It's an unusual, and rather inappropriate, locale in which to hold what will likely be the last-ever Pearson Cup showdown. Instead of playing in the air-conditioned comfort of Olympic Stadium, surrounded by those familiar once-futuristic yellow moulded plastic chairs, the Jays and Expos will instead renew their rivalry in hot, sticky and soggy Hiram Bithorn Stadium, where Carlos Delgado will unfortunately not perform in front of his friends and family. Rain is a very real possibility for today and tomorrow; stay tuned for some possible doubleheader action (which would kill the Expo bullpen).

The Jays face a reeling Expos club that was bombed in dropping three of four to Philadelphia this week. This weekend, David Bush makes his big-league debut against a legitimate workhorse, the Doc takes on a recent patient and Ted Lilly squares off against a young Canadian with nowhere to go but up in his major league career.

Oh, and memo to the Jays' staff: Careful with that second baseman. He can hit a little.

On to the Advance Scout!

A forgettable day as the Blue Jays affiliates went 2-4, with the Dominican Summer League entry picking up one of the wins. The six teams combined to score just 15 runs and no team could score more than four.

The good news is that four of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats have been selected as Eastern League All-Stars. Starters Todd Ozias and Cam Reimers and the double-play combination of Aaron Hill and Dominic Rich will play in the July 14th classic in Bowie, MD. Congratulations, all!

Here's my June report card for the Blue Jays. As usual, players are graded from A+ (yow!) all the way down to F (ow!). Gradings are extremely non-scientific.

In geometric order
An insulated border
In between the bright lights
And the far unlit unknown

Mike Wilner of the Fan 590 has reported that 2002 Jays 2nd round pick David Bush has been called up to the big team. To make room on both the 25 and 40-man rosters it appears that Michael Nakamura will be taken off, leaving his future with the Blue Jays organization in doubt. None of this appears to be 100% official yet. Thanks to Rob (who isn't named Ryan) for the heads up.

UPDATE: 7:50PM. An AP story reports that "The Blue Jays optioned reliever Mike Nakamura to Syracuse after Thursday's 14-0 win at Tampa Bay [...] Toronto will make an additional move Friday to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Bush."

After today I won't have to hear that blowhard in the front row for awhile. He's Exhibit A for what you get when you combine lots of money and atrocious manners. If I were sitting a few rows behind, I'd be surreptitiously throwing peanut shells and popcorn at him. I can't imagine the other patrons are enjoying the game very much.

Many baseball fans will agree that Scott Carson has one of the best jobs in the world. He gets a terrific view of all the Blue Jays games while making an important contribution to the broadcasts. While the team is on the current road trip, the TV statistician will be visiting this thread to answer questions from Batter’s Box readers. We thought you might like to get to know him a little better first.

No perfect games to report today unfortunately, but the Pulaski Blue Jays pulled out a squeaker to keep their hopes alive for a perfect season! Five levels up, Guillermo Quiroz made a rather inauspicious return to action.

Also, Da Box gets a plug from John Habib of the Union Leader and New Hampshire Sunday News in a must read article about Mr. Perfect, Jamie Vermilyea.

Some twisted selection
That tangles me
To keep me alive

Thank you for watching Welcome Back: A Very Special Sweathogs Reunion, starring Gabe Kaplan and John Travolta. Because the preceding program ran longer than expected, we now join our regularly scheduled program, already in progress. No score, bottom of the first in Tampa Bay, Josh Towers versus Dewon Brazelton.

Rob Bradford's inside look at the 2003 Blue Jays and Red Sox provides an engaging read that entertains. It has great portraits of many of the Jays and Sox players, as well as the two central characters, J.P. Ricciardi and Theo Epstein. Don't look for a magnum opus... this is a lively baseball book, and it delivers on that promise.

Like most Jays fans, I'm eagerly looking forward to reading Chasing Steinbrenner: Pursuing the Pennant in Boston and Toronto by Rob Bradford. Just in case you haven't heard, it's an account of the 2003 season, from the perspectives of Theo Epstein and J.P. Ricciardi. We've already published an excerpt, and an interview with the author. You'll also want to check out Craig Burley's review. Now we're delighted to announce a very special event for next Saturday, July 10.

Please join us at Tom Cheek's favourite establishment, Alice Fazooli's (294 Adelaide St. W. near John St.) for lunch at 1:30, followed by a Q & A and book signing with Rob. Then, it's off to the Dome for the Jays-Angels game at 4:00, which just might feature Kelvim Escobar on the mound. We have a large block of tickets reserved up in Cheer Club country, but we need to confirm numbers in advance with Group Sales and the restaurant, so RSVP ASAP.

Jamie Vermilyea. That’s the executive summary of this update. Jamie Perfect Game Vermilyea!

Okay, now we know about the months of preparation that went into this draft, the countless hours of scouting and meeting and analysis. So it's time to find out some more about exactly who the Blue Jays acquired in the 2004 draft. No waiting -- let's get to it!

Go ahead, take a spoon and try
I can tell you it's a herculean task
Go ahead, it's okay to cry
What you're chewing on's the truth
And that's the hardest thing
To wash down with a glass of lemonade