Here's my first impressions of (most of) the 2006 Blue Jays.

"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.

Only one game yesterday due to Easter Sunday, but the Chiefs played 13 innings to compensate and won.  Francisco Rosario gets the lone star.

Juggling a pitching rotation and constructing lineups are, some might say, the key managerial decisions. Newcomer Bruce Wrigley puts the pencil in your hand with this pinch-hit. Thanks, Bruce, and take it away.

Josh Bell and David Smith hit walk-off homers on Saturday as the farm affiliates went 3-2.

Some sightings and mentions of ex-Jays, Mark "Craig" Buehrle shuts down the current Jays, and some updates on things I've been following for my own personal amusement are all coming at you today in This Day...well, These [Past Few] Days In Baseball.

The farm affiliates struggled last night, losing all 3 completed games. Syracuse and Indianapolis were tied at 1 before rain forced suspension of the game after 6 innings.

You were third in the East last season. And frankly, you've grown really tired of seeing the same team finish on top every year. What to do...

The White-hot Sox are next on the docket. They've won four straight, including a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers. Standings mean nothing this early in the season, but those three games only put Chicago in a tie with Detroit. Both Toronto and Chicago are at 5-4, one game behind a favoured division leader, but the Jays don't have anyone hitting .059 at the top of their lineup.

Aside from Scooter Podsednik's early season woes, the Chisox have a masher at first, a big guy in the bullpen, a legitimate #1 workhorse, and a "dink" in the press box.

On to the Advance Scout!

When Magpie pointed out that today is Greg Maddux's 40th birthday, Rob Pettapiece quickly retorted, "As for birthdays, Maddux shares today (though not the same year) with two other Greg(g)s -- Myers and Zaun. How's that for a coincidence?"

Well, it's "coincidental" enough to spur the following (C'mon, you saw this coming, or at least noticed the graphic, right?) Hall of Names exercise. There have, in fact, been 44 MLB players born on this date, though no Hall of Famers yet. Mr. Maddux will be the first, though a certain Charles Hustle, had he not hustled quite so much OFF the field, would already be there.

Today's date, as noted, produced quite a few long-term more-than-serviceable catchers, three of whom have even compiled ...

Can't complain about much of anything after the Blue Jays took two of three from the first place Red Sox. In Fenway, behind a pair of left-handed starters.

For the first time in 2006 the Blue Jays had an organisational sweep, as the parent club and all four affiliates won yesterday.

Craig wrote an interesting piece on the slowest runners around. It's a good read and the kinds of things that sabermetrics should be about, but often is not.

The Jays win 8 to 4 in Boston and hand old "friend" Boomer Wells the loss.

The farm affiliates had another difficult day, going 1-3, with only those tough 'Nuts of Lansing coming out on top.