I went to my first Jays game of the year last night (I've been out of the country most of the season), and had a great time enjoying what we've been treated to this whole year - home runs and starting pitching. Not to mention tiny crowds!
I watched from the outfield seats as Aaron Hill, Adam Lind and Jose Bautista went deep to give the Jays a 9-5 victory. There were also a couple balls off the wall, including one by Lind (if memory serves) that was literally inches from going out. The offense looked great, jumping all over Brad Bergesen to pound out those nine runs. Even the non-homers were not cheapies - the offense was hitting line drive after line drive. It was a treat to watch, even without my glasses.
Brandon Morrow ended with a good line of 6 innings, 2 runs. He walked four guys, though from my spot I couldn't tell if he was nibbling or just not getting some critical calls. The crowd seemed to think it was the latter. There were a few ugly swings by Orioles hitters, but on the whole I didn't think Morrow seemed particularly dominant.
Jose Bautista was probably the player of the game - he homered, doubled and gunned down a runner at second base. I know there are some people who want Bautista to be traded so the Jays can get some value for him, but I'm on the side of holding on to the guy and trying to extend him. I see him as the third baseman of the next few years, but he can also play the outfield if the situation warrants. Problem is, his value is a peak right now. Anyway, not a full analysis, but what do y'all think?
Around the seventh inning, I wandered to a little cafeteria in the outfield concourse called Market something or something Market or something. It was great! I got sweet potato fries with a delicious sauce and my cousin got nachos that were well beyond any stadium nachos I've ever eaten. And everything on the menu looked just as good. I can't remember the RC ever having particularly good food, and apparently this little spot is new just this year. I've long thought stadiums were missing out on a great opportunity of bringing in local restaurants to operate their own little food stand, and maybe the RC is starting to move in this direction - Toronto would be the perfect candidate for this type of thing given its extremely diverse cuisine. I didn't do a full stadium tour - has anyone else noticed anything like this?
Anyway, apologies for the scattered nature of this TDIB. Um, to sum up... Baseball! Discuss.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=2010072623191648