White Sox get to Romero early as Jays lose 9-5 despite home run power from Johnson and Mathis

White Sox v Jays. Game three. Jays threw it away last night, we hope for a less sloppy game tonight. One game each, Romero to try to make it two for the Jays. Big change, Rasmus back in the lineup but only as DH. Edwin in left and Davis moves to right. Gose takes centre. Vizquel at third in place of Yan Gomes. White Sox: De Aza, Youkilis, Dunn, Rios, Pierzynski, Ramirez, Viciedo, Wise, Hudson and Gavin Floyd pitching. Jays: Rasmus back. Davis, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Cooper, Escobar, Johnson, Vizquel, Mathis, Gose and Romero pitching. No Gomes,McCoy or Sierra. Top 1st: De Aza, hits him first pitch, great start. One on for Youkilis. 2-0 count, unable to throw strikes, he may not be around long tonight. Oh, now they have De Aza picked off throw to Cooper, to Johnson, for the out, (just) not a great throw by Cooper. Romero has second chance now 2-2 count. Singles into left. One on one down for Dunn. 1-2 count, takes strike three, nice pitching as well. Two down for Rios. Fly ball to Gose for the third out. Romero gets out of the early mess. 12 pitch count. Bottom 1st: Davis leading off. 1-2, strikes out on a pitch halfway to Dunn. Rajai’s major weakness. Floyd will be pitching that again. One down for Rasmus, nice ovation for Colby. 1-2 count, takes strike three. Two down for Encarnacion. 2-2 count, grounds to Ramirez at short, throw to Dunn to end the inning. Pitch count 13. Top 2nd: Pierzynski, 3-1 count, singles to Gose in centre. One on for Ramirez. Singles to centre, two on nobody out. Viciedo. Singles to right. Bases loaded nobody out. Romero in another major mess here. Wise, lines it to left Edwin makes great running catch but drops it as he falls. Two runs score. Hudson lines it to right, Davis makes the catch but runner moves up to third. One down for De Aza. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Youkilis, full count, fly ball to Davis in right as Romero gets out of this one but again another lousy inning by Romero. We may see Brad Lincoln a little early tonight. Pitch count 34. Bottom 2nd: Cooper leading off. Lines it right at Floyd off his glove, no throw and Cooper safe at first, Jays evidently need some luck tonight. Escobar, drives it to centre for De Aza to make the out. One down for Johnson. 1-1 count, that was the pitch Kelly, takes it, 1-2 count, pops it up to Wise in left, two down. Vizquel, there we go, lines it into right, shows them how. Mathis with two on and two down. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Floyd using that pitch off the plate to get everyone swinging. Mathis leaves two out there. Pitch count 28. Top 3rd: Big bats, Romero had better smarten up with these three. Dunn leading off. Shift right on. 3-1 count, bounces back to Romero, bobbles it but throw is ok to Cooper to get Dunn. One down. Lots of boos for guess who. Unforgiving Alex sorry. Rios,1-2 count, lines it to right and into the corner for a stand up double. One on one down. Pierzynski, pops it up to Gose for the out, there goes Rios and safe on the throw, off target. Two down for Ramirez with Rios at third. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Pitch count 49. Bottom 3rd: Gose leading off. Grounds to Hudson at second, throw to Dunn to get Gose. One down for Davis. 0-2 fly ball to Rios. Two down for Rasmus, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. 39 pitch count. Top 4th: Viciedo, full count, low ball four. Leadoff walk. Wise, there it goes, high shot hammered to right into the seats, 4-0 White Sox. Romero cannot do anything, come on John get him out of here. Hudson, grounds it back up the middle past Escobar, Now the top of the order! De Aza, fly ball to Gose for the first out, Bronx cheers. One down for Youkilis, fly ball to Davis in right for the out but everyone swinging for the fences against Romero now. Dunn, two down runner at first. 0-2 count, grounds to Cooper steps on the bag for third out. Just awful performance by Romero tonight so far. 71 !!! pitches. Bottom 4th: Meantime Floyd is cruising here and game is probably already over the way he is in control. Encarnacion, 3-1 count, pops it up to Hudson for the out. Cooper, full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Escobar, 2-2 count, pokes it into right. Big cheers from the fans, a hit !!!. Two down one on for Johnson, 2-1 count, grounds to Hudson, throw to second to get Escobar. Pitch count 63. Top 5th: Rios leading off, fly ball to Davis Pierzynski, grounds to Cooper Ramirez grounds to Escobar that’s better Ricky. Six pitch inning. Three up and down. 77 pitch count. Bottom 5th: Vizquel, singles to left, big cheers from the fans, 2-2 tonight. Mathis, there goes Vizquel and Mathis grounds to Hudson no chance for Vizquel throw to Dunn for the out. One in scoring position one down for Gose, grounds to Ramirez, bounces the throw to Dunn and Gose safe at first, speed. Two on one down for Davis. Full count, strikes out swinging, Vizquel was stealing, double steal in fact, and Pierzynski throw to third hits him and bounces away, and here he comes to score, 4-1 with Gose to third. Error to Pierzynski. He is not happy with that. May not be happy with Youkilis either who was not covering the bag. Two down for Rasmus, chance for another run here. Bounces back to Floyd throw to Dunn for third out. Jays are on the board at least. Pitch count, same as Romero at 77. Top 6th: Viciedo, fly ball to Gose, one down for Wise, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Hudson. 2-2 count, fouls it off the top of his foot, he is down, that is really hurting he may be out of the game. There he goes, that could be broken, not good. Beckham pinch hitting at 2-2 count and two down. Full count, takes strike three. Pitch count 91. Might get to start the 7th. Bottom 6th: Encarnacion leading off, 2-2 count, hammers it hard to left but on the ground for a single. Cooper one on. Lines it to left and this one slices into the corner and bounces into the crowd, Ground rule double, two on and in scoring position, nobody out. Escobar. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, three pitches. No words to express it but that was one terrible at bat by Escobar. Johnson one down. THAT’S THE WAY Kelly. Hammers a rocket to right, no doubt about it over the wall, that was a Rasmus shot. Three run home run 4-4 game. Vizquel, lines it to De Aza in centre for the out, second out. Mathis, strikes out swinging but Kelly Johnson does the job and Jaya are back in this game.. Pitch count 92. Top 7th: De Aza, 3-1 oh boy, just as they were getting back into this, come on Ricky, ball four. Leadoff guy on base. Bullpen should be working. Mound conference with Walton. Brad Lincoln warming up. This is the top of the order and the big bats. Youkilis, hits him. Two on and nobody out. That’s enough for Farrell (and the rest of us). Maybe Romero should not have come out for the inning. The whole momentum has swung back here to the White Sox. Lincoln now pitching. No lefty for Dunn??? Ok John you know best, nobody out, 2-0 count, Oh dear me. Goodbye ball, Dunn clobbers this one, lines it into seats in right centre for three run home run. Oh my.... 7-4 White Sox. Rios, 1-2 count, grounds to Vizquel, throw to Cooper, one down. Pierzynski. Lines it off the wall in right centre for stand up double. Ramirez, wild pitch but runner holds at second. 2-2 count, fly ball to shallow left Encarnacion makes great running catch, two down. Viciedo, 3-1 count, this one is high to right and over the wall, another home run, two runs score, 9-4 White Sox, lots of boos here tonight. Wise, 1-2 count, takes strike three. Mercy shown by the Sox. Bottom 7th: Let’s see what the Jays have. Donnie Veal now pitching Gose 0-2 count, strikes out swinging on three pitches. One down for Davis. Full count. Inside ball four. One on for Rasmus. 0-3 tonight, 0-2 count, strikes out for third time, Colby not 100% yet. Two down for Edwin. 1-1 count, fly ball to Wise in left for third out. Top 8th: Lincoln still out there. Beckham leading off. 1-2 count, grounds to Cooper, throw to Lincoln covering, one down. De Aza, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Youkilis. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging on three pitches. Maybe John he should have started the 7th. Bottom 7th: Cooper leading off. 2-3 tonight. But this is lefty lefty, 0-2 count, OH bounces it to Veal who fumbles it and Cooper safe without a throw. Escobar, needs to redeem himself for his last at bat, HA! Dream on fans. First pitch fly ball to Rios. One down, Johnson, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down. Vizquel, two hit night also. Not this time. Drives it hard to right centre but De Aza makes the out. Top 9th: Look who it is? Dunn leading off. Lefty or righty? Pitch to him or walk him? Chad Jenkins righty. Dunn pops it up to Escobar, one down. Rios, grounds to Cooper takes it himself, two pitches two outs. Pierzynski, bounces it back to Jenkins, throw to Cooper for quick three up and down. Bottom 9th: Fight or roll over? Jays last chance to get five. Bottom of the order, Mathis leading off. Philip Humber now pitching all he has to do is throw strikes. 2-2 count, YES Jeff, lines it to centre and this one keeps on going and over the wall for the home run. 9-5 White Sox. Gose, your turn Antony. We need base runners now. 2-2 count, takes strike three. Not good Antony have to swing at that one. One down for top of the order Davis. Taps it back to Humber throw to Dunn for the second out. Rasmus. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging to end this one. Jays lose another. Romero loses another. The good: Certainly not the pitching tonight but give Chad Jenkins credit for quick three up and down including the big bats. Home runs to Johnson his three run shot enabled the Jays to get back into the game. Mathis a solo shot in the 9th. Cooper and Vizquel both with two hits. Not so good: Romero all night fell behind 4-0. Managed to salvage the middle innings but too late. Romero in there one inning too long, should have finished in the 6th, with top of the order and Dunn in particular up in the 7th. Romero still a work in progress unfortunately. Is it time to pull the plug on him, send him down for a couple of weeks and then come back for two in September? Obviously he is unable to get it together here right now. Colby Rasmus back in the lineup but did not look very comfortable at all. Is the injury still bothering him? Question. Where was Darren Oliver to face Dunn? Obviously he was not warming up, Lincoln was, but does not hurt to have both lefty and righty warming up. It was the top of the order. Even though it was only the 7th. If they are out in the 7th chances are they will not be coming back in the 9th. I guess percentage plays by Farrell. This one definitely did not work.

Alvarez goes seven but gives one away to the White Sox

White Sox v Jays. Game two of three. Jays on a high after two great wins against East and Central division leaders but it will be tougher tonight with Alvarez pitching. Fastball pitcher he had better do a good job locating to Sox lineup or he will be in deep from the first inning. Janssen soon found that out last night. Trade rumours involve Rangers catcher Torrealba which could help Mathis get a break as well as give Gomes chance to concentrate on his hitting. To be confirmed. Lineups: White Sox: De Aza, Wise, Rios, Dunn, Youkilis, Pierzynski, Ramirez, Viciedo, Beckham and Quintana pitching. Jays: Davis, McCoy, Encarnacion, Cooper, Escobar, Sierra, Johnson, Mathis, Hechavarria and Alvarez pitching. Not sure McCoy is better in centre than Gose but I hope his bat is tonight. Top 1st: Where is everybody? De Aza leading off. 2-1 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper. One down for ex-Jay DeWayne Wise. Same again, grounds t Johnson at second throw to Cooper. Boos must be Rios. Two down. And again, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper for third out. So far Alvarez has his ground ball pitches working. Pitch count 9. So far so good. Bottom 1st: Davis, singles to centre, one on for McCoy. Bunting. Not very good at all, terrible, goes five feet in front of the plate, easy throw, for Pierzynski throw to second gets Davis. Why didn’t he let Rajai try to steal? One down one on for Edwin. 2-2 count, Singles past a diving Youkilis into left. McCoy to second and that is why that bunt was so bad. Davis would have been at third on that play. Cooper, fly ball to Wise in left, two down. Escobar, singles to Wise in left, here comes McCoy to score and Jays take the early lead 1-0. Edwin to second. Two on two down for Sierra. 1-2 count, Grounds to Youkilis, throw to Dunn to end the inning. But Jays strike first. 20 pitch count. Top 2nd: The big bats, Dunn leading off. Singles to Sierra in right, I guess anything less than a home run is fine. One on for Youkilis. Need another ground ball here Henderson. This will do pops it up to Hechavarria at third, one down. Pierzynski, This will do grounds to Escobar, takes it to second throw to Cooper, double play ball. Very nice. Pitch count 16. Even better. Bottom 2nd: Johnson leading off. Pops it up to Ramirez at short, one down for Mathis, nice two year extension to his contract today. What does that mean for D’Arnaud? Strikes out swinging, two down for Hechavarria. 1-2 count, fly ball to De Aza for the out but a good 10 pitch at bat for Hech. He is gradually coming around. Pitch count 35. Top 3rd: Ramirez, grounds first pitch to Hech at third, strong throw to Cooper, one down for Viciedo. Grounds it back up the middle for a single. One on one down for Beckham. 2-2 count, bounces back to Alvarez, bobbles the ball twice, no throw, tried to play it barehanded, big mistake, could have been double play. Error to Alvarez on the play. Top of the order now. DeAza with two on and one down. Fly ball to Davis in left to makes the out and on the throw, Viciedo tags and gets to third. Two on two down for Wise. No room for error here with Rios on deck. Full count, perfect as runner goes Wise grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper to end this but Alvarez only has himself to blame for the extra pitch count. Now at 32. Bottom 3rd: Davis leading off, swings at a ball head high, groan, 1-2 count. This is better, lines it into left field corner for a stand up double. McCoy, no crazy bunt attempts Mike. 1-1 count, Davis keeping Quintana uneasy with a couple of throws to second, there he goes and safe at third, full count, grounds to short, here comes Rajai 2-0 Jays, throw to first for the out. Edwin, one down. Bounces to Ramirez at short, throw to Dunn at first for the second out. Cooper, 3-1 count, pops it up to third Youkilis makes great catch as he falls into the seats. Jays get another. Pitch count 52. Top 4th: Rios leading off. Grounds to Hechavarria, long throw to Cooper. One down. Dunn, shift right on and grounds to Hechavarria shallow right behind Cooper at first. Throw to Cooper for second out Youkilis, 2-2 count,yes indeed, takes strike three. Nice 10 pitch inning, 42 pitch count. Similar to Villanueva last night Bottom 4th: Escobar, drives it hard back at Qunitana makes great catch, had little chance as it hits him in the stomach. Sierra one down. 0-2 count, strikes out and throw to first hits him in the back. Farrell arguing but no good. Two down, Johnson, first pitch grounds to second, throw to Dunn at first for the out. Johnson has to take a couple there. Six pitch inning. 58 pitch count. Top 5th: Pierzynski, full count, lines it into left. One on for Ramirez, soft pop up to Johnson at second. One down one on for Viciedo, singles to Sierra in right. Two on and one down for Beckham. Fly ball to Sierra in right for the out. Two down two on for top of the order De Aza. Oh boy loops it into right, here comes the run 2-1 Jays, but now Wise at bat with two on. Another single into centre, Viciedo scores and just like that this is all tied up 2-2. Rios with two on. 2-2 count, No, Alvarez throw to Cooper and high off his glove, here comes another run, this is terrible. He had two strikes on Rios, just concentrate on the runner at first. Another error to Alvarez. Strikes out swinging but White Sox have the lead. 23 pitch 3 run inning. Just awful regardless for the outcome tonight. Pitch count 65. Bottom 5th: Quintana now pitching with the lead. Mathis loops it softly into shallow right. Hechavarria. Bunting or swinging? 1-1 count, one more than Johnson and Escobar at least. Now a bunt and a great one Quintana throw to first to get Hech but Mathis moves to second,. Nice job. One down. Top of the order Davis. Lines it into right, 3-3 night for Rajai. Mathis holds at third on Rios throw, two on one down for McCoy. 1-0 count there goes Rajai and safe on the throw. Second steal of the night. Full count, inside ball four. Good at bat by McCoy. Bases loaded for Edwin. One down. Lines it to Youkilis, great catch, throw to second to get Davis diving back in, double play ball. Oh wow. What an ending. Pitch count 74. Top 6th: Dunn leading off. Grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper, one down. Youkilis, singles to McCoy in centre. One on one down for Pierzynski. Grounds to Cooper throw to Escobar at second to get Youkilis, Escobar throw back to Cooper gets away. Mathis backing up throw to second to get Pierzynski. Double play ball wow. They did it but not the usual way. Great backing up by Mathis there. 70 pitch count. Bottom 6th: Cooper, 2-2 count. Takes strike three. Escobar, (first pitch) grounds to Youkilis, throw to Dunn, two down. Escobar’s last two at bats have lasted a grand total of two pitches. Sierra. Bounces slowly to Ramirez, throw not in time to get Sierra. One on two down for Johnson. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Pitch count 87. Top 7th: Ramirez, 2-2 count, bounces up the middle Escobar throw in time and on target this time. One down. Viciedo, 1-2 count. Lines to Davis in left for the out. Two down for Beckham. 0-1 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper to end the inning. Pitch count 84. Will it be his last tonight? Bottom 7th: Jays need to score here to get the bullpen and close it down. Quintana on 87 pitches. Mathis leading off. Lines it into the right centre gap but De Aza runs it down for nice catch. One down for Hechavarria. Full count, YES, lines it to the wall in centre, nice at bat Hech. Seven pitches on top of the previous 10 pitch at bat, he is doing ok. His first major league double. Congratulations Hech. We can’t wait to see you at short. Davis one on one down. 3-1 count, inside ball four. Two on one down for McCoy. Deja vu again. 1-1 count, swung at ball two, your job is to get on base Mike. 2-1 would have been ball three. Fly ball to DeAza for the out. Not good hitting there by McCoy. Runners hold. Smart move as it would have left a base open to walk Edwin. That is it for Quintana. Brett Myers now pitching to Edwin with two down and two one. Last time he missed, can e do it this time? 1-1 count, lines it to De Aza for the out. Edwin has left five on the last two at bats. Jays 2-8 with runners in scoring position. Says it all. Top 8th: Loup now pitching. Top of the order for White Sox. De Aza leading off. 1-2 count, lines it to third, nice leaping catch by Hechavarria. One down for Wise, full count, bounces back to Loup, throw to Cooper, two down. Rios, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Young Aaron Loup has been tremendous this season. Bottom 8th: Matt Thornton now pitching. Cooper, does it again, lines it to the wall in left centre, stand up double, wow he is hot, hot late in the games. Gose pinch running. Escobar, lines it to Rios in right. One down. Sierra, 1-1 count, lines it to Beckham, and off his glove but recovers to get Sierra. Gose stays at second. Johnson, no, Gomes pinch hitting for Johnson. Ventura making the change. White Sox bullpen constantly on the go with this manager. Two down, runner in scoring position at second. Third time lucky for the Jays hitters. Not much success tonight. Addison Reed the closer now pitching. There goes Gose, uncontested safe at third. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Terrible hitting by the Jays not even a bunt. Top 9th: Dunn leading off. Gomes at first. Loup still in there. Bounces to McCoy at second, throw to Gomes for the first out. That is it for Loup, did a nice job, Youkilis. Chad Jenkins now pitching. Grounds to Hechavarria, throw to Gomes two down. Pierzynski. Lines to Escobar to make the catch for third out. Bottom 9th: Jays backs against the wall here. Bottom of the order against a very good closer. Overmatched on paper. Mathis, lines first pitch to Rios in right. Rasmus pinch hitting for Hech, gets a standing ovation, no pressure Colby. 2-1 count, singles to left. Vizquel pinch running. Davis one on one down. 3-3 night but this is the important at bat. Pops it up to Dunn, two down. Jays down to their last at bat unless McCoy can deliver. Don’t be a hero just a single here. Lines it to right for Rios to make the third out. Jays give one away. They had the 2-0 lead and lose 3-2. The good: Alvarez goes seven. Loup and Jenkins two scoreless shutout innings. Two stolen bases for Davis taking him now to 35. A long time since Jays have had a runner that can steal 35 and here are six weeks left in the season. Rasmus nice pressure pinch hit single. We could really use his bat. The not so good: Where do we start tonight? Poor execution, 2-11 runners in scoring position and certainly Edwin was huge part of this leaving five out there. Sloppy fielding by Escobar and Alvarez, two errors and the winning run to Alvarez. Terrible hitting by Escobar two outs were first pitch outs, neither was an RBI, such a frustrating player. Plus he was unable to advance Gose in the 8th.

Jays win in the 11th. behind pitching gems by Villanueva and Delabar

White Sox v Jays. Game one of three series. Monday August 13th. After giving the Yankees a send-off thrashing, (anytime Jays can score 10 against the Yankees it is a thrashing in my book.) Jays welcome in yet another division leader, White Sox. But Jays have reason to be upbeat after that win. It would be lot tougher facing them with 0-3 home stand. However no way is this going to be an easy series, the lineup itself with Youkilis, Dunn and yes bad boy Rios, hitting up a storm this season of course. Tonight they also face Jake Peavy. Tough start but they are on a high after yesterday. Looks like a reasonable crowd also for a Monday night and after the huge weekend crowds. We are surrounded here by White Sox fans and I can see a smattering of black shirts around first base. Let’s hope Jays do not give them anything to cheer about. I see Escobar back in the lineup as forecast here at the weekend, no way is Yunel going to let Hechavarria showcase his talents with him on the bench. Maybe too late Yunel, I think most fans have already seen the future at short. You have a whole load of work to do in the next six weeks to convince us that you are the numero uno. Lineups: White Sox: De Ava, Youkilis, Dunn, Rios hitting cleanup, Pierzynski, Ramirez, Viciedo, Flowers, Beckham and Peavy pitching. Jays: Davis, Johnson move up the order tonight, Encarnacion, Cooper, Escobar, Sierra, Vizquel, Mathis, Gose and Villanueva pitching. Top 1st: De Aza strikes out swinging; Youkilis ball four, one on one down. Dunn, fly ball out to Sierra, Rios grounds to Vizquel great diving stop robs Alex there of a possible run. Throw to second to get Dunn. Bottom 1st: Davis first pitch fly ball to Viciedo in left, one down for Johnson, strikes out swinging, Encarnacion lines it hard to right but Rios backing up makes fine catch, always Rios. Top 2nd: Pierzynski pops up to Johnson, Ramirez fly ball to Gose, Vicideo to Escobar throw to Cooper to end Bottom 2nd: Cooper lines to right Rios throw to second nails Cooper by a mile, not good. Escobar, fly ball to Rios two down. Sierra, nice at bat just puts head of bat on the ball and pushes it past Peavy and short, single for Sierra. One on two down for Vizquel fly ball to Rios. One man show out there by Rios. Top 3rd.Flowers strikes out swinging, Beckham strikes out, De Aza strikes out swinging for second time. Villanueva is humming along here very fast. Bottom 3rd: Mathis, grounds to Youkilis at third, throw to Dunn at first. One down for Gose, ouch he hits him. One on one down for Davis. Speed on the bases give Peavy something to think about. Davis fly ball to Rios, two down. Johnson, ouch he is hit also. Peavy losing it here? Two on two down for Edwin. Lines to right, here comes Gose to score, here comes Johnson, oh boy, out at the plate. Jays base running but they are on the board at least. 1-0 Jays. Top 4th: Youkilis, fly ball to Davis, one down for Dunn, oh my!! he launches a rocket here, and this one is out of here deep to centre off the restaurant windows. 1-1. Sox fans here are happy. Now you can real see and hear them. Rios to more boos, strikes out swinging, we love it. Ramirez pops it up to Mathis.to tend the inning. Bottom 4th: Jays lead was shortlived. Cooper strikes out swinging. Escobar, fly ball to Rios, two down for Sierra, ball four, second time on base for Moises, he continues to impress. Loads of potential in this guy. Vizquel strikes out swinging. Top 5th: This game is really moving fast. Viciedo pops up to Johnson. Flowers grounds to Cooper oh dear, no one covering the bag and Flowers beats it out. Huge mistake by Villanueva not getting over to the bag. One on, Beckham pops it up to Johnson. De Aza fly ball to Davis for the out. At least he did not strike out. And Villanueva escapes damage from that mental error. Bottom 5th: Mathis, ball four. Walk on four pitches. Gose grounds back to Peavy, throw to second to get Mathis. Davis, there goes Gose. Safe at second, no, umpire sending him back to first, Davis arguing, Farrell arguing, no good, Davis also out. Scorer says interference I guess as he was throwing to second to get Gose. Johnson, there goes Gose again, safe on the throw, and this time not recalled. Gose may not be hitting up a storm but he is certainly making the most of the times he does get on base. He is definitely contributing. No good as Johnson fly ball to Rios in right for third out. Top 6th: Youkilis, strikes out swinging. Dunn lines to centre, but that’s ok a long single. Rios, grounds to Vizquel oh another great diving save and throw to Johnson at second to get Dunn. Wow the old guy still has it. Pierzynski, there goes Rios and safe on the throw to second. We are getting lots of foul balls in our area, very unusual, that is the third. Where is my glove when I need it. Pierzynski strikes out swinging. Very nice Carlos. Bottom 6th: Encarnacion grounds back to Peavey, throw to Dunn, one down. Cooper, grounds to Youkilis at third, throw to Dunn, two down. Escobar, strikes out swinging. Top 7th: Ramirez pops it up to Vizquel at third, one down for Viciedo loops it to right, in front of Sierra. One on one down for Flowers, there goes Viceda as Flowers strikes out throw down and gets him great double play to end d the inning. As the man says “strike ‘em out throw ‘em out”. Very nice. Not sure however that manager Ventura would be happy with that attempt on two strikes count unless he sent him of course. Bottom 7th: Sierra, YES Indeed Moises, hammers this one to left and this one is out of here, home run. His first major league home run and what a great time to hit it. Jays retake the lead 2-1 and with these two pitching the way they are one run could be enough tonight. Vizquel lines it up the middle to De Aza, Mathis, oh boy grounds to Beckham at second throw to Dunn, double play ball.Ouch.Peavy not complaining though. Gose two down, grounds to Beckham throw to Dunn to end the inning but Jays get another. Top 8th: Bullpen taking over now. Villanueva only on 85 pitches but don’t forget this guy blew up last season after nine starts. Management is being careful with him and I have no problem with that, seven innings for one run is fine in any person’s book, and this is why they have loaded up in the bullpen. Brandon Lyon now pitching. Beckham, strikes out swinging, one down. De Aza, strikes out swinging for third time tonight, fans behind me are cruel as they remind De Aza. Save it for Rios guys. Youkilis, fly ball to right for Sierra to make the out. Nice inning by Lyon. Bottom 8th: Peavy still going out there. Davis, pops it up to Ramirez at short. Johnson, strikes out swinging. Encarnacion, strikes out swinging. Peavy still mowing them down but is it too late? Top 9th: Casey Janssen time. Touch outs to get in Dunn, Rios and Pierzynski. He will have to earn this save. Dunn, NO I don’t believe it he hammers this one to left and this one is out of here. First pitch fast ball, I think Janssen has realized that you do not throw a fast ball first pitch to a fast ball hitter, Dunn was just sitting on that pitch. Huge mistake by Janssen, you have to wonder what he was doing there. We were just talking about it between innings. Surely an off-speed to start him off. And if fast ball then it would be way down not up. Janssen blows his save. And is now in trouble with this lineup. Rios, grounds to Escobar, throw to Cooper for the out. One down for Pierzynski. Fly ball to Sierra, two down. Ramirez. Singles to Gose in centre. One on two down for Viciedo, there goes Ramirez, and throw by Mathis is there for the out. Great throw Jeff. White Sox not having much success stealing tonight. Bottom 9th: Finally Peavy is out of the game 120 pitches, wow. When was the last time we saw a Jays pitcher throw over 100 let alone 120. Brett Myers now pitching, weird beard. Cooper, grounds to Beckham, at second, throw to Dunn, one down. Escobar, strikes out swinging, two down for Sierra, takes strike three. This one is extra innings. Top 10th: Steve Dalabar now pitching, sorry Casey. Viciedo strikes out swinging. Flowers, strikes out swinging, no ball gets away from Mathis and Flowers get to first. That is tough on Delabar. Beckham, strikes out swinging. Two down should be out of the inning. De Aza, oh dear another wild pitch and Viciedo takes second. In scoring position now. Perfect strikes out swinging. For fourth time tonight. Delabar strikes out four!!! to end the inning. Wow great pitching. Bottom 10th: Jesse Crain the Canuck replacing Myers. Vizquel lines out to Rios in right, one down for Mathis pops it up to Dunn, two down. Gose, ball four. One on and he will be running. Davis, oh dear there goes Gose and throw down gets him. They were waiting for that. Ouch not good but aggressive play, high return but risky play. Top 11th: Delabar still out there. Dangerous part of the order. Youkilis, strikes out swinging. Love it. Dunn, grounds to Cooper throw to Delabar, even better, two down for Rios. Takes strike three. Whoa, all those remaining around us just love that. Sorry Alex. But look at Delabar, six strikes outs in two innings. WOW… who stole this guy from the Mariners. Alex knew something. Bottom 11th: Crain still out there. Davis pops it up to Ramirez at shirt. That is the end of Jesse, Ventura wants the lefty to face Johnson. Leyson Septimo. Oh dear, ball four. Not what Ventura wanted. Walk for Kelly and here comes Ventura again. That is it for Leyson. Nate Jones now pitching. One on one down for Encarnacion. Perfect Edwin, lines it into right for a single, Kelly to third. Crowd going nuts. Another visit to the mound, how many can they have in an inning? Cooper two on and only one out. Fly ball here David will do it. Full count, please don’t walk; Escobar is on deck Mr. Double play. YES David lines it to right and here comes Johnson to score. Jays win 3-2. WOW this is one of the best games we have seen in a long time. Look at the teammates mobbing Cooper at first. This was one great game to be at. Well pitched and Jays coming through in the clutch against a very, very good team. The Vegas team strikes again with Sierra and Cooper providing the big runs. The excellent tonight: Has to be Steve Delabar, six strikeouts in two innings and not giveaway outs by any means with the top of the order in the 11th. Cooper, showing much more comfort every game. Sierra adapting rapidly to the majors and showing thought with his at bats. The greater his contribution the less pressure on Bautista to return quickly. Sierra and Cooper with four of the seven hits by Jays tonight. Villanueva a great outing. Don’t forget two great defensive plays by Vizquel one of which robbed Rios in the first of a possible run. The not so good: Casey Janssen lousy pitch selection to start Dunn off. Jays baserunning, really needs work. But not being picky tonight, this was a great win.

Jays hammer Yankees for impressive power win 10-7

Yankees v Jays. Series finale. Yankee fan yesterday asked why Jays fans are moaning about injuries when his team has also injuries all season. I don’t think so friend. How about a lineup that is missing numbers 1,2,3, 5,6, Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Lind and Arencibia. (Throw in loss of Snider). We are not talking about one game here and there either, we are talking about AT THE SAME TIME AND LONG STRETCHES without these players in the lineup. How about a Yankees lineup without Jeter, Swisher, Teixeira, Cano, Granderson ? Oh by the way forgot the pitching. How about a rotation missing the number 1 (Morrow) , 3,4,and 5. Don’t forget the closer also all season. The injuries to the rotation place extra pressure on the hitters and also reduce the bench depth as the extra players are needed in the bullpen. No there is NO comparison friend. The bleeding in the pitching has to some extent been helped with the strengthening of the bullpen, but Jays have to hang in here with the hitting until some of the injured return. Today latest one to drop is Escobar with that elbow injury from yesterday, but with Hechavarria at short I don’t see any major loss. Yunel will also recover miraculously when Hech plays a brilliant game at short. I think most fans are looking forward to seeing him play in that position. Lineups: Yankees: Jeter, Swisher, Teixeira, Cano, Jones, Granderson, McGehee, Martin, Nix, and Hughes pitching. Jays: Davis, McCoy, Encarnacion, Cooper, Sierra, Mathis, Gomes, Gose, Hechavarria and Happ pitching. This looks like the 2014 Jays lineup or a split squad in spring training playing on the road. Can you believe it ? Also a Vegas infield today. Only Edwin a genuine article and he is DH. No leadership on the field today. This could be a horrible result. Loss of Escobar not troubling but I don’t agree with sitting Kelly Johnson today when so many others are not playing, Kelly at least does provide some leadership. Today we hope for a complete game shutout by Happ, he will be the main interest today. Any other plus from the hitters will be a pleasant surprise for everyone. Another large crowd today, not sure it will be a sellout. Last day of the Olympics and the closing ceremonies might reduce this today. Great decision to let Christine Sinclair carry the flag. Would love to see Abby Wombach’s face when Canada enters. Top 1st: Jeter, 1-2 count, grounds up the middle to Gose. Swisher, one on. 1-2 count, very nice, lines it hard to third but Gomes makes great stop, throw to McCoy over to Cooper, double play ball. Nice. Two down for Teixeira, 0-2 count, grounds t Gomes, throw to Cooper to end the inning. Nice start. Did anyone notice Hech behind Gomes on that play? I think he could have made it as well. Great to see his range. Sorry Yunel. Happ 12 pitches 10 strikes, I like it. Bottom 1st: Davis, first pitch grounds to second, throw to first, one pitch one out. Davis doing his usual leadoff, please Brett hurry back. McCoy, 2-2 count, strikes out looking, two down for Encarnacion. Hammers this one to centre and over the head of Granderson, off the wall. Just missed going out, Cooper, runner in scoring position. This will do lines it to Swishier in right, and here comes Edwin to score 1-0 Jays. Cooper at first. Sierra, two down one on. 1-2 count, singles to Swisher in right. Two on two down. Mathis, a three runner would be icing here Jeff. 0-2 count, pops it up to shallow left centre but Granderson makes the out. Jays have a lead to start. Pitch count 18. Top 2nd: Cano, fly ball to Gose in centre, one down. Jones, 2-1 count, grounds to Cooper, takes it himself for the out, two down for Granderson. Full count, grounds to McCoy, throw to Cooper to end the inning. Another good inning by Happ. Pitch count 26. Bottom 2nd: Gomes, this is the guy I would love to see get going with his bat,2-2 count, high pop up to Jones in left. Gose, 2-2 count, good, he lays off that one in the dirt, he has been swinging at those. Full count, lines it very hard to right but Swisher makes the out. Hechavarria, maybe Hech will relax at bat now that he is not playing at third. 1-2 count, strikes out. Pitch count. 34. Top 3rd: McGehee leading off. 2-1 count, very nice, lines it hard to right and Sierra makes great catch at the wall for the out. Nice catch. One down. Martin, 2-2 count, lines it hard to centre, Gose retreats to make the catch on the track. Two down for Nix. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Once through the order. Pitch count 40. Bottom 3rd: Davis, 0-2 count, strikes out on checked swinging. One down for McCoy. 2-0 count, lines it to McGehee at third, throw to first, two down. Encarnacion, 1-2 count, hammers it past Jeter into left. A bullet. Second hit for Edwin. One on two down for Cooper again. Ball gets away from Martin, Edwin to second. Pops it up to Jones in left. Pitch count 48. Top 4th: Second time through now for Happ. Jeter leading off. Huge swing at that one, misses. And another, 1-2 count, grounds to Gomes, long strong throw by Gomes to Cooper for the out. Swisher, one down. Fly ball to shallow centre, Gose makes last minute jump but runs it down for second out. Speed. Teixeira, 2-1 count, high fly ball to right centre for Sierra to make the third out. Pitch count 50. Happ will definitely take that for four innings against the Yankees lineup. Bottom 4th: Can Jays hitters give Happ some extra support here. It would really help. Sierra leading off. 1-1 count, singles to right, his second hit. Mathis, come on Jeff, you have power. There goes Sierra and Mathis lines it to left, here comes Sierra to score 2-0 Jays. Hit and run. Love it. And the crowd. Gomes with Mathis at second. Nobody out. Fly ball to Swisher in right, Mathis makes the tag and safe at third on the throw. One down runner at third. Gose, will he bunt here ? shows it but ball one. And again but takes it off, ball two. 3-0 count, outside ball four. Two on one down. Gose will be going. Hechavarria. Hughes really worried about Gose, good. Hit it out Hech. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Davis, two down, two on. 2-0 count, there goes Gose, Davis lines it to the wall, and here comes Mathis, Gose right behind him and Davis to second, wow, speed. 4-0 Jays. McCoy with runner at second. Davis will be going as well. There he goes and no throw, safe at third. Great pitch to run on. Full count, NO, grounds to Jeter Davis coming on contact, and McCoy beats out throw by Jeter as he bounces it in, wow, 5-0 Jays. SPEEED kills. Encarnacion, one on two down, WOWWWWWWWWWWW Edwin, a rocket to centre off the car in third level, the old restaurant. Home run number 30. 7-0 Jays. YES 7-0. Cooper, grounds to Nix at second, throw to Teixeira at first to end the inning but that has to be one of THE best innings for a very long time. Hughes pitch count 80 !!! and shell shocked. Top 5th: Cano, full count, grounds to Gomes at third, throw to Cooper. Jones, lines it into the left field corner for stand up double. One on one down. Granderson. Wild pitch and Jones to third., Igarashi warming up in NY bullpen. Full count, strikes out swinging, two down. McGehee, lines to left over head of Davis, here comes Jones to score. Martin, McGehee at second. Full count, strikes out swinging. Very nice. Pitch count 71. Bottom 5th: White flag from Yankees Ryota Igarashi now pitching in to stop the bleeding. Sierra leading off. 1-2 count, singles it into centre, third hit today for Sierra. Mathis, grounds to Nix, throw to Jeter to get Sierra, no chance for double play. One on one down for Gomes, 3-1 count, high ball four, two on one down for Gose. Full count, takes strike three. Two down. Hechavarria, 0-2 count, grounds to Jeter, fumbles the ball and everyone is safe. Bases loaded for Davis. 2-2 count, YES Rajai does it again, lines it into left field corner, same as his last at bat, here comes everyone, Mathis, Gomes and Hech 10-1 Jays. Davis at second with 5 RBIs. Rajai Davis ??? Must be a blue moon somewhere but no Jays fan is worried about it this afternoon. WOW. McCoy, keep it going Mike. Lines it to Swisher in right for the out. BUTJays have added three more. WOW. Top 6th: Happ now with huge lead. Can he do two more? Pitch count 71. Possible. Nix, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Jeter. Swings at this one, opposite field and this is high into right and over the wall, home run for Jeter, 10-2 Jays. Swisher, pulls it into left, one on one down for Teixeira. Lincoln working in the Jays bullpen. Full count, Fly ball to Gose in centre for the second out. Cano, first pitch swinging and hammers this to right, two run home run. 10-4 Jays. End of the road for Happ, here comes Brad Lincoln. Jones, two down. Full count, pops it up to Mathis for the third out. Bottom 6th: Can Jays get back a couple here? Edwin to lead it off. Gets under this one and pops it up to Swisher in shallow right. One down for Cooper, grounds to Teixeira, throw to Igarashi for the second out. Sierra, three hit day. 0-2 count, grounds to Nix in shallow right, throw to first just get him. Starting to block off that route for Sierra. Top 7th: Granderson, grounds to short, amazing backhand play by Hech but throw not in time to get speedy Granderson. Great play. McGehee, 2-0 count, I DONT BELIEVE IT... Hammers this to left and Davis, yes Rajai Davis brings back a home run, he climbed the fence in left and pulls it back WOW. And Rajai who has been awful in left. That was a highlight catch for the season. That was two runs. One down for Martin, grounds to McCoy throw to Cooper two down. Nix, one on two down, 1-2 count, lines it to right centre, here comes Granderson 10-5 Jays. Nix at second. Jeter one on two down. 1-1 count, lines it to right and here comes Martin, 10-6 Jays. Jeter at second. Swisher, singles to centre, here comes Jeter, 10-7 Jays. That is it for Lincoln. Oliver now. That play by Davis is huge now. Teixeira, two down one on. Pulls it to left, stand up double for Teixeira, Swisher at third. Cano the tying run. Hits him in the back first pitch. Payback for yesterday and Escobar ??? I doubt it but nice to know someone can hit Yankees hitters. Jones, bases loaded. Grounds to Gomes, takes it himself for the out. BUT Jays need to get a couple back now. Bottom 7th: Mathis leading off, Cody Eppley now pitching. Grounds to Nix, throw to first, one down. Gomes, nice, pulls it into left. Gose, one on one down. Full count, that’s the pitch, strikes out swinging over that low pitch, he has to learn to lay off it. Everyone is throwing it to him. Johnson now pinch hitting for Hechavarria. Two down one on. 2-2 count, strikes out. Top 8th: Oliver out there again. Granderson, McCoy to short, and Johnson at second. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down. McGehee, 2-2 count, Casey Janssen warming up. Takes strike three. Two down for Martin. Perfect grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper to end the inning. Where would Jays be without Oliver this season. Bottom 8th: Top of the order. Davis leading off, 2-1 count, grounds back to Eppley, throw to Teixeira, one down for McCoy. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Encarnacion, two down, hitting for the cycle, 3-4 needs a triple. Full count, outside, what’s new? One on two down for Cooper. Here comes Girardi. Clay Rapada now pitching, lines first pitch to left, Edwin to second. Two on two down for Sierra. That is it for Rapada, don’t you love Girardi, adds hours to every game. Joba Chamberlain now pitching. 2-2 count, another mound conference, full count, take or swing? Swing, fly ball to Granderson in centre. Top 9th: Crunch time. Casey Janssen now. Nix leading off. No, it is Ichiro pinch hitting. 2-1 count, lines it softly to Johnson, one down. Top of the order now Jeter, 0-2 count, lines it to Johnson to make the catch, two down. Swisher, strike one, huge cheer from Jays fans. Pops it up to Gose in centre and Jays have beaten up the Yankees. With a rookie lineup. It will be interesting to see both lineups in April 2014. Many of them will be on this Jays team. The very good: A HUGE win for the Jays. A lineup full of rookies and get going early to put up ten, yes ten runs against the hated Yankees. Bullpen hangs on for the win. This is probably the best result for the Jays all season long. None would have given them any chance against the division leading Yankees. Happ held them for five, no complaints before Yankees hitters started to get to him. Another very good definitely to Rajai Davis, much maligned throughout the season with his bat and glove he came through today with an excellent showing. Climbing the wall in left, we have not seen that many times in this stadium. On top of his five RBIs day this was a superb day for Rajai. Edwin with his 3-4 day and two run home run. The rookies lead by Sierra with three hits. Cooper two hits. Gomes and Hechavarria. Everyone with hits except for Gose but he did his but with the walk and scoring with his speed. The bullpen of Oliver and Janssen to nail the win. Not least we have to mention the 5-8 with runners in scoring position. With the Jays speed on bases it caused Hughes even more problems. The not so good: Maybe Lincoln’s three run inning to enable Yankees to get close, but let’s enjoy this one. Ten runs against NY is a cause for celebration plus a near sellout to enjoy it. Losing streak is over and the future looking better.

Jays lose again but much closer game with Yankees

Yankees v Jays. Game two of three. Another rough beating for the Jays last night, try again today but with five rookies in the lineup and against the Yankees, not sure this team is capable of doing it. If Laffey can hold them to under three runs maybe a chance. Lineups: Yankees. Jeter, Swisher, Teixeira, Cano, Jones, Granderson, Nix, McGehee, Stewart and Garcia pitching. Jays: Davis, Gose, Encarnacion, Escobar, Cooper, Sierra, Johnson, Gomes, Hechavarria and Laffey pitching. Look at all the rookies. Not good first week in August. Huge crowd here today, looks like full house with the fifth deck filling up above the hotel rooms in left. Lots of Yankees fans as well but the rainy weather outside a perfect place for the afternoon. Let’s hope Jays can give the home fans something to cheer about. Top 1st: Jeter, getting a break today and DHing. Strikes out swinging, one for Swisher, grounds to Hechavarria at third, throw to Cooper at first, two down for Teixeira, same again, grounds to Hech throw to Cooper, three up and down for Laffey. Good start. Bottom 1st: Davis, strikes out swinging, one down. Gose, strikes out swinging. Gose overmatched here by Nova. Encarnacion, fly ball to centre, Granderson makes third out. Three up and down for Nova also. Top 2nd: Cano, grounds to third, Hechavarria throw to Cooper, one down. Jones, fly ball to Gose in centre, two down. Granderson, Laffey hits him. One on two down for Nix, grounds to Hechavarria throw to Johnson at second to get Granderson and third out. Bottom 2nd: Escobar, fly ball to centre for Granderson, one down for Cooper, Lines it hard to left but right at Nix at short for the out. Sierra, strikes out swinging. Top 3rd: McGehee, grounds to Escobar, throw to Cooper, one down. Stewart fly ball to left, Davis makes the catch. Jeter two down, grounds to Hech at third, safe at first. Swisher, two down one on, takes strike three. Bottom 3rd: Laffey doing his job, time for the hitters to help him out, Johnson, strikes out swinging, one down for Gomes, connects but lines out to Granderson in centre. Two down for Hechavarria, grounds to short, Nixon throw to Teixeira for the out. Both pitchers doing their job, but it would be nice one day to see a lineup without five AAA Vegas players. Top 4th: Teixeira, lines it up the middle to Gose. There goes the no hitter. One on for Cano, fly ball to Gose in centre, one down. Jones, ball four, two on, one down for Granderson, pops it up to Hechavarria, two down. Runners at first and second. Nix, singles to left, here comes Teixeira to score, 1-0 Yankees. Jones to third on the play. McGehee two on, two down. Oh boy, hammers this one to left and into the seats, here comes, Jones, here comes Nix and McGehee, 4-0 Yankees. Stewart, lines to Gose in right, stand up double, Laffey having rough time here. Here comes Walton. Jeter one on two down. Perfect, grounds to Johnson throw to Cooper for the out and to end the inning but Yankees have broken this one open. Bottom 4th: Top of the order. Davis leading off. That will do, lines it up the middle to Granderson, one on for Gose, balk by Laffey moves Davis to second before he could steal. That is the third balk called in Jays games this week. Strange. Gose strikes out swinging for the second time. Might be better for him to bunt Davis to third or let Davis steal third and then bunt. Ah well. Encarnacion, lines to Swisher in right, here comes Rajai anyway to score, Jays strike back right away 4-1 Yankees. Escobar, ouch Garcia hits him high on the shoulder, that would hurt. Two on, Jays have something going here, here comes Yankees pitching coach. One down two on for Cooper, strikes out swinging. Two down for Sierra, grounds to Teixeira steps on the bag for the out. Pitiful. Top 5th: Swisher, pops it up to Cooper, one down. Teixeira, ball four. Cano, oh no ball four. Back to back walks, Laffey in trouble here. Jones two on one down. Pops this one up to Cooper at first, two down. Runners hold. Granderson, grounds to Cooper takes it himself and Laffey gets out of it. Bottom 5th: Johnson leading off, singles to Granderson in centre. Gomes, strikes out swinging. One down, Hechavarria, lines hard to left bur Jones makes the out, two down. Davis, grounds to Teixeira at first for the third out. Johnson and his leadoff single left out there. This is so frustrating to watch game after game. We cannot fault the rookies they are learning on the job unfortunately. But still so frustrating to see the leadoff guy not even move one base. Top 6th: Nix, grounds to third, Hech throw to Cooper for the out. McGehee, lines to Davis in left, stand up double. Stewart, one on one down. Pops it up to Escobar at short, two down. Jeter, fly ball to right and this one bounces over the wall, ground rule double here comes McGehee to score 5-1 New York. Swisher, Jeter in scoring position, ball four. Two on two down. That is it for Laffey. Loup now pitching, Teixeira grounds to Hechavarria, throw to first to end the inning but Yankees have added one more. Laffey did not pitch badly at all, one bad inning and a couple of pitches. The problem is there is no run support for the errors. That is killing the Jays game after game. Bottom 6th: Gose, takes strike three. Garcia has his number today. Encarnacion, not getting anything here, ball four. How many walks has Edwin had since Jose was injured? Sure respect but frustrating not to see him get a chance to hit. Escobar, one down one on, NO Garcia hits him for the second time. Umpire immediately points to the benches, not sure why Jays bench is warned ? Surely not for Granderson hit earlier ? But then again why is Escobar hit twice ? The last guy who is a threat to any team let alone the Yankees. But two on, one down for Cooper. Grounds to Teixeira throw to second to get Escobar. Edwin to third, Cooper at first. Sierra, grounds to second throw to first and Jays once again unable to bring them in. Top 7th: Cano grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Jones strikes out swinging, two down. Granderson fly ball to Gose in centre for third out. Easy three up and down for Loup. Bottom 7th: Johnson leading off, takes strike three, one down for Gomes, grounds to McGehee at third, throw to Teixeira, two down. Hechavarria, hammers this one to centre wall but Granderson runs this one down for a great catch. Two great hits by Hech but nothing to show for it. His time will come. Top 8th: Jenkins replaces Loup who did an excellent job in relief. Nix, grounds to Hechavarria throw to Cooper, one down. McGehee fly ball to Davis in left. Two down. Stewart pops it up to Hechavarria. Another excellent inning by Jenkins. Bottom 8th: Davis, here we go, doubles to Granderson in centre. One on and how long will Rajai stay at second? Gose, strikes out swinging, again not even a bunt here John ? Gose had no chance with Garcia tonight but again you now his turn will come. Encarnacion, there goes Rajai and safe on the throw. Stolen base number 32. Edwin grounds to third, here comes Rajai to score, Encarnacion out on the throw to first. 5-2 Yankees.Two down for Escobar. No here comes Girardi, that is it for Garcia. Yes he lasted into the 8th but take a closer look at the numbers. Yes 10 strikeouts but 7 of them were by the rookies from Vegas. Including four by Gose. Just the facts friends. Not as impressive as one would think and makes us wonder what would have happened here today with Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Lind, and Arencibia, (plus Snider of course) hitting. Robertson now pitching. Vizquel now pinch hitting for Escobar, could be that hit on the elbow by Garcia needs treatment. Oh my, grounds to Cano at second, to Nix, over to Teixeira, double play ball to end this one. I expect McCoy will be in the lineup tomorrow. No more room for sentimentality for Vizquel. It is bad enough with all the rookies in the lineup. Top 9th: Vizquel at third and look who is at short? Finally Hechavarria is playing his position. Maybe an injury to Escobar right now might give this young man his big chance, certainly his bat is heating up. Brandon Lyon in to wrap this up. Jeter grounds to Vizquel, throw to Cooper at first, one down. Swisher strikes out swinging. Two down for Teixeira. Ball four. One on two down for Cano, takes strike three. Jays bullpen once again showing the strength. Once Jays hitters are back this team is going to surprise. Bottom 9th: Ichiro in left for Jones. Yankees big gun Soriano out to finish this one off. Girardi still taking no chances that Jays will come back. Cooper, fly ball to Ichiro in left, one down for Sierra, strikes out swinging, two down for Johnson, grounds to Cano at second, throw to Teixeira to finish this one off. The good: Not as bad as last night and in fact only a couple of pitches to make one bad inning. Laffey was ok for most of his outing. The bullpen once again coming through 3.1 shutout innings. The very good: Sellout crowd despite the poor record of the Jays right now. It will be interesting to see the crowd on Monday evening against the White Sox. The not so good: The Vegas rookies. Still outclassed and out of their depth against good pitching. Four of them went 0-11 today. Jays five hits but they were by Davis, Encarnacion and Johnson. 2-8 with runners in scoring position. Still unable to bring the runners in when it counts, but once again with five rookies Garcia was able to pitch around to get to them.

Jays continue their slide as they lose home opener to Yankees

Yankees v Jays Game one of three. Jays are home after the 2-8 road trip. Ugh. Now all they have to do this week is play ALL 3 division leaders. East, Central and the West. Ugh. SEVEN new players here since the road trip started. WOW ! Big weekend for attendance as Yankees always bring out their fan base in Toronto area. Lineups: Yankees: Jeter, Swisher, Teixeira, Cano, Jones, Nix, Martin, Suzuki, McGehee and Garcia pitching. Jays: Davis, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Escobar, Cooper, Johnson, Vizquel, Mathis, Gose and Romero pitching. Vizquel at 3B giving Hech a break from the pressure at 3B, totally unfair on Hech playing him in a position he had never played on top of his start in the majors. Romero ?? who will we see tonight? Cooper DH. Surprised that Mathis is catching, he needs a break, give Gomes a few games. Ichiro hitting number eight shows the depth of the opposition this weekend, Jays depth on current form ends at number three Encarnacion. On paper this is not good news for Jays fans, BUT they still have to play the game friends and anything can and usually does happen. Top 1st: Jeter, full count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Swisher, 1-2 count, grounds to third, Vizquel throw to Edwin for second out. Teixeira. Lines it to Davis in left and yes Rajai makes the out. Phew. Pitch count 13. Bottom 1st: Davis, grounds (first pitch) to Jeter, throw to first, one down. Rasmus, 0-2 count, singles into right, one on one down for Edwin. It will be interesting to see if Yankees pitch to Edwin. Everybody else is pitching around him to get to Escobar. 2-2 Edwin going after those borderline pitches, not good. Outside full count, there goes Colby, grounds to third, throw to first to get Edwin. No chance for double play. Two down for Escobar. Full count, strikes out swinging and leaves Rasmus at second. 16 pitch count. Top 2nd: Cano, full count, grounds back up the middle to Rasmus, one on for Andruw Jones, 3-1 count, low ball four, two on. Ex-Jay Nix, bunting or swinging? Bunting OH NO. Mathis throw to third and into the outfield Cano scores, terrible. Error to Mathis. 1-0 Yankees. Martin two on, nobody out, 3-0 count, Romero another mess tonight, cannot throw strikes. Loads the bases. Here comes Walton. And don’t look now but Ichiro is at bat. Nobody out, bases loaded, Bronx cheers for a first pitch strike. 1-2 count, grounds to Johnson to Escobar to Edwin not in time. Run scores 2-0 Yankees. Only one out. Two on, for McGehee. Takes strike three. Romero gets the number nine guy. Two down for top of the order Jeter. Grounds to Escobar, flip to Johnson for the out but Romero has given Yankees an early lead. Pitch count 37. Bottom 2nd: Cooper, 2-1 count, pops it up to Ichiro in centre. One down for Johnson, YES Kelly. Hammers this one to right and into the seats. 2-1. Good to see Johnson coming through, maybe he can hit in place of Escobar. Vizquel, 2-2 count, lines to Jones in left. Two down for Mathis. Chance to redeem his error, 0-2 count, swings at a ball halfway to first. Literally. Awful. This guy is either a zombie after all the catching duties or he is just plain bad. I tend to think the former, give him a day off John. Top 3rd: Swisher, full count, pulls it into left, one on for Teixeira. Grounds to Escobar, throw to first to get Teixeira, no chance for two because Johnson was backing up Escobar. Cano one down runner at second. Lines to Gose in right, throw is wild and runner scores. 3-1 Yankees and Cano goes to second on the throw home. Error to Gose on the throw, relax Anthony and everyone pray for Jose to return for bat and glove. Jones with two on and only one down. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Nix, pops it up to Gose in right to end the inning. Pitch count 55. Will he get to six? Bottom 3rd: Gose, 1-2 count, grounds to second, throw to first, one down. Davis, 2-1 count, pops it up to Jeter, two down for Rasmus. 1-2 count, drives it hard to centre but Ichiro makes the out. Pitch count 45. Top 4th: Martin, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Ichiro, same again, to Escobar throw to Edwin, two quick outs here. McGehee. 3-0 count, low ball four. Terrible , walk number three and number nine guy. Jeter, pulls it to Davis in left, two on two down for Swisher. 2-1 count, grounds to Vizquel, takes it himself to get McGehee. Pitch count 69. Bottom 4th: Encarnacion, fly ball to right for the out. One down for Escobar. Bunting again, this time he makes it as third base McGehee playing way back. Cooper, singles to right, Escobar at second. Two on one down for Johnson. Can the Jay get something going here? Yes this will do Kelly lines it into right, Escobar scores 3-2 Yankees. Cooper to third and Kelly to second. Vizquel with two in scoring position. Full count, strikes out swinging, two down. Mathis, grounds it weakly back to Garcia, throw to first. Jays get one back, but oh dear it could have should have been more. Pitch count 62. Top 5th: Can Romero shut them down here? Teixeira, 1-2 count, grounds to Vizquel, throw to Edwin, one down. Cano, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin, two down. Jones, first pitch pops it up to Johnson for the out, Three up and down on seven pitches, THAT is more like it Ricky. Pitch count 76. Bottom 5th: Gose leading off. Not having a happy major league start so far. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Davis. 1-2 count, lines it to left but right at Andruw Jones, two down for Rasmus. Lines it hard to right but straight at Cano for the out. Pitch count 74. Top 6th: Nix leading off. Full count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Martin, first pitch fly ball to right but Gose makes the out. Two down for Ichiro, 1-2 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin. That’s more like it Ricky. 89 pitch count. Travis Snider has just hit a two run home run and has two hit game so far. Bottom 6th: Encarnacion, grounds first pitch to third, throw to first for the out. Escobar, NO, first pitch grounds to third, throw to first. Bonehead play by Escobar, two pitches two outs. Cooper, pops it up to second, FOUR pitches. That is disgusting. NO excuse for any of them. Edwin hitting the first strike he gets, Escobar his head not in the game, Cooper knows no better anyway. I hope Romero gives them his reaction. FOUR pitches. 78 pitch count. Top 7th: McGehee, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Jeter, 2-2 count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin. Jeter had more pitches than the three Jays in the top of the inning. Swisher. Pops it up to shallow centre for Rasmus to make third out. 98 pitch count. Now if the offence can get a couple Ricky might be done for the night. Bottom 7th: Battle of the bullpens now. Boone Logan now pitching. Johnson, 2-2 night. 0-2 count, Pops it up to Ichiro in right centre. One down for pinch hitter Yan Gomes, scouting report hand delivered to Logan by the coach. Full count, takes strike three, not sure what he was looking for. Girardi out to change Logan. Joba Chamberlain now pitching. Mathis, 2-2 count, pops it up to Cano in shallow centre. Top 8th: Delabar now pitching.Teixeira, This one is OUT OF HERE. Hammers it to right and into the seats. 4-2 Yankees. Cano, pulls it to Johnson, throw to Edwin, one down. Jones full count, pulls it to Gomes now playing at 3B, throw to Edwin, two down. Nix, loops it into shallow right. One on two down for Martin. Oh boy, loops it into shallow centre and off the glove of Johnson. Error to Kelly. Runners at second and third. Ichiro. These two know each other from Mariners days. 3-1 count, hammers it back up the middle and off the glove of Delabar, two runs score. 6-2 Yankees, that will clear out the crowd. McGehee. 2-1 count, pops it up to Gose in right to end the inning. Bottom 8th: Everybody winning in the East tonight except Jays. Gose, will not have seen 97mph pitching in Vegas. 2-2 count, grounds back up the middle, Nice hitting Antony. Davis, please NO bunting here. Jays need baserunners not outs. That is it for Chamberlain, Girardi getting anxious ??? David Robertson now pitching. There goes Gose, first pitch and safe on the throw. Nice. Yankees will not have seen Gose before 1-1 count, there goes Gose again and safe at third on the throw. WHOA.... Nobody out. Full count, low ball four. Two on nobody out for Rasmus. Now Davis has to be careful here, don’t get out with Colby at bat. Rasmus, bounces up the middle to Jeter steps on the bag, throw to first double play ball, two down Gose scores. 6-3 Yankees. Two down nobody on for Edwin. Full count, pops it up to first for the out. Top 9th: Lots of empty seats. Sierra now in right for Gose who moves to centre for Rasmus. David Carpenter now pitching. Jeter singles to left. One on for Swisher, lines it to the wall in left, here comes Jeter to score 7-3 Yankees. Swisher at second, Teixeira, full count. Fly ball to Sierra in right, one down as Swisher to third. Cano, 3-0 count, putting him on. Two on for pinch hitter Ibanez. Yankees padding their stats here. Singles into right, Swisher scores. 8-3 Yankees. Walton out there. Nix, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Martin, 1-2 count, hits him on the shoulder. Ichiro. Bases loaded. That is it for Carpenter, rough start for him after Vegas but no worse than many others before him. Brad Lincoln, first time Jays fans have seen him pitch in Rogers Centre. Lines to left and guess who, Davis misses it, two runs score. Always Davis. 10-3 Yankees. Granderson, as if he needs more RBIs. Two in scoring position, two down. 2-2 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin. Bottom 9th: Clay Rapada now pitching. Escobar, 2-1 count, grounds back to Rapada throw to first, one down. Cooper, 2-2 count, singles into right. Johnson, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Gomes, now a balk on Rapada, Cooper to second. 0-2 count, singles into left, Ibanez fumbles it but Cooper HOLDS at third, come on. Girardi getting worried here, that is it for Rapada. Cody Epley now pitching, to get one out. Mathis with two on the corners, full count, singles into centre, here comes Cooper finally, 10-4 Yankees. Gomes to third on the play. Mathis at first, Gose, great time for your first home run Antony. Girardi on phone to bullpen again, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. But Jays do not roll over in the ninth although that is one of the few pluses tonight. Jays kept it close for seven but this is a nine inning game. Jays bullpen weakens for the first time. Oh boy, Rasmus left the game with more tightness in that groin injury again. Sloppy: Mathis throw to third which sails into left, Gose errant throw to home. Cooper sloppy base running. Johnson dropped ball. Davis yet another dropped ball in left. How many more before Farrell does something about it? Problem is there is no one else for left. Travis who? The good: Johnson two hit night, home run and double. Romero much better but three walks and wild for several innings which prevented him from going into the eighth maybe and a better chance to comeback. Jays get nine hits but 3-8 with runners in scoring position. Gose 2 stolen bases. The not so good: Maybe loss of Rasmus yet again. Romero shaky start and wildness. Great crowd 41,000 but not what they hoped for.

Comedy of errors and lack of hitting as Jays get swept by the Rays

Jays v Rays. Series finale. Alvarez today but it is not the pitching that is the current problem with the Jays, it is the lack of hitting, the close score last night no way reflected the game. Rays were in control from the third inning as Jays hitters never looked like performing. Even the home run by Cooper was luck as it hit the lowest wall of the stadium and should have been caught by Jennings in left field. Inability to produce small ball game continues to hurt this team. I believe they have the capability for the small ball with loads of speed but for some reason Farrell is unwilling to encourage aggressive play. We have been spoiled by the big bats booming all season but now they have all gone, traded or on the DL and bench, no one is stepping up,. Rasmus is the most consistent but Encarnacion is lost without Jose. Today they are playing to avoid the sweep, it will be interesting to see how they react. Tomorrow and the next week it gets even tougher for them. Yankees, White Sox and Rangers is one tough home stand with their first lineup, with the group they have they will need every ounce of luck and more to avoid a horrible result by August 19th. Lineups: Jays: Davis, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Escobar, Cooper, Sierra, Mathis, Vizquel, Hechavarria and Alvarez pitching. Rays: Fuld, Upton, Joyce, Longoria, Zobrist, Pena, Keppinger, Roberts, Lobaton and lefty Matt Moore pitching. Camp day at the ballpark, should be loads of noise in this dome today. Plus they all have thunder sticks. Top 1st: Davis leading off. Drives it to right centre, stand up double, good start, how long will he stay there? Rasmus, 1-2 count, ouch takes strike three. One down for Encarnacion, there goes Rajai. Safe at third no throw, ball pops out of the catcher glove. Full count, inside ball four. Two on for Escobar, conference on the mound. 1-1 count, wow balk called and here comes Davis to score 1-0 Jays. Rajai made that run with his speed. Edwin to second. There goes Edwin and dives headfirst safe on the throw. Wow great timing. Another full count, grounds to third, throw home gets him. Escobar terrible at bat. Two down for Cooper. Full count, fly ball to Fuld in left for the out. Not very impressive at bats by either Escobar or Cooper. 27 pitch inning by Moore. Bottom 1st: Fuld, grounds to Vizquel playing second today, throw to Edwin, one down. Upton, grounds first pitch to Escobar at short, throw to Edwin, two down. Joyce, bounces over the head of Alvarez to Vizquel, safe at first, no chance for a throw, Longoria, 0-2 count, nice pitch, strikes out swinging. 10 pitch inning, very nice start. Top 2nd: Sierra leading off. Full count, loops it into shallow centre, Escobar and Cooper please note. One on for Mathis. There goes Sierra, no throw, safe at second, three stolen bases by jays already, 1-2 count, pops it up to second for the out, Vizquel, one down and runner in scoring position. 3-1 count, fly ball to Fuld in left, two down for Hechavarria. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging to end the inning. Pitch count 47. Bottom 2nd: Zobrist, grounds to Edwin at first, fumbles it and unable to make the out, error to Edwin. Pena, grounds to Vizquel, throw to Edwin for the out, no chance to make two. Keppinger, runner at second, one down. Singles to Sierra in right, Zobrist stops at third, two on one down for Roberts. 3-0 count, inside ball four to load the bases. That error by Edwin is huge now. Alvarez had the ground balls but defense unable to support him. Lobaton, lifts it over the head of Escobar into shallow left, here come two runs, 2-1 Rays. Davis throw way off the mark. He would have had him with a good throw, Alvarez getting no help today from his teammates. Fuld with two on, and one down. 3-1 count, there go the runners throw is high to third, runner safe as ball four. Bases loaded again for Upton. Grounds to Escobar throw to Vizquel back to Hechavarria at third only one out as run score 3-1. Nothing going right here. Joyce. 2-2 count, pops it up both Edwin and Hechavarria go for it on the pitcher’s mound, collide but Hech makes the out. Comedy of errors by Jays defense. Don’t blame Alvarez here. Pitch count 33 but how many extra did his teammates make him throw ? Top 3rd: Let’s hope this game is not already over. Moore now with a lead, Davis, 1-2 count. Davis pops it up to Upton in centre, one down. Rasmus, pops it up to Lobaton, two quick outs. Encarnacion the goat of the previous inning, he owes Alvarez here. Not giving him anything to hit 3-0 they want at Cooper and Escobar. Pops it up to first for a very, very quick three up and down inning. Alvarez has probably not sat down yet. Pitch count 60. Bottom 3rd: Longoria , singles into left. One on for Zobrist, singles to Sierra in right, two on for Pena, full count, high ball four. Bases loaded nobody out. Keppinger, grounds to Hechavarria throw to Mathis to get one, throw to first, way too high, what is with this team today. One down bases stay loaded. Poor Alvarez, getting no help here at all. Roberts lines to a diving Rasmus in centre, no catch rules the umpire, Colby throw to second too late as another run scores, 4-1 Rays bases stay loaded. Roberts, finally, grounds to Vizquel, throw to Escobar, over to Edwin double play ball but this is torture today with the Jays defense or rather the lack of it, and Alvarez is the victim. Pitch count 49. Top 4th: Would it be too much to ask this team to put together a few hits? Escobar leading off, well at least it will not be a double play ball. Bunting ??? Escobar? the slowest player on the team, throw to first, one pitch one out. Where is his head ? Cooper, 2-2 count, takes strike three, Cooper just out of his depth. Sierra, two down, grounds to third, throw to first, three up and down very, very fast. This team wants to catch the plane home. Just awful baseball. Bottom 4th: Fuld drag bunt, grounds to Vizquel, barehanded throw to Edwin, one down. Upton singles to centre, one on one down. Joyce, lines to Davis in left, two down. Longoria for the third time. Balk called and Upton to second. 1-2 count, fouling them off here, lines to Davis in left here comes run number 5. Zobrist, full count, takes strike three, 71 pitch count. Top 5th: Problem is that Alvarez never gets chance to catch his thoughts, the hitters are up and down so fast all the time. Give the guy a break by a long inning, Mathis leading off. 3-1 count, grounds to third, throw to first, one down for Vizquel. Lines to Fuld in left, two down for Hechavarria. 2-2 count. strikes out swinging. Just gets worse and worse. Pitch count 82. Bottom 5th: Pena, 2-0 count, shift right on and Pena bunts to third, how many times have we seen this backfire? Comedy of errors indeed. Pena at first, Keppinger. Singles to Davis in left. Two on nobody out. Jays bullpen working. Loup. Roberts, fly ball to Davis for the out. One down for Lobaton, 2-1 count, finally an out, lines to Sierra in right here comes the run but throw to Mathis and then to third gets Keppinger, two down. 6-1 Rays and that is it for Alvarez. Never had a chance with this team behind him today. Kept him out there for most of the game with bonehead at bats and lousy defense. Loup now pitching. Fuld, two down and one on. 1-2 count, bounces to Escobar, throw to Edwin for third out Top 6th: This team will not win many games with one run and if some of them are just waiting for Jose and Lawrie and Arencibia to get back, they could be waiting all season. Someone has to get it going. So far apart from Rasmus I have not seen anyone else. Top of the order, Moore cruising. Davis, please don’t bunt here. Good, thank you, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Rasmus, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Encarnacion, 1-1 count, Edwin swinging at pitch way outside. 3-1 count, low ball four, actually five balls. Why would they pitch to him with these two behind him. Escobar, 1-2 count, grounds to short, throw to second to get Edwin. More pitiful. Bottom 6th: Upton, pops it up to Escobar, one down. Joyce, grounds to Vizquel throw to Edwin, two down. Longoria, 2-3 today. 2-2 count, lines to Davis who drops the ball. That was in his glove. Error to Davis. But are we surprised ? Left fielder on Alex’s shopping list. The curse of Travis strikes again. Zobrist, 1-1 count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin for third out. Top 7th: Farnsworth now pitching. Cooper leading off. 0-2 today. Fly ball to left what is new ? We are getting tired of one dimensional Cooper. One down for Sierra, grounds to third, throw to first, two down. Mathis, full count. Grounds to Zobrist at short, throw to first. Yet another one two three inning. Bottom 7th: Darren Oliver now pitching. He needs the work as does Janssen. Not many chances as they lose game after game. Pena leading off. Bunts off the plate and Mathis throw to first. Strange play 6-1 game??? Keppinger, grounds up the middle, Vizquel throw too late, one on one down for Roberts. Pinch runner Eliot Johnson, need speed here for run number 7 ??? Maddon decision, or maybe he thinks Jays are going to score five runs. Pops it up to Edwin, two down. Lobaton, 2-1 count, lifts it into left, Davis makes the running catch (this time) Top 8th: Howell now pitching, Vizquel, full count, grounds to third, throw to first one down. Hechavarria. 3-1 count, lines it to centre but Upton makes the out. Nice swing Hech. Top of the order. Davis, hits him. One on two down for Rasmus, there goes Rajai, no throw as Colby takes strike. Davis at second, will he take third? Might as well. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Bottom 8th: Jansen now pitching. Needs the work, he might never get another chance this week the way this team is playing. Fuld, full count, takes strike three. Nice pitch Casey. Upton, 1-2 count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, two down. Joyce, ouch hits him on the knee. Payback ? Longoria, 2-2 count, gets hold of this to left and out of the ball park, two run home run. Bounces back in. No they call it a double. Now they are reviewing, come on Maddon, this is already a 7-1 game. Whoa they call it a double. Whoa.... Now pinch runner ??? Rodriguez, for Longoria. Zobrist, full count, strikes out swinging. Lots of pitches for Casey.... 30. Top 9th: Wade Davis now pitching. Encarnacion leading off. Two walks today. Up and in first pitch. Hmm... Full count, fly ball to left centre, Upton makes the out. One down for Escobar, 1-1 count. Grounds to Rodriguez at second, throw to first, two down for Cooper. 2-2 count, doubles to left centre, always too late to make a difference with Cooper. Where were hits earlier? Sierra, 1-2 count, grounds up the middle throw to first for the out and complete the sweep of the hapless Jays. Not much to boast about with this team right now. They fly home but don’t expect anything to be easier. Can you imagine what the Yankees, White Sox and Rangers could do to this team? 0-9 home stand is a real possibility. The good: Hard to find a good here. The first inning manufactured run by Davis definitely a great start. But Escobar and Cooper were unable to make it a much bigger inning which really let Moore off the hook, a couple of extra runs there and Moore may have been out of the game early. The not so good: The hitters, Escobar throughout the game, unable to come through in the first and later in the game bunting on first pitch when he clearly has no running ability. Cooper in the first unable to come through, the defense especially by Encarnacion, Davis and Mathis. The poor throwing, fielding, and hitting puts a lot of pressure on the pitching staff which has been way above average not least the new bullpen which has been excellent. In today’s game it meant that Alvarez never had time to catch his breath on the bench with the quick outs by his teammates.