Scott Carson

Stats man Scott Carson is now in his 18th season as "third man in the booth" during Blue Jays telecasts.

Jose Bautista has been one of the team's strong points, helping earn the Jays an A- for their outfield play.

School’s out for summer, but now’s a perfect time to give the Jays their grades at the break.

OVERALL: The team finished the first half of the season at 44-45, better than many had predicted but they are still not considered to be a contender. And nor were they expected to be. Their young starting rotation, in its first season of the post-Halladay era has held up for the most part. Each starter has had a memorable performance, as well as one they did like to forget. The bullpen has held up well with very little turnover or injury. And defence has not been an issue. GRADE: C+

STARTING PITCHING: Shaun Marcum set the tone in the season opener when he returned after missing the 2009 season to throw a two-hitter over seven innings. But they may have pushed his surgically rebuilt arm and the elbow flared up at the start of July, so he was shut down. He's expected to return during the first series of the second half in Baltimore.

Brett Cecil's eight wins lead the staff.

Ricky Romero also started the season fast, winning four of his first nine starts. But he got beat around in Anaheim in front of friends and family and hasn't been the same since, losing five of his next nine starts with an ERA just south of five. Brett Cecil has also been hot and cold, but his eight wins lead the staff. His mound presence reminds a lot of people of Jimmy Key.

Brandon Morrow is the most intriguing of the bunch. He has shown the ability to hit triple digits on the gun but at the expense of his control. But by dialling it down a few MPH, he still has the stuff to dominate and clearly has the arsenal to be a future ace. Jesse Litsch returned to active duty just a calendar year after "Tommy John" surgery. While he isn't the pitcher he was before the injury, he may still be best suited taking a regular turn at triple-A, while Marc Rzepczynski takes up the starts out of the 5-hole.

GRADE: B-

BULLPEN: This unit, and the slots in which each pitcher are relied upon, has been in flux all season long. Jason Frasor started out as the closer by default, blew two saves, lasted exactly a week and was supplanted by Kevin Gregg, who has only blown three of 23 save opportunities despite some shaky moments. Scott Downs has been used more than just a situational lefty with varied results. While his individual stats are good, he's allowed 53.8 per cent of his inherited runners to score, highest on the staff and 86th ranked in the majors.

The most pleasant surprise has been the work of journeyman Shawn Camp, who was scored upon in only eight of his 40 appearances, and his 2.53 ERA is 17th-ranked in the AL. The other surprise has been lefty David Purcey. The former first-round pick has made the transition from starter to reliever and is becoming a reliable late-inning option to Downs. Casey Janssen has had an up-and-down first half, while Brian Tallet's tenure may be coming to a close after surrendering eight runs over his last three appearances.

GRADE: B

John Buck leads the majors among catchers with 13 HRs at the break.

CATCHERS: After slow starts to the season, trying to learn the new nuances of a young staff, John Buck and Jose Molina have developed into a solid tandem. Buck gets the majority of the playing time and his 13 home runs at the break leads the majors among catchers. Defensively, he has also turned into an adept pitch blocker. Molina raised a few eyebrows by throwing out a club-record four Tampa Bay would-be base stealers back in late April and has pitched in lately with a couple of home runs.

GRADE: A-

INFIELD: For the first 41 games this season, Lyle Overbay was the new whipping boy, enduring nightly hoots from those in attendance. A .199 batting average tends to incite that type of reaction. But since then, his .296 average is tops on the team. Aaron Hill's season came to abrupt halt just three days in due to a hamstring injury and he's never gotten fully back. His current .189 average is the lowest in the majors among everyday players. It also appears that his defence has taken a step back.

Alex Gonzalez leads all shortstops with 17 home runs at the break and he makes all the plays on defence. He has produced from wherever he's been asked in the line-up. Edwin Encarnacion is still shaky on defence, doesn't hit for much of an average, but still shows flashes of power.

GRADE: C-

Vernon Wells has had a bounce-back season.

OUFIELD: Jose Bautista, playing as a regular for the first extended time in his career, heads into the break as MLB's home run leader with 24 and makes his first all-star appearance. Not to be overlooked is the fact that he also leads the AL with seven outfield assists. Vernon Wells bounced back from a sub-standard 2009 due to injuries to make a return to the all-star game. His 19 home runs lead all major league centre fielders and his 48 RBIs are 10 more than he had a year ago. Fred Lewis arrived from San Francisco in the third week of April and stepped right into the leadoff role. He's added an element of speed to the line-up and outfield defence, and he leads all No. 1 hitters with 33 extra-base hits.

GRADE: A-

DESIGNATED HITTER: Like Hill, Lind's first season after his breakout year has been disappointing. His average has been hovering in the low .200s for most of the first half and his production has dropped by seven home runs and 19 RBIs. He has not adjusted to opposition pitchers pounding him inside.

GRADE D+

BENCH: Really not much to say here. Cito Gaston basically writes the same nine names into the line-up every day, so the bench does a lot of watching. When they do play, infielder/defensive wizard John McDonald and outfielder DeWayne Wise make the most of their limited opportunities.

GRADE: C

Note: I will be doing a live chat on Tuesday. Stay tuned.