One: The Jays took the series against the Angels. More specifically, they won 2 out of 3 against the number 3 and 4 ranked starters in the American League; Jered Weaver and Dan Haren.
These wins put the Jays 2 games over .500, and again within striking distance of Tampa for third place in the AL East. While the Jays head to the West Coast to face the struggling Mariners, the Rays take a trip to Boston.
Two: Is it just me, or does it feel like Brett Lawrie’s been with the team for, oh, forever?? In his nine games with the team, Lawrie’s batting .355 with 2 home runs. This weekend? He produced every game; 2 doubles, a triple, a single, and a walk. He also made some fine plays over on third base.
Yesterday, I heard Buck and Tabby wonder if Lawrie will get distracted by the ‘hometown’ crowd out in Seattle. I’d be surprised. Kid looks like a pro out there.
Three: Did Jose Bautista get his groove back yesterday? It sure looked like it. After getting Saturday off, he returned to the Sunday lineup and went 3 for 4, smashing his 34th homer of the year over the centerfield wall.
Bautista hasn’t looked right at the plate in awhile. I’m not alone in my joy to see him back in form. Hopefully this is the start of another hot streak. And thankfully, Encarnacion, Lawrie, Rasmus, Lind and Escobar have all contributed offensively.
Four: Rajai Davis, base stealer extraordinaire, is likely out for the rest of the season with a torn hamstring. He sprinted out from home and winced in pain before being escorted from the field by the trainers.
Maybe using a speed demon off the bench late in the game isn’t such a great idea after all. In the 8th inning, Davis’ legs would have been pretty cold. That’s prime injury time.
To replace Davis on the roster, Mike McCoy gets yet another call up from Vegas.
Five: What the heck is up with Edwin Encarnacion lately? Eddie’s batting .415 in the month of August. Yesterday, he scored the walk-off RBI. Enough said.
Six: Alex Anthopoulos has to be feeling pretty good about this team he’s building. They’re not contenders, but they’re shaping up nicely with the additions of Lawrie and Rasmus. I’m looking forward to seeing what moves are made in the off season. With Hill continuing to struggle, the team could use an offensive upgrade at 2B. I don’t see anyone hot coming up through the ranks in time for next year, so this might be an obvious place to look to free agency.
With just about 6 weeks left in the regular season, and 42 games left to play, it’s looking possible that the Jays can beat their 2010 finish of 85 wins. The bigger question? Can they get into third place?
