Ramblings from the Nation - Toronto Blue Jays

The Red Sox spent their off-season loading up on pitching and defense. And so far, the stats support that. Gone are the days of bashball and errors. The name of this year’s game is the opposite. Heading into the weekend series against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Sox find that they no longer are near the top of most offensive categories. They are 9th in the league in BA (.264), have the 3rd most strikeouts, 11th in runs scored, 12th in home runs and 9th in total bases. Toronto is near the top in most offensive categories. But as the pitching stands, the Sox are leading the ways in several categories. They are 1st in the AL for team ERA (3.78), 1st in starter wins, tied for 1st in complete games, 1st in saves, near the top in walks and strike outs and 2nd in runs allowed. The current edition of the Red Sox is the polar opposite of the past three years. Let’s see how this translates with the fans over a complete season……Lot’s of former Florida Marlins greeting each other in Toronto, as Josh Beckett, AJ Burnett, Alex Gonzalez, Mike Lowell…..Jays outfielder Vernon Wells, no relationship to the pork bellied, gimpy kneed, trash talking porker pitcher the Sox employ, is having another sensational season. Fresh off of winning another gold glove, manager John Gibbons went so far as calling him a future AL MVP. Only time will tell…..Former Sox third baseman Shea Hillenbrand is in the midst of a slump. The extremely impatient hitter has only one walk so far…..Johnny Damon’s face imprint can still be seen embedded in the centerfield padding. Rumors are swirling that his hit has cause him to stutter even more. That is so sad for the New York media…..Former Manchester Fisher Cat is off to a solid start at second base. Another former Cat, Gustavo Chacin, beat the Red Sox at Fenway last week. Chacin had 16 wins for the FisherCats in 2004, during their championship run…..Josh Towers has started 0-3, with a 9.24 ERA…..Former Jay Derek Bell was busted for cocaine recently. He just couldn’t keep off that pipe…..