Yankees.....

Jays at Knology Park for a change.... sold out game for Yankees in town.
BUT Yankees not taking it that seriously.
No Jeter, no Rodriguez, no Porsada, No Giambi... Fans are very upset.
My Vancouver colleague has my seat behind the dugout, I am behind home plate under the media box. ESPN is televising Jays for second consecutive day.

Lineups: Yankees. Damon, Cabrera,Cano, Duncan, Betemit, Ransom, Molina, Green, and Ian Kennedy pitching.
Jays have first team lineup Eckstein, Rios, Wells, Rolen, Thomas, Stairs, Overbay, Hill, Zaun and pitching Davis ? well almost the first team lineup.

Top of 1st. Damon walks, Cabrera drives into double play, Cano grounds to 1B.
Bottom of 1st. Leadoff double by Eckstein, tries for triple, needs a perfect throw to get him and they do. Question Eckstein on this one with big bats behind him a leadoff double would have been fine . Rios pops up to shallow RF, Wells single to LF would have scored Eckstein easily. Rolen flies to RF. Jays lost a chance to get ahead.

Top of 2nd Matsui lines to Eckstein, Duncan flare into centre, Belemit double to CF Duncan scores, 1-0 NYY. Ransom lines down 3B line, Rolen playing off the line, run scores 2-0 NYY. Ransom on 2B. Molina breaks bat out at 1B runner to 3B two out. Green pops up to Overbay.
Bottom of 2nd. Thomas (yes pops up) to 1B, Frank cannot buy a hit 3 for 34 this spring.. hardly DH stuff, Stairs strikes out, Overbay strikes out. Kennedy looking like Cy Young.

Top of 3rd. Damon flies out to Stairs catching in front of Wells, Cabrera flies to RF. Cano past a diving Rolen into left. Cano steals second, Matsui walks, this pitcher is a carbon copy of Frasor dead slow.... worse with runners on. Betemit off the wall in centre, two score no throw to plate which might have caught one. Ransom strikes out. 4-0 Yankees. 5 hits. Jays two hits no runs.
Bottom of 3rd. Kennedy still pitching, why not. Hill double to LF, Hill has been one of the few in lineup with any consistency, Zaun moves Hill over to 3B. Eckstein grounds to SS, Hill scores, 4-1, Rios doubles to LF, Wells strikes out.... Jays just cannot bring them in today. JP is sitting down below me must not be a happy guy at this stage of Spring training.

Top of 4th. League pitching. Molina grounds to SS, Green grounds to 3B, Duncan under Rolen's glove, not a great day at 3B today. Damon bounces one at home plate, throw to 1B.
Bottom of 4th. Kennedy still pitching. Rolen doubles to centre, at least his bat is ok today, Frank oh no.... pops up to catcher. Stairs strikes out, Overbay grounds to SS, Rolen left at 2B.Top of 5th. Accardo pitching. Cano dirive to LF Stairs cannot catch but traps and throes hinm out at @B trying to stretch single. Matsui broken bat single to shallow centre, Duncan flies to RF, Betemit two run HR to right, Rios just turns his head to watch it go. No doubt at all from moment it was hit. Yankees taking it to Toronto this afternoon 6-1. Ransom single to shallow CF, Rolen knows down sharo drive to save run, nice play, two on at 1B and 2B Green grounds to 3B, runner out at 2B. Yankees 6 runs on 11 hits.
Bottom of 5th Kennedy still out there. Hill grounds to SS, Zaun pops to shallow left, Kennedy leaves game to good applause. Eckstein pops up to SS, Rios walks, Wells walks, bases loaded. Rolen grounds to 3B. Same old refrain.

Top of 6th Frasor pitching , oh no.... this game will last another hour. Damon lines to shallow left, Cabrera soft liner to RF, Damon goes to 3B, Cano double run scores 7-1 NYY,Carson hit by Frasor, Duncan passed ball, both runners move up, I do hope Frasor is pencilled in for AAA this season, Betemit strikes out.
Bottom of 6th. Thomas at bat, one wag shouts "please, please Frank don't pop up..." (he is speaking for every fan in the ballpark, it is painful to watch). He answer all our prayers, sort of and strikes out. Stairs grounds to 2B, nice stop, but Stairs beats out throw, Overbay walks, two on yet again, Mathews pinch running for Stairs, Hill (thank you baseball gods) doubles to CF, run scores, runners hold at 2B and 3B, Zaun strikes out, Eckstein grounds to 2B.

Top of 7th. Gonzalez grounds to 3B, Molina strikes out, Engberg ? walks, Lane lines up the middle, two on, for Cabrera grounds to 3B.

Bottom of 7th. Chamberlain pitching, Yankees serious... Strikes out three minors.... first team is hiding in some hole underground with this performance, leaving the wrap up to the minors.

Top of 8th. Castro lines up the middle, Carson walks, Duncan, yes Duncan still in there John Gibbons, strikes out, Betelimt, pops to Cannon, very nice overhead catch in foul territory, Gonzalez at bat, passed ball moves the runners, to 2B and 3B. grounds to 2B.
Bottom of 8th... Guess who ? Thomas at bat... a single to RF, the crowd rises to its feet, (just kidding friends... but I guess it is a start.)Mathews lines to 2B, Cannon flies to RF, Lopez pops to 2B

Top of 9th Wolfe pitching. three up three down, Bottom of 9th. NO Chamberlain but Jays strikeout ground to 2B and fly out to RF... pathetic.

Not a game that Jays will want to read about. They have a long way to go to get the bats in sync. They are getting hits (some) but leaving too many runners in scoring position. Looks as if Reed is out of there. Hill is fine, so are Alex, Stairs, Rolen, but the rest of the batting is not ready, they are being saved from embarrassment right now by the pitchers with a couple of exceptions.

Detroit tomorrow....