Lineups for today's game:

Blue Jays	Red Sox
RF Johnson 2B Hudson CF Wells 1B Delgado DH Phelps 3B Hinske SS Gomez LF Pond C Cash	CF Damon 2B Bellhorn DH Ortiz LF Ramirez C Varitek 1B Daubach RF Millar 3B Youkilis SS Reese

I'm a little nervous about Frankie Cat's groin injury...

Sam Malone: "gr-gr-gr-gr-groin injury"

What happened to Cat's groin?

It seems a bit odd, doesn't it, that Gomez is hitting ahead of Pond? Teams usually have a pretty good hitter in left--better than the Chris Gomez's of the world...

I'm really looking forward to this game, the first one in quite a while that I'm going to see in its entirety. Real life has intruded on baseball for a while, and it's good to be back in the Box.

This is a very difficult challenge for Doc, considering how familiar the Sox are with his stuff. The last time he was in Fenway, he made one mistake to Ortiz (I still think the Bellhorn HR was a fluke off a great pitch) and got no run support. Even though I own Arroyo in the BBFL, I hope the Jays have studied the video and learned enough to get some revenge for that shutout.

Damon's a much better fielder without the beard.

Even though it's 2up, 2down, it's still a good sign. Both those balls were smoked.

Welcome back Coach. Hope all is reasonably well.

I too have Arroyo and Doc in this game. 1-0 good guys please.

Halladay simply can't get Damon out.

The CF camera is pretty far to the left, so it's hard to "call" balls and strikes, but Doc, who stayed away from all three lefty batters, definitely didn't get the outside edge from umpire Darren Spagnardi. I thought the 3-1 to Damon was right where he wanted it.

No harm done, after that beautiful pitch to Manny.

Simon Pond with a clutch 2-out double the other way knocks in two runs, and it says here that's all Doc's going to need.

Ok, a two-nothing complete game shutout is just what the Doctor ordered.

Coach, by "outside edge" I presume you mean within 3-6 inches of the plate, a location that umpires generally treat as over the plate and that announcers almost without exception also pretend crossed the plate?

Doc, being very careful with Varitek, lost him for another leadoff walk, then gave up two singles and all of a sudden, it's 2-1 with two on and nobody out. He needs a nice 4-6-3 here...

Exactly, Chuck. Unless you're Questec, that's generally considered a strike. If everything above the belt is a ball, you have to give the pitcher something or every game will be 10-9.

Good Lord -- three walks in two innings?

Good grief - is it just me or is Doc not getting ANY love from the umps this season?

Coach - you jinxed Doc. =)

Alright then, lets have a barn burner. (feeling responsible for wishing a one nil game.)

Cerutti and Faulds are being homers. I have no problem with the umps strike zone.

Cerutti mentioned how Roy is the CY winner and should get calls. Why should a ump call balls, strikes just because of the pitcher. A ball should be a ball regardless of the pitcher.

Rob Faulds really gets me thinking. What do(/i) I think about that homerun?

A ball should be a ball regardless of the pitcher.

Should be, but often isn't.

Jerry Howarth is also talking about the rookie Spagnardi being obviously a hitter's ump, and I completely agree. As long as the zone is the same for both teams and consistent throughout the game, the players should adjust.

Big blast by VW to cut it to 4-3.

Does anyone know how Questec treats the high strikes? You would think it would be callibrated to the textbook strike zone, so umps who honour the east/west strikes but do not honour the north/south strikes would not fare well in evaluations.

I just turned my bobblehead away from the tv; I don't want him to see this...

Roy has to attack the strikezone instead of nibbling. He isn't Tom Glavine and doesn't throw in the high 80s.

Plus, he should take Ortiz dwon with a brushback pitch. Shrek is way too comfortable up there against him. Ortiz is his nemesis. He hits every ball hradr against HLH.

Where's this been all this time?

Nifty play by Delgado to turn two and erase yet another walk.

No matter how Questec is calibrated, the high strike is extinct. However, since Spagnardi has made it very clear he hasn't watched much AL ball, that's where I think Doc and Cash should go -- upstairs.

All right! Phelps goes deep and we're tied.

Yes, love to see Josh go deep. I still think Phelps will have a big year.

Wells and Phelps homer. Maybe the power is coming back.

Did Roy have 4 walks at Chicago or was it three???

Coach, you're getting a little spoiled here in your return to Da Box. There are a good many of us here not used to seeing the team's "power" hitters actually hit for power. We've seen about a weeks' worth of homeruns already in just a handful of innings.

Pond needs to get this run home from third with one out.

Oops. I meant week's, not weeks'. A little time with a current best selller should probably be my penance.

Third Base is Alcatraz for the jays this year. Simply Brutal.

That was a big rip by Hinske, too -- didn't miss leaving the yard by much. Too bad Pond couldn't hit a fly ball, though.

I'm watching thr Braves/LA game and there a foul ball hit in the stands but playable for the Brave and the fans touched the ball, that got me thinking what happened to Bartman?

Last time I heard he was locked up inside his house with a cop outside 24 hrs a day.

Pond didn't execute but that was heads up defense on Vertek's part.

Bartman was a fad. It's over. We can all carry on now.

I figured out why Doc's getting the screwjob. Our buddy Phil Cuzzi is at first. He must have hypnotised Spagnardi.

Actually, I agree with several comments made. Doc shouldn't get calls just because he is the reigning Cy Young award winner. When announcers use that logic to justify a bigger strikezone for a certain pitcher, that's incorrect. However, Spagnardi is definately squeezing the corners based on the way the game has been called consistently before and he has a "small" strike zone, all things considered. Maybe some of the near-misses for Doc and Arroyo aren't textbook strikes, but 95% of other umpires would have called them as such.

I'm with you, Thomas. There are a lot of differences between the textbook definition and the accepted strike zone. Spagnardi seems to have his own idea about the width of the zone, which is generally at least one baseball width on either side of the plate, or about 22-24 inches. No pitcher should get calls based on reputation, but all pitchers "should" get calls when the catcher sets up on the edge and they hit the target precisely. At least, they do from the vast majority of MLB umpires. Having this guy and Cuzzi in the same crew is frightening; we get Phil behind the plate tomorrow.

5-4 Boston on a double, a single and a sac fly -- Doc has made 93 pitches in 5.1 innings and is in another jam.

I swear I thought it was time for a Pond HR right before he hit it.

Bamm-Bamm!

Pond's first career HR ties it up. Good ball game.

See how concerned Vernon looked in making sure that Simon would get the ball back.

Congrats to Pond.

I'm confused...was that Pond's 1st career HR or his 2nd? Leave it to Rob Faulds to blow that one...BRUTAL!

That ball was ponded to the deepest part of the park.

I like that! Go Jays - let's pond some balls!

Nice inning by Kershner. The Red Sox 1-2-3 is just begging for a LHP. I hope we see more of that this weekend.

The "young man" (Kershner) that Faulds asserts the team "thinks highly of" has now finally passed the 10-inning mark in this, the team's 42nd game.

Hey, Adam -- UFA beat Forest Hill 11-2 Wednesday; sorry you missed it. Early in the game, Rishi went behind the 3B bag to field a hot grounder, then made a great one-hop throw which Stefan scooped beautifully, only to have the ump call the guy safe (he was out by two full steps). I argued to the verge of being tossed. An inning later, Gavin hustled down the line while their first baseman fished around in the dirt for the ball, which was still rolling when he crossed the bag. When he was called out, instead of throwing another tantrum, I just said (loudly, of course) "two wrongs don't make a right," earning me a dirty look and a warning.

Later in the game, Gavin beat out another infield single and was called out. By then, we were up by nine and it may have been a pity call, but I let Blue know he'd earned the hat trick.

Yesterday, we lost 6-3 to a Parkdale team that appears to be the class of the West and could give Harbord a battle if they both make it to the finals. I'm very proud of our kids; we had three Grade 10's and four Grade 9's in the game and will be a very good club the next couple of years. I hope you can make it next Wednesday -- we play Bloor at Trinity for third place and a slightly easier playoff seeding. First playoff game will be Thursday, June 3 at a location TBA.

Around the league... ARod homered in his first AB back in Texas, presumably to lots of boos. When you've played 162 games a year at a league MVP caliber for an organization, I guess it only makes sense that they would boo you after you leave.

Ouch. Nakamura hangs a curve to Manny and now it's Foulke time.

Why is Tosca not treating the 4-5-6 spots in the Red Sox order as high leverage? Why Nakamura?

Why wasn't Kershner left in the game after rolling in the 7th???

Bush league managing. When Mike came out I was shaking my head at why he wasn't sticking with the guy that's getting you outs?

I was even more scared when the announcers were talking about the bullpen and they said the closer role would depend on matchups. Arghhhhhhhhhh

When is the bleeding going to stop? We need to start gaining ground on the 3 teams ahead of us, not losing ground.

I read about Forest Hill in the paper but you'd given Kevin and I Tuesday as gameday so I was up at Eglinton for 3 on Tuesday to see NT and Jarvis warming up.

...I've got volunteer hours scheduled on Oliva Chow's campaign between 1 and 4 so I'll do my best to change that to an evening shift and secure June 3rd (unless I find work...don't suppose anyone here's looking for a public policy student with a strong background in grassroots organizing/leadership/communications? I'm at my witts end, it seems like money's totally dried up in this city).

http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/tor/news/tor_news.jsp?ymd=20040521&content_id=749324&vkey=news_tor&fext=.jsp
Adams is officially out of the closers role. COMN.

Cerutti continues to make mistakes...this IS NOT Pond's first ever game at Fenway...He struck out pinch hitting on April 9th...

This is frustrating. It's not as if Boston's hitting the ball hard, they're just finidng the holes that 17-24 team doesn't.

Did you seriously like the Kershner/Ramirez matchup, Asianflow? I admit to being surprised it was Nakamura instead of Ligtenberg or Lopez, but Tosca had to make a change there, and hindsight is 20-20. As it turns out, Ligtenberg isn't exactly Goose Gossage tonight...

Adam, sorry for misleading you on the schedule. Brain cramp, E-10.

Here comes a little gasoline for the fire...

So who do you bring in the 8th? Who are the Jays' "high-leverage" guy? I guess I would bring in Frasor, but perhaps Tosca was going to save him for the ninth. I certainly would pick Nakamura over Ligtenberg or Adams to face Ramirez..

I'm not the type of guy to stress matchups every batter. If a guy is rolling like Kershner I'm going to stick with the guy that gets me outs.

As a Jays fan I feel very defeated. I've thrown up my flag and pulled a France.

One part of me tells me to not waste another second on this pathetic team, but there's another side that tells me this team could lose every single game the rest of the season and I'll stil tune in to watch some guys.

But I do know for sure this team (or even come close) won't win the division or the wild card.

I'm not sure Asian Flow likes anything. It's a tired routine.

About the strikezone...

Umpires generally call strikes up to 2 inches off the plate, but they almost never call a pitch at the batter's number a strike, even though it's supposed to be. This ump has shaved the corners to the rule book, but hasn't adjusted the upper limit of the strikezone accordingly. I hate it.

Gomez strikes again !!

I was all for pulling Kershner after his one solid inning. Ramirez and Varitek both hit better against LHP.

My thinking is this: if Frasor is Tosca's MAIN MAN, then the 8th inning facing the 4-5-6 hitters would absolutely have been the highest leverage situation for him.

Of course we'll never know what motivated Tosca's decision, but I can't help but speculate that he was thinking something along the lines of: hold the Sox in the 8th, score in the 9th and then send in my new closer, Frasor, in the bottom of the 9th.

Looks like the eighth isn't Adams' inning either.

Looks like the eighth isn't Adams' inning either.

Our bullpen has imploded.

Even Remy was making fun of the Jays' pen in the fifth calling it "dreadful."

"It's a tired routine"

The real tired routine is the losing and bad baseball.

I agree with Asianflow's last statement. I fear how hard it will be for the Blue Jays to market this team in the future. After a great ad campaign, this season hasn't been much fun for the casual fan. We can argue ourselves blue in the face saying Tosca should have done this or that or the other thing, but really, this team isn't that good. I said 20 games ago, I didn't sense any character, but sadly there's no metric for me to give you. No CHARACTER QUOTIENT. Hey, I'll still pay my money and tune in on tv, but it's damn near impossible to get my friends to go. The 2004 Blue Jays are pretty depressing.
Go, uh, who else plays pro summer sports in Toronto?

Try these numbers on for size statheads...After 42 games, 2003 bullpen - 5.21 ERA, 7 losses, 6 blown saves...2004, 4.66 ERA, 12 losses, 5 blown saves...

You're right, the Jays score lowly on every advanced character metric that exists. Their morale quotient especially is scarily low.

Oh - wait - they don't measure those things.

Call me a hopeless optimist, but the only thing that worries me now is Roy Halladay. He's pitched against Boston 4 times, and I think he needs to face some less patient teams. He'll be all right in the end.

When Speier comes back, the bullpen will be fine. The bats are coming around.

Look,

We have played 11 games against the best team in baseball and won four of them. That's not great, but it's not bad either.

Our bullpen does need a shot of cortizone. I am now officially calling for a trade to bring another arm in.

I would have brought in Jeff Tam to pitch to Ramirez. Or Roy Lee Jackson. Or even, God help me, Joey McLaughlin.

David S -

You've demonstrated that the offense is the problem this year more than the bullpen. When the bullpen implodes, it's just more apparent.

Congratulations to Simon Pond for his first career HR.

There's a lot more I could say, but that's really all I want to.

David S,

I'd be interested in seeing some game by game analysis before taking the bullpen completely off the hook. Yes, the hitting has been off substantially, but the starting pitching has been improved. It seems, anecdotally at least, that the bullpen is blowing 5-2 and 5-5 games this year, whereas last year they were blowing 10-7 and 8-8 games. Either way, their job is to shut the door in the late innings, and they aren't getting it done.

Any thoughts on whether we'll be seeing Bob File anytime soon?

I also fall under the hopeless optimist category.

Roy today had me worried, and still does (5 Walks??) I didn't see the game, but if the strike zone really is that picky, he's gotta compensate for it. 5 walks is like Jeff Tam numbers.

As for the bullpen, Kershner is generally pretty solid, as is Frasor. Nakamura is usually pretty decent as long as the Jays are ahead. Lightenburg... ummmm the Jury's still out. He pitched well before, just as of late has had problems. Valerio? Not enough work to make a clear-cut decision. Adams has pitched well before being named the closer. And Lopez has looked good since he was sent down

It seems that ever since they are named closer, Jays seem to fall apart, and it continues after they lose the role.

I don't know WHAT the solution, but I still have faith. I don't expect contention, but I expect them to be tough competition for their opponents. A 82-80 season isn't out of grasp, and today's Jays did fight back, when down.

At the moment, the injury bug isn't helping any either... Myers, Speier, Woodward, Cat... those are some product pieces of the puzzle.

Gotta Have Faith.. and I do

He was facing a group of tough hitters for the 4th time this year, with a very very tight strikezone. He gave up no homeruns. There's nothing wrong with Halladay.

Wow, I almost wish they'd just fall behind early and not put me through that at the end of every game...BUT they're still in (almost) every game. A decision here and a bounce there and who knows? The point is, despite the poor results and glaring deficiencies, they're not far away and they're getting closer.

Re: who to bring in for Manny; that's EXACTLY the situation I give Adams a look in. I thought the Nakamura move was questionable - though I can't blame this on Tosca, he went with one of his most consistent arms - because Manny was in a mini-slump and whiffing at pitches from 3/4; why bring in a soft-tossing side-arm?

Please lay of Gomez - he is who he is. He's been more than expected with the bat and he's as well as you can expect at short with Woodward out. He doesn't have a great arm, why blame him for not making above-average throws?

Free Bob File! He's put up some nice early numbers at Syracuse; is he ready?

Is Halladay 'backing off' a good idea? I defer to brighter minds...

How about Kelly Wunsch? With Cotts and Marte as bullpen lefties the recently back from injury Wunsch is on the trading block.

Free Bob File! He's put up some nice early numbers at Syracuse; is he ready?

I would say no. In 7.1 innings he's allowed 9 hits, 3 walks and K'd just two batters. His ERA is deceptive -- he hasn't been that effective. I'm very doubtful he'd be better than anyone the Jays currently have in the bullpen.

What's Wunsch going to cost?

Right now I would relegate Adams to mop up until he gets a clue with his command. The pitch to Ortiz which was high and outside by two feet was pathetic and ran the count full. Though to be fair if Delgado was at the plate that would have been a strikeout.

The pen is significantly better than last year. They're more than a half run better in ERA despite some absolute poundings. The problem the offence hasn't afforded them very many save situations and when there's a late inning tie the offence has seldom come through when needed to put relievers in a position to win. These guys aren't going to be perfect so if you constantly put them in ties with an offence that can't score of course they'll pile up the losses.

The Red Sox drew 8 walks in this game taking advantage of a tight strikezone. The Jays hitters only managed to draw one walk while chasing many pitches that weren't close to strikes.

Cotts is starting tomorrow so its not very likely that Wunsch is available. Adam Peterson might be up come June though.

I wouldn't mind Britt Rheames. He is at AAA Sacramento.

I wouldn't mind Britt Rheames. He is at AAA Sacramento.

On a night when so much is being said about the bullpen... Guess who's getting lit up in Texas? Yes, D'Artagnan Sturtze.

The pen is significantly better than last year.

That's really not saying much; I really felt we were witnessing history last year (now I've seen this year's Tribe and feel better about it). I understand that this team is built to score runs and win big, but the pen has got to do a better job when the offense isn't clicking. Otherwise why invest in relief pitching at all? For the money J.P. gave Ligtenberg and Adams you have to expect more from the pen than the ability to hold onto a 6 run lead.

The 2004 Blue Jays are pretty depressing.

Disappointing, absolutely. Frustrating, for sure. Baffling, yup. Depressing? Maybe for you, in which case it's masochistic to keep watching, but not for me. I get far too much pleasure from baseball to ever use that word, even in the middle of a losing streak. As long as this season has been so far, there are three more just like it remaining to be played before the real catastrophe -- the offseason.

Tonight, if Nakamura stays on top of that curve ball and Ramirez grounds it to short, maybe the outcome would have been different. Turning that one poorly-executed pitch into an indictment of the team, or the manager, is incredibly short-sighted. Ligtenberg and Adams didn't pitch well either, but the whole team is pressing, with that "here we go again" feeling when something goes wrong late in a game. They're only human, and winning matters much more to them than to any fan. Though it isn't easy, what they need to do (as do some around here) is relax and enjoy the games. Success will follow.

If Lilly beats Pedro tomorrow, and Frasor strikes out Manny to nail down the save, there will be a dramatic change of mood in the Jays' clubhouse, and it just might launch another winning streak. If that doesn't happen, you tip your cap to Boston, the best team in the game, and hope it will turn around the next day, perhaps with a Batista gem and three homers by Delgado.

This is not a bad club. There's plenty of talent, and there will be tremendous entertainment for the next 120 games. Magnificent pitching performances, hitting heroics, spectacular defensive plays -- all the reasons I'm a fan. Yes, I'm disappointed that they didn't win tonight, and no, I'm not thrilled about the standings, but I can't wait to see what happens next.

Thanks, Coach. I, for one, needed that. I think I'll climb down from this ledge now...

I can see the seen in the clubhouse now.... with much wailing and gnashing of teeth, tosca furrowing his brow in a vain attempt to understand the situation, JP cursing without using the letter R and trying to pull the strings on the trade for a closer and bullpen help, when all the while The Hentgen turns from his locker and says very matter of factly "Guys....You dont have to trade for bullpen help.....Im right here"

While I totally agree about your main point, Coach, this season's troubles can't be boiled down to one hung curveball. Last year Tosca had an excuse with the bullpen as it was decidedly untalented. This year the bullpen, at least on paper, is exceptionally talented and yet they are still using four pitchers to get out of an inning. In particular his treatment of de los Santos has been frusterating---I know D-Los was injured for a while but it strikes me that he has the ability to get righties and lefties out with some aplomb. I also really don't like the way the closer situation has been handled, with one announcement after the other about who is getting the ball next.

Okay, rant over. Positives include Wells hitting the ball real hard today, Kershner pitching well, and Pond's entire game. Sounds like he'll be in left all series with the Cat out.

This year the bullpen, at least on paper, is exceptionally talented and yet they are still using four pitchers to get out of an inning.

I actually liked that every Jays reliever in the eighth failed. There won't be any Tosca bashers tomorrow. No more 'Tosca should have brought in so and so.' You know what? Tosca brought in everyone and everyone failed. I've been a fan of Tosca's bullpen usage for the last month or so. For the most part, he's been allowing his relievers to pitch at least an inning per appearance. However, while so many were calling for his head earlier, I don't see anyone sticking up for him now.

If Tosca used FRASOR for the 8th and 9th, then there's a good chance this game at least goes extra innings. If FRASOR is not going to pitch consecutive days, then there's no reason to treat him like the cookie-cutter closer: instead, bring him in as early as you need to with a lead. For FRASOR, that would likely mean to start the 8th.

It's simple: FRASOR should start the 8th inning every other day. How hard is that? It's reasonable usage /and/ somewhat conventional.

JBR, I agree with that usage of Frasor, and in fact suggested it, but let's not get carried away about what to expect. The evidence that Frasor is a significantly better pitcher than Nakamura really isn't there. Giving up a home run to Manny is hardly a badge of dishonour.

I agree with Cristian. While I haven't always agreed with Tosca's bullpen usage over the last month, it has been reasonable. He's got a tough job right now. The funny thing is that I think that he's got a long list of relief pitchers who could do a good job in the right role: Adams, Kershner, Lopez, Nakamura, Frasor, Speier, DLS and Ligtenberg perhaps. Vinny Chulk is pitching very well in Syracuse and could contribute too.

Frasor in the 6th and 7th, The Hentgen in the 8th and 9th. Boom, games over, good guys win, lets hit the clubhouse buffet.

I've been a fan of Tosca's bullpen usage for the last month or so. For the most part, he's been allowing his relievers to pitch at least an inning per appearance. However, while so many were calling for his head earlier, I don't see anyone sticking up for him now.

I think we need to stop going to extremes around here. I know for a fact that myself and a couple others that were bashing Tosca at the start of the season have come out and said several times that his bullpen use has been much better lately.

What I and some others were complaining about was when he would remove a pitcher pitching perfectly well for another when there was no reason to believe that the incoming pitcher would do better (or that at least that the outgoing pitcher couldn't get the out). Last night, the only pitcher Tosca removed that was pitching well was Kershner, and that was because Manny was coming up (= good reason). All the other pitching changes were due to ineffective pitching. Hence I have no problem with his bullpen management yesterday.

this season's troubles can't be boiled down to one hung curveball

Of course not. Last night's result can, however, and that's all I was trying to point out. If Nakamura wins that battle, there's a psychological lift for the whole team, instead of the familiar feeling of letting a winnable game slip away. The latter is a temporary condition that a couple of comebacks can banish to distant memory.

The "troubles" from a season-long perspective can be compared to a long car trip that begins with a flat tire (making Jason Johnson look like Walter Johnson) and is followed by a series of other mechanical problems (poor starts, bullpen blowups, Wells' slow start, Delgado's slump...) -- your destination doesn't change, but you're not going to get there according to your original agenda.

Even an optimist like myself figured this team had less than a 1% chance of winning anything this year, maybe a 2% chance at a wild card. Obviously, that's been reduced to zero, or thereabouts, though stranger things have happened in baseball. So what? I can't understand why the illusion of contending is a prerequisite to enjoying the games.

You know, people love to whine about Dave Berg or Jeff Tam or whoever the current whipping boy happens to be, but there's a certain $200 million juggernaut featuring Miguel Cairo and Tanyon Sturtze. In other words, no team is perfect. We've got a very good big-league club, a vastly improved farm system, incredibly smart people in charge, and there are great seats available for every game. It's the best time to be a Jays fan in more than ten years, yet you would think by the comments of some folks that the apocalypse is upon us.

I can't believe how positive some of you guys are. Wow!

Half full rather than half empty.

Even though the Jays are one of the worst teams in the MLB some of you think it's not a big deal.

Too bad there isn't more of you people out there, so the Skydome would actually have decent crowds in there instead of the sea of blue they usually play in front of.

Even though the Jays are one of the worst teams in the MLB some of you think it's not a big deal.

No.

They have one of the worst records in baseball, but they aren't one of the worst teams.