Yet another week goes by with the Blue Jays spinning their wheels, continuing to lose games to teams they should be beating.
Right now, their worst enemy is not the Rays, Red Sox, Yankees or Tigers. It’s the dwindling schedule. And after the Blue Jays could only win one of the three games against the Rangers, a team that is clearly inferior – especially in the pitching department – they remain tethered to the .500 mark, never more than a handful of games above or below the waterline.
The series in Arlington, Texas in which all games were played in temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Celsius, followed a similar script. The Jays jumped out in front against the Rangers weak starting pitching, but the home nine rallied back against the wilting Toronto arms. In the process, it’s becoming apparent that the Jays will be closing out the remainder of the season winning one, losing one, and leaving the followers of this team completely dissatisfied for the 14th straight year.
So, it appears that the most that fans can hope for is the Jays to play the spoiler role, which they will have ample opportunity to do with a number of games left against several playoff contenders. And that’s too bad because they will be forced to run out the same lineup on a daily basis to provide the best possible opposition. I personally don’t agree with that. The time has come to bring up some of their top prospects to see how close they are to being Major League ready. And, really, who cares if they start the service-time clock, something that the front office has been leery of in recent times.
But I believe, for the long-term, that it’s time to find out exactly just how full or bare the minor league teams are. Anything of significance at Triple-A Syracuse has been given a look-see. The latest, pitchers David Purcey and Scott Richmond look to be serviceable, but not the difference makers that are needed if the Jays ever hope to play games in October in the near future.
That means that dipping down into Double-A should be on the table. With the likes of Travis Snider, J.P. Arencibia, Scott Campbell and Brett Cecil all looking like they’ve conquered this level, it’s time to put them on the fast track. For the first time under the current regime, the Blue Jays have a wealth of talent at the mid-level minors. Why not give them a taste of The Show, at least after the rosters expand in September. It sure wouldn’t hurt and it would give the long suffering Blue Jays fans something to cling onto after being forced to waste another summer waiting for this team to contend.
INSTANT IMPACT
For fans of the teams that did make trades at the deadline, this past weekend gave them a glimpse of their new stars, and they weren’t disappointed. Manny Ramirez, sporting No. 99, picked up right where he left off in Boston. Jason Bay, who Red Sox fans will come to love with his straight-forward style, has already become a Back Bay darling. Ken Griffey Jr., while getting long in the tooth, is still an above-average offensive force and will help the White Sox, Ivan Rodriguez has solidified the Yankees catching situation with Jorge Posada lost for the season and Mark Teixeira has given the Angels yet another offensive weapon while playing Gold Glove-calibre first base. All five of these teams have improved and should be in the hunt for the playoffs until the end of the regular season.
SAD NEWS
Those of us on the Blue Jays television crew were shocked to hear of the sudden passing last week of Leif Pettersen, former CFL star receiver and broadcaster. His good friend Bob Leyden, floor director with Sportsnet and TSN, was a very good friend of Leif’s, who would pop into the broadcast booth from time to time for a visit. Peace be with Leif who left us far too soon at just 57 and condolences to his wife, daughters and extended family.
