Two affiliate wins by the top teams in the system.  Las Vegas's win moved them to within a half game of first place.  Chad Jenkins was good enough to get the win for New Hampshire.  Elsewhere on the farm there were a series of blow-ups.  Egan Smith had a no hitter through five innings but blew up good in the sixth as Dunedin lost.  Vancouver lost both ends of a double header.  In the first game they had a lead going to their closer in the seventh but he coughed up the lead.  Then he gave up another run in the eighth but Vancouver came back to tie but Eugene scored the winning run in the ninth.  In game two Vancouver again had the lead but lost. The GCL Jays took a lead to the ninth but made two errors to lose the game and throw a win away.  Bluefield were rained out and Lansing had the day off.

Five days ago, the A's were under the radar and the Jays were finished. Tonight, they'll meet at the SkyDome in the biggest matchup on the baseball calendar. The rampaging A's have lost all of two games this month. They just hung a four-game sweep on the Yankees and have roared into the second wildcard spot. Their game centers around aggressive pitching and excellent defense, but this month they've also played some longball.

Las Vegas and Vancouver could not be accused of having slow hands at the plate as they put up a dozen runs apiece.  New Hampshire and the boys in the Gulf could not be accused of having slow feet as they each executed a double steal of home and second base. That was part of a 4-3 Monday night for the affiliates.

I haven't given you a Data Table in a long time.

Consider this, then:

David Cooper and Moises Sierra combined for seven hits, two home runs and six RBI to help Las Vegas defeat Reno in the Pacific Coast League (AAA).

Two wins in seven tries and virtually nothing worth mentioning. So read on!

We've been waiting breathlessly for the final roster move to clear space for Happ and Lyon on the active roster. It had been speculated, and reported, that Andrew Carpenter would be Designated For Assignment.

But no. Jason Frasor goes to the 15 day DL with forearm tightness.

There were shutouts galore as the pitching staffs for three of the affiliates threw combined shutouts. However, it was a pitching performance in one of the games that wasn’t a shutout that really stood out on the farm last night. Meanwhile, Las Vegas and New Hampshire both went to extra innings, with one winning and one taking the loss.

Today's POTD looks at two of the players going to Houston as part of Friday's 10 player deal.

Sure, there was over half a dozen games to comment on, but I couldn't pass p that headline, could I?

The Blue Jays travel to Fenway to take on the Red Sox, who were late winners on a dramatic three-run home run by Cody "The Boss" Ross. Toronto is only 2.5 games behind Boston, and 3.5 out of the final wild card spot, but six teams stand between them and the postseason at the moment, and at a guess it's going to take a minimum 86 wins (and maybe closer to 90) to make the playoffs, so Toronto has to play well over .600 ball the rest of the season to have a chance, with games against other Wild Card contenders (basically everyone) counting especially. So let's see if they can do it - let's Advance Scout.

FLASH! BULLETIN! URGENT NEWS!

The Blue Jays have optioned RHP Sam Dyson to New Hampshire and will recall C-INF Yan Gomes from Las Vegas (as reported by Barry Davis and others on The Twitter.)

That was yesterday. Today they sent seven bodies to Houston (including the much beloved Francisco Cordero and Ben Francisco) in exchange for pitchers J.A. Happ, David Carpenter, and (the Prodigal Returns) Brandon Lyon.

Las Vegas and Dunedin won, but the other teams on the farm lost or had their games postponed.

In honour of his major league debut, today's POTD is dedicated to rookie outfielder Anthony Gose after he went 1-for-2 against the Yankees Tuesday night.

Anthony Gose, surveying the infield at Cheney Stadium in Tacoma June 27, where only his shadow can overshadow his glove.

After yesterday's MLU I avoided puns in the title today.  Eric Arce continued his hot hitting, including another home run.  Jake Marisnick stayed hot with another multi-hit game.  Sean O'Sullivan turned in another very good pitching performance, through seven innings he had faced 21 hitters.  Dunedin turned a triple play.  All-in-all it was a 5-2 night on the farm.