Doc Making The Rounds No More

So it seems like we need a Canadian sports team trading their best player (ever?) to get a brief reprieve from TSN’s seemingly minute-by-minute breakdown of a month in the life of an 18-year old that happens to play for Team Canada’s World Juniors squad. But the overindulgences of the Canadian sports media in hockey is a story best saved for another time…

Last week, Roy ‘Doc’ Halladay was finally traded from the Blue Jays to Philadelphia, ending 6 months of speculation that Doc was going to put a chance to win above his loyalty to Toronto and the Blue Jays organization and consider a trade.

This will be weird to see for awhile...

While it’s undoubtedly a sad day for the franchise from a nostalgic sense (it’s not every day you trade a potential Hall of Famer and arguably your team’s best player ever – especially one that you drafted), and it might be the signature moment indicating the Jays entering a dreaded ‘rebuilding’ phase, all in all I can’t help but feeling like the Blue Jays made away like bandits with the haul of prospects they got in return for Doc.

Granted, prospects are never a sure thing, and it’s plausible (although by all accounts a pretty extreme longshot) that the Jays got 3 guys that could never see meaningful major league playing time. However, it seems more and more the case that Roy wasn’t going to resign with Toronto after his contract expired in 2010, understandably wanting a chance to play for a contender in the later years of his career…

(“But wait!”, some have exclaimed. “Why didn’t JP build Toronto into a contender around Doc and make sure we have the money to keep him instead of signing all these awful contracts?” This now seems to be a common sentiment that is being manifested in piling criticism on Vernon Wells. To be fair, Vernon has done just about everything possible to warrant mention in the the “Worst Contracts Ever” discussion – declining offensive production, lack of clutch production, diminishing defensive prowess, you name it. However, looking back to when Vernon signed the extension, Toronto very much was paying market value for a player of Vernon’s abilities/potential, and moreover, the contract seemed to signify that very commitment to building a contender. Hindsight is 20/20 , and it now seems an obvious conclusion that extending Doc to that kind of deal would have been far more valuable than Vernon, but at the time it was the first time the Jays dished out that kind of money to extend the contract of a star player, just years after it didn’t do the same for Carlos Delgado. I think if they had let Vernon leave, it would have been as much a sign as anything to Doc Halladay and the other players in the clubhouse that the Jays weren’t committed to winning.)

…at which point we’re talking about trading away a year of Roy’s services (it’s not like we would have gotten him for the extension/price that Philadelphia did). And given the general direction the club seemed headed even at the end of JP’s tenure (BJ Ryan falling apart and the Jays paying him $10 million for nothing in 2010, saving money with the Rios contract dump and Scott Rolen trade, and having no solid options locked up at SS and C ), it seemed more and more like 2010 wasn’t going to be a year the Blue Jays seriously competed for their first playoff spot since 1993 anyway. So in some ways, can’t Roy Halladay’s 2010 season with the Blue Jays be thought of as unnecessary/a waste?

We're in your hands, Alex...

Obviously in some ways it won’t be thought of like that (especially the potential impact not having him might have on already dwindling attendance numbers), but with a general manager now committed to assembling a core of young talented players, and the apparent support of ownership to take the team into this direction (see: including $6 million in the Roy trade to help ensure the Jays got the prospects they wanted in return), is trading Roy not the only viable option that remained?

Lest it seem like I’m only too happy to be ushering Doc out of Toronto, I do legitimately think he’s probably the most talented pro athlete for at least the last 30-40 years that’s called Toronto ‘home’. There’ve been flashier (Vince Carter), there’ve been more successful (Roberto Alomar), and there’ve been more popular (Mats Sundin, Doug Gilmour), but I don’t think any of those athletes were regularly mentioned as the best players at their position during anything more than a particularly good season or two, whereas Roy has been widely considered as one of the most consistent and productive pitchers of the decade.

Thanks for everything, Roy!

Obviously, looking back on the Roy Halladay era in Toronto, one can’t help but feeling a few regrets. I wish I had the chance to see a Blue Jays team from the past few years where everyone was healthy and clicking (imagine the team from April and May last year, except with the lights-out BJ Ryan of 2005, an Alex Rios that “gave a fuck?!”, and a healthy Marcum and McGowan on the mound rather than the revolving door of rookie starters), and I still think that on paper we had a team capable of competing with the big boys of the AL East. However, given the situation the Jays currently found themselves in, I think they were in a spot where they had no other options and did a good job in getting a group of guys that very well could be a part of that eventual contender we tried to build for Doc.

NFL Power Rankings – After Week 5

So, here we are, 4-ish months since my last blog entry. As it turns out, writing about the silver lining in a Blue Jays season destined for failure is a lot easier when they’re exceeding expectations and atop the division in May compared to when they’re occupying your summer evenings losing by single run after single heartbreaking run. Plus, it was kind of fun to check here every so often and see what search terms people used to find my Eckersley post (my personal favourite was some lonely soul looking for “Heidi Watney f*cking”… here’s hoping you found an Internet site that better satiated your urge)

In all seriousness though, I do want to try and take my blogging more seriously, so am considering this a turning of a new leaf, of sorts. My apologies (and thanks) for anyone that’s bothered to regularly come by, I will try to be better!

In Case You Forgot the Beauty...

And now… on a more Super Bowl-defending note, we are officially around the quarter-way mark of the NFL season, so I’ve got another sport I can write about! I figure now’s a good a time as any to attempt to quantify the zany NFL season to this point, via the age-old Power Rankings format! Here goes… and I’ll probably have less to say about teams as we get further down, because those teams suck:

 

 

1.      Indianapolis Colts

This seems like a no-brainer choice for me right now. Peyton Manning is somehow playing as well as he ever has, with a receiving corps that’s largely unknown after Reggie Wayne (and Tight End Dallas Clark). Watching him lead the Colts offense is starting to give me that “one of the best athletes in his sport ever at his peak” feeling that I get from watching Tiger or Roger Federer in the groove, which is probably even more impressive in Peyton’s case, considering he’s playing a team sport.

 

2.      New York Giants

I debated skipping #2, and instead going with a tie at #3 because I’m not really sold on the Giants at #2, but there doesn’t seem to be anyone else to put there. The Giants are playing well despite a wealth of injuries (and in the process are showcasing their depth in a lot of key positions), and can only get healthier. However, I do have concerns about Eli’s ability to play at his highest level if his foot injury nags him throughout the season, so we’ll see how they respond when they get their next tough opponent. Speaking of which…

 

3.      New Orleans Saints

The expectedly-juggernaut offense has been well-documented. The unexpectedly-juggernaut defense has now been well-documented. As such, that leaves me with nothing of note left to add about the Saints. Which makes me wonder if the degree of sports media we currently have is approaching excessive (see: the story last week wondering if Braylon Edwards’ trade to the New York Jets might impact LeBron James’ hypothetical signing with the New York Knicks. I can just imagine the headline: Cleveland Was Too Big For The Both Of Them… What About New York?

 

4.      Philadelphia Eagles

This feels like one of the teams I’m rating higher than most – however, I still think that on paper they have the most talented roster in the NFC (and arguably the NFL). If they’re able to continue integrating some of their younger guys (see: Jeremy Maclin catching 2 long TD passes last Sunday against Tampa Bay) into their game, this feels like a team that’s built to win in January.

 

5.      Minnesota Vikings

Thus far, the Vikings have had the seemingly ideal mix of blowout wins against bad teams, miracle plays that (if you believe the gushing) no other quarterback in NFL history could pull off, and beating a hated rival to have people plenty excited about the Vikings (or perhaps it’s the disproportionate number of good friends of mine that are Vikes fans). But (despite the obvious improvements in supporting cast), I still remember people gushing about the 8-3 Jets last year before their collapse – I’m interested to see if Favre will be able to sustain his play throughout an entire season, and against tougher opponents. Luckily, we won’t have to wait long, with the Vikings sporting a gruesome schedule the rest of the way, starting with Baltimore on Sunday.

 

6.      Denver Broncos

I really like Josh McDaniels, and remember saying I thought he was going to be one of the best coaches in the NFL immediately upon his hiring. This was before his handling of the Jay Cutler saga, and the Brandon Marshall mini-fiasco, which had me, like everyone else, starting to question the Wunderkind manager. So far he’s had the last laugh on all of us, what a remarkable job of coaching thus far. Kudos.

 

7.      Chicago Bears

This feels about right for a team whose only loss came on a last-minute gutsy play call (a 50-yard pass to Greg Jennings on 3^rd and short in the season opener) in a game where Chicago had to unexpectedly adjust to losing their centrepiece on defense early in the game (I consider adjusting mid-game much tougher to do, as with a week to prepare, you can at least adjust your defensive schemes to account for the lack of Urlacher). Cutler’s starting to look more comfortable, and I think this team’s going to make some noise this season before everyone crowns Denver as the surprise winners of that deal.

 

8.      New England Patriots

I hate the Patriots, and love seeing them at 3-2 right now. They seem to be missing that capability to score early and often this year, and in a Bizarro kind of way, they remind me a lot of my Steelers thus far this year (lack of a running game hurting them, seem to be in close every game they play). Up to and including the fact that I’d be absolutely terrified of facing them at any time, regardless of their record.

 

9.      Cincinatti Bengals

10.  Pittsburgh Steelers

11.  Baltimore Ravens

Who would’ve thought that the first team with 3 teams in the power rankings would be the AFC North? Not too many – in the “surprises of the season thus far” category, the Broncos and Bengals are a combined 9-1 this year, with that only loss coming on a fluke play when the 2 teams played each other. The Bengals somehow have had all their games decided in the last minute of play this season as well. I absolutely hate that they’re a pleasant surprise/easy to cheer for this year – I’m supposed to hate division rivals!

I think Pittsburgh and Baltimore are still amongst the toughest teams to play in the NFL on a given week, but both have shown weaknesses that need to be addressed if either team wants to make a jump in this suddenly competitive division.

Without attempting to pretend this isn’t biased, I do think Pittsburgh’s game will return to form in a large way once Troy Polamalu returns, as he’s accounted for their only interception all season in his one half of football.

 

12.  Atlanta Falcons

Call it gratuitous if you will, but I just needed to split up some text...

The Falons are slowly becoming my “second favourite” team (as I like to say, it becomes necessary to cheer for another team, when you already know your main favourite team is going to win the Super Bowl every year), and their trouncing of the 49ers in San Francisco proved to me that the pieces are all falling into place for them this season. And I have a ravenous man-crush for all things Matt Ryan.

 

13.  San Diego Chargers

Probably a better team than this ranking suggests, but they need to win some games.

 

14.  Green Bay Packers

Green Bay feels like a team that could up or down as much as 10 spots in either direction in their next 4-5 games. One thing that does surprise me though is their insistence on staying with a new 3-4 defensive scheme despite having players that seem to fit much better with a 4-3 scheme (aggressive corners, a middle linebacker, and an all-Pro former defensive end in Aaron Kampman).

 

15.  San Francisco 49ers

16.  Seattle Seahawks

I know it’s way too early to start forecasting, but are we starting down the road where one of these teams might end up facing the Eagles or Giants in a first round playoff game? Yikes. Regardless, I think both teams (the with-Hasselbeck Seahawks, at least) have played well this year amidst mixed expectations, and you need to give both teams some credit when they’re ahead of a Super Bowl finalist in their division.

 

17.  New York Jets

18.  Miami Dolphins

If the first quarter of the NFL season had to be broken up into smaller sections (see: the excessive coverage/analysis of sports media), the Jets and Dolphins have to be 2 teams on seemingly opposite trends, as the Dolphins now look to be gaining momentum while the Jets have sputtered in their last two games. Nevertheless, these are 2 fun teams to watch, and with the Patriots at 3-2, either have a chance to make a move in the AFC East.

 

19.  Dallas Cowboys

Gorgeous new stadium aside, isn’t it weird to think of the Dallas Cowboys as a middle of the road, average football team?

 

20.  Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals this regular season look eerily like… the Cardinals from last regular season. People seem to have forgotten that this was the team that won the awful NFC West last season, and somehow morphed into an improbable juggernaut at exactly the right time. It looks like the division will put up more of a fight this year though, so we will see if they can compete at a higher level for an entire season

 

21.  Jacksonville Jaguars

22.  Houston Texans

23.  Tennessee Titans

Yyyyyyep…

The Last of the Old Guard...?

Although seeing the Titans here does make me wonder about a sub-plot of the NFL season that I’m going to find interesting to follow, as it may have larger implications for football and pro sports as a whole moving forward. If the Titans continue at this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Jeff Fisher let go, in a move reminiscent of Mike Shanahan being let go more to shake things up than anything else last year. At which point, do other teams looking to fill coaching vacancies look to some of these established successful coaches to fill the spots, or continue with the recent successful trend of putting young/inexperienced coaches into place (Mike Tomlin, John Harbaugh, Josh McDaniels)? Maybe I’m the only one, but I’m curious to see how this plays out…

 

24.  Washington Redskins

25.  Carolina Panthers

26.  Detroit Lions

27.  Kansas City Chiefs

28.  Buffalo Bills

29.  Cleveland Browns

30.  Tampa Bay Buccaneers

31.  Oakland Raiders

32.  St. Louis Rams 

And here lies the NFL ineptitude. Special mention goes to the Detroit Lions, who, despite occupying a spot down here, have risen a fair amount from their lock on the 32-spot last season, and have shown some fight this season.

 

And there we have it! My thoughts at this point of the season, now documented for virtual eternity so all can look back and point out my retroactive stupidity. Glad to be back!

Dennis Eckersley is Fucking Terrible

(Note: It’s probably not a good sign before any blog entry when you decide to refresh yourself on Canadian libel laws to try and ensure you’re not crossing any lines… although it probably prevented this from becoming more of a profanity-laced tirade about my hate for all things Red Sox) 

With all the baseball I have watched over the years, I have gained a respect for the art of broadcasting. Despite my tendencies to criticize broadcasters for blunders from the comfort of my own home, I will readily concede that the ladies and gentlemen filling the TV and radio airwaves on a near-nightly basis make their jobs look far easier than it is and in general do a pretty commendable job. 

Don't Let Those Rugged Good Looks Fool You...

That all changed when I first heard Hall of Fame Pitcher Dennis Eckersley broadcast a game, as the NESN (New England Sports Network) feed was aired for TSN2’s showing of the Red Sox-Jays series last week. While I initially reacted with disdain for the whole NESN broadcasting team, as I continued watching I was impressed with the quality of Don Orsillo and Heidi Watney. However, I have never heard someone who did such a disservice to the craft of calling a ballgame than ‘Eck’. While it’s always annoying to listen to the blatant homerism of opposing announcers, that’s an understandable and acceptable part of listening to a broadcast catering towards a specific fan base. However, never have I heard someone sound so clueless and ignorant about an opposing team. It felt on numerous occasions like he arrived at the ballpark 5 minutes before the series began not knowing a single player on the Jays roster. During the course of the 3-game series, Dennis: 

• Displayed an incredible ability to forget the names of every pitcher on the Blue Jays that wasn’t Roy Halladay. At some point throughout the 3 games, he referred to each of Brian Tallet, Brett Cecil, Jesse Litsch, Jason Frasor, and Brandon League as “that guy”.
• Showed utter shock as Blue Jays relievers (Jason Frasor, for example) came into the game and their impressive season numbers were flashed on the screen. It honestly seemed like Eck was seeing these numbers for the first time.
• Decreed that the popouts that the Blue Jays were hitting against Tim Wakefield were “some of the easiest flyballs in the history of the game”.
• Readily discounted any good performances by Blue Jays pitchers up to this point in the season, since “…after Halladay, you have nobody”, and “I don’t care what he throws, I’ll need to see it”. I think one can infer from that philosophy the amount of time Mr. Eckersley must spend preparing for a game.

 

And the list goes on. And of course, worst of all is that the Jays had to go in and get swept at Fenway, reassuring Eckersley’s baseless claims and rash judgments of Jays players, and likely ensuring he will keep up this embarrassing lack of preparation. At several points, he even drew attention to his lack of preparation and memory, making jokes not remembering the names of yesterday’s Jays pitchers. 

To avoid reaching too extreme of a conclusion, I gave Eck the benefit of the doubt by holding off on this blog post until I could watch the Atlanta broadcasts of the Jays-Braves series this past weekend, thinking that perhaps American baseball broadcasting lent itself to this sort of ignorance of opposing teams. However, after having those doubts put to rest by the extent of knowledge of Atlanta’s broadcasting team (they even mentioned some stats about the Jays I’d never heard before during Sportsnet broadcasts), I knew that Dennis Eckersley was a stain on the fine art of sports broadcasting. For all of the times that Jamie Campbell begins his ramped-up ‘homerun’ call for a routine fly ball, or interrupts an important at-bat to wish Gertrude or Daisy a happy 97^th birthday at the retirement home, it is readily apparent that he takes his job seriously, puts a lot of time into his game preparation, and will often provide insight to the game that most of his audience otherwise would not have picked up on. 

Dennis Eckersley seemed like he was getting by solely on his baseball credentials and name, and I was disgusted that someone who seemed to put so little effort into his job has the continual privilege of being a voice to one of the best fan bases in baseball. 

At least we’ll always have this on you, Eck. 

I bet you can't forget this Jays moment, Eck...

 

Livin’ in Sin with a Safety Pin

(According to Urban Dictionary, the above saying somehow refers to a child born out of wedlock. Who knew the Drew Carey Show theme song touched on such serious issues in their seemingly innocuous lyrics?)

Well, a couple weekends ago, myself and my good baseball buddies Jamie and Jeff embarked on our annual baseball road trip. Cleveland was the choice destination this year for some Indians-Tigers action, and having never been before (Jamie and Jeff went in 2006), I was excited to cross another ballpark off the proverbial list. I also have to admit to having a slight affinity for the Indians after spending summers at my cottage out in Port Stanley (basically across from Cleveland on Lake Erie) and growing up watching Indians baseball almost as much as the Blue Jays.

What follows is my attempt to string together a collection of my thoughts and observations about the weekend:

• One amazing thing was how Cleveland has seemingly perfected the art of the mass suburbia commute, as practically every building downtown was either an office tower, a parking lot, or a café. The entire city seemed to cater to the Monday-Friday 9-5 crowd, which isn’t meant to be a complaint as much as reflect my genuine surprise. It was eerie when we took a walk around town around midnight upon arriving Friday night, and the entire city seemed deserted. The sports bar right across from Progressive Field (where a baseball game had ended 2 hours earlier) was closed, and we definitely noticed this trend of no one seeming to live in actual Cleveland throughout the weekend (again, not a complaint; rather, I think I found it to be endearing given how hit or miss I am with the general clutter and buzz around cities like Toronto).

Local Heroes: Home of Depressed Cleveland Sports Fans since...?

• Perhaps it was our relatively specific focus for the trip, but I was blown away by the passion and general ‘culture’ of sports that seemed to resonate throughout the people in Cleveland. Having gone without a championship in any of their three major sports since 1964, the fans of Cleveland combined an impressive duality of passion and hopelessness about their sports teams.Having already bemoaned the lack of attendance at Jays games (although their last couple home series have definitely been a step in the right direction), it was great to see Cleveland fans pack the ballpark, despite having no real expectation of a win from their team. And, after the Indians fulfilled expectations with a lackluster weekend performance (at one point going 22 innings without scoring a run), it was equally impressive to see how energized and fired up the fans got at the slightest signs of life from their team… Even if a good number had signs (or espoused during drunken rants) that the Indians would be saved “If Only LeBron Could Pitch”.

• Speaking about LeBron James, this man is an absolute icon around the city. Practically every store/business/open space in the city was adorned with messaging supporting the current Cavaliers playoff run, including LeBron’s building-sized poster dominating the Cleveland skyline. It’s probably the only experience I’ve had seeing a city supporting one of the truly transcendent athletes of their sport. I spent less than 48 hours in the city, and would be heart-broken on Cleveland’s behalf if King James’ playoff run this year comes to an early end, or moreover if he decides to sign elsewhere in the 2010 off-season.
  

  Will Cleveland fans still be Witnesses after 2010?

• Not wanting to understate this point, Progressive Field is a gorgeous ballpark, and an absolute gem of an addition to the scenery around the Major Leagues (although for Alix’s benefit, I must note that the food selection amounted to pretty standard ballpark fare; it was all very delicious, but not quite the unique variety of eating options I was impressed by when in Pittsburgh). I will let the photos do the talking here:

 

• Difficult but unfortunately necessary is attempting to translate the experience of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame/Museum into words, as they make you check cameras at the entrance. Just an absolutely humbling and incredible display of historical and musical artifacts that helped to shape music’s path forward in so many important ways (and now has me constantly pondering oh-so-important questions like if/when bands like Depeche Mode and Green Day will be duly recognized with inductions). I’d highly recommend it to any fans of music that happen to be in the area.

 

These Prices are Depressingly Low

I feel like I would be remiss in my blogging duties by not speculating/trying to tie in the impact of the recent economic downturn on a city like this. Compared to what we spent on our road trip to Philadelphia and Pittsburgh last year, it seemed like our money got us a lot further in Cleveland (see: obscene deal on happy hour alcohol in photo). I think one could make the argument that the bad economy resulted in a lot of the observations I’ve made, from the lack of city nightlife to the tinge of hopelessness resonating through the sports fans and corresponding idol worship for LeBron James. However, while I’m sure the economy undoubtedly has some impact on the psyche of a blue-collar city like Cleveland, I think (and hope) that we got a taste of what Cleveland is like irrespective of the current situation. After all, who’s to say a culture predicated primarily on sports and rock music is any better or worse than one on other cultural aspects such as art and theatre?

 

(Due to the forgetting of my own camera, a big thank you to Jamie and Jeff for taking and allowing me to use their wonderful photos!)

Almost Like We’re In This Fight

Perhaps it’s fitting that I’m writing this while waiting for a 10:05 EST first pitch for tonight’s Jays game out in Los Angeles, but 30 games into this 2009 MLB season, it feels like it’s finally time to weigh in on the Blue Jays.

I think it’s fair to say that just about no one expected the Jays to jump out to a 20-10 start, and have among the best records in baseball thus far. Well-documented has been the complete turn-around of the offense since last season, as well as the makeshift starting rotation that has generally ranged from quietly effective to surprisingly spectacular.

But without getting too far ahead of myself, Boston has also looked every bit the juggernaut I thought they would be heading into the season, and I would still be shocked if they don’t end the season with another AL East title. That being said, that doesn’t mean there’s no cause for excitement and anticipation the rest of the way for Jans fans: why assume we’re simply going to come crashing back down to the bottom of the standings?

However, besides the wins and losses this year, I think there are some worthy expectations and goals that we as Jays fans can root for other than the playoffs (although those would be a damn good time).

 In no particular order:

1)      Positioning Ourselves to Extend Doc’s Contract

Help Us, Roy Halladay, You're Our Only Hope

While I admit I’m guilty like most Toronto fans of taking him for granted far too often, every once in awhile, I am struck by just how impressive of a pitcher Roy Halladay is. He has to be easily considered as one of the top 3 starting pitchers in all of baseball. And while perhaps only Roy knows what he might want to do with his career after his contract expires at the end of the 2010 season, everything he’s said publicly to this point has suggested that he’d be glad to stay in Toronto if we show we’re serious about and capable of being a winning ballclub. J.P. Ricciardi has said the club will begin negotiations of a contract extension at the end of this season, and I think the most important thing one can hope for from this 2009 season for the future of the Blue Jays is that Doc becomes convinced he should extend his stay here in Toronto.

2)      Major League Time to Develop our Young Talent

Much has been written about this going into the season, so I won’t belabour the point much more, but seeing the young guys like Adam Lind, Travis Snider, Ricky Romero, and Brett Cecil develop into major league caliber ball players has been and hopefully continues to be a pleasure to watch.

3)      Building “Swagger”

While I’ve wavered on my belief that off-the-field things like clubhouse atmosphere and morale have a huge impact on a team’s on-the-field performance, I was struck by a recent Kevin Millar (someone who’s been credited with providing a great clubhouse presence for multiple teams over the years) interview in which he spoke about the team developing “swagger” and expecting to win every night. And it seems the aforementioned ‘King of the Idiots’ might have a point: thus far, half of the Jays’ wins have been of the come-from-behind variety, including four walk-off wins.

I could get used to seeing more of this...

As a point of reference, their first walk-off win last year came on July 8, 2008. While I am still not a huge proponent of the idea that ball players liking each other translates into an increase in the win column, I do think that a clubhouse atmosphere where winning every day is an expectation definitely can’t hurt!

 

 

 

4)      Bringing Fans Back to the Ballpark!

Can we please pull crowds like this on a regular basis?

Consider this my call to action for (both of) my readers: the Jays have given the city of Toronto a fantastic first 30 games of the season against all expectations, and attendance is down about 6,000 people per game at this point! What gives, Toronto? While the economy is obviously a significant contributor to this lower attendance, it’s still tough seeing the Jays return to a mostly empty ballpark again and again after yet another successful road trip. Despite the likely selfish ratings-based reasons, it’s been nice to see Sportsnet airing commercials highlighting the Jays’ great April, and hopefully this helps generate more buzz about the team this year. With some of our next home series being against Boston and New York, hopefully we start to build upon those attendance numbers, and I’m sure if we can hang near the top of the division longer into the season, that more people will eventually come out to the ballpark. Regardless, it’d be nice to start building a semblance of a fan following again.

 

And there you have it! I’m off to Cleveland this weekend for our annual baseball road trip, so I’m sure I’ll report back in the near future!

 P.S. Nuff respect to anyone (probably just Dalton) who was a fan of the subtle Metallica reference in the post title.