Four wins, two losses, and a tie. Not that anyone's counting. There's more interesting stuff to consider this spring.
There are at least four, and possibly as many as seven, roster spots that will be determined by what goes on this spring. Which makes Dunedin far more interesting than last year, when there was a mild bit of uncertainty about exactly one roster spot. Not much of this year's suspense involves the position player. The nine regulars are Zaun, Overbay, Hill, Clayton, Glaus, Johnson, Wells, Rios, and Thomas. The backup catcher will almost certainly be Jason Phillips, with Sal Fasano heading to Syracuse. The backup infielders will probably be John McDonald and Jason Smith, and the backup outfielder will be Matt Stairs. The Jays have been trying assorted infield candidates in the outfield (Smith, Roberts) to try to achieve a little more flexibility.
The real action this spring is on the pitching staff. We have a quinella* underway to determine the last two spots in the rotation. The contenders come out of the first week with John Thomson at the head of the pack, followed by Josh Towers. Ohka and Marcum each had an early stumble, but there's still a lot of track to be covered.
In the bullpen, Ryan, Frasor, League, and Downs are safe as houses, although we'll have to see whether League opens the season on the roster or the DL. Contenders for the other three spots include Accardo, Tallet, Rosario, Walker, and possibly even Davis Romero and Ryan Houston. If Shaun Marcum isn't in the rotation, and it seems unlikely that he will be, he also could very easily end up in the pen.
Anyway, this first week, the fellows who did most to help their case to be in the bullpen come Opening Day were Rosario, Accardo, Walker, and Houston.
* "quinella" - a type of parimutuel bet, in which the bettor must pick the two horses which finish first and second, but need not specify which will finish first.
There are at least four, and possibly as many as seven, roster spots that will be determined by what goes on this spring. Which makes Dunedin far more interesting than last year, when there was a mild bit of uncertainty about exactly one roster spot. Not much of this year's suspense involves the position player. The nine regulars are Zaun, Overbay, Hill, Clayton, Glaus, Johnson, Wells, Rios, and Thomas. The backup catcher will almost certainly be Jason Phillips, with Sal Fasano heading to Syracuse. The backup infielders will probably be John McDonald and Jason Smith, and the backup outfielder will be Matt Stairs. The Jays have been trying assorted infield candidates in the outfield (Smith, Roberts) to try to achieve a little more flexibility.
The real action this spring is on the pitching staff. We have a quinella* underway to determine the last two spots in the rotation. The contenders come out of the first week with John Thomson at the head of the pack, followed by Josh Towers. Ohka and Marcum each had an early stumble, but there's still a lot of track to be covered.
In the bullpen, Ryan, Frasor, League, and Downs are safe as houses, although we'll have to see whether League opens the season on the roster or the DL. Contenders for the other three spots include Accardo, Tallet, Rosario, Walker, and possibly even Davis Romero and Ryan Houston. If Shaun Marcum isn't in the rotation, and it seems unlikely that he will be, he also could very easily end up in the pen.
Anyway, this first week, the fellows who did most to help their case to be in the bullpen come Opening Day were Rosario, Accardo, Walker, and Houston.
* "quinella" - a type of parimutuel bet, in which the bettor must pick the two horses which finish first and second, but need not specify which will finish first.
