Ismael Ramirez was taken off the 40 man roster earlier this week so of course he pitches his best game of the season on Saturday, one run allowed in five innings.  Ty Taubenheim pitched a seven inning two hitter as the Chiefs sweep a doubleheader.  New Hampshire score five runs in extra innings to win, Dunedin scored the winning run in the bottom of the eighth.  Lansing took the only loss on Saturday.

After tonight’s loss I don’t have the energy to write anything too detailed. Instead, I’ll prove short summaries of each game and then highlight three notable performers for each team. These performances are usually good, but occasionally are notable for other reasons. Tonight, the Blue Jays resolved to strike first, even with runs from the other team imminent, so we’ll see how their affected their results.

What's with that headline? Well, it's the answer to the riddle, "What did the man say about the bundle of loose-leaf Greek poems that needed to be straightened and stored? (Okay, sorry about that.) Actually, it's a Hall of Names look at whether or not we can build a roster (or at least a lineup) of players bearing the baseball-centric given name of "Homer."

This entry in the Hall of Names is inspired by the big league debut of one Homer Bailey, the tall and lanky Texan who scattered five hits over five innings in winning for the Reds Friday night. He's already just seven wins shy of becoming the all-time winningest Homer ... That said, let's meet ...

Once again, here's Rob.


Alyssa Milano, I mean, Dodger Stadium welcomes the Blue Jays this weekend for the first time since June 2002, when shortstop (!) Dave Berg hit second, Justin Miller couldn't get through the first, and Roy Halladay got a complete game win. Jays fans are thankful that only one of those events is possible five years later.

Alex's week might be brutal, but so is having to put up with interleague play. Jeff Kent agrees with me, which is slightly disconcerting. Aside from that, this Scout features the likely reality of two top-priced tickets for a Twins game; Jim and Pam's new six-player chain to Tinker, Evers, and Chance; an impatient power-less lineup; and Jamie Campbell saying "East York" a lot.

And we're off

Is it just me or do the Jays lose every Thursday?

Anyway, let's look at the quotes coming from yesterday's draft:

With the addition of some new talent to the minor league system yesterday, a depth chart incorporating some of the new talent, in lieu of the usual Friday summary seems in order. The Jays had seven picks in the first, supplemental and second rounds.

But first, a brief update. The farm affiliates went 2-2.

The Blue Jays select Kevin Ahrens, 3B from Memorial HS with the 16th pick and JP Arencibia, C from Tennessee with the 21st pick in the first round.

Tomo Okha has been designated for assignment today and the Jays now have ten days to trade him, release him, or send him to the minors.  Josh Towers is back in the rotation and will start next monday in San Francisco.  Home run hitter Barry Bonds will look forward to facing the home run prone Towers.

Congratulations to Trevor Hoffman, who nailed down his 500th career save yesterday, the first player to ever reach that milestone. (Is it a "milestone" if nobody has ever been there before?)

We recognized Hoffman here on Da Box when he set the all-time record of 479 last season; now the question is, who else will get to 500? And when? Mo Rivera has 419, but seems to have stepped off a cliff this year and may not have 81 more left in him ... is he "next"? If not, who is?

Two down in Ohio. The top farm affiliates visited Akron and Toledo and were flattened. Did I mention that it is Draft Day? Check out Pistol's superior coverage at this very website.

A look at who is being projected to the Jays:

• Baseball America: Matt Dominguez, JP Arencibia
  
• Baseball Prospectus: JP Arencibia, James Simmons
• ESPN.com: Beau Mills, Peter Kozma
  
• MLB.com: Beau Mills, Peter Kozma
  
• Toronto Sun: Devin Mesoraco, Peter Kozma
  

How frequently do teams find stud pitchers after the first (and supplemental first) round?

The Jays score 6 in the 9th to win and you want to know about the minor leagues??

The affiliates were 1-3, with two ugly losses.

Curtis Thigpen was called up to replace Lyle Overbay today, with John Thomson moving to the 60 day DL to clear space on the 40 man roster. Thigpen will likely see work initially against left-handed pitching. He has hit well against lefties each of the last 3 years, posting .283/.352/.523, .394/.491/.659 and .320/.394/.459 lines in 2007, 2006 and 2005 respectively.

Thigpen was the Jays' 2nd round draft choice in 2004.  Welcome to the Show.