There was a 96% chance that there wasn't going to be an Advance Scout today, until the Jays pulled it out in the 9th against the hated Red Sox. The last Advance Scout was in September of 2008; the Blue Jays had gone 11-1 in their last 12, they were 6.5 games behind the Red Sox for the Wild Card, and had a 4 game series against those same Sox before finishing the year with 6 against the O's and 3 more each against Boston and the Yankees. If they had gone 3-1 in the series (or even swept) they would have been 4.5 or 2.5 back... so of course they promptly lost 3 of 4 to end their faint hopes. When it looked like the triumphant return of the Advance Scout, 2010 edition, would result in that same fate, it seemed like a sign to hang up the keyboard for this season. But with faint hope kept alive, we continue intrepidly. On to the Advance Scout!

Marcus Knecht is a Toronto native who was selected in the 2010 draft by the Blue Jays with the 113th overall pick.  Knecht was assigned to Auburn in the New York-Penn league and he has been playing well there.  I caught up with Knecht in Auburn this week to discuss his baseball life, so far.  Also, here is some of what Baseball America said about Knecht before this years draft:

Knecht's 6-foot-3, 210-pound frame generates plenty of bat speed and raw righthanded power. He ranked among the national juco leaders in hitting (.453) and homers (21), though he struggled at times to make consistent contact against good velocity. Knecht is more than just a slugger. He ran a 6.55-second 60-yard dash during Connors State's scout day in the fall, and he earns solid 55 grades on the 20-80 scouting scale for his speed and his accurate arm. He lacks the instincts for center field and played left for the Cowboys this spring, and it's possible he could play right field as a pro.

Brad Glenn homered twice while Henderson Alvarez got hammered, again. It all resulted in a 1 win night on the farm with the top two affiliates taking the night off.

As suggested by Matthew...

Who are the Toronto Blue Jays top ten in career home runs as a Blue Jay among players who have never led the team in homers during any season? No fair looking it up.

Speaking of saves...

Three of the five baseball games on the farm last night went into extra innings, combining for 40 innings. Meanwhile, the two games that didn’t go into extra innings very well could have, as Nashville scored 3 in the 9th inning to take a victory away from Las Vegas. In Auburn, the game was tied going into the 9th inning. Brooklyn scored a run in the 9th to take the lead, before Auburn scored two in the bottom of the inning for a walk-off win.

The weekend suddenly seems a long time ago.

I had this mad idea...

The man wearing number one for the Las Vegas 51's highlighted a perfect 5-0 night on the farm.  Three of the affiliates reached double digits and one just missed while another nearly made it to 20!  No problems with the bats on this night!

Anticipation has a habit to set you up for disappointment in evening entertainment. But who isn't feeling all giddy after the last two series? Like Dave, I'm hopeful that good crowds will show up, and that the Jays will jump on an injury-ravaged opponent coming off a frustrating weekend in the Bronx. Optimism wins!

So earlier today, Dave Rutt posted a really wonderful TDIB thread (check it out) that includes this sentence, looking back at this past weekend ... "First J.P. Arencibia has probably the best debut of any Blue Jay in history, and then the very next day Brandon Morrow pitches probably the best game in Blue Jays history."

And an all-new Box Question of the Day is called forth! Actually, in two parts ... (1) If not JPA, what Jay has had the best debut in team history? (Sidebar: What major league debut is the best ever?) and (2) If not Morrow's, what is the best game pitched in Blue Jay history?

Ready? Go!

Sometimes you want to write about something on the Jays blog that you write for, but your scheduled TDIB is one day removed from the thing you want to write about. That's okay, just write about it anyway!

The farm went 2-3 on Monday night and Las Vegas got an inning of relief from an unexpected source.

The Seattle Mariners have fired manager Don Wakamatsu, pitching coach Rick Adair, and bench coach Ty Van Burkleo.

Carlos Perez showed that JP Arencibia is not the only catcher with some power, Perez doubled and tripled and drove in four runs to pace the only win on the farm.  All the teams above Auburn lost, some badly.  There were some scattered good performances but it has been a sad week on the farm with most teams seeming to hit the skids at the same time.  It's either the dog days or opposite time where the affiliates play badly when the Jays play well.