The Year of the Blue Jay: A Cybernetic Dynasty v2.0

[cybernetic]

Comeback Comes Up Short as Jays Fall to Yankees

April 28, 2006 - Game 21/162

Game 1/3: Toronto Blue Jays (15-5) @ New York Yankees (10-10)

New York Yankees 6, Toronto Blue Jays 4

Derek Jeter and Gary Sheffield both homer in the 3rd off Chacin.

From the beginning of the game, Gustavo Chacin didn't seem sharp, but he didn't get hit really hard until the third. With two runners on, Derek Jeter connected for a home run into the left-field bleachers to make it 3-0. The next batter, Alex Rodriguez, was hit by a pitch setting up a Gary Sheffield at-bat where he also homered putting the Jays in a deep 5-0 hole. One of the five runs was unearned as the first runner, Robinson Cano, reached on an error to third baseman Troy Glaus. In the sixth, the Jays begun clawing their way back. Frank Catalanotto worked a nine pitch at-bat out of Wang that he got a single out of. Vernon Wells then stepped up and hit the second pitch from Wang in his at-bat out for a two-run home run. A couple batters later, Lyle Overbay also hit a two-run bomb, this one completely left the ball park in right-field, making it 5-4. That was as close as it would get, however, as the Yankees would add another in the bottom of the eighth on a Hideki Matsui sac-fly to make it 6-4 and that would be the final score.

Gustavo Chacin (2-2) took the loss going just four and a third innings. He allowed five runs, four of which were earned on five hits. Chien-Ming Wang (1-2) got the win going 7 innings allowing four runs on nine hits. Mariano Rivera picked up his fourth save with a perfect ninth inning.

Clubhouse Talk:

"I didn't have it today and it was obvious. For me, when my command is not good I leave pitches up and give up a lot of home runs." - Gustavo Chacin

"We're going through a tough stretch here against some tough teams. You can't keep up the same level of success we had early in the season throughout the whole season." - John Gibbons

Scoring plays:

3rd:

NYY-

Derek Jeter homers (3). Robinson Cano scores. Johnny Damon scores.

Gary Sheffield homers (2). Alex Rodriguez scores.

6th:

TOR-

Vernon Wells homers (. Frank Catalanotto scores.

Lyle Overbay homers (3). Shea Hillenbrand scores.

8th:

NYY-

Hideki Matsui out on a sacrifice fly. Alex Rodriguez scores.

Jays' Box:




  Player		Pos   AB R H RBI BB SO  AVG


------------------------------------------------


1 Rios		  RF	 4 0 1   0  0  1 .311


2 Catalanotto   LF	 4 1 1   0  0  0 .318


3 Wells		 CF	 4 1 1   2  0  0 .279


4 Glaus		 3B	 4 1 3   0  0  0 .253


  Hinske		PR-3B  0 0 0   0  0  0 .059


5 Overbay	   1B	 4 1 1   2  0  1 .231


6 Hillenbrand   DH	 4 0 2   0  0  1 .318


7 Zaun		  C	  4 0 0   0  0  1 .283


8 Adams		 2B	 4 0 1   0  0  1 .368


9 Hill		  SS	 4 0 0   0  0  1 .234




2B: Glaus (1, Wang), Catalanotto (6, Wang)


HR: Wells (8, Wang) Overbay (3, Wang)


RBI: Wells 2 (15), Overbay 2 (6)




E: Glaus (2, fielding)




--------------------------------------------------




Pitching Lines:




TOR				   IP   H  R ER BB SO HR  ERA


Chacin (L 2-2)		4.1  5  5  4  0  4  2  1.82


Walker				1.0  0  0  0  0  1  0  0.00


Downs				 1.1  3  0  0  0  1  0  2.31


Rosario			   0.1  0  1  1  1  0  0  4.26


Speier				0.0  1  0  0  0  0  0  0.00


Schoeneweis		   1.0  1  0  0  0  0  0  0.00


--------------------------------------------------


NYY				   IP   H  R ER BB SO HR  ERA


Wang				  7.0  9  4  4  0  3  2  6.16


Chacon				1.0  1  0  0  0  1  0  2.70


Rivera (S 4)		  1.0  0  0  0  0  2  0  0.00


--------------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0	 4 10 1


NYY 0 0 5 0 0 0 0 1 x	 6 10 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  15-6  -----


2  NYY  11-10   4


-  TB   12-11   4


4  BOS  11-12   5


5  BAL   8-16  8 ½

Transactions:

None.

Outlook:

Roy Halladay (1-2) will take on Carl Pavano (1-0) as the Jays try to even the series. There may be a shake up to the lineup coming as the Jays have now lost three of their last six games.

[cybernetic]

Jays stymied by Pavano, lose 2nd straight

April 29, 2006 - Game 22/162

Game 2/3: Toronto Blue Jays (15-6) @ New York Yankees (11-10)

New York Yankees 3, Toronto Blue Jays 0

Above: Hideki Matsui scores on a sac-fly in the 7th.

Right: Carl Pavano does a first pump after the victory.

The Jays failed to get much of anything going against Yankees starter Carl Pavano (2-0). He scattered four hits over a complete game shutout. Roy Halladay didn't pitch badly and gave up seven hits (all singles) and three runs in the loss (1-3). He also threw a complete game. The Yankees scored twice in the 7th on a sac-fly and a single, and again on a single in the 8th.

Clubhouse Talk:

"It's just one of those games where you pitch well but they get a lot of seeing-eye singles and beat you." - Roy Halladay

"He's had 2 tough-luck losses this season and a couple games where he left with a no decision in a tie-game. We just haven't given him much runs to work with this season for whatever reason." - John Gibbons

Scoring plays:

7th:

NYY-

Hideki Matsui scores on a sac-fly by Johnny Damon.

Bernie Williams scores on a single by Derek Jeter.

8th:

NYY-

Gary Sheffield scores on a single by Bernie Williams.

Jays' Box:




  Player		


------------------------------------------------


1 Adams, 2B		0-4, K, .347


2 Rios, RF		 1-4, K, .309


3 Wells, CF		0-4, .267 


4 Glaus, 3B		0-4, .244


5 Overbay, 1B	  1-3, .235


6 Hillenbrand, DH  1-3, .319


7 Catalanotto, LF  1-3, 2B(7), .319


  Johnson, LF	  -


8 Zaun, C		  0-3, K, .268


9 Hill, SS		 0-3, K, .225




2B: Catalanotto (7, Pavano)




E: Hill (1, throw), Glaus (3, throw)




--------------------------------------------------




Pitching Lines:




TOR:


Halladay (L, 1-3) - 8.0IP, 9H, 3 ER, 0BB, 8K, 3.55 ERA




NYY:


Pavano (W, 2-0) - 9.0IP, 4H, 0ER, 0BB, 4K, 1.40 ERA




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0	 0  4 2


NYY 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 x	 3  9 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  15-7  -----


2  NYY  12-10   3


-  TB   13-11   3


4  BOS  11-13   5


5  BAL   9-16  7 ½

Transactions:

None.

Outlook:

The Jays will try to avoid the sweep tomorrow but it will be tall task with Yankees ace Randy Johnson (4-0) on the hill. Southpaw Ted Lilly (3-1) will get the job of stopping them.

[KCBQ11]

Tough loss. Yankees are a good team. I always have trouble with Pavano too.

[cybernetic]

Jays Rally Off Rivera to Avoid Sweep

April 30, 2006 - Game 23/162

Game 3/3: Toronto Blue Jays (15-7) @ New York Yankees (12-10)

Toronto Blue Jays 3, New York Yankees 2

Derk Jeter and Alex Rodriguez went back-to-back in the 1st off Ted Lilly.

Things looked grim early on as the Jays couldn't manage a hit off Randy Johnson until the 5th. Ted Lilly got into trouble very early on and gave up back-to-back home runs to Derek Jeter (4) and Alex Rodriguez (5). He settled down from there and didn't allow another run in the outing. Troy Glaus busted up Johnson's no-hit bid in the fifth with a lead off single, Shea Hillenbrand would then ground into a double play. Bengie Molina would then step up and take Johnson out to deep left-field on a hanging slider. Johnson would leave after seven innings with his team up 2-1. Shawn Chacon would the pitch a scoreless inning setting up the stage for Mariano Rivera to get his fifth save. Ted Lilly would get into trouble in the bottom of the eighth giving up a walk and a single with two outs, which signaled the end for him. Jason Frasor then got Jeter to ground out to end the frame.

Mariano Rivera came on to pitch the ninth and was immediately greeted by a double ( by pinch-hitter Frank Catalanotto. Russ Adams would then pinch-hit and single to left-field.. Hideki Matsui would throw the ball home and throw it away allowing Catalanotto to score and Adams to get to second. After Reed Johnson flied out, Alex Rios would then single to drive in Adams and give the Jays the lead. B.J. Ryan would take down the Yankees in order to secure his ninth save and the victory for the Jays. Reliever Jason Frasor got the win (2-0) while Rivera fell to 0-1 with the loss.

Clubhouse Talk:

"I felt good and I wanted to get a win there so bad but I just tired out at the end and couldn't stay in to pick it up." - Ted Lilly

"The situation looked grim there with Randy on the hill and having to face Rivera trailing in the ninth but we got it done and came away with a victory here." - John Gibbons

Scoring plays:

1st:

NYY-

Derek Jeter homers (4).

Alex Rodriguez homers (5).

5th:

TOR-

Bengie Molina homers (4).

9th:

TOR-

Russ Adams singles, throwing error to Hideki Matsui. Frank Catalanotto scores. Adams to 2nd.

Alex Rios singles. Russ Adams scores.

Jays' Box:




  Player		


------------------------------------------------


1 Johnson, LF		0-4, 2K's, .267


2 Rios, RF		   1-4, RBI(18), .306


3 Wells, CF		  0-4, .255


4 Glaus, 3B		  1-4, .244


5 Hillenbrand, 1B	0-3, K, .306


6 Molina, C		  1-3, HR(4), RBI(7), .289


7 Zaun, DH		   0-3, K, .254


8 Hill, 2B		   0-2, .220


  Catalanotto, PH-2B 1-1, 2B(8), .220


9 McDonald, SS	   0-2, K, .077


  Adams, PH-SS	   1-1, .356




--------------------------------------------------




Pitching Lines:




TOR:


Lilly - 7.2IP, 4H, 2ER, BB, 5K, 2HRA, 2.72 ERA


Frasor (W, 2-0) - 0.1IP, 0H, 0ER, 0BB, 0K, 5.00 ERA


Ryan (S, 9) - 1.0 IP, 0H, 0ER, 0BB, K, 2.31 ERA




NYY:


Johnson - 7.0IP, 2H, ER, 0BB, 6K, HRA, 1.97 ERA


Chacon - 1.0IP, 0H, 0ER, 0BB, 0K, 2.45 ERA


Rivera (BS, 1) (L, 0-1) - 1.0IP, 3H, 2R, ER, 0BB, K, 3.00 ERA




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 2	 3  5 0


NYY 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0	 2  4 1


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  16-7  -----


2  TB   14-11   3


3  NYY  12-11   4


4  BOS  11-14   6


5  BAL   9-17  8 ½

Transactions:

TOR places LHP David Purcey (AAA) on the 15-day DL (hamstring).

Outlook:

The Jays open a 2-game series in Baltimore tomorrow. Josh Towers and Gustavo Chacin will be the starters for the Jays. The starters for Baltimore will be Bruce Chen and Erik Bedard.

[cybernetic]

Team Leaders


CAT	BATTER	AMT


AVG	Russ Adams	.356


HR	Vernon Wells	8


RBI	Alex Rios	18


R	Russ Adams	15


SB	Aaron Hill	4


CAT	PITCHER	AMT


W	Ted Lilly	3


Sv	B.J. Ryan	9


SHO	Gustavo Chacin	1


ERA	Gustavo Chacin	1.85


SO	Roy Halladay	38


K/9	Roy Halladay	9.00


BB/9	Gustavo Chacin	0.00

[cybernetic]

Balls Fly as Jays Hammer O's

May 1, 2006 - Game 24/162

Game 1/2: Toronto Blue Jays (16-7) @ Baltimore Orioles (9-17)

Toronto Blue Jays 11, Baltimore Orioles 1

Lyle Overbay and Javy Lopez exchanged homers in the 2nd.

The Jays jumped on Bruce Chen early with Lyle Overbay hitting a home run (4) in the second inning to open the scoring. Javy Lopez answered quickly in the bottom of the frame with a solo shot of his own (4) to tie the game. Russ Adams stepped up in the third and homered (3) to give the Jays a 2-1 lead. After a Reed Johnson single, Vernon Wells would hammer a two-run shot (9) to extend the lead to 5-1. Wells would add an RBI single in the fifth to make it 6-1. In the eighth, Shea Hillenbrand hit a two-run shot of his own (5) making it 7-1. Lyle Overbay hit his second home run of the game (5) in the ninth making it 8-1. Alex Rios added an RBI single and followed up with Vernon Wells' second homer of the game (10) making it 11-1 which would be the final.

In all the Jays hit six home runs, surprisingly without Troy Glaus in the lineup as he got the day off. Josh Towers pitched a complete game allowing just one run on seven hits in the win (3-1). Bruce Chen got the loss (0-4) as he allowed five runs on seven hits. Hayden Penn was also roughed up, in two innings of relief he allowed six runs including three home runs. Vernon Wells is now tied for the AL lead with 10 homers.

Clubhouse Talk:

"For whatever reason we just were hammering the ball out tonight and taking advantage of their mistakes." - Vernon Wells

"That big come from behind win last night really sparked the offense and it continued today." - John Gibbons

3 Stars

3. Josh Towers (CG, 7H, 1ER, W)

2. Lyle Overbay (2 HR's)

1. Vernon Wells (2 HR's, 2B, 5 RBI)

Scoring plays:

2nd:

TOR-

Lyle Overbay homers (4).

BAL-

Javy Lopez homers (4).

3rd:

TOR-

Russ Adams homers (3).

Vernon Wells homers (9). Reed Johnson scores.

5th:

TOR-

Vernon Wells singles. Alex Rios scores.

8th:

TOR-

Shea Hillenbrand homers (5). Vernon Wells scores.

9th:

TOR-

Lyle Overbay homers (5).

Alex Rios singles. Russ Adams scores.

Vernon Wells homers (10). Alex Rios scores.

Jays' Box:




  Player		


------------------------------------------------


1 Johnson, LF		2-5, R, SB(1), .286


2 Rios, RF		   2-5, 2 R's, SB(4), RBI(19), .311


3 Wells, CF		  3-5, 2 HR(10), 2B(5), 5 RBI(20), 3 R's, .283


4 Hillenbrand, 3B	1-5, HR(5), 2 RBI(11), .299


5 Molina, C		  0-4, .262


6 Zaun, DH		   0-3, .242


  Hinske, PH-DH	  0-1, .056


7 Overbay, 1B		2-4, 2 HR(5), 2 RBI(8), .247


8 McDonald, SS	   0-4, .059


9 Adams, 2B		  2-4, 2 R's, HR(3), 2B(9), RBI(7), .364




--------------------------------------------------




Pitching Lines:




TOR:


Towers (W, 3-1) - 9.0IP, 7H, ER, HRA, 0BB, 4K's, 1HBP, 2.50 ERA




NYY:


Chen (L, 0-4) - 7.0IP, 7H, 5ER, 3HRA, 0BB, 2K, 5.13 ERA


Penn - 2.0IP, 6H, 6ER, 3HRA, 0BB, K, 9.58 ERA




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 1 3 0 1 0 0 2 4	11 13 0


BAL 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0	 1  7 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  17-7  -----


2  TB   14-12   4


3  NYY  12-12   5


4  BOS  12-14   6


5  BAL   9-18  9 ½

Transactions:

None.

Outlook:

Rookie Casey Janssen (1-0) will make his second major league start as the Jays look for the sweep. Lefty Erik Bedard (3-1) will take the mound for the Orioles. Bedard took the loss in his last meeting against the Blue Jays.

[Roy31]

Wowwie Wells just kills chen. Chen is probably one of my most favorite lefties to against. Nice to see Johnny Mac get some playing time, Has been much better than Adams at short?

Eww Hinske that bum, I think you still need a bat on the bench for key situations and if you ask me Hinske is a bum.

[cybernetic]

Jays Outslug O's, Sweep Series

May 2, 2006 - Game 25/162

Game 2/2: Toronto Blue Jays (17-7) @ Baltimore Orioles (9-18)

Toronto Blue Jays 12, Baltimore Orioles 10

Above: Lyle Overbay ties the game with a 2-run shot in the 2nd.

Right: Kevin Millar gives the O's back the lead with a solo homer in the bottom of the inning.

The Jays swept the Orioles with an all-out slugfest taking the game 12-10 in the series finale. With such a high score it was clear that none of the pitching was very good. Miguel Tejada opened the scoring in the bottom of the first hitting an RBI-single, Javy Lopez would also sac-fly in the inning making it 2-0. Lyle Overbay would step up in the second and hit a two-run shot to tie the game with one swing of the bat. However, it was short-lived as Kevin Millar hit a solo home run of his own to give the Orioles back a 3-2 lead. The Jays would tie at 3-3 with a single from Aaron Hill in the fourth. The Orioles would then blow the game open with a 3-run shot from Brian Roberts in the bottom of the frame to chase rookie starter Casey Janssen with the game 6-3. Janssen went just 3 2/3 innings allowing six runs on seven hits.

In the sixth, Vernon Wells hit an RBI-single to make it 6-4. The Red Sox then extended the lead to 8-4 with a 2-run shot off the bat of Javy Lopez. The Jays would come roaring back again with a solo shot (6) from Shea Hillenbrand to make it 8-4. The Jays offense would explode in the seventh, adding 5 runs on 3 home runs (Vernon Wells's 11th, Shea Hillenbrand's 7th and Lyle Overbay's 7th) to take a 10-8 lead. Again, the lead would be short-lived as Jay Gibbons hit a 2-run home run in the bottom of the frame to tie the game at 10. In the eighth, the Jays would retake the lead for good with a pinch-hit home run from Frank Catalanotto and an RBI-single from Vernon Wells making it 12-10. Justin Speier and B.J. Ryan would close it out for Ryan's 10th save.

Justin Speier got the win (2-0) in 2 scoreless innings of work. Fredy Deza got the loss (1-1) for the Orioles. The Jays tied a season-high with 6 home runs in a game which they also hit last night.

Clubhouse Talk:

"We should play every night in Baltimore, we just hammer the ball there." - Vernon Wells

"I like the way our offence is going but our pitchers haven't gotten the job done lately. We need to straight that out if we're going to contend in the long run." - John Gibbons

"That team is scary, they just hammer our pitching." - Jay Gibbons (Outfielder, Baltimore)

Offense:




Toronto:


--------


V.Wells		  HR(11), 4 RBI(24)


S.Hillenbrand	2 HR(7), 3 RBI(14)


L.Overbay		2 HR(7), 3 RBI(11)


F.Catalanotto	HR(2)


A.Hill		   RBI(8)




Baltimore:


----------


B.Roberts		HR(7), 3 RBI(17)


J.Lopez		  HR(5), 3 RBI(12)


J.Gibbons		HR(6), 2 RBI(19)


K.Millar		 HR(5)


M.Tejada		 RBI(9)




Pitching Lines:




TOR:


Pitcher			 IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


-----------------------------------------------


C.Janssen		   3.2  7  6  6  2  0  2  3.46


F.Rosario		   1.1  3  2  2  1  0  0  5.87


J.Frasor			1.0  1  1  1  0  0  0  5.40


S.Schoeneweis	   0.0  1  1  1  0  0  0  1.50


J.Speier (W, 1-0)   2.0  0  0  0  0  0  2  0.00


B.Ryan (S, 10)	  1.0  1  0  0  0  0  0  2.13


-----------------------------------------------


BAL:


E.Bedard			6.0 11  5  5  2  0  2  3.46


B.Burres			0.2  5  5  5  3  0  0  5.93


A.Loewen			0.1  1  0  0  0  0  0  4.29


F.Deza (L, 1-1)	 2.0  5  2  2  1  1  1  2.79


-----------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 2 0 1 1 1 5 2 0	12 22 0


BAL 2 1 0 3 2 0 2 0 0	10 13 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  18-7  -----


2  TB   15-12   4


3  NYY  13-12   5


4  BOS  12-15   7


5  BAL   9-19  10 ½

3 stars:

1. Vernon Wells

2. Shea Hillenbrand

3. Brian Roberts

Transactions:

Placed LHP Chi-Hung Cheng (A) on the 15-day D.L.

Outlook:

The Jays head to Boston (12-15) for a quick 2-game series. The Jays will go with Gustavo Chacin (2-2) and Roy Halladay (1-3) on the hill in the series.

G.M. on the Team:

"We have a good team, our pitching is just not doing it right now. I'm going to make some moves in the near future to shore that up. There's nothing really available on the trade front at the moment but I'll do something soon"

[cybernetic]

I've made the move:

-RP Brandon League recalled from AAA

-RP Francisco Rosario sent down to AAA, will spot start until David Purcey comes off DL

-SP Ty Taubenheim was demoted to AA and has been put in the rotation there

-SP Davis Romero was moved to the bullpen to make room for him

-RP Jason Arnold released from AA (108.00 ERA there)

[cybernetic]

May 3rd Jays/Red Sox game rained out. It will be played as doubleheader on the 4th.

[cybernetic]

I've swung a deal with the Cleveland Indians trading SP Josh Towers for RP Fernando Carbera. Cabrera will help shore up the bullpen and pitch in middle relief. For the time being, Scott Downs will take the rotation spot of Towers (hopefully until Burnett comes off the DL in about a month). I've also decided that Downs will start the 2nd game of the doubleheader, pushing back Halladay to the first game against the LA Angels this weekend.

[Roy31]

Not bad deal, Nice to see you at least got something for Josh Towering Home Runs Towers. Maybe take a screenshot of Cabreras ratings?

[cybernetic]

Cabrera has an 0.61 ERA in 15 innings and 17 K's for Cleveland.. I don't know why they had him on the block. Another deal I just acquired OF John Rodriguez from St. Louis's AAA team for RP Vinnie Chulk (AAA). Rodriguez will play in AAA for the time being but could come up quick if I move an outfielder.

[cybernetic]

From the scouting report I have of him is that he throws a fastball in the mid-90s... a hard breaking splitter/forkball. He also has a slider and change which are said to be developing meaning he doesn't have great command of them. He's a high-strikeout pitcher though.

[Roy31]

Nice, splitters rock. Looks like got a couple of kick *** relievers

[cybernetic]

I'm going to play the doubleheader tomorrow.. it's getting late here. On a dynasty note.. the starters for Boston will be Matt Clement and Jon Papelbon. I roughed up Clement earlier in the season but haven't faced Papelbon yet.

[cybernetic]

I have voided the final years of the contracts for Frank Catalanotto, Eric Hinske (final 2), Gregg Zaun and Scott Schoeneweis meaning they are eligible for free agency following the season. This will also make it easier to move them if I want to.

[cybernetic]

Jays Fall to Sox in first game of doubleheader

May 4, 2006 - Game 26/162

Game 1/2: Toronto Blue Jays (18-7) @ Boston Red Sox (12-15)

Boston Red Sox 5, Toronto Blue Jays 2

The Jays failed to get much going offensively Matt Clement was on his game. Jays starter Gustavo Chacin, on the other hand, was not very sharp. The Jays got on the board first in the 2nd as Eric Hinske singled to drive in Lyle Overbay who tripled to lead off the inning. The Red Sox answered quickly though as Chacin got into a lot of trouble in the 3rd, loading the bases for Mark Loretta who hit a grand slam over the green monster to give the home team a 4-1 lead and they didn't look back. They would a solo home run from Mike Lowell in the 4th and take the game 5-2. Lyle Overbay hit a solo home run in the 6th to make it somewhat interesting. He was the offensive star for the Blue Jays going 3-for-4 falling a double short of the cycle.

Clubhouse Talk:

"The funny part is that I'm known as a great doubles hitter and that's the one I couldn't get for the cycle." - Lyle Overbay

"I was upset on the play there in the 4th when Frank Catalanotto was called out on a play that looked from where I was standing that he was safe. I had to voice my opinion to the umpires and hope they'd meet and maybe overturn but instead I got ejected." - Manager John Gibbons

Jays BoxScore




Batter			  AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO  AVG


--------------------------------------------------


1 R.Adams, 2B		4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .360


2 A.Rios, RF		 4 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .301


3 V.Wells, CF		4 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  2 .296


4 T.Glaus, 3B		4 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  1 .245


5 L.Overbay, 1B	  4 2 3  0  1  1   1  0  0 .287


6 F.Catalanotto, LF  4 0 1  1  0  0   0  0  0 .342


7 E.Hinske, DH	   4 0 2  0  0  0   1  0  0 .136


8 G.Zaun, C		  4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .242


9 A.Hill, SS		 4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .211




2B: F.Catalanotto(9)


HR: L.Overbay(8)


RBI: E.Hinske(2), L.Overbay(12)




--------------------------------------------------




TOR:


Pitcher			 IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


-----------------------------------------------


G.Chacin (L, 2-3)   5.1  5  5  5  2  0  4  3.00


B.League			2.0  2  0  0  0  1  2  0.00


S.Schoeneweis	   0.0  0  0  0  0  1  0  1.50


J.Frasor			0.2  0  0  0  0  0  0  5.05


-----------------------------------------------


BOS:


M.Clement (W, 2-2)  7.0  8  2  2  1  0  1  5.27


C.Hansen			1.0  0  0  0  0  0  2  9.00


K.Foulke (S, 5)	 1.0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1.69


-----------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 0	 2  8 0


BOS 0 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 x	 5  7 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  18-8  -----


2  TB   15-12  3 ½


3  NYY  13-12  5 ½


4  BOS  13-15   6


5  BAL   9-19  10 ½

3 stars:

1. Mark Loretta (HR, 4 RBI)

2. Lyle Overbay (3/4, 3B, HR)

3. Mike Lowell (HR)

Transactions:

TOR acquires RP Fernando Cabrera from CLE for SP Josh Towers.

TOR acquires OF John Rodriguez from STL for RP Vinnie Chulk (AAA); assigned to AAA.

TOR acquires 1B James Loney from LAD for RP Jim Bullard; assigned to AA.

Outlook:

Scott Downs (1-0) will take on young phenom Jon Papelbon (1-1) in the series finale.

[Roy31]

I think its safe to say your sitting comfortable. This loss doesnt look like it means much since your division counterparts are all off to slow starts by the looks of it.

[cybernetic]

Jays swept in doubleheader

May 4, 2006 - Game 27/162

Game 2/2: Toronto Blue Jays (18- @ Boston Red Sox (13-15)

Boston Red Sox 5, Toronto Blue Jays 3

Both games in the doubleheader were eerily similiar. A Jays starter didn't fare well and the Red Sox scored five runs which was enough to win the game. The Jays opened the scoring with a solo home run from Vernon Wells in the top of the first. The Red Sox quickly tied with a solo shot of their own from Mark Loretta. The Sox would then jump out to 4-1 lead with a 3-run shot from rookie Dustin Pedroia. The Jays would get to Papelbon in the 5th with a solo home run from Aaron Hill and an RBI double from Vernon Wells to make it 4-3. The Jays wouldn't be able to get anything else going for the rest of the game and would lose 5-3. The fifth run was scored on a bases loaded sac-fly off the bat of Coco Crisp in the 8th.

Clubhouse Talk:

"I just was just missing my spots and I don't throw very hard so when I miss I have to throw a fastball over the plate and I was getting rocked." - Scott Downs

"The Red Sox are tough team despite their losing record up to this point. I think they'll start making a run at us soon." - Manager John Gibbons

Jays BoxScore




Batter			  AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO  AVG


--------------------------------------------------


1 R.Adams, 2B		5 0 2  1  0  0   0  0  2 .363


2 A.Rios, RF		 5 1 1  0  0  0   0  0  1 .297


3 V.Wells, CF		5 1 2  1  0  1   2  0  0 .301


4 T.Glaus, 3B		4 0 2  0  0  0   0  0  0 .255


5 L.Overbay, 1B	  4 0 1  1  0  0   0  0  1 .286


6 S.Hillenbrand, DH  4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .302


  1-E.Hinske, PR-DH  0 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .136


7 B.Molina, C		4 0 1  1  0  0   0  0  0 .294


8 R.Johnson, LF	  4 0 1  1  0  0   0  0  1 .279


9 A.Hill, SS		 3 1 1  0  0  1   1  1  0 .215




1-Ran for S.Hillenbrand in the 8th.




2B: R.Adams(10), V.Wells(7), L.Overbay(4), B.Molina(2), R.Johnson(4)


HR: V.Wells(12), A.Hill(2)


RBI: V.Wells 2(26), A.Hill(9)




--------------------------------------------------




TOR:


Pitcher			 IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


-----------------------------------------------


S.Downs (L, 1-1)	4.0  8  4  4  2  1  3  4.01


P.Walker			2.0  2  0  0  0  0  2  0.00


F.Cabrera		   1.1  3  1  1  0  1  0  1.10


J.Speier			0.2  0  0  0  0  0  0  0.00


-----------------------------------------------


BOS:


J.Papelbon (W, 2-1) 7.0 10  3  3  2  1  4  5.75


C.Hansen			1.0  1  0  0  0  0  1  8.40


K.Foulke (S, 6)	 1.0  1  0  0  0  0  0  1.42


-----------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 --  R  H E


TOR 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0	 3 12 0


BOS 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 1 x	 5 13 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  18-9  -----


2  TB   15-12   3


3  NYY  15-14   4


4  BOS  14-15   5


5  BAL  10-20  9 ½

3 stars:

1. Dustin Pedroia (HR, 3 RBI)

2. Vernon Wells (HR, 2 RBI)

3. Jon Papelbon (WP)

Transactions:

N/A.

Outlook:

The Jays return home to face the Los Angeles Angels for a 4-game weekend series. The 2003 Cy Young winner (Roy Halladay) versus the 2005 winner (Bartolo Colon). It should be a good pitching duel.

[cybernetic]

Well I now got swept by them.. so that makes it more interesting. I'm going to have Casey Janssen start the 3rd game against the Angels and if he struggles he'll get sent down to AAA. Ted Lilly will start the 2nd game.

[cybernetic]

The Doc is in as Jays edge Angels

May 5, 2006 - Game 28/162

Game 1/4: Los Angeles Angels (12-17) @ Toronto Blue Jays (18-9)

Toronto Blue Jays 2, Los Angeles Angels 1 (10 innings)

Both Bartolo Colon and Roy Halladay were on their games in a classic pitcher's duel at Rogers Centre. Roy Halladay was particularily outstanding in today's game. The Angels got in the board first, despite the Jays having a few chances with runners in scoring position to take the lead. Garrett Anderson hit an RBI double in the sixth off Halladay to make it 1-0 Angels. Halladay continued to mow down the Angels hitters in the game, striking out the side in the 7th. Halladay had 12 strikeouts in the game. That effort in the 7th from Halladay sparked the offense as Lyle Overbay hit a solo home run with one out in the bottom of the frame to tie the game. Overbay had 3 hits in the game including 2 doubles to go with his home run. Colon left after eight strong innings with the game still tied 1-1. Colon's line was: 8.1 innings, 9 hits, 1 earn run, 1 walk (intentional) and 5 strikeouts. J.C. Romero came in after Colon gave up a lead-off double to Lyle Overbay in the top of the 9th. He promptly walked Shea Hillenbrand intentionally to face the switch-hitting catcher Gregg Zaun. Zaun popped out and then he got pinch hitter Reed Johnson to ground into a force to end the inning and send the game to extra innings. Jays manager opted to go with Roy Halladay to start the 10th inning even though Halladay was very close to 100 pitches in the game. Halladay mowed down then bottom 3rd of the Angels easily to get the Jays offense back up.

In the bottom of the 10th, Russ Adams led off the inning by reaching on an error by third baseman Dallas McPherson. Aaron Hill would then strike out. Alex Rios followed with a single to put two on for Vernon Wells who delivered a walk off single up the middle for a 2-1 victory. Roy Halladay got the win (2-3). He was outstanding going 10 innings allowing just 1 run on 6 hits, walked none and struck out 12 batters. J.C. Romero (0-1) got the loss going 1 inning allowing a run on 2 hits.

Clubhouse Talk:

"I was just in a zone today. I rarely got into trouble a really used my curve ball to strike out batters." - Roy Halladay, SP

"What a performance! The team feels like they can win every game with him on the hill and today was possibly his best game in a while." - Gregg Zaun, C

"I tinkered with the line-up a bit after those losses in Boston, putting some more speed at the top and moving Rios into more of an RBI spot in the order. Troy Glaus has struggled a bit with his average so I thought moving him down to the 5-hole might work out. We'll see how it goes these next few games here." - John Gibbons, Mgr

Jays BoxScore




Batter			  AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO  AVG


--------------------------------------------------


1 R.Adams, 2B		5 1 0  0  0  0   0  0  1 .344


2 A.Hill, SS		 5 0 2  1  0  0   0  0  2 .224


3 A.Rios, RF		 5 0 2  0  0  0   0  0  0 .301


4 V.Wells, CF		5 0 2  0  0  0   1  0  0 .305


5 T.Glaus, 3B		4 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  1 .245


6 L.Overbay, 1B	  4 1 3  2  0  1   1  0  0 .304


7 S.Hillenbrand, DH  3 0 1  0  0  0   0  1  0 .303


8 G.Zaun, C		  4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  1 .243


9 F.Catalanotto, LF  2 0 0  0  0  0   0  1  0 .333


  a-R.Johnson, PH-LF 1 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .273




a-Grounded out for F.Catalanotto in the 9th.




2B: A.Hill(6), L.Overbay 2(6)


HR: L.Overbay(9)


RBI: L.Overbay(13), V.Wells(27)




--------------------------------------------------




TOR:


Pitcher			  IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


------------------------------------------------


R.Halladay (W, 2-3) 10.0  6  1  1  0  0 12  3.00


------------------------------------------------


LAA:


B.Colon			  8.1  9  1  1  1  1  5  5.62


J.Romero (L, 0-1)	1.0  2  1  0  0  1  2  5.79


------------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 --  R  H E


LAA 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0  0	 1  6 1


TOR 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1	 2 11 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  19-9  -----


2  NYY  15-13   4


   TB   16-14   4


4  BOS  15-15   5


5  BAL  10-21 10 ½

3 stars:

1. Roy Halladay (WP, 10 IP, 6 H, ER, 0 BB, 12 K)

2. Lyle Overbay (3/4, 2 2Bs, HR)

3. Vernon Wells (2/5, GW RBI)

Transactions:

TOR acquires IF Edgardo Alfonzo from LAA for a PTBNL; assigned to AAA.

TOR acquires OF Tony Miller from COL for PTBNL; assigned to AA.

Outlook:

The Jays will send southpaw Ted Lilly (3-1) to the hill against John Lackey (1-4) in the 2nd game of the series.

G.M. Notes:

"I felt we had a good game, the offense is struggling a bit these past few games with runners in scoring position mostly. Halladay had a great game and I don't expect anything less from him, he's a true competitor. I'm looking to make a few moves here to tweak the rotation as well, I'm in the market for a veteran starter to take the spot vacated by Towers. Scotty Downs is not a long term solution. He might get one more start. There's not much available on the open market. We're gonna stick with Janssen here for a few games to see how he pans out at least until we have a return date for Burnett. It's looking like late-June for his return now. I also got Edgardo Alfonzo from the Angels before the game, he could factor in as a utility infielder in the near future. John McDonald is really struggling at the plate and I may have to send him down to AAA."

[cybernetic]

Jays Swing Blockbuster Trade with Angels

May 6, 2006

The Jays swung a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Angels prior to the 2nd game of the series.

Jays get:

SP Kelvim Escobar

RP Scot Shields

Angels get:

1B/3B Shea Hillenbrand

SP Scott Downs

Kelvim Escobar will slot into the #3 spot in the rotation and start in the third game of the series. Shields will enter the bullpen in the middle relief/set up role. RP Pete Walker was sent down to AAA and LF/1B John-Ford Griffin was recalled and will be the every day DH. Hillenbrand became expendable with the break out season of Alex Rios and he had to be moved so that more balance between left-handed hitters and right-handers could be made. There were 4 right-hander power hitters in the middle of the line-up and only 1 left-handed. The lineup now appears to be:

Adams, 2B

Hill, SS

Rios, RF

Wells, CF

Glaus, 3B

Overbay, 1B

Griffin, DH

Zaun/Molina, C

Catalanotto/Johnson, LF

[cybernetic]

Hill the Hero, Jays Edge Angels Again

May 6, 2006 - Game 29/162

Game 2/4: Los Angeles Angels (12-18) @ Toronto Blue Jays (19-9)

Toronto Blue Jays 4, Los Angeles Angels 3 (10 innings)

The Jays opened the scoring in the 1st inning after Ted Lilly set down the Angels in order in the top of the frame. Alex Rios and Vernon Wells both reached bases with singles before Troy Glaus singled to score Rios. The Angels would tie the game in the top of the 2nd inning with a 1-out solo home run off the bat of Juan Rivera. John-Ford Griffin in his 1st at-bat this season in the majors, hit a sac-fly to score Lyle Overbay who led-off the inning with a double. The Angels would take the lead in the 7th when Garrett Anderson hit a 2-run home run to make it 3-2 in favor of the Angels. Frank Catalanotto would double and score John-Ford Griffin to tie the game in the bottom of the frame. Long after, both starters were gone, in the 10th inning, Frank Catalanotto singled to lead off the inning. Russ Adams then hit a sac-bunt to advance him to 2nd for Aaron Hill who worked a 7 pitch at-bat to drive a single up the middle to walk-off for the victory.

Ted Lilly received a no-decision going 7 1/3 innings. He allowed 3 runs on 2 hits, including 2 home runs. Brandon League got the win (1-0) in an inning of relief. For the second straight night, J.C. Romero received a loss to the Blue Jays (0-2).

Clubhouse Talk:

"I felt pretty good, the odd part is I only gave up 2 hits but both were home runs." - Ted Lilly, SP

"I was nervous knowing that I know would get a spot with the big club for good. It felt good to get that first RBI out of the way early though and it helped me settle down." - John-Ford Griffin, DH

"This Angels are a good pitching and fielding team, it's tough to string out a lot runs out against them." - John Gibbons, Mgr

Jays BoxScore




Batter			  AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO  AVG


--------------------------------------------------


1 R.Adams, 2B		4 0 0  0  0  0   0  0  0 .330


2 A.Hill, SS		 5 0 1  1  0  0   1  0  0 .223


3 A.Rios, RF		 4 1 3  1  0  0   0  0  0 .315


4 V.Wells, CF		4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .303


5 T.Glaus, 3B		4 0 2  0  0  0   1  0  2 .255


6 L.Overbay, 1B	  4 1 2  1  0  0   0  0  2 .311


7 G.Zaun, C		  4 0 1  0  0  0   0  0  0 .243


8 J.Griffin, DH	  3 1 1  1  0  1   0  0  0 .333


9 F.Catalanotto, LF  4 0 3  0  0  0   1  0  0 .354




2B: L.Overbay(7), A.Rios(5), J.Griffin(1)


RBI: T.Glaus(10), J.Griffin(1), F.Catalanotto(12),


	 A.Hill(10)


SF: J.Griffin(1)


SH: R.Adams(1)




Pitching Lines


------------------------------------------------


LAA:				 IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


J.Lackey			 7.1 11  3  3  0  0  2  5.18


J.Romero (L, 0-2)	2.0  3  1  1  0  0  2  5.40


------------------------------------------------


TOR:				 IP   H  R ER HR BB SO  ERA


------------------------------------------------


T.Lilly			  7.1  2  3  3  2  0  4  2.89


S.Shields			0.2  0  0  0  0  1  1  0.00


F.Cabrera			0.2  0  0  0  0  0  0  1.06


S.Schoeneweis		0.1  0  0  0  0  0  0  1.42


B.League (W, 1-0)	1.0  0  0  0  0  0  2  0.00


------------------------------------------------




Linescore: 


	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 --  R  H E


LAA 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0  0	 3  2 0


TOR 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0  1	 4 14 0


--------------------------------------------------




AL East Standings:


Rk Team  W-L   GB


1  TOR  20-9  -----


2  NYY  17-13  3 ½


3  BOS  16-15   5


4  TB   16-16  5 ½


5  BAL  10-22 11 ½

3 stars:

1. Aaron Hill (GW RBI)

2. Garrett Anderson (HR, 2 RBI)

3. John-Ford Griffin (1/3, RBI)

Transactions:

TOR acquires SP Kelvim Escobar and RP Scot Shields from LAA for 1B Shea Hillenbrand and SP Scott Downs

Outlook:

Newly-acquired starter Kelvim Escobar (1-1) on the hill in the 3rd game of the series. He will be matched up against young phenom Ervin Santana (2-2).

G.M. Notes:

"A.J. Burnett is progressing well in his rehab and is building up his arm strength right now. We expect him to return for the series in Atlanta on the 20th-22nd. I haven't finished wheeling and dealing yet, I'm still looking to move Eric Hinske."

[Roy31]

Nice trade... Although I wouldnt trade Hillenbrand you got some good arms.

Hehe you got Johnny Ford Griffin with the big team already? Overbay has been on a hot streak might I add.