Since the Jays are opening the season on the road, it seems like a perfect opportunity to take over a bar and watch baseball on TV. And so, the first Beer Club of the 2005 baseball season is upon us!

On this most gloomy of Sundays in Toronto, some good news is always welcome. And that there is a Canadian angle to both stories is a bonus.

They went from fifth place to a world championship. Their manager had taken over the team for the last two months of the previous seasons. They were a team with two, but only two bonafide stars - a starting pitcher and an outfielder. They also featured a switch-hitting second baseman who provided outstanding defense, but the rest of the lineup consisted of solid journeymen and a few youngsters...

This all sounds strangely familiar, for some reason.

Most of this spring training I've been saying that Spring Training results and statistics are virtually meaningless. However, even the biggest cynic has to be impressed with a 16-10 record, the best in the American League, during these exhibition gamess. There would no doubt be a lot of carping if the Jays went 10-16, so let's take a moment to enjoy their fine record.

This is the last pretend game. Next time, it's for real.

And about time, say all of us.

Today, let us amuse ourselves in the following manner. Let us make sure everyone on the team has a nickname worthy of them. Something worth cheering and yelling about.

The last week of spring training is always like this - everybody can't wait for it to end and get on with the real stuff. Pitchers and catchers reported six weeks ago. They are ready, ready, ready.

And so are we, by the way.

The Jays and Reds face off at 6:05 p.m. It's available on internet radio, for those with Gameday audio.

It is time for a new Minor League Update thread.

Minor League rosters are expected to be finalized over the weekend, club officials are still making decisions on the last few spots on each team. But as a means of getting there the Jays have made some more player releases.

The Phillies and Blue Jays played to a 9-9 tie yesterday, and will spend the remainder of the pre-season working on extra point conversions. But, the real news was the final roster changes, the subject of much discussion here at the Box.

Test your prognostication skills in the 2005 Batter's Box Predictions Contest!

In 2004, Simon held off 78 other contestestants to win the 2004 Contest. In 2003, I somehow won. Will this be your lucky year?

The prize for winning this year's contest may or may not include one of the following:

• Buster Olney's two-volume set Productive Outs: Theory and Practice and Fun With Scattergrams.
  
• A copy of Quiet Dignity: The Ozzie Guillen Story.
  
• A genuinely terrifying 24x36 picture of Jose Canseco, suitable for framing.

On to the Contest!

What can we tell you about the 2005 Blue Jays squad that you, loyal Box reader, don't already know?

This is an interactive Hall of Names -- something we did once before with the controversial attempt to build an All-Top-40-Hits team -- which means your contributions are required.

We're looking to build a team full of players with the goofiest names in baseball history. That could mean a lot of things .. .

The final cuts have been made and the roster for your Opening Day 2005 Blue Jays is set. The big decisions for the last day were: Greg Myers is the second catcher; Kerry Ligtenberg is cut; and Justin Miller will be sent to AAA if he clears waivers.

A few slip-shod briefs from around the majors.

Why did I think yesterday's game was the final tilt of the season against the Phillies? Obviously, I wasn't reading the schedule carefully, because here we are again.

Today there are no radio, TV or internet broadcasts from either side, so we'll be hitting refresh on the Yahoo box score over and over again if we want to know what's going on. In the meantime, let's talk about Beer Club!