Jays shouldn't rush Halladay back from injury

I think I speak for everyone when I say "phewwwww" regarding the status of Roy Halladay. When he was yanked in the 4th inning against the Marlins Friday with an apparent groin injury, Jays Nation held their collective breaths. Would he be gone for a long time?

Well, it turns out the Jays ace is nursing a mild groin strain, however "mild" a strained groin could possibly be. He will not be heading to the disabled list, at least for now, and the team is remaining optimistic he'll be able to start Saturday against Washington after missing his scheduled Wednesday trip to the hill against Philly.

I think that's being a little too hasty, especially if the club wants him to be around for the long haul. Doc shouldn't start in Washington simply because he'll be in a National League ball park and will have to bat. There's no reason to have him running any more than he has to at this point, risking further injury. No reason at all.

The fact the Jays are slipping down in the standing at an alarming rate (7-17 in their past 24 contests) might force the organization's hand in rushing him back to the rotation, even if it's not necessarily the smartest thing.

DON'T DO IT!

Alex Rios is the next Vernon Wells

An optimist would suggest that Alex Rios has busted out of his horrific slump since being moved from the 3rd slot in the order to the 6th. After all, since the demotion of sorts, he's gone 7 for 12 for a .583 clip, blasting two home runs and adding 4 RBI. He has made 2 all-star teams. And has the ability to be a 5 tool player. Good thing I'm not an optimist when it comes to Rios, because I'd be getting sucked in and fooled again. Rios is the next Vernon Wells.

Case in point, Rios long ball today against the Marlins. Florida was smashing the Jays 8-0. That's when he went yard. Hmm, sounds an awful lot like Wells doesn't it? Maybe Rios will do this for a few more years and parlay that into a 7 year/$126 million dollar contract like Wells did. All Rios has to do is pack on about 20-30 pounds and then he'll be a carbon copy of V-Dub. Maybe he'll fool J.P. Ricciardi into thinking he's Vernon.

Maybe I should be thinking positively about Rios. Perhaps he's figured it out. He could go off and heat up like Carlos Delgado did last year for the Mets. He could lead the Jays back to the promised land.

On second thought, Rios still sucks.