If you're on cable anywhere in Canada, you can get a look at the 2003 Blue Jays this afternoon. Sportsnet will be carrying the game vs. the D-Rays at 1:00 EST; Sturtze faces his old mates, while talented young lefty Joe Kennedy goes for Tampa. I remember last year's first televised game very well -- not the result, or even the opponent, but it took one Eric Hinske AB for me to decide he was a terrific hitter. (This year, he's 0-12 so far, but has drawn four walks, so nobody's too concerned.)
Yesterday's 6-0 whitewash by the Red Sox was one of those games -- the Jays managed only two hits, as knuckleballer Tim Wakefield was very sharp, and the Boston bullpen committee did its job. Though Mark Hendrickson didn't have his best outing, he left trailing just 1-0 after two. The damage was done against Brian Bowles, but even he wasn't terrible -- after one strong inning, the roof caved in; four of the five runs he allowed were unearned, with Guillermo Quiroz contributing an error and a passed ball. You can excuse Bowles, whose pitches are so lively they can confuse a green catcher, if he lost his composure a little.
Tosca is moving people around, as battle for the last bench spot (or two) continues. Bruce Aven played a little CF, and Tom Wilson took over late in the game at third -- as much as everyone likes Ken Huckaby (see this story of a recent prank played on Huck) it sure looks like Wilson's made this team.
Quietly entering the picture is OF Rob Ryan. Drafted by the Diamondbacks in 1996, Ryan was an OBP machine his first two years as a pro: .421 for Lethbridge in Rookie Ball, then .431 in Class A. He was jumped all the way to AAA the following season, so you would expect a decline, but he raked PCL pitchers -- .317/.419/.503 -- and was almost as good in 1999 and 2000, earning callups to Arizona both years.
Guess who traded for Ryan in 2001? J.P. Ricciardi's old team. Perhaps the Tuscon heat is more conducive to hitting than the Sacramento heat, because his offence declined abruptly after the trade, and last summer, the A's shipped him to Boston. In Pawtucket, his stroke came back -- only a .266 AVG, but a .375 OBP and .489 SLG, in a league known more for its pitching. Obviously J.P. still likes him, and he's played in every Grapefruit League game, hitting .385 so far, with an eyecatching OPS of .929 -- not sure if he has the glove for CF, but he's way ahead of Mike (.143) Colangelo with the stick.
I know they're meaningless, but if you are curious about spring stats, both USA Today and MLB.com are more legible, and more up-to-date, than ESPN. The small sample size provides some incredible results: opponents are "hitting" .063 off Doc, and here's something you should get used to -- Greg Myers has a .167 AVG, but a .500 OBP, walking four times in his first 10 plate appearances.
The Rob Ryan of pitchers, sneaking up on the very disappointing (so far) Doug Creek, is Trever Miller, who had a superb 2002 for the Reds' top farm club in Louisville. As a former starter (a swing man as recently as 2001) he's no LOOGY, and Tosca has said he wants a lefty who can pitch a couple of innings. At the very least, Miller's first two IP for Toronto put him into the mix with Jason Kershner and Scott Wiggins for a bullpen job, but if Creek (16.20 spring ERA) doesn't find his form in the next three weeks, he might be released and two of the three minimum-wage lefties could make the cut.
Enjoy the game this afternoon!
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20030308083858999