Jays to face former Manager Gibbons in KC

The opener of a four game set between the A.L. East leading Toronto Blue Jays and the Kansas City Royals will feature a familiar face to the Blue Birds.

Former Jays manager John Gibbons will be in the opposing dugout against the club he led to a 305-305 record in 5 seasons at the helm as Manager. Gibbons is now the bench coach for an up and coming Royals ball club.

The Jays fired Gibbons 74 games into the 2008 campaign after the club slumped to a 35-39 record, eventually replacing him with current bench boss Cito Gaston.

Gibbons tumultuous tenure in Toronto included run-ins with players, most notably Shea Hillenbrand and Ted Lilly.

The Jays will attempt to set a club record with its 7th straight series victory to open a season.

Blue Jays should sign Pedro Martinez

He may be a little long in the tooth, and Pedro Martinez certainly has a lot of tread on the tires, but Blue Jays General Manager J.P. Ricciardi should consider signing the 3-time CY Young award winner to be a member of the depleted starting staff.

The starting rotation, as it stands now, is Roy Halladay, David Purcey, Scott Richmond, Brian Tallet and Brian Burres. The team is expected to have Litsch, Ricky Romero and Casey Janssen back in the rotation mid-May. But what if Purcey continues to struggle? Richmond falls back down to earth? Romero also has a history of injuries, Janssen hasn't pitched in the bigs since 2007, Tallet has only 8 career starts to his name, and Burres' career ERA is 5.99. Is it really that big of a risk to sign the former New York Met?

Pedro's asking price is expected to be in the $5 million dollar range, even though his last full and effective campaign came back in 2005, where he won 15 games. Toronto has some money to spend after the departure of A.J. Burnett in the off-season. They club should draw up an incentive laden contract for the former 23 game winner and see if he sticks.

Really, could he be any worse then Brian Burres?

Halladay recovers for 4th win of season

After looking rather un-Doc like in the first three innings against the White Sox, Roy Halladay shut the door on Chicago's South Side to clinch the Jays 6th straight series to open the season.

Halladay picks up his 4th win of the campaign, tying Royals hurler Zack Greinke and Dodgers ace Chad Billingsley for most W's in Major League Baseball. Surprisingly, Halladay's win at U.S. Cellular Field marks the last American League ball park that the Jays ace needed to post a win at.

After a rough start in this one, in which he gave up 3 runs in the first 3 frames, Halladay proved why he is considered one of the best, if not the best pitcher in the game.

Halladay doesn't have his best stuff in Chicago

U.S. Cellular field in Chicago is the only American League stadium Roy Halladay has never won at in his phenomenal career.

In Sunday's contest against the White Sox, Doc was staked to an early 2 run lead in the first inning. However, Halladay has since coughed up 3 runs on 6 hits in the first three innings allowing the White Sox to grab the lead. It's very unusual to see Doc pitch this poorly, as he is clearly struggling in this one.

What makes Halladay such a seasoned veteran, however, is that he kept his team in the game, allowing 3 runs when most average major leaguers would have melted down by now. Knowing the Jays ace, he'll bounce back and dominate the Sox the remainder of the game, even if his history in Chicago would suggest otherwise.

Cause for concern? Litsch to visit Dr. Andrews

If you are a baseball player, you never want to book a visit with Dr. James Andrews, the renowned surgeon that potentially seriously injured athletes visit in Alabama.

Jays starter Jesse Litsch will be visiting Andrews Monday as a precautionary measure after feeling tightness in his forearm and elbow during a normal game of catch Friday. The club is optimistic they'll hear good news from Andrews, and that Litsch will return to the rotation sometime in mid May.

Considering that its very rare for a ball player to be given a clean bill of health after visiting Andrews, Litsch's ailment might be far worse than originally thought.

Burres tagged in Jays debut

As expected, lefty Brian Burres had a less than spectacular debut as a member of the Blue Jays rotation, taking the loss after surrendering 6 runs on 7 hits in 4.1 innings against the White Sox Saturday.

The stat line is a little bit misleading. Burres allowed just a pair of runs in the first 4 innings, but ran into trouble in the 5th. He allowed one run and then proceeded to load the bags. Reliever Shawn Camp came into the contest and promptly was tagged for an RBI single, followed by an Alexei Ramirez grand slam which busted the game open. 3 of the runs surrendered by Camp were Burres resposibility.

After destroying the White Sox 14-0 in the series opener (a game that could have been a whole lot closer had Brian Tallet not gotten out of the 3rd inning unscathed), the 10-2 loss in game two felt the same way. A pair of fantastic defensive plays by Brent Lillibridge and Jerry Owens in the 4th & 5th innings when the game was knotted up boosted the Sox. Chicago then responded with the big six run 5th inning that chased Burres from the game.

With a victory in the rubber match, the Jays will have been secured 6 straight series' to open up the 2009 campaign.

Burres & Bullington called up to the big club

With starter Ricky Romero and closer B.J. Ryan shelved with injures, the Blue Jays made two corresponding roster moves Friday before the series opener against the White Sox.

Starter Brian Burres and reliever Bryan Bullington have been recalled from AAA Las Vegas to fill the two spots left by the latest pitchers to hit the disabled list.

Burres won't have much time to get acclimated with the team, as he'll get the nod against the White Sox Saturday. He hasn't looked particularly great with the farm club, posting an 0-2 record with a 6.97 ERA in 3 outings, two of which were starts.

Burres briefly displayed spurts of effectiveness with the Orioles the past 3 years, so he could provide a decent couple of starts for Toronto.

Bullington, the 1st overall selection by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2002 draft, has an impressive 1.86 ERA, and 10 strikeouts in 4 relief appearances over 9.2 innings with Las Vegas. Bullington pitched in the 14-0 blowout against Chicago, surrendering a pair of hits, striking out two in a scoreless ninth.

Though Bullington is no longer considered a prospect at age 28, he has to be considered intriguing, because he clearly has talent. Having been the first overall pick, he impressed scouts coming out of Ball State college, though he hasn't been able to be consistent at the major league level. If he can harness his talent and finally realize his potential, the Jays might have found a diamond in the rough.