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.

Gregg Zaun gets a lot of love from the photo of the day, primarily because he kicks so much ass. Here he is, swinging and missing (it happens sometimes):

Yesterday's and Monday's articles were just the warm-up acts. And tomorrow, we’ll have some rising and falling prospects who didn’t make our top 30. Today, it's the main attraction: the Top 10 Prospects in the entire Blue Jay farm system, according to your minor-league correspondents. Read ‘em all, and then tell us what you think of our Top 30: anyone we missed? Anybody too high or too low on the list? Who do you think should be #1?

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.

Two sacrifice flies in the last two innings made the difference, as the Jays managed a split with the BoSox. Chalk this one up to the bullpen, which bailed out Gustavo Chacin, and the bats, which never quit and continued to grind it out. Shaun Marcum is having himself quite the big-league debut.

Dave Bush overcame a very shaky start, and Dustin McGowan contributed two perfect innings of relief, but it was all for naught. The Jays could only push across one unearned run, and according to GameDay, made outs with 12 runners on base. Gustavo Chacin will try to salvage a split in the nightcap, going up against Curt Schilling.

Four big games in three days await the Jays, who go from raucuous Yankee Stadium to frenzied Fenway.

The Fighting Jays have played the Bosox awfully tough this year, and it would do wonders for the confidence of some of the younger players if the good guys could steal a couple of wins this week. The Red Sox are unlikely to overlook the Jays, though; they know that this is not the roll-over-and-die Orioles in town.

This week's Scout features a struggling veteran hurler, a locked-in MVP candidate and some empty hospital beds. After all, the Sox are on TV at home.

On to the Advance Scout!

Haven't seen much of Pete Walker lately, so here he is:

Yesterday's prospect list consisted mainly of players in the lower minors. By contrast, today's prospects, #20-#11 on our Top 30 list, are (with two notable exceptions) well on their way to The Show. Check out the Middle Ten.

Here's a point for discussion ... what's the biggest surprise in MLB this season? As we wind down the entire season, we can start to draw some conclusions, rather than rely on projections, so speaking as an avowed fan of the interlocking NY and pinstripes, I would humbly suggest that the biggest surprise of 2005 ...

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.

Here he is, the Rodney Dangerfield of the Toronto Blue Jays:

This year, the Blue Jays Top 30 Prospect List is a consensus effort from the minor-league crew. The statistical summaries are the work of Jonny German, while the analysis for each prospect was done by one of the crew (JF-Jordan Furlong; GM-Gerry McDonald; MG-Mike Green; JG-Jonny German; RP-Rob Pettapiece). Final Top 30 rankings were determined through a complex and sophisticated system: we added up all of our own personal rankings and averaged 'em out. Today, it's prospects #30 to #21.

It's taken some time -- almost two full calendar years -- but we've actually completed every single viable All-Alphabet team for Baseball's Hall of Names -- 26 letters in the English alphabet, 25 complete teams. (Here's proof: A * B * C * D * E * F * G * H * I * J * K * L * M * N * O * P * Q * R * S * T * U * V * W * X * Y * Z)

What? I mean, sure 96.2 percent is still an "A" in most schools, and there is the little matter of the fact that no player in major league history has ever made it to The Show with a last/family name beginning with the letter "X." Besides, we can tell ourselves, 25 is a nice, round, "baseball number" -- the size of an unexpanded regular season roster. (And, be forewarned, that little factoid is going to lead to a Hall of Names Batter's Box challenge come this off-season.)

But no "All-X" team, especially in this era of X-treme sports? Preposterous! So what to do? Actually, that's quite easy ...

The thing about the Yankees is that even if you keep the Jason Giambis and the Derek Jeters and the Alex Rodriguezes off the board, they can still send a stealth Robinson Cano out there to beat you with a long ball. The Yanks took the measure of the Jays this season, and it's apparent there's still a sizeable gulf between the two teams. Can the Jays make up that difference between now and next April?