Just another maddening start from Mr. Lilly.
Yesterday's Game, Executive Summary: Ted The Tease: All those
K's and just two hits, but five runs. If it was anyone else, I'd
appreciate his ability to stay in there after being down 5-0 in the
fourth.
Star Of The Game: Brandon Inge? Marcus Thames?
For The Jays: I grudgingly type Ted Lilly's name.
Bottom of the ninth, real-time: Oh, Todd Jones is pitching.
Maybe the Jays have a shot after all. And Hillenbrand grounds out as
soon as I type that. (Is it me, or does Todd Jones look like the kind
of guy who crashes his pickup truck into a gas station outside Fort
Lauderdale while on his way back from squirrel-hunting?) Squirrels, by
the way, stand a better chance against a major league pitcher than
Alfonzo, which is why I'm glad to see Gregg Zaun batting with two outs.
I'm also not sure where Brian Runge's strike zone is today, but I bet
you Aaron Hill out there on second has a much better view of the
pitches than the HP umpire.
Full count, two outs, tying run up. The Rogers Centre is
un-SkyDome-like. Zaun fouls off something low, then walks. Kudos to
Jamie Campbell for shutting up and letting the crowd call the game on
that one pitch...for a little bit, anyway.
Ah, well. Even Herb Washington would be out at second on that one.
Helping the bullpen: Pete Walker has been pitching "with soreness in his shoulder for the last two weeks." Seems to me he's done this before.
If we believe the two weeks, that means it started two Saturdays ago,
around May 27. What has Walker done since then? Well, he gave up six runs and eight hits.
Who is Zach Miner? He was part of the Kyle Farnsworth trade, is 24 years old, and seems to be the rare pitcher who does better after leaving the Braves' organization. The more you know...
Dave Bush Update: You know, I'd mention how well he's been doing, but when the only non-Halladay member of the Opening Day rotation still on the active roster is Ted Lilly, it wouldn't come out right. So I won't say that he's in the top 10 in more than a few categories in the National League, and I won't reference the fact that A.J. Burnett is averaging $27.5M per start.
Alfonzo Watch: 83 AB, .108/.187/.120.
Since Edgardo Alfonzo has been alive, only one American League player has had a lower OPS in 83 or more AB, and that was Ron Karkovice in 1987. If Alfonzo stays at his current level of futility for 11 more AB, he will pass Tom Egan (1974 Angels) and set a new record for lowest OPS in 94+ AB. From there, it's only 12 more AB until he breaks Kevin Cash's Blue Jay record!
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20060610170242337