The Rosin Bag: Respect The Purcey

I'm a sucker for pitching duels. Pitching is my favourite aspect of baseball, and I love it when both pitchers are dialed in and making life miserable for opposing hitters. Clearly, I want the Jays offence to perform well and build up some solid numbers, but I'll take a game like last night every day of the week. Detroit's Edwin Jackson was the better of the two, pitching into the eighth inning while allowing a solitary run on two hits. David Purcey wasn't much worse, allowing two earned runs on five hits against a lineup stacked with all but one right-handed hitter.

Obviously the come from behind win by the Jays (woohoo!) is going to steal all the headlines, but the story last night was pitching, both good and bad. Great starting pitching gave way to mediocre relief, and it became a fight to see who would give up the last run. Shawn Camp relieved Purcey and got three outs (although it got dicey there for a bit with the bases loaded). Brandon Lyon replaced Jackson and allowed the Jays to come back and take the lead. Not to be outdone, B.J. Ryan pitched the top of the ninth and gave up a solo home run to Brandon Inge, blowing his first save opportunity (uh-oh).

The Jays showed some resilience (or was that Brandon Lyon showing incompetence?), and loaded the bases with one out for Rod Barajas, who drove in the winning run on a sac fly. Victory to the Jays, 2-0 for the first time in four years. Although Purcey did pitch well, there was cause for concern in that he didn't throw his change-up all night, relying solely on his heater and slider. Whatever works, I guess, but having two pitches won't cut it for 30 starts.

One thing that did bother me was Jerry Layne's strike zone. The only thing you ask from an umpire is consistency, and that is especially crucial for the home plate official. What we saw last night was consistent, but in the sense that Jackson kept getting a bunch of calls that were not given to Purcey, especially the low-inside pitch against righties. Jackson was getting that called a strike all night, but no luck for Purcey. Purcey was essentially working with a smaller strike zone. That kind of thing drives me nuts. Oh well, Jays win in the end.

Tonight Jesse Litsch takes the mound against Zach Miner. Is 3-0 too much to ask?

Viewing Note: Rogers Sportsnet followed up their dismal opening night broadcast by relegating Jays fans to watching the Tigers local feed on Sportsnet Pacific. You have to start wondering if Rogers is so worried about it's on-field product that they're burying coverage in the 400 stratosphere of channels. Fox Sports Detroit was actually pretty decent. The announcers weren't total homers and I actually learned a few things. Tonight, the game will actually be available on Sportsnet HD; about freaking time!

The Rosin Bag: The Kids Are Alright

I guess now we know why the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario revoked the Rogers Centre's liquor licence for a couple of games this year. Some Toronto fans brought themselves into disrepute last night after causing a 10-minute delay in which Jim Leyland pulled his players off the field because of projectiles being thrown onto the surface. Stay classy, Toronto.

It's easy to scold these miscreants, but which is better: the lifeless suits who fill Air Canada Centre for every Leafs game, or the small group of Toronto FC agitators who got themselves pepper-spayed and tasered in Columbus*, or these yahoos who threw baseballs at Detroit Tigers outfielders? Fan passion is a needed ingredient to a healthy sports franchise (just ask Toronto FC), but some residents of society's underbelly mistake passion for drunken tomfoolery. The crowd I was a part of for the USA v. Canada game at Rogers Centre presented a much better example of desired fan behaviour; passionate support that never crossed the line (despite much alcohol being consumed on that festive day as well).

The incident occurred in the bottom of the eighth, and for a time I thought the story might end up being how Jays fans at the game refused to let their dire predictions for the season go unfulfilled, and snatch victory from the players by forfeiting the game through hooliganism. Thankfully calm was restored and the Jays were able to claim their first victory of the season on the strength of young bats inserted into this season's lineup.

It's a strange occurrence when Roy Halladay is not the story on a night that he's the starter. No; this night belonged to the Jays bats, namely Adam Lind (4-5, 6 RBI) and Travis Snider (2-4, HR, 2B), who pushed 12 runs across, including eight against an over-matched Justin Verlander. Every Jay got a hit last night. It was great to see Aaron Hill turn a double play again and Lyle Overbay bashing a double to the gap, great to see Vernon Wells and Alex Rios having good performances overshadowed. Let's hope this fight for the spotlight happens many more times this year.

For at least one day the Jays are ahead of the Yankees (snicker, snicker C.C. Sabathia), Red Sox and Devil Rays. Tonight, another youngster features for the Jays. David Purcey takes to the mound and we'll get to evaluate whether his hot Spring was as irrelevant as most Spring statistics. Here's hoping he can mesmerize the Tigers hitters and keep this good feeling going.

Viewing note: Sportsnet dropped the ball last night. The game was NOT available in HD in the Ottawa region. Viewers had to tune in to Sportsnet Pacific to watch the game because the Ottawa Senators were playing, but here's what's puzzling; the Senators game was in standard definition. It boggles the mind as to why Sportsnet would put the Sens game on their HD feed and their Jays telecast on standard def. Only once the Sens game ended did the HD channel carry the remainder of the Jays game. What a debacle. Oh, and Sportsnet - that "beautiful" camera view from the 5th deck? There's a reason those are the cheapest seats in the place - you can't see shit.

*For the record, I believe the incident in Columbus had more to do with badly trained police officers, but it does point to a disturbing trend for Toronto sports fans. You can also point to the incident at the FIFA Under World Cup involving the Chilean National team. Perhaps Toronto fans have been going to too many Bills games at Orchard park and this is learned behaviour.

The Twit: Weekend Plans Edition

Quick thoughts on what I plan to watch this weekend:

F1 - Malaysian GP:

I'll be PVR-ing qualifying and the race, and will probably watch both on Sunday morning. Williams was fastest again in practice today. Should be interesting to see if Brawn GP can keep the momentum going forward. Will Ferrari and McLaren get any points this weekend?

ALMS - Acura Sports Car Challenge of St. Petersburg:

The luster dulls a bit after Sebring this year, as Audi and Peugeot retreat to Europe to prepare for the 24 Hours of LeMans. Usually Audi have been regulars in this series, but they've blamed the economy to explain their absence this year. P1 will be Acura's playground, P2 will be a fight between an Acura and the Mazdas and GT1 is Corvette-only. Come to think of it, the only compelling class in ALMS this year is GT2. I hope that's how the sporscast treats it (ABC, 1:30 pm Eastern). I'll be watching to see what BMW did to improve on their dismal first race and if Panoz can continue running with the big boys.

MLS - Toronto FC v. Seattle Sounders:

Toronto FC's home opener should be a treat to watch. They went undefeated in their first two road games and the crowd will be as wild as ever at BMO Field. Haven't had a chance to catch either of their first two games, so this will be my first look at Canada's 2009 entry in MLS. I'll be checking for weaknesses that the Impact can exploit in the Voyageurs Cup! Interesting side note is that the Sounders' best striker, Fredy Montero, is staying behind to recover from what the team is calling "the flu". According to this report, that is quite the nasty flu.


MLB: Atlanta v. Philadelphia

Baseball is back, baby! Sunday night I'll be watching the World Series Champions take on the up and coming Atlanta Braves. It's been a long winter and the WBC disappointed, so my baseball taste buds need satiating! I normally would never watch the Braves play the Phillies in a regular season game, but it's opening night. John Miller will have the call, and we'll be treated to Citizens Bank Park in glorious high-definition. A Philadelphia night in early April can't be too warm, I imagine, but it can't be worse than game 6, err game 5, err game 5 and a half (?) of the World Series!

The Rosin Bag: Toronto Blue Jays Forecast

Doom and gloom abounds when sifting through the piles of MLB previews and predictions concerning your 2009 Toronto Blue Jays. The obvious steps backwards taken by the franchise are easy to point out: losing A.J. Burnett, Shaun Marcum out for the year, Dustin McGowan doubtful in his ability contribute this year, two rookies in the starting rotation, no free agent activity to speak of...yup, that's the easy part.

The front office has announced that they're working towards contending - in 2010. The media has done a bang-up job of toeing the company line, predicting a dire 2009 season. Most outlets predict a finish no better than 4th place in the American League East. With the Rays, Yankees, Red Sox and Orioles rounding out the division, I can see the logic in that.

So with no expectations and such dire predictions to live up to, where are we really?

Pitching:

Ladies and gentlemen, your 2009 Blue Jays starting rotation:

1. Roy Halladay
2. David Purcey
3. Jesse Litsch
4. Ricky Romero
5. Scott Richmond

Although this does seem like the Jays are going into the season light on arms, it's not all that bad according to Batter's Box. Reading his post really lifted my spirits concerning this starting grid, and if things work out with just one of the youngsters, the Jays shouldn't be too far off of what they were in 2008.

The bullpen poses a lot of questions, mind you. Jeremy Accardo was just sent down to the minors and B.J. Ryan hasn't been able to hit any higher than 87 m.p.h. on the radar gun in Florida. Cito has actually begun musing about using Scott Downs in the closer role. Brandon League has had a fantastic Spring and Casey Janssen should be back to 100% after suffering through injuries. Jason Frasor is what he is, and the rest of the cast should be shuttling back and forth between Toronto and Las Vegas.

I get the feeling that watching the Jays pitch this summer will be anything but dull. How Brad Arnsberg manages the arms will be fun to monitor, and if one of the youngsters emerges as a stud we could be in for a heck of a fun ride.

Hitting:

Here's what I've got for a batting order this year:

1. Aaron Hill
2. Adam Lind
3. Alex Rios
4. Vernon Wells
5. Scott Rolen
6. Travis Snider
7. Lyle Overbay
8. Rod Barajas
9. Marco Scutaro

The Jays were near the basement in offense last season. Should a few "if's" come through, it will be fairly easy to surpass last year's numbers. The "if's" are the following:

- if Aaron Hill overcomes his concussion to return to 2007 form;
- if Adam Lind continues to improve;
- if Scott Rolen stays healthy and re-emerges as a slugging 3rd baseman;
- if Travis Snider is as good as advertised;
- if Lyle Overbay can start hitting doubles again;

If none of these happen, we have the 2008 Jays offense; nothing lost, nothing gained. If however some of these "if's" pull through, we've got something to cheer about it. It means the Jays can score more than one or two runs in support of Halladay. It means the young pitching staff can pitch with a lead on occasion. It means Wells and Rios can start taking more risks on the basepaths.

It means; a better offensive ball club than last year.

My advice to Jays fans watching their team this year is this; enjoy watching these young kids develop. It's going to be a hell of treat to watch Purcey, Lind, Snider and Romero come of age. Sprinkle a little greatness with Halladay, Wells and Rios and you've got a compelling product to follow. Some days will be frustrating, as stupid mistakes are inevitable with such a young team. But whatever you do, don't get down on these guys. Cito Gaston and Gene Tenace are going to work this bunch into a hitting powerhouse, and by the end of the season we'll have no trouble imagining a pennant in 2010.

My prediction for 2009? 84 wins and 3rd place in the division. That's right, only two wins less than last year. That's how much I think we've improved on offense, and I don't think we're as terrible on the mound as some are saying. The Yankees are nowhere near as good as advertised, and will miss the playoffs; they're the team the Blue Jays will beat for 3rd place.

Can't wait until Monday.

The Rosin Bag: Blue Jays Pitching Wish List

According to Blue Jays President Paul Godfrey, the Jays are going to be aggressive in their pursuit of starting pitching. They will be looking to sign two of the following four candidates: Ted Lilly, Gil Meche, Jeff Suppan and Mark Redman. Considering the quality of the starters the Jays already possess (Roy Halladay, A.J. Burnett, Gustavo Chacin), signing any of the two mentioned would make the Jays staff one of the best in the Majors. However, saying and doing are two different things, and in this pitcher-thin free agent market, signing two of those pitchers is about as likely as Sacha Baron-Cohen getting the keys to the city of Astana.

Nonetheless, here's a primer on four potential Blue Jays:

1. Theodore Roosevelt Lilly

Age on opening day 2007: 31

2006/Career E.R.A.: 4.31 / 4.60

2006 Win/Loss: 15-10

Career Starts per Win: 2.7 (i.e. wins every 2.7 games he starts)

2006 K's per start: 5

Analysis: Lilly is the cream of the second-tier starters available this off-season. Personally, I would be shocked if he re-signed with the Blue Jays, considering he got into a fist-fight with manager John Gibbons last season and has a mostly confrontational relationship with pitching coach Brad Arnsberg. Lilly has expressed his desire to return to his home state of California, and that's where I think he's going, unless the Yankees blow him away with an offer he can't refuse.

2. Gilbert Allen Meche

Age on opening day 2007: 29

2006/Career E.R.A.: 4.48 / 4.65

2006 Win/Loss: 11-8

Career Starts per Win: 2.6

2006 K's per start: 4.9

Analysis: Meche and Lilly are basically the same guy, except Meche is two years younger (although Lilly has only thrown 100 more innings). My thought is that the Jays, at best, get one of the two, and they might as well get a fresh start with Meche.

3. Jeffrey Scot Suppan

Age on opening day 2007: 31

2006/Career E.R.A.: 4.12/ 4.60 2006

Win/Loss: 12-7

Career Starts per Win: 2.8

2006 K's per start: 3.3

Analysis: More likely to pick his spots than to blow you away (sounds like I'm talking about an ex-girlfriend), Suppan will consistently give you a question mark when he takes the mound: will it be the good Suppan or the bad Suppan (ladies and gentlemen: Ted Lilly!). He's a .500 pitcher who fills in nicely at the no. 4 spot.

4. Mark Allen Redman

Age on opening day 2007: 33

2006/Career E.R.A.: 5.71/ 4.65

2006 Win/Loss: 11-10

Career Starts per Win: 2.9

2006 K's per start: 2.6

Analysis: Can't wrinkle your nose too much at a guy with a winning record with the Royals. However, I wonder about a guy who's never spent more than one season with the same team (although he had two stints with the Twins). Under Godfrey's master plan (and since when does the President talk about the game plan? Who does this guy think he is, Larry Luchino?), Redman would be a fifth starter at best. That's not too bad.

Even if the Jays end up getting just one of these guys, they'll enter the 2007 season with four solid starters. Here's hoping that J.P. can execute Godfrey's plan.