Hill returns to where it all ended in '08

Blue Jays 2nd basemen Aaron Hill has said that Toronto's first game in Oakland is "just another game", but that simply isn't the case. His disastrous injury, leading to the untimely end of his 2008 season undoubtedly must be in the back of his head.

On May 29th, Hill collided with teammate David Eckstein, leaving the game with a concussion. The team initially diagnosed the injury as being "day to day." Those days turned into a week, and then another. That turned into a month to month proposition, and before time, he was shut down for the entire season with concussion like symptoms.

There's no telling how much success the club could have had in 2008 (They were 18-9 in May before Hill went down) had the freak injury not occurred, but one thing is certain, his 2009 numbers prove his great value to the team; 8 long balls, 28 RBI, a hefty .357 batting average, ranking first in MLB with 51 hits. His importance to the squad was never more clear after that fateful day in May last year.

Richmond's brutal inning leads to first loss

The Blue Jays gave Scott Richmond a 3 run edge in the 2nd frame of the opener against the Athletics, courtesy of a Kevin Millar RBI single and a Rod Barajas 2 run home run. It didn't take long for the 29 year old rookie to throw away the lead, and it cost him his first loss of the campaign.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again; My number one pet peeve with pitchers is when they immediately cough up an advantage that was handed to them the following inning. Richmond did just that, surrendering 5 runs as soon as Toronto put up a 3 spot. That demoralized the club, and their bats fell silent the rest of the contest.

Let's give Richmond the benefit of the doubt. Aside from getting lit up in the 2nd inning, he allowed just 1 hit in the other 7 innings, leading to his first career complete game. I have to give him credit for bouncing back, he definitely showed a lot of resolve.

Just no more of this Richmond, or else you'll be in the doghouse.

Robert Ray decent in 2 big league starts

Rookie Robert Ray has done an admirable job filling in for a patch work Jays starting rotation. The 2005 7th round pick has been pretty solid in both of his outings, Saturday against Baltimore and Thursday versus Los Angeles.

If you just look at his stat line, the start tonight against the Halos makes it seem like he was rather poor; 6.1 innings, 5 earned runs, 10 hits, 4 strikeouts, with 0 walks. However, the 25 year old looked the part, staying around the strike zone, very rarely working himself into jams.

Ray doesn't have overpowering stuff, but he knows how to change locations and mix speeds rather effectively. He's certainly done pretty well in both contests, giving the Jays a chance to win. J.P. Ricciardi has said Ray shouldn't even be pitching yet in the major leagues, playing due to necessity with all the injuries to the pitching staff. The big righty has been fine and projects to potentially be a back end member of the starting rotation within a few years with the Jays.

Jays pounding Angels early

After the top half of the 2nd inning, it looks as though Roy Halladay has all the run support he needs.

This Jays offense is phenomenal. They have already chased starter Anthony Ortega from the game after just 1.1 innings, tattooing him for the tune of 6 runs.

Vernon Wells destroyed a Rafael Rodriguez offering over the left field wall for a 3 run bomb. It's already 7-0 Toronto.

Game over.

Aaron Hill rules!

In the first inning against the Angels, Aaron Hill has already blasted one out of the yard for a 2 run shot, his 7th long fly of the year! How much did the team miss him last year? J.P. Ricciardi has to be commended for selecting this guy with the 13th pick in the 2003 draft. All the players that went ahead of him aren't as good, with the possible exceptions being John Danks and Nick Markakis. Hill is showing no signs of letting up this year either. What a baller.

It seems almost crazy to suggest he is in the early (and it's definitely REALLY early) discussion for the MVP, mostly because he's on my favourite team. So is it just me hyping up a guy who wouldn't be as big if he were on a small market team? Or come to think of it, is he under hyped because he's on a team that gets no respect like Toronto? If Dustin Pedroia could win MVP, why not Hill?

Or maybe I'm just crazy.

Adam Lind is King!

I'll admit it, I have a man crush on Blue Jays Designated Hitter Adam Lind. Really, is it that hard to understand why? The guy is unbelievable. He's as clutch as they come. Though he's making a bazillion dollars less then Vernon Wells, give me one person that thinks that V-Dubb comes up bigger in pivotal moments then the smooth swinging Lind.

Lind delivered the dagger Tuesday against Cleveland, a huge 3 run blast in the 7th to give the Jays a lead they wouldn't relinquish. Ho hum, that was part of a big 5 RBI day for the slugger.

Simply put, the guy can mash. 6 home runs, 29 RBI's, a .333 batting average, and it's just the first week of May. This guy is too good. With runners in scoring position and two outs he's hitting .450. With the bases juice, that average rises to .600. He's got the ability to hit between 20-25 home runs, and that might not be generous enough.

The guy is only 25 years of age, and is in his first full tour of duty with the ball club this season. As he becomes more and more acclimated to being a professional, it's scary the kinds of numbers he and stud rookie Travis Snider could put up in the heart of that Jays order for years to come.

Adam Lind is awesome, in case I wasn't being clear enough. Was I?

Cecil strong in Major League Debut

Toronto's top pitching prospect Brett Cecil made his major league debut Tuesday against Cleveland and displayed why he's so highly touted within the Blue Jays organization.

The big 22 year old lefty showed great poise on the hill, featuring a dirty slider, working six strong innings while allowing just one earned run. Cecil fanned six Indians, matching a club record for a rookie making his major league debut. Most importantly, he was around the strike zone, as he did not allow a free pass.

Cecil struggled in four starts for AAA Las Vegas this year, so there were some concerns that he might not be ready for big league action. In fact, General Manager J.P. Ricciardi indicated both he and Robert Ray (who made his first career start Saturday against the Orioles) were being forced into the rotation quicker then the club had anticipated. The results have been very positive and the youngsters are proving that the future is very bright in Toronto.