consistency issues..

Is there much more to say on the issue of consistency when it comes to not only hits from their batters, but more from their bullpen & starting rotation? Not likely, but in the wake of the Blue Jays having dropped 3 in a row to AL East rival Tampa Bay and losing 12-0, it's time for a bit of a vent. 

Today's game was just terrible beyond words. For a pitcher often so dominant and a year ago, struck out 17 Tampa batters in a 1-0 win, Morrow just didn't seem to have it. Giving up a first pitch HR to Jennings is defninitely not the ideal way to open a ball game...but then again, trailing 4-0 after 2.0 IP isn't ideal either! 

As the game went on while I was napping, I began to hear a LOT of booing from the crowd at the SkyDome--especially when the relievers just didn't seem to be able to record a single strike, but instead gave up another SIX runs. 

Yes, the arms in the rotation & bullpen are young and inexperienced--especially since the majority of the pitchers have been called up from either double-A or triple-A. For pitchers that are supposed to have "great stuff", the key is to locate the pitches accurately and consistently and the same can be said for pitchers that don't throw at overwhelming speeds. 

Suffice to say, it hasn't been easy for the Blue Jays after having traded Hill & MacDonald to the Arizona Diamondbacks and now without the guidance of manager John Farrell, who's presently recuperating from pneumonia.

Tomorrow wraps up the four game set vs Tampa with Romero on the mound. 

With hopes for a win and a speedy recovery for John Farrell, 

GO JAYS GO! 

Blue Jays Out Slug Mariners

The Blue Jays take game two against Seattle as the offense comes through with a 13-7 victory. It certainly was not a night for the pitchers as this game could have been played across the street at Qwest Field where the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL call home.

Toronto jumped all over Vargas in the first inning cashing in six runs, including a three-run double by Colby Rasmus and a two-run home run by Aaron Hill to put the Jays up 6-0 before the Mariners stepped into the batter’s box.

Brad Mills had a rough start in his last outing, but walked away with a 1-2-3 first inning on a pair of strikeouts. But, that all started to fall apart in the second. He gave up a lead-off walk and followed that up with back-to-back home runs from Casper Wells and Miguel Olivo and cut the lead in half. After facing seven batters in the second, he followed up in the third with another eight batters and three more runs to tie the game 6-6. This would spell the end of the night for Mills. He had trouble locating his pitches and left a lot of them up. For someone who does not throw very hard, location of pitches is crucial for him to be successful in the majors.

The Blue Jays bounced back in the fifth and sixth combining for seven runs, including Jose Bautista’s league-leading 35^th home run in the sixth. Toronto showed a lot of patience at the plate generating seven walks, three from Bautista. He looked much better last night laying off some tough pitches that he has chased over the last few games.

Hill had probably his best game offensively this season, going 2-for-4 with a home run and 4 RBI. Barry Davis of Rogers Sportsnet pointed out on Twitter that Hill’s 4 RBI-night, equals the same amount he had in the last 15 games.

Brett Lawrie continues to impress with his first career three hit game. They were not the prettiest, but they all look the same in today’s paper. He also came through with some more beautiful defensive plays. Some are making the comparisons to Evan Longoria. I say, let’s wait for at least a full season before we do that. But make no mistake; Lawrie is going to be a great player for years to come.

Luis Perez came out of the bullpen in the fourth and shut the door. He threw strikes and only allowed one run in four innings of relief. If this was the final start for Mills (as he could be on the way back to AAA), Perez showed last night that he could possibly fill the void in the fifth spot until the rosters expand in September.

Notables:
TOR
J. Bautista: 2-for-2; HR, 3 BB, 3 R, 2 RBI
C. Rasmus: 1-for-4; 2B, 4 RBI
B. Lawrie: 3-for-4; 3 singles, 2 R, RBI

SEA
M. Olivo: 1-for-2; HR, BB
C. Wells: 1-for-5; HR, 2 RBI
K. Seager: 2-for-3; 2B, BB, HBP, 2 RBI

Pitching lines:
B. Mills: 3 IP, 6 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO, 2 HR, 70 pitches
J. Vargas (L, 7-11): 4 IP, 7 H, 8 R, 8 ER, 4 BB, 2 SO, 1 HR, 94 pitches
L. Perez (W, 2-2): 4 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO, 61 pitches

The Blue Jays look to take the rubber match tonight against the Mariners. Brandon Morrow (8-7, 4.55) will take the hill against his former team, while the Mariners send rookie Blake Beavan (3-3, 3.59) to face the Blue Jays.

Until next time,

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden

late summer callups

It's that time of the year...no, I'm not referring to the whole back to school thing!
 I'm referring to the time of the year when teams call up prospects from their
AA & AAA systems to see if they're ready for the MLB and to see what they've got.

Consider it the MLB version of auditions.

We've just seen Brett Lawrie make his debut this past weekend against the "punching bags" of the AL East: the Baltimore Orioles, notching his first hit, RBI & home run all within his first 3 games and going 5 for 11 (.454 batting average). In addition to Brett Lawrie being called up, the Blue Jays have also called up top pitching prospect Henderson Alvarez, who has actually managed to throw at 101 mph in the minor leagues this season. 

that's what I envision the team doing to the
Yankees & Red Sox one day! 

Also, for anyone reading this and wondering just what's going on with Kyle Drabek and how he's doing with the Las Vegas 51s in the PCL, this article should answer your question: Drabek: progress?

Personally, I believe that it might be time for Drabek to stop showing too much emotion on the mound. It seems to be impeding his progress and along with the inconsistencies, perhaps it's why he was constantly getting lit up in games. 

With now being the time to expand the roster from 25 to 40 and 38 spots filled, I believe I would be remiss if I did not say that Travis Snider would be recalled and added to the 40-man roster at some point. 

Furthermore: a BIG congratulations to the ace of the blue jays pitching staff: Ricky Romero for being named the AL player of the Week after going 2-0 with an ERA of 1.69 earned-run average, while allowing just five hits. He also had 12 strikeouts with only four walks over 16 innings. 

If you're looking for tonight's game vs the Oakland Athletics, catch it on the FAN Radio Network  and on Rogers Sportsnet ONE. 

Cheers. 

jLau

Twitter: twitter.com/jlau87
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blog post update: for anyone wondering about Dustin McGowan and his road to recovery, here's your answer: 
http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110808&content_id=22934448&vkey=news_tor&c_id=tor

Blue Jays Finally Beat Price

The Blue Jays finally defeat Tampa Bay Rays’ ace, David Price, with a pair of home runs and win 3-1.

Ricky Romero was magnificent against the Rays. He got in some trouble in the second inning by loading the bases on a pair of walks and hitting a batter and nobody out, but was able to get out of the jam with a pair of strike outs and a ground out. This was a huge confidence boost and was on cruise control for the rest of the night. He only gave up one hit, which was a home run to rookie Desmond Jennings in the sixth. Romero threw his fastball for strikes, which set-up his curve ball that got the majority of his seven strikeouts.

Jose Bautista came into the game without a home run in 14 games. But that came to a halt in the fourth, when he took a 2-0 Price fastball over the left field fence for his 32^nd home run of the season and put the Blue Jays ahead 1-0.

Yunel Escobar led off the Toronto sixth with a solo home run to right field and a 2-0 lead. It is great seeing him take the ball the other way, especially with power. He has had two or three to right field this year now.

Rajai Davis gave the Blue Jays some insurance in the seventh with a two-out RBI double. Now in the box score it just shows up as a double, but Davis hustled right out of the box and saw B.J. Upton was back on his heels and forced him to make a throw. Davis stole two more bases and now has 33 on the season.

Notables:
R. Davis: 2-for-4; Double, single, RBI, 2 SB
J. Bautista: 1-for-3; HR, RBI, IBB
Y. Escobar: 1-for-3; HR, RBI, BB

Pitching line:
R. Romero (W, 9-9): 8 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 7 SO, 1 HR, 109 pitches
D. Price (L, 9-10): 6.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO,  2 HR, 111 pitches
J. Rauch (S, 10)

 J.P. Arencibia had four strikeouts in the opener versus the Rays. Fans need to realize that he plays a demanding position that is defensive first, working with the pitching staff. Yes, he is batting .219, but you will take the low batting average when he has 17 home runs and 49 RBI. And remember, this is his first full major league season. It is definitely not a terrible one so far. Right now, he is averaging a home run every 17 at-bats. But he is now in a better spot in the line-up where he does not have to focus a lot on key RBI situations. I am sure the average will come up as his career progresses.

Game two goes tomorrow night C. Villanueva (6-2, 3.60) vs.  James Shields (9-9, 3.03). The Blue Jays can take over third place with another win over the Rays.

Until next time,

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden

#12

It could not have been more of a perfect day for Roberto Alomar day. A packed and loud Rogers Centre with the roof rolled back, and the sun shining bright for the unveiling of his number 12. The first Blue Jay to have his number retired in the club’s 35 year history (Jackie Robinson’s #42 is retired throughout Major League Baseball). 

 First, thank you to the fans for being patient before the ceremony started. I helped clear a path for Alomar’s RCMP escort down section 114 and on to the field. The crowd roared on the concourse the moment he arrived, shaking hands and giving high-fives all the way down to the field.

The ceremony was fantastic. Having Alomar’s former teammates, manager and his family on stage was very special. Hearing the 45,000+ fans chanting “Robbie!” gave me goose bumps, and when his #12 banner was dropped beside the 1993 World Series banner, the crowd cheered as loud as possible giving him a standing ovation. It is a moment I will remember for the rest of my life.

Robbie Alomar was my favourite position player on the Blue Jays growing up (Tom Henke being my favourite pitcher). I tried to emulate his game whenever I took the field. I attempted those unbelievable, diving catches robbing base hits, or the head-first slide while stealing second. I remember going to see him play when he returned to Toronto as a Baltimore Oriole.  It was a Thursday night and went down to field level on the first base side where there was a mob of fans. Somehow I squeezed my way to the front and Alomar signed my hat (It was a Pig Pen hat and ironically it was the night before his incident).  But it was one of the biggest thrills as a kid and one I will always remember.

Blue Jays President, Paul Beeston, was correct when he said that having Alomar’s number the first in franchise history is a very high standard to begin with. And was right in saying it will be a long time before the next one happens. His numbers and achievements speak for themselves:

-          - 12 straight All-Star appearances

-          - 10 Gold Glove awards (including six consecutive)

-          - 4x Silver Slugger award (first in 1992)

-          - 1992 ALCS MVP

-          - 2x World Series champion

-          - First Blue Jay to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame

Watching his game-tying home run in the ’92 ALCS yesterday repeatedly gave me chills every time. If he does not hit that home run, they are in a deep hole and probably do not go on to the World Series.

You could argue who the next one could or should be. Roy Halladay, Carlos Delgado, or Dave Stieb just to name a few potential candidates. 

There is no doubt that the five years we got to watch Alomar play, he was the best player not only at his position, but the best in the game during that time with his multiple big hits, and numerous highlight reel defensive plays. There is and very unlikely will there be a better second baseman than Roberto Alomar. Thank you Robbie for playing the game the way you did, the right way.

Until next time,

*Tomahawk chop*

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden

First Half Musings

Looking back at the first half of the season, it's fairly reasonable to say that where the team is now is probably where they should be, though there are probably still some people thinking that the @BlueJays are "overachieving" considering all the injuries, learning curves, demotions and everything else you can think of (it's likely been mentioned in a previous post).

It's also quite safe to say that Jose Bautista (AKA @JoeyBats19 ) somehow managed to pick up right where he left off by racking up 31 homeruns by the All-Star break--no lie--I heard a LOT of fans, callers, analysts et. al say that "hitting 54 homeruns was a fluke and a one-off and that it would never happen again". Suffice to say, I think it's pretty safe to say that it's STILL quite plausible for the 40-50 homerun mark to be hit AGAIN this year. Call me overly optimistic, but I'm not a "glass is half empty" type of person!
_____________________

Big Surprises thus far:

> number of stolen bases this year

> C. Villanueva as a member of the starting rotation (on the other hand, he's been so damn good at doing long relief when he was with the bullpen, it was really just a matter of time before he got into the rotation!)

> Lind's incredible transition from DH to first base (there are no words for this!)
________________________

Red Flags/Disappointment(s):

> Without doubt, it's quite safe to say it's the god-awful number of errors we've seen from third basemen like Nix & Encaracion! Also, the lack of production from them at that position really didn't help us at ALL!

> Bullpen meltdowns. Inexcusable. Enough said. 
_____________________


I frankly don't have much more to say except that I sincerely hope that the Blue Jays end the year on a high-note and, like all Blue Jays fans, I hope to see Brett Lawrie make his debut soon and Drabek to make his return to the rotation.

That's about it for now, however I look forward to hearing about
your favourite moments, your biggest disappointments AND if you think Bautista should be considered for the MVP.

Cheers, everyone.
-jLau

Twitter: @jlau87

Canada Halladay Weekend

It was an exciting long weekend at the Rogers Centre. Ace Ricky Romero pitching on Canada Day in red in front of 47,000+ fans, Roy Halladay making his first return to Toronto since being dealt and some fireworks from Jon Rauch and manager, John Farrell.

It only took 30+ home games and a long weekend for fans to pack the stadium to watch this young, exciting team. Romero pitched a great game, but some poor defence and the bullpen not being able to hold the lead put a damper on spirits on Canada’s birthday. 

Halladay was chosen by Phillies manager, Charlie Manuel, to give the line-up card to the umpires at home plate and received a nice, loud ovation from the fans for a good few minutes. He garishly tipped his cap in appreciation on his way back to the dugout. 

I am all for fans coming to watch Halladay pitch and say thank you for his service because he did a lot both on and off the field for the organization. The only thing that upsets me is where were you two years ago before he left? Where were you eight years ago when he won 20 games and his Cy Young award? I completely understand why Romero and some of the pitching staff were upset because Doc is no longer on the team. This is their team now and they deserve that kind of support. We have the best player in the game today in Jose Bautista (who managed to set a new record for most All-Star votes ever and will participate in this year’s Home Run Derby). Hopefully with yesterday’s win over the Red Sox and the output of home runs on Sunday will get some people interested in coming down to the ballpark.

Eric Thames has been fantastic since being recalled from AAA for the second time. Here is a stat I just read on Twitter from @MadisonBettle “In the first 22 games of his career, Thames batting .325 (26-for-80). I’d like to see more of this.” We all do Madison and I am sure it will only continue. The man has a great swing at the plate. On Saturday vs. Halladay, Thames went 2-for-4 with a home run. Every at bat, he took the ball to centre field. He has great power to all fields and uses the power allies. And what really impresses me is he does not trot around the bases after a home run, he sprints. He has a good head on his shoulders and plays the game the right way. Yes, his numbers look great right now A) teams do not have a book on how to get him out and B) his hitting in front of Bautista and is getting pitches to hit. But he is taking full advantage on those opportunities and getting on base for Bautista and Adam Lind to collect RBI’s.

Travis Snider made his return to the line-up after a couple months down in AAA Las Vegas to retool his mechanics at the plate. And they seemed to be paying off early with three doubles yesterday going 3-for-5 and two RBI’s. He has lowered his hands and opened his stance just a little bit and stayed back on the baseball a lot more and drove it with authority. Snider is on a six game hit streak dating back to his last game on April 28 against the Texas Rangers. It is hard to believe he is only 23 years old. He still has a lot of potential and many fans are happy to see him back (myself included). 

Game two between the Blue Jays and Red Sox is tonight with a pair of lefties on the hill. Brett Cecil (1-3, 7.24) vs. Jon Lester (6-3, 4.42)

Until next time,

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden

Canada Day at the Ballpark.

..:02.07.2011:..
Preamble: 
Thanks to one of my co-bloggers, I was at the ballgame with a couple of friends soaking in the incredible atmosphere in a packed stadium of 45,000+ people feeling insanely proud to be Canadian and to know that the Blue Jays are the lone team in the MLB located "North of the 49".  Suffice to say, seeing the game from the 100 level really changed perspectives for me considering I often have a preference to sit in s. 524 with a bird's eye view of homeplate. 


Onto the game itself: 
This game started off a bit strange for me--especially to see Romero give up the lead off walk. Thankfully, he got the batters out to get out of the inning. As the game went on, I saw Escobar get injured on the hand, Thames hitting out a HUGE two-run shot into the 3rd deck and then of course, Bautista getting hit by a pitch--and we know that means revenge at the first possible opportunity! Sure enough, Bautista took Kendrick YARD for a homerun that measured roughly 330 ft (his 25th) and make the score 6-5 with loud chants of "MVP!" going on for quite a while afterwards.  I also kept a wary eye on the scoreboard and Romero's pitching line. With a team like the Phillies, I knew that they weren't the type of team that doesn't bother to rally as the game goes on and sure enough, I was right. Going into the 7th, Toronto DID have a 4-3 lead and it gave Romero a chance to potentially win...however: 


Bullpen & Defensive woes reveal itself...AGAIN: 
Is there much more to say than this? Highly unlikely...by this point, Farrell had taken Romero out after 6.1 IP and put Frasor into the game and he was actually pretty decent. That's not the concern here. The concern itself? If you guessed Frank Francisco, you'd be right. The utter struggle to get through the 8th and strike out the side was painful to watch...so painful, there was quite the resounding chorus of booing going on all around the stadium. Sure enough, the blown save gave Francisco the loss, sending his record to 1-4. Suffice to say, there's probably quite a bit to say about the blown save but mind you--the flyout ball that should've been caught by Rivera didn't help things much either, considering that's one of the "routine plays" for a player in LF! 


Overall:
sitting in the 100 level was a real treat and I LOVE soaking in gameday atomosphere. Despite the loss, I ended up having a pretty good time at my first ball game of the season with the hope to attend a few more! If you were there (or saw it at home!), let me know what you thought of the game. 


happy (belated) Canada Day from all of us here  
jLau (@jlau87), Chase Hadden (@ChaseHadden) & S. Emiya 


___________________________________


03.07.2011: UPDATES: 


*bautista is now the official leading vote-getter for the all-star game AND now leads the league in homeruns at 27 after homering in the 7-4 win vs the Phillies. 


*juan rivera has been designated for assignment & snider has bee recalled. 

Growing Pains & Interleague

I kid you not--this has been one of the few years I've seen the Jays go through a LOT of injuries, call ups, demotions, roughings and just flat out overall adversity. In all fairness, it's safe to say that it does take YEARS to develop major league pitchers and it's exceptionally important to lay out the foundations in the minor leagues. 


Drabek & Morrow are fine examples. Both have the ability to become incredible pitchers (and they are!), but with Kyle pitching his first full season in the MLB and Morrow his second full season it's easy to see why they've faced as much adversity as they have to date. it's also easy to see what factored into Drabek having been sent back to the PCL/Las Vegas 51s in triple-A. 


My point being here though is that for anyone who thought that the pitching staff would develop in a straight line should realize otherwise. Growing pains & adversity only help a person develop. 


However, let's not depress ourselves any further-please rant to me via Twitter or in the comments section instead if you'd like to discuss such things! The Blue Jays have just wrapped up a 3-game set with the Cincinnati Reds and they've managed to sucessfully take 2 out of the 3 after a 2-1 loss in the afternoon rubber match. 


With interleague often being the pain in the butt part of their schedule, I have to admit I'm quite impressed. Remember that year when they ended up going 0-9 in interleague play? YEESH! 


That's it for now-and make sure you make it a summer
priority to catch the Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre and I'll try to see YOU at the ballpark! 


cheers! 
-jLau
 Twitter: @jlau87

Morrow, Bullpen Shut Out Reds

Brandon Morrow was in cruise control on Saturday night, as the Blue Jays combine for a 4-0 shutout in game two against the Cincinnati Reds.

Morrow continued the streak of good starting pitching with a solid effort tonight. He used his fastball to get ahead in counts and to set-up his breaking pitches. He switched the grip on his change-up from a circle-change to a split finger change and it was effective when he went to it. Morrow fanned six Reds hitters, scattered five hits, and the only jam he got in all night was in the seventh after he gave up a hit to former Blue Jay Scott Rolen, plunked Chris Heisey on the next pitch and walked his only batter to load the bases (who were stranded by Jason Frasor).  The Blue Jays starters have a combined ERA at 4.58, but in their last five starts (including tonight), they are a remarkable 2.12. Like I said last night, when your starting pitching is getting you deep into the ball game, your bullpen stays fresh and does not get over-worked. Hopefully, this is a trend that is going to stay for the next few weeks.

Jose Molina was the offensive catalyst for Toronto going 2-for-3 with a double in the second and a lead-off home run in the fourth on the first pitch served up by Reds’ starter, Edison Volquez of the facing of the second deck. Jose Bautista added a pair of singles and an RBI. 

Jon Rauch closed the game in the ninth allowing a couple of singles and struck out Johnny Gomes to preserve the shut out. Toronto has  won four of their last five games since they were swept by the Boston Red Sox last weekend.

Notables
TOR
J. Molina: 2-for 3; HR, 2B, RBI
J. Bautista: 2-for-3; 2 singles, RBI

CIN
S. Rolen: 2-for-4; 2 singles
J. Bruce: 2-for-4; 2 singles

Pitching lines
B. Morrow (W, 3-4): 6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO, 101 pitches
E. Volquez (L, 4-3): 5 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 8 SO, 1 HR, 88 pitches

The Blue Jays go for the sweep tomorrow afternoon at Great American Ballpark. Carlos Villanueva (4-0, 3.25) toes the rubber for Toronto against  Bronson Arroyo (5-6, 5.23).

Former Blue Jay and franchise leader in saves (217), Tom Henke, was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame today in St. Mary’s, Ontario. He was one of my favourite pitchers growing up and would like to congratulate him on his great accomplishment. 

Until next time,

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden

Lind, Reyes Power Blue Jays Over Reds

Jo-Jo Reyes looked great again on Friday night against the Cincinnati Reds, as the Toronto Blue Jays are back at .500 with a 3-2 victory in interleague play.

Reyes was on his game right from the first pitch. He got ahead of the majority of the Reds hitters and retired every first batter in his 6.1 innings of work. When you are able to pitch ahead and keep the lead-off hitter off the bases, you are going to be successful. The only blips in his game tonight were the two solo home runs he surrendered. Although, the first one which came from Reds’ centre fielder, Drew Stubbs, should have been caught. There was some confusion in right-centre field between Corey Patterson and Jose Bautista. Both Blue Jays fielders were calling for the fly ball and neither came up with the ball and allowed Stubbs to score on his inside-the-park home run. It was Patterson’s ball being the centre fielder; he has first priority on any fly ball in his vicinity. But, I understand why Bautista wanted to take control of the fly ball, considering how poorly Patterson has been throughout the season on fly balls close to the wall (though this one way just shy of the warning track).

Reyes has now won three of his last four starts and improves his record to 3-5 on the season. He even added a hit at the plate in the sixth (which was only the second of the night for Toronto at that point).

After the mental error between Patterson and Bautista, they teamed up in the seventh for some redemption. Patterson led off the inning by getting hit by the first pitch and stole second with Bautista up 2-0 in the count. The Blue Jays home run leader showed some patience at the plate after seeing pitches all on the outside corner and drills a RBI double to centre to tie the game at 1-1. Next batter, Adam Lind, on the very next pitch, crushes a two-run home run to centre field and put the Blue Jays up 3-2 and ended up being the game-winning hit.  Since coming off the disabled list, Lind has been on fire with eight home runs and has homered now in four consecutive games, only behind Jose Cruz Jr. who set the franchise record with six straight games back in 2001.

The bullpen was finally on their game tonight and preserved the win for Reyes. Octavio Dotel stranded a pair of inherited runners in the seventh and pitched a perfect two-thirds of the eighth inning with a pair of strikeouts.  Frank Francisco only gave up one hit and struck out a pair for his seventh save of the season. The ‘pen has been over-worked this year with the starters not getting deep into games and the Blue Jays relievers have had their struggles recently, so this performance will hopefully be the confidence boost that they need to get back on track (Marc Rzepczynski retired Joey Votto in eighth on two pitches).

Notables

TOR
J. Bautista: 2-for-4; 2B, RBI
A. Lind: 1-for-4; HR, 2 RBI

CIN
S. Rolen: 1-for-4; HR, RBI
J. Gomes: 2-for-3; 2 singles

Pitching lines:
Jo-Jo Reyes (W, 3-5): 6.1 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO, 2 HR, 92 pitches
M. Leake (L, 6-3): 7.0 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, 1 HR, 99 pitches
F. Francisco (S, 7)

Game two of the three game series goes tomorrow night at 7 p.m. Brandon Morrow (2-4, 5.63) is on the hill for Toronto and faces Edison Volquez (4-2, 5.48).

Until next time,

Let’s Go Blue Jays!

Twitter: @ChaseHadden