SB Nation - Scott Richmond

Scott Richmond and Jays Thumped by Rays

Tom Dakers — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 05:19:54 -0000

More photos » by Steve Nesius - AP

3 months ago: Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Vernon Wells reaches for a fly ball by Tampa Bay Rays' Evan Longoria at the warning track during the first inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 18, 2009 in St. Petersburg, Fla. Wells made the catch for an out. (AP Photo/Steve Nesius)

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Blue Jays 4 Rays 11

There isn't much to say about that one, it was terrible. Scott Richmond was awful. Brian Wolfe came in and if possible was even worse. The only good news for the pitching was that Dirk Hayhurst pitched 3 good innings. Josh Roenicke gave up 3 runs over the last 2 innings as well.

Offensively, we did get 10 hits. Jose Bautista, Adam Lind and Vernon Wells had 2 each. Vernon is now hitting .355 for the month of September. Hopefully it carries over to next season. Adam Lind drove in his 104th run. 41 more and he can tie Carlos Delgado's single season team RBI record. Nah it ain't happening.

No Jay of the Day today, though honorable mention goes to Vernon. Richmond (-.340) and Wolfe (-.146) get the Suckage awards.

Tomorrow night Ricky Romero (12-8, 4.22) goes against Matt Garza (7-10, 3.84). It can't be worse than tonight's game. Unfortunately (well unless the game is like tonight's) I'm out tomorrow and will miss most of the game.

There was a Randy Ruiz sighting tonight, he came into the game in the 6th for Lyle Overbay and struck out in his one at bat. I'm not sure why Cito has stopped using him. You would think he'd want to get him a few more at bats just to see what he'd do. But no.

Aaron Hill Homer in the Ninth Wins it for Jays Over Tigers

Tom Dakers — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 03:44:16 -0000

More photos » by Duane Burleson - AP

Slim picking for pictures again but here is Rod Barajas rounding the bases after hitting a two-run home . (AP Photo/Duane Burleson)

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Blue Jays 8 Tigers 6

This is how we played in April. The game was great fun, and it gives us 3 wins in a row and 6 in the last 9 games. We had 4 home runs, one each from Rod Barajas, Vernon Wells, Marco Scutaro and Aaron Hill, who hit the game winner in the top of the 9th, getting his 95th and 96th RBIs of the season. Wells also scored the tying run, using his legs. He beat out an infield single, moved to second on Lyle Overbay's walk. Tagged up on a foul popup near the stands on the first base side. And scored on a wild pitch. He had a great game, going 3 for 4 with a walk. He also made 3 very nice catches in CF, he really does seem to be running much better in the field lately.

Scoot and Barajas had great games too, both going 2 for 4 and Lyle Overbay took a couple of walks. The only guys in the lineup not to get on base were Edwin Encarnacion and Travis Snider. I wish Cito would use Snider everyday, seems like he needs to play to get into a groove. I don't understand the point of sitting him anyway, but let's give the guy a chance to get comfortable.

Scott Richmond didn't look good, he gave up 3 homers, 4 walks and 6 earned in 4.1 innings. He does need to find a way to get lefties out. Our bullpen was terrific, yet again, for the 4.2 innings they pitched. One of the 'Cito drives me crazy' things is his use of the pen. Jesse Carlson pitched 1.2 innings, allowing only 1 walk, but he seems to pitch in every game. Yeah he hasn't given up a run (actually has only given up one hit) this month, but over working him is a good way to cause troubles later. I thought over working him was why he wasn't effective in May and June. Brandon League, Scott Downs and Jason Frasor were also great today, but again, why does League have to pitch 2 innings in September when we have extra arms in the pen. Well I guess because Cito only trusts those 4. He will only use guys he trusts and he pitches them until their arms fall off.

I have to mention one other moment in the game. In the 5th, Joe Inglett, singled, then stole 2nd and then scored on a soft fly ball single that he made a quick decision that the ball would fall and sprinted home on a play that any other Jay would have been happy to get to 3rd base. It is nice to see him play again, I hope he's with the team next year.

Jays of the Day are Hill (.319 WPA), Scoot (.240), Barajas (.190), Vernon (.170), League (.156) and Overbay (.106). Honorable mention to Downs, Carlson and Frasor. Suckage Jays are Richmond (-.427), Snider (-.155) and Ruiz (-.152).

Tomorrow the Jays go for 4 wins in a row in a battle of Rookie of the Year candidates, Ricky Romero (12-7, 4.14) against Rick Porcello (12-8, 4.26). If my memory is right they faced each other in the first series of the season with Romero coming out on top. I hope that happens again.

I missed a story from yesterday's game. A young boy ran on the field yesterday to retrieve a ball from the pitchers mound.

Bad First Inning Loses One for Scott Richmond

Tom Dakers — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 01:45:57 -0000

More photos » by Darren Calabrese - AP

3 months ago: Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Vernon Wells can't make the leaping catch at the wall on a hit by Minnesota Twins' Jason Kubel during the first inning of a baseball game in Toronto on Monday, Sept. 7, 2009. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press,Darren Calabrese)

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Twins 6 Blue Jays 3

We were down 5 by the time Scott Richmond got his first out and that was about all there was to this game. Not that it mattered but Richmond was very good after that.

Offensively we didn't do all that much either. 8 hits and a homer by Jose Bautista was all we got. Nice to see Jose can still hit one, just his 4th of the season and I don't remember when the last one was. Looked it up, June 25. Adam Lind had two hits. Rod Barajas, Edwin Encarnacion, and Joe Inglett had o fors. Aaron Hill left in the fourth inning to be with his wife who had gone in to labor. I guess is fitting on Labor Day.

We didn't have a Jay of the Day today. Hill came closest at .068 WPA even with only playing part of the game, so let's give him an honorable mention. Suckage goes to Richmond (-.339), Barajas (.159, I wish his hot streaks lasted as long as his cold ones do) and Encarnacion (-.108).

Tomorrow Ricky Romero (11-7, 4.15) goes against Brian Duensing (2-1, 3.81). Duensing is a lefty so I suppose we'll be treated to Kevin Millar in at the cleanup spot. Oh joy.

The Yankees took both halves of a double header against the Rays today and knocked Carlos Pena out for the season. Pena broke his hand when hit by a pitch. To add insult to injury Pena wasn't given first on the play, with the umpires ruling he swung at the pitch.

Scott Richmond and Jays lose to Rangers

Tom Dakers — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 03:21:33 -0000

More photos » by Tony Gutierrez - AP

3 months ago: Toronto Blue Jays' Lyle Overbay, left, is congratulated by teammate Rod Barajas (20) after hitting a solo home run off Texas Rangers' Tommy Hunter in the fourth inning of a baseball game, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2009, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

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Blue Jays 4 Rangers 6

Scott Richmond did not have a good night. No one really bad inning but he gave up a homers to Nelson Cruz and Elvis Andrus. 5 innings, 7 hits, 4 walks isn't going to do the job very often. Jesse Carlson, Cassey Janssen and Brian Wolfe did a good job over the last 3 innings. Wolfe was helped out by a great double play, started by a diving John McDonald stop and throw from his knees. Just a super play.

Offensively, we only got 5 hits, including two each from Lyle Overbay and Randy Ruiz, who each hit a homer. Adam Lind's 1st inning double was our only other hit. Ruiz was also thrown out at the plate trying to score on a ground ball Andrus booted. Everyone else had 0 fors.

Jose Bautista played center giving Vernon a day off. He only had a couple of chances out in center and really wasn't tested. For the second day in a row the Rangers had a star injured, Josh Hamilton left the game with back spasms and will be day to day.

Jay of the Day. Well no one got the number. Ruiz came closest at .095. Cito you think maybe we could play him instead of Millar the rest of the way. Suckage Jays are Richmond (-.375) and Scutaro (-.095, plus a bad error).

We start a 4 game set against the Yankees tomorrow at Rogers Center with Ricky Romero (11-6, 3.95) going against Chad Gaudin (5-10, 4.90). Please Cito, no Millar this series.

Bluebird Banter Answers the Dallas Morning News' Questions

hugo — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:33:28 -0000

Hi everyone. So, Richard Durrett of the Dallas Morning News sent me some questions in anticipation of the Jays' 4-game, 3-day series with the Rangers and, given the team's recent play, I gritted my teeth and answered them:

DMN: The Rangers last saw the Blue Jays in June. Give us an update on the club since then.

Hugo: Do I have to? Things haven't been pretty for the Jays since June. July saw the pitching stay strong but the hitting falter, and August saw some better hitting but very poor pitching, with even ace Roy Halladay struggling. The team's situational hitting has been very poor and its record in one-run games has been a disaster.

In terms of personnel, Roy Halladay is still a Jay, as the world saw with the drama that played out around the trade deadline. B.J. Ryan and Alex Rios, however, are not. The Jays ate Ryan's salary as a sunk cost but the Chicago White Sox opted to assume the six years remaining on Rios' salary. The Jays also traded Scott Rolen to the Cincinnati Reds for Edwin Encarnacion (who is presently nursing an injured hamstring) and two young pitchers, Zach Stewart and Josh Roenicke. Losing Rios and Rolen has hurt the Jays' defense, which in turn has hurt the Jays' pitching.

About the only bright spot since June has been the return of Travis Snider over the past two weeks. He hasn't lit up the league, but is hitting much better than he did in April before being returned to the minors.

DMN: Roy Halladay has not been as dominant since the trade deadline as he has the rest of the season. Is any of that hangover from not getting traded or is he just in a mini-slump based on the opponents he’s faced and that he was due for some minor bump in the road?

Hugo: Halladay isn't the type to let not getting traded affect his mental or physical preparation for games or his in-game focus, so I think it's just one of those things. He's been facing very good AL East offensive teams that have seen a ridiculous amount of Doc over the past many years, and every so often, teams like that are going to figure him out a little bit. Doc's walk and strikeou numbers have been as good as ever, so some of it is undoubtedly bad luck. It's actually refreshing in a way to be reminded that even Halladay is only human. That said, when Doc isn't himself and the Jays are struggling, it can be doubly painful because the team really depends on Doc to be the stopper.

DMN: Who has been the biggest surprise of the season for Toronto? The biggest disappointment?

Hugo: Designated hitter/left fielder Adam Lind and second baseman Aaron Hill have been fantastic stories. Both are young home-grown players that have shown potential in the past but really took it to the next level this season. But for me the biggest surprises have been shortstop Marco Scutaro and young lefthanded pitcher Ricky Romero. In Scutaro's case, I just can't remember a player his age undergoing such a drastic change in his game. He's been a fantastic leadoff hitter who has been impossible to keep off the bases, and played a splendid defensive shorstop as well. As for Romero, he had been the butt of a joke at General Manager J.P. Ricciardi's expense for so long people forgot that he was a first-round pick for a reason. Recently he's been struggling with his command, but unlike some of the other young Jays' pitchers, he won't need to be shut down to preserve his arm, so he should have a chance to turn it around in September.

As for the biggest disappointment, it's clearly Vernon Wells. Wells spent about a third of last season hurt, but he performed very well when he was in the lineup, at least at the plate. This season, though has been a disaster with poor play on both sides of the ball. He just hasn't been able to get going at all at the plate, and his defense has fallen off considerably from where it was. The fans have turned on him as well and home games can't be fun for Wells right now. I feel bad for him as his salary really shouldn't be held against him and he is clearly giving it his all, but the bottom line is that he has been one of the poorer everyday players in the league this season and a mid-market team like the Jays can't afford to carry a player like that, let alone at such an astronomical salary.

DMN: How has the bullpen performed the last month or so? What can Rangers fans expect in the late innings of close games?

Hugo: August hasn't been a good month for the bullpen. Scott Downs returned from the re-aggravation of a toe injury that had sidelined him earlier this season, but he hasn't gotten much work in since then and has been shaky when he has pitched. After a splendid July, Brandon League has had an ugly August and has generally been a bit of a mystery all season - he has more strikeouts than innings pitched and very few walks, numbers that should suggest dominance, especially considering his hard sinker known for inducing groundballs. Yet his ERA (presently 5.31) hasn't reflected that at all. Lefthanded batters have been the main culprit. Lefty Jesse Carlson and righty Jason Frasor have been the best relief pitchers recently, and I'd look for them late in close games at the moment.

DMN: Who are a few players to watch in this series?

Hugo: Travis Snider is the one to watch at the moment, at least from the Jays' fans perspective. The young slugger has struggled to make contact since being returned to the big club (he has struck out in over a third of his 46 plate appearances) but that has come from working the count more (8 walks in 12 games) as well as from his struggles to make contact so it's not all bad. Snider is only hitting .198 since returning, but he has gotten on base at a .348 clip and hit three home runs. The bottom line is that it's only been 12 games and he is still very much a work in progress, but one worth watching. Adam Lind is making a bid at a 30-home run season (he's got 25 right now), which would be a lovely milestone for the young hitter, while Hill has already reached that (he hit no. 31 on Friday).

DMN: Can you give us a scouting report on the starters the Rangers will face in this 4-game series packed into 3 days?

Hugo: Sure. Brett Cecil will pitch in tonight's game and it could well be his last start as he has about maxed out his innings between the majors and the minors this season. Cecil, like the Jays, was on his way to a very nice rookie season and had a spectacular July but August has not been kind. The young Marylander has really struggled with his command and has given up 2 home runs in each of his last two starts to boot. Cecil, a lefthander, has a good sinking fastball that he uses to induce groundballs, a very good slider, and a changeup and curve that have eluded him at times this season.

In Tuesday's doubleheader, Brian Tallet will start the first game. Tallet, essentially a career reliever prior to this season, stepped into the Jays' rotation early this season when it was decimated by injuries and did a credible job. This will be his first start since being returned to the bullpen in late July. Tallet is not a hard-thrower and relies on movement on his pitches and a good changeup.

Marc Rzepczynski (that's "Zep-Chin-Ski") will start the other game on Tuesday. Zep (as his teammates called him) is, like Cecil, a 2007 draftee and his emergence this season has been a nice surprise for the Jays. He's been quite good in his 10 starts, showing excellent movement on his pitches and good strikeout and groundball numbers. Like Cecil, he leans heavily on his fastball-slider combo and will occasionally struggle with his control.

Scott Richmond will pitch on Wednesday. Richmond is a great story as a 29-year old rookie who was pitching for the Edmonton Cracker Cats of the Independed League just a couple of seasons ago. Richmond started off the season fantastically but, like the Jays, has fallen on hard times recently. He was out for a few weeks with some inflammation in his throwing arm and hasn't been the same since returning. Richmond has shown a solid ability to miss bats (97 Ks in 106 IP) and limit walks, but he can occasionally get hit hard. He uses the traditional four pitches and is most effective when he is mixing them all in.

DMN: How do Blue Jays fans feel about the Rangers? Do they expect the team to make this wild card race interesting in the final month of the season?

Hugo: I hope they do. It's always fun to see a good wild-card race. Though I suppose there is some vested interest among Jays' fans in the wild card winner coming from the AL East, since Jays fans like to complain about how difficult the division is, a complaint that has a lot of truth.

DMN: Anything else Rangers fans should know about the Blue Jays?

Hugo: The past two months have really taken its toll on the psyche of the team's fans. Even after the Jays' hot start, fans expected the second half to be tough with so many games against the Yankees, Red Sox, and Rays, but things have been even rougher than anticipated with the team essentially winning 1/3 of their games for the past two months. The Jays have been bad over that period, but they haven't been nearly this bad either.

Home Runs by Aaron Hill and Rod Barajas not enough, Jays lose.

Tom Dakers — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 06:28:25 -0000

More photos » by Winslow Townson - AP

3 months ago: Toronto Blue Jays' Marco Scutaro, left, is examined by a trainer after being hit in the helmet with a pitch by Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Josh Beckett during the fourth inning of a baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Friday, Aug. 28, 2009. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

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Blue Jays 5 Red Sox 6

I guess the important thing about the game was that Marco Scutaro was hit in the head by a Josh Beckett pitch and left the game with a head contusion. Really, nothing else is important other than Marco be ok after that. John McDonald took Scoot's place and had a double in 2 at bats. Odds are we'll Mac out there the next few days.

Offensively we had 10 hits, 6 walks, 2 homers, one each for Aaron Hill and Rod Barajas. Hill had 3 hits. Everyone in the lineup had a hit except Randy Ruiz, Travis Snider and Jose Bautista, but they each had a walk. We also struck out 17 times. 17 strikeouts. 17.

Scott Richmond pitched 3 good innings before things went to hell in a hand-basket. He gave up 5 runs between the 4th and 5th innings. Richmond gave up a homer to fellow Canadian Jason Bay. Richmond left the game with it tied, but, like normal lately, the Jays couldn't score after that. Josh Roenicke pitched two very good scoreless innings, but Brian Tallet and Shawn Camp combined to give up the winning run in the 8th. They were helped out by Lyle Overbay kicking a possible double play ball, only getting one out on the play and letting the winning run score.

We did try to come back in the 9th against Jonathan Papelbon. After a Adam Lind strikeout, Overbay singled, Vernon Wells singled and a pitch brushed past Ruiz to load the bases but Barajas chased a pitch high out of the strike zone. Then Snider struck out (man was he ripped off on strike two) and the game was over. Part of the 17 strikeouts was the the umpires were trying to get the game in, in pouring rain. The strike zone was very wide at times, because finishing the game was important.

Jays of the Day are Roenicke (.167 WPA) and Hill (.223). I think Scoot deserves honorable mention. On the Suckage side with have Richmond (-.339), Snider (-.219), Bautista (-.102) and Camp (-.158).

I hated the end to that. I hate when games are finished in a rain that would have the game called if it earlier. I hate when the umpires want to get the game in so bad they open up the strike zone so the game finishes fast because they know game shouldn't be played.

Rod Barajas is the streakiest batter I've ever seen. A bit ago he was cold as a batter can get. Now he's had 3 home runs in his last 13 at bats. Hope he can keep it going for the rest of the season, he'll get a decent contract out of someone then, I might rather it not be us, but I hope he does ok.(

Tomorrow we have a 1:00 7:00 Eastern game with Ricky Romero (11-5, 3.91) going against Clay Buchholz (2-3, 5.02). Hope we have a better ending.

Jays Lose to Angels

Tom Dakers — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 00:55:28 -0000

More photos » by Darren Calabrese - AP

3 months ago: Toronto Blue Jays' Adam Lind watches his three-run home run during the third inning of baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels in Toronto on Saturday, Aug. 22, 2009. The Blue Jays lost to the Angels 7-3. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Darren Calabrese)

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Angels 7 Blue Jays 3

When you get 7 hits and 4 walks in 6 innings off a lousy starter you ought to score more than 3 runs. Adam Lind hit a three run homer and that was the end of our scoring. Randy Ruiz, Lyle Overbay, And Lind had two hits each. The o for group was Vernon Wells(one walk), Jose Bautista (who did have 2 walks) and Rod Barajas (but then I've already ranted about him. Vernon was caught stealing after his walk, a stupid moment to try to steal as Bautista was walked right after he was caught. Trying to steal when you could have just walked over to second is dumb.

Scott Richmond pitched pretty well. 7 innings, 6 hits, 3 walks and 10 strikeouts. He did give up 3 runs in the 3rd and 1 more in the 6th on a Vladimir Guerrero homer. He was hurt in the 3rd by a caught that Adam Lind didn't make in left. Ball hits the glove but he didn't catch it and for some reason he wasn't award an error. Brian Tallet pitched a terrible inning of relief, giving up 3 runs and that was the game.

Jay of the Day is Adam Lind (.222 WPA). Suckage Jays are Tallet (-.213), Barajas (-.193) and Vernon (-.117).

Tomorrow Ricky Romero (10-5, 3.95) goes up against Trevor Bell (1-0, 5.91) in an afternoon game.

My wife's birthday party was much more fun than the game. You'd figure by now she'd realize she's too good for me, wouldn't you?

In 7-5 win, who needs to manufacture runs when the short porch is on our side?

CrazyYankeeChick — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 03:37:36 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP

At Melky's 25th birthday party, he treated his guests to 2 RBIs, while Kevin Long makes his case for a hefty bonus.

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"Greatness's New Home" (TM Michael Kay) may soon be giving Fenway a run for its money in the Ultimate Home Field Advantage Showdown. For the third game in a row, the Yankees' offense featured back-to-back long balls. But what's even more significant is that in each b2b incident, the one of those shots was to tie the game.

(Robinson Cano's blast yesterday brought the game within 1 and Jerry Hairston Jr. was the one who tied it. Today and Sunday's first blast of the one-two punches were to tie the game, with the second shot putting the Yankees ahead.)

I like manufacturing runs as much as the next guy, but tonight's win over the Blue Jays was the 8th Yankee win in the last 9 games, and it looks like our boys are bringing the balance of offense and defense down to a formulaic science.

After the first 3 innings, the Yankees convinced us they were going to spend the rest of the night batting Scott Richmond around, like he's one of the half dead field mice my parents' cat drags home for his amusement. He'll swat it around the house for a few hours, get bored with it, and when the mouse tries to limp out the door, the cat'll deliver the final blow, which could range from biting his head off to just beating it into flatlined submission. I guess the Yankees are a little like that cat these days.

They tagged Richmond for 3 runs in the first 2 innings RBIs from Mark Teixeira and Jorge Posada, and a sac fly off Melky Cabrera's bat. I've said it before, and I'll say it again: there's no bottom of the order on this team, and any pitcher that goes up against this lineup is no less terrified than a new freshman shakily gripping his lunch tray as he walks into the cafeteria, completely dumbfounded with respect to his next move.

Richmond was dealing after the 3rd inning, though, and stifled the Yanks long enough for the Jays to come back with 4 runs of their own. Lyle Overbay's 3-run double in the 3rd tied it up, and Ruiz took Joba Chamberlain deep shortly thereafter to put NY in a 5-4 deficit. Joba's outing fell somewhere in between his most recent starts and his earlier ones, as he gave up 5 hits and settled for the no-decision.

When the game was on the line, to a certain degree, the Yankees capitalized on their new Bronx home. Hideki Matsui and Posada's consecutive blasts, of course, fell right over the now notorious right field wall. People can complain about this all they want, but the fact remains that the wall stays the same height whether the home team or visitors are batting.

But here's what this game really spotlighted for me: as voracious as their offense has been, their defense has been just as good--but more than this, it's that both have been at their best when their best is what was needed. A bullpen that's had a worse reputation than Courtney Love has been virtually flawless. To put things in perspective, our pitchers have the lowest ERA in the American League since the ASB, at 3.62.

Our offense has the 2nd best BA in the entire league.

Every team has holes in their game. But the Yankees have been doing something that I haven't seen from them in years--they're tailoring their game to the situation at hand. And when you play like that, any discernible vulnerability progressively diminishes.

The Yankees aren't just winning.

They're becoming harder and harder to beat.

-CYC

Sometimes the Pen wins one for and sometimes they lose one for you, today was the latter: Jays lose to Yankees

Tom Dakers — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 03:06:06 -0000

More photos » by Kathy Willens - AP

4 months ago: New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada waits for the throw as Toronto Blue Jays Adam Lind (26) scores on Lyle Overbay's third inning, three-run double in their baseball game at Yankee Stadium Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

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Blue Jays 5 Yankees 7

Other than the 4 run 8th against our pen that was a fun game, but other than running into the iceberg I'm sure the Titanic was a nice cruise. Jesse Carlson pitched a good inning yesterday but today not so much. A leadoff homer by Hideki Matsui on a full count pitch, that he just crushed, tied the game. Then a Yankee Stadium special that just barely cleared the wall and Joe Inglett's glove in right gave the Yankees the lead. An out and a double later and Josh Roenicke was in the game. A couple of singles off him and we were down by 3.

Scott Richmond had a tough first couple of innings, giving up two runs in the first. that could have been much worse if Mark Teixeira hadn't tried to score from first on a double. Vernon Wells threw him out by 20 feet or so. In the second Richmond gave up another run but got of the inning with the bases loaded, so that could have been worse too. After that he pitched 4 innings allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk.

Offensively we got 5 runs on 7 hits, helped out by homers by Randy Ruiz and Edwin Encarnacion. Ruiz looked over-matched at the plate other than his homer. Lyle Overbay had the really big hit, a bases clearing double that brought us back from 3-0.

Joe Inglett made a great catch at the wall in the 5th, if he was 6 inches taller he would have had two great catches today and Encarnacion made a diving stop then threw out the runner at second from a seated position. If he keeps playing like this we are going to have to rethink the E5 nickname.

Jays of the Day are Overbay (.179 WPA), Jeremy Accardo (.110) and Richmond. Suckage Jays are Carlson (-.563) and Vernon Wells (-.099). Wells is borderline as far as the number were concerned and did throw a runner out at the plate, but trying to pull outside pitches in a park where if he goes with the ball and gets it in the air at all it can go out.

Tomorrow at 1:00 Eastern we have the rubber game of the series, with Ricky Romero (10-5, 3.66) going up against A.J. Burnett (10-5, 3.67). I don't remember a game where both pitchers had the same record and where just .01 apart in ERA before. It should be a good one.

In other Jay news they now intend to have Shawn Marcum finish the season in the minors, instead of bringing him up later this month as they earlier planed.

"He's healthy," Ricciardi said. "There's nothing wrong with him, but there's no reason to rush him. He's going to pitch next year for us. He'll be like 17 months post-op at that time. He feels good. We'll probably just keep throwing him, but there's really probably no need to get him to the big leagues at this point.

I'm glad, I don't see that anything will be gained by bringing him up now. Unless, of course, they were to release Millar to make room for him.

3 hours to game time

Tom Dakers — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 16:06:33 -0000

And Roy Halladay is still a Jay. But then I won't breathe a sigh of relief until I see him on the mound. I think twitter is allowing rumors to run more wild than they normally would. Someone twitters a guess and it's everywhere in a few moments. The one I just saw has Cliff Lee going to the Phillies for not near enough, so I don't believe that one either. I think, at the moment, if Doc goes it will be to the Red Sox, just because I think the Sox are worried about the little slump they are in and hope that a big deal would end it.

We saw Shaun Marcum and Scott Richmond on the Jay's bench yesterday. It took me a few moments to recognize Marcum. I guess he'll travel with the team for a bit. Richmond is to start Friday, and took Dirk Hayhurst spot in the line up. I feel sorry for Dirk but that's life as someone in the back of the bullpen, I'm sure he'll be back in September if not before.

Jordan Bautian says that last night was Ichiro's first career walk off hit. He's pretty amazing, he barely swung the bat, jus enough to drop it between the infield and the outfield. I thought at first that Scoot or Hill would have a shot at it.

I'm going to wander over to IHOP for breakfast. One of my favorite things about being on this side of the border is IHOP, if we had them in Calgary I'd be 50 pound heavier. Then spend an hour or so looking at book stores and then sit in the 100 F heat at the game. One of the ushers told us that they likely will close the roof for the game today. Hope so.