AL Capsules (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) Albert Pujols welcomed his new hitting coach to town with a go-ahead three-run homer and Vernon Wells added a two-run shot to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 7-2 victory over the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday night.

Pitching key to Toronto's Interleague fortunes

Source: MLB.com by Gregor Chisholm

The Blue Jays are coming off four consecutive losing seasons against the National League, and overall, the club is just 123-142 since Interleague Play was introduced in 1997.

Late Inning Losses

Source: Batter's Box by Thomas

Brett Cecil had his best start of the year in the first game of New Hampshires doubleheader. However, the other three games in the system didnt go nearly so well, as late inning relievers blew leads or surrendered game-winning runs in the late innings. Las Vegas

Scheduled off-day.

New Hampshire 3 @ New Britain 0 (Game 1, 7 innings) Boxscore

Brett Cecil started the first game of the doubleheader and had his best start of the 2012 season. Cecil allowed two hits and issued a walk. He also struck out four over 5 innings. Cecil retired seven of the ten batters on balls in play on groundouts. He turned the ball over to Aaron Loup, who pitched 2 hitless innings and completed the shutout.

The Fisher Cats outhit the Rock Cats 9-2 in this game. Mark Sobolewski, John Tolisano and Brian Jeroloman each had a two-hit game. Sobolewski hit a solo homer to lead off the fourth, Tolisano hit his first triple of the season and scored a run and Jeroloman was 2-for-2 with a walk. Mike McDade hit a solo homer to lead off the fifth. Brian Van Kirk had a single and a walk and Ryan Goins added a single.

New Hampshire 3 @ New Britain 6 (Game 2, 7 innings) Boxscore

Ryan Goins led off the top of the fourth of the second game with a solo short and, after Mark Sobolewski and Mike McDade were retired, Brad Glenn added a solo shot. Then, John Tolisano hit an infield single and raced around to score on Brian Van Kirks double. Unfortunately, those were four of the five hits the Fisher Cats managed on the afternoon. Tolisano added a single, but the other New Hampshire batters were held hitless. Jonathan Diaz and Justin Jackson didnt get a hit in either game.

Joel Carreno started for New Hampshire and only allowed three hits over 3 innings in his first start since a short stint in Torontos bullpen. However, the third hit was a three-run homer with two-out in the bottom of the third. The homer came off the bat of Estarlin de los Santos, the number 9 hitter, and it was first of the year. Fernando Hernandez pitched 2 scoreless innings and then Danny Farquhar came in. Farquhar struck out two in his inning of relief, but also allowed three unearned runs after he committed a throwing error and took the loss.

Dunedin 7 @ Clearwater 8 Boxscore

Asher Wojciechowski started for the D-Jays and didnt have a strong day. Wojciechowski surrendered six runs on six hits over 3 innings. He also struggled with his command, as although he only walked one batter, he hit two others. Wojciechowski did strike out four batters. Trystan Magnuson and Dayton Martze each pitched 2 innings of one-hit relief. Martze allowed an unearned run on an Oliver Dominguez error. Danny Barnes then had a 1-2-3 8th inning.

Dunedin outhit Clearwater 13-9 (well get to that 9th hit in a minute), but most of them were singles and the hitters failed to capitalize in some key opportunities. Jonathan Jones and Jon Talley were each 2-for-5 with an RBI and Jones came around to score twice. Kevin Nolan and Marcus Knecht were each 2-for-4 with a walk. Knecht had a double, which was one of Dunedins four extra-base hits in the game. Ryan Schimpf had two of them, as he went 3-for-4 with a double, a homer, two runs and 2 RBI and a sacrifice fly. Jack Murphy had a double and Gabe Jacobo added a single and a walk. Dominguez and Kenan Bailli each went hitless, but eached earned walks and scored a run.

Dunedin tied the game with two runs in the top of the ninth when, with two out, Jacobo singled in Schimpf and Knecht doubled in Nolan. However, all of this offence was for naught, as Barnes surrendered a game-winning homer to begin the bottom of the 9th.

Fort Wayne 5 @ Lansing 3 Boxscore

Andrew Burns and Kevin Pillar led Lansings offence. Pillar was 3-for-4 with two doubles and a run, while Burns was 2-for-3 with a double, a homer, 2 RBI, a walk and a run scored. Kenny Wilson was 1-for-4 with a run scored, while leadoff hitter Jonathon Berti was held hitless but drew a walk. Carlos Perez and KC Hobson added singles and Hobson and Kellen Sweeney each worked a free pass. Chris Hawkins and Markus Brisker were held off the bases.

Jesse Hernandez had a rather solid start for the Lugnuts. He went 7 innings and allowed five hits and a pair of walks. Hernandez only struck out one, but he induced 13 grounders against four fly balls. He left with a 3-2 lead and was in line for the win. Blake McFarland pitched a scoreless eighth, striking out two. However, Ajay Meyers struggles continued and he blew his third save of the season. Meyer did strike out three, but he allowed a three-run homer with two out in the ninth to number 8 hitter Lee Orr that put Fort Wayne out in front and gave them the victory.

Three Stars:
3rd Star Ryan Schimpf, 3-for-4, 2 R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, SF, 7 TB
2nd Star Brett Cecil, 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
1st Star Andrew Burns, 2-for-3, R, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, BB, 7 TB

Yankees-Blue Jays Preview (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Already with plenty of issues at the back end of the bullpen, the New York Yankees are hardly free of question marks in their struggling starting rotation.

Cut4: Rush singer spotted at Rogers Centre

Source: MLB.com

Progressing Hutchison tries to subdue Yanks

Source: MLB.com by Jon Star

Coming off his two best starts of the season, Yankees righty Phil Hughes will try to continue that success against Toronto on Thursday, one night after Hiroki Kuroda was roughed up for three homers and seven runs in the Blue Jays' 8-1 victory.

Early two-out runs propel Blue Jays past Yankees (The SportsXchange)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

TORONTO -- New York Yankees right-hander Hiroki Kuroda came within a few pitches of getting out of trouble in consecutive innings Wednesday.

Jays Hit 4 Home Runs, Beat Yankees.

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Yankees 1 Blue Jays 8

Now that was more like it. We scored a bunch of run, got good pitching and didn't make any errors.

J.P. Arencibia, Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista and Kelly Johnson all homered. Nice to see Jose clobber one, it left the park in a hurry. We had 11 hits. 3 each for JP and Edwin. 2 for Kelly.

Blue Jays hit 4 homers, rout Yankees 8-1 (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

TORONTO (AP) Edwin Encarnacion hit a three-run homer, J.P. Arencibia added a two-run drive and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the New York Yankees 8-1 on Wednesday night.

Blue Jays 8, Yankees 1 (The SportsXchange)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

TORONTO -- The Blue Jays hit four home runs, and right-hander Kyle Drabek gave up just one run and three hits in seven innings, leading Toronto to an 8-1 victory over the New York Yankees on Wednesday.

Onslaught helps Drabek drop Yankees

Source: MLB.com by Gregor Chisholm

The Blue Jays broke out of their recent slump at the plate, slugging four home runs to snap a three-game losing streak with an 8-1 victory over the Yankees on Wednesday night at Rogers Centre.

Jays and Yankees Overflow Thread

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Jays up by 7.

MLB Roundup: Clemens trial continues, Lawrie appeals suspension (The SportsXchange)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Roger Clemens' lawyer Rusty Hardin began his first extended cross-examination of key prosecution witness Brian McNamee by explaining that he would set up a chart to list McNamee's recollections as a mistake, a case of bad memory or a lie, according to an MLB.com report.

Vizquel talks nutrition with students

Source: MLB.com by Alexis Brudnicki

Blue Jays shortstop Omar Vizquel discussed good eating with some local Toronto fifth- and sixth-grade students. He also spoke about some of his offseason hobbies, and how he keeps in shape during the winter, while giving the kids some fitness tips to take home with them.

Blue Jays' Lawrie appeals suspension, in lineup vs. Yankees (The SportsXchange)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie on Wednesday appealed his four-game suspension by Major League Baseball Wednesday following a run-in with umpire Bill Miller.

Game Threat: Jays (19-18) vs. Yankees (20-16)

Source: theScore by Andrew Stoeten

PREAMBLE FORTHCOMING!

Scuttlebutt

SCUTTLEBUTT FORTHCOMING!

TV: Sportsnet

And now the lineups, by way of the live box score at theScore.com. And for those of you who’ll be out and about, be sure to follow all the action on your phone with Score Mobile…

Toronto Blue Jays

K. Johnson 2B
E. Thames LF
J. Bautista RF
E. Encarnacion
B. Lawrie 3B
C. Rasmus CF
J. Arencibia C
A. Lind DH
O. Vizquel SS

K. Drabek RHP

Poo Yuck Skankees

C. Granderson CF
N. Swisher RF
R. Cano 2B
A. Rodriguez 3B
M. Teixeira 1B
R. Ibanez LF
E. Chavez DH
R. Martin C
J. Nix SS

H. Kuroda RHP

 

Image by Brad White/Getty.

Toronto's Lawrie gets four-game suspension (AFP)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie was suspended for four games by Major League Baseball on Wednesday for a tirade against umpire Bill Miller in a home loss to Tampa Bay one night earlier.

Late-Afternoon Snack: Wednesday, May 16th, 2012

Source: theScore by Andrew Stoeten

Now it’s time for all the stuff I don’t figure on making full posts out of, with the spiffy ALTERNATE graphic by Matt English (aka @mattomic) that I just couldn’t keep letting stay dormant. It’s your Afternoon Snack… er… Afternoon Hangover… er… links!!!

Note: We’ve finally taken care of this Brett Lawrie business, I think. Let’s all just move on. It’s your non-Lawrie edition of the Afternoon Snack… unless, y’know, there was something Lawrie-related worth passing along that I missed.

Kenny Ken Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports speaks to a scout who raves about Travis d’Arnaud. “He looks like Russell Martin in his Dodgers days . . . he could play up there (in the majors) right now.”

No sign of Howarth and Ashby among the middle third of the crowdsourced radio broadcaster rankings at FanGraphs– looks like they made the top ten, as you’d probably expect. They’re nails!

Elsewhere at FanGraphs, Marc Hulet includes Aaron Sanchez in his latest Prospect Stock Watch post– and, holy shitballs, he brings up Dylan Bundy, as the O’s uber-prospect is dominating low-A, much like Sanchez. “The organization has to be very excited about this youngster,” he says.

At Bluebird Banter, Woodman663 starts getting us primed for the upcoming draft by looking at what the Jays’ strategy might entail.

In case you missed it in the midst of all the hubbub over Lawrie, Trystan Magnuson was activated from the DL by the Jays today, and then outrighted off the 40-man roster, and has wound up in Dunedin. MLBTR has the details.

Bob Elliott of the Toronto Sun informs us that Anthony Gose is having success in Las Vegas with an adjusted swing.

Shi David of Sportsnet gets all statistical as he talks about Adam Lind’s struggles, and speaks with the player, who adds bad luck to his litany of excuses.

Adam Berry of MLB.com talks about Vladimir Guerrero’s journey back to the big leagues, as he gets to work in Dunedin. “He displayed his usual powerful swing here,” Berry writes, “crushing a home run during batting practice that went over the batter’s eye in centre field. Ventura estimated the blast at 495 feet, and people inside the Blue Jays’ offices there said it sounded like hail falling on the roof. Guerrero should begin playing in extended spring games later this week, when he’ll begin to get reacquainted with live pitching.”

Lastly, some real fuckin’ winners in the YouTube comments on today’s Getting Blanked, eh?

I Find Your Lack of Faith...Disturbing. Jays Vs Evil. Wed. May 16th 2012

Source: Bluebird Banter by TonyFernandezSavedMyLife

Hello from sunny over cast Florida! It's your faithful servant TFSML. I have very limited Wi-Fi down here in our St. Pete Beach condo so I'm reduced to standing on a stool holding my MacBook over my head in hopes I can steal the neighbour's unlocked Wi-Fi. I suppose I could go to a Starbucks to finish writing this but...

Anyway since I have no TV cable access I'm blissfully unaware of how much the Jays are sucking and what Brett Lawrie is facing suspension wise. I have maintained from the get-go that Brett is a major spazz -regardless if he was justified-he has always struck me as the jock in HS we all would have lived in fear of unless we were his

Lawrie joins list of baseball's wildest rants (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Helmet tossing and bat banging have become all the rage, it seems. Yet Brett Lawrie and Bryce Harper still have a long way to go before hitting our list of baseball's wildest rants and raves.

Toronto Blue Jays: Brett Lawrie Appealing 4-Game Suspension, in Lineup Wednesday

Source: Bleacher Report

The Toronto Blue Jays will be without one of their key players for four games after Brett Lawrie lost his cool on Tuesday night.

After disagreeing with a call by home plate umpire Bill Miller, Lawrie turned towards Miller and smashed his helmet into the ground. It resulted in an unlucky bounce and hit Miller. 

Jon Heyman tweeted the news on Wednesday afternoon:

 

lawrie gets 4 games suspension

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) May 16, 2012

 

According to Shi Davidi, Lawrie will appeal the suspension, perhaps next week by teleconference.

That altercation will now cost Lawrie and the Blue Jays. Lawrie understand what he did was wrong, telling reporters:

That was not my intention at all. I've never, ever done anything to go at an umpire before in my life, and I didn't mean to tonight. I apologize for that...It's just my passion for the game. I wanted to help my teammates out as best I could. That's the pride I have in this game. I leave my emotions out on the field.

Whether it was his intention or not, Lawrie will pay the price now. His passion is undoubted and he shows it everyday; unfortunately, he went over the line on Tuesday night. His suspension could have been a lot worse.

He will be in the lineup against the New York Yankees on Wednesday night.

 

Follow @NargOnSports

Read more Toronto Blue Jays news on BleacherReport.com

Blue Jays' Lawrie banned four games for tirade (Reuters)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

(Reuters) - Toronto Blue Jays third basemen Brett Lawrie was suspended four games and fined an undisclosed amount for his aggressive actions toward an umpire in Tuesday's game, Major League Baseball said on Wednesday.

Blue Jays' Lawrie suspended for 4 games after incident with umpire (The SportsXchange)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Toronto Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie was suspended by Major League Baseball for four games Wednesday following a run-in with umpire Bill Miller.

Brett Lawrie receives four-game suspension, fined for ‘aggressive actions’ toward umpire (Big League Stew)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

The honourable Joe Torre has issued his ruling : Toronto's Brett Lawrie has received a four-game suspension and will be fined an undisclosed amount for what Major League Baseball calls Lawrie's "aggressive actions toward umpire Bill Miller on Tuesday." As you've probably seen by now, the 22-year-old Blue Jays third baseman put on a memorable tantrum after two bad strike calls by Miller, eventually throwing a helmet that bounced off the ground near home plate and into Miller's hip. Just how long Lawrie deserved to be suspended was the subject of a hot debate for much of Wednesday. On one end of the extremes was our own Dave Brown, who called for a 10-game break for the hotheaded sophomore infielder. On the other were the Labatt-chugging Blue Jay fan boys, who somehow thought Miller's awful calls provided a way to condone Lawrie's actions. (If you think I'm inventing a strawman here, I have a full email box to show you.) The actual suspension landed almost in the middle and was far from severe, a fact that started to become apparent when Torre told Danny Knobler of CBS Sports that he didn't believe that Lawrie had intentionally hit Miller with his helmet. "The decision could have been better as fas as the direction, but I don't believe he was trying to hit him," Torre told Knobler.   

Jays' Lawrie suspended 4 games for ump altercation (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

TORONTO (AP) Brett Lawrie of the Toronto Blue Jays has been suspended for four games by Major League Baseball after he threw his batting helmet and it bounced off an umpire.

Brett Lawrie Suspended for Four Games

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Brett Lawrie has been suspended for 4 games. Really about as good as we could have hoped. It seems fair to me.

I'm imagining we will be told about the appeal any moment now....

Didn't have to wait, he is appealing. Hmmmmmm that doesn't quite sound right. I'm sure he is a handsome guy and all but what I meant is that he has appealed the suspension.

Jays' Lawrie in lineup a day after ump altercation (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

TORONTO (AP) Brett Lawrie is in the lineup for the Toronto Blue Jays a day after his altercation with an umpire.

Lawrie handed four-game suspension

Source: MLB.com

Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie was handed a four-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for his aggressive actions toward umpire Bill Miller during Tuesday night game against the Rays.

Breaking: Lawrie Gets Four Games, Is Appealing

Source: theScore by Andrew Stoeten

Well, frankly, he was a little more appealing before last night’s ugly outburst. HEYO!

Breaking news on the Rogers-owned Blue Jays from Shi Davidi of the Rogers-owned Sportsnet:

Lawrie gets 4 gms. Appealing

— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) May 16, 2012

WORDS FORTHCOMING

Getting Blanked: Ep. 23 – Fashion Before Passion

Source: theScore by Andrew Stoeten

It’s The Getting Blanked Show for Wednesday, May 16th, 2012– with a whole lotta Brett Lawrie, a Stat Learnin’ segment on RBIs (by popular request), and more! Watch the episode below, listen to the mp3 here, and subscribe to all the good stuff below the clip. Enjoy!

Hit up Getting Blanked via the official blog feed on Twitter or harass us via the standard channels (email and the like.) Or subscribe to our fancy new Youtube channel so you can bypass all this silliness and mainline the Getting Blanked good stuff. (You’ll also want to find the iTunes pages for Getting Blanked audio, Getting Blanked video, the DJF Podcast, and while you’re at it, like Getting Blanked and DJF on Facebook).

Lineup: johnson 4 thames 7 bautista 9 encarnacion 3 lawrie 5 rasmus 8 arencibia 2 lind dh vizquel 6...

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Lineup: johnson 4 thames 7 bautista 9 encarnacion 3 lawrie 5 rasmus 8 arencibia 2 lind dh vizquel 6 drabek

Blue Jays Official Twitting. Drabek looked really bad in his last start. I hope he gets it back together.

Defense rips accuser in Clemens' perjury trial (Reuters)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The top defense lawyer in ex-baseball star Roger Clemens' perjury trial attacked the credibility of the star prosecution witness on Wednesday, asking, "Do you sometimes just make stuff up?"

Clemens accuser McNamee: 'I didn't make it up' (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) Roger Clemens' lawyer toyed with Brian McNamee's memory and attacked him from several directions at once. The attorney even put an easel next to the witness with the words: ''MISTAKE. BAD MEMORY. LIE.'' Eventually, there came the inevitable question: ''Do you sometimes just make stuff up?''

Brett Lawrie vs. Bill Miller

Source: Jays Journal by Jared Macdonald

As you have surely heard by now, last night’s game against the Rays took an unexpected turn in the bottom of the ninth inning, when both Brett Lawrie and John Farrell were ejected after arguing home plate umpire Bill Miller’s third strike … [visit site to read more]

Brett Lawrie vs. Bill Miller - Jays Journal - Jays Journal - A Toronto Blue Jays Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and More

Atlanta Braves 2012 Interleague Schedule: Fan’s Take (Yahoo! Contributor Network)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

The 2012 interleague schedule is nearly upon us in Major League Baseball. Despite not being a fan of the format, I have to say I am excited about the prospects of my Atlanta Braves traveling to New York to play the Yankees and Boston for a series with the Red Sox. The only other series the Braves will travel for will be against the Tampa Bay Rays, but fans in Florida have the chance to see the Braves play enough as it is without interleague play.

Outrighted: Wheeler, Magnuson

Source: MLB Trade Rumors by Ben Nicholson-Smith

The latest outright assignments from around MLB...

• The Indians announced that they outrighted Dan Wheeler to Triple-A Columbus. The right-hander, who was designated for assignment over the weekend, must accept the minor league assignment.
• The Blue Jays announced that they outrighted right-hander Trystan Magnuson off of the 40-man roster to the Dunedin Blue Jays (via Sportsnet.ca's Shi Davidi on Twitter). The Blue Jays sent the 26-year-old native of British Columbia to Oakland in the Rajai Davis trade then purchased him back from the A's last offseason. Magnuson has been pitching at Class A Dunedin, where he has a 4.05 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 so far in 2012.

Poll Time: How Many Games will Brett Lawrie Get?

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Brett Lawrie is going to get a suspension. We know it. So I thought I'd put up a poll to see how many games you think he will get. Not how many games you think he should get, but how many you think he will get.

I'm of the opinion that Bill Miller should be suspended as well. He wasn't umpiring the game, at that point, he was trying to put a player in his place. The league should make a strong statement that this isn't allowed. They won't, I know, but they should.

And, well, the idiot that threw beer at the umpire should be banned from the stadium too. There is no justification for that sort of behavior. First, it should be a sin to spill beer, unless it

More Lawrie Fallout

Source: theScore by Andrew Stoeten

Well, that was fun last night, huh? Nothing quite like piling stupid on top of stupid on top of stupid, which we did around here, as umpire Bill Miller made two bad calls, Brett Lawrie lost his fucking meat-head mind, a human-shaped pile of excrement tossed a beer at Miller, and commenters bent over backwards to moronically defend one particular side of this from bad old Parkes and his telling it 100% exactly like it is. It’s amazing to me that it needs to be said, again, but holy fuckballs, Miller’s calls do not justify Lawrie’s actions, some fucking laughably misplaced notion of “passion” doesn’t justify Lawrie’s actions, and if there’s anybody to be upset at, maybe it’s the fucking concrete-skulled fuckhead who just took away one of of his team’s best players for possibly upwards of ten games because he wasn’t man enough to restrain himself from raging like a six-year-old– and it’s entirely irrelevant whether his frustration was justified or not.

Oh, but how dare we try to spoil a good batch of all-direction venom and despicable behaviour with our entirely appropriate reaction, huh?

“The so-called ‘Drunk Jays Fans’ chastise booing, call justified frustration ‘shameful’, and no doubt have their judging fingers in the air when there’s a little hooliganism at the game,” says one particular fucking moron in last night’s comments, who doesn’t seem to comprehend that drunk doesn’t mean dumb as all goddamn fuck. “These guys are no better than the Rogers-employed Buck Martinez who has to obsequiously pretend like the calls were ‘questionable’ and not just the piles of shit that anyone with two eyes could see that they were. Passionless sell-outs!! Especially Parkes, he’s just a turd.”

But- but- but- but I came here to have my stupid, vile, emotional, knee-jerk, transparently homer-ish reaction endorsed! Now you’re telling me I shouldn’t think like a piece festering garbage???

Ugh.

But there’s good news! You can all go commiserate with Wilner if you really, seriously, actually want to fucking pretend that Miller’s calls were any worse than ones you could find in just about any game– or earlier that game, in the Jays favour!– or that there isn’t a major problem with a player throwing his helmet so violently at the feet of the umpire in a blind rage.

Good luck with that, and now here’s what the sane world is saying about it…

Bill Miller’s ball-strike calls and Lawrie hitting umpire with his helmet are two separate issues. Miller’s calls are evaluated daily.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) May 16, 2012

 

@Buster_ESPN Bill Miller often tells me he loves the pitch/fx data and constantly self evaluates to see where he misses pitches

— Dave Flemming (@FlemmingDave) May 16, 2012

 

Folks, this should not even need to be said. #BlueJays‘ Lawrie was out of line and deserves suspension. Calls were bad. Reaction was worse.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) May 16, 2012

Checked with #MLB. Discipline for umpires handled same as discipline for players. League announces suspensions but not fines.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) May 16, 2012

Wilner adds this schedule-related bit of good-ish news…

Suspensions can be appealed in #MLB – don’t take effect until after the appeal is heard. It’ll be months before Lawrie has to sit. #bluejays

— Mike Wilner (@Wilnerness590) May 16, 2012

The Jays don’t visit New York, where the commissioner’s office is, until after the All-Star break.

Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star points out that Miller will be working the Jays series against the Yankees that starts tonight, and sympathizes a little, as he seems to be of the mind that Miller’s called strike three was a lot higher than it really was.

Stephen Brunt of the Globe and Mail tells the Jays that it’s time to grow up.

As always, there’s some nice, dignified discussion of the incident at Baseball Think Factory, underneath their link to Big League Stew’s piece on it.

Also as always, at Getting Blanked, Ryan Oakley knocks it out of the park, arguing that robot umpires are not the answer.

And Parkes dives back in, this time heading for the nuts and bolts, and showing how absolutely in-line with some of his earlier calls the last strike to Lawrie was, according to Pitch F/X. (Still bad, mind you, just maybe not mind-blowingly fuck-you bad.)

The video isn’t up yet, but you can hear the Lawrie-fied edition of today’s Getting Blanked Show on iTunes or by downloading the mp3 here. (Bonus Joe Carter talk in our discussion of RBIs during the Stat Learnin’ segment!)

Ben Linbergh of Baseball Prospectus (Paywall’d) shows how Jose Molina “framed” Lawrie with his catching skills (see what I just did there?). As does Chris St. John of Steal of Home (not paywall’d!).

Extra Base Hit wonders what the fuck Lawrie would have to do to have Jays fans turn on him.

“It’s one of the accepted unwritten rules of the game that a player does not show up an umpire and Miller wouldn’t be the first umpire to send a message to a young player,” writes Jeff Blair of the Globe and Mail, adding that “Lawrie’s post-game response in the Blue Jays clubhouse was properly measured if not exactly over-flowing with contrition.”

John Sickels weighs in at Minor League Ball and gets it absolutely right: “the guy with the bat and the helmet absolutely must stay in control of his emotions, even if he’s being baited.”

Mop Up Duty gets into some heavy duty heat maps to check out Bill Miller’s not-very-good night.

And lastly, the Tao of Stieb would like to see John Farrell maybe have a sit-down with his young, hot-headed star.

Vlad begins journey back to the big leagues

Source: MLB.com by Adam Berry

Vladimir Guerrero was at extended spring camp Wednesday, launching homers in batting practice and working his way back into baseball shape, and to the big leagues

Happy Birthday Jack Morris

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Jack Morris turns 57 today.

Morris was a very good pitcher, back in the 1980's, with the Tigers. Not quite a Hall of Fame pitcher (though you never can tell what the BBWAA might do) but a guy that won a lot of games (helped along by a very good Tiger offense) and pitched a lot of innings. I'm 1983 he threw 293.2 innings, with 20 complete games.

The Jays signed him before the 1992 season. Morris had just helped the Minnesota Twins to a World Series win over the Atlanta Braves. He won two games in that series, including game 7, one of

Blue Jays third baseman Brett Lawrie awaits news of suspension

Source: TheStar.com by Richard Griffin

While the Blue Jays and third baseman Brett Lawrie await news of any possible suspension following the now-famous meltdown in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Rays at the Rogers Centre, check out the website called CloseCallSports http://bit.ly/LSrDTA with interesting analysis of the two pitches, strike two, wide and framed expertly by Jose Molina, and strike three, high, no excuse, the wrong calls by umpire Bill Miller that precipitated the incident. It's part of their Umpire Ejection Fantasy League.

It's not clear whether the same umpire crew is remaining in town for the two-game Yankee series, in which case Miller would be less than warmly greeted as the third base umpire. That positioning does not make the Jays safe. There is a YouTube video http://bit.ly/JrqdAA that features an ejection by Miller of M's manager Jim Riggleman on September 20, 2008. It looks like he got that one wrong too, on an out call at third base.

Questions have been asked about any repercussions to the umpire in such a situation, where it looks like a call was made purposefully to prove a point, as with the strike three call by Miller on Lawrie. Yes, there is a supervisor of umpires at Major League Baseball, former MLB ump Chuck Meriwether, but there is never a public announcement of any discipline or sanction for umpires, but there are constant reviews of performance that affect umpire's being appointed to marquee events like all-star game and post-season.  

Don't look for Miller at either of those major baseball events this year.

 

 

McNamee: Clemens, Canseco had steroids talk (The Associated Press)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

WASHINGTON (AP) Brian McNamee has conceded that the first time Roger Clemens asked for help with a ''booty shot,'' the pitcher did not specifically use the word ''steroids.''

Miami Marlins at Atlanta Braves Highlight MLB Schedule for May 17, 2012 (Yahoo! Contributor Network)

Source: Yahoo! Sports

The 2012 MLB regular season is well underway with a full month of baseball already in the books. It is still a long road to October baseball but paths are already starting to take shape and many surprises have already occurred along the way. The beginning of the year brings promise but at this point in the season anything can still happen.

Lost in Lawrie mayhem last night was Blue Jays outrighting Canadian Trystan Magnuson off 40,...

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Lost in Lawrie mayhem last night was Blue Jays outrighting Canadian Trystan Magnuson off 40, leaving them with open spot.

Shi Davidi Thwip. I don't think that this means there is someone that is going to be added to the 40 man in a hurry. Likely just making room for later.

Greetings From Dunedin – May 16

Source: theScore by Bradley Ankrom

Lansing outfielder Christopher Hawkins is quietly putting together a breakout season, though his value would be greater had the 2010 third-round pick been able to stay at his high school position of third base. Jake Marisnick is also having a solid year at Dunedin, though his batting average has taken a tumble in recent weeks.

I tweaked the way stats are presented in the table below, substituting plate appearances for at-bats and replacing walks and strikeouts with percentages. Full stats are always available via each player’s Baseball-Reference link. Also, you can follow the daily progress of Blue Jays players ranked among Kevin Goldstein’s top 20 prospects by visiting the Baseball Prospectus Prospect Tracker.

BATTER	AGE	LVL	AVG/OBP/SLG	PA	2B	3B	HR	BIP	BB%	SO%	SB	SB%
AHRENS, Kevin	23	A+	.285/.382/.350	144	6	1	0	.361	13.9%	18.8%	0	–
BERTI, Jonathon	22	A	.287/.394/.403	155	5	2	2	.337	12.9%	15.5%	17	85%
BRISKER, Markus	21	A	.186/.273/.299	110	4	2	1	.236	8.2%	22.7%	14	88%
BURNS, Andrew	21	A	.261/.333/.504	129	11	1	5	.298	9.3%	20.9%	6	100%
COOPER, David	25	AAA	.300/.368/.486	155	12	1	4	.317	9.7%	10.3%	0	–
CROUSE, Michael	21	A+	.194/.306/.311	121	7	1	1	.275	13.2%	28.1%	8	80%
D’ARNAUD, Travis	23	AAA	.271/.338/.429	148	9	0	4	.305	8.1%	16.9%	1	50%
GLENN, Brad	25	AA	.200/.261/.325	134	3	0	4	.278	8.2%	35.1%	4	100%
GOINS, Ryan	24	AA	.336/.376/.463	149	10	2	1	.373	7.4%	11.4%	5	62%
GOMES, Yan	24	AAA	.359/.391/.565	139	12	0	5	.420	4.3%	18.7%	1	100%
GOSE, Anthony	21	AAA	.239/.315/.352	181	3	3	3	.312	9.9%	24.9%	14	82%
HAWKINS, Chris	20	A	.321/.354/.409	144	5	2	1	.368	4.9%	13.2%	5	100%
HECHAVARRIA, A.	23	AAA	.298/.353/.435	184	12	1	3	.367	7.6%	20.7%	5	100%
HOBSON, K.C.	21	A	.223/.267/.347	131	7	1	2	.253	6.1%	16.8%	0	–
JEROLOMAN, Brian	27	AA	.065/.194/.065	36	0	0	0	.080	11.1%	16.7%	1	100%
JIMENEZ, A.J.	22	AA	.257/.292/.371	113	4	1	2	.278	4.4%	12.4%	2	40%
JONES, Jonathan	22	A+	.190/.264/.203	87	1	0	0	.234	8.0%	17.2%	4	80%
KNECHT, Marcus	22	A+	.201/.283/.425	152	10	1	6	.241	9.9%	28.3%	1	100%
MARISNICK, Jake	21	A+	.258/.333/.453	180	12	5	3	.299	7.2%	17.2%	5	83%
MASTROIANNI, D.	26	MLB	.167/.211/.167	19	0	0	0	.200	5.3%	15.8%	0	–
MASTROIANNI, D.	26	AAA	.346/.388/.423	85	2	2	0	.422	5.9%	16.5%	10	91%
MASTROIANNI, D.	26	AA	.143/.225/.171	40	1	0	0	.208	10.0%	27.5%	4	80%
MCDADE, Mike	23	AA	.339/.415/.465	147	4	0	4	.394	11.6%	17.7%	1	100%
OCHINKO, Sean	24	A+	.306/.370/.444	119	12	0	1	.352	8.4%	13.4%	0	–
PATTERSON, Kevin	23	A	.236/.310/.416	100	4	0	4	.279	10.0%	25.0%	1	100%
PEREZ, Carlos	21	A	.257/.328/.416	128	11	2	1	.298	10.2%	15.6%	1	50%
SCHIMPF, Ryan	24	A+	.252/.314/.480	137	12	2	4	.310	8.8%	24.8%	1	100%
SIERRA, Moises	23	AAA	.287/.363/.455	160	6	0	6	.350	9.4%	23.1%	3	60%
SWEENEY, Kellen	20	A	.196/.323/.234	127	2	1	0	.250	15.0%	18.1%	1	33%
TALLEY, Jon	23	A+	.337/.448/.435	116	6	0	1	.395	17.2%	15.5%	0	–
VEGA-ROSADO, J.	20	A	.091/.130/.091	23	0	0	0	.200	4.3%	52.2%	1	100%

Kevin Ahrens – 7-for-23 2 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 4/4 SO/BB; still doesn’t have a home run this year, but pushed his slugging average above .350 for the first time last week; tied for fifth in the Florida State League with 20 walks.

Jonathon Berti - 11-for-31 3 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 4/5 SO/BB; four stolen bases in his last three games have given Berti the Midwest League lead; he also ranks eighth in stolen base success rate, ninth in walks (20), and tenth in on-base percentage.

Markus Brisker – 2-for-15 0 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 5/1 SO/BB; has been successful in 88% of stolen base tries, but hasn’t been getting on base enough lately for it to matter; Brisker’s on-base percentage dropped below .300 for the first time since April 13 last week.

Andrew Burns – 4-for-23 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 5/4 SO/BB; last year’s 11^th-round pick out of Arizona has done a little bit of everything in his full-season debut at Lansing, placing among the league top ten in slugging average, doubles, and home runs.

David Cooper – 3-for-21 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 3/1 SO/BB; has had streaks of four, five, and six games without an extra-base hit, and currently owns a season-high seven-game streak.

Michael Crouse – 3-for-11 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1/5 SO/BB;  went 1-for-3 on May 10 to get his batting average above the Mendoza line for the first time since April 24, but has gone 0-for-4 since; tied for fourth in the Florida State League with 26 runs scored.

Travis d’Arnaud – 4-for-17 0 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 3/1 SO/BB; hit his third home run of the year over the weekend; runners aren’t testing his arm often (.674 attempts per nine innings), but he’s gunning down a fair number of those who do (27.8%).

Brad Glenn – 3-for-19 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 11/0 SO/BB; has hit just .147/.262/.265 in May and has three strikeouts in three of his last four games.

Ryan Goins – 8-for-17 2 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1/1 SO/BB; at 24, Goins is a little too old for the Eastern League, but it’s hard to argue with his results; currently ranks fifth in hits, and is tied for eighth in triples and ninth in doubles.

Yan Gomes - 6-for-19 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 5/1 SO/BB; homered in back-to-back games on May 12-13, and owns the Pacific Coast League’s ninth-best slugging average; also places fourth in batting average and tenth in total bases while shuttling between catcher and the infield corners.
Anthony Gose – 5-for-24 0 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 7/1 SO/BB; has run his streak of stolen bases without being caught to 14; ranks third in the Pacific Coast League with 45 strikeouts and may top the 150-whiff mark for the second-consecutive season.

Christopher Hawkins – 11-for-32 0 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 3/3 SO/BB; another solid week for Hawkins, whose batting average hasn’t fallen below .300 since the third game of the year; after spening the first month of the season in left field, he’s played his last six contests in right field.

Adeiny Hechavarria – 8-for-28 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 10/1 SO/BB; he may have the PCL’s second-highest strikeout total, but he’s also tied for second in runs scored; has been remarkably consistent with the bat all year.

K.C. Hobson – 6-for-22 0 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 6/4 SO/BB; the third time is not the charm for Hobson, who has spent parts of the last three seasons in Lansing; his 1.20 strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2011 has climbed to 2.75 this year.

Brian Jeroloman – 0-for-7 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 2/0 SO/BB; playing sporadically as A.J. Jimenez’s backup, not hitting when he is in the lineup.

A.J. Jimenez – 3-for-13 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 3/1 SO/BB; his bat has cooled off, but he’s thrown out 57.9% of runners attempting to steal.

Marcus Knecht – 5-for-20 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 2/5 SO/BB; batting average is back over .200 for the first time since April 22, and he hit his fifth and sixth home runs of the season yesterday at Clearwater.

Jake Marisnick – 9-for-29 3 2B, 2 3B, 0 HR, 6/2 SO/BB; hasn’t gone deep this month, but does have six extra-base hits; has already struck out 15 times in May after fanning just 16 times in April; tied for the Florida State League lead in triples, second in total bases and doubles, sixth in runs scored, and seventh in runs batted in.

Mike McDade – 9-for-20 0 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 2/0 SO/BB; is hitting .426/.500/.638 this month, but it still isn’t enough for him to project as a major-league regular as a first baseman/designated hitter.

Sean Ochinko – 9-for-23 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 7/2 SO/BB; has turned his bat on in recent weeks after a slow start; tied for second in the FSL in doubles.

Carlos Perez – 7-for-24 3 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6/3 SO/BB; hit his first home run of the year on Saturday and had a five-game doubles streak  snapped the next day.

Ryan Schimpf – 8-for-22 5 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 6/3 SO/BB; like Goins, Schimpf is too old for his league, but his production has been encouraging; is tied for second in the FSL with 12 doubes and ranks tenth in slugging average.

Moises Sierra – 5-for-23 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 6/2 SO/BB; perhaps last week’s #FreeMoisesSierra declaration was a bit premature.

Kellen Sweeney – 2-for-17 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 5/4 SO/BB; through 232 professional plate appearances, the 2010 second-rounder has hit .198/.351/.267.

Jon Talley – 8-for-23 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 4/3 SO/BB; the corner infielder logjam ahead of him means Talley will continue to rake in the Florida State League for the time being; currently ranks among the top five in batting average, on-base percentage, and walks.

Brett Lawrie, Understandably, Goes Nuts.

Source: Bluebird Banter by Tom Dakers

Rays 4 Blue Jays 3

So that was another depressing game.

I'm sure you've all seen Brett's little meltdown, (if you haven't it is here) after two awful calls by plate umpire Bill Miller. Lawrie will get a suspension. I'd like to see Miller get a suspension too. On the second pitch, Miller wasn't calling the pitch, he was calling out Lawrie for showing him up on the first awful call. Umpires shouldn't be doing that. And, if they are going

Outrighted: Trystan Magnuson

Source: MLB Trade Rumors by Ben Nicholson-Smith

The latest outright assignments from around MLB...

• The Blue Jays announced that they outrighted right-hander Trystan Magnuson off of the 40-man roster to the Dunedin Blue Jays (via Sportsnet.ca's Shi Davidi on Twitter). The Blue Jays sent the 26-year-old native of British Columbia to Oakland in the Rajai Davis trade then purchased him back from the A's last offseason. Magnuson has been pitching at Class A Dunedin, where he has a 4.05 ERA with 6.8 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 so far in 2012.