2008 Blue Jays and World Baseball Expansion

[majormet]

After my Las Vegas Croupiers dynasty crashed and a couple attempts at dynasties, I have started a new dynasty.

It starts with the 2008 baseball season and I will be managing the Toronto Blue Jays into the future.

I am using Lahman database with 2008 stats, but players will revert back to where they started in 2008 so CC Sabathia is back in Cleveland

I have expanded MLB to 10 extra teams. Each team is comprised of celebrities born during a certain year, these are all based on players that were filled by minors.

Each year the draft will feature celebrities born during a certain year, the 2008 draft held on 6/1 will be celebrities born in 1964.

Current New teams are:

Binghamton Boars (birth dates in 1954) - Play in AL East
London Monarchs (birth dates in 1956) - Play in AL Central
Paris Heartbreakers (birth dates in 1955) - Play in AL Central
Caracas Bolivars (birth dates in 1959) - Play in AL West
Mexico City Maulers (birth dates in 1957) - Play in AL West
Johannesburg Jitterbugs (birth dates in 1963) - Play in AL West
Auckland Conchordes (birth dates in 1962) - Play in NL East
Mobile Panthers (birth dates in 1958) - Play in NL Central
Tokyo Terrors (birth dates in 1960) - Play in NL West
Seoul Survivors (birth dates in 1961) - Play in NL West

[majormet]

The Toronto Blue Jays open up the year 3-3 as I am trying to feel out this team, which is front loaded with Halladay and Burnett but has a lot of other problems.

Game #1

Toronto 12
Tampa Bay 3

WP - Roy Halladay (1-0)
LP - Scott Kazmir (0-1)

Star of Game - David Eckstein (3-5, 5 RBI's)

Comments - The Jays gave Doc a lot of run support that he did not need, and jumped all over Kazmir

Game #2

Tampa Bay 6
Toronto 5
10 Innings

WP - Gary Glover (1-0)
LP - Jesse Carlson (0-1)

Star of Game - Cliff Floyd (3-3, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Tampa Bay - Cliff Floyd (1)

Comments - We blow a 5-3 lead for AJ Burnett and Cliff Floyd singles in the game winner off of Carlson in the 10th


Game #3

Toronto 4
Tampa Bay 2

WP - Dustin McGowan (1-0)
LP - Matt Garza (0-1)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (7.2 IP, 3 hits, 2 ER, 5 K's)

Homers
Tampa Bay - BJ Upton (1)

Comments - a strong outing by McGowan as the #3 starter and only hung one curve to Upton.


Game #4

Tampa Bay 9
Toronto 6

WP - Andy Sonnanstine (1-0)
LP - Jesse Litsch (0-1)
Save - Grant Balfour (1)

Star of Game - Akinori Iwamura (2-4, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Joe Inglett (1)

Comments - Litsch gave up 7 runs in the 4th innings and Toronto could not climb back into it.


Game #5

Cleveland 7
Toronto 1

WP - Jeremy Sowers (1-0)
LP - Jason Marcum (0-1)

Star of Game - Grady Sizemore (2-3, HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Cleveland - Grady Sizemore (3), Travis Hafner (2)

Comments - Marcus was horrible and may not hold onto that 5th sport for long.

Game #6

Toronto 3
Cleveland 0

WP - Roy Halladay (2-0)
LP - CC Sabathia (0-1)

Star of Game - Roy Halladay (CG 3 hit shutout, 6 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Halladay was unhittable and a little offense early went a long way


League News

Carlos Quentin (Chicago White Sox) is out 6 weeks with a fractured cheekbone suffered in a home game against the Cleveland Indians when he was hit by a Jensen Lewis fastball

Matt Stairs told the Toronto Blue Jays that this will be his final year

Kevin Slowey (Minnesota Twins) is out 5 weeks after rupturing his elbow ligament in a game at home against the London Monarchs


Trades

Minnesota Twins trade Jason Kubel to Chicago Cubs for Micah Hoffpauir, Casey McGehee, and Carmen Pignatiello

San Francisco Giants trade Travis Denker to Washington Nationals for Dmitri Young

Status

Toronto is 3-3 and sit in 4th place in the AL East 2 games behind both the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees.

Leagues Leaders

Homers

AL - Many tied at 3
NL - Carlos Delgado (New York Mets), Josh Willingham (Florida Marlins) - 4

RBI's

AL - Alex Rodriguez (New York Yankees) - 11
NL - Chris Ianetta (Colorado Rockies) - 13

AVG

AL - Nick Markakis (Baltimore Orioles) .542
NL - Chris Ianetta (Colorado Rockies) .714

SB

AL - Simon Cowell (Caracas Bolivars) - 4
NL - Many tied at 3

Wins

AL - Many tied at 2
NL - Ubaldo Jimenez (Colorado Rockies), Tim Hudson (Atlanta Braves) - 2

K's

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 22
NL - Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) - 18

Saves

AL - Many tied at 3
NL - Jose Valverde (Houston Astros), Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 3


Division Leaders

AL East - Baltimore Orioles/New York Yankees - 5-1
AL Central - Detroit Tigers - 5-1
AL West - 3 tied at 4-2
NL East - Atlanta Braves/Washington Nationals - 5-1
NL Central - Houston Astros - 6-0
NL West - Arizona Diamondbacks - 5-1

[majormet]

Managing the Blue Jays in 2008 seems to be a lot harder than I had expected, this team needs a bit of change. They ended up going 2-4 over this 6 game stretch

Game #7

Cleveland 4
Toronto 2

WP - Rafael Betancourt (1-0)
LP - Brandon League (0-1)
Save - Phil Coke (1)

Star of Game - Rafael Betancourt (3 IP, 0 hits, 3 K's)

No Homers

Comments - AJ Burnett took a no hitter into the 8th inning here before Jhonny Peralta broke it up, and then the Jays pen imploded as they have done a bit so far this season


Game #8

Chicago 10
Toronto 4

WP - Mark Buehrle (1-1)
LP - Dustin McGowan (1-1)

Star of Game - Mark Buehrle (8.2 IP, 7 hits, 2 ER, 3 K's)

Comments - McGowan had poor stuff and the White Sox went on a hit parade


Game #9

Chicago 6
Toronto 4

WP - Jose Contreras (1-1)
LP - Jesse Litsch (0-2)
Save - DJ Carrasco (2)

Star of Game - DeWayne Wise (2-4, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Chicago - DeWayne Wise (1)

Comments - Litsch looks good for a few innings and then fades, Toronto got hits but not in bunches


Game #10

Toronto 5
Chicago 4

WP - Shawn Marcum (1-1)
LP - Clayton Richard (0-1)
Save - BJ Ryan (2)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (2-4, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Chicago - Alexei Ramirez (1), Joe Crede (2)

Comments - Marcum looked so much better this outing and Wells continues to tear the cover off of the baseball


Game #11

Binghamton 7
Toronto 6

WP - James Cameron (1-0)
LP - BJ Ryan (0-1)
Save - David Paymer (1)

Star of Game - David Keith (2-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (1)

Comments - Toronto blows a 6-0 lead for Roy Halladay against the lowly Binghamton Boars with a total bullpen implosion


Game #12

Toronto 6
Binghamton 5
12 Innings

WP - Brandon League (1-1)
LP - Al Sharpton (0-1)

Star of Game - Matt Stairs (3-5, 2 RBI's)

No Homers

Comments - Toronto blows the 5-0 lead and has to win in the 12th with a walk off double by Scott Rolen


Around the League

Adam LaRoche (Pittsburgh Pirates) is out 7 weeks with inflamed ACL

Grady Sizemore (Cleveland Indians) wins AL Player of the Week (12 RBI .480)

David Wright (New York Mets) wins NL Player of the Week (5 HR 15 RBI .519)

Jesus Flores (Washington Nationals) hits 3 homers in a game on the road at Split Enz Field against the Auckland Conchordes


Trade

Tampa Bay Rays trade Ben Zobrist to Oakland Athletics for Josh Outman


Status

Toronto is 5-7 tied for 4th in the AL East with the Boston Red Sox, trailing the first place New York Yankees by 4 games

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Curtis Granderson (Detroit Tigers), Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 6
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 8

RBI

AL - Curtis Granderson (Detroit Tigers) - 17
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 24

AVG

AL - Edgar Renteria (Detroit Tigers) - .422
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - .533

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 8
NL - Many Tied at 5

Wins

AL - Chien Ming Wang (New York Yankees), Rafael Betancourt (Indians) - 3
NL - Many tied at 3

K's

AL - Javier Vazquez (Chicago White Sox) - 28
NL - Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) - 30

ERA

AL - Ervin Santana (Anaheim Angels) - 0.50
NL - Jorge de la Rosa (Colorado Rockies) - 1.50

Saves

AL - Bobby Seay (Detroit Tigers), Frank Francisco (Rangers ) - 5
NL - Jose Valverde (Astros), Takashi Saito (Dodgers) - 5

Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees - 9-3
AL Central - Detroit Tigers - 10-2
AL West - Texas Rangers - 9-3
NL East - New York Mets - 9-3
NL Central - Houston Astros - 10-2
NL West - Arizona Diamondbacks/San Diego Padres - 8-4

[majormet]

The Blue Jays did not look so good after 12 games so some trades were made to improve things and they are detailed below. After the trades, Toronto went 4-2 and is now 9-9 on the season

Game #13

Toronto 9
Binghamton 2

WP - Dustin McGowan (2-1)
LP - Chris Noth (0-3)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (7.1 IP, 6 hits, 1 ER, 7 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Elijah Dukes (6)

Comments - Dukes is acquired from Washington and comes to town with a bang.


Game #14

Baltimore 6
Toronto 5
10 Innings

WP - George Sherrill (2-0)
LP - Santiago Romo (0-1)

Star of Game - Melvin Mora (3-5, HR, RBI)

Homers
Baltimore - Luke Scott (3), Melvin Mora (1)
Toronto - Matt Stairs (1), Elijah Dukes (7), Lyle Overbay (1)

Comments - The Jays pen implodes and blows a 5-1 games as Luke Scott hit a big 10th inning homer off the newly acquired Romo


Game #15

Toronto 10
Baltimore 7

WP - Roy Halladay (3-0)
LP - Alberto Castillo (1-1)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (2-3, 4 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Elijah Dukes (8), Frank Thomas (1)

Comments - So great to deal with Dukes as a name on a sheet instead of a personality LOL.. Halladay was awful but pitched a complete game and won, despite giving up 7 runs and 14 hits


Game #16

Toronto 7
Baltimore 6

WP - AJ Burnett (1-0)
LP - Alberto Castillo (1-2)
Save - Brandon League (1)

Star of Game - Elijah Dukes (3-5, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Baltimore - Kevin Millar (3)
Toronto - Elijah Dukes (9)

Comments - Dukes homes in his 5th straight game and it looks like League will be the new closer

Game #17

Toronto 10
Minnesota 4

WP - Dustin McGowan (3-1)
LP - Nick Blackburn (0-1)

Star of Game - Joe Inglett (4-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (1), Matt Stairs (2)

Comments - Inglett has murdered the ball thus far as has Vernon Wells who has a 16 game hitting streak


Game #18

Minnesota 6
Toronto 3

WP - Boof Bonser (2-1)
LP - John Parrish (0-1)
Save - Joe Nathan (2)

Star of Game - Boof Bonser (6 IP, 5 hits, 1 Er, 6 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (5)

Comments - Parrish wasn't bad after being called up to replace the traded Litsch.


Around the League

Jermaine Dye (Chicago White Sox) wins AL Player of the Week (3 HR 7 RBI .510)

David Wright (New York Mets) wins NL Player of the Week (10 RBI .471)

Kevin Youkilis (Boston Red Sox) is out 6 weeks with inflamed PCL

Matt Holliday (Colorado Rockies) is out 7 weeks with torn ab muscle suffered in a home game against the Houston Astros


Trades

Colorado Rockies trade Chris Ianetta and Brian Fuentes to Toronto Blue Jays for Jesse Litsch and Gregg Zaun

San Francisco Giants trade Bengie Molina, Santiago Romo and Conor Gillasapie to Toronto Blue Jays for Aaron Hill, Rod Barajas and Kevin Mench

Washington Nationals trade Elijah Dukes and Joel Hanrahan to Toronto Blue Jays for Bengie Molina and BJ Ryan

Washington Nationals trade Ronnie Belliard, Luke Montz and Roger Bernardina to Seattle Mariners for Greg Norton

Status

Toronto is 9-9 in 3rd place tie with Baltimore Orioles in the AL East trailing the New York Yankees by 5 games

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 11
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 10

RBI

AL - Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 23
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 30

Avg

AL - Hugh Laurie (Caracas Bolivars) - .431
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - .478

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 9
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 9

Wins

AL - Chien Ming Wang (New York Yankees) - 4
NL - Many tied at 4

K's

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 38
NL - Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) - 42

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 0.81
NL - Tim Wakefield (Washington Nationals) - 0.81

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 9
NL - Brad Lidge (Philadelphia Phillies) - 8


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees - 14-4
AL Central - Detroit Tigers - 13-5
AL West - Texas Rangers - 14-4
NL East - Washington Nationals - 14-4
NL Central - Houston Astros - 15-3
NL West - San Diego Padres - 12-6

[majormet]

(Editors note: broken hand so finally able to type)

The Blue Jays went 3-3 and are looking decent after the first 24 games of 2008.

Game #19

Minnesota 14
Toronto 8

WP - Glen Perkins (2-2)
LP - Shawn Marcum (1-2)

Star of Game - Denard Span (2-4, 2 HR's, 7 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (2), Scott Rolen (2)
Minnesota - Denard Span (1,2)

Comments - Denard Span has his breakout game and Marcum looked awful


Game #20

Toronto 3
Minnesota 0

WP - Roy Halladay (4-0)
LP - Francisco Liriano (1-2)

Star of Game - Roy Halladay (7 hit shutout, 5 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Another Roy Halladay masterpiece

Game #21

Toronto 7
Boston 6
10 Innings

WP - Santiago Romo (1-1)
LP - Jonathan Papelbon (0-3)

Star of Game - Marco Scutaro (2-5, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Marco Scutaro (1)
Boston - David Ortiz (1)

Comments - Vernon Wells has the walkoff single.


Game #22

Toronto 9
Boston 3

WP - Dustin McGowan (4-1)
LP - Jon Lester (3-2)

Star of Game - Frank Thomas (3-5, 2 RBI's)

Homers - Alexis Rios (1)

Comments - A strong game from the veteran Thomas and McGowan has exceeded expectations


Game #23

Boston 12
Toronto 2

WP - Clay Buchholz (2-2)
LP - John Parrish (0-2)
Save - Hideki Okajima (2)

Star of Game - JD Drew (2-4, 2 HR's, 5 RBI's)

Homers
Boston - JD Drew (5,6), Jesus Flores (4)
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (6)

Comments - Parrish is awful.


Game #24

Boston 13
Toronto 6

WP - Matzuzaka (4-0)
LP - Jason Marcum (1-3)

Star of Game - Sean Casey (4-6, 3 RBI's)

No Homers

Comments - Another bad outing by Marcum.


Around the League

Rick Ankiel (St Louis Cardinals) hits 3 homers at home against the Seoul Survivors

Garrett Anderson (Anaheim Angels) wins AL Player of the Week (3 HR 6 RBI .500)

Chris Duncan (St Louis Cardinals) wins NL Player of the Week (2 HR 8 RBI .588)

Status

Toronto is 12-12 and in 3rd place in the AL East

[majormet]

The Blue Jays had to run into the New York Yankees on the road which was like running into a buzzsaw

Game #25

New York 8
Toronto 6

WP - David Robertson (1-0)
LP - Roy Halladay (4-1)

Star of Game - Bobby Abreu (2-5, HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (3), Matt Stairs (3), Elijah Dukes (10), Chris Ianetta (7)

New York - Derek Jeter (3), Bobby Abreu (3)

Comments - Abreu hits the walk off 3 run bomb off of Brandon League in this homer derby of a battle.


Game #26

New York 4
Toronto 2

WP - Brian Bruney (5-0)
LP - AJ Burnett (1-1)
Save - David Robertson (7)

Star of Game - Brian Bruney (6.1 IP, 3 hits, 1 ER, 6 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (3)

Comments - Bruney has been tough as a starter and Robertson has won the Yanks closing job


Game #27

New York 5
Toronto 3

WP - Edwar Ramirez (1-0)
LP - Dustin McGowan (4-2)
Save - David Robertson (8)

Star of Game - Alex Rodriguez (2 run homer)

Homers
New York - Johnny Damon (3), Alex Rodriguez (9), Bobby Abreu (4)

Comments - McGowan was solid for the most part, just susceptible to the gopher ball


Game #28

Toronto 5
Anaheim 2

WP - Justin Verlander (2-3)
LP - Dustin Moseley (2-1)

Star of Game - Justin Verlander (CG, 7 hits, 1 ER, 5 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (4)

Comments - Newly acquired Verlander was razor sharp for the Jays.

Game #29

Anaheim 6
Toronto 4
14 Innings

WP - Justin Speier (1-0)
LP - Brandon League (1-2)

Star of Game - Chone Figgins (4-7, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Matt Stairs (4), Vernon Wells (4)
Anaheim - Jeff Mathis (3)

Comments - Mathis has the walk off 2 run shot off of League in this one

Game #30

Toronto 9
Anaheim 3

WP - AJ Burnett (2-1)
LP - Jered Weaver (1-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (5)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (3-5, 2 HR's 4 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (5,6)

Comments - Wells is putting up MVP numbers early in Toronto

Around the League

Josh Beckett (Boston Red Sox) hurls a 2 hit shutout at home against the Tampa Bay Rays

Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) has 5 hits in a home game against the Florida Marlins

Ben Zobrist (Oakland Athletics) pounds 5 hits on the road at Angels Stadium against the Anaheim Angels

Kelly Shoppach (Cleveland Indians) slams 3 homers on the at Citgo Park against the Caracas Bolivars

JD Drew (Boston Red Sox) wins AL Player of the Week (12 RBI .435)

Ryan Ludwick (St Louis Cardinals) wins NL Player of the Week (11 RBI .480)

Curtis Granderson (Detroit Tigers) wins AL Batter of the Month (31 RBI .381)

David Wright (New York Mets) wins NL Batter of the Month (10 HR 35 RBI .396)

Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) wins AL Pitcher of the Month (5-0 1.00 ERA)

Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) wins NL Pitcher of the Month (6-0 2.38 ERA)

Zach Greinke (Kansas City Royals) is out for season with torn ligaments in his elbow

Chase Headley (San Diego Padres) gets 6 hits in a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at home

Vladimir Guerrero (Anaheim Angels) gets his 2000th career hit at home against the Toronto Blue Jays. The hit came off of AJ Burnett

Chad Gaudin (Oakland Athletics) fires a 2 hit shutout on the road at Kauffman Stadium against the Kansas City Royals

Trades

Detroit Tigers send Justin Verlander to Toronto Blue Jays for Adam Lind and Travis Snider

Houston Astros send Mark Loretta and JR House to San Diego Padres for Jim Edmonds

Los Angeles Dodgers send Blake Dewitt and Eric Stults to New York Mets for Moises Alou


Status

Toronto is 14-16 and tied for 3rd in the AL East with the Boston Red Sox trailing the first place New York Yankees by 9 games


League Leaders

Homers

AL - Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 12
NL - Carlos Delgado (New York Mets) - 14

RBI

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - 34
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 35

AVG

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - .413
NL - Jody Gerut (San Diego Padres) - .512

Stolen Bases

AL - Chone Figgins (Anaheim Angels) & Matt Tolbert (Twins) - 13
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 11

Wins

AL - Luis Mendoza (Texas Rangers) - 6
NL - Saul Rivera (Washington Nationals) - 7

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 61
NL - Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) - 52

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 0.84
NL - Max Scherzer (Arizona Diamondbacks) - 1.30

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 15
NL - Brad Lidge (Philadelphia Phillies) - 10

Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (23-7)
AL Central - Indians/Tigers (20-10)
AL West - Texas Rangers (25-5)
NL East - Washington Nationals (22-8)
NL Central - Houston Astros (23-7)
NL West - Dodgers/Padres (19-11)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays are still somewhat mired in mediocrity as the season is nearly 1/4th complete

Game #31

Toronto 3
Anaheim 1

WP - Dustin McGowan (5-2)
LP - Ervin Santana (4-1)
Save - Sergio Romo (6)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (8.2 Ip 7 hits, 1 ER, 5 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Matt Stairs (5), Chris Ianetta (8)

Comments - Ianetta continues to hit for power and McGowan has been very stingy so far

Game #32

Johannesburg 3
Toronto 0

WP - Conan O'Brien (4-2)
LP - Justin Verlander (2-4)
Save - Jarvis Cocker (6)

Star of Game - Conan O'Brien (5.2 IP, 0 ER, 3 hits, 5 K's)

Homers
Johannesburg - Dermot Mulrooney (4)

Comments - Johannesburg is clearly the best expansion team. Conan and 4 relievers kept Toronto off the board.


Game #33

Toronto 7
Johannesburg 6

WP - Scott Downs (1-0)
LP - Jarvis Cocker (0-2)
Save - Sergio Romo (7)

Star of Game - Joe Inglett (3-5, HR)

Homers
Toronto - Joe Inglett (2), Vernon Wells (7), Lyle Overbay (2), Chris Ianetta (9)

Comments - Scott Ian came in for defensive purposes for the Jitterbugs and dropped a fly ball which brought in the tying and winning runs in the top of the 9th.

Game #34

Toronto 4
Johannesburg 3

WP - Sergio Romo (2-1)
LP - Bret Michaels (3-1)

Star of Game - AJ Burnett 8 IP, 7 hits, 1 ER, 9 K's

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (10)

Comments - Romo killed a brilliant Burnett outing but Toronto still won the game on a Jarvis Cocker wild pitch


Game #35

Oakland 6
Toronto 4

WP - Joe Blanton (4-2)
LP - Dustin McGowan (5-3)
Save - Jerry Blevins (2)

Star of Game - Ben Zobrist (3 run shot)

Homers
Oakland - Ben Zobrist (6)
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (11)

Comments - a tough early bomb by newly acquired Zobrist carried the A's


Game #36

Toronto 1
Oakland 0

WP - Justin Verlander (3-4)
LP - Dallas Braden (1-2)
Save - Sergio Romo (8)

Star of Game - Justin Verlander (8 IP, 5 hits, 0 ER, 9 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Verlander outduels Braden in this tight pitching duel

Around the League

Joey Votto (Cincinnati Reds) is out 5 weeks with inflamed ACL sufferered in a home game against the San Diego Padres

Luke Scott (Baltimore Orioles) wins AL Player of the Week (5 RBI .526)

Ryan Ludwick (St Louis Cardinals) wins NL Player of the Week (3 HR 10 RBI .579)

Felix Hernandez (Seattle Mariners) is out 5 weeks with bone chips in his shoulder suffered in a game against the Detroit Tigers at home

Ken Griffey Jr (Cincinnati Reds) hits career homer #600 off of Jake Westbrook at ATT Park on the road against the San Francisco Giants.


Status

Toronto is 18-18 and in 3rd place in the AL East trailing the first place New York Yankees by 9 games


League Leaders

Homers

AL - Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 14
NL - Carlos Delgado (New York Mets) - 15

RBI

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - 39
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 48

AVG

AL - Jason Alexander (Caracas Bolivars) - .402
NL - Jody Gerut (San Diego Padres) - .491

Stolen Bases

AL - Denard Span (Minnesota Twins) - 14
NL - Fred Lewis (San Francisco Giants) - 14

Wins

AL - Luis Mendoza (Texas Rangers) - 7
NL - Many tied at 7

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 66
NL - Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) - 60

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 0.72
NL - Max Scherzer (Arizona Diamondbacks) - 2.17

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 16
NL - Brad Lidge (Philadelphia Phillies) - 12


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees - (27-9)
AL Central - Detroit Tigers - (25-11)
AL West - Texas Rangers - (30-6)
NL East - Washington Nationals (25-11)
NL Central - Houston Astros (27-9)
NL West - Dodgers/Padres (23-13)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays played great against the Caracas Bolivars and ran up a 6 game winning streak until the Yankees came to town

Game #37

Toronto 7
Oakland 4

WP - Roy Halladay (5-1)
LP - Brad Ziegler (0-1)

Star of Game - Marco Scutaro (2-3, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (12)

Comments - Halladay wasn't brilliant but the Jays win as Scutaro's bat comes to lfie


Game #38

Toronto 1
Caracas 0
10 Innings

WP - Brian Tallet (1-0)
LP - Colin Quinn (0-4)

Star of Game - AJ Burnett (9 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER, 8 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Toronto wins with a Vernon Wells walk off single. Magic Johnson pitched a no hitter into the 8th inning until Marco Scutaro broke it up. Burnett is the hard luck no decision here.


Game #39

Toronto 12
Caracas 2

WP - Dustin McGowan (6-3)
LP - Adian Quinn (4-4)

Star of Game - Scott Rolen (3-5, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Caracas - Flava Flav (2)
Toronto - Scott Rolen (5), Alexis Rios (2)

Comments - Rolen is finding his niche in the leadoff role. McGowan continues to impress


Game #40

Toronto 4
Caracas 3

WP - Justin Verlander (4-4)
LP - Kevin Spacey (5-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (9)

Star of Game - Scott Rolen (2-3, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (6), Matt Stairs (6)

Comments - a tight battle in which the Jays hold on as Rolen still has the hot bat

Game #41

Toronto 4
Caracas 2

WP - Roy Halladay (6-1)
LP - Keith Olbermann (1-2)

Star of Game - Roy Halladay (CG, 7 hits, 1 ER, 6 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Frank Thomas (2), Marco Scutaro (2)
Caracas - Bronson Pinchot (1)

Comments - Halladay has great stuff this time around and Toronto gets power from the Big Hurt and their shortstop


Game #42

New York 3
Toronto 1

WP - Chien Ming Wang (7-0)
LP - Shaun Marcum (1-4)
Save - Jonathan Albaladejo (2)

Star of Game - Chine Ming Wang (7.2 Ip, 5 hits, 0 ER, 2 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Sadly the 5 spot in the rotation finally came up at the wrong time. Marcum got hurt after pitching decent. John Parrish was recalled to take his spot.


Around the league

Adam Dunn (Cincinnati Reds) slams 3 homers on the road at ATT Park against the San Francisco Giants

Milton Bradley (Texas Rangers) wins AL Player of the Week (4 HR 9 RBI .476)

Hanley Ramirez (Florida Marlins) wins NL Player of the Week (3 HR 10 RBI .609)

Status

Toronto is 23-19 and in 3rd place in the AL East trailing the New York Yankees by 8 games.

[majormet]

The Blue Jays had to run into the insanely hot Texas Rangers and went 2-4 over this 6 game patch

Game #43

New York 7
Toronto 2

WP - Brian Bruney (7-0)
LP - AJ Burnett (2-2)

Star of Game - Brian Bruney (7 IP, 2 hits, 1 ER, 7 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (8)

Comments - Bruney needs a drug test ASAP


Game #44

Texas 5
Toronto 2

WP - Kevin Millwood (5-1)
LP - Dustin McGowan (6-4)
Save - Frank Francisco (20)

Star of Game - Kevin Millwood (8 IP, 4 hits, 2 ER, 5 K's)

Homers
Texas - Chris Davis (6)

Comments - Millwood was stingy and McGowan surrendered a 3 run homer to Davis early in the game


Game #45

Texas 11
Toronto 9

WP - Franklyn German (1-0)
LP - Brian Tallet (1-1)
Save - Frank Francisco (21)

Star of Game - Josh Hamilton (3-4, 3 RBI's)

Homers

Toronto - Joe Inglett (3), Trot Nixon (1)

Comments - seesaw battle in which Tallet did not have his good stuff


Game #46

Toronto 15
Texas 6

WP - Roy Halladay (7-1)
LP - Werner Madrigal (7-1)

Star of Game - Frank Thomas (3-5, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (7), Frank Thomas (3), Lyle Overbay (3), Trot Nixon (2)

Texas - Chris Davis (7), Hank Blalock (5)

Comments - a game in which the Jays just had to pile runs up to keep the Rangers in check


Game #47

Toronto 7
Seattle 2

WP - AJ Burnett (3-2)
LP - Erik Bedard (5-2)

Star of Game - Scott Rolen (3-5, 2 HR's, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (8,9), Lyle Overbay (4), Elijah Dukes (11)

Comments - Bedard was hanging curveballs all game and Burnett finally gets some run suppots

Game #48

Seattle 5
Toronto 3

WP - Eric O'Flaherty (1-0)
LP - Dustin McGowan (6-5)
Save - JJ Putz (10)

Star of Game - Ichiro Suzuki (2-5)

No Homers

Comments - listless effort as the Jays slowly squander a 3-0 lead.


Around the League

Jermaine Dye (Chicago White Sox) is out 5 weeks with torn groin muscle

Tim Lincecum (San Francisco Giants) is out for the season with bone chips in his shoulder sufferered at a home game against the San Diego Padres

Chris Davis (Texas Rangers) wins AL Player of the Week (11 RBI .545)

Freddy Sanchez (Pittsburgh Pirates) wins NL Player of the Week (2 HR 11 RBI .533)

Melvin Mora (Baltimore Orioles) gets a cycle on the road at Dos Equis Park against the Mexico City Maulers

Edgar Renteria (Detroit Tigers) gets his 2000th career hit off of Wayne "Flounder" Knights on the road at Victor Hugo Stadium against the Paris Heartbreakers

Trades

Kansas City Royals trade Carlos Rosa and Matt Tupman to Detroit Tigers for Ramon Santiago

Status

Toronto is 25-23 tied for second with the Tampa Bay Rays trailing the first place New York Yankees by 12 games

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Jason Giambi (New York Yankees) - 17
NL - 3 tied at 16

RBI's

AL - Alex Rodriguez (New York Yankees) - 48
NL - David Wright (New York Mets) - 51

Avg

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) - .390
NL - Jody Gerut (San Diego Padres) - .423

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 20
NL - Fred Lewis/Luis Castillo - 18

Wins

AL - 4 tied at 8
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) - 9

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 91
NL - Cole Hamels (Philadelphia Phillies) - 70

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 1.19
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.11

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 22
NL - BJ Ryan/Brad Lidge - 15


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees - (37-11)
AL Central - Detroit Tigers (31-17)
AL West - Texas Rangers (39-9)
NL East - Washington Nationals (33-15)
NL Central - Houston Astros (36-12)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (33-15)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays moved into second place with a 4-2 stretch of baseball

Game #49

Toronto 11
Seattle 4

WP - Justin Verlander (5-4)
LP - Carlos Silva (1-2)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Seattle - Raul Ibanez (10), Adrian Beltre (9)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (10)

Comments - Verlander was shaky early but righted the ship and the Jays pounded on the Mariners pen


Game #50

Tampa Bay 8
Toronto 6

WP - David Price (3-6)
LP - Roy Halladay (7-2)
Save - Grant Balfour (10)

Star of Game - Carl Crawford (3-4, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Tampa Bay - Carlos Pena (16)

Comments - a game where Halladay did not have his good stuff


Game #51

Toronto 4
Tampa Bay 2

WP - John Parrish (1-2)
LP - James Shields (5-2)
Save - Sergio Romo (10)

Star of Game - Frank Thomas (HR, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (13), Frank Thomas (4)

Comments - Parrish was shaky early but really coasted in this one and looked good filling in for Marcum


Game #52

Toronto 16
Tampa Bay 0

WP - AJ Burnett (4-2)
LP - Scott Kazmir (3-5)

Star of Game - AJ Burnett (4 hit shutout, 8 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (10), Chris Ianetta (14)

Comments - Burnett gets the run support finally in this one sided game


Game #53

Kansas City 6
Toronto 0

WP - Gil Meche (5-4)
LP - Dustin McGowan (6-6)

Star of Game - Jose Guillen (3-4, HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Kansas City - Jose Guillen (6)

Comments - a lot of the regulars were rested and Meche had it easy

Game #54

Toronto 6
Kansas City 0

WP - Justin Verlander (6-4)
LP - Brett Tomko (1-1)

Star of Game - Justin Verlander (2 hit shutout, 5 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (15), Lyle Overbay (5), Trot Nixon (3)

Comments - Verlander had his no hitter broken up in the 8th inning by Ross Gload.


Around the league

Ryan Braun (Milwaukee Brewers) gets 5 hits in a game on the road at Great American Ball Park against the Cincinnati Reds

Manny Ramirez (Boston Red Sox) bangs out his 500th career homer on the road at Angels Field off of Jered Weaver of the Anaheim Angels

Travis Hafner (Cleveland Indians) hits for the cycle on the road against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park

Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) collects 5 hits in a game at home against the Auckland Conchordes

Ryan Shealy (Kansas City Royals) wins AL Batter of the Month (13 HR 27 RBI .360)

Jason Bay (Pittsburgh Pirates) wins NL Batter of the Month (9 HR 28 RBI .387)

AJ Burnett (Toronto Blue Jays) wins AL Pitcher of the Month (3-1 1.16 ERA)

Wandy Rodriguez (Houston Astros) wins NL Pitcher of the Month (4-0, 0.98 ERA)

Justin Verlander (Toronto Blue Jays) fires a 2 hit shutout on the road at Kauffman Stadium against the Kansas City Royals

Casey Blake (Cleveland Indians) hits for the cycle at Victor Hugo Stadium against the Paris Heartbreakers.


Status

Toronto Blue Jays are 29-25 in 2nd place in the AL East trailing the first place New York Yankees by 11 games.

[majormet]

The 2008 Amateur Draft was held using prominent celebrities that were born in 1964. The draft order was not based on anything but divisional alignment since there was no 2007 simulation

Draft

1. Baltimore Orioles - Eddie Vedder (SS/Lead Singer of Pearl Jam) - Solid pick here, looking for the next Ripken. He is a defensive wizard

2. Binghamton Boars - Blair Underwood (LF/Actor) - surprising pick here for someone that might be a 5 tool player.

3. Boston Red Sox - Jim Rome (1B/Talk Show Host) - odd to see this LA character out in Fenway

4. New York Yankees - Maynard Keenan (CF/Lead Singer of Tool) - Steinbrenner is alright upset with Keenan who wants to play in his underwear instead of full uniform.

5. Tampa Bay Rays - Keanu Reaves (3B/Actor) - Interesting pick, sometimes lacks focus according to scouts

6. Toronto Blue Jays - Rob Lowe (C/Actor) - some might say he is a bit ginger, but the Jays took a chance on him with expectation of moving Ianetta to another position.

7. Chicago White Sox - Don Cheadle (RF/Actor) - calm player who is a safe bet for production

8. Cleveland Indians - Anthony Delon - (2B/Actor) - most would say they picked this player way too early

9. Detroit Tigers - Clive Owen (RF/Actor) - decent pick out of the UK

10. Kansas City Royals - Nicolas Cage (1B/Actor) - he slipped in the draft, some questioned his heart

11. London Monarchs - David Spaide (SS/Actor) - he doesn't have much of a stick

12. Minnesota Twins - Stephen Colbert (RF/Comic) - questionable pick

13. Paris Heartbreakers - John Salley (P/Basketball) - can throw hard

14. Caracas Bolivars - Lenny Kravitz (1B/Singer)
15. Anaheim Angels - Chris Cornell (1B/Lead singer of Soundgarden)
16. Mexico City Maulers - John Ennis (SP/Actor)
17. Johannesburg Jitterbugs - Joel Lawrence (P/Porn Star)
18. Oakland Athletics - Hank Azaria (RF/Actor)
19. Seattle Mariners - Chris Makepeace (SS/Actor)
20. Texas Rangers - Laird Hamilton (SS/Surfer)
21. Atlanta Braves - Shane Douglas (1B/Wrestler)
22. Auckland Conchordes - Lee Evans (P/Actor)
23. Florida Marlins - Michael Boatman (P/Actor)
24. New York Mets - John Pyper-Ferugson (P/Actor)
25. Philadelphia Phillies - Jani Lane (3B/Lead Singer of Warrant)

26. Washington Nationals - Russell Crowe (P/Actor) - slipped in the draft, most say he is a malcontent

27. Chicago Cubs - Kevin Richardson (CF/Actor)
28. Cincinnati Reds - Ken Shamrock - (1B/UFC)
29. Houston Astros - Tom Verica (3B/Actor)
30. Milwaukee Brewers - Steve Steele (P/Porn Star)
31. Mobile Panthers - Willie Garson (P/Actor)
32. Pittsburgh Piratets - Gore Verbinski (LF/Director)
33. St Louis Cardinals - Tom Morello (3B/Rage Against the Machine)
34. Arizona Diamondbacks - Steve Austin (3B/Wrestler)
35. Colorado Rockies - Franco Trentalace (LF/Porn Star)
36. Los Angeles Dodgers - David Eigenberg (2B/Actor)
37. San Diego Padres - Adam Duritz (1B/Lead singer of Counting Crows)
38. San Francisco Giants - Glenn Beck (1B/Talk show host)
39. Seoul Survivors - Stephen Geoffreys (P/Actor)
40. Tokyo Terrors - Lars Mikkelson (1B/Director)

[Loeffle]

Originally Posted by majormet

After my Las Vegas Croupiers dynasty crashed and a couple attempts at dynasties, I have started a new dynasty.

It starts with the 2008 baseball season and I will be managing the Toronto Blue Jays into the future.

I am using Lahman database with 2008 stats, but players will revert back to where they started in 2008 so CC Sabathia is back in Cleveland

I have expanded MLB to 10 extra teams. Each team is comprised of celebrities born during a certain year, these are all based on players that were filled by minors.

Each year the draft will feature celebrities born during a certain year, the 2008 draft held on 6/1 will be celebrities born in 1964.

Current New teams are:

Binghamton Boars (birth dates in 1954) - Play in AL East
London Monarchs (birth dates in 1956) - Play in AL Central
Paris Heartbreakers (birth dates in 1955) - Play in AL Central
Caracas Bolivars (birth dates in 1959) - Play in AL West
Mexico City Maulers (birth dates in 1957) - Play in AL West
Johannesburg Jitterbugs (birth dates in 1963) - Play in AL West
Auckland Conchordes (birth dates in 1962) - Play in NL East
Mobile Panthers (birth dates in 1958) - Play in NL Central
Tokyo Terrors (birth dates in 1960) - Play in NL West
Seoul Survivors (birth dates in 1961) - Play in NL West

Majormet is back
And of course I will follow
R.I.P. Croupiers!

[majormet]

Not the best week of hardball by the Jays as they go 2-4 and struggled against the Tigers

Game #55

Toronto 8
Kansas City 6

WP - Roy Halladay (8-2)
LP - John Bale (4-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (11)

Star of Game - Chris Ianetta (3-4, 2 RBI's)

No Homers

Comments - Halladay wasn't great but the Jays hit for him


Game #56

Kansas City 8
Toronto 6

WP - Joakim Soria (3-2)
LP - John Parrish (1-3)

Star of Game - Jose Guillen (4-4, HR 5 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (16)
Kansas City - Jose Guillen (7)

Comments - Parrish was weak and will get one more start. Soria came in from the 7th for KC


Game #57

Detroit 8
Toronto 7

WP - Freddie Dolsi (2-1)
LP - Sergio Romo (2-2)
Save - Bobby Seay (18)

Star of Game - Matthew Joyce (3-3, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Detroit - Miguel Cabrera (11), Matthew Joyce (10)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (11,12), Scott Rolen (11)

Comments - Romo blows the save by giving up the 3 run bomb to Cabrera


Game #58

Detroit 5
Toronto 1

WP - Chris Lambert (3-2)
LP - Dustin McGowan (6-7)

Star of Game - Chris Lambert (6.1 IP, 3 hits, 1 ER, 4 K's)

Homers
Detroit - Placido Polanco (3), Edgar Renteria (7), Marcus Thames (15)

Comments - Lambert looked too good, while McGowan continues to lose


Game #59

London 5
Toronto 4

WP - "Sugar" Ray Leonard (5-0)
LP - Scott Downs (1-1)
Save - Tom Irwin (3)

Star of Game - Tom Hanks (4-4, 2 RBI's)

No Homers

Comments - Toronto loses to the lowly London Monarchs in this one was Downs was ineffective in relief of Verlander


Game #60

Toronto 4
London 2

WP - Roy Halladay (9-2)
LP - Eric Roberts (1-9)
Save - Sergio Romo (12)

Star of Game - Roy Halladay (8 IP, 7 hits, 2 ER, 7 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (12), Chris Ianetta (17)

Comments - Halladay has an easy time with the London lineup and plays stopper


Around the League

Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) pitches a 1 hit shutout on the road at Dave Matthews Stadium against the Johannesburg Jitterbugs. Lone Jitterbug hit was by Lars Ulrich

Manny Ramirez (Boston Red Sox) wins AL Player of the Week (16 RBI. 522)

Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) wins NL Player of the Week (4 HR 8 RBI .615)

Miguel Tejada (Houston Astros) is out 5 weeks with strained rotator cuff

Johann Santana (New York Mets) fires a 2 hit shutout at home against the Seoul Survivors


Trades

Atlanta Braves trade Omar Infante and Shane "The Franchise" Douglas to the Toronto Blue Jays for Brian Wolfe

Oakland Athletics trade Chad Gaudin to Cincinnati Reds for Jeff Keppinger and Ken Shamrock

Status

Toronto is 31-29 tied for 3rd place with the Boston Red Sox trailing the first place New York Yankees by 12 games.

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 20
NL - Aramis Ramirez (Chicago Cubs) - 20

RBI

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 60
NL - Jeff Baker (Colorado Rockies) - 62

Avg

AL - Bobby Abreu (New York Yankees) - .391
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - .415

SB

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 23
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 22


Wins

AL - Brian Bruney (Yankees), Armando Gallarraga (Tigers) - 10
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) - 10

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 108
NL - Cole Hamels (Philadelphia Phillies) - 82

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 1.08
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.11

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 23
NL - Brad Lidge (Philadelphia Phillies) - 19


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (43-17)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (40-20)
AL West - Texas Rangerse (46-14)
NL East - Washington Nationals (41-19)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (42-18)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (40-20)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays finally played well as they beat on the expansion team stretch of schedule


Game #61

London 4
Toronto 2

WP - Oswaldo Navarro (1-1)
LP - John Parrish (1-4)
Save - Tom Irwin (4)

Star of Game - Gavin Maloof (3-4, 2 RBI's)

No Homers

Comments - Only loss for the week as it is hard for John Parrish to win period.


Game #62

Toronto 9
Paris 2

WP - AJ Burnett (5-2)
LP - Kevin Costner (4-4)

Star of Game - Omar Infante (5-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Lyle Overbay (6)

Comments - The Jays racked up 18 hits in this one, and blew apart the Heartbreakers


Game #63

Toronto 8
Paris 2

WP - Dustin McGowan (7-7)
LP - Willem Dafoe (3-6)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (3-5, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Paris - Angus Young (2)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (13)

Comments - McGowan snaps his loss streak, as Paris outhits Toronto 12-9 and yet loses by wide margin.


Game #64

Toronto 7
Paris 4

WP - Roy Halladay (10-2)
LP - Howie Mandel (1-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (13)

Star of Game - Joe Inglett (4-5, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (13), Joe Inglett (4), Vernon Wells (14)

Comments - The Jays just hit well against the expansion quality pitching


Game #65

Toronto 8
Mexico City 7

WP - Brian Tallet (2-1)
LP - Anthony Clark (1-1)

Star of Game - Frank Thomas (3 run homer)

Homers
Toronto - Frank Thomas (5)

Comments - Marco Scutaro had the walk off double in the bottom of the 9th as Romo blows the game for Justin Verlander


Game #66

Toronto 10
Mexico City 3

WP - AJ Burnett (6-2)
LP - Brett "The Hitman" Hart (1-10)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (2-5 HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (15), Matt Stairs (7), Frank Thomas (6)

Comments - Hart served up batting practice while Burnett coasted

Around the League

Luke Scott (Baltimore Orioles) slams 3 homers on the road at the Ballpark in Arlington against the Texas Rangers

Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) tosses a 2 hit shutout at Chase Field on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks

Andy Pettitte (St Louis Cardinals) pitches a 2 hitter on the road against the Pittsburgh Pirates

Nelson Cruz (Texas Rangers) wins AL Player of the Week (6 HR 18 RBI .375)

Chris Botti (Auckland Conchordes) wins NL Player of the Week (1 HR 10 RBI .609)


Status

Toronto is 36-30 and tied with the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Rays for 2nd place trailing the first place New York Yankees by 11 games


League Leaders

Homers

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 22
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - 23

RBI's

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 68
NL - Jeff Baker (Colorado Rockies) - 67

Avg

AL - Bobby Abreu (New York Yankees) - .380
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - .414

Stolen Bases

AL - Carl Crawford (Rays), Matt Tolbert (Twins) - 23
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 24

Wins

AL - Armando Gallarraga (Detroit Tigers) - 11
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) - 11

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 122
NL - Cole Hamels (Philaelphia Phillies) - 89

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 1.43
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.08

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 25
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 22


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (47-19)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (43-23)
AL West - Texas Rangers (51-15)
NL East - Washington Nationals (46-20)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (47-19)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (44-22)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays went 4-2 this time around with some struggle against expansions team but success against the powerful Tigers

Game #67

Mexico City 8
Toronto 6

WP - Jon Lovitz (1-1)
LP - Dustin Mcgowan (7-8)
Save - Anthony Clark (2)

Star of Game - Timothy Busfield (3,4 RBI)

Homers
Mexico City - Vince Gill (2)
Toronto - Joe Inglett (5), Vernon Wells (16), Lyle Overbay (7)

Comments - a tough game where the Jays blew the early 4-0 lead.

Game #68

London 1
Toronto 0

WP - Guy Ahrens (1-2)
LP - Roy Halladay (10-3)
Save - Tom Irwin (6)

Star of Game - Guy Ahrens (7.2 IP, 3 hits, 0 ER, 5 K's)

No Homers

Comments - Blame it on the London fog, as the Blue Jays bats went cold against the Monarchs 4th round pick this year


Game #69

Toronto 5
London 3

WP - Scott Downs (2-1)
LP - Tom Irwin (1-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (14)

Star of Game - Matt Stairs (3-5, RBI)

No Homers

Comments - a game in where Toronto won when John Parrish was the starter somehow.


Game #70

Toronto 9
London 7

WP - Justin Verlander (7-4)
LP - Oswaldo Navarro (1-3)
Save - Sergio Romo (16)

Star of Game - Scott Rolen (3-5, 2 HR's, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (14,15), Joe Inglett (6), Frank Thomas (7), Lyle Overbay (8)

Comments - Rolen does well batting leadoff as the Jays barely hang on in this one.

Game #71

Toronto 11
Detroit 5

WP - AJ Burnett (7-2)
LP - Dontrelle Willis (3-1)
Save - Scott Downs (1)

Star of Game (losing) - Marcus Thames (4-4, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Scott Rolen (16)
Detroit - Marcus Thames (21)

Comments - Scott Downs came in during the 6th inning and finished out the game.


Game #72

Toronto 5
Detroit 3

WP - Dustin McGowan (8-8)
LP - Zach Miner (7-5)
Save - Sergio Romo (16)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (8 IP, 6 hits, 2 ER, 6 K's)

No Homers

Comments - McGowan has had a decision in all 16 of his starts


Around the League

Joe Inglett (Toronto Blue Jays) wins AL Player of the Week (2 HR 7 RBI .577)

Jayson Werth (Philadelphia Phillies) wins NL Player of the Week (5 HR 7 RBI .526)

Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) slugs 3 homers in a road game at Chase Field against the Arizona Diamondbacks

Marlon Byrd (Texas Rangers) collects 5 hits on the road against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum.

Status

Toronto is 40-32 and tied for 2nd with the Boston Red Sox trailing the first place New York Yankees by 12 games.

[majormet]

The Blue Jays played .500 ball this week as they try to make a run at the wildcard this year

Game #73

Detroit 9
Toronto 8

WP - Aquilino Lopez (2-3)
LP - Brian Tallet (2-2)

Star of Game (losing) - Vernon Wells (2-6, 2 HR's 5 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (17,18)
Detroit - Miguel Cabrera (15), Curtis Granderson (19)

Comments - Miguel Cabrera capped off the comeback with a walk off 2 run homers in this one.

Game #74

Detroit 4
Toronto 1

WP - Freddy Garcia (1-1)
LP - John Parrish (1-5)
Save - Aquilino Lopez (2)

Star of Game - Freddy Garcia (8 IP, 5 hits, 1 ER, 2 K's)

No Homers

Comment - tough game when you can't hit the meager Garcia


Game #75

Toronto 5
Chicago 3

WP - Justin Verlander (8-4)
LP - Mark Buehrle (4-5)
Save - Sergio Romo (17)

Star of Game - Justin Verlander (8 IP, 7 hits, 3 ER, 9 K's)

Homers
Chicago - Nick Swisher (11), Javier Valentin (8)

Comments - solid work in this one by Verlander as he dominated the White Sox


Game #76

Toronto 7
Chicago 2

WP - AJ Burnett (8-2)
LP - Clayton Richard (4-8)
Save - Scott Downs (2)

Star of Game - AJ Burnett (7.1 IP, 4 hits, 2 ER, 7 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (18)

Comments - strong work by Burnett with another long relief save by Downs as he came into a much closer game


Game #77

Toronto 9
Chicago 2

WP - Dustin McGowan (9-8)
LP - Nick Masset (4-2)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (8 IP, 4 hits, 0 ER, 6 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Marco Scutaro (3)

Comments - another solid win as Scutaro smacked a grand slam


Game #78

Chicago 9
Toronto 6

WP - John Danks (9-2)
LP - Roy Halladay (10-4)
Save - Matt Thornton (4)

Star of Game - Carlos Quentin (3-5, 5 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (19)

Comments - some concern as Halladay has looked bad for 3 straight starts


Around the League

Troy Glaus (St Louis Cardinals) hits 3 homers on the road at Hank Aaron Park against the Mobile Pantehrs

Oscar Salazar (Baltimore Orioles) smacks 3 homers on the road at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox

Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) wins AL Player of the Week (4 HR 11 RBI .500)

Gabe Kapler (Milwaukee Brewers) wins NL Player of the Week (4 HR 16 RBI .424)

Mike Fontenot (Chicago Cubs) drills 3 homers at Minute Maid Park on the road against the Houston Astros.


Status

Toronto is 43-35 and tied for 3rd in the AL East with the Boston Red Sox trailing the first place New York Yankees by 14 games

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 27
NL - Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) - 28

RBI

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 82
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - 75

Avg

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) - .390
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - .394

SB

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 32
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 27

Wins

AL - 4 tied at 12
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) - 13

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 132
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 100

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 1.57
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 1.95

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 29
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 24


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (57-21)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (52-26)
AL West - Texas Rangers (59-19)
NL East - Washington Nationals (54-24)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (56-22)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (50-28)

[majormet]

The Toronto Blue Jays go 6-0 by sweeping Cleveland and Binghamton. The streak was highlighted by a Justin Verlander No hitter against the Indians. Toronto has now won 9 of their last 10 ball games.


Game #79

Toronto 8
Cleveland 6

WP - John Parrish (2-5)
LP - Cliff Lee (9-4)
Save - Sergio Romo (18)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (2-5, 2 HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Cleveland - Kelly Shoppach (18)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (20,21)

Comments - Who would have believe the Jays would have won a Lee vs Parrish matchup


Game #80

Toronto 4
Cleveland 0

WP - Justin Verlander (9-4)
LP - Jeremy Sowers (1-1)

Star of Game - Justin Verlander - NO HITTER with 7 strikeouts

No Homers

Comments - Amazingly well pitched no-no by the revamped Verlander, the 2nd of his career (editor's note, after managing well over 3000 games in OOTP, this is my first managed no-hitter, it felt real)


Game #81

Toronto 7
Cleveland 6

WP - Scott Downs (3-1)
LP - Phil Coke (4-3)

Star of Game - Marco Scutaro (2-5, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Cleveland - Casey Blake (18)
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (19)

Comments - Ryan Garko boots a ball enabling the winning run to score as the Jays come back to win in this one.

Game #82

Toronto 17
Binghamton 0

WP - Roy Halladay (11-4)
LP - John Travolta (4-10)

Star of Game - Scott Rolen (5-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Matt Stairs (8)

Comments - Halladay is back on track and the Jays maul the Maulers


Game #83

Toronto 3
Binghamton 1

WP - AJ Burnett (9-2)
LP - Howard Stern (4-8)
Save - Sergio Romo (19)

Star of Game - AJ Burnett (8 IP, 6 hits, 1 ER, 8 K's)

No Homers

Comments - A solid outing by Burnett as the shockjock Stern was also stingy


Game #84

Toronto 4
Binghamton 1

WP - Dustin McGowan (10-8)
LP - Chris Noth (1-15)
Save - Sergio Romo (20)

Star of Game - Dustin McGowan (8 IP, 6 hits, 1 ER, 10 K's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (20), Elijah Dukes (12)

Comments - Toronto got to the easy Noth early but the Mauler pen was tough

Around the League

Justin Verlander (Toronto Blue Jays) fires a no hitter at home against the Cleveland Indians

Casey Blake (Cleveland Indians) wins AL Batter of the Month (11 HR 33 RBI .391)

Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) wins NL Batter of the Month (10 HR 29 RBI .443)

Mike Mussina (New York Yankees) win AL Pitcher of the Month (4-0 1.77 ERA)

Vicente Padilla (Colorado Rockies) wins NL Pitcher of the Month (2-1 0.81 ERA)

Carlos Quentin (Chicago White Sox) wins AL Batter of the Month (1 HR 8 RBI .529)

Mike Fontenot (Chicago Cubs) wins NL Batter of the Month (6 HR 14 RBI .476)


Status

Toronto is 49-35 and in 2nd place in the AL East trailing the first place New York Yankees by 12 games, and the Jays have a one game lead over Tampa Bay, Boston, Detroit and Seattle in the wildcard race.


League Leaders

Homers

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 28
NL - Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) - 31

RBI's

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 83
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - 82

Avg

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) .386
NL - Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) .398

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) 35
NL - Luis Castillo, Jose Reyes (New York Mets) - 28

Wins

AL - Many tied at 12
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) - 13

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 140
NL - Chad Billingsley (Los Angeles Dodgers) - 106

ERA

AL - Brian Bruney (New York Yankees) - 2.01
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.01

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 31
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 27


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (61-23)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (53-31)
AL West - Texas Rangers (64-20)
NL East - Washington Nationals (58-26)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (60-24)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (55-29)


All Star Game

National League - 4
American League 3

WP - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs)
LP - CC Sabathia (Cleveland Indians)
Save - Ramon Troncoso (Los Angeles Dodgers)

MVP - Kerry Wood (3 IP, 2 hits, 0 ER, 5 K's)

Homers
American - Raul Ibanez (Seattle Mariners)

Starters

American League

Catcher - Chris Ianetta (Toronto Blue Jays)
First Baseman - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins)
Second Baseman - Joe Inglett (Toronto Blue Jays)
Third Baseman - Alex Rodriguez (New York Yankees)
Shortstop - Casey Blake (Cleveland Indians)
Leftfielder - Raul Ibanez (Seattle Mariners)
Centerfielder - Curtis Granderson (Detroit Tigers)
Rightfielder - JD Drew (Boston Red Sox)
Pitcher - CC Sabathia (Cleveland Indians)

National League

Catcher - Brian McCann (Atlanta Braves)
First Baseman - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals)
Second Baseman - Martin Prado (Atlanta Braves)
Third Baseman - Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves)
Shortstop - Rafael Furcal (Los Angeles Dodgers)
Leftfielder - Carlos Lee (Houston Astros)
Centerfielder - Gabe Kapler (Milwaukee Brewers)
Rightfielder - Ryan Ludwick (St Louis Cardinals)
Pitcher - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays built their winning streak to 9 games and 12 of 13 before the high class Texas Rangers came to town and took 2 of 3 games.

Game #85

Toronto 6
Baltimore 5

WP - Justin Verlander (10-4)
LP - Dan Giese (1-2)
Save - Sergio Romo (21)

Star of Game - Omar Infante (4-5 RBI)

Homers
Baltimore - Melvin Mora (16), Tadahito Iguchi (2)

Comments - a tight game where the Jays held on.


Game #86

Toronto 20
Baltimore 7

WP - John Parrish (3-5)
LP - Adam Loewen (2-4)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (3-4, Grand Slam, 7 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (22)
Baltimore - Luis Montanez (7)

Comments - The Jays pounded the O's meager pitching.


Game #87

Toronto 15
Baltimore 1

WP - Roy Halladay (12-4)
LP - Dennis Sarfate (5-8)

Star of Game - Joe Inglett (3-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (23), Scott Rolen (17), Matt Stairs (9), Lyle Overbay (9)

Comments - Wells hits grand slams in back to back games and takes over the RBI lead

Game #88

Texas 4
Toronto 1

WP - Kevin Millwood (10-2)
LP - AJ Burnett (9-3)
Save - Frank Francisco (34)

Star of Game - Kevin Millwood (8.1 IP, 3 hits, 1 ER, 1 K)

No Homers

Comments - After thrashing the Orioles, the Jays could not figure out the stingy veteran Millwood


Game #89

Toronto 6
Texas 5

WP - Dustin McGowan (11-8)
LP - Kason Gabbard (6-1)
Save - Sergio Romo (22)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (2 run Homers)

Homers
Texas - David Murphy (8)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (24), Elijah Dukes (13)

Comments - Toronto had the 6-1 lead and had to hold off the Rangers in 6-5 fashion


Game #90

Texas 11
Toronto 3

WP - Warner Madrigal (12-2)
LP - Justin Verlander (10-5)

Star of Game - Michael Young (5-6, 4 RBI's)

Homers
Texas - Chris Davis (17)
Toronto - Matt Stairs (10)

Comments - Verlander was awful and Toronto hit into 5 double plays.


Around the League

Brad Hawpe (Colorado Rockies) is out 5 weeks with a fractured Hand as he was hit by a pitch at home against Scott Eyre of the Chicago Cubs

Scott Rolen (Toronto Blue Jays) wins AL Player of the Week (0 HR 5 RBI .688)

Mark Teixeira (Atlanta Braves) wins NL Player of the Week (3 HR 9 RBI .500)

Alfonso Soriano (Chicago Cubs) hits 3 homers at home against the New York Mets.

Status

Toronto is 53-37 and tied for 2nd with the Tampa Bay Rays behind the first place New York Yankees, who lead by 13 games. Toronto and Tampa Bay are tied for the wildcard lead

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Carlos Pena (Tampa Bay Rays) - 32
NL - Ryan Howard (Philadelphia Phillies) - 31

RBI

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - 96
NL - Albert Pujols (Cardinals), David Wright (Mets) - 86

Avg

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) - .383
NL - Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) - .398

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 41
NL - Jose Reyes (New York Mets) - 32

Wins

AL - Armando Galarraga (Detroit Tigers) - 13
NL - Many tied at 13

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 144
NL - Chad Billingsley (Los Angeles Dodgers) - 113

ERA

AL - Joba Chamberlain (New York Yankees) - 2.01
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.04

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 34
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 27


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (66-24)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (54-36)
AL West - Texas Rangers (68-22)
NL East - Washington Nationals (59-31)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (66-24)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (60-30)

[majormet]

The Toronto Blue Jays continued to play great baseball as they go 5-1 over the next 6 games

Game #91

Toronto 7
Johannesburg 3

WP - Roy Halladay (13-4)
LP - Fatboy Slim (9-4)

Star of Game - Lyle Overbay (2-5, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Matt Stairs (11), Lyle Overbay (10)

Comments - the lefty bats carry the Jays in this one


Game #92

Toronto 5
Johnnesburg 2

WP - John Parrish (4-5)
LP - Conan O'Brien (4-9)
Save - Sergio Romo (22)

Star of Game - Matt Stairs (3-4, HR RBI)

Homers
Toronto - Vernon Wells (25), Matt Stairs (12)
Johannesburg - Norm MacDonald (3)

Comments - Parrish is getting his good stats against the expansion teams.


Game #93

Toronto 12
Johannesburg 4

WP - AJ Burnett (10-3)
LP - Brad Pitt (2-11)

Star of Game - Lyle Overbay (4-5, Grand Slam, 5 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Omar Infante (2), Lyle Overbay (11)

Comments - Overbay has the hot bat and Burnett finally is getting some run support


Game #94

Toronto 6
Seattle 3

WP - Dustin McGowan (12-8)
LP - Cesar Jimenez (4-7)
Save - Sergio Romo (23)

Star of Game - Chris Ianetta (2-5, HR 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Chris Ianetta (21)
Seattle - Adrian Beltre (17)

Comments - Ianetta is getting out of his slump. McGowan has 20 decisions in his 20 starts

Game #95

Toronto 6
Seattle 5

WP - Justin Verlander (11-5)
LP - JJ Putz (3-5)
Save - Sergio Romo (24)

Star of Game - Vernon Wells (3-5, 3 RBI's)

Homers
Seattle - Jose Lopez (9,10)

Comments - Wells has the 2 run double off of Putz in the top of the 9th


Game #96

Seattle 4
Toronto 3

WP - JJ Putz (4-5)
LP - Roy Halladay (13-5)

Star of Game - Yuniesky Betancourt (3-4, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Frank Thomas (8)
Seattle - Brad Wilkerson (6)

Comments - Yosuki Fukodome has the walk off single in this game after robbing Overbay of a homer in the top of the 9th


Around the League

Prince Fielder (Milwaukee Brewers) slams 3 homers in a game on the road against the Auckland Conchordes at Finn Brothers Stadium.

Ryan Shealy (Kansas City Royals) wins AL player of the Week (5 HR 8 RBI .458)

Alfonso Soriano (Chicago Cubs) wins NL Player of the Week (5 HR 10 RBI .462)

David Ortiz (Boston Red Sox) clubs 3 homers at home against the Minnesota Twins

Adam Dunn (Cincinnati Reds) crushed 3 homers in a home game against the San Diego Padres

Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay Rays) hits for the cycle at home against the Texas Rangers


Trades

Cincinnati Reds trade Chad Gaudin to the Oakland Athletics for Joe Blanton

Colorado Rockies trade Jeff Baker to Oakland Athletics for Chad Gaudin

Houston Astros trade Mark Saccomanco, Tom Veriza, and Seymour Campbell to San Diego Padres for Brian Giles

Colorado Rockiese trade Ubaldo Jimenez to Boston Red Sox for Charlie Zink and Joe Thurston

Cincinnati Reds trade Joey Votto to Oakland Athletcis for Justin Duchscherer


Status

Toronto Blue Jays are 58-38 and in 2nd place in the AL East behind the New York Yankees by 14 games. The Jays lead the Tampa Bay Rays by 1 game in the AL Wildcard race


League Leaders

Homers

AL - Ryan Shealy (Kansas City Royals) - 35
NL - Adam Dunn (Cincinnati Reds) - 35

RBI

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - 101
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - 92

AVG

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) - .378
NL - Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) - .406

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 42
NL - Jose Reyes (New York Mets) - 33

Wins

AL - Armando Galarraga (Tigers), Roy Halladay (Blue Jays) - 13
NL - Ted Lilly (Chicago Cubs) 14

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 151
NL - Cole Hamels (Philadelphia Phillies) - 127

ERA

AL - Joba Chamberlain (New York Yankees) - 1.92
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.48

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 36
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 28


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (72-24)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (59-37)
AL West - Texas Rangers (71-25)
NL East - Washington Nationals (63-33)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (69-27)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (64-32)

[majormet]

The Blue Jays did not play well this week, as they struggled against Paris of all teams.

Game #97

Seattle 13
Toronto 5

WP - Carlos Silva (5-4)
LP - John Parrish (4-6)

Star of Game - Kevin Millar (4-5, HR 4 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Elijah Dukes (14)
Seattle - Kevin Millar (12), Kenji Johjima (4)

Comments - A lot of the starters were rested by Toronto and Parrish struggled as guys played out of position.


Game #98

Paris 3
Toronto 2

WP - Kelsey Grammer (6-11)
LP - AJ Burnett (10-4)
Save - John Grisham (12)

Star of Game - Kelsey Grammer (7.1 IP, 7 hits, 1 ER, 4 K's)

Homers
Paris - Tim Dunigan (4)

Comments - Toronto made Kelsey Grammer look like Greg Maddux in this one.


Game #99

Paris 5
Toronto 3

WP - Kevin Costner (8-6)
LP - Dustin McGowan (12-9)
Save - Bruce Willis (2)

Star of Game - (Losing) - Matt Staris (2-4, 2 HR's, 2 RBI's)

Homers
Toronto - Matt Stairs (13,14)

Comments - the bats continued to slump in this one as Costner induced a lot of ground balls


Game #100

Toronto 15
Paris 4

WP - Justin Verlander (12-5)
LP - Bill Paxton (7-9)

Star of Game - Alexis Rios (4-6, HR 3 RBI's)

Homers
Paris - Steve Jobs (8)
Toronto - Alexis Rios (3)

Comments - The Blue Jays break out of the slump as Rios has finally started to hit consistently


Game #101

Toronto 12
Oakland 1

WP - Roy Halladay (14-5)
LP - Norbert Whisler (0-3)

Star of Game - Roy Halladay (CG, 1 R, 3 hits, 6 K's)

Homers
Oakland - Ryan Sweeney (7)
Toronto - Vernon Wells (26), Lyle Overbay (12), Elijah Dukes (15)

Comments - Toronto battered up the rookie Whisler who emerged from the 9th round into the Oakland rotation

Game #102

Oakland 3
Toronto 1

WP - Rich Harden (11-6)
LP - John Parrish (4-7)
Save - Santiago Casilla (2)

Star of Game - Rich Harden (7 IP, 6 hits, 0 ER, 7 K's)

Homers
Oakland - Jack Cust (26)

Comments - Harden had an easy time of it, and was on his game and the A's prevailed

Around the League

Miguel Cabrera (Detroit Tigers) has 5 hits in a road game against the Caracas Bolivars at Galarraga Park

Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay Rays) wins AL Player of the Week (3 HR 16 RBI .536)

Adam Dunn (Cincinnati Reds) wins NL Player of the Week (8 HR 20 RBI .429)

Eric Hinske (Tampa Bay Rays) has 5 hits on the road at Led Zeppelin Field against the London Monarchs.


Trade

San Diego Padres trade Chris Young and Peter Berg to San Francisco Giants for Matt Cain.

Status

Toronto is 60-42 in 3rd place in the AL East trailing the first place New York Yankees by 16 games and are 1 game behind wildcard leading Boston Red Sox.

League Leaders

Homers

AL - Ryan Shealy (Kansas City Royals) - 36
NL - Adam Dunn (Cincinnati Reds) - 37

RBI

AL - Vernon Wells (Toronto Blue Jays) - 108
NL - Albert Pujols (St Louis Cardinals) - 100

Avg

AL - Justin Morneau (Minnesota Twins) - .370
NL - Chipper Jones (Atlanta Braves) - .401

Stolen Bases

AL - Matt Tolbert (Minnesota Twins) - 46
NL - Luis Castillo (New York Mets) - 36

Wins

AL - Many tied at 14
NL - Andy Pettitte (Cardinals), Ted Lilly (Cubs) - 14

Strikeouts

AL - Rich Harden (Oakland Athletics) - 166
NL - Cole Hamels (Philadelphia Phillies) - 132

ERA

AL - Joba Chamberlain (New York Yankees) - 1.90
NL - Kerry Wood (Chicago Cubs) - 2.24

Saves

AL - Frank Francisco (Texas Rangers) - 36
NL - BJ Ryan (Washington Nationals) - 29


Division Leaders

AL East - New York Yankees (76-26)
AL Central - Cleveland Indians (61-41)
AL West - Texas Rangers (74-28)
NL East - Washington Nationals (68-34)
NL Central - Chicago Cubs (73-29)
NL West - Los Angeles Dodgers (66-36)