The Blue Jays couldn't keep it going yesterday afternoon against Mike Mussina, after knocking Randy Johnson up and down Front Street. The result is a simple two-game split, leaving both teams at the .500 mark they entered the series with, and further behind the Red Sox.

Now, while the Advance Scouts are generally some of the best work on this site (he says humbly), I was thinking the other day: do we ever look back at them after the fact? Not to point out the flaws, of course, but to see how helpful it was. The fact that I'm reviewing an Advance Scout that I didn't write is purely coincidental; I assure you I am a fan of Bruce Wrigley's writing -- I actually have a book of his from a few years ago and I endorse it heartily. So that's not the point here -- it's simply a fun exercise in hindsight.

On to the Advance Scout Review!

"6-4, Good buddy" says the C.B.  So, with the final score in the books, you turn from the ballgame to a country radio station.

That could have gone better. What has made the biggest impression on me so far?

Well, the new catcher is really slow.

Did we learn anything from this series? No not really. A baseball season has to be 30 or 40 games old before you know what you have. Sometimes you know sooner, if your team is 16-4, or 4-16, you have a good feel for the season but 2-1 tells you little. A series win is a series win and as long as the Jays keep recording them they will be fine.

You couldn't ask for a better opening day matchup - the two best pitchers in the American League squaring off against one another.

Here we look at what the Blue Jays did in those 47 games decided by a single run. Seeing as how they lost 31 of these games, there are a lot of painful memories in here. Viewer Discretion Advised. But it's always a good day when I get to be the Dude's Advocate!

We'll have a quick recap of all 47 games, data tables of how the hitters and pitchers performed, and a few random observations.

Summer has come and passed
The innocent can never last
Wake me up when September ends

Before last night's game I asked a few people around the press box the following question: "If you had known that Josh Towers would lead this rotation in wins, innings, quality starts, and ERA, what do you think Toronto's Won-Loss Record would be?" As I recollect, I don't think anyone anticipated even 70 wins...

Hey, who knew?

Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz laid waste to the recently lights-out bullpen. But, hey, they're in a pennant race, and there's no shame in losing this way.

The Jays are probably getting themselves a reputation around Beantown. I was discussing the AL East/Wildcard race with a co-worker, and we came to the conclusion that, no matter what happens, if you're a Jays fan cheering against the Yankees (sorry Mick), the outcome of these four Jays-Red Sox games is bad no matter what it is.

Well, I guess if you're going to help the Yankees, you should at least do it in style, and that's what the Jays did last night — thank God. Frankie Cat came this close to becoming only the third Jay to ever hit for the cycle (quick trivia question: who were the other two?), Eric Hinske hit a 2-run drive Mike Wilner described as "prodigious," and the Jays absolutely hammered Bronson Arroyo.

But, as is my wont, this game stops being analyzed here, and I go onto other, somewhat different topics.

The Blue Jays' season was on display in microcosm in last night's doubleheader. After a frustrating and dispiriting loss in the opener, Toronto fell behind 5-2 early and could easily have given up the ghost. But they battled back, first to tie it, and ever so gradually, to move ahead and eventually win it.

Our final Pinch-Hit Game Report of the season comes from Blue Jay Way's Matthew E, a Bauxite who just about finally reached his breaking point following the Blue Jays' dispirited 3-1 loss in the opener of yesterday's doubleheader (the nightcap Game Report will follow later today). Join him in this Keats-inspired lament for another Blue Jays season mere days from departing into the history books.

The Yankees' late-inning comeback yesterday capped off the season series between Toronto and their rivals in the Bronx.

As a New York resident of over seven years, I've attended more games at Yankee Stadium than at any other big-league ballpark, save the Dome/Rogers Centre and Exhibition Stadium. In an attempt to be fair and balanced, Fox News-style, I've listed things to both like and dislike about The House That Ruth Built, in ten different categories. Notwithstanding the results, I'll be there again in 2006, cheering on the Jays in some rather hostile territory.

Yankees lose, Red Sox win.

Both teams at 90-64 with 8 games to go!

Ted the Tease, Ted the Tease. He drives me crazy. But I've said that before, haven't I? So let's give him a little credit for this: he is at least willing to face the music afterwards, as the good Dr Prison Fence reports: