With glaring sunlight in my eyes
I thought of all the times gone by
And laughed aloud at the crimson sky
I thought of all the times gone by
And laughed aloud at the crimson sky
Jays 4 - Orioles 1
Boxscore:- Recaps:
- Spencer Fordin:
Call it September Training, a strange hybrid of the exhibition season and the stretch drive rolled into one. Roy Halladay toed the rubber in a Major League park on Monday night, but his focus wasn't solely trained on winning the game.
At this advanced stage of the season, Toronto's ace just wanted to prove he could pitch without pain for the second time in a week. He was held to a limit of 70 pitches, and he reached that after three innings in Toronto's 4-1 win over Baltimore. - Gary Washburn:
With stormy weather approaching Monday night, Camden Yards was virtually lifeless. And that atmosphere appeared to resonate on the Orioles players, who did not mount much of a struggle against the Toronto Blue Jays.
The Orioles scored in the bottom of the first inning on a Melvin Mora home run and produced nothing else in a 4-1 loss to Toronto in front of a season-low 17,809 at Camden Yards. - Mike Ganter:
The lone run Halladay surrendered last night was a Melvin Mora solo homer that came on a 3-2 curve ball in the first inning. Despite the outcome, it was a pitch Halladay felt was pretty good.
He would go on to strike out Jay Gibbons and Javy Lopez with the same pitch with men on base later in the game, indicating Halladay's curve was returning to its pre-injury form. - David Ginsburg:
Gregg Zaun homered and Orlando Hudson had three hits and an RBI, leading Toronto past the Baltimore Orioles 4-1 Monday night. The Blue Jays are 38-40 at home and 27-50 on the road, but in Baltimore they're 6-1. Toronto swept the Orioles in a three-game set last month and started this four-game series looking nothing like a last-place club. - Larry Millson:
The victory, by a scorer's decision, went to Brandon League, a recent call-up after he was the most valuable player in the Double-A Eastern League final, won by the Blue Jays' affiliate, New Hampshire.
League pitched 2 2/3 innings last night, worked out of a first-and-third, one-out situation in the fifth inning and was rewarded with his first major-league victory. Miguel Batista earned his fourth save.
- Spencer Fordin:
- Fordin Notes on Gregg Zaun's foot, Gustavo Chacin's windup, and Roy Halladay:
If Toronto manager John Gibbons had his way, Monday night's game would've been Roy Halladay's last start of the season. The skipper wants to go into the offseason without worrying about his ace, but the persuasive right-hander talked him into one more outing.
"I told him I didn't think he needed it," Gibbons said. "But if you think about it, he's come this far. One more isn't going to affect him one way or the other." - Ganter Notes on Joe Breeden's absence and Miguel Batista:
But heading into next season, Batista says the only way he wants to continue as closer is if he can approach the success rates that pitchers such as Mariano Rivera and Eric Gagne have reached.
"I have to be maybe not perfect but almost perfect," Batista said. "Anyone can say I'll do it and then just be so-so. I want to do it only if I can do it well. That's what I have to find out -- if I can do the job where I can save 50 or 60 games for this team. - Mark Zwolinski discusses the Carlos contractual situation in "No offer yet for Delgado, GM says":
"That report is totally false," Ricciardi said of a Toronto television report which claimed the Jays are on the verge of offering their superstar first baseman a three-year deal worth $21 million (all figures U.S.).
"We haven't talked to Carlos or his agent about anything. The end of the season would be the time we'd make that decision." - Tonight's 7:05PM EST start in Baltimore: LHP Ted Lilly (12-10, 3.92 ERA) vs. RHP Daniel Cabrera (12-7, 4.67 ERA). See the game preview for more details.
