Blue Birds Take Flight

Going into the first series of the season against the Yankees, JP Ricciardi's "intend to contend" acquisitions were behaving exactly the way they've always behaved. Third baseman Troy Glaus was hitting big and striking out often. First baseman Lyle Overbay was hitting doubles and the American League couldn't get to a BJ Ryan pitch.

As for AJ Burnett, well, he started his season in Class A ball on a rehab assignment. In other words, business as usual for all four.

When Burnett was signed, Ricciardi said, "It will be exciting to see AJ and Doc walk out there the next time we go into Yankee Stadium or Fenway." The Jays will have their two best hurlers go this weekend against Boston, but against the Yanks, it would be the third and fourth starters for the Jays (Gustavo Chacin and Ted Lilly) against the Yankees best (Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina).

Meanwhile, the '06 edition of the Yankees had the same themes as last year's version did. Namely, there is not enough pitching for their fans to be happy about, but enough hitting to make opposing pitchers decidedly unhappy. As always, more pitchers will come up with hamstring pulls before a Yankee series than against any other team.

Chacin, who struggled against the Yankees last year, watched Alex Rodriguez lift one over the left-center fence in the first inning on Tuesday night. A-Rod is such a specimen, he doesn't need to belt a ball to hit a home run. Just good solid contact will do it for him, and that's what he got against Chacin. The Jays were down four before they got a chance to dig up the batter's box.

"Yankees suck! Yankees suck!", the 47,000 strong crowd chanted. "Especially when they hit home runs," they might have added. A good portion of the crowd only paid $2 to get in, and were more than willing to do their part against the perennial division winners.

For last years Jays, being down four-zip was almost certain death. They simply didn't have enough pop in their lineup to come back from large deficits. This year is a different story, however, and the Jays got three back in their half of the inning. Troy Glaus hit a homer and Alex Rios, continued his hot early season form by hitting a double.

While the onslaught against Johnson continued (he was chased in the third), Chacin settled in and didn't allow another run. He lasted until the first batter in the seventh.

Toronto, using their third best starter, just had too much bat for the Yanks and their ace. Glaus hit another homer and Vernon Wells hit two balls that center fielder Johnny Damon had to crash into the Pontiac outfield fence-sign to catch. By the end of the game, Damon had hurled himself into the same panel in the wall three times, and had opened up a gap in the panels that was visible from the infield.

"I thought we were going to have a chalk outline there," Joe Torre said after the game. "You know, the last place Johnny Damon was seen."

Vernon Wells has probably benefited more from the signing of some big bats than any other Blue Jay. Normally a slow starter, Damon's catches put an end to a 12-game hitting streak to start the season. Last Year, Wells could be pitched around, but not this year. The first game went into the books as a 10-5 win for the Jays.

The following day was all about Mussina. He shut down the Jays almost completely. In the six and seventh innings, every Jay was still having trouble getting around on a Mussina ball, and he struck out slugger Troy Glaus three times. Mussina was all the Yankees would need on this day, as Rodriguez again homered and the Yankees scratched a couple more runs to finish the 3-1 victory.

Ted Lilly started the game for the Jays, and had a typical Lilly game. He fought, he scratched, and he got himself out of a couple jams. While the Jays were having trouble getting a bat on Mussina's pitches, the Yankees would regularly get good wood on Lilly's.

The mini-series wound up being a mirror of the Jays' season so far. They didn't have their best pitchers going, they were playing against the best, and they held their own.

For four years, Ricciardi has been slashing his payroll while trying to field a team that was watchable to Jays fans. Not an easy task considering most of Toronto's fan base had witnessed two world series victories. He plugged, he played, but mostly, he waited while prospects came through the system.

Finally, this was the year. "You've got to believe," the marketing people told Toronto. "Come see the Yankees for only $2 bucks! You'll see how great we are," they told the city.

It worked. Tuesday night's win might have got them one step (of many) closer to the playoffs, but 47,000 some-odd seeing the home side whoop the Yanks will translate into much bigger steps at the box office, and in the city's hockey-dominated sporting landscape.