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Game Reports Red Sox 12, Blue Jays 7
Toronto vs Boston. Fenway Park. Patriot's Day. Haven't we seen this before?

Some random facts on the game:

It was a bizarre start for baseball, with the first pitch thrown before 11:09 AM and numerous flyovers by jets marking the start of the Boston Marathon on the third Monday in April. Toronto went scoreless in the first, but they put up back-to-back crooked numbers to get the offense going. The Jays also got one in the ninth but the game ended up six runs apart.

Individual performances include Vernon Wells with an extra-base hit, scoring a run and driving in another (although he did strike out once). Also, Shea Hillenbrand scored and had a multi-hit game, albeit in a losing cause. The Jays' cleanup hitter left a few men on base, which didn't help the offense any. In non-starting lineup news, Reed Johnson replaced Frank Catalanotto in the outfield late in the game and the Jays' 5-foot-11 backup infielder provided an RBI hit off the bench.

Kevin Millar converted a 4-6-3 double play, and the game took more than three hours. Manny Ramirez was his usual dangerous self. Johnny Damon flew out in the first, hit a ball to the right side in the third and made another out in the bottom of the fifth.

Laz Diaz was one of the four umpires on the crew, though he didn't have the tough job of calling balls and strikes or watching close plays at first base, which would be even harder at eleven in the morning.

The losing pitcher left the game in the third, having surrendered seven runs and ending up with a terrible Game Score of 15. Four relievers followed him, including good ol' Brandon L., who tried his best but couldn't prevent the other team from scoring. Boston's starter saw his record go to 1-1 after the game was over.

Greg Myers came up for the Jays in the ninth, but nothing he did mattered either way, since the game was well out of reach by then. Afterwards, Mike Wilner took a look at the out-of-town scoreboard and remarked that the White Sox were facing a divisional rival.

If these game details sound familiar to you, well...they should. That game I just described took place on two separate occasions, two years apart.

Call it the Game Report version of a trick question.

Posted by Rob on Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 08:19 AM EDT.
Red Sox 12, Blue Jays 7 | 19 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
Jordan - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 10:45 AM EDT (#112605) #
Rob, that is flat-out creepy. You should e-mail that to Jayson Stark for his weird-facts column.

Here's another wacky stat: the Blue Jays, with their regular #2, #3 and #4 hitters struggling, are third in the majors in runs scored. If that seems unlikely, consider that the two teams ahead of them are the Tigers and Dodgers. As has been said before, April shouldn't be taken too seriously.

Another interesting fact is that yesterday's loss was the first this season in which the Jays were never really in it. In their previous games this season, they either won or lost by three or fewer runs. This time last year, they had already lost 4 games by 4 runs or more.

Oh yeah -- last year, the Jays didn't win their 8th game of the season until May 1.

[ Reply to This ]
Gerry - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 10:55 AM EDT (#112607) #
Rob:

How did you make the connection, or find the other game?
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Thomas - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 11:00 AM EDT (#112608) #
My guess is that he just remembered that the Jays did Patriot Day a couple of years ago. I remembered they had done it recently, although I never would have looked for the similiarities like he did or have pieced together such a fine Game Report.
[ Reply to This ]
Jordan - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 11:05 AM EDT (#112609) #
These two are particularly brilliant:

Shea Hillenbrand scored and had a multi-hit game, albeit in a losing cause.

Four relievers followed him, including good ol' Brandon L., who tried his best but still gave up three hits.

[ Reply to This ]
daryn - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 11:29 AM EDT (#112612) #
Oh no you don't
League wasn't up in April of 2003.

otherwise very cool

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Ryan C - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 11:35 AM EDT (#112613) #
Ah, but be didnt say "Brandon League", he said "Brandon L.". And Brandon Lyon pitched for the Red Sox that game. Nice try though, got me for a second too.
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A - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 11:54 AM EDT (#112615) #
Not that it means much, Rob, but you're a certified genius in my books.
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Wildrose - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 12:07 PM EDT (#112616) #
For those who like to follow fellow Canucks in the majors, ran across this sight which updates and lists the stats of our MLB players weekly. I found it curious that K.C. third base prospect Mark Teahen is now listed as being a Canadian. Anybody have the scoop on this?
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jsut - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 12:20 PM EDT (#112620) #
According to the google cache, that site thinks that Teahan has family in St. Mary's Ontario.

I think they are confused though, as he went to College in St. Mary's California.

Maybe it's just a strange coincidence though, who knows.
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Wildrose - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 12:38 PM EDT (#112621) #
He's also listed on the SLAM sports sight as being a Canadian. The St Mary's connection seems a bit of an odd coincidence. I heard a rumor on another sight that Teahen was getting citizenship, but I'm not sure whats driving it?

Go figure, another left-handed hitter?
[ Reply to This ]
Ryan C - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 01:02 PM EDT (#112626) #
Teahen is definitely a Canadian. Or at least he used to be.

He is a former member of the Vancouver Canadians, a single A affiliate of the Oakland A's.

Just another odd coincidence?
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robertdudek - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 01:17 PM EDT (#112627) #
What is a "sight"?

According to Baseball Cube, Teahen was born, went to high school and college in California. It's possible that one of his parents or grandparents was Canadian. If so, he might be eligible for citizenship. Even if that were the case (and I have no indication it is), he should not be listed as a Canadian and I can only assume that those websites are in error.

[ Reply to This ]
Rob - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 02:31 PM EDT (#112630) #
About that "Brandon L., who tried his best but still gave up three hits"...I read the wrong pitching line. The similarity still stands, though, as this:

"Brandon L., who tried his best but couldn't prevent the other team from scoring."

[ Reply to This ]
Rob - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 02:44 PM EDT (#112631) #
How did you make the connection, or find the other game?

Short version: I remembered the Jays were in Boston on Patriot's Day a few years back, and when going through the ESPN boxscore for that game, I noticed a few things were the same -- "Laz Diaz" caught my eye, for example. After I found out the Game Scores for Burkett (2003) and Bush (2005) were exactly the same, I decided to find everything I could that would apply to both games, but still make sense for a Game Report.

Thanks, by the way, to everyone who said they liked it. I had a feeling you all would. :)

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Jdog - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 03:37 PM EDT (#112635) #
Well it looks like my area of expertise is finally brought up here in the box. I work as an immigration officer in the summers so I'll give you the facts as best as i can remember. As long as someone is born after 1977(the year the immigration act was changed) to a Canadian parent then they are canadian, they dont have to apply or anything. So if Teahan was born after 1977 and one of his parents is Canadian than so is he.
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Ducey - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 03:40 PM EDT (#112636) #
BP has their Hit List out and the Jays are at #4. I expect it to drop a fair bit after the last two bad starts. Interestingly, the Twins are ranked ahead of the Jays in least in part due to good old Dave Gassner.

Question: They say Jason Lane hit .326/.319/.739. How does he have an OBP less than his average?

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=3951
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Lefty - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 03:54 PM EDT (#112639) #
Jdog, is it during cruise ship season that you work for Border Services?
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sweat - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 03:59 PM EDT (#112640) #
sac fly or sac bunt.
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Jdog - Tuesday, April 19 2005 @ 04:59 PM EDT (#112641) #
Lefty,

Nope i just work their on a seasonal basis due to the increased traffic during the warmer months.
[ Reply to This ]
Red Sox 12, Blue Jays 7 | 19 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.