With the 2004 Major League Baseball Entry Draft (June 7-8) fast approaching, it's time we brought an emerging issue to the fore:

I still think that's a great nickname for Justin Miller, tonight's starter, if for no other reason then that it pays fitting homage to the wonderful Ray Bradbury. But I understand "Tatu" is getting a lot of support from Fantasy Island fans hereabouts. I'll continue to plug my nickname, but it might be worth taking a closer look behind the body art and examine whether Miller's hot start to 2004 can be expected to continue.

With 6 weeks of minor league ball in the books, it seems like a good time to look at some component stats for the Jays farmhands. Only batters with 80 or more plate appearances at a given level were included. The final row in each table is the league average in 2003 for the category in question.

Carlos Delgado’s contract expires at the end of this season, and opinion is divided on whether the Blue Jays will be able to re-sign him at that time. Whether he stays or goes, however, no one but Carlos, his agent and their immediate families will be saddened by the expiration of that deal, signed as baseball’s turn-of-the-century spending frenzy approached its end. In case you’ve forgotten, the contract paid him $14.8M in 2001, $17.2M in 2002, $17.5M in 2003 and $18.5M in 2004.

Many Toronto fans have since bemoaned this contract, at length. But if you don’t think the Jays got off easy, you haven’t been keeping an eye on the rest of baseball.

As avid Boxers are no doubt aware after reading Scott Lucas' roundup today, the Jays have acquired .091-hitting Frank Menechino to temporarily address their "short"comings.

Frankly (heh), that just cries out for another edition of Baseball's Hall of Names. Menechino probably won't make the cut, but here's one stab at what may be a first: Baseball's All-Frank Team.

Watch it separate in two
Whatever the day wants it to
Finding out that the worst is true
Finding out that it can escape you

We've recently had a rash of postings at Batter's Box that have been made under the names of real people. "Donald Trump" was the most recent last night, but we've also had posts written under the names of local baseball-related people, everyone from JP Ricciardi to Richard Griffin -- posts most definitely not written by these folks. This is a statement explaining why these kinds of posts are outlawed at Batter's Box and the publication of an official Box policy on the subject.

Tonight the Jays are at home to the Boston Red Sox. As we all know, the crowd will be seeded with a larger than usual number of opposition fans. Therefore, it is an excellent night to bring out...

The Drum.

The Cheer Club will be in the upper half of section 518. We have a pretty good number of attendees for tonight, but we need everyone we can get, so if you have a spare nine dollar bill with no good use for it, come on out, meet up with us, and help us drown out those Boston fans and cheer on our beloved Toronto Blue Jays.

A big Batter's Box Hello! to Sportsnet's Scott Carson. Not only does his latest column echo many Bauxites' puzzlement over the continued use of Dave Berg as a left fielder, but he also plugged the Box in his latest column:

A shout out to the guys at www.battersbox.ca. I really enjoy your knowledge of and passion for the great game of baseball. For the uninformed, this is a website frequented by computer savvy Jays' fans, who are on-line throughout the game exchanging opinions, thoughts and strategies. I urge you hardcore fans check it out. (By the way, boys, I also saw that guy getting removed from his seats last Friday and he looked nothing like me!)

We hear you, Scott -- keep up the great work, and thanks for the spotlight!

It was a travel day in the International League, so the Syracuse Skychiefs will have to wait another game to extend their winning streak to two. Elsewhere in the minors, it was a successful day for all of the Jays’ farm teams except, perhaps predictably, the powerful squad in Charleston.

The Bosox make their second visit to SkyDome on the season, still in first place (if no longer by themselves in the top spot). After the Jays' disheartening defeat yesterday, four games with the Red Sox does not exactly seem to be a welcome tonic for the bullpen blues.

Still, there is reason for optimism. Boston's still missing two key bats, and several 2003 mashers (see, e.g., Mueller, Bill; Ortiz, David) have been rather ordinary offensive players in 2004. And while tonight's opponent, Curt Schilling, has been outstanding this season, the Jays have been the only team in the AL to have roughed him up this season -- and they've done it twice. Can beating The Drum help us beat the Red Sox? We'll see...

Finally, I'd like to apologize to one and all for not scouting the Royals' series. Alas, real life occasionally interferes.

On to the Advance Scout!

Just a few days ago, it all looked great. The Blue Jays appeared to have finally emerged from their season-opening funk with six straight wins, and fans were looking ahead at the Yankees, not behind to the Devil Rays. Then came two straight demoralizing losses, including a truly ugly outing yesterday in Kansas City, and the news that Chris Woodward and Chris Speier were off to the DL. Now the Jays come home to face the powerhouse Boston Red Sox, the start of an intimidating 16-game stretch where the Jays play not one game against a team with a losing record. Add to that today's terrible news about Dustin McGowan, and this looks like low-morale time for the organization.

I know I haven't written much around here recently, but I really wanted to mention a new blog that I like quite a lot. It's called Dominican Players, and it's by Raul Tavares, a fan from Santo Domingo.

The name is self-explanatory. It's a site about Dominican players. Go read the archives; there's some great stuff in there.

Just a few days ago, it all looked great. The Blue Jays appeared to have finally emerged from their season-opening funk with six straight wins, and fans were looking ahead at the Yankees, not behind to the Devil Rays. Then came two straight demoralizing losses, including a truly ugly outing yesterday in Kansas City, and the news that reliever Chris Speier was off to the DL. Now the Jays come home to face the powerhouse Boston Red Sox, the start of an intimidating 16-game stretch where the Jays play not one game against a team with a losing record. Add to that today's terrible news about Dustin McGowan, and this looks like low-morale time for the organization.

Personally, I can't think of any possible worse news to emerge from the Blue Jays' minor-league system than that Dustin McGowan has been placed on the disabled list and is expected to miss the rest of the season. We don't know any more than you do at the moment, so we can't say whether McGowan will be back on a mound next April. More details to follow.