fundamental aggressiveness. There are times to run and times where it's better not to. The '98s won 88 games. This group may lose 88 games.

MLB POWER RANKINGS

Last week’s rankings in parentheses

1. Washington Nationals (1)

Second best team in franchise history — to the '94 Expos

2. Texas Rangers (2)

The AL West has become the monster division in baseball and Rangers lead

3. Oakland A’s (8)

There are no key veterans in this staff except Aussie Grant Balfour

4. Baltimore Orioles (4)

The O’s are following the personal trend 0f 90-plus wins in Showalter's second full year

5. Cincinnati Reds (6)

These guys faltered the last time in playoffs. Need Rolen to be ready for Oct.

6. New York Yankees (3)

A-Rod has a chance to convince everyone he's a clutch HoF player

7. San Francisco Giants (5)

The sweetest move would be to tell Melky to just go home in the post-season

8. Tampa Bay Rays (7)

The Rays have the best rotation in the post-season mix. Is it enough?

9. Atlanta Braves (9)

Once these guys are in the post-season they will be dangerous

10. Los Angeles Angels (10)

Time is running out but their rotation is capable of a streak

11. Detroit Tigers(13)

Tigers defence was a question mark and is still a question mark

12. Chicago White Sox (11)

Hopefully for the Chisox in Sept. nobody asks Rios for an autograph

13. Los Angeles Dodgers (14)

Even after the mega-trade with Red Sox this team is heavy with question marks

14. St. Louis Cardinals (12)

Manager Mike Matheny is a great guy but nobody is pulling for the Cards

15. Philadelphia Phillies (16)

These guys are just getting back to where they should have been all along

16. Seattle Mariners (18)

The M's have a young line-up that can all get better — next year

17. Milwaukee Brewers (19)

Ryan Braun has no MVP chance because he was also good when they were bad

18. Pittsburgh Pirates (15)

If there was a 100-game Manager-of-the-Year it would be Clint Hurdle every year

19. San Diego Padres (21)

With 28 HR Headley has 15 more than previous career high. Does question need to be asked?

20. Arizona Diamondbacks (17)

The Snakes are not very good but they seem to hang around and hover in the race

21. Toronto Blue Jays (22)

Jays are having trouble finding out what they're trying to find out. Who's ready

22. Boston Red Sox (24)

Valentine not helping himself dissing the hand that's dealt him

23. New York Mets (20)

The next thing this team can look forward to is All-Star hosts in '13

24. Kansas City Royals (23)

The last thing this team had to savour was All-Star hosts in '12

25. Minnesota Twins (25)

Organization prides itself on fundamentals but needs more talent

26. Miami Marlins (26)

No real vote of confidence for manager Guillen from owner Jeff Loria

27. Cleveland Indians (28)

Could Omar Vizquel be a candidate to manage Tribe?

28. Colorado Rockies (27)

Rocky Mountain Low, Colorado

29. Chicago Cubs (29)

Theo has already informed fans to expect more of the same

30. Houston Astros (30)

Teams in the AL West can't wait till next year

ONE FOR THE ROAD

Following is a ranking of personally preferred 2012 World Series sites, selected from among the current post-season contenders based on the working conditions for media, accessibility of the stadium and quality of the activities away from the ballpark, pre- and post-game and, basically, selfishness.

1. San Francisco Giants

Walking distance from downtown hotels, AT&T Park is one of the most unique settings in the majors, with McCovey Cove and a great view of the bay beyond the right field wall. World Series games begin at 5:30 p.m. local time leaving plenty of time for a post-game meal.

2. New York Yankees

It's Yankee Stadium and the Big Apple, after all. There's the tradition and the history to give tremendous depth to any Series story, plus it's a city the never sleeps — and lately that never sweeps. The only down side is getting out of the Bronx at one in the morning.

3. Chicago White Sox

This is the best city in baseball to visit, but all things considered, again, access to the ballpark is a detriment. In addition, this is the only organization in baseball that has decided that near the foul pole in right field is the best spot to seat the media. Yeah, I know, quit whining, right?

4. St. Louis Cardinals

Again, like New York, the story writes itself because of the baseball history oozing from every corner of the city. October is a sea of Cardinal red, with polite, enthusiastic fans and a 100 per cent baseball atmosphere. Again, stadium a short walk from downtown hotels.

5. Los Angeles Angels

Start with the weather, rent a car, stay near the ballpark. Easy access, friendly staff, great looking fans. Drive to brunch in posh Laguna Beach just 30 minutes away. Get back in plenty of time for pre-game interviews, plus it's always another 5:30 p.m. local start.

6. Baltimore Orioles

The refurbished, tourist friendly Inner Harbour is what Toronto should study as a model for their waterfront. I have a soft spot in my heart for Baltimore as a World Series venue because it's where at a Game 1 snowout vs. the Pirates, I first took my wife to dinner. Great ballpark.

7. Oakland A's

One might ask why S.F. ranks No. 1 and Oakland No. 7 when you always stay at the same hotel for both and take BART to the Coliseum. Two words — The Coliseum. What a dump, tough to get to once you get off the subway and horrible working conditions. But we'll always have 'Frisco.

8. Detroit Tigers

There are two options. You can stay in Windsor and commute, or stay in Detroit and have a short commute to Comerica. Used to choose Windsor but in the words of The Boss “Tonight can you get us a ride? Gotta make it through the tunnel Got a meeting with a man on the other side.”

9. Washington Nationals

My only trip to see the Nats was old RFK Stadium, in with the Jays at the Mayflower Hotel. I believe they gave me the Eliot Spitzer Suite. I've heard good things about the new ballpark and the location and it would be fun to see a new World Series entrant — even if I hate them.

10. Tampa Bay Rays

I still believe Tropicana Field is the worst ballpark in the majors, but the accessibility of parking, press box conditions, access to clubhouses and field and the quality of the media relations makes it worthwhile. Weather's always good and there is spring training familiarity.

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL HISTORY

9/17/12 CF Casey Stengel makes his MLB debut with four hits and two steals. He goes on to a Hall-of-Fame career as a manager of mainly the Yankees and expansion Mets... 9/17/41 Stan Musial makes his MLB debut with a pair of hits... 9/17/55 3B Brooks Robinson makes his MLB debut with two hits... 9/17/80 RHP Rick Langford, currently a minor-league instructor with the Jays, gives up a homer to Rusty Staub and is relieved in the eighth, snapping a streak off 22 consecutive complete games... 9/18/56 CF Mickey Mantle of the Yankees slams his 50th HR vs. Billy Pierce on the way to the Triple Crown with one of the greatest seasons ever, batting .353 with 52 HR and 130 RBIs... 9/18/76 Frank Robinson as player/manager of the Indians singles vs. Rudy May of the O's in his final career at-bat as an active player... 9/18/87 Darrell Evans for the Tigers becomes the first player in history to hit 30-plus HR at the age of 40... 9/19/31 Lefty Grove wins his 30th game for the A's. It's the last time anyone reaches that mark until Denny McLain of the Tigers in 1968... 9/19/98 Alex Rodriguez of the M's homers to become the second player in MLB history to record 40 homers and 40 steals. The first was the 'roided up Jose Canseco with the A's in 1988... 9/19/68 Mickey Mantle slams the 536th and final homer of his illustrious career vs. Jim Lonborg of the Red Sox... 9/20/98 The Iron Bird, Cal Ripken, Jr. takes himself out of the O's line-up vs. El Duque and the Yankees, replaced by 3B Ryan Minor, snapping his consecutive games played streak at 2,632... 9/21/81 Steve Carlton of the Phils fans Andre Dawson for his 3,118th career K, setting an NL record. Amazingly, the Expos line-up that day in a 1-0 17-inning win over the Phils, included two future Hall-of-Famers (Dawson and Gary Carter), four future managers (Terry Francona, Brad Mills, Jerry Manuel and Larry Parrish) and five future MLB coaches (Jerry White, Tim Raines, Tim Wallach, Chris Speier and Wallace Johnson)... 9/22/11 Cy Young wins his final game of 511 in a fabulous MLB career, beating the Pirates 1-0... 9/22/57 Duke Snider cracks Hrs No. 39-40 of the year, the last ever at Ebbets Field as the Dodgers lead a West Coast migration heading to the Coliseum in Los Angeles... 9/22/68 The Twins starting pitcher is utility man Cesar Tovar who goes on to play all nine positions in a 2-1 win over the A's. The opposing SS Bert Campaneris is the only other man in MLB history to accomplish the feat... 9/22/93 The expansion Rockies play their final game at spacious Mile High Stadium setting a major-league attendance record of 4,483,350. The sight lines were terrible but the fans did not care... 9/23/08 Fred Merkle's famous boner for the Giants, as a walk off hit results instead, in an appeal at second base and a game-ending fielder's choice. Merkle's premature celebration results in a tie game and a replay for the pennant on Oct. 8 that the Cubs won. Oops... 9/23/78 RF Lyman Bostock of the Angels is killed in a case of mistaken identity by a shotgun blast in Gary, Ind., following a day game against the White Sox. The stunned Angels play with heavy hearts the next afternoon under former Jays manager Jim Fregosi... 9/22/84 The Tigers win their 100th game of the season, making Sparky Anderson the first manager to win 100 games in each league.

BIRTHDAYS: 9/17 John Franco, 52; Bobby Wine, 74; Orlando Cepeda, 75... 9/18 Ryne Sandberg, 53; Tony Scott, 61; Ken Brett, 64; Harvey Haddix, 87... 9/19 Jim Abbott 45; Randy Myers, 49; Joe Morgan, 69; Duke Snider, 86... 9/20 Tom Tresh 75... 9/21 Cecil Fielder 49; Danny Cox 53; Sam McDowell, 69; John McHale 91... 9/22 Mike Matheny, 42; Jim Fairey, 68; Larry Dierker, 66... 9/23 Dennis Lamp, 60; Jim Rooker, 70.

JAYS MINOR LEAGUE ROUNDUP

The Blue Jays' eight farm teams combined for a 427-395 record.

AAA-Las Vegas (79-64) missed playoffs with fifth-best record in 16-team PCL. In four seasons at Las Vegas, the Jays affiliate was a combined 287-288...Alex Anthopoulos begins negotiations with Buffalo.

AA-New Hampshire (61-81) ended the EL season in last place.

A-Dunedin (78-55) posted the best record in the FSL's North Division and second overall. Jays lost the first round playoff series to Lakeland. MGR Mike Redmond was named to the FSL all-stars.

A-Lansing (82-55) posted the best overall record in the Midwest League.

A-Vancouver (46-30) won second straight Northwest League championship.

A-Bluefield (29-37) finished last in their division.

Rk-Gulf Coast Blue Jays (22-38).

Rk-Dominican Summer League (30-35)

AL ROUNDUP

The Rangers are making pitching moves in an attempt to stay ahead of the A's in the AL West, that has far and away become the best division in baseball, taking over from the AL East. Rangers' MGR Ron Washington announced that 21-year-old rookie RH Martin Perez will take over the rotation spot of RH Scott Feldman as of Friday. In Feldman’s last seven starts he is 0-5, with a 6.99 ERA. In his 22 starts, the Rangers are 7-15. Feldman began the season in the bullpen. C Mike Napoli finally returned to the Rangers line-up, but will at least get four days off when RH Yu Darvish pitches down the stretch. Darvish in his six starts with C Geovany Soto is 4-1, with a 2.32 ERA. Darvish's endurance over the course of a full major-league season had been in question, but he's finishing strong...What ever happened to RH Ernesto Frieri, the light-out closer that the Angels seemingly stole from the Padres in May? On Saturday, with RH Zack Greinke within two outs of a shutout, MGR Mike Scioscia brought his closer in who promptly gave up back-to-back homers for a Royals' walk off win. Angels 1B Mike Trumbo homered on Sunday. It was his first extra-base hit since August 21, over 18 games. The Angels will have no excuses for their showdown vs. the Rangers at home. The rotation is set up with RH Jered Weaver, LH C.J. Wilson and Greinke... The Rays are suffering from a fading rookie LH Matt Moore who has lasted just four and three innings in his last two starts. OF Sam Fuld, the role model for wrist recovery for Jays' RF Jose Bautista, is out for a few days with a right hamstring strain. Kudos to Rays' MGR Joe Maddon who is constantly promoting his coaches to manage elsewhere, in the same way Terry Francona did when he was with the Red Sox. Maddon is pushing his bench coach, Dave Martinez, towards the soon to be vacant Astros' job. “Obviously if they chose him, they'd made a great choice, and I so wish him well,” Maddon said of Martinez. “We'd always hate to lose him, but that would be the evolution of his career. That ballpark and that city with their tradition fits perfect, and the fact that they're going to the American League, and his knowledge of the American League, I think would be very beneficial, too.”... The biggest differences between the Tigers last year and this year have been the closer and the defence. CL Jose Valverde should cut down on his entrance pantomime with all the accompanying choreography unless he is perfect. He blew and lost Sunday's game vs. the Indians, even though earlier in the game it was the defence that let them down. The Tigers lead the AL in unearned runs allowed. It will be tough for them to go into next season with 3B Miguel Cabrera and 1B Prince Fielder at the corners. A good rotation target for the Jays in the off-season might be RH Rick Porcello who throws a lot of groundballs and has not been helped by the Tiger pylons.

NL ROUNDUP

The Giants have been an amazing story. Even with the loss of all-star CF Melky Cabrera to a drug suspension and the disappointment of RH Tim Lincecum, the Giants have reached a magic number of nine as they start a 10-game home stand. In fact, they are said to be seriously considering just asking Cabrera to go home when his PED 50-game suspension ends, if they are deep in the playoffs. Little noted is the comeback of LH Barry Zito, who has helped right the rotation with some strong starts and his best season since '06. Zito is 12-8 and the Giants have won his last eight starts...The Cards wild-card hopes are looking up. They beat the Dodgers on Sunday for a one-game lead for WC-II and now play nine straight against the Cubs and Astros the only two teams in MLB with a winning percentage under .400. RH Chris Carpenter amazingly will be starting on Friday vs. the Cubs after a nerve problem in his right shoulder has kept him out all year... The Phils looked like they were charging until they got juiced at Minute Maid Park losing three of four to the woeful Astros. 1B Ryan Howard in Sept. is hitting .193 with 15 Ks in 15 games. The 'Stros even walked 2B Chase Utley in order to face Howard. LH Cliff Lee is facing the Mets Monday night and is 3-0, 0.99 ERA in his last four starts... Here's one that will make you go “Hmm!” Braves RH Kris Medlen and Nats' RH Stephen Strasburg had Tommy John surgery the same week in August 2010. While Strasburg has been shut down for the year due to an inning count, Medlen started vs. the Nats on Friday and shut them down. Medlen was used in relief the first chunk of the season, obviously saving enough bullets where if the Braves got to a wild-card game, he would be the logical choice for the start. The Braves have won the last 20 Medlen starts, the longest streak since the Yankees won 20 straight Roger Clemens starts in 2001... It's tough coming back as a hitter after time off in the middle of a season. Look at C J.P. Arencibia and 3B Brett Lawrie with the Jays. Look at 1B Joey Votto with the Reds. Votto is 10-for-33-.303 since coming back from a couple of knee procedures, but has just two doubles. “Driving the ball through the middle of the field, through the gaps, out of the ballpark, that will come at some point,” Votto said to Reds' media on the weekend. “Some players just have the natural stroke that you throw them in the lineup and all of the sudden they turn on a ball and hit it out of the ballpark. I feel like I've got a process swing. It takes a long time to get to where it needs to be and to stay there. The advantage — if I'm healthy — more often than not, it tends to stay there." The Reds MGR Dusty Baker has sat LH Aroldis Chapman for six days as part of a master plan to keep him fresh... One Brewers pitcher is on the way up and one is on the way down and the way out. The 23-year-old rookie RH Wily Peralta is 2-0, with a 1.80 ERA in his three starts, while RH Shaun Marcum, on his way to free-agency, is 0-1, with a 5.70 ERA in his four starts since returning from the DL with elbow issues. The Brew Crew is a red-hot 20-6 into Monday.

Blue Jays mailbag: Competition with Red Sox will continue into offseason

Suffice it to say the Jays have never had a season quite like the one they are currently having. Season-ending injuries to key players, including the two-time defending home run champ, plus two starters and a closer. Add to that a healthy starting ace who has now lost 12 decisions in a row. 

The struggling Jays head to Boston to face a completely different Red Sox team that looked disinterested and listless on their recent West Coast trip. The Sox must be viewed in a different light than ever before. It's like looking in a mirror.

After shedding $260 million in future payroll via a huge  trade with the Dodgers, the Sox are setting themselves up to likely be going after the same free agents and the same players in trade as are the Jays in an effort to reload into an instant contender — with different faces to redo the clubhouse culture. They're looking for high character guys with talent that can step in and create an immediate winner.

What?? So, it seems, are the Jays.

Oh, by the way, the Red Sox may also be interested in seeking permission from the Jays to speak to manager John Farrell as a replacement for Bobby Valentine, who is greasing his own skids daily with some decidedly erratic behaviour, including an offer to punch a local radio host in the mouth for asking a question in a phone interview that he didn't appreciate.

Should the Jays even consider letting the Sox talk to their manager with a year left on his contract or should they start negotiating an extension to lock up Farrell for another three years beyond 2013? That's an internal discussion that will continue for the remainder of the season, because that process won't start in Boston while Valentine still sits in the manager's chair.

Recall those same Farrell-to-Boston questions arose last October before Valentine was hired, but at the time the Jays skipper who was pitching coach in Boston from 2007-10, had just made his debut and had two years left on his contract. Plus, the Jays believed they could contend in '12 so they changed their own rules about accommodating their baseball personnel that wanted to leave and now say that they will now not allow their employees to leave for a parallel move. The Jays would love to finish with fewer than 90 losses, meaning they need 12 more wins.

On to the Mailbag:     

Q-Richard,

My problem all year long has been the use of the 25-man roster. Why 13 pitchers which seriously depletes your bench strength? Then on Sept. 1, they recall two more pitchers when the rosters expanded! With no bench strength, the playoffs will be a dream only. You can't just play the same eight (players) game-in and game-out — you're just looking at someone breaking down.

Dave Mulholland, Toronto

A-I agree with you. I have never understood 13 pitchers and 12 players and the Jays insisting that that balance is a necessity. There have been so many games this lost season where it has come down to late innings and the bullpen has six pitchers staring through the fence and the dugout has just one healthy body to play a position. This decade, maybe even this organization, has been ridiculous in terms of babying bullpen arms. Relievers used to pitch 3-4 games in a row several times per year with at least one or two of those being multiple innings. But the Jays have run into situations where Omar Vizquel has had to remain in a game when another player would have been better, but none was available. It's not even just having 12 position players, it's having some of those guys with nagging one or two game injuries that has even hampered the best match-ups against certain pitchers. It's been wrongheaded. 

Q-Is there some reason why the Jays aren't giving Carlos Villanueva the respect he deserves? He's only done everything they could have asked and more, and has really stepped up this year. He's a free agent at the end of this season, but if I were he, I certainly wouldn't give the Jays any home discount. Is there something more to the story that fans don't know about? Does he have horrible BO or something? Thanks,

Richard Worzel, Toronto

A-I agree with you that if Carlos Villanueva has not noticed the disrespect he's been getting from the Jays as a future member of the rotation, then he's not paying attention. But he is. If the Jays continue to regard him as the ultimate swingman, rather than as a No. 5 starter, then they will not offer him nearly enough to be competitive with other teams that have been scouting the Jays in the second half. Villanueva is a consistent 6-7 innings, 0-4 earned runs guy that can throw 100 pitches and keep his team in the game every time out. That is the definition of a fifth starter on a good team. I think you may be digging a little deep looking for reasons. I would not be surprised the more starts Villanueva makes the more the Jays begin seriously thinking about making him an offer as a rotation guy for three years.  

Q-Hey, Read your column every chance I get. Love to hear your baseball knowledge.

Had an idea on next year. Maybe outside the box a bit, and far from complete but an idea. So. Watching Rajai Davis and Anthony Gose running, wow, love to see both. Like Buck Martinez always says on broadcasts, “look what speed does.” So, Gose in right, Davis in left. Jose Bautista always says he will play where the team needs him. Back at third. Need a second baseman next year? Brett Lawrie works. He played there before. Edwin Encarnacion at first. Yunel Escobar, short. Colby Rasmus, centre. Leaves options for injuries or trade options for pitching? Just an idea. I know Davis isn't perfect defensively but maybe speed on basepaths makes up for it.

Curious to see what you think.

Dan Frook, Fergus

A-I love baseball speed, also, dating back to my NL days. But for baseball speed to pay off, it has to have the ability to reach base on its own and to play defence in order to bolster a pitching staff. At this moment, Gose can play defence, but can't reach base enough to merit a starting role. Davis, for his part, can't play defence well enough to reflect his blazing speed and when he does play on an everyday basis his offence starts to fall off. Gose, I believe, needs another half-season of seasoning. Davis needs to be in the role the Jays imagined, to be a fourth outfielder on a good major-league team, complementing a left-handed hitting starter and coming off the bench as a pinch-runner, a disruptor in late innings. 

That being said, if Bautista was going to change positions, I would ask him to shift to first base. First base can be a leadership position if shortstop is not. By leadership, I mean the ability and willingness to walk to the mound and calm a young pitcher down or to make sure everyone is on the same page in defending bunts, etc. It was something Carlos Delgado did. The Jays haven't had that first baseman ever since. If Bautista was at first base, Encarnacion could be the primary DH with the ability to play first base as well. There is no reason to think that Lawrie has not already found his best defensive position at third-base. He is fearless on ground balls and makes beautiful feeds to second base on double plays. However, if Gose is not ready to take a regular position and Sierra is not an everyday right fielder yet, then that change of Jose to first base could wait. As for second base, I would head to spring training and give Adeiny Hechavarria a chance to win the second base position.     

Q-Hello Mr. Griffin,

This might be a dumb question, but you have talked about the idea of having two hitting coaches with the Jays as being a good idea. With the Las Vegas season being over do/could the Jays (or any team), call up coaches, like they call up players to be with the major league team until the end of the year? Thanks,

Chuck Giles, Washago

A-Yes, I am in favour of the Jays' utilizing Dwayne Murphy and an associate hitting coach, in this case Chad Mottola, who has been the Triple-A hitting coach the past three years and has worked with virtually all of the home grown players. The Rangers and the Cardinals both had such a setup with two hitting coaches last season and they each went to the World Series.

Mottola has been called up already from Vegas, but will not be in uniform for games. In September, major-league teams are able to add one coach in uniform and this year that will be Luis Rivera, who has been with the team all season. Last September, Mottola was also called up and was in uniform. I think the time has come to add him as an associate hitting coach for the year. Another pair of eyes on the hitters during games could not hurt. They have worked well together for the last three springs.    

Q-Richard,

I love the mailbag and it's the highlight of my (baseball reading) week when it happens. With a few Jays farmhands starting to find time with the big club, I've started to wonder how good these guys will actually become when they're ready for the show. I've heard (Justin) Nicolino called a Tom Glavine in waiting, (Travis) D'Arnaud the next Brian McCann and Gose the next Kenny Lofton. Are any of these projections reasonable or are they far beyond what we should expect? How good are the Blue Jays' top prospects? Which players (current or former) would you say provide the best comparison?

Thanks,

Joseph C, Toronto

A-I think Justin Nicolino would prefer to be compared to Cliff Lee, which is not a bad choice. Nicolino has a full repertoire that needs to be pared down to his four best pitches before he gets to the Show. He's got two- and four-seam fastballs, change, slider and curveball. It will probably come down to the two FBs, the curve and change. As for D'Arnaud, as a right-handed hitter and at his size, a better comparison might be to Buster Posey of the Giants. The Jays hope that D'Arnaud has that same leadership quality as the Giants' star and the ability to provide some solid offence to the mix. The Gose/Lofton comparison has been an obvious one since the first spring training that the Jays' youngster was invited to play in spring games. It's never the right question to ask is a player the next so-and-so. The comparisons are always just guidelines to think about when you first see a player. They will always develop their own personality if they're good enough. 

Q-Richard,

Always enjoy your column! The Blue Jays coaching staff preaches 'pitch to contact' with its starters. How common is this among MLB teams? Is this a philosophy based on the talent you have available? Does the philosophy extend down through an organization into the minors? How effective of a strategy do you think it is? It seems the most effective starters for the Jays — Carlos Villenueva, J.A. Happ and Brandon Morrow — seem to get a lot of Ks.

Thanks,

Mitch K, Toronto

A-I don't believe the Jays' coaching staff ever has preached “pitching to contact” as the be-all and end-all of pitching philosophy. They actually prefer “big arms with swing-and-miss ability,” guys like Steve Delabar. What is perceived as encouraging “pitching to contact” is when a pitcher constantly has a pitch count at, or over, 80 pitches through four innings, in that area of inefficiency. So what the Jays are looking for is establishing strike one and getting into pitcher's counts, meaning ahead in the count 0-1, 0-2, 1-2. When Brandon Morrow earlier in his Jays career was struggling with pitch count, they encouraged him to pitch to more contact earlier in counts and in the game in order to go deeper, but when the key moment comes, with runner on third and less than two out, they still prefer pitchers with swing-and-miss ability that are able to get the key strikeout when needed. For guys like Alvarez and Villanueva, guys that don't have that big arm, pitching to contact with quality strikes is the key.    

Q-Richard,

Unfortunately it's that time of the year again to start thinking about next year's roster and I was wondering what your thoughts would be about having Adam Lind move to LF. That would free up the DH spot for the Jays to test the free agent waters. Also, seeing as the FA crop for 2B is pretty thin and the homegrown talent cupboard seems frightfully bare, would the Jays entertain the thought of re-signing Kelly Johnson? Always appreciate your insight.

George O'Hagan, Guelph

A-It is indeed the time of year to start thinking about next year's roster, but one of the keys for the Jays, one of the mantras of GM Alex Anthopoulos' recent roster building has always been to become more athletic at every position. Moving Lind to left field would not be a step in that direction. He is a hitter. The most athletic first baseman on the current roster is Edwin Encarnacion. In order to remain on the team, Lind's best role would be as a DH with the ability to fill in at first base occasionally.

As for second base in 2013, Farrell and AA talk in a good AL lineup of being able to carry one bat that is less than level, as long as you have eight major-league hitters. If the Jays can bolster the offence with one more major-league bat, they could afford to start the season with Adeiny Hechavarria at second base and Yunel Escobar at shortstop. Re-signing KJ to play second would not seem to be in the Cards. See the above criteria of athleticism, which second base falls under that same requirement.

Q-Hello Richard,

I know that the Blue Jays young pitcher Henderson Alvarez is just that, young. He is a pretty good pitcher but although some commentators said that he has "ice in his veins" i.e. that nothing bothers him, I think that he has not too much going on upstairs as well because in spite of the fact that every one praises him and his pitching, they say that he should keep the ball down, but he repeatedly leaves a few up and those are hit for home runs and those are the runs that causes him to lose games.

In time he will be a great pitcher but it does not take age to learn from one's repeated mistakes. Any thoughts on this?

Tony D'Souza, Toronto

A-I don't think it's fair to say “he has not too much going on upstairs.” He's a young, 22-year-old Venezuelan who has not yet grasped his necessary second language, the bane of many young Latinos when it comes to public perception of their baseball smarts.

The reality with Henderson Alvarez is that he's going to have to earn a spot in the starting rotation in 2013. He needs to separate the velocity on his fastball and slider by more than he currently does. He needs to locate his sinker where the catcher sets up and not elevate it and leave it in the middle of the plate. He is one of the Jays most relaxed pre-game pitchers on days that he starts. He often has friends outside the clubhouse that he hangs out with. Everyone is different. I think the 95 mph fastball and a good changeup make him a solid pitcher, but he needs a quality third pitch, the slider to step up. If Alvarez does not make the starting five coming out of spring training the Jays will be pretty good.    

Q-Hi Richard,

I've been enjoying details of your pub crawls on the road via your Bullpen, but couldn't you combine them with pumping out some more mailbags? Seems to me that might be a good combination. Here's my question: in this crazy, disappointing, seemingly train wreck of a season, please give us fans five positives to take with us into 2013 based on on-field performance this year.

Many thanks,

Rob Brander, Sydney, Australia

A-We'll see what we can do about more mailbags.

Five Jays positives. Hmmm!

1-Edwin Encarnacion discovering that he can be a second Batman in the Jays order; 2-Steve Delabar challenging to be the closer at spring training with a 96 mph fastball and a nasty, nasty splitter; 3-J.A. Happ establishing that he can be a very useful 4-5 starter in a winning rotation; 4-The emergence of Aaron Loup added to a late season tryout by Brett Cecil, giving the Jays a chance to make an intelligent decision on picking up the option of Darren Oliver for 2013; 5-Marcus Stroman.

Q-Hey Richard,

If you were told back in Feb. of '95 when you joined The Star as a baseball columnist that the Blue Jays — coming off a World Series championship two seasons prior — wouldn't make the playoffs at all until 2013 at the earliest, what would your reaction have been?

Terry Bridge, Waterloo

A-First of all, I would not have believed that the Jays would not get back in all those years. Second, I would have thought that maybe it was me. The low point for me personally in terms of World Series and post-seasons came early in my time with The Star. I had, of course, spent 22 seasons with the Expos and the closest we came was the '81 NLCS loss to the Dodgers. “Monday, Monday, don't love that day.” Then in my third year with The Star there are the Marlins and Indians playing in the World Series. I travel down to Florida to cover the Series and the PR guy is a nice kid named Ron Colangelo who four years earlier had been interning for me at spring training in West Palm Beach, carrying my beer to the press box and printing and delivering my press notes on game days. He dreamed of getting a job in baseball and now here he is with the Marlins in his first year as a PR guy and he wins a World Series ring. Life's not fair. It took me a while to get over that. Ron's now a v-p with the Tigers.      

Q-Hi Richard,

I don't envy you having to watch this unfortunate season. My question concerns Monday's game in NYC. Russell Martin laid down that terrific sac bunt and clearly ran on the inside of the baseline. He was thrown out and no damage was done, but do you think the umpire would have noticed and called him out if the throw had been bad?

Ralph Levenstein, Thornhill

A-I honestly think that umpires in that situation, where it is so clearly obvious that a guy is running down the line in fair territory, that if a throw drills the runner in the back or is air-mailed into the right field corner that an umpire is more likely to call a player for the infraction and send the runner back to first base because of interference. If the catcher makes the play routinely, the ump doesn't bother calling it. Of course who's going to take that chance and intentionally hit a guy in the back or airmail the throw to keep the runner at first. In any case, the answer to your question is yes. I do think they sometimes are waiting before making the call.

Q-Dear Mr. G,

How disappointing to see Brett Lawrie is further desecrating his body with more tattoos; what a symbol of the dull-witted conformist underclass. I am among the few that hasn't anointed Lawrie for the Hall of Fame. He has room to grow, yes, but so far he looks more like a future utility infielder than a star. Pretty immature for 23.

Thank you,

Thea Varley, Toronto

A-I think he's pretty much already far more than a future utility infielder. I don't know about the tattoos. I have four children and the most mature of the quartet, third on the totem pole of life, 22-years-old and wanting to save the world once she gets out of Guelph University, is the only one of the four with ink. I'm not sure, even in my most upset moment that she would be described as “dull-witted, conformist.” So I'll cut Lawrie some slack on that one. If he stays at third base and if he cuts down on some of his ill-advised adventures, both offensively and defensively, he has a chance to be an all-star player for years to come. And yeah, he's got room to grow in terms of maturity, but nothing to do with tatts.   

Q-Can the Jays offer (Zack) Greinke $100 million for 4-5 years? I don't think he would sign but if possible it would solve the starter problem. Also, is Hechavarria our new starter at second base next year with Johnson obviously leaving? I also don't believe an offer could go out to David Ortiz because AA will want the DH spot open for Lind/D'Arnaud and the possible Gose/Sierra platoon. Do you agree?

Martin Aguirre, Owen Sound

A-The Angels will probably be interested in re-signing Greinke, to go with Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson. If they do, that could mean Dan Haren and/or Ervin Santana will be available because of expensive club options, but any which way, any one of those three Angels pitchers I would pursue, if he becomes available. Greinke would be nice at the right price because he's only 28-years-old at the moment and has pitched most of his career in the American League. It will be interesting to see what he demands and what he commands if the Yankees don't pursue, or other large markets that could shy away because of his well-documented mental health issues, dealing with large crowds and stress. I'm not sure why he would avoid at least listening to what the Jays have to offer.

Q-While watching a London, Ont., team play a team in Michigan during the first half of July, a batter with a full count swung at a vicious curve ball and missed, but the ball hit him in the lower stomach. He was called out. Why was he not awarded first base for a hit by pitch? Incidentally, he was in such agony that he had to be carried off the field by his managers without the benefit of a stretcher! This game was being televised by a London TV station, which I watched on Rogers Cable in my son's house in London.

James R. McGillawee, Oshawa

A-I believe my Oakville team that I managed in 2011 played in that same tournament, the All-American Baseball Classic tournament in Novi, Mich. as Major Midgets. We lost in the championship game because the umpires did not want us as Canadians to win. (N.B. That's the whiney manager in me coming out). In any case, if a player is judged to have swung at a pitch then even if he is hit, it's a strike. Usually that comes into play with pitches that hit the arms or hands, not full force in the stomach. The ball is dead and no runners can advance.

Q-Blue Jays have a history of keeping a "clean shop" regarding illegal matters and their players. In the past it usually is a ticket to be shipped out of Dodge. Do you think this will now happen because their pitching draft pick got caught and suspended 50 games? (These days I can't believe he did what he did and did not know what he was doing.)

Dave Butler, Toronto

A-The Jays for years have prided themselves on character and integrity on their players at the major and minor league levels. They had a second minor-leaguer suspended for 50 games on Thursday, this one a Dominican youngster in the Dominican Summer League. My guess is that when his suspension is over he will be released. As for Marcus Stroman, his suspension was for a stimulant that if he had been on the 40-man roster would have warranted merely a warning from baseball that no one would have heard about, but because he falls under the tougher minor-league testing program, not protected by the players' union, it became very public. The Jays are confident that Stroman is a youngster of character and made a mistake. Plus, they gave him $1.8 million to sign. If he ever makes another mistake, however, they need to make a decision. I can say that when AGM Tony LaCava was talking about the Stroman suspension in the Jays' dugout at Tropicana Field, he seemed very genuinely betrayed by the Jays' second selection in the '12 draft, 22nd overall, who was projected to be almost major-league ready.  

Q-Hi Richard,

Enjoyed your Bullpen and especially the Rant this week. It raised a question for me: Presumably, steroids and HGH have been developed for specific medical uses. Certainly some medical procedures have been developed that employ them (see Bartolo Colon). So if there is a legitimate reason to use such recuperative aids, then wouldn't it make sense to say that using them is appropriate for rehabbing players? They could easily put in a stipulation that they must document with MLB all such uses, and then they would be ineligible to return to the field for a reasonable period of time afterwards.

Your thoughts?

Bryan Willis, Vancouver

A-Yes there are medical reasons for the use of some illegal substances on MLB's banned list, but the Colon surgery in which his own healthy fat and bone marrow was surgically implanted back into his shoulder and elbow in a stem cell procedure was an experimental operation that has not been approved in the U.S. and had to be performed in the Dominican. So nothing about the Colon surgery in the areas of steroids or HGH would have been cleared or acceptable for MLB.

Q-Hi Richard,

The Jays should write off this year and send all of their sickly birds to the Vet. It's probably the bird flu that they are all suffering from.

Regards,

Tony D'Souza, Toronto

A-And it looks, at least in September thus far, that it's Jays' fans that have flown the coop. Good way to end the mailbag.

The Bullpen: Melky Cabrera's suspension shows Steroid Era won't fade

It seems that eight years after mandatory testing and performance-enhancing drugs were declared illegal in the game, the spectre of major-league baseball’s Steroid Era just won’t go away.

Slightly over one month after the feel-good performance of Melky Cabrera in Kansas City that earned him all-star game MVP honours, came the disturbing news that the 28-year-old San Francisco Giants outfielder failed an in-season drug test, due to excess levels of testosterone in his system.

If that wasn’t bad enough, on Sunday, the New York Daily News ran an exclusive story from its investigation that revealed a “paid consultant” of Cabrera’s agency, ACES of Brooklyn, N.Y., had concocted a scheme to purchase an online website, doctor it and place an after the fact ad for a supplement they could then say Cabrera purchased and used without knowing the ingredients. Fraud?

Sam and Seth Levinson are highly respected agents within the industry. They own ACES with a strong client list, but they insist that they knew nothing about the attempted fraud, that it was this “paid consultant” named Juan Nunez that had come up with and executed the scheme all on his own.

“The MLBPA (players’ union) has clearly stated that ACES has no connection to the website or this matter and, as reported, Juan Nunez has taken full responsibility for his acts,” Seth Levinson sent an e-mail to the Associated Press throwing his man under the PED bus.

“There is nothing more we can add and we will allow our reputation in the industry for 27 years to speak for itself.”

The ignorance defence would likely work in a court of law, but certainly not in the court of public opinion. Even though the suspension of Cabrera by MLB was announced just last week, the results have apparently been known by the player and his agent since sometime in mid-July. Cabrera is a free agent at the end of the season and stands to make millions on the open market, given his breakout season, batting .346 with 60 RBIs, leading the weak-hitting Giants into playoff contention.

The purchase of the online website by Nunez, allegedly acting on his own, cost approximately $10,000. The scam would only have worked using an existing website because the argument needed to be put forward that the substance, believed to be a cream, was purchased before the test was failed. It therefore could not have been purchased from a website that was created only after the failed drug test. Despite that, MLB investigators were easily able to trace ownership back to Nunez.

Synthetic testosterone is a popular method of cheating. It is a substance produced from soy or yams, in factories and applied using injection, patches or other means. I know one former all-star player, a long-time friend of mine, whose career was well on the downside.

He was desperate for a way to remain active and continue his career. He had just a couple of years of playing time left, max. With knees that were constantly breaking down, the player’s wife went online and purchased a cream to be applied to the knees that was supposed to relieve the pain and promote healing. The miracle substance seemed to work and the player innocently discussed it with me, which shows he didn’t know what it was.

Later, his name came up in a commissioner’s report on steroids. So what Cabrera’s side was actually suggesting with the phony website is not so outlandish.

“Sam and I absolutely had no knowledge or dealings with anyone at anytime associated with the website,” Seth Levinson said in a note sent to the Daily News. “I will state unequivocally and irrefutably that any payment made to the website does not come from ACES.”

The fact is that whether or not Nunez was acting on his own, the player and his advisors had a month to figure out a course of action. Turning a blind eye to fraud is not good enough. This course of action, this strategy of fighting Melky’s positive reading, stems from the Ryan Braun situation over the winter where the NL MVP was able to successfully fight a 50-game suspension on a technicality. Even some players were not happy he won. In the case of Cabrera, there is a clause in the CBA agreement that says a suspension can be overturned if the player can prove he ingested the material accidentally.

The Levinson brothers, who have many high-profile baseball clients and expect more in the future, are technically correct about Nunez not being a full-time employee and about him communicating from personal devices and about him having only his name on the purchase of the website, but they must take some responsibility for the strategy.

It would seem impossible that in a crisis of this magnitude for one of their highest-profiled clients, that they would not have their finger on the pulse of any offbeat strategy designed to avoid punishment and suspension. If they did not know, then they’re not doing their job.

Sitting back, watching with interest is the BALCO founder, the man acknowledged by baseball as the villain at the centre of the Barry Bonds investigation, Victor Conte sounds almost smug when he chimes in that this is nothing compared to the cheating that is still going on around baseball. Even commissioner Bud Selig is believed to have told owners at a recent meeting that they will be shocked by what’s going on. As one who has been encouraged by the progress baseball had seemingly made and the way the game has returned to its five-tool roots, my optimism has been shaken.

BLUE JAYS WEEK IN REVIEW

GAMES: The Jays had another pathetic week on the field, dropping three of four games to the White Sox and two of three to the Rangers, to finish the 10-game homestand with a record of 3-7.

“Certainly where we’re at and the way things have turned with the overall record, the daily approach doesn’t change whether we’re eight games over or eight games under,” manager John Farrell said. “The focus is everyday on coming in here and try to win today. That focus and energy and effort doesn’t change regardless of who’s in the lineup or who’s about to return. Winning is important. This is a bottom-line game. We’re all evaluated and judged on our record. That doesn’t change.”

The Jays record at week’s end was 56-65, with a Sunday lineup that featured light-hitting Jeff Mathis (.219) as the DH after David Cooper’s back spasmed up during batting practice. Mathis was batting sixth against the Rangers, followed by Mike McCoy (.208), Yan Gomes (.165) and Adeiny Hechavarria (.167). Compare that to the Rangers six-to-nine holes of Michael Young, David Murphy, Geovany Soto and Mitch Moreland, who combined on Sunday to go 11-for-19 with eight RBIs. The Jays managed just two hits as a team against Matt Harrison and company.

The Jays, since July 29 through Aug. 19, had posted 13 games with seven hits or fewer and 12 games with two runs or less. The record in those 12 low-run games was 0-12. The record when scoring three or more runs was 5-4. Much-needed help in the form of recovering players is on the way.

Earlier in the week, the struggling LH Ricky Romero reverted to the bad Ricky in a 9-5 loss to the White Sox. The best starts of the week were by newcomer LH J.A. Happ throwing six solid innings in a win over Yu Darvish and the Rangers on Friday and RH Carlos Villanueva in a 2-1 Saturday loss.

TRANSACTIONS: The Jays, on Aug. 14, signed backup C Jeff Mathis to a two year contract for $1.5 million per season, plus a club option for 2015 at the same salary. At the same time, the club signed C Yorvit Torrealba, 34, to a minor-league contract, reporting to AA-New Hampshire.

Torrealba, released earlier by the Texas Rangers, played four games for the Fisher Cats, two as DH and two behind the dish, and will report to the Jays on Tuesday in Detroit. The timing of the Mathis contract and the Torrealba signing was coincidental, although it was important that Mathis know he is a part of the Jays’ future, even though the newcomer will split time with Mathis.

“Anytime, in my whole career I’ve always grinded it out from year-to-year,” Mathis acknowledged the importance of job security in his decision to re-up. “Just...not the stress, but the not knowing of where you’re going to be in the next year, whether you know it or not or whether you’ve been in that situation before, there’s just something to be said about security. Being in a spot where people like you. It’s really nice to be here, nice to be wanted. Like I said, I feel like with the group of guys here we’re headed in the right direction. That’s ultimately what I want to be a part of.”

On Thursday, the Jays completed their 10-player transaction with the Astros by sending RH Kevin Comer from A-Bluefield to Houston. Comer, selected No. 57 overall in the June ’11 draft, had commanded a $1.65 million signing bonus, more than a million over slot. The Astros did what they needed to do in terms of re-stocking the organization, while the Jays may end up with just Happ and RH David Carpenter, if RH Brandon Lyon leaves as a free agent in the winter.

DISABLED LIST: There was good news on the injury front. On Monday, 3B Brett Lawrie (oblique) and RF Jose Bautista (left hand) were set to start for the Gulf Coast Blue Jays. Lawrie was to return to the Jays in Detroit, with Bautista needing more game reps and set to fly to Baltimore on the weekend.

Meanwhile RH Brandon Morrow made the final of his five minor-league starts on Sunday at AA-New Hampshire, 4-2/3 innings, 81 pitches and will join the Jays in Detroit. He is ready to throw 80 pitches in a major-league game. He should be activated and return to the rotation, likely on Saturday in Baltimore. That would be a Henderson Alvarez turn in the rotation. The big question then becomes who would pitch in Aaron Laffey’s turn on Monday at Yankee Stadium. On other Jays’ injury fronts, DH Adam Lind was expected to get some at-bats for the GCL Jays and at A-Dunedin. RH Dustin McGowan (shoulder) and RH Drew Hutchison (elbow) are out for the season, as are Sergio Santos, Robert Coello, Luis Perez, Jesse Litsch and Kyle Drabek. How was your week?

THE RANT

Earlier in the past week, speculation in New England was rampant that Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine would be fired at some point soon. The reasons for the suggested dismissal were vague, but somehow seemed from legit sources. The players, apparently 17 strong, had a meeting with owner John Henry and GM Ben Cherington to voice their displeasure with the decisions and the direction of Bobby V. Departed C Kelly Shoppach, who had been dealt to the Mets, denied that he wrote the e-mail complaint on Adrian Gonzalez’ phone chastising Valentine for leaving Jon Lester in a game to get pounded for 11 runs that prompted the meeting. Shoppach said he did not even attend the meeting.

The fact is Valentine has not fallen out of favour with the players, he has never been in their favour. Recall that after former MGR Terry Francona was dismissed in boorishly cavalier fashion last October certain players were rumoured to have been dismayed when Valentine’s name was initially brought up. That came prior to Henry’s fait accompli interview of Valentine, a coronation, that even the GM had not had on his schedule and which aced out seeming finalists Jays coach Torey Lovullo and Cubs manager Dale Sveum, the final two interviewees. Red Sox Nation has taken sides ever since.

Four months into Valentine’s first season, the initial suggestion for who would be his replacement in the Red Sox dugout was that the team somehow should wait for Jays manager John Farrell to fulfill his duties as an exile in Toronto following the 2013 season, the third year of his three-year contract.

After that the Sox could lure him away for the 2014 season. But that scenario changed in moments, with the creative media rumour mill, the unofficial shadow cabinet. Why wait for the end of his contract, became the question in Beantown. It didn’t take long for the pretzel logic of the rumour-mongers to suggest that at the end of the current championship season the Sox should just hire Farrell away from the Jays. Maybe they might even ask for permission, maybe not. Why? Because it’s Boston. All bow.

What is it about both Boston and New York that makes their front office, fans and media think that all their organization has to do is snap its fingers and whoever they want, whether a free-agent player, executive or manager will come running. Boston is a mess. Other than the possibility of a higher payroll, what makes the Red Sox and Yankees so smug? It’s not just Farrell. This attitude is eternal.

Besides, it’s not like Farrell has strong ties to Boston and owes them anything. Sure the Sox gave him a chance as major-league pitching coach and, sure, they won a second World Series in four years in his first season, 2007. But Farrell was born a Jersey boy, went to Oklahoma St., pitched in many different cities other than Boston, settled his family in Cleveland, worked for the Indians and is happy.

He remained as the Sox pitching coach for four seasons under Francona, who became his good friend. Francona, to his credit, was constantly pumping the tires of his coaches pushing them to become managers elsewhere whenever there were openings. There’s Farrell, Sveum and ex-Astros’ skipper Brad Mills. These guys feel more loyalty to Tito than they do to the Red Sox. How’d that loyalty thing work out for Tito? Francona ended up fired by the Sox and Farrell, among others, was not happy with the team for the way it treated his friend on the way out the door. A Sox front office leak teased about Francona’s marital problems and reliance on prescription drugs. Why would anyone want to be a part of that? Besides, what says the Red Sox are going to win something before the Blue Jays win something.

Farrell, in 2010, was given permission by the Sox to interview and he bought into the Jays’ plan in November. The Jays also bought into his. Farrell has been a big part of what GM Alex Anthopoulos is doing and fact is the Jays’ GM seems to treat his organization people with far more respect than the Red Sox do. So why does anyone assume that if the Sox crook a finger in his direction, Farrell will jump.

The attitude bothers me. Back with the Expos in the early ’90s, Dan Duquette replaced Dave Dombrowski as GM in Montreal after the latter had headed south to the fledgling Florida Marlins. Duke was a different story. He was a New England native, attended Amherst College and grew up dreaming of being with the Red Sox. Farrell does not have the same background. At one point, just two years into his GM tenure in Montreal, the Red Sox called and Duquette could not resist the Siren’s Song. Expos’ president Claude Brochu didn’t want to let Duquette go, but Duke argued if he stayed his heart would not be in it. That’s usually enough for a team to change its mind and the Expos did. But that’s different. There was a lifelong connection to Boston. Apparently the Sox and those around them think that everyone’s dream is to work for the Red Sox. The arrogance still irks me.

MLB POWER RANKINGS

Last week’s ranking in parentheses

1. New York Yankees (1)

Every time you look up OF Andruw Jones is doing something special

2. Washington Nationals (2)

The clock is ticking towards decision on what to do with Strasburg

3. Cincinnati Reds (4)

One of those teams waiting for a friend, Votto, that will only make them better

4. Texas Rangers (3)

Pitching will be an issue in a short series, plus Hamilton’s state of mind

5. Tampa Bay Rays (6)

Manager Maddon is special person when it comes to creating team environment

6. Atlanta Braves (5)

These guys are damn good and have come close when they weren’t as damned good

7. Baltimore Orioles (9)

The longer this team hangs in the more talk of GM Dan Duquette as exec of year

8. Chicago White Sox (8)

The issue here is that closer is a rookie and Peavy is having comeback for ages

9. Detroit Tigers (10)

These guys may be laying in the weeds like last year’s Cards

10. Pittsburgh Pirates (7)

Well at least they’re odds-on to finish above .500 first since ‘92

11. Oakland A’s (12)

The longer the season goes the more likely these guys wake up to reality

12. Los Angeles Dodgers (14)

Maybe they should be ranked higher, but earn it first even with first place likely

13. San Francisco Giants (13)

It’s not like Giants should be stunned by OF being accused of PED abuse

14. Arizona Diamondbacks (16)

Maybe Kirk Gibson greatest manager ever ‘cuz these guys aren’t that good

15. St. Louis Cardinals (15)

At some point expect these guys to pull reverse 2011 and plummet sans chute

16. Los Angeles Angels (11)

Don’t know why keep ranking these guys so high but still think can be WC

17. New York Mets (17)

There is nothing lovable about this team but Dickey and Wright

18. Boston Red Sox (18)

Terry Francona greatest manager in history to win 2 WS in this environment

19. Seattle Mariners (19)

King Felix said he thought about El Perfecto from 3rd inning on

20. Toronto Blue Jays (20)

For all those that a month ago said play all the young guys. No!!!!

21. Milwaukee Brewers (21)

Shaun Marcum injured, soon to be free agent. So who won that deal?

22. Miami Marlins (23)

Marlins mediocre team in mediocre park with meddling ownership

23. Philadelphia Phillies (24)

They should have focused more on hitters after last year’s drop-off

24. Kansas City Royals (27)

Love the arms in the bullpen even though hitting studs disappointed

25. Minnesota Twins (22)

Apologize for thinking “Twins Way” was something special

26. Cleveland Indians (25)

This is a Faustian call of what to do with this pitching staff next year.

27. San Diego Padres (26)

May be getting better as season goes on but record does not reflect

28. Chicago Cubs (28)

Have bunch of good young players and manager who had no ’12 chance

29. Colorado Rockies (29)

This is around time these guys start their charge. Wait until next year

30. Houston Astros (30)

Brad Mills advice from Nigerian Olympic basketball team did not work

AL ROUNDUP

A’s RH Bartolo Colon, 39, beat the Indians on Saturday for his 10th victory, the most of any season since he won 21 for the Angels in his Cy Young year of 2005. Colon was part of a trade with Montreal that built the Indians at the time and was one of the worst trades in Expos history. Colon was sent with a fringy reliever to the Expos for Cliff Lee, Brandon Phillips, Grady Sizemore and Lee Stevens... Some guys have no sense of the dramatic. In Kansas City on Sunday, RH Jeremy Guthrie was tossing a no-hitter vs. the White Sox, when Paul Konerko grounded a ball deep in the hole at short. The throw from Alcides Escobar came up short, but bounced up and 1B Eric Hosmer seemed to have a clear shot at it. The ball bounced off his glove and scorer Del Black ruled “base hit”. What ever happened to the unwritten rule that the first hit, especially fifth inning or later, should be a clean hit?... Rays’ MGR Joe Maddon is still the best motivator in baseball with his team building road trips, etc. On Saturday, the Rays came back from an 8-0 deficit to beat the Angels, capped by a two-run homer by Carlos Pena. The Angels pitching has fallen apart, although LH Scott Downs return from the DL may help stabilize the pen. The Rays scored 37 runs in four games vs. the Angels who started Dan Haren, Jered Weaver, C.J. Wilson and Zack Greinke. If the Jays are looking for a common thread to their issues of late, there’s the Wells factor. In games that Vernon Wells has appeared in the Angels are 19-31. When he has not played, the Angels are 43-29... Speaking of pitching, RH Felix Hernandez tossed the second perfect game at Safeco Field this year this week. The other was by White Sox RH Phil Humber. That’s never been done. The M’s are working their way back to .500 which would be an incredible feat given how they looked through the first half. Could the dumping of RF Ichiro have changed the clubhouse? The M’s are 30-30 at home... Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but 1B Mark Teixeira has missed three games with inflammation in his left wrist and is expected to return in the next couple of games. It’s the same problem that has kept Jose Bautista out for a month... The Indians are 10-26 since the all-star break, through the weekend. C Lou Marson has thrown out just five of 55 base runners attempting to steal. That’s 9.1-percent. That’s not good... Red Sox LF Carl Crawford’s season has already been spoiled by injuries and now they must determine whether to shut the speedy outfielder down because of an injury to his throwing elbow that likely needs Tommy John. The Jays like to think they have been crippled by injuries, but the Sox have had 26 players on the DL this year, the most in the majors since at least 1987 when they kept track of such things. The 1979 Expos had one player on the DL all season as they won 95 games. The Expos used 14 pitchers for the year and the one DL was SS Chris Speier, July 1-15.

NL ROUNDUP

Prior to Sunday’s game, Reds’ 1B Joey Votto took some groundballs on the field at Great American Ballpark. He has been out since July 16, the same day the Jays lost Jose Bautista. But unlike the struggling Jays, the Reds have gone 24-10 without Votto... The Astros fired MGR Brad Mills on Sunday along with coaches Bobby Meacham and Mike Barnett. Barnett was the Jays hitting coach between 2002-05. Mills was replaced by AAA manager Tony DeFrancesco around whom the plucky Astros rallied for an 8-1 loss in his debut to the D’backs. The last Astros manager to be replaced after a season was Larry Dierker in 2001. Since then, Jimy Williams, Phil Garner, Cecil Cooper and Mills have all been in-season casualties... The Cards’ 19-inning, 6-3 loss to the Pirates on Sunday was their longest game since a 20-inning 2-1 loss to the Mets in 2010. LH Jaime Garcia was the starter in both those games. 3B David Freese was 0-for-8, the first time that had been done since Luis Alicea in 1988... Good news on the suspended player front for the Giants. RH Guillermo Mota, in the midst of a 100-game suspension for PEDs is beginning a rehab assignment (maybe another term would be better) in A-Fresno. He is eligible to return on August 28... A chance to see what sort of heavy mettle the young Nats have as they face their closest pursuers the Braves in a three-game set. Not pitching will be LH Gio Gonzalez who won on the weekend and ran his record to 16-6, tied for the NL lead in wins... Braves comeback RH Ben Sheets gave up four homers on Saturday for the first time in his career, rationalizing that at least they were mostly solo. Of course it’s hard for them not to be as he gave up three of the bombs in the space of four pitches... Small blessings for the Cubbies. On Sunday RH Chris Volstad made his 24th straight start without a win, since July 10, 2011. The good news was that he didn’t take the loss with his record staying at 0-9 and his ERA dropped from 6.96 to 6.88. LF Alfonso Soriano became the sixth player in MLB history with the unusual combo of 400 2B, 350 HR, 1000 RBIs and 250 SB. The other five are Hall-of-Famers Andre Dawson and Willie Mays, plus Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez and Gary Sheffield... Marlins’ RF Giancarlo Stanton said he had no explanation why he had hit home runs in six consecutive games at Coors Field, the first six games he ever played there. How about the fact the place is a mile high above sea level. The feat set a MLB record, but the streak was snapped on Sunday.

THIS WEEK IN BASEBALL HISTORY:

8/20/64 The infamous Yankee bus incident – one of them anyway – where utility infielder Phil Linz plays Mary had a Little Lamb on his harmonica. Manager Yogi Berra tells him to stop then slaps the harmonica away. Berra and the Yanks go on to lose the World Series to the Cardinals and Berra is replaced by winning Cards manager Johnny Keane... 8/20/74 In one of the most dominant seasons by any power pitcher, Nolan Ryan fans 19 Tigers in a 1-0 11-inning loss. It is Ryan’s third game of 19 strikeouts that season. Ryan also had three games with 15 Ks and fanned 367 for the year... 8/21/47 the first ever Little League World Series is staged in Williamsport, with the home town Maynard Midgets take the title... 8/21/75 corpulent brothers Rick and Paul Reuschel combine for the Cubs to shut out the Dodgers 8-0, the first time brothers have combined for a MLB shutout... 8/22/65 the Giants and Dodgers rivalry was fierce. Juan Marichal accuses Dodgers catcher John Roseboro of throwing balls back to Sandy Koufax too close to his ear. He keeps doing it so Marichal pounds him over the head with his bat. Marichal is suspended just eight days and fined $1,750... 8/23/89 the Expos complete a homestand with a 22-inning 1-0 loss to the Dodgers as Rick Dempsey homers against Dennis Martinez who was only in the game because LHP Joe Hesketh told Buck Rodgers he couldn’t pitch. The next day Hesketh arrives at Dorval for the flight to San Diego and is told not to bother taking his suitcase out of the cab. He’s placed on the DL and left at home... 8/24/89 Commissioner Bart Giammati bans Pete Rose for life for allegedly gambling on baseball games... Giammati dies later that year and his successors Fay Vincent and Bud Selig continue to uphold the ruling... 8/26/72 recently deposed Cubs manager Leo Durocher replaces Harry “the Hat” Walker as manager of the Astros. Durocher becomes the second man to manage two NL teams in the same season. The first was Durocher with the Giants and Dodgers in 1948.

Birthdays this week: 8/20 Brad Arnsberg 49, Mark Langston 52, Graig Nettles 68; 8/21 John Wetteland 46; 8/22 Paul Molitor 56, Ray Burris 62, Carl Yastrzemski 73; 8/23 Randy St. Claire 52, Jerry White 60; 8/24 Cal Ripken, Jr. 52, Tony Bernazard 56; 8/25 Dooley Womack 73.

JAYS MINOR LEAGUE ROUNDUP

AAA-Las Vegas (73-55) beat first place Sacramento 9-4 on Sunday to move within 3-1/2 games of first place. RH Scott Richmond (10-7, 5.83 ERA) was the starter and winner. DH Jack Cust was 2-for-3 with 2 walks, 2 RBIs and is hitting .225. CF Danny Perales was 2-for-5 with 2 runs and is hitting .296. 1B Kevin Howard was 2-for-5 with a homer and is hitting .266. The 51s handed out awards and the Mayor’s Trophy, voted on by fans, went to SS Adeiny Hechavarria, as well as team MVP. The Community Service Award goes to CF Anthony Gose... AA-New Hampshire (53-74) beat Altoona 4-2 on Sunday. RH Brandon Morrow started with no decision. RH Ronald Uviedo (5-2) picked up the win in relief. RH Sam Dyson notched save No. 8, with a 1.37 ERA. DH Koby Clemens was 2-for-2 with a double and a homer. C Yorvit Torrealba finished at .417 on his prep for promotion to the Jays. RH Yohan Pino is 8-7, with a 3.48 ERA. RH Deck McGuire is 5-14, with a 6.26 ERA. RH Marcus Stroman is 1-0, with a 1.80 ERA in five games... A-Dunedin (29-25) lost 7-3 to Lakeland on Sunday. RH Jesse Hernandez (1-3, 5.97 ERA) was the starter and loser. 3B Brett Lawrie was 0-for-3. LF Kevin Pillar homered and is batting .333 with 14 steals in 14 attempts. RH Danny Barnes is 1-2 with a 1.47 ERA and 32 saves... A-Lansing (28-25) lost 9-2 to Lake County on Sunday. RH Brian McFarland (5-4, 5.29 ERA) was the starter and loser. 1B K.C. Hobson has 9 HR-78 RBIs and is batting .277. SS Andy Burns is batting .248, with 9 HR-37 RBIs and 15 steals. The Big 3 starters – Aaron Sanchez, Justin Nicolino and Noah Syndergaard – have combined for a 23-11 record, with 299 Ks in 279 innings... A-Vancouver (17-10) lead the second half. The young Canadians beat Salem 3-0 on Sunday. RH Kyle Anderson (4-2, 4.07 ERA) was the starter and winner (5.1IP; 6H; 1BB). 3B Kellen Sweeney was 2-for-4 with a homer. Despite a .222 average, Sweeney has 20 extra-base hits among his 48 safeties. 1B Balbino Fuenmayor stroked HR No. 8 and is batting .266 with 42 RBIs... A-Bluefield (24-33) split a twin bill with Danville, losing 5-4 and winning 3-2 on Sunday. LH Daniel Norris was the starter and loser in Game 1 (3.1IP; 6H; 5R; 3ER; 1BB; 5K; 7.97 ERA). LH Griffin Murphy pitched in relief (4.1IP; 1H; 1R; 0ER; EBB; 7K; 1.05 ERA). Murphy has 39 Ks in 34-1/3 innings. CF D.J. Davis was 3-for-8 in the DH, batting .389... Rk-Blue Jays did not play on Sunday.

ONE FOR THE ROAD:

When I returned from the recent 10-game road trip to Seattle, Oakland and Tampa, I was greeted by tragic news that my best friend, Kevin McGowan, had passed away in his sleep at the age of 58 while I was on the road. I had known him for 37 years. Kevin became the afternoon radio man at CFCF two years after I joined the team as a 19-year-old kid in 1973. Kevin was a kid too. We were the same age with similar interests, living on our own, working together to try and promote the Expos in the city, both on the clock and off. There was a silent bond between us that lasted a lifetime. We worked together, played together, laughed together and enjoyed life together. Kevin soon became the morning man at CFCF replacing John Robertson. His new 4 a.m. wakeups changed our night-life somewhat. Kevin went from Montreal to Windsor to work, then came back to CFCF for a second tour of duty. Later, he went to Winnipeg, then on to Ottawa where he ended up at KOOL-FM as their morning star, making his home in the Nation’s Capital with wife Lorna and daughter Alison. We didn’t see each other as often as we should, but made many trips together—spring training, winter meetings in Florida, Martinique, New Orleans, Las Vegas, New York plus less exotic locales like Minneapolis, where a young politician named Gary Doer, leader of the Manitoba opposition and a friend of Kevin’s, spent a night sitting on the floor with me and Kevin telling stories and over-imbibing during the ‘91 World Series. I was part of Kevin’s wedding party and he was in mine. He is godfather to my daughter Shannon. Now he’s gone. My wife Debbie and I left Thursday’s game vs. the White Sox in the sixth inning, spent the night in Belleville and drove up Friday morning to a memorial in Eganville. We went to Ottawa from there, took daughter Kelly to dinner, returning home Friday night in time to cover consecutive losses to the Rangers at the Dome on Saturday-Sunday. Baseball was put in perspective.

Blue Jays mailbag: Toronto's 10-player deal opens trade floodgates

Less than a week remains to the MLB trade deadline without waivers.

Interestingly, the Jays 10-player deal with the Astros, with J.A. Happ as Toronto's main acquisition, seemed to open the flesh-trading floodgates early. Since and including that Friday morning announcement there have been 11 trades involving 28 players.

The most interesting of these was the Yankees acquiring Ichiro Suzuki from the Mariners for former Jays RHP Danny Farquhar and RHP D.J. Mitchell. Ichiro will take Brett Gardner's role as the Yanks have given up on getting their speedy left fielder back any time in 2012.

Amazing that the Yankees have Derek Jeter, A-Rod and Ichiro on the same roster, over 8,600 combined hits. Of course, an immediate response came from Ichiro's former teammate who drilled A-Rod and broke his hand putting the third baseman out for 6-8 weeks. The Yankees have time to go out and find a replacement as they cruise to the AL East title. It will be a busy week for Jays' GM Alex Anthopoulos. However, whether he gets something done in his quest for more pitching is another story. On to the Mailbag. 

Q-Minor league management questions for you. What is the objective for each level of the minors? Winning or player development? I would think player development in the lower levels is the greater objective, but then I look at the composition of the Vancouver roster and wonder if they are more focused on winning and attendance. Secondly, what goes into the thought process around promoting or demoting players. I look at some stats (I know that is not the full picture) and wonder why some players are not promoted when they seem to have mastered their level (e.g. Pillar or the Big 3 at Lansing). Then I see others (e.g. Knecht in FSL) and wonder why they are not sent down as they seem to be overmatched at their current level. And then I see players who have been at the same level for years with no signs of progress and wonder why they have not been released (e.g. Ahrens, Balbino).
Tom F, Newmarket

A-The perfect minor-league system combines winning and player development almost equally, however that is never the case. But there is an argument, especially at the upper levels of any farm system. One side of the argument says that placing young players in a winning Triple-A environment is important to their development. They ask, “How can you expect a player to win at the major-league level if he has never won at the minor-league level.” That is a good point, but not the only one.

There are other organizations that populate Triple-A with their best young prospects and let them take their lumps without the calming contributions of the veteran arms and experienced players on the way down that other organizations sprinkle through top teams to promote winning.

As for Vancouver, that is a unique situation for the Jays. The A-Northern League Canadians are a pet project for Anthopoulos. He loves the ownership, he loves the stadium, he loves the fans and he strongly believes in letting his top prospects play in Vancouver to get a feel for playing in Canada. Get the feel of a pocket full of loonies and toonies and drinking milk from a plastic bag. When they arrive in Toronto, it will all seem familiar to them. That's why No. 22 overall pick and right-handed reliever Marcus Stroman started there.

As for promotion/demotion, again there are competing theories. It's like teaching young children how to swim. Do you give them lessons and take them step-by-step or do you strap on their diapers and throw them in the deep end? The Jays are nurturers by nature and want their athletes to feel success before moving to the next level. The Lansing pitchers, for example, were given a plan that involved building from 30 pitches to 90-100 pitches. Their stats have nothing to do with eventual promotion to the next level. For the Jays, player development is a process not a reward or punishment.      

Q-Hi Richard,
I enjoy reading your articles, blogs and mailbags whenever they are posted. IMO, they are required reading for any Blue Jays fan. I've read that Jose Bautista's recovery is ahead of schedule. That got me thinking...have the Blue Jays ever DL'd someone who recovered much quicker than the 15- or 60-day period and was ready to go, but had to wait more than a day or two for the period to end?
Tavis McLean, Chatham

A-Bautista has proved through his Jays years that he has a high threshold for pain. Recall in 2011, he suffered a neck injury in New York at the end of April and after three days of solid treatment in Tampa, managed to stay off the DL and return to action. Then after the 2011 all-star game, back at the Rogers Centre, he sprained his ankle in a horrible looking baserunning accident and again stayed off the DL.

In this case, with the importance to the swing of the left hand, Bautista was disabled as soon as the MRI showed it was not a break in his left wrist after a long foul ball against David Robertson in New York. On Tuesday, manager John Farrell discussed Joey Bats rapid recovery.

“He's making good strides,” Farrell said. “As the strength exercises that he's going through are increasing we would hope that in the coming days we'd be able to put a bat back in his hands to not only go through dry swings, but off a tee. That's adjusted with how he comes through daily treatment.

“This has improved quicker than I think we all envisioned. I'm not surprised, but definitely encouraged. Because he was in significant pain that night and the three days following that, there's been a lot of improvement. All that is positive and that's not just because of what he states, but the actual strengthening and the exercises and the treatment he's going through. That's being tested and once he's out of the woods, symptom free, that's when we'll put a bat back in his hands. The next thing he's doing is there's been more manipulation of the wrist side to side rather than just straight on exercises, so that's the progressive steps. There's been no reproducing of that discomfort in those controlled settings.”

Farrell suggested Bautista may be swinging a bat and taking live batting practice by the end of the week.

Certainly over the years there would have been players ready to come back prior to the end of a disabled period, but with 15 days, that can never be considered a mistake, more like erring on the side of caution. Some players on the coin-toss, ready-or-not side of 15 days actually benefit from the enforced time out and are encouraged not to push the envelope, not to rush back to the field. It's really never a situation that's embarrassed any team. You know what they say about “better safe...”

Q-Richard:
A promising trade announcement last week. If nothing else, a relief to Francisco Cordero haters like myself. And I stand corrected after my last question re: why not release Cordero outright? AA was evidently holding on to Mr. Batting Practice because he was still worth something on the trade market. Phew.
Best,
Matthew McKean, Ottawa

A-I really do like Cordero as a person, but on Tuesday the Astros were welcomed to his world as Drew Stubbs homered in the ninth and the Reds rallied for three runs vs. CoCo. Another blown save. At the same time, J.A. Happ was giving up his own three-spot in the seventh vs. the A's.

Q-Hello Richard,
Do you think that the Jays - given the fact that at least 3 of their starters are injured, may seriously work on getting a couple of experienced starters come the trade deadline?
Thanks,
Tony D'Souza, Toronto

A-I continue to insist that J.A. Happ is not the final move that GM Alex Anthopoulos is trying to do. He and the Jays could use another solid, controllable starter and even if he does not accomplish his goal by July 31, it doesn't mean he did not make every effort. Happ will be in the rotation soon.

Q-Hi Richard,
I really don't like AA's approach to waiting for last moment to possibly make a trade. He's too attached to his farm studs for one and secondly, by the time the Jays go through their tough schedule (Yankees/Red Sox) they will be well under .500 and now no Bautista. This team needs an extended winning streak and it can't happen with these starters at hand. It's a shame but the wild card hunt will have to wait till next year. The Leafs slogan can now be applied to the Jays..."There's always next year"
Kam H, Richmond Hill

A-I hope the Leafs are not taking credit for that version of the “Wait until next year” rallying cry that goes back to the pre-WWII Brooklyn Dodgers. As for AA allegedly waiting till the last moment to make a trade, he, in fact, always seems to be the most anxious man in the room to make a deal and make it right now.

The 10-man trade with the Astros set off a flurry of pre-deadline activity that may not have happened if AA had not pulled off his early deal. I'm not so sure he's overly attached to his draft choices, his farm studs, as it is that he wants to prioritize his inventory properly and not give away the wrong prospects. He deserves that right to not be rushed.

As for not being able to put together a significant win streak with this starting rotation, you are correct. It's something that will stall any Jays hopes for a wild card.   

Q-Hey Richard,

Just going to throw out a trade idea to hear your thoughts on why it could/couldn't happen from each end.

 The Marlins are slowly falling out of the playoff picture and are likely to become sellers. Do you think that there is a chance that for the right price they would be willing to part ways with their recently acquired SP Mark Buehrle? He has the type of contract that AA likes and can be here for a few years. The Marlins would likely ask for young OF prospects back and young pitching which the Jays have plenty of. Could you see the Jays giving up a combination of one of their Lugnuts pitchers, Gose/Snider/Thames and either Yan Gomes or another middle of the pack prospect? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.
Thanks,
Josh Cymbalista, Thornhill

A-The Marlins seem to be in the mood to listen to offers on anyone, but the fact that the Jays did not seem that interested in signing Buehrle when he was a free agent makes it seem unlikely that they would be interested now, at a point in time when they would have to pay Buehrle's free-agent salary PLUS give up some prime prospects. If the price in players was cheap AA might be interested, but if the price was steep then why bother. They should have made their best effort when he was a free agent. 

Q-Thanks for the great blog. I am a fan of the Jays but still miss the Expos. 
My question is on J Bautista's fielding ability. During the last series with Boston JB played a ball off the fence poorly and the Boston commentators commented that he was a below average fielder with an above average arm. Is that the feeling around the league?
Thanks,
M Swain, Seeleys Cove

A-The rap that Bautista has picked up as a below-average fielder is one that some of the range-factor advocates have argued on paper through the past three seasons, so the myth is picked up by broadcasters and repeated as fact by those that have not seen a lot of the Jays in person. Bautista is not a below average fielder, if only because of his baseball smarts and knowledge of the game. He does have an above average arm. Bautista is appreciated more the more you see him play.  

Q-Hi Richard,
The more I watch Yunel Escobar in the field the more I am convinced that he needs to go. On two occasions in the last few games (the most recent being G2 at Yankee Stadium) he has come across the diamond to steal pop up outs away from what I see as an annoyed Kelly Johnson. Earlier in the same Yankee game Escobar flipped the ball behind his back with men on base to an unsuspecting Johnson. I believe that the relationship between the two is poor and that Escobar, his sense of entitlement and constant glances to the cameras while in the dugout need to be traded and replaced by Hechavarria who appears ready for the majors.
Thanks,
Adam M, Waterloo

A-There is an accepted priority on balls in the air that all baseball teams follow and in that century-old pecking order, the shortstop has priority over every other player in the infield. So if Escobar can comfortably catch a popup, it is acceptable that he can call off any of his infield mates.

The ball flipped behind the back was kind of silly for Escobar but there was never any danger of a runner advancing because it wasn't a hard toss towards an open part of the field.

Johnson has every right in the world at this stage of the season to look annoyed – but mostly at himself. His hitting ability has slowly faded and his ability to make contact has reached alarming levels of whiff-dom. If the relationship between Escobar and Johnson is poor, then why on earth should the survivor be Johnson? He is a free agent at the end of the year and the odds of the Jays moving forward with the 30-year-old are slim. Escobar can be frustrating and annoying as his snooty Braves teammates might tell you, but to dismiss his skills and contributions would be a mistake.

Let Hechavarria earn his spot, don't give it to him. If you are annoyed by Escobar glancing at you in your living room, then the problem is yours.

NOTE: He can't actually see you when he constantly looks into the camera. In fact, he might be more annoyed at the red light going on and the television camera invading his privacy than the other way around.

Q-With all of the injuries that are suffered by MLB pitchers, I've been wondering if it's time to implement the pitching version of Moneyball.

It has become clear over the years that throwing a baseball 90+ mph an excess number of innings is not sustainable for a large percentage of MLB pitchers. Injuries are inevitable, and many of those of the long-term variety requiring significant surgery and lengthy rehab. And with these injuries, huge chunks of roster salary are in effect wasted that in mind, I've been wondering if it is time to re-consider the whole concept of what constitutes a pitching staff and how that staff is employed.
 

Rather than spending in excess of $30 million, (or much, much more) on five starting pitchers, plus something like $8 million on one closer, plus an additional $12 million or so on 5 or 6 middle relievers, why not this: a group of 12 pitchers that pitch an average of 3 innings per game. 

On this roster, there are no starters, there are no closers, and there are no set-up men. They are interchangeable parts of an elite roster that can be mixed and matched to provide the best matchups every game.

Instead of your $50 million average pitching roster that is prone to breaking down, you could have an elite pitching roster at a cost of $30 million that is much less prone to injury.

Imagine the following pitching roster (approximate 2012 salary in brackets):
Vinnie Pestano ($490K)
; Jason Grilli ($1.1M); 
Joaquin Benoit ($5.5M); 
Sean Burnett ($2M)
; Mike Adams ($ 4.4M);
 Scott Downs ($5M)
; Sergio Romo ($1.6M); 
Matt Thornton ($6M)
; Luke Gregerson ($1.6M)
; David Hernandez ($1.25M); 
Sean Marshall ($2.4M); 
Tyler Clippard ($1.65M).

This staff would cost $33 million; give you an ERA of around 2.00, a WHIP of around 1.00, and a crazy K/9 innings rate. Basically, you'd have the best pitching staff in the entire league - by a mile.

If you employed a consistent strategy of rotating them in every 3 innings you get additional benefits: each pitcher would top out at about 120 innings per year, thus reducing arm/elbow/shoulder strain etc.; every game the opposing team would rarely have a batter see the same pitcher twice, which would in effect lower batting average against even further (batters can't develop rhythm, learn from previous at-bats, etc).

And the biggest benefit of all might be the extra cash available to spend on the offence. Imagine if the Jays maintained their current payroll parameters, but spending $20 million more per year on offense while carrying an elite pitching staff. WIN-WIN.

Scott Postma, Waterdown

A- I don't know what they're putting in the water in Waterdown, but that's so crazy it just might work. No, just kidding. There's no chance it will work and not because it does not have merit, but because innovation is something that must be widely accepted and at that point it is no longer innovation.

Recall that Canadian hero and Hall-of-Fame old schooler, Ferguson Jenkins had a shot as pitching coach of the Cubs for about half a season. His idea was that the Cubs would go back to a four-man rotation and throw a lot more between starts. The problem is that 29 of 30 teams still used the five-man rotation and all the kids coming up through all the systems were training to pitch every fifth day. Fergie may have had a good idea, but the players he was dealing with were not prepared to jump into such a system. The same with your 12 pitchers times three innings scenario.

These are humans. There are injuries, failures, etc. Looking back and analyzing what players have done in the past is different than actually having them go out and do it live.

Q-A big fan, but you've grumbled a few times about the Jays' draft strategy this season, and I'm still not clear about why you don't like it. It has been many years since players were selected solely on the basis of their talent level, and strategy has always played a large role. What is so different about the way the Jays approached the draft this year?
Neil Paris, Toronto

A-Maybe I'm just a grumpy old man, but the new draft rules were instituted for bad reasons, as a soft salary cap in a sport that has managed to be very competitive with no salary cap, and teams like the Jays have invented ways to beat it.

I didn't agree with the new rules when they were announced and I don't agree with the Jays drafting an embarrassing list of undeserving baseball players from Rounds 4-10 and signing them for a total of $31,000 then using the savings to go after the guys they really want.

The report is that the Jays were within $541 of reaching the 5-percent over slot and thus losing a high draft pick in the 2012 draft. When an accountant needs to be in the draft room with a calculator then something is wrong with the system. The players union threw high schoolers and collegians under the bus and traded off their signing rights for something that card-carrying union members wanted.   

Q-Richard ...
How in the world did the Jays miss out on Ben Sheets?? Desperate for pitching, and they couldn't have taken a flyer on him .... and I gather he was unsigned as of June 30 this year?

 It's still early days on Sheets with the Braves, but my goodness, what was to lose?
David Williams, Oakville

A-That's a silly question. How did the Jays miss out on Ben Sheets? You've got to be kidding. The free-agent world is filled with guys like Ben Sheets and every team invites a couple of Ben Sheets to spring training or stage private off-season workouts in the hope of catching lightning in a bottle.

Wait until the end of the season before evaluating the Sheets experiment. It's like being in a hotel and pulling the blanket up over you and nestling down into a comfortable bed to watch Baseball Tonight. Everything is great, then six hours later you wake up and find out you've been short-Sheets-ed. What looked and felt great at one point turned out to be a mirage. Time will tell, but this is not the 2004 Ben Sheets.  

Q-Given the plethora of injuries to pitchers on just about every team, isn't it maybe time to consider adding a 26th man to the roster just to have that extra arm available instead of the constant - and confusing - shuffling of minor leaguers up and down?
J.D. Tamblyn, Lindsay

A-I have long been a proponent the past three or four years of adding two more players to every major-league roster and making it 27 active.

Back in the 80s, most teams went with a 10-man pitching staff meaning there were always 15 position players. That six-man bench, seven in the NL, made managing and second-guessing much more interesting. But the Jays for a while this year were carrying eight relievers and five starters, meaning there were just three players on the bench, one of them being a backup catcher that must stay on the bench in case of a catcher injury. Not much managing to be done.

The idea of 27 major-league players would cost each team about $1 million additional in salary plus travelling and living expenses for the season if they chose rookies with particular skill-sets, but that's chump change considering the money that's thrown around for nothing these days.

How about 27 players on the roster, but you must designate 25 of them to be active each night. That means that you could have your eight relievers, but activate just seven of them, or even six of them each night and give yourself more versatility as a manager. The union would love it and it would benefit the competitive nature of the game. It would not be favoured by the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce that has seen a tourism boom of flights in and out of town since the Jays moved there. 

Q-Hi Richard.
Re the Jays pitchers' injuries: Your colleague Kennedy's column has the list. It appears as "bad luck". Nothing wrong with the basic routine. BUT what if the young ones lack fastball command? And therefore are taught-encouraged to throw pitches that can hurt? And, worst of all, get sent to T. John surgery as a matter of routine.

Is it too conspiratorial to think that THIS in fact has become the system? That the surgery means teams can load up on pitchers with lots of breaking pitches and their pain be damned. What a shame it would be if 100 years after the sidearm and submarine pitchers of yesteryear 
(throwing with a much more anatomically healthy motion - ours arms after all do HANG DOWN -) went the way of the dodo bird we now have a situation where almost no one pitches complete games, medical science rebuilds the broken. There are many ironies in this tale. It deserves more analysis.

Charles Novogrodsky, Toronto

A-How about this 10-man pitching staff of all-time sidearmers/submariners: Carl Mays, Ted Abernathy, Kent Tekulve, Dan Quisenberry, Mark Eichhorn, Steve Olin, Mike Myers, Chad Bradford, Byung-Hyun Kim and Mike Venafro. By contrast, the Royal Canadian Navy has just four submarines.
As for your conspiracy theory, I'm as big a fan of conspiracies as anyone alive, but this one about intentionally damaging elbows to perform Tommy John and bring them back healthy tests even my conspiracy-consumed brain. I wonder why Tommy John never copyrighted his name. If he was paid every time someone mentioned the surgery he'd be a very wealthy man.

Q-Hi Richard,
It seems to be the Year of the Pitching Injury. The last couple of seasons have seen more and more pitchers heading off to Dr James Andrews' clinic, but this year is ridiculous. A second Tommy John surgery for Drabek? Are managers tougher on pitchers? Are pitchers trying to throw harder? Or is it a statistical anomaly?
Cheers,
Paul B, England

A-I have a theory that won't be very popular at the Commissioner's Office. I believe that the new MLB drug policies have affected the number of pitchers that get injured. It's not just recreational drugs and steroids that are banned. The banned stimulant list includes 56 types of drugs:
Adrafinil Amfepramone (diethylproprion) Amiphenazole Amphetamine Amphetaminil Armodafinil Benfluorex Benzphetamine Benzylpiperazine Bromantan Carphedon Cathine (norpseudoephedrine) Chloroamphetamine Clobenzorex Cropropamide Crotetamide Dimethylamphetamine Ephedrine Etamivan Ethylamphetamine Etilefrine Famprofazone Fenbutrazate Fencamfamine Fenethylline Fenfluramine Fenproporex Furfenorex Heptaminol Isometheptene Meclofenoxate Mefenorex Mesocarb Mephentermine Methamphetamine (methylamphetamine) Methylenedioxyamphetamine Methylephedrine Methylhexaneamine (dimethylamylamine, DMAA) Methylphenidate Modafinil Nikethamide Norfenefrine Norfenfluramine Octopamine Oxilofrine Pemoline Pentetrazol Phentermine Phenpromethamine Prenylamine Prolintane Phendimetrazine (phenmetrazine) Propylhexedrine Pyrovalerone Sibutramine Tuaminoheptane.
The trade-off of cleaning up baseball is long-term gain for short-term pain. That's a good trade-off for the athletes well-being as humans in the long-run as they age, but right now, baseball is an everyday grind and 162 games is something that the human body is  not equipped to handle. For years, baseball players found artificial help to get through the season, but now they are being tested and penalized. The trade-off may be more trips to the DL. In addition, with the success rate for Tommy John surgery rising to 83-88 percent, clubs and players seem more ready to have the procedure done sooner rather than later so they can resume their careers while still young. 

Q-Hi Richard,
Just watching Sunday's Indians game and wondering about Derek Lowe. A crafty veteran who still has the right stuff - could he be the "Jack Morris" piece to next year's pitching puzzle? I believe he's a free agent after this season.

Cheers,
Rod Salloum, Vancouver

A-It's an insult to Jack Morris to compare him to Derek Lowe. The answer is no.

Q-Richard:
What's going on with the Jays pitchers. There have been too many with season ending injuries that are requiring surgery. It's too coincidental to have this many pitchers out in one season. Is it poor training or poor preparation. The bright side is that over the course of the next two years they will be back.
Doug Peat, Dorchester

A-See my column on Tuesday. The Jays are studying the issue.

Q-Hi Richard -
Baseball more than any other of the Big 4 North American sports places a strong importance of the history of the game. This year they're celebrating the 100th anniversary of Fenway Park. Wrigley Field will be 100 in 2 years. (Personally I think it’s a sewer). But stadia such as Rogers Centre seem to lack a connection to the past (Other than the names listed on the Level of Excellence).

Could you suggest that they return to acknowledging 5th deck homers or those off the Windows restaurant) with permanent markers of where the balls landed for the Jays and other teams. Perhaps marking the seat where the ball landed with a different colour with a name and date. Might add some history to an otherwise sterile building.
Bo Buczko, Toronto

A-I agree with you about the hidden history of the Rogers Centre, uh, SkyDome. I would go back and have a fan poll about the 10 greatest moments in Dome history starting with Joe Carter's home run and commemorate them in a museum-like area of the main concourse. Maybe bring in the players involved in the 10 moments for a dedication of that area some time and keep adding new ones as they occur.

Let's see, No. 10 moment on my list would be Paul Godfrey bringing hot water to the taps of the main floor washrooms back in the summer of '05. Ah, those were the days.  

Q-Hey Richard
Love your work and appreciate your time to interact with the everyday Jays fan. I am hoping you can clarify something for me. With the trade deadline fast approaching, all you hear from the media is that with all of the injuries the Jays have faced they can't possibly be buyers this year. How does the loss of a few fringe starters affect their chances of making the playoffs? It's not like anyone could possibly believe they would succeed with any of the three rookies as the #3 starter so they were going to need to add pitching anyways.

 I get the loss of Morrow, but he appears to be on his way back and will certainly be healthy by the late push in September. And I would understand if Bautista was done for the year, but the way I see it this team could be right there to the end with one or two solid to great starters and at least one more reliever. Their offence is clearly as good as anyone right now. Am I completely off base? 

Also, a fun hypothetical trade question. Morneau for Lind. Who says no?
Jon K, Aurora

A-As you are suggesting, the injuries to pitchers may have been a painful blessing in disguise. Sometimes AA has the ability to overthink a situation. He did not chase Gio Gonzalez hard in the off-season because he didn't believe he threw enough strikes to be successful in the uber-patient AL East. GG then went to the NL East and became an all-star. As a result, AA goes out and gets J.A. Happ whose walks to strikeouts and walks to innings would lead one to ask the same questions about competing in the AL East. We forget that Anthopoulos is still learning his craft as well.

The painful blessing is that AA now realizes that he should have sacrificed inventory for veteran help in the off-season. They had confidence that Chad Jenkins and Deck McGuire would be ready by the time injuries hit, but the ended up with Joel Carreno and Jesse Chavez. They need help and they likely were not going to win with the five men that started the season, especially of the plan was to shut Hutchison down at 150 innings. Morrow will be back in mid-August if he stays healthy.
     
Q-Reading about Warren Cromartie's Montreal Baseball Project fills me with nostalgia about the great Expo teams.
 My question for you is this - If Montreal is able to resurrect a baseball team (AA or AAA since I don't think that they will be able to support a MLB team at this point), who do you think will be the likely MLB team to establish a farm system in Montreal?

In Edwin's recent contract I see the influence of Jose Bautista. You can see that the two get along really well and complement each other in the line-up. After watching the Home Run Derbies the past three years I can see the same sort of respect and admiration being expressed between Bautista and Big Papi (Ortiz wanted Bautista on the home run team in 2010 and this year he acted as an adviser to help him).  I know it's a long shot, but do you see the Jays aggressively pursuing Ortiz as a FA based on Bautista and Ortiz's perceived mutual respect and admiration.

I can easily see a line-up of Bautista in RF batting third with Big Papi as the DH batting fourth and Edwin playing 1st Base and batting fifth hitting a combined 100+ HRs - A modern re-creation of the Yankee's Murderers Row.
 That, coupled with an aggressive move to acquire a proven veteran pitcher like Cole Hamels or Cliff Lee would be enough for them to not only compete for the 2nd WC position but quite possibly win the Division
Forever an Expo's fan -

PS - Did you pick Miami's park as one of the worst because of the owner's former association with Montreal?
Mike Tremblay, Vernon, BC

A-Montreal would need an acceptable ballpark and would need solid ownership and would need to start at A or Double-A. The affiliate team is impossible to pinpoint at this point. Ottawa is in there as well. It would be nice to have them both with pro baseball.

As for Papi and Bats and Edwin, if the Jays were to pursue Ortiz in the off-season it would not be because he was friends with Bautista. There is no room for sentiment in baseball – unless it involves Dustin McGowan. At some point Papi is going to run out of bullets and that's a case where you're risking getting a player as he falls off a cliff with an empty gun.
The Jays are moving towards contending and it will be interesting to see which player inspires them in the off-season to spend money and take that final step to fill in the starting pitching hole.    

As for Miami's Stadium, the people who orchestrated the building of the stadium are friends of mine from the Montreal days, but in person the facility was a disappointment. However, if I had a ranking of best and worst owners, I would rank Marlins ownership the same as the stadium. THAT would be because of the owner's former association with Montreal.

Q-Hi Richard.
There are now other pitchers injured – Perez and Frasor. We were lucky that Alvarez is okay, but is he really okay? Morrow, Drabek and Hutchison are injured. And all the talk is going towards who can the Jays trade for? But let's change the focus. Who is going to figure out why all these injuries to pitchers have happened over the years? I am sorry but when you look back over the last few years at the pitcher injuries it appears to me that this is something more than bad luck. It continues to occur, and it is not being addressed.

 Let's look at the history that I can find on the internet:

In March 2006 a heading on the Jays' website said Scott Downs is the latest pitcher to go down; Downs was slated to step in as the temporary fifth starter in the first week of the season so A.J. Burnett can continue his steady recovery from an elbow injury in March. In April 16, 2006 the Jays took A.J. Burnett off the 15-day DL. Seven days later, Burnett was back on the DL again, citing a sore right elbow. On June 11 2006 left-hander Gustavo Chacin was headed to the DL with a strained left elbow. When the Jays activated Chacin, they placed Pete Walker on the DL with a shoulder injury. Walker came off the DL on June 28, and was back on it by July 8 with a right shoulder strain. On August 9, Justin Speier went to the DL with tightness in his right forearm.

In April 2007, pitchers that went to the DL with arm injuries included Brandon League, B.J. Ryan, and Gustavo Chacin. In June, AJ Burnett took his usual position on the DL. On August the 13, Brandon League again hit the DL in time for Burnett to return. 

Reliever Casey Janssen also suffered an injury that wouldn't see him return until early 2009. He missed all of 2008 due to shoulder problems.

In 2008, trips to the DL with arm related issues included Brian Wolfe, Shawn Marcum twice, Dustin McGowan twice and Brian Tallet. Their 3-4-5 pitchers in 2008 all underwent Tommy John surgery: Jesse Litsch, Marcum and McGowan. Dustin McGowan had right labrum surgery after the 2008 season. After the 2008 season Shawn Marcum had Tommy John surgery to repair ligaments in the pitching elbow. Marcum and Litsch underwent Tommy John surgeries in late 2008 and early 2009 respectively.

In 2009 Ricky Romero and BJ Ryan were placed on the disabled list. Others that have made a stop on the DL that year included Ryan, Ricky Romero, Bobby Ray, Casey Janssen, Scott Downs, Scott Richmond, and Roy Halladay.

In 2010 Richmond and Dirk Hayhurst were injured. 
A few years ago when these injuries occurred we were saying wait until Drabek and others came. OK we waited and now Drabek and Hutchison are injured. We traded for Morrow and he is injured. Now we are being told to wait again. How many more times do we have to go through this? Have the same training staff been with the team all this time? Is there any way to look back over the past six years and compare injuries to Jays pitchers to the injuries to the other 29 teams' pitchers? I strongly suspect that the Jays would be no. 1.Why is the cause of the problem not being addressed?
Bruce Hutchison, Winnipeg

A-What's your point?

Q-Hi Richard,
I'm curious to know what is the cost/fee to perform Tommy John surgery? And do the Blue Jays receive a discount for their frequent business on the procedure?
Thank you
Omair Rana, Chicago

A-I asked AA and he said it's paid for by insurance so he's not really sure how much it is. That's the same attitude I have with my bills at home. Just sign it.

As for any discount, I'm not sure if there's a 2-for-1 special ever but I d know that I have been told never have Tommy John surgery on a Friday afternoon when the doc is headed to the cottage.

Q-Hi Richard
Always enjoy your column. Lots of talk about baseball rather than salaries or rumours.
 One of the most fascinating stereotypes in baseball involves small (short) right-handed pitchers. A small, left-handed pitcher is crafty and baffling. Whitey Ford (yes, I'm old) was the classic, Hall of Fame, crafty lefty. Small right-handed pitchers are, well, little guys. I recall that when the Expos got Pedro Martinez from the Dodgers, the experts lamented that he was a small, right-handed pitcher. i.e. not good. Ramon would have been a better guy to get. Should we in Jayland be pleased or worried about the Jays signing Marcus Stroman who's just a little guy?
Timothy Daniels, Toronto

A-There has been an unnatural bias against short right-handers. But there have been some good ones, led by Pedro Martinez, Mordecai “Three-Finger” Brown, Smokey Joe Wood, Tim Lincecum, Tom Gordon and Jason Frasor. Stroman is a good one and that bias is disappearing. He will get a chance, perhaps as early as September, but, if not, he will surely get a spring training invite next year.

Q-Hi Richard,
Just wondering about something. When there is a rain delay, what happens with the players that are already on base, do they have to stay there until they continue play or call the game?  I heard someone on radio say that they have to stay on base, and when once the umps decided to continue a game the next day 
the poor guy had to stay all night. Is this really true?
Anne Guenther, North York

A-A fine question with which to end the mailbag. Someone left my catcher in the rain and I'll never have that recipe again.

This has improved quicker than i think we all envisioned. I'm not surprised, but definitely encouraged. Because he was in significant pain that night and the three days following that, there's been a lot of improvement. All that is positive and that's not just because of what he states, but the actual strengthening and the exercises and the treatment he's going through. That's being tested and once he's out of the woods, symptom free, that's when we'll put a bat back in his hands. The next thing he's doing is there's been more manipulation of the wrist side to side rather than just straight on exercises, so that's the progressive steps. There's been no reproducing of that discomfort in those controlled settings.”

Farrell suggested bautista may be swinging a bat and taking live batting practice by the end of the week.

Certainly over the years there would have been players ready to come back prior to the end of a disabled period, but with 15 days, that can never be considered a mistake, more like erring on the side of caution. Some players on the coin-toss, ready-or-not side of  15 days actually benefit from the enforced time out and are encouraged not to push the envelope, not to rush back to the field. It's really never a situation that's embarrassed any team. You know what they say about “better safe...”