Augustine knew temptation
He loved women, wine and song
And all the special pleasures
Of doing something wrong
I said yeah

Updated with a contest: see the comments.

Since VBF guessed what the big surprise was going to be, I decided to move it up to today:

Click on the links below to download the image in desktop-size:

Mayor Couture's "team", the Bristol Sox (CWS), exploded against the Pulaski Blue Jays so much, they broke MiLB.com. As such, I'm not sure that Pulaski lost, but I'm pretty sure.

So make it a 4-3 night unless the P-Jays pulled it out. I don't know if they did, to be honest with you. I went to bed. If it was Triple-A, I might have stayed up to get the final score.

Ted the Tease was absolutely superb, folks. Frank Menechino and Russ Adams turned some big double plays and also contributed most of the offense. At least until Reed Johnson and Vernon Wells tacked on a couple of big, piling-on, put-it-out-of-reach, hits.

But still.... I think the best moment was when Rod Black said "if there's smoke where there's fire..."

Dime si de veras crees que se pueden
Desviar a los planetas
De una trayectoria de colisión.

Yesterday was Shea Hillenbrand, and today is Roy Halladay:

So don’t become some background noise
A backdrop for the girls and boys
Who just don’t know or just don’t care
And just complain when you’re not there
You had your time you had the power
You’ve yet to have your finest hour

Auburn took the Jamestown Jammers' pitchers deep 6 times as the affiliates took 3 of 5 games. New Hampshire was rained out.

Another Pinch-Hit Game Report from Batter's Box regular Elijah, who fills us in on last night's 10-7 Blue Jays' loss to Oakland. Look for another Pinch-Hit Game Report tomorrow, too. If you'd like to volunteer to be a Pinch-Hit Game Reporter, e-mail us with your available dates and any writing samples you'd like to point us towards. Take it away, Elijah!

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Gord Miller said it best on the TSN broadcast (and as bumpy as Miller was at times, it sure was nice to not have to suffer through 11 innings of Rod Black) -- "This game had a little bit of everything."

The Swingin' (and, often, Takin') A's come into town on one of their trademark charges up the standings. What once appeared to be a good opportunity for the Jays to pick up ground after a tough road trip now appears to be a substantial challenge. Indeed, none of the pitching matchups seem to favour the Jays, who are hoping to build on their solid recent play.

That said, this Oakland club has built their recent resume on an awful lot of home dates, and against some suspect competition. The moment of truth is nigh for the Beaneiacs, who tonight embark on a tough trip to Toronto and Chicago, and return from the All-Star Break with eleven crucial meetings with the Angels and Rangers.

This week's Scout features some rapidly developing young talent, a tough-as-nails Canadian and an outfielder who may, in fact, be staying put.

On to the Advance Scout!

First, the Jays jumped in front 2-0. Josh Towers instantly gave up the lead. Trailing 3-2, the Jays scored once to tie the game. So Pete Walker comes in and gives up a couple of runs. Now trailing 5-3, the Jays score in the 6th and 7th to tie it up again. So Vinnie Chulk gives up a couple more, to put the home side down 7-5. But a run in the 8th and another in the 9th tied it again. Finally, in the 11th inning, Oakland scored 3 off Miguel Batista, and this time the Jays had no more comebacks.

A new headline-writing contest -- with a twist on the last one, introduced by Mike D.

Same "back page New York tabloid" rules -- if even the New York Post wouldn't run it, don't enter it here. But the twist: this is a headline that could or might appear after next week's All-Star Game. Some samples to get you started ...

Find me and follow me
Through corridors, refectories and files
You must follow
Leave this academic factory
You will find me in the matinee

I was feeling silly this morning, so I stuck together a couple of All-Star collages to decorate my computer desktop, and I figured I'd share them. The first one is of Shea Hillenbrand:

At noontime on Saturday a small crowd of baseball enthusiasts gathered in the theatre of the SkyDome for a book talk by Alan Schwarz. The crowd was diverse, ranging from SABR members to a man with his two young children to a Blue Jays employee who is also attending the 34th Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) convention. Schwarz’s book talk was sponsored by the Learning Annex and centered on his acclaimed book The Numbers Game. Schwarz also writes a weekly column for www.espn.com, a biweekly article for The New York Times and is a senior writer for Baseball America. The Numbers Game was his first book and received much acclaim, as it was named the best baseball book in 2004 and nominated for the 2004 Dave Moore Award, handed out by SABR to the “most important book on baseball” published in that year. It has recently been released in paperback.