The Blue Jays have become one-dimensional in several departments, most noticably in excuses for losing.
As the Blue Jays wobble and sputter their way to the finish line, some disturbing trends have emerged.
To begin, it's bad enough that the team has been one of the worst in baseball since the high-water mark of 27-14 back in mid-May, but now they are playing a lethargic, can't-wait-until-the-season-ends style of ball.
Monday's Labour Day matinee, played in front of an embarrassingly small gathering of just over 13,000 spectators, once again showed that no matter the spin, the Jays are a long way from even being written in the same sentence with the phrase "playoff contender."
So with all that in mind, it's time for me to get some stuff off my chest.
WHERE'S THE RESPONSE?
Over the past 13 games, Blue Jays hitters have been hit by a pitch a league-high 11 times. Included in that total is Marco Scutaro taking a Josh Beckett offering off his helmet on Aug. 28 and Randy Ruiz taking a pitch in the face courtesy of ex-Jay Josh Towers a few days later. Luckily both were not seriously hurt, but where was the response from Blue Jays' pitchers? I'm not talking about an eye-for-an-eye response, but how about knocking an opponent down to let them know that pitching around the head will not be tolerated? I guess this is the result of having rookie pitchers dominate your rotation who are more worried about their own lot in life than adhering to the time-honoured code. Cito Gaston must long for the days when he could look down the bench at Todd Stottlemyre and know that the big right-hander knew exactly what to do when his teammates were being thrown at. It all comes back to respect; something it appears the opposition has little of when it comes to the Jays.
WHAT'S UP WITH TRAVIS?
Top prospect Travis Snider's 2009 season is a microcosm of the Jays overall: Great early, leaving a lot to be desired of late. Snider came out of the gate this season like a house on fire, batting over .300 with three home runs and 10 RBI in his first 15 games, of which the Blue Jays won 11. Since then, over 38 games wrapped around a return to triple-A, Snider is hitting just .193 with only five extra-base hits. He has also struck out 41 times for an alarming rate of once every 3.3 plate appearances. But as raw as he is at the plate, his outfield play makes one wonder if he's getting any coaching. On back-to-back plays in the top of the first where the Twins scored five times, Snider overthrew the cut-off man allowing runners to take an extra base. I realize that Snider is still just 21 years old, but based on his erratic play this season, consider him a work in progress.
PLAYING IN THE EAST
It's long been the lament of the front office that the Jays are up against it by playing in the A.L. East. All one has to do is look at the results this season to realize that even with the unbalanced schedule - which is inherently unfair - and removing their laughable 19-39 record within their own division, the Blue Jays would still be 10 wins behind the Yankees. All that playing in the toughest division in baseball has done is give them a built-in excuse. You don't hear whining like that coming from the Rays, who have used the increased competition to make the team better.
LACK OF SPEED & OTHER OPTIONS
Playing a one-dimensional, station-to-station style of offence means that if the team is not piling up extra-base hits, it's extremely difficult to manufacture any runs. The proof is in the statistics. In the 76 losses this season, the Blue Jays have averaged just 3.1 runs per game and hit a measly .189 with runners in scoring position. Combine that with a starting rotation that, besides Roy Halladay, is made up of rookies and it's a recipe for failure. The team's offensive philosophy ignores the running game (A.L. low 63 steals), and playing small ball puts way too much stock in the power game and leads to a plethora of one-run losses with a pile of men left on base. Perhaps getting some speed this off-season and some switch-hitters to not make it so easy to manage against might be at the top of the list. The way they've been going about their business at the plate over the past several seasons hasn't worked.
WHERE ARE THE CALL-UPS?
Outside of Randy Ruiz, the shuttle between Las Vegas and Toronto has been a case of the same old, same old. The time has come to take a look at some new blood. We know what they've got in Joe Inglett, Brian Wolfe, Dirk Hayhurst, Casey Janssen and Jeremy Accardo. How about seeing what Brian Dopirak (27 HR, 102 RBI), Buck Coats (25 steals), Kyle Phillips (.300 Avg), Jonah Bayliss (8.6 Ks per 9 innings) or Fabio Castro (25 starts) have to offer? With the season now winding down, taking stock of what they have should be paramount. Nothing against Kevin Millar, who is a great bench player on a contender, but he's wasting a roster spot and his future with the club will end in three weeks.
There, I feel better now. And I'm sure my booth mates will be glad that I finally got some cyber-therapy because they were definitely getting sick of me bitching about things between innings.
Have a question or comment about the Blue Jays, or anything in Major League Baseball? Send a note to sportsnet.ca baseball columnist Scott Carson below and he'll address them later this month.
