Monday June 30, 2008. Mariners v Jays.
Pitching: Halladay v Dickey.
Lineups: Toronto: Eckstein, Scutaro, Rios Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Barajas, Wilkerson and Halladay pitching.
Mariners: Suzuki, Lopez, Ibanez, Beltre, Reed, Sexson, Clement, Johjima, Bloomquist and Dickey pitching.
Result: Jays win 2-0 on complete game shutout by Halladay.
The very good: The excellent. Halladay of course. Complete game his sixth this season. Was sharp from the first hitter, very different from his last start. I still maintain he was suffering post concussion last week.
The good: The Jays fans from north of the border. We could hear them here throughout the game. Defense. Rolen in particular but also Scutaro and Johnny Mc of course. Rolen also three hits in the game. Eckstein and Scutaro with two hits each.
The bad: Same issue, runners in scoring position. Did not harm the Jays tonight but they are living on the edge. Jays had chance after chance to break this open. Ten hits? and only two runs. New coaching staff? I don’t see the difference. Rios hitless 0-4, but more importantly he was totally at sea with his at bats. Waving weakly at balls outside. He needs help.
The game:
Top 1st: Eckstein pops up to Ichiro second pitch. Scutaro at bat singles to right centre. Can hear the great Canadian crowd cheers on that. field, Rios at bat with one on one down. Grounds chopper to Bloomquist get Scutaro at2B but Alex safe. Wells at bat, Balk called on Dickey as he throws over to 1B. Alex goes to 2B. Vernon lines hard back to Dickey, throw to 1B gets Vernon. 12 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Halladay pitching, Suzuki at bat, Grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay one down. Lopez at bat, fly ball out to Rios in RF. Ibanez at bat, grounds to Scutaro underhand throw to Overbay. Three up and down, efficient inning for Halladay. Halladay looking much better than last week already sharp tonight. 13 pitches.
Top 2nd: Stairs at bat full count. Strikes out on knuckle ball. Rolen at bat one down. singles up the middle. Canadian cheers getting louder here. Overbay at bat high fly ball out to Ibanez at the wall. Barajas at bat grounds to 3B, throw to Sexson at 1B. leaves Rolen on. 32 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Beltre at bat grounds to Rolen in front of Scutaro nice play to get throw to Overbay, to get Beltre. Reed at bat grounds to Rolen, throws him out at 1B. Sexson at bat, singles first pitch up the middle. First hit for Mariners off Halladay tonight. Clement at bat strikes out. 28 pitches.
Top 3rd: Yankees have already lost to Texas. Boston loses first one to Rays. Orioles tied up 5-5 in ninth with Kansas. Wilkerson at bat grounds this to Beltre at 3B. One down, Eckstein again, this one just foul in left corner. Eckstein grounds to Beltre at 3B. Two down for Scutaro hits this one hard but right at Lopez at 2B. Three up and down for Dickey this time. 50 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Johjima bounces one to Overbay at 1B, one down. Bloomquist singles up the middle. One on one down for Ichiro now bounces one to Scutaro at 2B get Bloomquist at 2B but Ichiro beats out throw at 1B. That guy can run. Lopez strikes out. 39 pitches for Halladay.
Top 4th: Rios at bat. First pitch swing long fly ball out to Reed at CF wall. Wells at bat one down. Full count here. Strikes out. Stairs at bat, two down. Singles hard one to corner right field. No way he can beat Ichiro throw does not try for two. Rolen another single up the middle. Scott is 2-2. Overbay at bat grounds first pitch to Sexson. Leaves two on. Come on Lyle, think man, take a couple, especially with this knuckleball that can go anywhere.Mental game. 65 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Ibanez at bat grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay at 1B, one down. Beltre, first pitch swing gets under this one fly ball to LF Wilkerson. Two down. Reed at bat grounds to Scutaro. That was QUICK inning six pitches. 46 now for Roy.
Top 5th: Barajas at bat fly ball to right centre but Ichiro almost collide as Reed gets the catch, that was Reed’s ball. Wilkerson fly ball to Ibanez in shallow left. Eckstein Dickey has thrown three wild pitches in this inning that’s what I mean re Overbay at bat last inning. Eckstein now doubles to LF corner. Scutaro now can he bring him in? Watch those wild pitches also David. Singles to right centre scores Eckstein here and on the throw to home Scutaro goes to 2B throw should have gone to 2B. 1-0 Jays. Rios at bat grounds back to Dickey underhand throw to make the out at 1B. 84 pitches.
Bottom 5th: Halladay now with the lead. Sexson dangerous hitter here 3-0 count now, pops it up to 1B Overbay great catch falling into the crowd over the tarp. Clement at bat strikes him out. Third one for Halladay tonight. Johjima at bat grounds to Rolen, throw to 1B. Three up and down for Halladay. 57 pitches.
Top 6th: Wells at bat, hitless tonight. There he goes, singles this one to LF. Stairs at bat strikes out without a swing. Rolen at bat two hits tonight would love one here. Yes he does to LF, third single tonight for Rolen, two on one down. Overbay at bat can he deliver here? 3-0 count. Full count. Inside pitch ball four. Bases loaded. Barajas at bat. 99 pitches for Dickey. Barajas grounds it to SS. Wells scores. Barajas out at 1B. 2-0 Jays. Wilkerson at bat with two down and two in scoring position. Full count. Grounds to Lopez at 2B. Could have, should have, same old with runners in scoring position. Bases loaded one out and only one run. 108 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Bloomquist at bat, Halladay has 50 ! fewer pitches than Dickey. Grounds to Scutaro, throw to Overbay one down. Ichiro at bat, trying to bunt, strike. Grounds to Eckstein throw to Overbay gets away. Where is Johnny Mc.? Error to Eckstein on throw. Lopez at bat one down one on. Strikes out. Great curve. Ibanez at bat two down. Phone call from Vancouver Jay sitting in CF. She says great atmosphere from the Jays fans at the game and that Vernon is down below them. Ibanez strikes out. 71 pitches.
Top 7th: Eckstein at bat singles up the middle. Scutaro at bat 2-3 tonight. Wild pitch Eckstein moves to 2B. Grounds it to 2B, Eckstein moves up to 3B. That’s it for Dickey. Lowe now pitching. Rios at bat. Swings at three balls. Horrible at bat. Nothing is changing re runners in scoring position now 1-8 tonight. Wels at bat, three pitch strikeout. 1-9 RISP. UGH! Don’t tell me that the new hitting coaches are making a difference. Add on yesterday’s game and Jays are now 1-23 with runners in scoring position in two days.
Bottom 7th: Beltre at bat full count shatters bat which goes to 3B, ball pops up to Eckstein one down. There goes the train. Reed at bat singles to LF. Sexson at bat singles to LF. Reed goes to 3B. Sexson at 1B. Clement at bat, Halladay strikes him out on three pitches. Third strikeout tonight for the rookie. Johjima at bat grounds to Eckstein throw to 1B and Roy escapes damage here. Great pitching. 92 pitches.
Top 8th: Can Jays get some hits and runs here to make up for dismal hitting with runners in scoring position? Stairs at bat lofts it to Bloomquist at SS. One down. Rolen at bat fly ball out to Ichiro. Overbay at bat, singles up the middle, first hit for Lyle tonight. Barajas at bat strikes out. Not a good at bat by Barajas.
Bottom 8th: Vancouver Jay phones to say Vernon has thrown ball to them in CF seats. Johnny Mc at SS. Bloomquist at bat chops it to McDonald nice play to get Bloomquist at 1B. Ichiro at bat, grounds to Scutaro flips quick throw to Overbay gets Ichiro. Great play by Marco he had split second to get Ichiro. Listen to that chant “Let’s go Blue Jays”. Could be in Toronto. Lopez at bat full count. Grounds to McDonald throw to Overbay. Great cheering by Toronto supporters. 109 pitches.
Top 9th: Wilkerson at bat. Ten hits tonight for Jays, full count to Wilkerson. Walks him on high ball four. Johnny Mc bunting? Yes. First one foul. Fakes it and fly ball to shallow LF, throw to 1B gets Wilkerson who cannot get back in time, double play. What a horrible play by both Jays. Scutaro now grounds to Beltre.
Bottom 9th: Here comes Halladay he wants to finish this one off tonight. Ibanez at bat grounds first pitch to Overbay, flip to Halladay at 1B one down. Beltre at bat, whoa hammers this one to 3B, short hops Rolen, great play Scott, throw to Overbay, that is a gold glove play. Reed at bat lines one very hard to Overbay, great catch and that is the game. Can you HEAR that crowd ? that is louder than in Toronto. Halladay sixth complete game this season.
Plus Baltimore lose to Kansas in eleven, Yankees lose to Texas, Boston lose to the Rays. Jays have picked up games on all three. Still a long way to go but one game closer.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Series Preview Mariners v Jays in Seattle
Series Preview. Toronto v Seattle. Tuesday June 30, 2008.
This is a big road trip for Jays. Although it is versus western division teams Jays have to show some positive movement. This last week with back to back series wins is not enough.
Jays need to step it up even more to continue that for rest of season. To get to 90 wins they need to go more than .600 ball for rest of the season. It is doable and Minnesota is providing a good example in winning 11 of last 12 games. However Jays are always delirious with just five wins in a row.
The Jays have the pitching and as of Saturday have a very good number six if needed in Parrish. Defense is above average. It is the hitting, hitting, hitting and specifically with runners in scoring position. Jays have been getting the hit numbers in many of these games thus the problem has to be a mental one. I can buy that and Yogi Berra’s comment that hitting is 50% ability and 80% mental or words to that effect.
Tonight pitching Halladay 8-6, 3.12 ERA v Dickey 2-3, 4.79 ERA.
Dickey is a knuckleballer and pitched in relief in the Toronto series and earned the win. His last start in New York he beat the Mets. He has been very inconsistent though all season and is 1-3 with an 8.35 ERA as starter. Seattle has not seen Halladay this season. Toronto has lost the last three starts made by Halladay and a win for him is long overdue.
His last start I felt he was still suffering from his hit in the head from previous start. He seemed to be going through motions automatically and was not sharp until later in the game. It did not help that he had little run support from his team, they owe him tonight.
Both teams are in last place but have been playing much better under their new Managers.
Last series three week ago in Toronto Jays lost two close one run games. Seattle won yesterday with season- high eighteen hits in San Diego 9-0 to sweep the Padres. Ichiro is hot and went 5-5 yesterday and 8-for-14 in the series. Beltre is batting .432 (16-for-37) with a homer and 11 RBIs in his last nine games.
This should be a good entertaining series and huge crowd from north of the border to give loud support and also celebrating Canada Day tomorrow.
This is a big road trip for Jays. Although it is versus western division teams Jays have to show some positive movement. This last week with back to back series wins is not enough.
Jays need to step it up even more to continue that for rest of season. To get to 90 wins they need to go more than .600 ball for rest of the season. It is doable and Minnesota is providing a good example in winning 11 of last 12 games. However Jays are always delirious with just five wins in a row.
The Jays have the pitching and as of Saturday have a very good number six if needed in Parrish. Defense is above average. It is the hitting, hitting, hitting and specifically with runners in scoring position. Jays have been getting the hit numbers in many of these games thus the problem has to be a mental one. I can buy that and Yogi Berra’s comment that hitting is 50% ability and 80% mental or words to that effect.
Tonight pitching Halladay 8-6, 3.12 ERA v Dickey 2-3, 4.79 ERA.
Dickey is a knuckleballer and pitched in relief in the Toronto series and earned the win. His last start in New York he beat the Mets. He has been very inconsistent though all season and is 1-3 with an 8.35 ERA as starter. Seattle has not seen Halladay this season. Toronto has lost the last three starts made by Halladay and a win for him is long overdue.
His last start I felt he was still suffering from his hit in the head from previous start. He seemed to be going through motions automatically and was not sharp until later in the game. It did not help that he had little run support from his team, they owe him tonight.
Both teams are in last place but have been playing much better under their new Managers.
Last series three week ago in Toronto Jays lost two close one run games. Seattle won yesterday with season- high eighteen hits in San Diego 9-0 to sweep the Padres. Ichiro is hot and went 5-5 yesterday and 8-for-14 in the series. Beltre is batting .432 (16-for-37) with a homer and 11 RBIs in his last nine games.
This should be a good entertaining series and huge crowd from north of the border to give loud support and also celebrating Canada Day tomorrow.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
AJ plus BJ equals great win.
Sunday June 29, 2008. Series finale. Jays v Braves.
Pitchers Reyes 3-5. Burnett 7-7
Lineups: Braves: Blanco, Gotay, Johnson, Teixeira, McCann, Norton ,Francouer, Brandon Jones, Lillibridge and Reyes pitching.
Toronto: Eckstein playing DH ??? Scutaro, Rios, Wells, Barajas, Rolen, Overbay, Wilkerson , McDonald and Burnett pitching. The second team playing today, I don’t get Cito. No Inglett today (his 30th birthday) No Lind and No Stairs. Stairs I get as lefty pitching but Lind and Inglett are both playing far better than Eckstein, McDonald and Wilkerson. The problem with this club Cito is the hitting.
Result: Jays win this one 1-0.
The very good: Burnett definitely one of his best of the season. His curve ball was working throughout and he mixed it all up very well. Downs and BJ Ryan completed great pitching performance today.
The good: Rios RBI double, 2-for-4 with two doubles and is batting .387 (24-for-62) with nine doubles in his past 17 games. Defence Johnny Mc and Rolen, Barajas’ throw to get Blanco in the third inning. First time this season Blanco has been caught stealing. Barajas has caught 10 of 24 would-be base-stealers this season. The Jay have now won back-to-back home series for the first time this season. Cincinati and Atlanta. Not the greatest record but 4-6 is a huge improvement.
The bad: Jays hitters 0-14 with runners in scoring position. I see no improvement in this area in the last week despite Jays apparently playing much better. Is this true ? or are they just having some luck right now? Lets see what happens in Seattle.
The game: Top 1st: Today is dog day at Rogers Centre. Big parade lead by Paul Godfrey and his dog. A couple of Jays players have dogs in there as well. Blanco strikes out, great curve ball AJ. Johnson at bat singles to LF, there goes the no hitter. Teixiera at bat, danger here for that fastball AJ. Mixing in the curve ball very effectively so far, strikes out. Good first inning for AJ.
Bottom 1st: Eckstein at bat, lines a bullet down the first base line but Teixeira is no normal 1B fielder, makes a great catch saving at least a double. One down for Scutaro free swinging fly ball to RF Francouer. Rios now has to take a few pitches, strikes out. Seven pitch inning for Reyes.
Top 2nd: McCann fly ball to Wilkerson in LF. Norton strikes out. Francouer full count, now walks. Second base runner today for AJ. Brandon Jones at bat, Jays have been lucky to miss Chipper Jones on disabled list although he was on deck circle yesterday for pinch hit. Brandon strikes out. Third strikeout for Burnett, he is mixing it up very well the only problem is his high pitch count. He is going deep into count on these outs.
Bottom 2nd: Wells doubles to center. Vernon appears to be in the groove the last two gamers at least. Barajas strikes out. Rolen grounds out, Gotay at 3B throw to Teixeira 1B. Wells moves to third. Overbay with two down grounds out to Lillibridge SS throw to Teixeira 1B. Jays old problem with runners in scoring position.
Top 3rd: Lillibridge grounds out to Rolen 3B bounces off Rolen’s glove but Johnny Mc also going for ball gets the deflection and great throw to Overbay gets runner at 1B. Blanco at bat bunt single and safe at first. Burnett reached that ball on the 1B line but didn’t throw, either he was blocked by Blanco or didn’t think the throw was worth risking but from my seat it looked as if he could have had him. Gotay at bat. Blanco is going great throw by Barajas to shortstop McDonald at 2B bag gets him. Blanco out. Gotay strikes out on the play. Burnett escapes again but his pitch count is mounting fast.
Bottom 3rd: Wilkerson at bat walks. McDonald singles to CF, Wilkerson moves to 2B. Two on and no outs for Eckstein. Need a single here David. Eckstein grounds shortstop Lillibridge to second baseman Johnson to first baseman Teixeira, Wilkerson to third, McDonald out. Double play. As I mentioned in third inning. Cito, this is the issue with this team. Scutaro at bat grounds to Johnson 2B throw to Teixeira. Once again two on and no outs and cannot score.
Top 4th: Johnson at bat walks on four pitches. Burnett cannot find strike zone now. Teixeira at bat with one on and no outs, Burnett walks him as well. Johnson moves to 2B. Braves turn to have first two on base with no outs. Will be interesting to compare their execution in this situation. McCann at bat fly ball out to Wilkerson in LF. One down, Norton at bat grounds this hard right back at Burnett, throws a high throw to Johnny Mc on to Overbay. Double play for the Jays for a change but saves Burnett from damage here. So much for execution but Jays will take it.
Bottom 4th: Rios at bat lines out to Blanco CF. Wells at bat strikes out. Barajas fly ball out to Blanco. VERY quick three up and down. Reyes is baffling Jays today.
Top 5th: Francoeur at bat, long overdue to break out, grounds to Rolen at 3B throw to Overbay at 1B. Jones at bat strikes out. Burnett using that curve ball well with his fast ball to get his strikes. Lillibridge at bat strikes out. Six strikes outs now. Burnett getting stronger as this game is going on.
Bottom 5th: Rolen doubles to CF. Leadoff hitter on for a change. Can they bring him in? Overbay strikes out. Not even moving Rolen over. Wilkerson at bat grounds out, Johnson at 2B to Teixeira at 1B, Rolen moves to 3B but iof Overbay had done his job that would have been first run. McDonald at bat, singles last time at bat, we need another here Johnny Mc. strikes out. Jays add to their very long list of runners left in scoring position and Rolen was there with no outs. Burnett must be seething inside. He has pitched so well and Jays hitters have been on base just cannot bring anyone in.
Top 6th: Blanco singles to right. Gotay at bat sacrifice bunt back to Burnett to Scutaro, Blanco moves to second. Braves have runner in scoring position, can they do better job than Jays ? Johnson at bat strikes out. Two down but Teixeira at bat. They have first base open Teixeira is intentionally walked. Two on two down. McCann at bat strikes out. Burnett today is really on fire, he is pitching superbly although pitch count is very high now. That may be it for him today.
Bottom 6th: Now Jays have to capitalize after that let off by Braves hitters. Top of the order again. Eckstein grounds out, Gotay to Teixeira. One down. Yes here we go, Scutaro singles to CF. Rios at bat, Alex time to come through again, doubles this down the left field line past Gotay. Scutaro is coming home and scores standing up. 1-0 Jays. Rios moves to 3B on the throw. Wells at bat, Vernon only one down here you have to bring him in. Grounds to Johnson 2B to Teixeira. Vernon not at his best yet. Barajas at bat another chance to get Alex in before he does a suicide steal himself. Barajas grounds to Gotay 3B throw to Teixeira and that’s it yet again. Jays score but this could and should have been at least two.
Top 7th: Burnett out again pitching on gas fumes as the cliche goes, but he has been outstanding so far today. He is also very pumped up for this one you can see his reactions at the end of each inning. The crowd has also been into this one from first inning giving him good support on every two strike pitch. Nine strike outs so far and the crowd also has it’s free slice of pizza. Norton at bat doubles to left. Francoeur at bat careful here AJ this guy can go ahead with one swing. Francouer grounds to Rolen throw to Overbay gets Francouer. Norton holds at 2B. One down. Jones at bat, wild pitch now moves Norton to 3B. This one is really getting tense. Has Cito left him in too long? Another wild pitch will tie this up, a sac bunt will also do same and HR will go head. Crowd around me are VERY quiet. Jones at bat with one out strikes out. AJ that was perfect timing. Lillibridge at bat still not out of danger yet, strikes out. AJ gets standing ovation all the way to dugout. This has to be his last inning and bullpen has to save it for him, this would be a real gut wrencher to lose this one after such a great outing.
Bottom 7th: Rolen at bat, still time to get a few insurance runs for Burnett grounds this one to Lillibridge and throw to Teixeira, one down. Overbay hitless today, now singles to LF. Wilkerson at bat patient here not swinging full count and walks. Two on and one down for McDonald. Johnny Mc fly ball out.to Jones in LF. Runners hold. Eckstein at bat grounds to Gotay throw to Teixeira and the Jays have wasted more opportunities with runners in scoring position. Fans think that Cito has changed the club this week but this major problem with the hitters remains.
Top 8th: Downs now pitching. Burnett’s day is finished but what a great outing. Blanco at bat grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay, one down. Gotay at bat singles to CF. Johnson grounds to Rolen throw to Overbay, Gotay moves to 2B. Two down but look who is at bat? Teixeira. They have to walk him again he is much too dangerous in this situation. I long for the day when the opposing sides say that about any of the current Jays hitters. McCann at bat with Gotay at 2B and Teixeira at 1B. McCann is not a slouch with the bat, has 14 HR’s this season already. One mistake can really hurt here. McCann grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay ends this one. 30,000 breathe again.
Bottom 8th: Boyer now pitching. Chance for Jasy to add one here. Top of the order at bat. Scutaro grounds out to Lillibridge throw to Teixeira. One down. Alex now RBI double last at bat, at least he has been coming through. Alex doubles again this time to RF. Another runner in scoring position with one out. Wells at bat, strikes out. 1-4 today but has had chances to make this game a lot easier for bullpen. Hard to be on Vernon all the time but he is not playing consistently at his best. Barajas at bat, passed ball, Rios moves to 3B. Barajas fly ball out to Jones in LF. Thus BJ will have only one run to work with but it should have been several with the chances Jays have had.
Top 9th: BJ Ryan now pitching. Norton strikes out. Ryan is throwing very hard and has that look on his face. Francoeur at bat careful BJ.strikes out. Crowd is enjoying this one. Jones at bat gets hold of this one could be trouble, no Wilkerson has it deep in LF. This game is over.
Burnett now 8-7 on season, pitched seven shutout innings, 119 pitches and eleven strikeouts both season highs and deserved this one despite not much help from his hitters.
What they said: Bobby Cox on Jays pitching: "They've got golden-plated pitchers over there. Their bullpen is outstanding and they've got all good starters."
Jo-Jo Reyes: "I pitched a good game but Burnett pitched a better game,"
Pitchers Reyes 3-5. Burnett 7-7
Lineups: Braves: Blanco, Gotay, Johnson, Teixeira, McCann, Norton ,Francouer, Brandon Jones, Lillibridge and Reyes pitching.
Toronto: Eckstein playing DH ??? Scutaro, Rios, Wells, Barajas, Rolen, Overbay, Wilkerson , McDonald and Burnett pitching. The second team playing today, I don’t get Cito. No Inglett today (his 30th birthday) No Lind and No Stairs. Stairs I get as lefty pitching but Lind and Inglett are both playing far better than Eckstein, McDonald and Wilkerson. The problem with this club Cito is the hitting.
Result: Jays win this one 1-0.
The very good: Burnett definitely one of his best of the season. His curve ball was working throughout and he mixed it all up very well. Downs and BJ Ryan completed great pitching performance today.
The good: Rios RBI double, 2-for-4 with two doubles and is batting .387 (24-for-62) with nine doubles in his past 17 games. Defence Johnny Mc and Rolen, Barajas’ throw to get Blanco in the third inning. First time this season Blanco has been caught stealing. Barajas has caught 10 of 24 would-be base-stealers this season. The Jay have now won back-to-back home series for the first time this season. Cincinati and Atlanta. Not the greatest record but 4-6 is a huge improvement.
The bad: Jays hitters 0-14 with runners in scoring position. I see no improvement in this area in the last week despite Jays apparently playing much better. Is this true ? or are they just having some luck right now? Lets see what happens in Seattle.
The game: Top 1st: Today is dog day at Rogers Centre. Big parade lead by Paul Godfrey and his dog. A couple of Jays players have dogs in there as well. Blanco strikes out, great curve ball AJ. Johnson at bat singles to LF, there goes the no hitter. Teixiera at bat, danger here for that fastball AJ. Mixing in the curve ball very effectively so far, strikes out. Good first inning for AJ.
Bottom 1st: Eckstein at bat, lines a bullet down the first base line but Teixeira is no normal 1B fielder, makes a great catch saving at least a double. One down for Scutaro free swinging fly ball to RF Francouer. Rios now has to take a few pitches, strikes out. Seven pitch inning for Reyes.
Top 2nd: McCann fly ball to Wilkerson in LF. Norton strikes out. Francouer full count, now walks. Second base runner today for AJ. Brandon Jones at bat, Jays have been lucky to miss Chipper Jones on disabled list although he was on deck circle yesterday for pinch hit. Brandon strikes out. Third strikeout for Burnett, he is mixing it up very well the only problem is his high pitch count. He is going deep into count on these outs.
Bottom 2nd: Wells doubles to center. Vernon appears to be in the groove the last two gamers at least. Barajas strikes out. Rolen grounds out, Gotay at 3B throw to Teixeira 1B. Wells moves to third. Overbay with two down grounds out to Lillibridge SS throw to Teixeira 1B. Jays old problem with runners in scoring position.
Top 3rd: Lillibridge grounds out to Rolen 3B bounces off Rolen’s glove but Johnny Mc also going for ball gets the deflection and great throw to Overbay gets runner at 1B. Blanco at bat bunt single and safe at first. Burnett reached that ball on the 1B line but didn’t throw, either he was blocked by Blanco or didn’t think the throw was worth risking but from my seat it looked as if he could have had him. Gotay at bat. Blanco is going great throw by Barajas to shortstop McDonald at 2B bag gets him. Blanco out. Gotay strikes out on the play. Burnett escapes again but his pitch count is mounting fast.
Bottom 3rd: Wilkerson at bat walks. McDonald singles to CF, Wilkerson moves to 2B. Two on and no outs for Eckstein. Need a single here David. Eckstein grounds shortstop Lillibridge to second baseman Johnson to first baseman Teixeira, Wilkerson to third, McDonald out. Double play. As I mentioned in third inning. Cito, this is the issue with this team. Scutaro at bat grounds to Johnson 2B throw to Teixeira. Once again two on and no outs and cannot score.
Top 4th: Johnson at bat walks on four pitches. Burnett cannot find strike zone now. Teixeira at bat with one on and no outs, Burnett walks him as well. Johnson moves to 2B. Braves turn to have first two on base with no outs. Will be interesting to compare their execution in this situation. McCann at bat fly ball out to Wilkerson in LF. One down, Norton at bat grounds this hard right back at Burnett, throws a high throw to Johnny Mc on to Overbay. Double play for the Jays for a change but saves Burnett from damage here. So much for execution but Jays will take it.
Bottom 4th: Rios at bat lines out to Blanco CF. Wells at bat strikes out. Barajas fly ball out to Blanco. VERY quick three up and down. Reyes is baffling Jays today.
Top 5th: Francoeur at bat, long overdue to break out, grounds to Rolen at 3B throw to Overbay at 1B. Jones at bat strikes out. Burnett using that curve ball well with his fast ball to get his strikes. Lillibridge at bat strikes out. Six strikes outs now. Burnett getting stronger as this game is going on.
Bottom 5th: Rolen doubles to CF. Leadoff hitter on for a change. Can they bring him in? Overbay strikes out. Not even moving Rolen over. Wilkerson at bat grounds out, Johnson at 2B to Teixeira at 1B, Rolen moves to 3B but iof Overbay had done his job that would have been first run. McDonald at bat, singles last time at bat, we need another here Johnny Mc. strikes out. Jays add to their very long list of runners left in scoring position and Rolen was there with no outs. Burnett must be seething inside. He has pitched so well and Jays hitters have been on base just cannot bring anyone in.
Top 6th: Blanco singles to right. Gotay at bat sacrifice bunt back to Burnett to Scutaro, Blanco moves to second. Braves have runner in scoring position, can they do better job than Jays ? Johnson at bat strikes out. Two down but Teixeira at bat. They have first base open Teixeira is intentionally walked. Two on two down. McCann at bat strikes out. Burnett today is really on fire, he is pitching superbly although pitch count is very high now. That may be it for him today.
Bottom 6th: Now Jays have to capitalize after that let off by Braves hitters. Top of the order again. Eckstein grounds out, Gotay to Teixeira. One down. Yes here we go, Scutaro singles to CF. Rios at bat, Alex time to come through again, doubles this down the left field line past Gotay. Scutaro is coming home and scores standing up. 1-0 Jays. Rios moves to 3B on the throw. Wells at bat, Vernon only one down here you have to bring him in. Grounds to Johnson 2B to Teixeira. Vernon not at his best yet. Barajas at bat another chance to get Alex in before he does a suicide steal himself. Barajas grounds to Gotay 3B throw to Teixeira and that’s it yet again. Jays score but this could and should have been at least two.
Top 7th: Burnett out again pitching on gas fumes as the cliche goes, but he has been outstanding so far today. He is also very pumped up for this one you can see his reactions at the end of each inning. The crowd has also been into this one from first inning giving him good support on every two strike pitch. Nine strike outs so far and the crowd also has it’s free slice of pizza. Norton at bat doubles to left. Francoeur at bat careful here AJ this guy can go ahead with one swing. Francouer grounds to Rolen throw to Overbay gets Francouer. Norton holds at 2B. One down. Jones at bat, wild pitch now moves Norton to 3B. This one is really getting tense. Has Cito left him in too long? Another wild pitch will tie this up, a sac bunt will also do same and HR will go head. Crowd around me are VERY quiet. Jones at bat with one out strikes out. AJ that was perfect timing. Lillibridge at bat still not out of danger yet, strikes out. AJ gets standing ovation all the way to dugout. This has to be his last inning and bullpen has to save it for him, this would be a real gut wrencher to lose this one after such a great outing.
Bottom 7th: Rolen at bat, still time to get a few insurance runs for Burnett grounds this one to Lillibridge and throw to Teixeira, one down. Overbay hitless today, now singles to LF. Wilkerson at bat patient here not swinging full count and walks. Two on and one down for McDonald. Johnny Mc fly ball out.to Jones in LF. Runners hold. Eckstein at bat grounds to Gotay throw to Teixeira and the Jays have wasted more opportunities with runners in scoring position. Fans think that Cito has changed the club this week but this major problem with the hitters remains.
Top 8th: Downs now pitching. Burnett’s day is finished but what a great outing. Blanco at bat grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay, one down. Gotay at bat singles to CF. Johnson grounds to Rolen throw to Overbay, Gotay moves to 2B. Two down but look who is at bat? Teixeira. They have to walk him again he is much too dangerous in this situation. I long for the day when the opposing sides say that about any of the current Jays hitters. McCann at bat with Gotay at 2B and Teixeira at 1B. McCann is not a slouch with the bat, has 14 HR’s this season already. One mistake can really hurt here. McCann grounds to Scutaro throw to Overbay ends this one. 30,000 breathe again.
Bottom 8th: Boyer now pitching. Chance for Jasy to add one here. Top of the order at bat. Scutaro grounds out to Lillibridge throw to Teixeira. One down. Alex now RBI double last at bat, at least he has been coming through. Alex doubles again this time to RF. Another runner in scoring position with one out. Wells at bat, strikes out. 1-4 today but has had chances to make this game a lot easier for bullpen. Hard to be on Vernon all the time but he is not playing consistently at his best. Barajas at bat, passed ball, Rios moves to 3B. Barajas fly ball out to Jones in LF. Thus BJ will have only one run to work with but it should have been several with the chances Jays have had.
Top 9th: BJ Ryan now pitching. Norton strikes out. Ryan is throwing very hard and has that look on his face. Francoeur at bat careful BJ.strikes out. Crowd is enjoying this one. Jones at bat gets hold of this one could be trouble, no Wilkerson has it deep in LF. This game is over.
Burnett now 8-7 on season, pitched seven shutout innings, 119 pitches and eleven strikeouts both season highs and deserved this one despite not much help from his hitters.
What they said: Bobby Cox on Jays pitching: "They've got golden-plated pitchers over there. Their bullpen is outstanding and they've got all good starters."
Jo-Jo Reyes: "I pitched a good game but Burnett pitched a better game,"
Saturday, June 28, 2008
Parris wins his first and bats come alive.
Saturday June 28, 2008. Second game of series with Atlanta.
Pitching: Parrish 10-1 (AAA) pitching with Marcum injured v Tim Hudson 8-5 .245 ERA.
Lineups: Braves : Blanco, Gotay, Johnson, Teixeira, Norton, McCann, Francoeur, Lillibridge, Brandon Jones and Hudson pitching.
Jays: Eckstein, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Barajas, Lind and Parrish pitching.
Result: Jays win 9-5
The very good: John Parrish six great innings holding Braves until Jays bat come alive. I think they should leave Parrish up here as long relief and also possible emergency fifth starter after Marcum gets back.
The good: The hitters. Vernon comes through with three hits. Is this his breakout game? We will see tomorrow. Barajas HR and double, Inglett, Rolen and Stairs all with two hits.
The bad: Runners in scoring position again… 3-11 for Jays. Still not good. Must be saving it for the Yankees or Boston. Tallet once again poor outing almost blew this one for Parrish giving up four in the eighth. May be superfluous when Marcum gets back.
Top 1st: Parrish pitching Blanco grounds back to Parrish one down. Gotay at bat strikes him out. Two down. Johnson at bat pops up to Lind in shallow LF. Nice inning by Parrish. 14 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Hudson pitching, Eckstein at bat, first start since Cito took over last week. You know Eckstein will want to prove something today. Grounds to Lillibridge SS throw to Teixeira. Inglett one down dribbler to Hudson throw to Teixeira two down. . Rios indecisive wave at second pitch strikes out looking, horrible at bat by Alex. Sometimes he appears to have no clue at all in his at bat. Cito has some work to do.
Top 2nd: Teixeira at bat, Parrish being careful here, there’s a strike, fly ball out to Wells in CF. Norton at bat another strike out for Parrish. McCann at bat two down, gets hold of this, fly ball into LF corner but Rios can handle it. Another good inning for Parrish. 24 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Wells at bat, guess what? First pitch swing and ground out to SS. I would guestimate he has done that in majority of his first at bats this season. Must be very frustrating coaching him. Stairs at bat 3-1 here takes this one and lines to CF for a single. Vernon are you watching ? Rolen at bat YES Scott, doubles into RF corner. Two in scoring position one out for Overbay and good news, he can’t ground into a double play, can he? He tries to do it, grounds to 2B but forgets only one himself and scores Stairs from 3B. 1-0 Jays. Barajas at bat two down. Rolen at 3B. Barajas grounds to 3B. One I guess is better than 0 and last night but they could have should have had more here. 21 pitches.
Top 3rd: Francoeur lines hard out to Lind. Lillibridge full count, strikes out, third for Parrish today. Brandon Jones strikes him out. I told you this guy was good. Four strikeouts and 37 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Lind at bat. Strikes out. Eckstein again. Grounds to Lillibridge SS. Throw to Teixeira same as first at bat for Eckstein. Inglett at bat one down. infield single to 2B Johnson cannot handle it. Inglett safe at 1B. Rios now, takes first pitch right down the middle. Grounds second to Johnson at 2B. Braves turn two but forget they only need one. 35 pitches.
Top 4th: Blanco bloops one into CF, first hit for Braves today off Parrish. Gotay at bat. Watch Parrish’s pickoff here. I warned you Blanco last night, just gets back. Full count now. Grounds to Rolen, on to Inglett on to Overbay call it double play. That’s more like it. Johnson at bat two down. Lind might have got to that foul ball not very fast hustle there Adam. Another full count grounds to Overbay flip to Parrish at 1B another good inning for Parrish. 56 pitches. He really only needs to go seven today with Downs and Ryan in bullpen.
Bottom 4th: Wells takes first pitch down middle for a strike. Lines this one straight at SS Lillibridge. Stairs doubles to CF. His second hit of game. Vernon are you watching this approach at bat? Rolen wild pitch Stairs to 3B. Strikes out. Hudson is pitching off the plate but Jays are going after that pitch. Overbay now. Lines it hard but right at Jones in LF. Jays still having trouble bringing in those bats from 3B. 47 pitches.
Top 5th: Teixeira, full count and now first walk. Parrish a little wild here, cannot find strike zone. Norton at bat lines out to Eckstein nice catch David. McCann at bat lines double over Wells head, playing shallow in CF, to the wall. Teixeira scores from first 1-1. Francoeur grounds to Eckstein run down with McCann. Francoeur at 1B two down. Lillibridge fly ball to Rios in RF. 76 pitches a tougher inning for Parrish. But with better run support he could be cruising.
Bottom 5th: Barajas at bat Hudson makes a mistake here leaves it up and Barajas does not miss this one. There she goes. Lines one over Jays bullpen LF wall. 2-1 Jays. Lind at bat grounds up the middle Teixeira, tags him out. Eckstein has not made his statement yet today. Full count here and typical at bat fouling off pitch after pitch and now walks. Eight pitch at bat. Inglett at bat Eckstein running Inglett grounds to Teixeira steps on 1B, no chance for double play. Rios now with Eckstein at 2B, passed ball, Eckstein moves down to 3B. Full count to Alex. Grounds hard to Lillibridge. Jays 0-5 with runners in scoring position today.
Top 6th: Jones first pitch high fly ball to Wells in CF. Blanco singles first pitch into shallow centre. Gotay at bat, 3-1 count. High pop up to Overbay. Two down. Johnson at bat lines one right back at Parrish ducks out the way. Teixeira, full count. This is the pitch John. Walks bases loaded. Norton at bat. 3-2 count. Pops it up to Eckstein. I told you Parrish was a good pitcher. He gave them the six innings and with better run support would be much happier. Now Downs and Ryan can finish off this one if all goes to plan.
Bottom 6th: Now Vernon show them what YOU can do. Hudson on 76 pitches. THANK YOU Vernon. That’s what I asked for… HR to LF over bullpen. Classic Vernon HR swing which we haven’t seen for a long, long time. 3-1 Jays. Stairs full count. Now he walks. Hudson struggling ??? It is a very humid day today must take it out of the pitchers. Rolen now with one on, can Scott break this open? Singles to CF. Second hit for Scott today. Overbay careful here NO double play Lyle. 3-0 count Lyle making Hudson work. Walks on four pitches bases loaded no outs. That’s it for Hudson 90 pitches here’s Bobby Cox. Jeff Bennett now pitching, Barajas at bat. Grounds to 2B. Throw to plate gets Stairs. One down bases still loaded. Lind at bat, there he goes sac fly Rolen scores 4-1 Jays. Overbay at 3B. Eckstein at bat, hits him. Bases loaded again. Inglett at bat yes Joe. Doubles up the middle two score, Overbay and Barajas, throw gets away behind plate and could have been three. 6-1 Jays. Rios now with two in scoring position Eckstein at 3B, Inglett at 2B and two down. Alex strikes out.
Top 7th: Downs in pitching. McCann grounds to Overbay, flip to Downs at 1B one down. Francoeur at bat fouling a couple off here, strikes out. Lillibridge strikes out.
Bottom 7th: Will Ohman pitching Wells at bat. Another hit for Vernon singles to CF. Good to see this Vernon, hope you enjoy being on base as much as the fans do. Stairs at bat. Grounds this one to 2B NO Matt, not a double play. Vernon out at 2B relay throw NOT in time. Stairs beats it out. Rolen at bat, strikes out. Swinging over strike three. Overbay at bat two down, swings over this one. Strikes out on three pitches.
Top 8th: Tallet pitching. Jones at bat, doubles down LF line Lind cannot catch it. Blanco triples to LF wall, Jones scores. 6-2 Jays. Gotay strikes out. One down one on at 3B. Johnson at bat singles in front of Lind. 6-3 Jays. Teixeira there it goes. You could see this coming, two run HR to RF centre 6-5 Jays. Cito will learn about Tallet quickly. When Marcum gets back I would keep Parrish up and send Tallet anywhere but Toronto. Norton at bat strikes out, two down. McCann grounds to Overbay. Takes it himself to 1B. Tallet gives up four runs here.
Bottom 8th: Manny Acosta pitching, Barajas at bat. Doubles to CF wall. Adds to his HR today. Lind now chance to make up for that dropped catch last inning grounds to 1B, Barajas at least moves to 3B. Eckstein at bat has to bring him in here. Jays 1-9 runners in scoring position today. Yes David. Singles to RF. Barajas scores. 7-5 Jays. Inglett at bat 2-4 today. Grounds to Teixeira no throw possible, steps on 1B Inglett out, two down for Rios 0-4 today. Eckstein at 2B. Be a hero here Alex bring him in. 3-0 count. Walks him on four pitches. Vernon at bat with two on and two down. Is he still in the groove? That was the pitch Vernon down the middle. Fouls one off. Here’s another down the middle Vernon doubles this one to RF, Eckstein and Rios score, Vernon trying for triple and thrown out at 3B. BUT 9-5 Jays. Third hit for Vernon today.
Top 9th: BJ Ryan pitching. Francouer fly ball out to Rios in shallow RF. Lillibridge at bat singles first pitch to right field corner. Jones at bat grounds to Rolen gets Lillibridge at 2B not in time for double play. Two down for Blanco bunts but foul. Singles to LF. Two on two down. Gotay at bat full count, come on BJ. Chipper Jones on deck grounds to Eckstein throw to 1B that’s the game.
Parrish wins his first. Some of the bats come alive including the big guy Wells. Barajas, Stairs and Inglett all have good games.
Pitching: Parrish 10-1 (AAA) pitching with Marcum injured v Tim Hudson 8-5 .245 ERA.
Lineups: Braves : Blanco, Gotay, Johnson, Teixeira, Norton, McCann, Francoeur, Lillibridge, Brandon Jones and Hudson pitching.
Jays: Eckstein, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Barajas, Lind and Parrish pitching.
Result: Jays win 9-5
The very good: John Parrish six great innings holding Braves until Jays bat come alive. I think they should leave Parrish up here as long relief and also possible emergency fifth starter after Marcum gets back.
The good: The hitters. Vernon comes through with three hits. Is this his breakout game? We will see tomorrow. Barajas HR and double, Inglett, Rolen and Stairs all with two hits.
The bad: Runners in scoring position again… 3-11 for Jays. Still not good. Must be saving it for the Yankees or Boston. Tallet once again poor outing almost blew this one for Parrish giving up four in the eighth. May be superfluous when Marcum gets back.
Top 1st: Parrish pitching Blanco grounds back to Parrish one down. Gotay at bat strikes him out. Two down. Johnson at bat pops up to Lind in shallow LF. Nice inning by Parrish. 14 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Hudson pitching, Eckstein at bat, first start since Cito took over last week. You know Eckstein will want to prove something today. Grounds to Lillibridge SS throw to Teixeira. Inglett one down dribbler to Hudson throw to Teixeira two down. . Rios indecisive wave at second pitch strikes out looking, horrible at bat by Alex. Sometimes he appears to have no clue at all in his at bat. Cito has some work to do.
Top 2nd: Teixeira at bat, Parrish being careful here, there’s a strike, fly ball out to Wells in CF. Norton at bat another strike out for Parrish. McCann at bat two down, gets hold of this, fly ball into LF corner but Rios can handle it. Another good inning for Parrish. 24 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Wells at bat, guess what? First pitch swing and ground out to SS. I would guestimate he has done that in majority of his first at bats this season. Must be very frustrating coaching him. Stairs at bat 3-1 here takes this one and lines to CF for a single. Vernon are you watching ? Rolen at bat YES Scott, doubles into RF corner. Two in scoring position one out for Overbay and good news, he can’t ground into a double play, can he? He tries to do it, grounds to 2B but forgets only one himself and scores Stairs from 3B. 1-0 Jays. Barajas at bat two down. Rolen at 3B. Barajas grounds to 3B. One I guess is better than 0 and last night but they could have should have had more here. 21 pitches.
Top 3rd: Francoeur lines hard out to Lind. Lillibridge full count, strikes out, third for Parrish today. Brandon Jones strikes him out. I told you this guy was good. Four strikeouts and 37 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Lind at bat. Strikes out. Eckstein again. Grounds to Lillibridge SS. Throw to Teixeira same as first at bat for Eckstein. Inglett at bat one down. infield single to 2B Johnson cannot handle it. Inglett safe at 1B. Rios now, takes first pitch right down the middle. Grounds second to Johnson at 2B. Braves turn two but forget they only need one. 35 pitches.
Top 4th: Blanco bloops one into CF, first hit for Braves today off Parrish. Gotay at bat. Watch Parrish’s pickoff here. I warned you Blanco last night, just gets back. Full count now. Grounds to Rolen, on to Inglett on to Overbay call it double play. That’s more like it. Johnson at bat two down. Lind might have got to that foul ball not very fast hustle there Adam. Another full count grounds to Overbay flip to Parrish at 1B another good inning for Parrish. 56 pitches. He really only needs to go seven today with Downs and Ryan in bullpen.
Bottom 4th: Wells takes first pitch down middle for a strike. Lines this one straight at SS Lillibridge. Stairs doubles to CF. His second hit of game. Vernon are you watching this approach at bat? Rolen wild pitch Stairs to 3B. Strikes out. Hudson is pitching off the plate but Jays are going after that pitch. Overbay now. Lines it hard but right at Jones in LF. Jays still having trouble bringing in those bats from 3B. 47 pitches.
Top 5th: Teixeira, full count and now first walk. Parrish a little wild here, cannot find strike zone. Norton at bat lines out to Eckstein nice catch David. McCann at bat lines double over Wells head, playing shallow in CF, to the wall. Teixeira scores from first 1-1. Francoeur grounds to Eckstein run down with McCann. Francoeur at 1B two down. Lillibridge fly ball to Rios in RF. 76 pitches a tougher inning for Parrish. But with better run support he could be cruising.
Bottom 5th: Barajas at bat Hudson makes a mistake here leaves it up and Barajas does not miss this one. There she goes. Lines one over Jays bullpen LF wall. 2-1 Jays. Lind at bat grounds up the middle Teixeira, tags him out. Eckstein has not made his statement yet today. Full count here and typical at bat fouling off pitch after pitch and now walks. Eight pitch at bat. Inglett at bat Eckstein running Inglett grounds to Teixeira steps on 1B, no chance for double play. Rios now with Eckstein at 2B, passed ball, Eckstein moves down to 3B. Full count to Alex. Grounds hard to Lillibridge. Jays 0-5 with runners in scoring position today.
Top 6th: Jones first pitch high fly ball to Wells in CF. Blanco singles first pitch into shallow centre. Gotay at bat, 3-1 count. High pop up to Overbay. Two down. Johnson at bat lines one right back at Parrish ducks out the way. Teixeira, full count. This is the pitch John. Walks bases loaded. Norton at bat. 3-2 count. Pops it up to Eckstein. I told you Parrish was a good pitcher. He gave them the six innings and with better run support would be much happier. Now Downs and Ryan can finish off this one if all goes to plan.
Bottom 6th: Now Vernon show them what YOU can do. Hudson on 76 pitches. THANK YOU Vernon. That’s what I asked for… HR to LF over bullpen. Classic Vernon HR swing which we haven’t seen for a long, long time. 3-1 Jays. Stairs full count. Now he walks. Hudson struggling ??? It is a very humid day today must take it out of the pitchers. Rolen now with one on, can Scott break this open? Singles to CF. Second hit for Scott today. Overbay careful here NO double play Lyle. 3-0 count Lyle making Hudson work. Walks on four pitches bases loaded no outs. That’s it for Hudson 90 pitches here’s Bobby Cox. Jeff Bennett now pitching, Barajas at bat. Grounds to 2B. Throw to plate gets Stairs. One down bases still loaded. Lind at bat, there he goes sac fly Rolen scores 4-1 Jays. Overbay at 3B. Eckstein at bat, hits him. Bases loaded again. Inglett at bat yes Joe. Doubles up the middle two score, Overbay and Barajas, throw gets away behind plate and could have been three. 6-1 Jays. Rios now with two in scoring position Eckstein at 3B, Inglett at 2B and two down. Alex strikes out.
Top 7th: Downs in pitching. McCann grounds to Overbay, flip to Downs at 1B one down. Francoeur at bat fouling a couple off here, strikes out. Lillibridge strikes out.
Bottom 7th: Will Ohman pitching Wells at bat. Another hit for Vernon singles to CF. Good to see this Vernon, hope you enjoy being on base as much as the fans do. Stairs at bat. Grounds this one to 2B NO Matt, not a double play. Vernon out at 2B relay throw NOT in time. Stairs beats it out. Rolen at bat, strikes out. Swinging over strike three. Overbay at bat two down, swings over this one. Strikes out on three pitches.
Top 8th: Tallet pitching. Jones at bat, doubles down LF line Lind cannot catch it. Blanco triples to LF wall, Jones scores. 6-2 Jays. Gotay strikes out. One down one on at 3B. Johnson at bat singles in front of Lind. 6-3 Jays. Teixeira there it goes. You could see this coming, two run HR to RF centre 6-5 Jays. Cito will learn about Tallet quickly. When Marcum gets back I would keep Parrish up and send Tallet anywhere but Toronto. Norton at bat strikes out, two down. McCann grounds to Overbay. Takes it himself to 1B. Tallet gives up four runs here.
Bottom 8th: Manny Acosta pitching, Barajas at bat. Doubles to CF wall. Adds to his HR today. Lind now chance to make up for that dropped catch last inning grounds to 1B, Barajas at least moves to 3B. Eckstein at bat has to bring him in here. Jays 1-9 runners in scoring position today. Yes David. Singles to RF. Barajas scores. 7-5 Jays. Inglett at bat 2-4 today. Grounds to Teixeira no throw possible, steps on 1B Inglett out, two down for Rios 0-4 today. Eckstein at 2B. Be a hero here Alex bring him in. 3-0 count. Walks him on four pitches. Vernon at bat with two on and two down. Is he still in the groove? That was the pitch Vernon down the middle. Fouls one off. Here’s another down the middle Vernon doubles this one to RF, Eckstein and Rios score, Vernon trying for triple and thrown out at 3B. BUT 9-5 Jays. Third hit for Vernon today.
Top 9th: BJ Ryan pitching. Francouer fly ball out to Rios in shallow RF. Lillibridge at bat singles first pitch to right field corner. Jones at bat grounds to Rolen gets Lillibridge at 2B not in time for double play. Two down for Blanco bunts but foul. Singles to LF. Two on two down. Gotay at bat full count, come on BJ. Chipper Jones on deck grounds to Eckstein throw to 1B that’s the game.
Parrish wins his first. Some of the bats come alive including the big guy Wells. Barajas, Stairs and Inglett all have good games.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Jays clueless in this one. Cannot reach second base as Braves shut them out.
Friday June 27, 2008.
McGowan v Jurrjens. 7-3 on season. Which McGowan will turn up tonight?
Lineups: Braves: Blanco, Gutay, Johnson, Teixeira, McCann, Norton, Francouer, Brandon Jones, Lillibridge and Jurrjens pitching.
Jays: Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun, Lind and McGowan pitching.
Result: Braves shut out Jays 4-0.
The good: Nothing for Jays tonight. Nothing at all. Perhaps a little harsh on McGowan but he did give up the runs.
The bad: Hitters clueless eg fourth inning. Two more double plays. Two base runners including one walk but eliminated by the double plays. Jays could not fathom out rookie Jurrjens tonight.
Top 1st: G.Blanco flied out to center fielder V.Wells. Gotay doubles to LF. One down Kelly Johnson at bat full count here, strikes out on ball four. Teixeira at bat WHOA there it goes huge moon shot to right centre. 2-0 Braves. McCann Singles first pitch to centre. Greg Norton at bat fly ball to Lind in LF. 17 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro at bat, full count here. Fly ball to Francouer in RF. Inglett at bat one down, grounds to 2B. out at 1B. Rios at bat grounds out to Teixeira. Three up and down.
Top 2nd: Francouer watch this guy Dustin even if he is in a slump, strikes out. Brandon Jones grounds to Inglett throw to Overbay two down. Brent Lillibridge at bat two down strikes him out. Third strikeout for McGowan. 29 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Wells at bat, wild swing at first pitch. Grounds to SS thrown out at 1B. Stairs at bat one down. Bounces one out to Teixeira. Two down. Rolen now at bat. Fly ball into RF corner. 23 pitches.
Top 3rd: Top of the order again. Blanco at bat singles to LF. Gotay at bat, not bunting. Now he bunts in front of plate. McGowan throw hits Gotay, he is out, interference with play. Cox arguing, does not win this one, that hit his helmet we could hear it... Blanco back to 1B. Johnson fly ball to LF second out but that would have been sac fly if Gotay was safe as Blanco had moved to 3B. Teixeira at bat doubles to CF wall, run scores from 1B. 3-0 Braves. McCann at bat two down. Texeira at 2B. Lines this one hard down 1B line great save by Overbay, saves a run and throw to McGowan for out.
Bottom 3rd: Overbay at bat Jays yet to get a hit Braves have five. Grounds this one out to Texeira. One down for Zaun strikes out looking. Lind at bat two down. Jurrjens mowing Jays down here, no hits yet. Strikes him out. Nine up and down for Jurrjens. An easy night’s work so far. 38 pitches.
Top 4th: Meantime McGowan has given up five hits, including HR and two doubles. Norton at bat singles first pitch to RF. McGowan fooling no one tonight. Francouer fly ball out to Lind in LF. Brandon Jones at bat one down, grounds to Inglett throw to 1B gets Jones no chance for double play. Lillibridge at bat fly ball out to Wells. McGowan at 53 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Top of the order again, Braves have already been through twice. Scutaro at bat full count here grounds out to Teixeira. Inglett at bat, first pitch lines hard at Teixeira. Two down. Rios wild swing, what happened to the new coaches philosophy? Grounds to SS. That was a very bad inning for Jays hitters. Nine pitches. 47 pitches.
Top 5th: Blanco at bat. Fly ball out to Wells. Gotay at bat one down. Full count. Just misses inside and walks him. Johnson at bat first pitch fly ball out to Lind, two down for Teixeira, careful here Dustin. Gotay running, Zaun gets him with throw first base side of bag. Bad news is that Teixeira comes up again in the sixth. 74 pitches also for McGowan.
Bottom 5th: Jurrjens on a no hitter, lets try and jinx this guy. Wells at bat taps it to 2B. One down. Stairs at bat, YES there it goes. Singles to center field. It worked. First hit for Jays. Rolen now at bat, NO Scott. Grounds this one to SS, steps on 2B on to Teixeira at 1B, double play ball and so it goes for these hitters. I wonder how the new coaching staff will deal with this season long problem? 57 pitches.
Top 6th: Texeira fly ball to Rios. One down. McCann fly ball out to Rios in RF. Norton walks. Francouer at bat, fly ball to Lind in LF, quick one for McGowan but Jays hitters have to get going here. 82 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Overbay at bat grounds back to Jurrjens, one down Zaun at bat, full count, walks, second Jays hitter on base tonight, first walk. Lind at bat grounds to Texeira throw to 2B, another double play. This is vintage 2008 Jays tonight and making Jurrjens look like Cy Young. 72 pitches.
Top 7th: Jones doubles to LF wall, Lind struggles with ball, Jones goes to third on the play. Lillibridge at bat grounds to Rolen, perfect throw to 1B gets Lillibridge, one down. Top of order again. Blanco singles to CF. Run scores 4-0 Braves and Jays get another lesson on execution. Gotay at bat, pitch out but no steal attempt. Blanco is going, fly ball out to Lind. Gotay back to 1B did not tag (at 2B) and Inglett throw to Overbay gets him, double play for Jays. What a way to get one !! McGowan escapes here. 96 pitches.
Bottom 7th: Can Jays hitters get something going now? Scutaro strikes out. Inglett at bat. grounds to Teixeira throw to Jurrjens, two down. Rios at bat lines to 3B great stop by Gotay throw not in time. Wells at bat, at least it will not be double play! grounds back to Jurrjens throw to 1B gets Wells.
Top 8th: Johnson at bat strikes out looking. One down. Teixeira walks. Carlson pitching McCann strikes out. Norton at bat walks. Francouer at bat, strikes out.
Bottom 8th: Stairs at bat lines to LF great diving catch by Jones in LF. One down. Rolen at bat, full count. Singles to LF. You had better steal Scott, stay out of another double play with Overbay at bat, pops up to 2B. Not a double play here. Zaun now at bat. Jays have not reached 2B all night. Full count. Rolen will be running at least to 2B, fly ball to RF line Johnson makes the catch. 104 pitches.
Top 9th: Jones at bat, this game is only just over two hours, that’s what happens when you cannot get runners beyond 1B. Frasor now pitching. Full count. Strikes out. Lillibridge doubles to RF. Blanco at bat walks him. Frasor is one of the few pitchers who can suck the energy out of any game, another fifteen minutes and only one out. Someone suggested Frasor could be a starter, I really hope not. It would take forever t o get through game. Gotay at bat strikes out. Johnson at bat with two on and two down. fly ball out to Lind in LF corner. That half inning was 18 minutes.
Bottom 9th: Last chance for Jays bats tonight but they have been outclassed tonight all round, pitching, hitting and defense. Teixeira and Gotay at the corners in particular. Braves new pitcher Gonzalez, Lind at bat grounds to Johnson throw to Teixiera, one down. Scutaro at bat first pitch fly ball to Jones in LF corner. Eckstein getting an at bat. Pops up second pitch to Johnson. Jays were never in this one and never looked like threatening. It must be a long time since they never reached 2B in a game.
Lots of work to do for the hitting coaches still. I don't see Jays threatening Braves in this weekend series. I hope they prove me wrong.
McGowan v Jurrjens. 7-3 on season. Which McGowan will turn up tonight?
Lineups: Braves: Blanco, Gutay, Johnson, Teixeira, McCann, Norton, Francouer, Brandon Jones, Lillibridge and Jurrjens pitching.
Jays: Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun, Lind and McGowan pitching.
Result: Braves shut out Jays 4-0.
The good: Nothing for Jays tonight. Nothing at all. Perhaps a little harsh on McGowan but he did give up the runs.
The bad: Hitters clueless eg fourth inning. Two more double plays. Two base runners including one walk but eliminated by the double plays. Jays could not fathom out rookie Jurrjens tonight.
Top 1st: G.Blanco flied out to center fielder V.Wells. Gotay doubles to LF. One down Kelly Johnson at bat full count here, strikes out on ball four. Teixeira at bat WHOA there it goes huge moon shot to right centre. 2-0 Braves. McCann Singles first pitch to centre. Greg Norton at bat fly ball to Lind in LF. 17 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro at bat, full count here. Fly ball to Francouer in RF. Inglett at bat one down, grounds to 2B. out at 1B. Rios at bat grounds out to Teixeira. Three up and down.
Top 2nd: Francouer watch this guy Dustin even if he is in a slump, strikes out. Brandon Jones grounds to Inglett throw to Overbay two down. Brent Lillibridge at bat two down strikes him out. Third strikeout for McGowan. 29 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Wells at bat, wild swing at first pitch. Grounds to SS thrown out at 1B. Stairs at bat one down. Bounces one out to Teixeira. Two down. Rolen now at bat. Fly ball into RF corner. 23 pitches.
Top 3rd: Top of the order again. Blanco at bat singles to LF. Gotay at bat, not bunting. Now he bunts in front of plate. McGowan throw hits Gotay, he is out, interference with play. Cox arguing, does not win this one, that hit his helmet we could hear it... Blanco back to 1B. Johnson fly ball to LF second out but that would have been sac fly if Gotay was safe as Blanco had moved to 3B. Teixeira at bat doubles to CF wall, run scores from 1B. 3-0 Braves. McCann at bat two down. Texeira at 2B. Lines this one hard down 1B line great save by Overbay, saves a run and throw to McGowan for out.
Bottom 3rd: Overbay at bat Jays yet to get a hit Braves have five. Grounds this one out to Texeira. One down for Zaun strikes out looking. Lind at bat two down. Jurrjens mowing Jays down here, no hits yet. Strikes him out. Nine up and down for Jurrjens. An easy night’s work so far. 38 pitches.
Top 4th: Meantime McGowan has given up five hits, including HR and two doubles. Norton at bat singles first pitch to RF. McGowan fooling no one tonight. Francouer fly ball out to Lind in LF. Brandon Jones at bat one down, grounds to Inglett throw to 1B gets Jones no chance for double play. Lillibridge at bat fly ball out to Wells. McGowan at 53 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Top of the order again, Braves have already been through twice. Scutaro at bat full count here grounds out to Teixeira. Inglett at bat, first pitch lines hard at Teixeira. Two down. Rios wild swing, what happened to the new coaches philosophy? Grounds to SS. That was a very bad inning for Jays hitters. Nine pitches. 47 pitches.
Top 5th: Blanco at bat. Fly ball out to Wells. Gotay at bat one down. Full count. Just misses inside and walks him. Johnson at bat first pitch fly ball out to Lind, two down for Teixeira, careful here Dustin. Gotay running, Zaun gets him with throw first base side of bag. Bad news is that Teixeira comes up again in the sixth. 74 pitches also for McGowan.
Bottom 5th: Jurrjens on a no hitter, lets try and jinx this guy. Wells at bat taps it to 2B. One down. Stairs at bat, YES there it goes. Singles to center field. It worked. First hit for Jays. Rolen now at bat, NO Scott. Grounds this one to SS, steps on 2B on to Teixeira at 1B, double play ball and so it goes for these hitters. I wonder how the new coaching staff will deal with this season long problem? 57 pitches.
Top 6th: Texeira fly ball to Rios. One down. McCann fly ball out to Rios in RF. Norton walks. Francouer at bat, fly ball to Lind in LF, quick one for McGowan but Jays hitters have to get going here. 82 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Overbay at bat grounds back to Jurrjens, one down Zaun at bat, full count, walks, second Jays hitter on base tonight, first walk. Lind at bat grounds to Texeira throw to 2B, another double play. This is vintage 2008 Jays tonight and making Jurrjens look like Cy Young. 72 pitches.
Top 7th: Jones doubles to LF wall, Lind struggles with ball, Jones goes to third on the play. Lillibridge at bat grounds to Rolen, perfect throw to 1B gets Lillibridge, one down. Top of order again. Blanco singles to CF. Run scores 4-0 Braves and Jays get another lesson on execution. Gotay at bat, pitch out but no steal attempt. Blanco is going, fly ball out to Lind. Gotay back to 1B did not tag (at 2B) and Inglett throw to Overbay gets him, double play for Jays. What a way to get one !! McGowan escapes here. 96 pitches.
Bottom 7th: Can Jays hitters get something going now? Scutaro strikes out. Inglett at bat. grounds to Teixeira throw to Jurrjens, two down. Rios at bat lines to 3B great stop by Gotay throw not in time. Wells at bat, at least it will not be double play! grounds back to Jurrjens throw to 1B gets Wells.
Top 8th: Johnson at bat strikes out looking. One down. Teixeira walks. Carlson pitching McCann strikes out. Norton at bat walks. Francouer at bat, strikes out.
Bottom 8th: Stairs at bat lines to LF great diving catch by Jones in LF. One down. Rolen at bat, full count. Singles to LF. You had better steal Scott, stay out of another double play with Overbay at bat, pops up to 2B. Not a double play here. Zaun now at bat. Jays have not reached 2B all night. Full count. Rolen will be running at least to 2B, fly ball to RF line Johnson makes the catch. 104 pitches.
Top 9th: Jones at bat, this game is only just over two hours, that’s what happens when you cannot get runners beyond 1B. Frasor now pitching. Full count. Strikes out. Lillibridge doubles to RF. Blanco at bat walks him. Frasor is one of the few pitchers who can suck the energy out of any game, another fifteen minutes and only one out. Someone suggested Frasor could be a starter, I really hope not. It would take forever t o get through game. Gotay at bat strikes out. Johnson at bat with two on and two down. fly ball out to Lind in LF corner. That half inning was 18 minutes.
Bottom 9th: Last chance for Jays bats tonight but they have been outclassed tonight all round, pitching, hitting and defense. Teixeira and Gotay at the corners in particular. Braves new pitcher Gonzalez, Lind at bat grounds to Johnson throw to Teixiera, one down. Scutaro at bat first pitch fly ball to Jones in LF corner. Eckstein getting an at bat. Pops up second pitch to Johnson. Jays were never in this one and never looked like threatening. It must be a long time since they never reached 2B in a game.
Lots of work to do for the hitting coaches still. I don't see Jays threatening Braves in this weekend series. I hope they prove me wrong.
Series Preview - Atlanta v Toronto
Friday June 27,2008
Flashback Friday tonight showcases the two Managers. Bobby Cox was Manager in Toronto from 1982-85 and actually hired Gaston as hitting coach. Speaking of hitting Jays bats appear to be more lively.
Rolen has had three home runs this week in last four games with nine RBIs to go with them. He made an interesting comment re previous hitting coach Denbo, giving him credit for his turnaround before the changeover in coaching staff.
Inglett continues to start at 2B this week has gone 8-16 one HR 3 RBIs and five runs. That is not good news for Eckstein as they will not move Scutaro from SS to 2B whilst Inglett is hot. News on Hill is that he may start rehab this weekend in Florida. Decision time on trade or no.
Overbay and definitely Alex Rios coming around this week. Wells is still not back to his normal talent but it is so long since we have seen him burning up the bases that maybe this is the norm form now on. He is getting RBIs but sac flies and ground out fielder’s choices are hardly the booming bat of two seasons ago.
Atlanta is another good NL team although their road record is not so good. One to watch if you can get to batting practice is Jeff Francouer. This guy can really hit the ball. He was called "The Natural" on the cover of Sports Illustrated after being called up to the majors in 2005.
We watched him this spring in Dunedin at Bright’s Field versus the Phillies and Francouer in batting practice was hitting huge moon shots that would be the fifth deck in the Rogers Centre. However right now he is struggling so maybe we want to see him recover after the series ends on Sunday. .228 with a .267 OBP and a .367 SLG with RISP. That is very unusual for Francoeur. For his career, in 558 plate appearances with RISP, Francoeur has batted .315 with a .364 OBP and a .508 SLG. Interestingly Francouer thinks that his vision is the problem in night games and he has been fitted with a special contact lens for his right eye this week. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution.) This season he's hitting .320 in 26 day games and .204 in 51 night games.
Chipper Jones at 3B with a .394 average 16 HRs and 46 walks, has been out with a quad injury but hoping to play tonight but this could be pushed back. Here’s one hoping it will be after the Jays series.
Last but not least of course the very hot Texeira at 1B. 57 RBIs Mark had three home runs against Seattle on Sunday and another off Torres in Milwaukee. Is hitting .467 7-15 with 4 HRs and seven RBIs in his last four games. Jones and Texeira have 30 HRs. Jays fans would love that one-two combination at the corners.
Pitchers: Jair Jurrjens (7-3, 3.20 ERA) will start for Atlanta on Friday facing Dustin McGowan. Jurriens pitching his 16th game 90 innings pitched with 36 walks and 66 strikeouts
McGowan (6-5 4.21 ERA.) very similar numbers to Jurrjiens. Pitching his 17th game tonight 94 Innings pitched 33 walks and 74 strikeouts. Dustin’s last out was the 8-5 win in Pittsburgh this week. Dustin has been frustrating to watch some games this season with his control and number of walks. Perhaps tonight he will be on his game.
Make this an interesting match up.
Other good news is the Saturday pitcher John Parrish. I thought that he should have come north with the team after Spring in Dunedin. He had one game against the Tigers where he struck out seven of nine hitters that he faced, he was untouchable. If he can pitch like that on Saturday he will make many fans sit up and notice. Another good asset of Parrish is his great pickoff move. Watch him on Saturday if a guy gets on base. The others Jays starters should also watch.
Flashback Friday tonight showcases the two Managers. Bobby Cox was Manager in Toronto from 1982-85 and actually hired Gaston as hitting coach. Speaking of hitting Jays bats appear to be more lively.
Rolen has had three home runs this week in last four games with nine RBIs to go with them. He made an interesting comment re previous hitting coach Denbo, giving him credit for his turnaround before the changeover in coaching staff.
Inglett continues to start at 2B this week has gone 8-16 one HR 3 RBIs and five runs. That is not good news for Eckstein as they will not move Scutaro from SS to 2B whilst Inglett is hot. News on Hill is that he may start rehab this weekend in Florida. Decision time on trade or no.
Overbay and definitely Alex Rios coming around this week. Wells is still not back to his normal talent but it is so long since we have seen him burning up the bases that maybe this is the norm form now on. He is getting RBIs but sac flies and ground out fielder’s choices are hardly the booming bat of two seasons ago.
Atlanta is another good NL team although their road record is not so good. One to watch if you can get to batting practice is Jeff Francouer. This guy can really hit the ball. He was called "The Natural" on the cover of Sports Illustrated after being called up to the majors in 2005.
We watched him this spring in Dunedin at Bright’s Field versus the Phillies and Francouer in batting practice was hitting huge moon shots that would be the fifth deck in the Rogers Centre. However right now he is struggling so maybe we want to see him recover after the series ends on Sunday. .228 with a .267 OBP and a .367 SLG with RISP. That is very unusual for Francoeur. For his career, in 558 plate appearances with RISP, Francoeur has batted .315 with a .364 OBP and a .508 SLG. Interestingly Francouer thinks that his vision is the problem in night games and he has been fitted with a special contact lens for his right eye this week. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution.) This season he's hitting .320 in 26 day games and .204 in 51 night games.
Chipper Jones at 3B with a .394 average 16 HRs and 46 walks, has been out with a quad injury but hoping to play tonight but this could be pushed back. Here’s one hoping it will be after the Jays series.
Last but not least of course the very hot Texeira at 1B. 57 RBIs Mark had three home runs against Seattle on Sunday and another off Torres in Milwaukee. Is hitting .467 7-15 with 4 HRs and seven RBIs in his last four games. Jones and Texeira have 30 HRs. Jays fans would love that one-two combination at the corners.
Pitchers: Jair Jurrjens (7-3, 3.20 ERA) will start for Atlanta on Friday facing Dustin McGowan. Jurriens pitching his 16th game 90 innings pitched with 36 walks and 66 strikeouts
McGowan (6-5 4.21 ERA.) very similar numbers to Jurrjiens. Pitching his 17th game tonight 94 Innings pitched 33 walks and 74 strikeouts. Dustin’s last out was the 8-5 win in Pittsburgh this week. Dustin has been frustrating to watch some games this season with his control and number of walks. Perhaps tonight he will be on his game.
Make this an interesting match up.
Other good news is the Saturday pitcher John Parrish. I thought that he should have come north with the team after Spring in Dunedin. He had one game against the Tigers where he struck out seven of nine hitters that he faced, he was untouchable. If he can pitch like that on Saturday he will make many fans sit up and notice. Another good asset of Parrish is his great pickoff move. Watch him on Saturday if a guy gets on base. The others Jays starters should also watch.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Jays win this one and the series. Litsch an excellent outing.
Thursday June 26, 2008. Series finale Toronto v Cincinnatti.
If the Jays think they can win this series they had better look hard at tonight’s pitcher for the Reds. Edinson Volquez is the Reds phenom this season. 10-2 with an ERA of 1.71, this guy is (very) good. He was the other part of that trade with Texas for Josh Hamilton who is also tearing up the league with (wait for it) 76 ! RBIs. Both teams are very happy with the trade. Would that Jays had a hitter with half that number of RBIs. Volquez also leads the majors in ERA and strikeouts 110 and not least opponents batting average of a miniscule .196 . Jays will have to make most of every opportunity tonight to score because if Volquez is on form tonight it will not be often. It will also mean sending Rios home as opposed to holding him like last night to load the bases and then failing to score.
Lineups: Cincinnati: Hairston Jr. is back from injury, Dunn, Phillips, Griffey, Votto, Keppinger, Bruce, Patterson, Bako and Volquez pitching.
Toronto: Same as last night, this is Cito managing. Shades of 92-3 when lineup never seemed to change for a whole season. Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun, Lind and Litsch pitching.
Result: Jays win this one 7-1 and the series for first time in a month !
The very good: Litsch eight outstanding innings. Rolen at bat 3 RBIs.
The good: The way the bats treated Volquez. This is one of the best pitchers in the majors and Jays bats got to him early and often to take him out. He had no strikeouts tonight and this is a pitcher with 119 on the season. Good job by the bats. If only they could be more consistent. Some great defense by Rolen and also Litsch helping himself with that bullet return in the fourth. Rios still hitting confidently. Overbay also with two RBIs hit in the third to make game 5-1.This game was almost 89 minutes shorter than last night.
The bad: Nothing tonight.
The game: Top 1st: Hairston lines this one out to RF Rios. One down. Dunn at bat, fans were merciless to him last night. Strikes out here. Phillips at bat grounds out to Rolen at 3B. Three up and down. Good first inning for Jesse. 9 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro at bat. Orioles and Tampa have already won this afternoon. Orioles an impressive series win in Chicago Wrigley only the second time this season for the Cubs to lose a series. Jays are not going to get any breaks from teams above them they just have to keep on playing one game at a time and winning. Scutaro grounds out to 3B Keppinger. One down. Inglett at bat has been excellent so far. .320 average. Singles here to RF. Alex now, has been so much happier since Cito came back. Hits it hard but fly ball to LF Dunn. Wells at bat one on two down. Wells grounds to Hairston Jr. at SS. Inglett out at 2B. Wells to 1B. 15 pitch inning for Volquez. Yankees already ahead in top of their first inning in Pittsburgh.
Top 2nd: Griffey at bat. Pops up to Rolen. Good to see Griffey go quickly. Votto at bat one down strikes out. Keppinger at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Another good inning for Litsch. 19 pitches for two innings will help a great deal.
Bottom 2nd: Stairs at bat. Takes ball four here and walks. One on for Rolen now. He drills this one to LF no question. There it goes for Rolen number six on the season. That was a very sweet swing, good to see. Two run home run. Jays 2-0. Overbay at bat still no outs. One down for Zaun. High pop up to Hairston. Lind now with two down. Adam Lind has had a great week this week two home runs already and seems very comfortable this time around in the majors. He also adds big threat at the bottom of the order and no pressure on him to perform. Grounds this one to Phillips at 2B. 33 pitches.
Top 3rd: Bruce at bat grounds to Overbay, flip to Litsch to get out. One down for Patterson at bat, grounds to Inglett. Bako at bat grounds back to Litsch. Three up and down. Makes nine in a row for Jesse so far. 29 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Scutaro again, Volquez hits him on right elbow. One on for Inglett. Not swinging here 3-1 count. Scutaro going on this, throw down there but ball four. Two on no outs. Rios again at bat. 2-0 count. Grounds to Volquez throw to 2B on to 1B not in time and Inglett called safe here at 2B. All safe for bases loaded. Error on Volquez. Vernon now bases loaded grounds to SS get Rios at 2B no chance for double play Scutaro scores. 3-0 Jays. One out for Stairs now. Walks. Bases loaded again. Rolen now chance to add to that 2 RBIs. Pops up to 1B. Not good there Scott. Overbay now a chance to make up for being goat last night. Yes indeed, Lyle singles here to RF. Two score Rios and Inglett score. 5-0 Jays. Lyle must feel very good. Stairs at 3B. Zaun with two on and two down. 63 pitches.
Top 4th: Hairston grounds a bullet back to Litsch great play by Jesse, throw to Overbay to get him. One down. Dunn now doubles to RF. Wild pitch by Litsch here. Dunn moves to 3B. Phillips at bat, sac fly to Wells Dunn scores 5-1 Jays. Once again Reds show Jays some execution here with runner at 3B.
Bottom 4th: Lind at bat, fly ball to Dunn in LF. Scutaro grounds out to Phillips throw to Votto at 1B. Inglett grounds this one back to Volquez throw to Votto at 1B. Quick inning for Volquez.
Top 5th: Votto grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Keppinger grounds to Rolen 3B. to first baseman Overbay. Bruce struck out. 51 pitches through five innings.
Bottom 5th: Rios lead off doubles to CF. Alex really is much more confident this week. I can believe it is Gene Tenace and Cito for Alex. Cito is a huge believer in his ability as an All-Star. If he can get Alex going that is fine with all Jays fans. Vernon now with Alex at 2B. Yes Vernon doubles down LF corner Alex scores 6-1 Jays. Stairs at bat Wells at 2B. 80 pitches here. Wild pitch over Bako’s head Wells to 3B. Full count on Stairs. Grounds to 1B. Looks Vernon back to 3B. One down. Rolen at bat lines it over head of Bruce in RF Wells scores 7-1 Jays That’s it for Volquez. Who would have thought? Mike Lincoln pitching. Overbay at bat Vernon at 2B. One out. Fly ball to Dunn in LF. Two down for Zaun pops up to Keppinger at 3B.
Top 6th: Patterson at bat, strikes out here on another inside pitch. Great pitch. Number four strikeout. Bako at bat full count. High chopper to Rolen in front of Scutaro hard throw to get Bako at 1B. Rolen throws HARD! Hairston at bat, lines hard to centre past diving Scutaro, second hit of the night for Reds. Dunn at bat, more boos, crowd will miss this guy when he leaves town. Grounds down the line to Overbay. 72 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Lind at bat grounds to Hairston. Scutaro first pitch grounds to Keppinger spins and throws to Votto to get Scutaro. What a great play by Keppinger. Inglett at bat grounds to SS. Three up and down, very quick inning but Jays bats were not very selective there and Reds fielders excelled there.
Top 7th: Phillips at bat grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Griffey at bat, swings over this one, does not like that ball low. Full count. Gets hold of this one but high fly ball to Rios in RF. Just missed that one. Votto at bat, full count there he gets him. Fifth strikeout for Litsch. 94 pitches.
Bottom 7th: Rios grounds to Keppinger. One down. Wells at bat strikes out looking at that one. Stairs at bat strikes out.
Top 8th: Keppinger pops up to Inglett. One down. Bruce at bat. Tallet pitching in bullpen. Strikes him out sixth tonight. Two down. Patterson lines one to Rios, sliding and drops it, didn’t commit to play at first, however that would have been great catch if he had it, bounced off his glove. Bako at bat walks here. First walk tonight. Hairston at bat fly ball to Wells in shallow centre. 112 pitches for Jesse that is probably it for tonight, Second consecutive Jays pitcher to go over 110.
Bottom 8th: Jeremy Affeldt pitching Rolen at bat, 2-3 tonight 3RBIs. Lines this one up the middle Phillips throws him out at 1B. Overbay at bat pops it up behind 3B to Hairston. Two down. Zaun at bat pops another up, Gregg is off right now.
Top 9th: That’s it for Jesse. Brian Tallet now pitching. Dunn at bat, be careful here Tallet. There it goes off the wall in CF. just missed going out. Phillips fly ball to Wells. One down. Mr. Griffey at bat pops up to Rolen at 3B. At least Jays fans saw him get one last night. Two down for Votto. Full count. Ball four. Not a good pitch. Two on two down. At bat Valentin who replaced Keppinger defensively last inning. Strikes out. Jays
If the Jays think they can win this series they had better look hard at tonight’s pitcher for the Reds. Edinson Volquez is the Reds phenom this season. 10-2 with an ERA of 1.71, this guy is (very) good. He was the other part of that trade with Texas for Josh Hamilton who is also tearing up the league with (wait for it) 76 ! RBIs. Both teams are very happy with the trade. Would that Jays had a hitter with half that number of RBIs. Volquez also leads the majors in ERA and strikeouts 110 and not least opponents batting average of a miniscule .196 . Jays will have to make most of every opportunity tonight to score because if Volquez is on form tonight it will not be often. It will also mean sending Rios home as opposed to holding him like last night to load the bases and then failing to score.
Lineups: Cincinnati: Hairston Jr. is back from injury, Dunn, Phillips, Griffey, Votto, Keppinger, Bruce, Patterson, Bako and Volquez pitching.
Toronto: Same as last night, this is Cito managing. Shades of 92-3 when lineup never seemed to change for a whole season. Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun, Lind and Litsch pitching.
Result: Jays win this one 7-1 and the series for first time in a month !
The very good: Litsch eight outstanding innings. Rolen at bat 3 RBIs.
The good: The way the bats treated Volquez. This is one of the best pitchers in the majors and Jays bats got to him early and often to take him out. He had no strikeouts tonight and this is a pitcher with 119 on the season. Good job by the bats. If only they could be more consistent. Some great defense by Rolen and also Litsch helping himself with that bullet return in the fourth. Rios still hitting confidently. Overbay also with two RBIs hit in the third to make game 5-1.This game was almost 89 minutes shorter than last night.
The bad: Nothing tonight.
The game: Top 1st: Hairston lines this one out to RF Rios. One down. Dunn at bat, fans were merciless to him last night. Strikes out here. Phillips at bat grounds out to Rolen at 3B. Three up and down. Good first inning for Jesse. 9 pitches.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro at bat. Orioles and Tampa have already won this afternoon. Orioles an impressive series win in Chicago Wrigley only the second time this season for the Cubs to lose a series. Jays are not going to get any breaks from teams above them they just have to keep on playing one game at a time and winning. Scutaro grounds out to 3B Keppinger. One down. Inglett at bat has been excellent so far. .320 average. Singles here to RF. Alex now, has been so much happier since Cito came back. Hits it hard but fly ball to LF Dunn. Wells at bat one on two down. Wells grounds to Hairston Jr. at SS. Inglett out at 2B. Wells to 1B. 15 pitch inning for Volquez. Yankees already ahead in top of their first inning in Pittsburgh.
Top 2nd: Griffey at bat. Pops up to Rolen. Good to see Griffey go quickly. Votto at bat one down strikes out. Keppinger at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Another good inning for Litsch. 19 pitches for two innings will help a great deal.
Bottom 2nd: Stairs at bat. Takes ball four here and walks. One on for Rolen now. He drills this one to LF no question. There it goes for Rolen number six on the season. That was a very sweet swing, good to see. Two run home run. Jays 2-0. Overbay at bat still no outs. One down for Zaun. High pop up to Hairston. Lind now with two down. Adam Lind has had a great week this week two home runs already and seems very comfortable this time around in the majors. He also adds big threat at the bottom of the order and no pressure on him to perform. Grounds this one to Phillips at 2B. 33 pitches.
Top 3rd: Bruce at bat grounds to Overbay, flip to Litsch to get out. One down for Patterson at bat, grounds to Inglett. Bako at bat grounds back to Litsch. Three up and down. Makes nine in a row for Jesse so far. 29 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Scutaro again, Volquez hits him on right elbow. One on for Inglett. Not swinging here 3-1 count. Scutaro going on this, throw down there but ball four. Two on no outs. Rios again at bat. 2-0 count. Grounds to Volquez throw to 2B on to 1B not in time and Inglett called safe here at 2B. All safe for bases loaded. Error on Volquez. Vernon now bases loaded grounds to SS get Rios at 2B no chance for double play Scutaro scores. 3-0 Jays. One out for Stairs now. Walks. Bases loaded again. Rolen now chance to add to that 2 RBIs. Pops up to 1B. Not good there Scott. Overbay now a chance to make up for being goat last night. Yes indeed, Lyle singles here to RF. Two score Rios and Inglett score. 5-0 Jays. Lyle must feel very good. Stairs at 3B. Zaun with two on and two down. 63 pitches.
Top 4th: Hairston grounds a bullet back to Litsch great play by Jesse, throw to Overbay to get him. One down. Dunn now doubles to RF. Wild pitch by Litsch here. Dunn moves to 3B. Phillips at bat, sac fly to Wells Dunn scores 5-1 Jays. Once again Reds show Jays some execution here with runner at 3B.
Bottom 4th: Lind at bat, fly ball to Dunn in LF. Scutaro grounds out to Phillips throw to Votto at 1B. Inglett grounds this one back to Volquez throw to Votto at 1B. Quick inning for Volquez.
Top 5th: Votto grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Keppinger grounds to Rolen 3B. to first baseman Overbay. Bruce struck out. 51 pitches through five innings.
Bottom 5th: Rios lead off doubles to CF. Alex really is much more confident this week. I can believe it is Gene Tenace and Cito for Alex. Cito is a huge believer in his ability as an All-Star. If he can get Alex going that is fine with all Jays fans. Vernon now with Alex at 2B. Yes Vernon doubles down LF corner Alex scores 6-1 Jays. Stairs at bat Wells at 2B. 80 pitches here. Wild pitch over Bako’s head Wells to 3B. Full count on Stairs. Grounds to 1B. Looks Vernon back to 3B. One down. Rolen at bat lines it over head of Bruce in RF Wells scores 7-1 Jays That’s it for Volquez. Who would have thought? Mike Lincoln pitching. Overbay at bat Vernon at 2B. One out. Fly ball to Dunn in LF. Two down for Zaun pops up to Keppinger at 3B.
Top 6th: Patterson at bat, strikes out here on another inside pitch. Great pitch. Number four strikeout. Bako at bat full count. High chopper to Rolen in front of Scutaro hard throw to get Bako at 1B. Rolen throws HARD! Hairston at bat, lines hard to centre past diving Scutaro, second hit of the night for Reds. Dunn at bat, more boos, crowd will miss this guy when he leaves town. Grounds down the line to Overbay. 72 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Lind at bat grounds to Hairston. Scutaro first pitch grounds to Keppinger spins and throws to Votto to get Scutaro. What a great play by Keppinger. Inglett at bat grounds to SS. Three up and down, very quick inning but Jays bats were not very selective there and Reds fielders excelled there.
Top 7th: Phillips at bat grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Griffey at bat, swings over this one, does not like that ball low. Full count. Gets hold of this one but high fly ball to Rios in RF. Just missed that one. Votto at bat, full count there he gets him. Fifth strikeout for Litsch. 94 pitches.
Bottom 7th: Rios grounds to Keppinger. One down. Wells at bat strikes out looking at that one. Stairs at bat strikes out.
Top 8th: Keppinger pops up to Inglett. One down. Bruce at bat. Tallet pitching in bullpen. Strikes him out sixth tonight. Two down. Patterson lines one to Rios, sliding and drops it, didn’t commit to play at first, however that would have been great catch if he had it, bounced off his glove. Bako at bat walks here. First walk tonight. Hairston at bat fly ball to Wells in shallow centre. 112 pitches for Jesse that is probably it for tonight, Second consecutive Jays pitcher to go over 110.
Bottom 8th: Jeremy Affeldt pitching Rolen at bat, 2-3 tonight 3RBIs. Lines this one up the middle Phillips throws him out at 1B. Overbay at bat pops it up behind 3B to Hairston. Two down. Zaun at bat pops another up, Gregg is off right now.
Top 9th: That’s it for Jesse. Brian Tallet now pitching. Dunn at bat, be careful here Tallet. There it goes off the wall in CF. just missed going out. Phillips fly ball to Wells. One down. Mr. Griffey at bat pops up to Rolen at 3B. At least Jays fans saw him get one last night. Two down for Votto. Full count. Ball four. Not a good pitch. Two on two down. At bat Valentin who replaced Keppinger defensively last inning. Strikes out. Jays
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Jays hitters give one away, 2/12 runners in scoring position
Wednesday June 25,2008. Second game of series. Jays v Reds.
Can Halladay make it two in a row here against the Reds ?
Lineups: Toronto: Scuitaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun and Lind, with Halladay pitching.
Cincinnatti: Bruce, Dunn, Phillips, Griffey, Votto,Keppinger, Patterson, Valentin, Ross,and Harang pitching.
Result: Reds 6-5 Toronto on 10 innings.
The good: Inglett, Lind and Scutaro for the bats and Halladay Downs and Ryan for the bullpen.
The bad: Halladay was by no means sharp tonight but hung in there for several more innings with high pitch count. Is he still suffering from the ball in the head last week?
The very bad: 2-13 with runners in scoring position what’s new?
The game: Top 1st: Bruce strikes out. Dunn strikes out. Phillips walks on full count. Good ovation for Griffey, he was quiet last night. Griffey gets hold of this one, and this one is out.HR to RF. Phillips scores. 2-0 Reds. I think many of the Jays fans wanted to see him do it at least once this week, but too bad it was not last night in the blowout. Votto at bat to cheers from his fans, fly ball out to Rios.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro strikes out. Inglett patience at bat, full count and walks. Rios grounds to Keppinger at SS. Inglett out at 2B. on to 1B to get Alex.Double play.
Top 2nd: Keppinger pops out to Inglett. Patterson fly ball to Wells CF. Valentin grounds out, Inglett.
Bottom 2nd: Wells fouls out to Votto at 1B. Stairs walks. Rolen fly ball out to Patterson CF. Overbay fly ball out to Dunn in LF. Jays bats are definitely not like last night.
Top 3rd: Ross singles to CF. Bruce doubles to RF. Two on no outs and both runners in scoring position. Halladay has his hands full here, he is not sharp at all tonight. Dunn singles to RF, Ross scores 3-0 Reds. Bruce at 3B. Phillips singles to RF, Bruce scores,4-0 Reds. Dunn to 2B four consecutive hits and no outs. Here comes guess who ? Griffey fly ball out to Wells, Dunn moves up to 3B, one down. Votto at bat to the cheers of his Etobicoke friends. Grounds out to Inglett. Dunn scores, Phillips out at 2B. 5-0 Reds. Keppinger lined out to shortstop Scutaro.
People are already leaving this one. This is not a good feeling here tonight. The worm has turned tonight and perhaps Jays will get hammered.
Bottom 3rd: Zaun singles to right, looper over 2B head. Lind at bat gets hold of this one and HR to LF, Zaun scores 5-2.That’s the way to reply. Scutaro at bat infield single to SS. Scutaro dives headfirst into 1B beats the throw but he already had it beat, a little dangerous play there Marco. Inglett now at bat gets hold of this one and just hits bottom of the foul pole in RF. Scutaro scores 5-4 and we have a new ball game. Rios doubles to CF. They are getting to Harang here. Still no outs do we have another big inning here like last night?
Wells at bat, big chance Vernon. Fly ball out to Bruce RF, Rios moves to 3B. Still only one out, two chances here. Stairs grounds out, to.Phillips at 2B gets Stairs at 1B. Rios cannot score. Rolen fouls out to Votto at 1B. Cito now you know what gave Gibbons that white hair. It will be interesting to see what Gene Tenace and the brainstrust come up with to break this habit.
Top 4th: Patterson singles to right. Valentin strikes out. Patterson steals 2B. Ross full count here and now walks. Bruce bunts to Halladay gets Ross at 2B. Patterson moves to 3B. Dunn lines out to Rios.
Bottom 4th: Overbay grounds out, to Keppinger. Zaun fly ball out to Patterson CF. Lind fly ball out to Patterson CF.
Top 5th: Phillips grounds out to Scutaro at SS. Here comes Griffey again grounds out to Inglett at 2B. Votto strikes out.
Bottom 5th: Scutaro strikes out. Inglett singles to LF. Rios fly ball out to Bruce RF. Wells singles to CF, Inglett to 3B. Stairs strikes out.
Top 6th: Keppinger singles to RF. Patterson fly ball out to Rios. Valentin singles to RF, Keppinger to 2B. Ross lines out to Rios. Bruce strikes out.
Bottom 6th: Rolen fly ball out to Bruce RF. Overbay walks. Zaun pops out to Keppinger. That’s it for Harang. Dusty Baker thinks that’s enough here. Pitch count over the 100. Bray now pitching. Lind walks on a full count, Overbay to 2B. Keppinger in at 3B. Janish in at SS. Baker out again Weathers now pitching. Scutaro at bat singles to LF, Overbay scores, Lind to 3B. This game is all tied up, Jays have come back from 5-0 down. 5-5. Chance here to do more damage.Two down two on. Scutaro at 2B. Inglett at bat grounds out to Janish. But we have a new game here.
Top 7th: Dunn strikes out. Phillips strikes out. Griffey walks on four pitches. Votto doubles to CF, Griffey to 3B. Halladay in trouble here Gaston is out there but leaves him in to the cheers of crowd. Keppinger walks bases loaded. That’s it Roy for tonight. Something was wrong with you definitely not as sharp as he usually is but he battled through that very bad start and 0-5 deficit. The guy never gives up..Downs now pitching. Hopper pinch-hitting for Patterson. Hopper strikes out. Leaves the bases loaded. That was huge. Now perhaps Jays can do something with the big bats coming to bat.
Bottom 7th: Hopper in at CF. Rios leading off singles to CF first pitch..Wells swinging singles to left, Rios to 2B. Stairs singles to CF, Rios is running but held up at 3B I think he could have scored there, throw is off home plate. BUT bases are loaded just like that with three successive hits. NO one out. Rolen at bat, we need a fly ball here Scott at minimum single will do as well. NO pops this one up to.Phillips at 2B no chance for Rios to come in. One down. Overbay at bat, shatters bat right back to pitcher Weathers comes home to get Alex and on to 1B to get Overbay. Double play ball. Overbay is now leading the league in double plays. That is big momentum killer. No excuse for that, bases loaded no outs ??? Well Cito and staff have a problem.
Top 8th: Janish singles to CF. Ross strikes out. Bruce grounds to Inglett Janish out at 2B. Dunn walks on a full count, Bruce to 2B. Phillips grounds out to Rolen. Jays have another life here.
Bottom 8th: Burton pitching. Zaun patient here, full count, Zaun knows they need runners now. walks on a full count. McDonald pinch-running for Zaun gets a nice ovation. Lind is bunting, no, this kid is hitting well, let him swing away here. Cito has other ideas. Sac bunt, catcher Ross to second baseman B. Phillips, McDonald to second. Scutaro at bat on down one on.strikes out. Inglett at bat. Try again here to get Johhn Mc in from 2B. . Strikes out.
Top 9th: Barajas in as catcher. BJ Ryan pitching. To face the big guy. Griffey strikes out on three pitches. BJ is blowing them past him. Votto at bat, strikes out. Keppinger pops out to Inglett at 2B. Great inning by Ryan, he has done all that he had to do.
Bottom 9th: Final chance here for Jays. Rios singles to CF. Wells at bat fly ball to Dunn LF. Vernon wants that hit back.Stairs now, can he do something? Fly ball to Hopper CF. Rios stealing beats the throw. Rolen at bat, just need a single here strikes out.
Top 10th: Wolfe pitching. Hopper walks. Janish walks, Wolfe is nowhere near strikes. Hopper to 2B. Ross sac bunt back to Wolfe to Inglett, Hopper to third, Janish to second Carlson pitching. Bruce hit a sacrifice fly to left fielder Lind, Hopper scored. 6-5 Reds.That’s called execution. Jays don’t know how to do this. Dunn at bat strikes out.
Bottom 10th: Cordero pitching. Is this lights out for Jays hitters now?
Overbay strikes out. Barajas fly ball out to Hopper CF. Two down. Lind at bat, too much to expect him to go deep again. Grounds out, to Janish at SS. This game is finally over. Jays give it away.
Can Halladay make it two in a row here against the Reds ?
Lineups: Toronto: Scuitaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun and Lind, with Halladay pitching.
Cincinnatti: Bruce, Dunn, Phillips, Griffey, Votto,Keppinger, Patterson, Valentin, Ross,and Harang pitching.
Result: Reds 6-5 Toronto on 10 innings.
The good: Inglett, Lind and Scutaro for the bats and Halladay Downs and Ryan for the bullpen.
The bad: Halladay was by no means sharp tonight but hung in there for several more innings with high pitch count. Is he still suffering from the ball in the head last week?
The very bad: 2-13 with runners in scoring position what’s new?
The game: Top 1st: Bruce strikes out. Dunn strikes out. Phillips walks on full count. Good ovation for Griffey, he was quiet last night. Griffey gets hold of this one, and this one is out.HR to RF. Phillips scores. 2-0 Reds. I think many of the Jays fans wanted to see him do it at least once this week, but too bad it was not last night in the blowout. Votto at bat to cheers from his fans, fly ball out to Rios.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro strikes out. Inglett patience at bat, full count and walks. Rios grounds to Keppinger at SS. Inglett out at 2B. on to 1B to get Alex.Double play.
Top 2nd: Keppinger pops out to Inglett. Patterson fly ball to Wells CF. Valentin grounds out, Inglett.
Bottom 2nd: Wells fouls out to Votto at 1B. Stairs walks. Rolen fly ball out to Patterson CF. Overbay fly ball out to Dunn in LF. Jays bats are definitely not like last night.
Top 3rd: Ross singles to CF. Bruce doubles to RF. Two on no outs and both runners in scoring position. Halladay has his hands full here, he is not sharp at all tonight. Dunn singles to RF, Ross scores 3-0 Reds. Bruce at 3B. Phillips singles to RF, Bruce scores,4-0 Reds. Dunn to 2B four consecutive hits and no outs. Here comes guess who ? Griffey fly ball out to Wells, Dunn moves up to 3B, one down. Votto at bat to the cheers of his Etobicoke friends. Grounds out to Inglett. Dunn scores, Phillips out at 2B. 5-0 Reds. Keppinger lined out to shortstop Scutaro.
People are already leaving this one. This is not a good feeling here tonight. The worm has turned tonight and perhaps Jays will get hammered.
Bottom 3rd: Zaun singles to right, looper over 2B head. Lind at bat gets hold of this one and HR to LF, Zaun scores 5-2.That’s the way to reply. Scutaro at bat infield single to SS. Scutaro dives headfirst into 1B beats the throw but he already had it beat, a little dangerous play there Marco. Inglett now at bat gets hold of this one and just hits bottom of the foul pole in RF. Scutaro scores 5-4 and we have a new ball game. Rios doubles to CF. They are getting to Harang here. Still no outs do we have another big inning here like last night?
Wells at bat, big chance Vernon. Fly ball out to Bruce RF, Rios moves to 3B. Still only one out, two chances here. Stairs grounds out, to.Phillips at 2B gets Stairs at 1B. Rios cannot score. Rolen fouls out to Votto at 1B. Cito now you know what gave Gibbons that white hair. It will be interesting to see what Gene Tenace and the brainstrust come up with to break this habit.
Top 4th: Patterson singles to right. Valentin strikes out. Patterson steals 2B. Ross full count here and now walks. Bruce bunts to Halladay gets Ross at 2B. Patterson moves to 3B. Dunn lines out to Rios.
Bottom 4th: Overbay grounds out, to Keppinger. Zaun fly ball out to Patterson CF. Lind fly ball out to Patterson CF.
Top 5th: Phillips grounds out to Scutaro at SS. Here comes Griffey again grounds out to Inglett at 2B. Votto strikes out.
Bottom 5th: Scutaro strikes out. Inglett singles to LF. Rios fly ball out to Bruce RF. Wells singles to CF, Inglett to 3B. Stairs strikes out.
Top 6th: Keppinger singles to RF. Patterson fly ball out to Rios. Valentin singles to RF, Keppinger to 2B. Ross lines out to Rios. Bruce strikes out.
Bottom 6th: Rolen fly ball out to Bruce RF. Overbay walks. Zaun pops out to Keppinger. That’s it for Harang. Dusty Baker thinks that’s enough here. Pitch count over the 100. Bray now pitching. Lind walks on a full count, Overbay to 2B. Keppinger in at 3B. Janish in at SS. Baker out again Weathers now pitching. Scutaro at bat singles to LF, Overbay scores, Lind to 3B. This game is all tied up, Jays have come back from 5-0 down. 5-5. Chance here to do more damage.Two down two on. Scutaro at 2B. Inglett at bat grounds out to Janish. But we have a new game here.
Top 7th: Dunn strikes out. Phillips strikes out. Griffey walks on four pitches. Votto doubles to CF, Griffey to 3B. Halladay in trouble here Gaston is out there but leaves him in to the cheers of crowd. Keppinger walks bases loaded. That’s it Roy for tonight. Something was wrong with you definitely not as sharp as he usually is but he battled through that very bad start and 0-5 deficit. The guy never gives up..Downs now pitching. Hopper pinch-hitting for Patterson. Hopper strikes out. Leaves the bases loaded. That was huge. Now perhaps Jays can do something with the big bats coming to bat.
Bottom 7th: Hopper in at CF. Rios leading off singles to CF first pitch..Wells swinging singles to left, Rios to 2B. Stairs singles to CF, Rios is running but held up at 3B I think he could have scored there, throw is off home plate. BUT bases are loaded just like that with three successive hits. NO one out. Rolen at bat, we need a fly ball here Scott at minimum single will do as well. NO pops this one up to.Phillips at 2B no chance for Rios to come in. One down. Overbay at bat, shatters bat right back to pitcher Weathers comes home to get Alex and on to 1B to get Overbay. Double play ball. Overbay is now leading the league in double plays. That is big momentum killer. No excuse for that, bases loaded no outs ??? Well Cito and staff have a problem.
Top 8th: Janish singles to CF. Ross strikes out. Bruce grounds to Inglett Janish out at 2B. Dunn walks on a full count, Bruce to 2B. Phillips grounds out to Rolen. Jays have another life here.
Bottom 8th: Burton pitching. Zaun patient here, full count, Zaun knows they need runners now. walks on a full count. McDonald pinch-running for Zaun gets a nice ovation. Lind is bunting, no, this kid is hitting well, let him swing away here. Cito has other ideas. Sac bunt, catcher Ross to second baseman B. Phillips, McDonald to second. Scutaro at bat on down one on.strikes out. Inglett at bat. Try again here to get Johhn Mc in from 2B. . Strikes out.
Top 9th: Barajas in as catcher. BJ Ryan pitching. To face the big guy. Griffey strikes out on three pitches. BJ is blowing them past him. Votto at bat, strikes out. Keppinger pops out to Inglett at 2B. Great inning by Ryan, he has done all that he had to do.
Bottom 9th: Final chance here for Jays. Rios singles to CF. Wells at bat fly ball to Dunn LF. Vernon wants that hit back.Stairs now, can he do something? Fly ball to Hopper CF. Rios stealing beats the throw. Rolen at bat, just need a single here strikes out.
Top 10th: Wolfe pitching. Hopper walks. Janish walks, Wolfe is nowhere near strikes. Hopper to 2B. Ross sac bunt back to Wolfe to Inglett, Hopper to third, Janish to second Carlson pitching. Bruce hit a sacrifice fly to left fielder Lind, Hopper scored. 6-5 Reds.That’s called execution. Jays don’t know how to do this. Dunn at bat strikes out.
Bottom 10th: Cordero pitching. Is this lights out for Jays hitters now?
Overbay strikes out. Barajas fly ball out to Hopper CF. Two down. Lind at bat, too much to expect him to go deep again. Grounds out, to Janish at SS. This game is finally over. Jays give it away.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Plenty of Jays lumber tonight in this blowout, good defense and great pitching.
Tuesday June 23, 2008. Toronto v Cincinnati, first game of series.
Jays really need to continue winning ways from Sunday’s game but Reds are not a team that should be bottom of NL Central division any more than Jays should be in bottom of East.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun and Lind. I like this Jays lineup with Lind at number nine !!! Lots of good bats here IF they can come through. Also interesting to see Scutaro taking precedence over Eckstein since Cito has taken over. Will Eckstein be trade bait ?
Cincinnati: Hopper, Dunn, Griffey, Phillips, Votto, Keppinger, Bruce, Janish and Bako.
Pitchers: Burnett 6-7, Arroyo 4-6.
The very good: The whole team tonight. Twenty two hit attack. Scutaro and Rios four hits each. Rolen, Zaun and Rios HR’s. Burnett eight innings. Defense of Scutaro double play with Inglett. Scutaro really playing well enough to stay in there. What happens to Eckstein?
The good: RISP 11-23 good, in comparison to rest of the season.
The game:
Top 1st: Hopper leading off grounds out, Inglett 2B, Dunn grounds out, Inglett. Griffey at bat fly ball to Rios in RF. Burnett 6 pitches. Great inning AJ.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro singles to centre. Inglett 3-0 here and walks on four pitches, Scutaro to 2B.
Rios singles to LF, bases loaded with Scutaro at 3B Inglett at 2B. Wells at bat, your big chance Vernon strikes out. Not good Vernon. Stairs at bat bases still loaded, sacrifice fly to Dunn LF, Scutaro scores 1-0 Jays. Good start. Rolen first pitch gets hold of this one. There it goes home run to CF. Inglett scores, Rios scores and Jays go out here 4-0 Jays. Overbay keep the line moving Lyle doubles to RF. Zaun at bat there it goes another HR in RF. Overbay scores.6-0 Jays. Lind at bat number nine, singles to CF. Lind carrying on from Sunday’s game. Scutaro singles to CF. Lind moves to 2B. Inglett at bat grounds to Keppinger at 3B. Scutaro out at 2B. 33 pitch inning. Ouch big-time for Arroyo.
Top 2nd: Philips singles to RF Votto with one on. Philips going here, stealing and successful. Zaun throw late. Votto walks. Two on. Come on AJ bear down here. Keppinger at bat 3-0 walks him. Bases loaded, NO outs. Bruce at bat. sac fly to CF. Philips scores 6-1. Jays. One down two on at the corners. Janish at bat lines this one up the middle Scutaro diving to his left saves it with one hand that was a Johnny Mc save. Flips it to Inglett throw to 1B. Double play. Highlight reel. That could have been very different story without that play by Scutaro. 28 pitches now.
Bottom 2nd: Arroyo still in there after seven hit first inning. Rios at bat Wowweee line drive here HR to LF bullpen. 7-1 Jays. Wells at bat, Vernon is missing out on the fun here. Singles here to 3B Keppinger throw too late, Vernon can run. Stairs at bat doubles to CF, Vernon is coming in here all the way, just beats tag at the plate. 8-1 Jays. Rolen now with Stairs at 2B and no outs. Wild pitch now gets Stairs to 3B, not Arroyo’s night. Full count for Scott. Doubles to LF, Stairs scores 9-1 Jays. Eleven hits everyone in lineup except Inglett already with a hit !!!! Goodbye Arroyo. Majewski pitching here. Overbay at bat singles to CF. Rolen held at 3B but could have scored here throw way off mark. Zaun at bat no outs two on. 3-0 count. Pops up to catcher one down. Lind singles to LF Rolen scores. 10-1 Jays. Scutaro at bat, already 2-2 Arroyo is sitting in the dugout in shock. What hit me? 52 pitches 11 hits 10 runs. Another single to LF. Bases loaded. Inglett now your chance. Grounds to LB Overbay scores Inglett out at 1B. 11-1 Jays.Two down. Rios now with two in scoring position. Single will score two here Alex. Full count here. Watches third strike. Not good Alex. But Jays have 14 hits here already. This game could be over already. What has happened to these hitters? Not complaining.
Top 3rd: Bako at bat first at bat tonight !!! an hour into the game. Grounds out to Overbay. One down. Hopper now at bat grounds out to Rolen, nice play on low bounce. Throws him out at 1B. Two down. Dunn at bat, great swing fortunately does not connect here. Strikes him out. Good inning by AJ keeping that ball down so far. Five grounds out keeping that pitch count low so far. 37 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Jays have to relax here now and enjoy this game. Get their hits, relax those bats, no tension at all. Wells grounds out to SS here. Stairs at bat grounds to SS. Two down. Rolen at bat 2-2. Four RBIs already tonight. Strikes out here looking on a low pitch but he is not arguing this time.
Top 4th: Griffey at bat, you know that everyone wants him to hit one in Toronto, that fifth deck in RF, but wait until the ninth please Ken, strikes out. Phillips singles to RF. Votto on now with one on fly ball to Wells in CF. Two down. Keppinger pops up to Inglett. Another good inning AJ. 52 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Overbay at bat. Singles to right centre. 3-3 tonight for Lyle. Zaun at bat lines one hard and high to CF. Hopper just gets it at the wall. One down. Lind 2-2 chops it high to 2B. Overbay moves to 2B, Lind out at 1B. Scutaro now 3-3 !! in only the fourth inning. Fly ball here to RF. Fifteen hits here for Jays. They will take this anyday. They have waited a long time for a game like this one.
Top 5th: Bruce at bat. Another ground out, this one to Inglett. Janish at bat. Hits him in the back, that would hurt. Bako at bat. Strikes out on inside pitch. Two down. Hopper fly ball to Rios first pitch. 63 pitches. Burnett is keeping count down.
Bottom 5th: Inglett the only guy without a hit tonight, there it goes, gets a double here to CF. Hopper dives but cannot get it. Rios now singles hard to CF. 17 hits season high tide. Wells now with two on and no outs. Wilkerson on deck for Stairs. Wells drives this one to Center, and Inglett scores. 12-1 Jays. Here comes Dusty Baker. Another good impact of this hitting machine tonight is that it is good to be getting into Reds bullpen early in this series especially with Halladay tomorrow. Rios at 2B, Wells at 1B. Willkerson for Stairs. Jeremy Affeldt pitching. Full count on Wilkerson. Grounds to SS double play ball. Rios to 3B. Rolen now 2-3 high fly ball to RF.
Top 6th: Boston losing 4-1 to Arizona, Yankees losing 7-3 in Pittsburgh, Orioles scoreless in three at Wrigley. Rays tied at two in six with Marlins. Dunn at bat doubles one here off wall in CF. Griffey at bat, fly ball to LF. Dunn holds at 2B. One down. Phillips at bat grounds out to Rolen. Two down Dunn moves to 3B. Votto first pitch swing grounds out to Overbay.
Bottom 6th: Overbay 3-3 tonight. Walks on four pitches. Zaun at bat full count, walks. Lind at bat with two on and no outs. Grounds to Affeldt, throws to 2B on to 1B, double play. Scutaro 3-4 tonight with Overbay at 3B. Scutaro fourth hit here singles over SS head into left. Overbay scores. 13-1Jays. Nineteen hits for Jays tonight. Inglett again, fly ball to Hopper in CF.
Top 7th: Keppinger grounds out to Scutaro, one down. Bruce at bat singles to Wells in CF. Janish at bat with one on. Strikes out looking. Bako at bat strikes out swinging over this one. 86 pitches. Burnett still going well.
Bottom 7th: Valentin in at 3B for Keppinger. Rios at bat 3-4 tonight, ex-Jay David Weathers pitching. Lines this very hard off Janish glove into RF. Twenty hits. Wells hit by first pitch, two on no outs. Willkerson at bat 3-0 here. Lines it up the middle great play by Janish gets Wells at 2B. Wilkerson safe at 1B and Rios to 3B. Rolen hit on elbow here. Bases loaded. One down for Overbay, 3-3 tonight. Strikes out there. Zaun at bat singles to 1B Weathers can’t handle it error on play but Rios scores. 14-1 Jays. Twenty one hits. Lind at bat, bases still loaded, grounds out to 1B.
Top 8th: Hopper strikes out, sixth tonight for Burnett. Dunn at bat full count, walks. Here’s Griffey. Careful here AJ. Strikes him out, great pitch. Number seven tonight. Phillips at bat, fly ball to Rios in RF. Burnett 111 pitches 4 hits seven strikeouts.
Bottom 8th: Bill Bray pitching top of the order again sixth time. Scutaro fly ball to CF. Inglett singles to RF. Twenty two hits for Jays. Rios at bat strikes out swinging over pitch. Wells first pitch fly ball to RF. Jays want to get out on the town.
Top 9th: Tallet pitching. Votto at bat strikes out looking. Valentin full count, fly ball to Lind in LF. Two down Bruce grounds out to Inglett.
Jays win this one 14-1. The bats came to play and Burnett didn’t disappoint. Long way to go but they had to start somewhere.
Yankees lose to Pittsburgh but everyone else in division winning.
Jays really need to continue winning ways from Sunday’s game but Reds are not a team that should be bottom of NL Central division any more than Jays should be in bottom of East.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Stairs, Rolen, Overbay, Zaun and Lind. I like this Jays lineup with Lind at number nine !!! Lots of good bats here IF they can come through. Also interesting to see Scutaro taking precedence over Eckstein since Cito has taken over. Will Eckstein be trade bait ?
Cincinnati: Hopper, Dunn, Griffey, Phillips, Votto, Keppinger, Bruce, Janish and Bako.
Pitchers: Burnett 6-7, Arroyo 4-6.
The very good: The whole team tonight. Twenty two hit attack. Scutaro and Rios four hits each. Rolen, Zaun and Rios HR’s. Burnett eight innings. Defense of Scutaro double play with Inglett. Scutaro really playing well enough to stay in there. What happens to Eckstein?
The good: RISP 11-23 good, in comparison to rest of the season.
The game:
Top 1st: Hopper leading off grounds out, Inglett 2B, Dunn grounds out, Inglett. Griffey at bat fly ball to Rios in RF. Burnett 6 pitches. Great inning AJ.
Bottom 1st: Scutaro singles to centre. Inglett 3-0 here and walks on four pitches, Scutaro to 2B.
Rios singles to LF, bases loaded with Scutaro at 3B Inglett at 2B. Wells at bat, your big chance Vernon strikes out. Not good Vernon. Stairs at bat bases still loaded, sacrifice fly to Dunn LF, Scutaro scores 1-0 Jays. Good start. Rolen first pitch gets hold of this one. There it goes home run to CF. Inglett scores, Rios scores and Jays go out here 4-0 Jays. Overbay keep the line moving Lyle doubles to RF. Zaun at bat there it goes another HR in RF. Overbay scores.6-0 Jays. Lind at bat number nine, singles to CF. Lind carrying on from Sunday’s game. Scutaro singles to CF. Lind moves to 2B. Inglett at bat grounds to Keppinger at 3B. Scutaro out at 2B. 33 pitch inning. Ouch big-time for Arroyo.
Top 2nd: Philips singles to RF Votto with one on. Philips going here, stealing and successful. Zaun throw late. Votto walks. Two on. Come on AJ bear down here. Keppinger at bat 3-0 walks him. Bases loaded, NO outs. Bruce at bat. sac fly to CF. Philips scores 6-1. Jays. One down two on at the corners. Janish at bat lines this one up the middle Scutaro diving to his left saves it with one hand that was a Johnny Mc save. Flips it to Inglett throw to 1B. Double play. Highlight reel. That could have been very different story without that play by Scutaro. 28 pitches now.
Bottom 2nd: Arroyo still in there after seven hit first inning. Rios at bat Wowweee line drive here HR to LF bullpen. 7-1 Jays. Wells at bat, Vernon is missing out on the fun here. Singles here to 3B Keppinger throw too late, Vernon can run. Stairs at bat doubles to CF, Vernon is coming in here all the way, just beats tag at the plate. 8-1 Jays. Rolen now with Stairs at 2B and no outs. Wild pitch now gets Stairs to 3B, not Arroyo’s night. Full count for Scott. Doubles to LF, Stairs scores 9-1 Jays. Eleven hits everyone in lineup except Inglett already with a hit !!!! Goodbye Arroyo. Majewski pitching here. Overbay at bat singles to CF. Rolen held at 3B but could have scored here throw way off mark. Zaun at bat no outs two on. 3-0 count. Pops up to catcher one down. Lind singles to LF Rolen scores. 10-1 Jays. Scutaro at bat, already 2-2 Arroyo is sitting in the dugout in shock. What hit me? 52 pitches 11 hits 10 runs. Another single to LF. Bases loaded. Inglett now your chance. Grounds to LB Overbay scores Inglett out at 1B. 11-1 Jays.Two down. Rios now with two in scoring position. Single will score two here Alex. Full count here. Watches third strike. Not good Alex. But Jays have 14 hits here already. This game could be over already. What has happened to these hitters? Not complaining.
Top 3rd: Bako at bat first at bat tonight !!! an hour into the game. Grounds out to Overbay. One down. Hopper now at bat grounds out to Rolen, nice play on low bounce. Throws him out at 1B. Two down. Dunn at bat, great swing fortunately does not connect here. Strikes him out. Good inning by AJ keeping that ball down so far. Five grounds out keeping that pitch count low so far. 37 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: Jays have to relax here now and enjoy this game. Get their hits, relax those bats, no tension at all. Wells grounds out to SS here. Stairs at bat grounds to SS. Two down. Rolen at bat 2-2. Four RBIs already tonight. Strikes out here looking on a low pitch but he is not arguing this time.
Top 4th: Griffey at bat, you know that everyone wants him to hit one in Toronto, that fifth deck in RF, but wait until the ninth please Ken, strikes out. Phillips singles to RF. Votto on now with one on fly ball to Wells in CF. Two down. Keppinger pops up to Inglett. Another good inning AJ. 52 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Overbay at bat. Singles to right centre. 3-3 tonight for Lyle. Zaun at bat lines one hard and high to CF. Hopper just gets it at the wall. One down. Lind 2-2 chops it high to 2B. Overbay moves to 2B, Lind out at 1B. Scutaro now 3-3 !! in only the fourth inning. Fly ball here to RF. Fifteen hits here for Jays. They will take this anyday. They have waited a long time for a game like this one.
Top 5th: Bruce at bat. Another ground out, this one to Inglett. Janish at bat. Hits him in the back, that would hurt. Bako at bat. Strikes out on inside pitch. Two down. Hopper fly ball to Rios first pitch. 63 pitches. Burnett is keeping count down.
Bottom 5th: Inglett the only guy without a hit tonight, there it goes, gets a double here to CF. Hopper dives but cannot get it. Rios now singles hard to CF. 17 hits season high tide. Wells now with two on and no outs. Wilkerson on deck for Stairs. Wells drives this one to Center, and Inglett scores. 12-1 Jays. Here comes Dusty Baker. Another good impact of this hitting machine tonight is that it is good to be getting into Reds bullpen early in this series especially with Halladay tomorrow. Rios at 2B, Wells at 1B. Willkerson for Stairs. Jeremy Affeldt pitching. Full count on Wilkerson. Grounds to SS double play ball. Rios to 3B. Rolen now 2-3 high fly ball to RF.
Top 6th: Boston losing 4-1 to Arizona, Yankees losing 7-3 in Pittsburgh, Orioles scoreless in three at Wrigley. Rays tied at two in six with Marlins. Dunn at bat doubles one here off wall in CF. Griffey at bat, fly ball to LF. Dunn holds at 2B. One down. Phillips at bat grounds out to Rolen. Two down Dunn moves to 3B. Votto first pitch swing grounds out to Overbay.
Bottom 6th: Overbay 3-3 tonight. Walks on four pitches. Zaun at bat full count, walks. Lind at bat with two on and no outs. Grounds to Affeldt, throws to 2B on to 1B, double play. Scutaro 3-4 tonight with Overbay at 3B. Scutaro fourth hit here singles over SS head into left. Overbay scores. 13-1Jays. Nineteen hits for Jays tonight. Inglett again, fly ball to Hopper in CF.
Top 7th: Keppinger grounds out to Scutaro, one down. Bruce at bat singles to Wells in CF. Janish at bat with one on. Strikes out looking. Bako at bat strikes out swinging over this one. 86 pitches. Burnett still going well.
Bottom 7th: Valentin in at 3B for Keppinger. Rios at bat 3-4 tonight, ex-Jay David Weathers pitching. Lines this very hard off Janish glove into RF. Twenty hits. Wells hit by first pitch, two on no outs. Willkerson at bat 3-0 here. Lines it up the middle great play by Janish gets Wells at 2B. Wilkerson safe at 1B and Rios to 3B. Rolen hit on elbow here. Bases loaded. One down for Overbay, 3-3 tonight. Strikes out there. Zaun at bat singles to 1B Weathers can’t handle it error on play but Rios scores. 14-1 Jays. Twenty one hits. Lind at bat, bases still loaded, grounds out to 1B.
Top 8th: Hopper strikes out, sixth tonight for Burnett. Dunn at bat full count, walks. Here’s Griffey. Careful here AJ. Strikes him out, great pitch. Number seven tonight. Phillips at bat, fly ball to Rios in RF. Burnett 111 pitches 4 hits seven strikeouts.
Bottom 8th: Bill Bray pitching top of the order again sixth time. Scutaro fly ball to CF. Inglett singles to RF. Twenty two hits for Jays. Rios at bat strikes out swinging over pitch. Wells first pitch fly ball to RF. Jays want to get out on the town.
Top 9th: Tallet pitching. Votto at bat strikes out looking. Valentin full count, fly ball to Lind in LF. Two down Bruce grounds out to Inglett.
Jays win this one 14-1. The bats came to play and Burnett didn’t disappoint. Long way to go but they had to start somewhere.
Yankees lose to Pittsburgh but everyone else in division winning.
Series Preview. Toronto v Cincinatti
Series Preview Toronto v Cincinatti.
Jays coming off win on Sunday hope to keep the bats going against the Reds.
This is not the first time Jays have seen the Reds they played them three times in the Spring winning two of three.
Tonight’s pitcher Burnett has also faced them this year in Dunedin despite media comments today that he has not faced them since 2005.
In March Burnett started second game of the Spring. Jays won that one 8-4 thanks to HRs from Coats and Inglett and the hitting of Stairs and Eckstein. Burnett has probably forgotten it as he made error on a play to Overbay dropping the throw on an easy out. Joe Inglett also made horrible mental error in that game forgetting number of outs.
At the end of the month Jays also won the night game in Dunedin 6-3 with Litsch pitching. Jays had thirteen hits and all round good hitting. Litsch had a no hitter going into the seventh. against Aaron Harang tomorrow night’s pitcher.
Jays lost the away game in Sarasota. 5-3. Marcum had a terrible outing giving up two home runs to Adam Dunn the player JP does not want. Toronto’s own Joey Votto had a two run shot in that game for the Reds.
Cincinatti (35-42) right now at the bottom of the NL Central but don’t rule this team out, they are definitely underachieving right now. Any team with Griffey, Dunn and Votto has power. I saw this team rout the Phillies 6-1 in the spring. Jays will underestimate them at their peril. And you know Adam Dunn will be ready to get JP Ricciardi to eat his negative words about him last week. Dunn in a slump right now still has 18 home runs.
Pitching match up for Tuesday Burnett (6-7, 5.42 ERA) has had terrible last three starts and has not gone more than five innings in any of these games. At the same time giving up 22 hits and 12 walks. He gave up eight runs for the second time in three starts in the 8-7 loss to Milwaukee.
Arroyo (4-6, 5.55) is 0-2 with a 6.33 ERA in four starts this month, allowing six homers in 21 1-3 innings. The right-hander has given up 16 runs and 33 hits in his last 20 1-3 innings on the road.
Jays could and should do well in the series BUT the way they have been playing anything can happen.
I think many in the crowd will also be looking for Griffey to get hold of one to RF.
Jays coming off win on Sunday hope to keep the bats going against the Reds.
This is not the first time Jays have seen the Reds they played them three times in the Spring winning two of three.
Tonight’s pitcher Burnett has also faced them this year in Dunedin despite media comments today that he has not faced them since 2005.
In March Burnett started second game of the Spring. Jays won that one 8-4 thanks to HRs from Coats and Inglett and the hitting of Stairs and Eckstein. Burnett has probably forgotten it as he made error on a play to Overbay dropping the throw on an easy out. Joe Inglett also made horrible mental error in that game forgetting number of outs.
At the end of the month Jays also won the night game in Dunedin 6-3 with Litsch pitching. Jays had thirteen hits and all round good hitting. Litsch had a no hitter going into the seventh. against Aaron Harang tomorrow night’s pitcher.
Jays lost the away game in Sarasota. 5-3. Marcum had a terrible outing giving up two home runs to Adam Dunn the player JP does not want. Toronto’s own Joey Votto had a two run shot in that game for the Reds.
Cincinatti (35-42) right now at the bottom of the NL Central but don’t rule this team out, they are definitely underachieving right now. Any team with Griffey, Dunn and Votto has power. I saw this team rout the Phillies 6-1 in the spring. Jays will underestimate them at their peril. And you know Adam Dunn will be ready to get JP Ricciardi to eat his negative words about him last week. Dunn in a slump right now still has 18 home runs.
Pitching match up for Tuesday Burnett (6-7, 5.42 ERA) has had terrible last three starts and has not gone more than five innings in any of these games. At the same time giving up 22 hits and 12 walks. He gave up eight runs for the second time in three starts in the 8-7 loss to Milwaukee.
Arroyo (4-6, 5.55) is 0-2 with a 6.33 ERA in four starts this month, allowing six homers in 21 1-3 innings. The right-hander has given up 16 runs and 33 hits in his last 20 1-3 innings on the road.
Jays could and should do well in the series BUT the way they have been playing anything can happen.
I think many in the crowd will also be looking for Griffey to get hold of one to RF.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Jays win one. Lind-Rolen power show aided by McGowan
Sunday June 22, 2008. Series finale Toronto v Pittsburgh.
Jays really need to win this one to avoid going into eight game losing streak and 0-6road trip. There have been some good signs even in the last game in Milwaukee but they should have done better here in Pittsburgh.
Pitching: Snell 3-7, 5.84 ERA v McGowan. 5-5,4.15 ERA.
Lineups: Toronto. Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Overbay, Rolen, Zaun, Lind and McGowan pitching and hitting.
Pittsburgh: Rivas, Wilson, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Michaels, Bautista, Chavez, Snell pitching and hitting.
Result: Toronto 8 Pittsburgh 5
The good: A win for a change. The bats today eleven hits. Inglett 3-4, Lind HR, Rolen HR. Rios and Overbay two hits. Jays bats coming back for four after Pirates tie it up 4-4.
The bad: McGowan’s fourth inning blowing a three run lead. Scutaro error on pop up. Rios picked off at 3B.
The game:
Top 1st: Scutaro at bat patience here, full count. And walks. Inglett bunting here and great bunt down 3B line, both safe. What’s going on here? Two on no outs? Rios now need a big one here to start off 3-1 here doubles to RF corner. Should score two. Scutaro in. Inglett held at 3B. 1-0 Jays. When did that last happen? Wells now gets hold one here deep into left centre Bay just gets this at track Inglett scores . 2-0 Jays. Overbay now can he keep line moving. Rios picked off at 3B,that is bad Alex. Two down here now. grounds out up the middle that would have scored Alex. The mental stuff hurts the Jays just as much. 20 pitch inning for Snell.
Bottom 1st: McGowan now pitching with the lead off Rivas, fly ball to Rios in RF corner. Wilson, singles to right. McLouth singles to centre Wells, On the fumble Wilson moves to 3B, and McLouth now to 2B on throw to 3B. Very aggressive base running here. Bay grounds to Scutaro scores Wilson. Bay out at 1B. McLouth moves to 3B. 2-1Jays. Two down. LaRoche fly ball to Lind in LF. 14 pitches.
Top 2nd: Rolen now lower down order today. Grounds out to 3B. Zaun in lineup today. Good patience here and walk. Adam Lind now, good to see him in there for Mench now sent to Syracuse. Singles into right field Zaun to 2B two on one down for McGowan. Good sac bunt by Dustin here moves both runners up. Scutaro now needs a single here, gets under one, fly ball to LF. Leaves two in scoring position. 37 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Michaels at bat, fly ball to Wells in CF. Bautista, hard fly ball to Wells in CF. Chavez fly ball to Rios in RF. 23 pitches. Nine pitch inning for Dustin.
Top 3rd: Inglett at bat, singles up the middle second hit today. Rios now, can he make up for his error last at bat? strikes out. Wells now grounds to SS get Inglett at 2B but Wells safe at 1B. Overbay loops it into LF. Wells moves to 3B. Rolen now 3-1 count. Walks bases loaded. Zaun now with two outs. Grounds to 2B. Leaves bases loaded. As we all know over and over this season, Jays can get hitters on base, just cannot do anything with them. Already four left in scoring position last two innings. 59 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: The good is that Snell now has to lead off the inning now after a long top half. Snell strikes out. Rivas showing bunt, strikes out. Wilson singles up the middle. McLouth at bat, Wilson stealing and no throw. Grounds to Inglett. 42 pitches.
Top 4th: Lind at bat. 3-0 count. Full count, There she goes, Lind connects with this one great swing. HR to CF. 3-1 Jays. Scutaro walks. 76 pitches now for Snell. Inglett at bat singles to LF. 3-3 today. Scutaro to 2B. Rios now what can he do? Wild pitch moves both runners up, stay out of double play at least, plus sac fly will score. Full count now, walks bases loaded. 87 pitches. Wells can he break this one open? Sac fly to RF scores Scutaro 4-1 Jays. Inglett also moves to 3B. Overbay first pitch fly ball to LF. This is so painful watching the big bats. Rios walks, Wells sac fly and Overbay fly ball out. Where are the big hits? Clearing bases, grand slam hits. It is up to Lind and Inglett to do the damage. 92 pitches at least.
Bottom 4th: Bay at bat singles to LF. McGowan left that one up and that could have been costly. LaRoche singles to Rios in RF. Two on and no outs. Michaels at bat, McGowan needs some help here. Gets ground ball but through gap into RF and bases are loaded. Bautista at bat, here’s trouble lifts it into right corner, two runs score 4-3 Jays. And still no outs. Bautista at 1B. Michaels at 3B. Watch for small ball here to bring him in. Sanchez now on deck for Snell. Singles to RF. Bautista scores, this game is all tied up 4-4 and McGowan has blown this one. Arnsberg call to bullpen to get someone up. Sanchez pops up and McGowan diving for the ball in foul territory but can’t get it. Would have been great catch. Trainer and Manager out there. McGowan says he is ok. Still no outs and two on. Sanchez pops up again and this time Zaun dives to get it. One down. Finally an out. Rivas at bat. grounds to Rolen throw to 2B gets Chavez at 2B. Bautista moves to 3B, Rivas to first, Wilson pops up to Zaun but McGowan has blown this one. 69 pitches.
Top 5th: Jays hitters have to start all over again. T. J Beam pitching. His first major league appearance since 2006. Rolen at bat, Beam hits him. Zaun at bat, grounds to 3B double play ball. Gaston will have to start sending the runners at 1B this is ridiculous with all the double plays balls this team has had. Lind now at bat 2-2 today. Full count. Walks, nice at bat from Lind, showing up the first team. McGowan now good hit but fly ball to RF corner.
Bottom 5th: McLouth at bat singles to RF McGowan is fooling nobody right now. Bay at bat McLouth steals throw weak and late. Walks anyway. Two on no outs, How much longer for this guy? Frasor up in bullpen. LaRoche grounds to Overbay, Inglett throw to 2B gets one, runners on corners again one out. Michaels at bat lines hard to Rolen great catch diving to his left. Two down. Bautista at bat grounds to Rolen throw to 1B. McGowan escapes bigtime again.
Top 6th: Top of the order again. Scutaro at bat. full count. Walks. Will he steal though? I doubt it. Inglett 3-3 now, showing bunt. Good bunt up 1B line. Moves Scutaro to 2B. Rios at bat. That’s it for Beam. Osoria now pitching. Singles to right centre. Scutaro had to hold for catch but now moves to 3B. Wells with one out and Scutaro at 3B. Dribbler to the pitcher. Rios moves to 2B. That’s it. Two down for Overbay doubles off the wall in centre left. Scutaro scores, Rios scores . 6-4 Jays. Rolen now with Overbay at 2B. YES Scott. There it goes. HR to LF two runs Overbay and Rolen score. 8-4 Jays. Zaun at bat fly ball out to RF. Jays have eleven hits.
Bottom 6th: Jays have to hold this one now. Frasor now in… stay tuned here. Chavez at bat. fly ball shallow left centre Scutaro drops it. Chris Gomez at bat. Singles to right. Two on again, Scutaro’s error could hurt bigtime here. Rivas at bat. Wild pitch, runners move up now he is in very deep. Grounds to Inglett, Rivas out at 1B, run scores 8-5 Jays. Wilson at bat runner Gomez at 3B. Fly ball to shallow right Rios, not running on Alex here. Two down. That’s it for Frasor, Jesse Carlson now in. Did not pitch well yesterday. Only need one here though. McLouth at bat pop up to Rolen. Jays escape major damage again. Scutaro should be thanking the baseball gods.
Top 7th: Lind at bat, gets hold of it but long fly ball out in LF. Wilkerson pinch hitting for Carlson. Strikes out looking. Not a very good at bat to impress your new boss. Scutaro at bat long fly ball out to RF. Three up and down and not a good hitting display, but that is why they now have three new coaches.
Bottom 7th: Downs now pitching. Bay at bat grounds to Scutaro at SS gets Bay at 1B. LaRoche at bat grounds out to Inglett at 2B. Two down. Michaels at bat grounds back at Downs, glove knocks it down and able to recover and throw out Michaels. Great play by Downs there to help himself.
Top 8th: Yates now pitching. The heart of order now. Inglett perfect on base today. Strikes out looking here. Rios 2-3 today. Fly ball out to right centre. Wells at bat two sac fly RBIs today, grounds out to 2B.
Bottom 8th: Morgan pinch hitting, shows bunt. Grounds back to Downs. Chavez at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Gomez strikes out.
Top 9th: Burnett (not AJ) now pitching. Overbay grounds back to Burnett. Rolen much more patient here, full count and now walks. Zaun fly ball to Bay in LF. Rolen holds at 1B. Eckstein now pinch hitting for Downs, Cito is really using up his bench here but good opportunity to see what he has to work with. Although of course he has been watching this team all season and also worked with some of them in Dunedin. Eckstein very patient here as usual. Full count and another walk by Burnett. Two on with Rolen at 2B. Can Wilkerson now bring him in? Strikes out. This guy has been a bust for most of his time with Jays so far.
Bottom 9th: Here we go… Can Ryan save this one and Jays hold on to salvage one win form this terrible week? Rivas at bat fly ball to Rios. One down. Keep going BJ. Wilson at bat. Pops this one up to Scutaro at SS. Two down. McLouth at bat, strikes out. Ryan no nonsense here today. Not even giving them a base.
Jays win this one 8-5. McGowan goes to 6-5 and Ryan gets his save number fifteen.
They break that losing streak and get out of Pittsburgh for home cooking. Too bad in one respect that tomorrow is day off.
However Jays have to prepare for Cincinatti and Mr. 600 Home runs Griffey. I t will not be an easy series as the Reds have just taken two of three from Yankees in New York. Jays did play them in Dunedin so have seen them before.
Other good news Baltimore and Rays both lose. Jays have a long way to go though to close the gap but will take this one as a start on that long road.
Jays really need to win this one to avoid going into eight game losing streak and 0-6road trip. There have been some good signs even in the last game in Milwaukee but they should have done better here in Pittsburgh.
Pitching: Snell 3-7, 5.84 ERA v McGowan. 5-5,4.15 ERA.
Lineups: Toronto. Scutaro, Inglett, Rios, Wells, Overbay, Rolen, Zaun, Lind and McGowan pitching and hitting.
Pittsburgh: Rivas, Wilson, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Michaels, Bautista, Chavez, Snell pitching and hitting.
Result: Toronto 8 Pittsburgh 5
The good: A win for a change. The bats today eleven hits. Inglett 3-4, Lind HR, Rolen HR. Rios and Overbay two hits. Jays bats coming back for four after Pirates tie it up 4-4.
The bad: McGowan’s fourth inning blowing a three run lead. Scutaro error on pop up. Rios picked off at 3B.
The game:
Top 1st: Scutaro at bat patience here, full count. And walks. Inglett bunting here and great bunt down 3B line, both safe. What’s going on here? Two on no outs? Rios now need a big one here to start off 3-1 here doubles to RF corner. Should score two. Scutaro in. Inglett held at 3B. 1-0 Jays. When did that last happen? Wells now gets hold one here deep into left centre Bay just gets this at track Inglett scores . 2-0 Jays. Overbay now can he keep line moving. Rios picked off at 3B,that is bad Alex. Two down here now. grounds out up the middle that would have scored Alex. The mental stuff hurts the Jays just as much. 20 pitch inning for Snell.
Bottom 1st: McGowan now pitching with the lead off Rivas, fly ball to Rios in RF corner. Wilson, singles to right. McLouth singles to centre Wells, On the fumble Wilson moves to 3B, and McLouth now to 2B on throw to 3B. Very aggressive base running here. Bay grounds to Scutaro scores Wilson. Bay out at 1B. McLouth moves to 3B. 2-1Jays. Two down. LaRoche fly ball to Lind in LF. 14 pitches.
Top 2nd: Rolen now lower down order today. Grounds out to 3B. Zaun in lineup today. Good patience here and walk. Adam Lind now, good to see him in there for Mench now sent to Syracuse. Singles into right field Zaun to 2B two on one down for McGowan. Good sac bunt by Dustin here moves both runners up. Scutaro now needs a single here, gets under one, fly ball to LF. Leaves two in scoring position. 37 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Michaels at bat, fly ball to Wells in CF. Bautista, hard fly ball to Wells in CF. Chavez fly ball to Rios in RF. 23 pitches. Nine pitch inning for Dustin.
Top 3rd: Inglett at bat, singles up the middle second hit today. Rios now, can he make up for his error last at bat? strikes out. Wells now grounds to SS get Inglett at 2B but Wells safe at 1B. Overbay loops it into LF. Wells moves to 3B. Rolen now 3-1 count. Walks bases loaded. Zaun now with two outs. Grounds to 2B. Leaves bases loaded. As we all know over and over this season, Jays can get hitters on base, just cannot do anything with them. Already four left in scoring position last two innings. 59 pitches.
Bottom 3rd: The good is that Snell now has to lead off the inning now after a long top half. Snell strikes out. Rivas showing bunt, strikes out. Wilson singles up the middle. McLouth at bat, Wilson stealing and no throw. Grounds to Inglett. 42 pitches.
Top 4th: Lind at bat. 3-0 count. Full count, There she goes, Lind connects with this one great swing. HR to CF. 3-1 Jays. Scutaro walks. 76 pitches now for Snell. Inglett at bat singles to LF. 3-3 today. Scutaro to 2B. Rios now what can he do? Wild pitch moves both runners up, stay out of double play at least, plus sac fly will score. Full count now, walks bases loaded. 87 pitches. Wells can he break this one open? Sac fly to RF scores Scutaro 4-1 Jays. Inglett also moves to 3B. Overbay first pitch fly ball to LF. This is so painful watching the big bats. Rios walks, Wells sac fly and Overbay fly ball out. Where are the big hits? Clearing bases, grand slam hits. It is up to Lind and Inglett to do the damage. 92 pitches at least.
Bottom 4th: Bay at bat singles to LF. McGowan left that one up and that could have been costly. LaRoche singles to Rios in RF. Two on and no outs. Michaels at bat, McGowan needs some help here. Gets ground ball but through gap into RF and bases are loaded. Bautista at bat, here’s trouble lifts it into right corner, two runs score 4-3 Jays. And still no outs. Bautista at 1B. Michaels at 3B. Watch for small ball here to bring him in. Sanchez now on deck for Snell. Singles to RF. Bautista scores, this game is all tied up 4-4 and McGowan has blown this one. Arnsberg call to bullpen to get someone up. Sanchez pops up and McGowan diving for the ball in foul territory but can’t get it. Would have been great catch. Trainer and Manager out there. McGowan says he is ok. Still no outs and two on. Sanchez pops up again and this time Zaun dives to get it. One down. Finally an out. Rivas at bat. grounds to Rolen throw to 2B gets Chavez at 2B. Bautista moves to 3B, Rivas to first, Wilson pops up to Zaun but McGowan has blown this one. 69 pitches.
Top 5th: Jays hitters have to start all over again. T. J Beam pitching. His first major league appearance since 2006. Rolen at bat, Beam hits him. Zaun at bat, grounds to 3B double play ball. Gaston will have to start sending the runners at 1B this is ridiculous with all the double plays balls this team has had. Lind now at bat 2-2 today. Full count. Walks, nice at bat from Lind, showing up the first team. McGowan now good hit but fly ball to RF corner.
Bottom 5th: McLouth at bat singles to RF McGowan is fooling nobody right now. Bay at bat McLouth steals throw weak and late. Walks anyway. Two on no outs, How much longer for this guy? Frasor up in bullpen. LaRoche grounds to Overbay, Inglett throw to 2B gets one, runners on corners again one out. Michaels at bat lines hard to Rolen great catch diving to his left. Two down. Bautista at bat grounds to Rolen throw to 1B. McGowan escapes bigtime again.
Top 6th: Top of the order again. Scutaro at bat. full count. Walks. Will he steal though? I doubt it. Inglett 3-3 now, showing bunt. Good bunt up 1B line. Moves Scutaro to 2B. Rios at bat. That’s it for Beam. Osoria now pitching. Singles to right centre. Scutaro had to hold for catch but now moves to 3B. Wells with one out and Scutaro at 3B. Dribbler to the pitcher. Rios moves to 2B. That’s it. Two down for Overbay doubles off the wall in centre left. Scutaro scores, Rios scores . 6-4 Jays. Rolen now with Overbay at 2B. YES Scott. There it goes. HR to LF two runs Overbay and Rolen score. 8-4 Jays. Zaun at bat fly ball out to RF. Jays have eleven hits.
Bottom 6th: Jays have to hold this one now. Frasor now in… stay tuned here. Chavez at bat. fly ball shallow left centre Scutaro drops it. Chris Gomez at bat. Singles to right. Two on again, Scutaro’s error could hurt bigtime here. Rivas at bat. Wild pitch, runners move up now he is in very deep. Grounds to Inglett, Rivas out at 1B, run scores 8-5 Jays. Wilson at bat runner Gomez at 3B. Fly ball to shallow right Rios, not running on Alex here. Two down. That’s it for Frasor, Jesse Carlson now in. Did not pitch well yesterday. Only need one here though. McLouth at bat pop up to Rolen. Jays escape major damage again. Scutaro should be thanking the baseball gods.
Top 7th: Lind at bat, gets hold of it but long fly ball out in LF. Wilkerson pinch hitting for Carlson. Strikes out looking. Not a very good at bat to impress your new boss. Scutaro at bat long fly ball out to RF. Three up and down and not a good hitting display, but that is why they now have three new coaches.
Bottom 7th: Downs now pitching. Bay at bat grounds to Scutaro at SS gets Bay at 1B. LaRoche at bat grounds out to Inglett at 2B. Two down. Michaels at bat grounds back at Downs, glove knocks it down and able to recover and throw out Michaels. Great play by Downs there to help himself.
Top 8th: Yates now pitching. The heart of order now. Inglett perfect on base today. Strikes out looking here. Rios 2-3 today. Fly ball out to right centre. Wells at bat two sac fly RBIs today, grounds out to 2B.
Bottom 8th: Morgan pinch hitting, shows bunt. Grounds back to Downs. Chavez at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Gomez strikes out.
Top 9th: Burnett (not AJ) now pitching. Overbay grounds back to Burnett. Rolen much more patient here, full count and now walks. Zaun fly ball to Bay in LF. Rolen holds at 1B. Eckstein now pinch hitting for Downs, Cito is really using up his bench here but good opportunity to see what he has to work with. Although of course he has been watching this team all season and also worked with some of them in Dunedin. Eckstein very patient here as usual. Full count and another walk by Burnett. Two on with Rolen at 2B. Can Wilkerson now bring him in? Strikes out. This guy has been a bust for most of his time with Jays so far.
Bottom 9th: Here we go… Can Ryan save this one and Jays hold on to salvage one win form this terrible week? Rivas at bat fly ball to Rios. One down. Keep going BJ. Wilson at bat. Pops this one up to Scutaro at SS. Two down. McLouth at bat, strikes out. Ryan no nonsense here today. Not even giving them a base.
Jays win this one 8-5. McGowan goes to 6-5 and Ryan gets his save number fifteen.
They break that losing streak and get out of Pittsburgh for home cooking. Too bad in one respect that tomorrow is day off.
However Jays have to prepare for Cincinatti and Mr. 600 Home runs Griffey. I t will not be an easy series as the Reds have just taken two of three from Yankees in New York. Jays did play them in Dunedin so have seen them before.
Other good news Baltimore and Rays both lose. Jays have a long way to go though to close the gap but will take this one as a start on that long road.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Same old, same old. Jays lose season high number seven
Saturday June 21,2008.
Jays need to get going, one day, perhaps tonight will be the night.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Overbay, Rios, Wells, Rolen, Barajas, Mench, Eckstein, Litsch pitching and hitting.One change Ecksteinfor McDonld, the others all played so well.
Pittsburgh: Wilson, Sanchez, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Mientkiewicz, Bautista, Chavez and Maholm pitching and hitting.
The result: Jays lose this one 6-3 season high streak of seven losses.The new management is not doing much yet.
The good: Jays outhit a team. Nothing else good about this one.
The bad: Despite number of hits they still lose. Did not score until losing 4-0 and ame out of hand. The goat tonight was Barajas trying to score from 2B. Litsch also giving up all the runs to home runs. The second six pitch inning from Wells,Roln and Barajas. Another pitiful display all-round tonight.
Top 1st: Scutaro at bat grounds to Sanchez at 2B. Overbay grounds out to Wilson at SS. Rios grounds to Bautista at 3B. Thirteen scoreless innings for Jays and counting. Ten pitch inning.
Bottom 1st: Litsch pitching Wilson at bat grounds back to Litsch. One down. Sanchez fly ball to Rios two down. McLouth lines past Scutaro into right. Hits his glove but too hard to stop that one. Bay at bat there it goes. High fly ball into LF seats. 2-0 Pitsburgh. LaRoche pops up to Mench. But here we go again Jays have to play catch up. Twelve pitch inning.
Top 2nd: Wells at bat second pitch pops up to 1B LaRoche one down for Rolen fly ball to Mientkiewicz RF. Barajas at bat two quick outs fly ball to LF. Three up and down six pitches. Must be the new aggressive attacking play.
Bottom 2nd: Mientkiewicz strikes out. Bautista at bat one down, singles up the middle. Chavez with one on there it goes LF corner two run HR. 4-0 Pittsburgh. First home run of the season for Chavez. Maholm at bat full count. Grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Two down for top of order Wilson grounds out to Rolen at 3B. Thirty two pitches.
Top 3rd: Here come the hitters….. Mench grounds to SS. Eckstein full count Eckstein has had more itches than the previous inning three hitters combined. Now walks, great at bat for Eckstein. Litsch bunts get lead runner nothing going right fore this team Now Jesse has to stay out there although it probably will not be for long with hitters behind him. Scutaro now two outs, there we are second pitch flyball to RF. Jays still hitless now 15 innings and counting. Maholm thirty one pitches in three innings.
Bottom 3rd: Pittsburgh now with four hits so far. Sanchez grounds out to Eckstein. McLouth at bat fly ball caught right at the wall by Rios. Bay at bat grounds to Rolen at 3B. Three up and down two down. I think that was a six pitch inning! Pirates want to get out on the town. 43 count for Jesse.
Top 4th: Overbay at bat singles up the middle first hit tonight. Rios lines out to Sanchez. One down. Wells at bat, grounds to 3B get Overbay at 2B Wells safe at 1B. Rolen with two down. Singles to Right centre. Runners at 1B and 2B. Two down for Barajas singles down line LaRoche throw wild Overbay scores 4-1. Rolen to 3B on throw on throw and error. Mench at bat Barajas at 1B and Rolen at 3B. 3-0 count. Walks to load bases now for Eckstein. David remember the grand slam in Bradenton against these Pirates…
Not this time for Eckstein grounds back to Maholm. Jays show some signs of life first run in sixteen innings but they will take it. Could have and should have been a few more but this is Toronto. Commentators are imploring fans to vote for Jays in All-Star ballot. I don’t think so. Wells, Rios, Rolen ????
Bottom 4th: Jesse you have to hold them here. LaRoche fly ball to Wells in CF. Mientkiewicz, walks not good Jesse. Bautista at bat, there it goes LF corner. Two run HR. 6-1. Take pity Pirates please. This team is in intensive care unit. Chavez pop up to Scutaro. Maholm at bat grounds to Scutaro. Jesse had to hold them this inning and could not.
Top 5th: As ever back to the bats, what do they have? Will Litsch lead off ? Yes and grounds out to 3B.. Scutaro now full count. Singles to LF. Will he steal ? and get something going here ? No he doesn’t not even a throw over.Overbay grounds to 1B double play. What can one say? This team is SO bad right now they would have trouble against their own AA team.
Bottom 5th: Litsch still in there. Wilson at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Sanchez grounds out to Overbay. McLouth at bat, here comes the rain, crowd is scrambling for cover. McLouth pops out to Scutaro. Jays may get a break here, saved by the rain.
Top 6th: Pittsburgh will want to get this one in quick. Rios at bat grounds to SS. Wells at bat singles to LF. Rolen 3-0 count. Walks. Two on one down. Barajas doubles into RF corner. Two runs score 6-3. Mench at bat. Fly ball to CF. Two down. Eckstein at bat Wilkerson on deck circle to pinch hit for Litsch. Singles to right, Barajas being sent that is SO insane, every Jays fan in N. America knows that is suicide. I think third base coach may need some coaching. That should have been two runners on and Wilkerson at bat. 90 pitches for Maholm now.
Bottom 6th: Litsch still pitching, Bay at bat strikes out. LaRoche, hard line out to Scutaro. Two down. Mientkiewicz grounds out to Rolen. 79 pitches for Litsch. Both Boston and Yankees have already lost today.
Top 7th: Wilkerson bunting first pitch foul, now grounds out to 1B LaRoche. Scutaro at bat, grounds to Sanchez, two down. Overbay at bat strikes out.
Bottom 7th: Bautista at bat, Camp now pitching. He pitched against Pirates in the Spring. Single to shallow LF. Chavez at bat grounds to Eckstein double play ball. They need that. Chris Gomez pinch hitting for Mohalm grounds first pitch to Scutaro. Camp gets out of trouble.
Top 8th: Jays running out of at bats. Baltimore and Tampa losing at this time. Looks like the whole division could lose tonight. Grabow now pitching Rios at bat. Grounds weakly to SS. Infield single to 3B, Wells good speed down the line beats the throw. Rolen now pops up to 2B. Barajas 2-3 tonight but dumb running play last at bat. Grounds to 1B.
Bottom 8th: Tampa has just loaded bases bottom of the ninth and no outs losing 2-3. Camp pitching Wilson first pitch ground ball to Eckstein. Crowd has emptied out with the storm clouds and heavy rain about. Sanchez breaks bat ground out to Rolen. Two down. McLouth grounds first pitch to Scutaro. Three up and down but Pirates want home. Tampa has won 4-3.
Top 9th: Last chance for Jays but they are very flat tonight, no spark at all in any of them. They seem to be going through the motions, at least in Milwaukee they were trying. Matt Capps to finish them off. Inglett pinch hitting for Mench. Full count. Hard line out to CF. Eckstein at bat grounds to 3B. Zaun now pinch hitting with two down. Fly ball to RF. That’s the game. Awful.
Jays need to get going, one day, perhaps tonight will be the night.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Overbay, Rios, Wells, Rolen, Barajas, Mench, Eckstein, Litsch pitching and hitting.One change Ecksteinfor McDonld, the others all played so well.
Pittsburgh: Wilson, Sanchez, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Mientkiewicz, Bautista, Chavez and Maholm pitching and hitting.
The result: Jays lose this one 6-3 season high streak of seven losses.The new management is not doing much yet.
The good: Jays outhit a team. Nothing else good about this one.
The bad: Despite number of hits they still lose. Did not score until losing 4-0 and ame out of hand. The goat tonight was Barajas trying to score from 2B. Litsch also giving up all the runs to home runs. The second six pitch inning from Wells,Roln and Barajas. Another pitiful display all-round tonight.
Top 1st: Scutaro at bat grounds to Sanchez at 2B. Overbay grounds out to Wilson at SS. Rios grounds to Bautista at 3B. Thirteen scoreless innings for Jays and counting. Ten pitch inning.
Bottom 1st: Litsch pitching Wilson at bat grounds back to Litsch. One down. Sanchez fly ball to Rios two down. McLouth lines past Scutaro into right. Hits his glove but too hard to stop that one. Bay at bat there it goes. High fly ball into LF seats. 2-0 Pitsburgh. LaRoche pops up to Mench. But here we go again Jays have to play catch up. Twelve pitch inning.
Top 2nd: Wells at bat second pitch pops up to 1B LaRoche one down for Rolen fly ball to Mientkiewicz RF. Barajas at bat two quick outs fly ball to LF. Three up and down six pitches. Must be the new aggressive attacking play.
Bottom 2nd: Mientkiewicz strikes out. Bautista at bat one down, singles up the middle. Chavez with one on there it goes LF corner two run HR. 4-0 Pittsburgh. First home run of the season for Chavez. Maholm at bat full count. Grounds out to Overbay at 1B. Two down for top of order Wilson grounds out to Rolen at 3B. Thirty two pitches.
Top 3rd: Here come the hitters….. Mench grounds to SS. Eckstein full count Eckstein has had more itches than the previous inning three hitters combined. Now walks, great at bat for Eckstein. Litsch bunts get lead runner nothing going right fore this team Now Jesse has to stay out there although it probably will not be for long with hitters behind him. Scutaro now two outs, there we are second pitch flyball to RF. Jays still hitless now 15 innings and counting. Maholm thirty one pitches in three innings.
Bottom 3rd: Pittsburgh now with four hits so far. Sanchez grounds out to Eckstein. McLouth at bat fly ball caught right at the wall by Rios. Bay at bat grounds to Rolen at 3B. Three up and down two down. I think that was a six pitch inning! Pirates want to get out on the town. 43 count for Jesse.
Top 4th: Overbay at bat singles up the middle first hit tonight. Rios lines out to Sanchez. One down. Wells at bat, grounds to 3B get Overbay at 2B Wells safe at 1B. Rolen with two down. Singles to Right centre. Runners at 1B and 2B. Two down for Barajas singles down line LaRoche throw wild Overbay scores 4-1. Rolen to 3B on throw on throw and error. Mench at bat Barajas at 1B and Rolen at 3B. 3-0 count. Walks to load bases now for Eckstein. David remember the grand slam in Bradenton against these Pirates…
Not this time for Eckstein grounds back to Maholm. Jays show some signs of life first run in sixteen innings but they will take it. Could have and should have been a few more but this is Toronto. Commentators are imploring fans to vote for Jays in All-Star ballot. I don’t think so. Wells, Rios, Rolen ????
Bottom 4th: Jesse you have to hold them here. LaRoche fly ball to Wells in CF. Mientkiewicz, walks not good Jesse. Bautista at bat, there it goes LF corner. Two run HR. 6-1. Take pity Pirates please. This team is in intensive care unit. Chavez pop up to Scutaro. Maholm at bat grounds to Scutaro. Jesse had to hold them this inning and could not.
Top 5th: As ever back to the bats, what do they have? Will Litsch lead off ? Yes and grounds out to 3B.. Scutaro now full count. Singles to LF. Will he steal ? and get something going here ? No he doesn’t not even a throw over.Overbay grounds to 1B double play. What can one say? This team is SO bad right now they would have trouble against their own AA team.
Bottom 5th: Litsch still in there. Wilson at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Sanchez grounds out to Overbay. McLouth at bat, here comes the rain, crowd is scrambling for cover. McLouth pops out to Scutaro. Jays may get a break here, saved by the rain.
Top 6th: Pittsburgh will want to get this one in quick. Rios at bat grounds to SS. Wells at bat singles to LF. Rolen 3-0 count. Walks. Two on one down. Barajas doubles into RF corner. Two runs score 6-3. Mench at bat. Fly ball to CF. Two down. Eckstein at bat Wilkerson on deck circle to pinch hit for Litsch. Singles to right, Barajas being sent that is SO insane, every Jays fan in N. America knows that is suicide. I think third base coach may need some coaching. That should have been two runners on and Wilkerson at bat. 90 pitches for Maholm now.
Bottom 6th: Litsch still pitching, Bay at bat strikes out. LaRoche, hard line out to Scutaro. Two down. Mientkiewicz grounds out to Rolen. 79 pitches for Litsch. Both Boston and Yankees have already lost today.
Top 7th: Wilkerson bunting first pitch foul, now grounds out to 1B LaRoche. Scutaro at bat, grounds to Sanchez, two down. Overbay at bat strikes out.
Bottom 7th: Bautista at bat, Camp now pitching. He pitched against Pirates in the Spring. Single to shallow LF. Chavez at bat grounds to Eckstein double play ball. They need that. Chris Gomez pinch hitting for Mohalm grounds first pitch to Scutaro. Camp gets out of trouble.
Top 8th: Jays running out of at bats. Baltimore and Tampa losing at this time. Looks like the whole division could lose tonight. Grabow now pitching Rios at bat. Grounds weakly to SS. Infield single to 3B, Wells good speed down the line beats the throw. Rolen now pops up to 2B. Barajas 2-3 tonight but dumb running play last at bat. Grounds to 1B.
Bottom 8th: Tampa has just loaded bases bottom of the ninth and no outs losing 2-3. Camp pitching Wilson first pitch ground ball to Eckstein. Crowd has emptied out with the storm clouds and heavy rain about. Sanchez breaks bat ground out to Rolen. Two down. McLouth grounds first pitch to Scutaro. Three up and down but Pirates want home. Tampa has won 4-3.
Top 9th: Last chance for Jays but they are very flat tonight, no spark at all in any of them. They seem to be going through the motions, at least in Milwaukee they were trying. Matt Capps to finish them off. Inglett pinch hitting for Mench. Full count. Hard line out to CF. Eckstein at bat grounds to 3B. Zaun now pinch hitting with two down. Fly ball to RF. That’s the game. Awful.
Saturday preview.
Saturday June 21, 2008. Second game of series Toronto v Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Paul Maholm (4-5, 4.45 ERA), v Toronto Jesse Litsch (7-3, 3.70 ERA)
Familiar position for the Jays tonight, trying to score some runs.
Nothing wrong with the pitching last night from Halladay through to the twelfth.
Frasor actually did his job when he came in and had ground ball to short with bases loaded. It was an unlikely goat last night Johnny Mc who bungled the ground ball and missed it completely for wining and only run of the game. If he had it, could have been two, at least would have saved the run at home. This is another problem now for Jays. Everyone is starting to press and try to win it all themselves instead of relaxing and playing their normal game.
On six game losing streak right now and don’t want to make it a season high seven tonight. Pittsburgh meantime trying to make it six out of last seven home wins. Up to Jesse Litsch to help turn it around. Or rather it is up the bats to get some runs, that would be good start.
Good news is that Hallady remains day to day and reay for next start Thursday game in Toronto. Hill still a couple of weeks away evidently. Eckstein owes him bigtime.
What they said last night: GM Riccardi: "We've underachieved at this point with a good club. There's a lot of the season left and we've got a chance to turn things around."
New manager Gaston: "We're going to have to get some hitting and, if we don't, you're going to see more nights like that." (Friday) Hmmmmm. I guess another deep Manager here.
Barajas: Our guys are battling on the mound, we get guys on base early but can't seem to get them moving around the bases. It's disappointing. This has gone on too long, and it's time for us to step up. This is on us."
Pittsburgh Paul Maholm (4-5, 4.45 ERA), v Toronto Jesse Litsch (7-3, 3.70 ERA)
Familiar position for the Jays tonight, trying to score some runs.
Nothing wrong with the pitching last night from Halladay through to the twelfth.
Frasor actually did his job when he came in and had ground ball to short with bases loaded. It was an unlikely goat last night Johnny Mc who bungled the ground ball and missed it completely for wining and only run of the game. If he had it, could have been two, at least would have saved the run at home. This is another problem now for Jays. Everyone is starting to press and try to win it all themselves instead of relaxing and playing their normal game.
On six game losing streak right now and don’t want to make it a season high seven tonight. Pittsburgh meantime trying to make it six out of last seven home wins. Up to Jesse Litsch to help turn it around. Or rather it is up the bats to get some runs, that would be good start.
Good news is that Hallady remains day to day and reay for next start Thursday game in Toronto. Hill still a couple of weeks away evidently. Eckstein owes him bigtime.
What they said last night: GM Riccardi: "We've underachieved at this point with a good club. There's a lot of the season left and we've got a chance to turn things around."
New manager Gaston: "We're going to have to get some hitting and, if we don't, you're going to see more nights like that." (Friday) Hmmmmm. I guess another deep Manager here.
Barajas: Our guys are battling on the mound, we get guys on base early but can't seem to get them moving around the bases. It's disappointing. This has gone on too long, and it's time for us to step up. This is on us."
Friday, June 20, 2008
Jays lose this one in the twelfth. Bats missing again.
Friday June 20, 2008. Toronto v Pittsburgh.
First game of Pittsburgh series can Jays continue on the play of last night’s ninth inning and also start to get something going for their new Manager.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Overbay, Rios, Wells, Rolen, Barajas, Mench, McDonald, Halladay pitching and hitting here tonight.
Pittsburgh: Morgan, Sanchez, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Mientkiewicz, Wilson, Chavez, Duke pitching and hitting.
Result: Pirates 1- Jays 0
The good: Rios throw in the 5th to get Mientkiewicz at home plate. Alex’s bat two doubles to start game. Johnny Mc two singles.
The very bad. Injury to Halladay with line drive off the side of his head. At minimum that is concussion. I hope that it will not be like Hill’s. McDonald error to give up run in the twelfth. Jays now sixth loss in a row.
Postscript on Halladay. News from clubhouse is that Halladay is day to day and should make his next start on Thursday.
Top 1st: Scutaro leading off, patient here, full count, and walks. That is what a leadoff guy should be doing. Overbay at bat grounds back to Duke to shortstop Wilson to first baseman Ad.LaRoche, Scutaro out. Rios at bat first pitch swing, doubles to left. Vernon at bat, strikes out. Twenty pitches for Duke.
Bottom 1st: Halladay pitching. Morgan fly ball to Wells in CF. Sanchez, great sliding catch by Rios in RF. Two down. McLouth at bat strikes out. Thirteen pitch inning.
Top 2nd: Rolen at bat grounds out to 3B. Barajas at bat hits him. Mench at bat, one on one out. 3-0 count. Full count. Strikes out looking. McDonald singles to RF. Two on for Halladay. Strikes out. 41 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Canadian Jason Bay at bat, strikes out three pitches. LaRoche at bat grounds to Overbay, flip to Halladay for the out. Mientkiewicz two down grounds it up the middle, McDonald cannot get to it. Jack Wilson at bat, grounds out to Scutaro. Halladay twenty six pitches.
Top 3rd: Top of the order again. Scutaro pops up to McLouth in CF. Overbay at bat full count, grounds out to SS. Rios at bat another double here this time to deepest part of ground. Vernon now lines hard to 3B great save, throw too weak to get Wells. Two on. Rios moves to 3B on play. Rolen now can he start this thing? Pops up to 1B. Scott that pitch was way out of zone. 57 pitches already for Duke.
Bottom 3rd: Chavez at bat, singles over Scutaro’s head first pitch. Duke bunting? I think so. Yes, and Chavez moves to 2B. Morgan at bat tries bunt. Strikes out. Two down. Sanchez at bat strikes out. Fourth strikeout for Halladay tonight.42 pitches.
Top 4th: Barajas singles to LF. Mench at bat. Grounds to 3B get Barajas at 2B but not in time for Mench. McDonald at bat pops up to SS. Two down. Halladay at bat strikes out. 68 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Halladay must feel as if he has been out there forever as last inning was only nine pitches for Duke. McLouth at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Bay at bat strikes out again on three pitches. LaRoche fly ball to Mench in left centre. Good quick inning for Halladay. He needs the break now.
Top 5th: Top of the order again. Scutaro at bat. Fly ball to RF. Overbay at bat fly ball to Bay in left field. Rios at bat, two doubles tonight, good sign fly ball to RF 76 pitches. This is not good bats, they have to give Halladay some time on that bench between innings.
Bottom 5th: Mientkiewicz full count. Walks. Wilson at bat, hit and run on, singles to RF. Mientkiewicz to 3B. Trouble here for Halladay. Chavez fly ball to Rios in Rf. Bullet to home plate out a mile. Barajas holds on to it as well. Double play. Halladay needed that. Wilson to 2B. Duke now at bat. Strikes him out. Number six tonight. Great pitching Roy. 69 pitches.
Top 6th: Wells first pitch grounds out to SS. Rolen full count at least. Lines hard down the line, great diving catch by Mientkiewicz robs Rolen of a double at least. Barajas at bat. Fly ball to RF. This aggression is not paying off for these guys tonight. 83 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Morgan at bat. Grounds to McDonald, good throw by McDonald to get him. Sanchez first pitch swinging single to right centre. McLouth at bat,fly ball to left centre to Mench running in. Two down. Bay grounds first pitch to Rolen, throw to 2B to get Sanchez. Another good quick inning for Halladay. Needs some run support though…77 pitches.
Top 7th: Mench at bat grounds out to SS. McDonald at bat singles up the middle, 2-3 tonight. Halladay bunts but gets Johnny Mc at 2B. Now Halladay is stuck out there. Scutaro at bat grounds to 3B throw to 2B to get Halladay. 97 pitches.
Bottom 7th: LaRoche at bat, singles to RF. Mientkiewicz, not bunting singles to LF. Wilson at bat he is bunting and moves both runners over. Chavez now intentional walk. Bases loaded. Pinch hitter for Duke, ex-Jay Chris Gomez at bat, strikes out. Gomez could not hold up. Morgan at bat bases loaded two out. Hammers one back off Halladay and right to Rolen to catch the ball. Where did it hit him? That is not good. Halladay walks off but has no clue what happened. Replay looks like the ball hit the side of his face.
Top 8th: Marte pitching. Overbay now at bat, singles up the middle. Pinch runner for Overbay Wilkerson. Rios now at bat pops up to 1B one down. Wells at bat, chops it to 3B double play ball. I think Mr. Gaston has his work cut out for him.
Bottom 8th: Downs now pitching for Halladay. Still no word. Sanchez fly ball to Rios in RF. McLouth at bat. Strikes out. Two down. Jason Bay at bat grounds to McDonald. Very good Scott.
Top 9th: Will the Jays ever score? Rolen at bat. Patient at bat, walks here. Barajas fly ball shallow left. One down. Rolen holds at 1B. Mench at bat, strikes out. Two down. McDonald also with two hits tonight. Fly ball to RF.
Bottom 9th: Downs still pitching. LaRoche at bat. Fly ball to right centre for Rios. One down. Mientkiewicz strikes out, great curve to get him. Wilson at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Extra innings here.
Top 10th: Matt Capps pitching, Stairs at bat, full count. Singles to Wilson at SS off his glove into foul ground. Holds at 1B. Scutaro is he bunting? Yes, very nice gets Stairs to 2B. Wilkerson came in game as pinch runner for Overbay, full count strikes out looking. Two down. Rios now what can he do? Jays are 1-6 tonight with runners in scoring position. Strikes out. Team now 1-7. Hitting coach has some, sorry lots, of work to do.
Bottom 10th: Wolfe now pitching. Chavez at bat, strikes out. Jose Bautista pinch hitting. Strikes out. Morgan trying to bunt his way on. grounds out to Scutaro.
Top 11th: Tyler Yates pitching, Wells at bat, strikes out. Not Vernon’s year even with his wrist healed. Rolen at bat grounds out to SS. Two down. Barajas at bat gives big sigh, yes Rod that’s how we all feel about you and your colleagues. Grounds out to Wilson, throws him out from his knees. Very nice play.
Bottom 11th: Yankees have already lost to the Padres. Baltimore beating the Brewers. Boston losing to the Cardinals. Rays losing to Houston bottom of the ninth. Wolfe still pitching. Sanchez at bat. Leaves one up there and singles to LF not a good pitch. Here comes Cito to get Wolfe, I shall miss Captain Hook in and out all game. BJ Ryan now in. McLouth at bat is he bunting, looks like it. Yes. Strikes him out. One down now. Jason Bay at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Two down. LaRoche at bat strikes out.
Top 12th: Someone has to get a run here. Bottom of the order though. Yankees and Tampa have both lost tonight. Chance for Jays to pick up one. Mench grounds first pitch to SS. One down. McDonald at bat grounds to 3B. Inglett now at bat. Grand slam last night. Full count now. And walks. Good at bat Joe. Scutaro at bat now can he move him along. Lines hard up the line right at LaRoche. That would have scored Inglett if it had got past LaRoche.
Bottom 12th: Jesse Carlson now pitching. Mientkiewicz at bat. Doubles to the wall in right centre. Wilson bunting. Nubber in front of home plate safe at 1B. That’s it for Carlson. Frasor coming in. I think this game is over. Chavez at bat 3-0 count. Walks him on four pitches. Bases loaded. Cito will learn quickly that this guy is not the one to have here in this situation. Michaels at bat grounds it through McDonald playing in trying to short hop the ball but misses it and run scores.. Looks an error. Pittsburgh wins anyway. 1-0.
Major job for Cito and coaches.
First game of Pittsburgh series can Jays continue on the play of last night’s ninth inning and also start to get something going for their new Manager.
Lineups: Toronto: Scutaro, Overbay, Rios, Wells, Rolen, Barajas, Mench, McDonald, Halladay pitching and hitting here tonight.
Pittsburgh: Morgan, Sanchez, McLouth, Bay, LaRoche, Mientkiewicz, Wilson, Chavez, Duke pitching and hitting.
Result: Pirates 1- Jays 0
The good: Rios throw in the 5th to get Mientkiewicz at home plate. Alex’s bat two doubles to start game. Johnny Mc two singles.
The very bad. Injury to Halladay with line drive off the side of his head. At minimum that is concussion. I hope that it will not be like Hill’s. McDonald error to give up run in the twelfth. Jays now sixth loss in a row.
Postscript on Halladay. News from clubhouse is that Halladay is day to day and should make his next start on Thursday.
Top 1st: Scutaro leading off, patient here, full count, and walks. That is what a leadoff guy should be doing. Overbay at bat grounds back to Duke to shortstop Wilson to first baseman Ad.LaRoche, Scutaro out. Rios at bat first pitch swing, doubles to left. Vernon at bat, strikes out. Twenty pitches for Duke.
Bottom 1st: Halladay pitching. Morgan fly ball to Wells in CF. Sanchez, great sliding catch by Rios in RF. Two down. McLouth at bat strikes out. Thirteen pitch inning.
Top 2nd: Rolen at bat grounds out to 3B. Barajas at bat hits him. Mench at bat, one on one out. 3-0 count. Full count. Strikes out looking. McDonald singles to RF. Two on for Halladay. Strikes out. 41 pitches.
Bottom 2nd: Canadian Jason Bay at bat, strikes out three pitches. LaRoche at bat grounds to Overbay, flip to Halladay for the out. Mientkiewicz two down grounds it up the middle, McDonald cannot get to it. Jack Wilson at bat, grounds out to Scutaro. Halladay twenty six pitches.
Top 3rd: Top of the order again. Scutaro pops up to McLouth in CF. Overbay at bat full count, grounds out to SS. Rios at bat another double here this time to deepest part of ground. Vernon now lines hard to 3B great save, throw too weak to get Wells. Two on. Rios moves to 3B on play. Rolen now can he start this thing? Pops up to 1B. Scott that pitch was way out of zone. 57 pitches already for Duke.
Bottom 3rd: Chavez at bat, singles over Scutaro’s head first pitch. Duke bunting? I think so. Yes, and Chavez moves to 2B. Morgan at bat tries bunt. Strikes out. Two down. Sanchez at bat strikes out. Fourth strikeout for Halladay tonight.42 pitches.
Top 4th: Barajas singles to LF. Mench at bat. Grounds to 3B get Barajas at 2B but not in time for Mench. McDonald at bat pops up to SS. Two down. Halladay at bat strikes out. 68 pitches.
Bottom 4th: Halladay must feel as if he has been out there forever as last inning was only nine pitches for Duke. McLouth at bat grounds out to Scutaro. Bay at bat strikes out again on three pitches. LaRoche fly ball to Mench in left centre. Good quick inning for Halladay. He needs the break now.
Top 5th: Top of the order again. Scutaro at bat. Fly ball to RF. Overbay at bat fly ball to Bay in left field. Rios at bat, two doubles tonight, good sign fly ball to RF 76 pitches. This is not good bats, they have to give Halladay some time on that bench between innings.
Bottom 5th: Mientkiewicz full count. Walks. Wilson at bat, hit and run on, singles to RF. Mientkiewicz to 3B. Trouble here for Halladay. Chavez fly ball to Rios in Rf. Bullet to home plate out a mile. Barajas holds on to it as well. Double play. Halladay needed that. Wilson to 2B. Duke now at bat. Strikes him out. Number six tonight. Great pitching Roy. 69 pitches.
Top 6th: Wells first pitch grounds out to SS. Rolen full count at least. Lines hard down the line, great diving catch by Mientkiewicz robs Rolen of a double at least. Barajas at bat. Fly ball to RF. This aggression is not paying off for these guys tonight. 83 pitches.
Bottom 6th: Morgan at bat. Grounds to McDonald, good throw by McDonald to get him. Sanchez first pitch swinging single to right centre. McLouth at bat,fly ball to left centre to Mench running in. Two down. Bay grounds first pitch to Rolen, throw to 2B to get Sanchez. Another good quick inning for Halladay. Needs some run support though…77 pitches.
Top 7th: Mench at bat grounds out to SS. McDonald at bat singles up the middle, 2-3 tonight. Halladay bunts but gets Johnny Mc at 2B. Now Halladay is stuck out there. Scutaro at bat grounds to 3B throw to 2B to get Halladay. 97 pitches.
Bottom 7th: LaRoche at bat, singles to RF. Mientkiewicz, not bunting singles to LF. Wilson at bat he is bunting and moves both runners over. Chavez now intentional walk. Bases loaded. Pinch hitter for Duke, ex-Jay Chris Gomez at bat, strikes out. Gomez could not hold up. Morgan at bat bases loaded two out. Hammers one back off Halladay and right to Rolen to catch the ball. Where did it hit him? That is not good. Halladay walks off but has no clue what happened. Replay looks like the ball hit the side of his face.
Top 8th: Marte pitching. Overbay now at bat, singles up the middle. Pinch runner for Overbay Wilkerson. Rios now at bat pops up to 1B one down. Wells at bat, chops it to 3B double play ball. I think Mr. Gaston has his work cut out for him.
Bottom 8th: Downs now pitching for Halladay. Still no word. Sanchez fly ball to Rios in RF. McLouth at bat. Strikes out. Two down. Jason Bay at bat grounds to McDonald. Very good Scott.
Top 9th: Will the Jays ever score? Rolen at bat. Patient at bat, walks here. Barajas fly ball shallow left. One down. Rolen holds at 1B. Mench at bat, strikes out. Two down. McDonald also with two hits tonight. Fly ball to RF.
Bottom 9th: Downs still pitching. LaRoche at bat. Fly ball to right centre for Rios. One down. Mientkiewicz strikes out, great curve to get him. Wilson at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Extra innings here.
Top 10th: Matt Capps pitching, Stairs at bat, full count. Singles to Wilson at SS off his glove into foul ground. Holds at 1B. Scutaro is he bunting? Yes, very nice gets Stairs to 2B. Wilkerson came in game as pinch runner for Overbay, full count strikes out looking. Two down. Rios now what can he do? Jays are 1-6 tonight with runners in scoring position. Strikes out. Team now 1-7. Hitting coach has some, sorry lots, of work to do.
Bottom 10th: Wolfe now pitching. Chavez at bat, strikes out. Jose Bautista pinch hitting. Strikes out. Morgan trying to bunt his way on. grounds out to Scutaro.
Top 11th: Tyler Yates pitching, Wells at bat, strikes out. Not Vernon’s year even with his wrist healed. Rolen at bat grounds out to SS. Two down. Barajas at bat gives big sigh, yes Rod that’s how we all feel about you and your colleagues. Grounds out to Wilson, throws him out from his knees. Very nice play.
Bottom 11th: Yankees have already lost to the Padres. Baltimore beating the Brewers. Boston losing to the Cardinals. Rays losing to Houston bottom of the ninth. Wolfe still pitching. Sanchez at bat. Leaves one up there and singles to LF not a good pitch. Here comes Cito to get Wolfe, I shall miss Captain Hook in and out all game. BJ Ryan now in. McLouth at bat is he bunting, looks like it. Yes. Strikes him out. One down now. Jason Bay at bat fly ball to Wells in CF. Two down. LaRoche at bat strikes out.
Top 12th: Someone has to get a run here. Bottom of the order though. Yankees and Tampa have both lost tonight. Chance for Jays to pick up one. Mench grounds first pitch to SS. One down. McDonald at bat grounds to 3B. Inglett now at bat. Grand slam last night. Full count now. And walks. Good at bat Joe. Scutaro at bat now can he move him along. Lines hard up the line right at LaRoche. That would have scored Inglett if it had got past LaRoche.
Bottom 12th: Jesse Carlson now pitching. Mientkiewicz at bat. Doubles to the wall in right centre. Wilson bunting. Nubber in front of home plate safe at 1B. That’s it for Carlson. Frasor coming in. I think this game is over. Chavez at bat 3-0 count. Walks him on four pitches. Bases loaded. Cito will learn quickly that this guy is not the one to have here in this situation. Michaels at bat grounds it through McDonald playing in trying to short hop the ball but misses it and run scores.. Looks an error. Pittsburgh wins anyway. 1-0.
Major job for Cito and coaches.
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