Jays Roundup - Staring Blindly Into Space

Friday, August 27 2004 @ 10:14 AM EDT

Contributed by: Pepper Moffatt

Getting up to splash my face
Wanting just to stay awake
Wondering how much I can take

  1. Short recap: Yankees 7 - Blue Jays 4. Homeruns by Delgado (21st) and Hudson (10th). Bush gave up 4 runs (3 earned) over 5.2 innings allowing 7 hits, 2 walks, but no homeruns and 4 strikeouts. Frasor imploded in the 9th giving up 3 runs. For the Yanks Kenny Lofton went 3 for 4.

    Longer recaps:



  2. Fordin Notes on Cat's surgery, Vernon's injury and Hinske's glove:

      This year, Hinske's healthy and he's finally seeing the results of countless hours spent on his defense. In fact, his career's done a 180-degree turn. When Hinske came up, he was an offensive player carrying a suspect glove. Now he's an impact defender with a limp bat.

      Hinske has hit just .219 since the All-Star break, but his defense has kept him busy. He's played in 38 of Toronto's last 39 games, so the Jays recently schemed a way to keep him fresh. Toronto manager John Gibbons penciled him in as the designated hitter in Thursday night's game, giving him a chance to rest his legs.

    Only .219 since the All-Star break? Ouch.

  3. Rutsey Notes on pitchers Douglass, Maurer, and Lilly. Lilly has quietly put up some impressive numbers this season:

      He ranks sixth overall in ERA at 3.66 and while pitching in night games, he leads the American League with a 2.89 ERA. His road ERA of 3.53 is also seventh best in the league.

      With 138 strikeouts, Lilly sits sixth in the league while his opponents' batting average against him of .225 is second best in the league.

    If Lilly can keep this up and Doc is healthy next year, the Jays are going to have a terrific 1-2 punch in the rotation.

  4. Jeff Blair's piece "Jays smooth a path for rookie Crozier" indicates the Jays are going to give Eric Crozier as many at-bats as possible in September:

      What he didn't say was that with Delgado on the verge of free agency, Crozier's development is a priority. Since the trade, Crozier has hit .294 in 18 games with the Triple-A Syracuse SkyChiefs, with one home run and 13 runs batted in. Overall, he has 21 homers, 66 RBIs and a .297 average.

      They need to see what he can do because even if Delgado does leave as a free agent, the Blue Jays privately expect their payroll to increase no more than $3-million (U.S.) to about $53-million. They'll save on Delgado's $18.75-million, but they'll also have to pay other players due raises while adding at least one more front-line pitcher and at least two everyday bats.

    Has anyone else heard of this possible increase in payroll to $53 million? I believe this is the first I've heard of it.

  5. Speaking of the payroll Richard Griffin has a few things to say in his article "Less whining, more money please":

      Then again, what do we know? Saving money has always seemed more of a priority for the Rogers Blue Jays than spending it to build a winner. Think about recent ownership posturing. The Jays invariably play the guilt card, placing the onus on the fans to show they deserve a winner by coming to more games.

      The pretzel logic goes that by buying tickets in advance of results, management will be able to lure prime free-agent talent here to compete with the Yanks and Sox. It's totally illogical.

      In what other product-driven enterprise is that marketing strategy used? Has Labatt ever said, "Hey, we know our Blue isn't tasting very good this year. But, if you promise to drink more of it, we promise we will make it taste better later"?

    I don't recall anyone in the Jays ownership ever saying that if fans come out to see the Jays now, Rogers will increase the payroll in the future. Even still, this is a must read article.

  6. Tonight's 7:05PM EST game at the Skydome should be a quiet affair if Dome security has anything to say about it. The 9-7 unmentionable E------ L----- faces the 2-2 Justin Miller. As always, Spencer Fordin has a game preview.

My two cents: I'm not sure who exactly made the decision to silence the O-Drum but from where I sit the decision was an asinine one. I watched the first four innings on TV last night and we could quite clearly hear the drum as well as some of the chants (OVER-RATED). The Dome sounded like a great place to be. The atmosphere you guys provided was picked up viewers and made a much better advertisement for going to a game than commericals where a guy trades his girlfriend to a scalper for a $9 ticket. Between the cancellation of the Starpass and this fans seem to be told that they're not really wanted at the Skydome. A last place team should be giving people a reason to come to the park, not a reason to stay away.

Off-Topic Friday: Yesterday I made the off-hand comment that Temple of the Dog's self-titled album was one of the four or five best of the 90's. I thought about it later and it probably is one of the albums I've enjoyed most from that period. The only other ones that might possibly top it for me is Pearl Jam's "Ten", Cake's "Fashion Nugget", Radiohead's "OK Computer", and The New Radical's "Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too".

What are your five favourite albums from the 90's?

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