New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez may face a lifetime ban from Major League Baseball due to the league's ongoing investigation into his involvement with Biogenesis, according to Jim Axelrod of the CBS Evening News.

If Rodriguez is not banned for life, it is very likely that he will face a suspension similar to the one handed out to Brewers' outfielder Ryan Braun on Monday. Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reported on Tuesday that A-Rod's suspension was "all but a certainty", and that the former superstar is one of fifteen players who will be suspended in connection to the case.

Yankees close to acquiring Alfonso Soriano?

Of course they are! They have a shortage of aging players.

Rodriguez has no plans to ask for a plea deal similar to Braun's, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale.

Nightengale also notes that the soon-to-be 38-year old is likely to receive a suspension that exceeds 100 games and will likely appeal any sanctions from the league.

Rodriguez recently met with league officials about the matter for 4.5 hours and was presented with "evidence far beyond what the league had on Braun", according to T.J. Quinn of ESPN.com.

By establishing the seriousness of the issue by suspending Braun for the remainder of the season, Major League Baseball has signified to Rodriguez that he will be punished for his actions this time.

In nineteen major league seasons, the fourteen-time All-Star has hit .300 with 647 HR and 1,950 RBI. He has missed the entire season due to injury, and a recent setback with his quad has put the remainder of his season in doubt.

In addition to Braun and Rodriguez, players linked to the Biogenesis scandal include Melky Cabrera (Blue Jays), Everth Cabrera (Padres), Francisco Cervelli (Yankees), Bartolo Colon (Athletics), Nelson Cruz (Rangers), Fautino de los Santos (free agent), Yasmani Grandal (Padres), Fernando Martinez (Yankees), Jesus Montero (Mariners), Jordan Norberto (free agent), Jhonny Peralta (Tigers), and Cesar Puello (Mets).

More from MLB Daily Dish:

• White Sox trade rumors: Cardinals offered Carlos Martinez for Alexei Ramirez
• Red Sox, Pedroia agree to 7-year, $100M contract
• Orioles acquire Francisco Rodriguez from Brewers
• Yankees rumors: Robinson Cano likely headed for free agency
• Have thoughts on this too long for a comment? Write a Fanpost!

Going into the season I, like many I would imagine, figured that the Jays stood a pretty good chance of scoring a lot of runs. The Dominican quartet at the top of the lineup (Reyes, Cabrera, Bautista and Encarnacion) all projected to be well above average offensive performers and so long as guys like Rasmus, Lind and Lawrie could hover around average offensively the lineup seemed likely to be able to deal with the holes at second base and catcher. After all, even the best lineups tend to have one or two guys that are there for their defense or because of a lack of viable alternatives.

In a sense the Blue Jays have delivered on exactly this model. The team has scored the 7^th most runs in the MLB and has the 10^th best wRC+ showing themselves to be an above average offensive outfit. Colby Rasmus has been a revelation. Adam Lind has exceeded the expectations of even people who have been in a coma since 2009. Encarnacion and Reyes have delivered exactly as advertised albeit with Reyes missing a big chunk of time. Jose Bautista's season has been slightly disappointing but not disastrously so by any means. While Melky Cabrera has disappointed, the core five of Reyes, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind and Rasmus has been terrific. Below is their combined production (going into last night's game):

That is pretty impressive stuff. When more than half your lineup can do that you should be looking at an elite offense, not merely a good one. The problem is that a lineup is composed of nine players not five. This is one of the things that is so fascinating about baseball. In sports like basketball, football and even hockey at times a superstar or a two can carry a team on their backs. However, in baseball each player can only affect the game at certain times like when they are at bat or a ball comes their way in the field. Often they will have no impact on the game for a couple innings no matter how good they are. Lebron James is never going to be utterly insignificant to the outcome of a game for 22.2% of it but Jose Bautista could bat in the 1^st and then not bat again until the 4^th with no balls coming his way in the outfield. In most games J.P. Arencibia will be at bat the same amount as Edwin Encarnacion despite the massive disparity in their respective abilities to hit a baseball.

Although football often claims to be the ultimate team game, I think baseball would be a more appropriate choice for that title. A franchise quarterback can cure a lot of ills elsewhere but your best players can't hit for your worst and your best starters can't pitch every day and as such in baseball teams are more reliant on their weakest links than teams in other sports. The hope is that your weakest links are sturdy enough to hold things together when called upon. For the 2013 Toronto Blue Jays this has not been the case. Below is the aggregated line for every position player other than the five mentioned above who has appeared for the Blue Jays this year:

This is an utterly pitiful line and it has come with some pretty poor defense from guys like Izturis, Bonifacio and Arencibia as well. While most teams would show a fairly large gap between their top guys and the bottom of the lineup I'm not sure if there is any teamwhere it is as stark as it is for the Blue Jays. The second half of this batting order has been a black hole or an anchor or whatever metaphor you prefer that posits that they have been terrible. There is some reason for hope here as perhaps Melky Cabrera has healed to some degree and can be more productive down the stretch. Brett Lawrie is also too young and talented to give up on either in the short or long term. That being said, even a rebound by those two won't save this from being a sorry group in 2013.

What this really indicates is what this club needs to address in terms of position players going forward. Cabrera, barring additional suspension, will be back and as will Lawrie but their improvement isn't 100% a given and the other two spots need to be upgraded. Pitching may be the weakness of this team but it doesn't really matter where you find your upgrades so long as you find them. The bigger the weakness the easier it is to find an upgrade because more things constitute an upgrade. I am not saying that the Blue Jays shouldn't be working on their rotation, but at least three of the starters they currently have (Dickey, Buehrle and Morrow) are pretty much locks to return so there isn't going to be the overhaul there that some people are likely hoping for. There's even a chance that Josh Johnson returns on a cheap deal or qualifying offer and Esmil Rogers may get another chance if he continues to do well. I wouldn't wager a ton of money on those five as your starting rotation but it isn't beyond the realm of possibility. As much as it may be frustrating for some fans, improved performance from the Blue Jays starting rotation in the years to come is largely going to have to come from within.

The bottom of this lineup is an abomination that is being masked somewhat by excellent production from the top guys and even worse pitching drawing away the proverbial Eye of Sauron. The Blue Jays front office needs to address this issue if they hope to contend in 2014 or 2015. If the bottom four in this lineup was even close to average the Blue Jays would have one of the most dominant offenses in the league. We are seeing this year that even if the majority of your lineup is excelling that isn't enough to guarantee elite offensive performance. The complementary pieces don't necessarily have to be good, or even average, they just can't be this bad. When it comes down to it you need to get something from your non-star players. Baseball is the ultimate team game.

The Miami Marlins promoted outfield prospects Christian Yelich and Jake Marisnick to the major league roster yesterday, inserting them both into the starting lineup against the Colorado Rockies. Yelich went 3-for-4 with two RBI; Marisnick went 0-for-4.

Barring injury or a crushing slump, both players will be in the lineup for the rest of the season as the Marlins push forward with their four thousandth rebuilding effort. Let's take a look at the newest Fish with a co-Prospect of the Day.

Jake Marisnick, OF: Marisnick was originally drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the third round in 2009, from high school in Riverside, California. He had the tools to be a first-rounder, but there were enough questions about his hitting to keep him from going that high. He hit poorly in the Midwest League in '10 (.220/.298/.339), but those questions looked foolish after he returned there and hit .320/.392/.496 with 14 homers and 37 steals in 2011. He held his own in High-A last year (.263/.349/.451 with 10 steals), but had trouble with the strike zone upon promotion to Double-A (.233/.286/.336, 11 walks, 45 strikeouts in 223 at-bats).

Traded to the Marlins from Toronto in the Mark Buehrle deal, he returned to Double-A in '13 he has been more effective, hitting .294/.358/.502 with 12 homers and 11 steals.

Marisnick is a 6-3, 225-pound right-handed hitter and thrower, born March 30, 1991. He is an excellent defensive outfielder with the speed, range, and arm strength to handle center field; it is not impossible to see him develop into a Gold Glove type if he hits enough to play regularly.

He has enough speed to steal 20 bases and enough strength to knock 20 homers, but his overall hitting isn't a sure thing yet. His approach is very aggressive, his swing gets long and complicated, and he has problems with breaking balls. Marisnick has shown the ability to adapt and improve, but skipping him past Triple-A is a risk in this regard. He may need a few hundred at-bats to figure out what works and what doesn't against advanced breaking balls.

Christian Yelich, OF: The Marlins drafted Yelich in the first round in 2010, from high school in Westlake Village, California. A first baseman in high school, he moved to the outfield to take advantage of his athleticism. He's been an excellent hitter thus far, hitting .312/.388/.484 with 32 steals and 15 homers in Low-A in '11, .330/.404/.519 with 12 homers and 20 steals in High-A in 2012, and .280/.365/.518 with seven homers and five steals in Double-A during a 49-game injury-plagued 2013 season so far.

Yelich is a 6-4, 195 pound left-handed hitter and right-handed thrower, born December 5, 1991. He doesn't throw as well as Marisnick and thus will play left field in the majors in deference to his teammate, but Yelich uses his speed effectively in the outfield and certainly runs well enough to handle center if you need to use him there. Like Marisnick, he runs well enough to steal 20 bases if given the green light.

Although he has some problems against left-handed pitching at times, Yelich has a smooth swing and a better feel for the strike zone than Marisnick, As Doug Gray notes in his recent breakdown of Yelich's spray charts, the young hitter makes a concerted effort to use what the pitchers gives him and hit to all fields.

My feeling is that Yelich is more likely to have immediate success in the majors than Marisnick is, which of course means that the opposite will probably happen.

Either way, if the Marlins are committed to this course of action, they need to stay committed to it and let these guys play through any slumps or adjustment issues.

Yesterday evening, volatile 31-year-old Milwaukee Brewers' reliever Francisco Rodriguez, more commonly known as "K-Rod", was traded to the Baltimore Orioles for mid-level prospect Nick Delmonico. Rodriguez has had an up and down past couple years with the Brewers, although this year he's had a ERA of 1.09 and had reclaimed has role as Milwaukee's closer. This isn't a post about a trade between two MLB teams not based in Toronto though. This is about the possible effect this trade has on Toronto's assets in the bullpen. An unpredictable and occasionally wild reliever was traded to a contender to be a set-up man in exchange for the #4 prospect in Baltimore's farm system. A farm system that includes Dylan Bundy at #1 and Kevin Gausman at #2.

Sitting behind the left field wall at the Rogers Centre are at least three, maybe four, relievers who have been better this year than Francisco Rodriguez. With the season quite clearly over, it's time for Alex Anthopoulos to move at least one of these bullpen pieces for something of value in return from a contending team.

The second place Pittsburgh Pirates placed All-Star closer Jason Grilli on the 15-day DL today and promoted Mark Melancon to the ninth inning. Melancon's been great this year, but he's only one year removed from being one of the worst relievers in the league last year with Boston. It also leaves a hole in the setup department for the Pirates that could be filled by someone by the name of Brett Cecil or Steve Delabar. These two All-Star pitchers will never have their trade value any higher and if they aren't shopped to contending teams it would be a real missed opportunity.

Brett Cecil is under team control for three and a half more seasons and could net the Blue Jays a huge return. A team that needs a LOOGY, a set-up guy, or even a team that thinks they could turn him into a starter again would give much more than the mid-level prospect that Baltimore gave to the Brewers. If there's one thing the Blue Jays have been able to do consistently, it's turning potential in relievers into results. Another thing the Blue Jays have shown this year is a top 10 bullpen cannot win games by itself. The pieces the team would receive from trading Brett Cecil would likely be worth much more than the left hander is currently worth to this year's, and even future Blue Jays teams.

An even more attractive trade piece for the Blue Jays would be Steve Delabar. An extra year of team control over Brett Cecil would give the buyer four and a half more seasons of the affordable set-up man, who could easily close if given the chance. Contending teams with struggling bullpens like Detroit, LA, and Boston would all likely be in on a bidding war on the first time All-Star and the Blue Jays could turn their set-up man into multiple assets that can help the team even more going forward.

The last two likely trade targets of other teams in the Blue Jays bullpen are Aaron Loup and Casey Janssen. Loup is in his first year of service and brings to mind former Blue Jays left hander Marc Rzepczynski who was traded in his second year of service to St. Louis in the Colby Rasmus trade. A team trading for Loup would be hoping for a dominant LOOGY for many years to come.

Janssen on the other hand has an option for 2014 and would slot right into a closers role (Pittsburgh possibly?) if given the chance, with the team having the choice to pick up his option or use him as a rental. If "K-Rod" can bring back a top five prospect, someone with a track record like Janssen's could bring at least two or maybe three pieces back to the Blue Jays from a hungry contender.

In the end, it's up to general manager Alex Anthopoulos and how he views this year's team and next. Relievers are the easiest position in baseball to acquire, as he's shown, and acquiring them for cheap and selling them at their peaks has been a successful strategy for AA in his tenure so far. Almost exactly a year ago Steve Delabar was acquired for spare parts Eric Thames, and now Delabar could net multiple prospects one trade deadline later. It seems almost silly to hold onto so many highly sought after relievers when the team's season is clearly over and a "retooling" for next year will have to take place. Having the opportunity to use one of your many bullpen pieces to shore up a hole in the team like second base or catcher is a chance too good to pass up. When the clock strikes midnight on July 31, hopefully the team has made some moves that make it more likely that when a Blue Jays reliever runs in from left field, they're coming in to protect a lead.

The Dodgers go for their second straight sweep on Wednesday against the Blue Jays in Toronto, and will do so with Carl Crawford at designated hitter. Crawford slumped since returning from the disabled list but currently has a modest four-game winning streak, hitting .444 (8-for-18) with a double during that span.

The Dodgers with a win on Wednesday would conclude their interleague road schedule at 5-5, the first year since 2009 they didn't have a losing record in American League parks and just the second time in the last 11 seasons.

Esmil Rogers faced the Dodgers three times with the Rockies in 2010-2011, and allowed exactly four earned runs in each start. The three healthy Dodgers with the most career plate appearances against Rogers have all done well: Andre Ethier is 4-for-7 with two walks, Juan Uribe is 4-for-7 with two home runs and two walks, and Skip Schumaker is 4-for-6 with a walk. All three are in the lineup on Wednesday, with Schumaker in left field.

Ricky Nolasco has only faced the Blue Jays once and that was back in 2009 when he struck out nine in six innings in a no-decision in 2009. He has faced former National League East foe Jose Reyes the most, and the Toronto shortstop has hit .340/.367/.596 with three home runs in 49 plate appearances against the right-hander.

Game info

Time: 4:07 p.m.

TV: KCAL

MLB Gameday

Although the Houston Astros have been quiet on the trade market to this point, their status as aggressive sellers should cause them to make a couple of substantial deals before the deadline next Wednesday.

Veteran pitchers Bud Norris and Jose Veras, who are among the team's candidates to be moved, are drawing considerable interest from teams around the league, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com.

Who wants Bud Norris?

Check out the teams that are checking out Norris.

Norris, who is considered one of the top four available starters on the market, will likely be moved in the next week for a pair of solid prospects.

After being viewed as the Rangers' backup plan to Matt Garza, Norris is now drawing interest from the Red Sox, Pirates, Phillies, Giants and Dodgers, according to Heyman. The 28-year old has also been linked to the Twins and Blue Jays in recent days.

Veras, who will become a free agent after the season, has posted a 3.12 ERA in 40 appearances this year. He is drawing interest from many teams who are looking for bullpen help, but none have been specifically linked to him in reports.

The Braves, Dodgers, Phillies and Red Sox are among the potential destinations for the right-hander, but the Tigers appear to be less interested than they were in Francisco Rodriguez. According to Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com, Detroit's front office is split on Veras' value, meaning that an acquisition of him is unlikely.

The Orioles are actively talking to the Astros about their available pitchers, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. While the addition of Rodriguez and asking price for Norris make the O's unlikely suitors for Norris and Veras, Rosenthal notes that the team could target Erik Bedard and Lucas Harrell, who the Astros would be willing to move. Because both pitchers have struggled this season, they will likely be available for a relatively low price.

More from MLB Daily Dish:

• Bud Norris rumors: Trade talks heating up
• Astros, Altuve agree to four-year, $12.5M deal
• Middlebrooks for Peavy?
• A-Rod facing potential lifetime ban?
• ChiSox reject Cardinals' Alexei-for-Martinez offer

Home runs by Mark Ellis and Yasiel Puig keyed a five-run 10th inning for the never-say-die Dodgers, who rallied to beat the Blue Jays 8-3 on Wednesday night at Rogers Centre in Toronto. The victory continued a remarkable run for the Dodgers, with many accomplishments checked off along the way.

The Dodgers have won 10 straight road games for the first time since moving to Los Angeles. The last time the Dodgers have won at least 10 road games in a row was 1955, when they won their first 11 road contests en route to a 22-2 start and the first World Series win in franchise history.

The Dodgers swept an interleague series (of three games or more) on the road for the first time since 2003, and four only the fourth time since interleague play began in 1997. The Dodgers swept the Indians in Cleveland and the Tigers in Detroit in 2003, and did the same to the Rangers in Arlington in 1998.

For the second time during the road winning streak, the Dodgers found themselves down to their final out, trailing in the ninth inning. On Wednesday, Puig was on first base and tried to steal second when Andre Ethier singled to center. The AstroTurf bounce confounded center fielder Colby Rasmus but given the way Puig was running it might not have mattered anyway.

The win was the sixth in a row overall for the Dodgers, and their 23rd win in their last 28 games.

The Dodgers have scored eight or more runs in four straight games for the first time since Sept. 9-11, 1985.

For a while it looked like that win wasn't in the cards. The Dodgers had chance after chance against Esmil Rogers all night, scalding the ball all over the field. But they only scored two runs in seven innings despite reaching base 12 times.

The Dodgers hit the ball hard against Rogers all night. Puig doubled off the base of the wall in left center field in the third. Carl Crawford doubled off the top of the wall in right field in the sixth. Ethier bounced one into the corner for a double in the seventh. But all were stranded.

Puig had plenty of reasons to hug.

In the end though the Dodgers found a way, and they return home undefeated since the All-Star break.

Notes

• Brandon League pitched two scoreless innings to earn his second straight victory. League is the first Dodgers relief pitcher to win back-to-back games since Joe Beimel on April 27-29, 2008.
• Ethier had his second four-hit game of the season, including doubles. In the three-game series Ethier was 8-for-14 (.571) with five doubles and a home run.
• Puig was 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and a walk. His home run in the 10th was his first long ball since July 2, snapping a span of 75 plate appearances without one.
• Mark Ellis got a hit in all six games of the road trip, and hit .440 (11-for-25)
• Paco Rodriguez recorded three outs but allowed an infield single to J.P. Arencibia in the seventh inning (on what was initially called an error on Hanley Ramirez), snapping a streak of 18 consecutive batters retired by Rodriguez, including 10 via strikeout.

Up next

The Dodgers return home for a four-game series against the Reds beginning Thursday night at Dodger Stadium. Zack Greinke starts the opener for the Dodgers, facing Mat Latos for Cincinnati.

Wednesday particulars

Home runs: Mark Ellis (5), Yasiel Puig (9)

WP - Brandon League (5-3): 2 IP, 1 strikeout

LP - Juan Perez (1-2): 1 IP, 4 hits, 5 runs, 2 walks, 1 strikeout

Blue Jays 3 Dodgers 8 (10 innings)

I feel like I'm living the movie Groundhog Day. I'm Bill Murray and every day I write about the Jays losing. I half expect to hear Sonny and Cher singing 'I Got You Babe' tomorrow morning.

Anyway, blah blah blah Jays lose again blah blah blah most depressing loss yet blah blah blah rock bottom blah blah blah errors at the worst moment blah blah blah Esmil Rogers deserved better blah blah blah I like Brett Lawrie better at third base blah blah blah glad to see him hitting better.

Maybe the movie is Stranger Than Fiction. I'm Will Ferrell and I need to figure out who is writing this crap. Dustin Hoffman will be asking me 'We have to figure out if it is a tragedy or a comedy." Oh well, if I get to sleep with Maggie Gyllenhaal, it might be all worthwhile.

Stupid Astro Turf.

No no I'm in Bull Durham:

I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf.

There really should be a law against Astro Turf. I know Satin came up with it.

Oh no, I'm not Kevin Costner am I?

Well.. one of Knuke's eyelids are jammed, and we need a live chicken?.. live chicken to get the hex off of Jose's glove, and nobody seems to know what to get Jimmy or Millie for their wedding present.

Rogers Centre is cursed. We need to sacrafice a bunter.

Anyway, Colby Rasmus makes an error at the worst possible moment. Juan Perez gives up his first run (s) as a Blue Jay at the worst possible moment.

That could be the motto for the Blue Jays' season 'the worst possible moment'.

Any, use the comments to do a real recap if you like.

The swear ban is lifted for this comment thread (and only this comment thread).

Shi Davidi has the story, Brandon Morrow has a 'entrapped radial nerve' and is done for the season.

The Blue Jays' season just doesn't get better.

Apparently it is an injury that doesn't show up on an MRI. And there isn't surgery to fix it, the treatment will likely be 'extended rest'. Brandon has always been one of my favorites, I really feel bad for him.

Last year was Brandon's best as a starting pitcher, it really looked like he had it all figured out, until an oblique injury put him out for a couple of months. He still had great numbers, putting up a 2.96 ERA in 21 starts, with 98 hits allowed, 41 walks and 108 strikeouts. I was really looking forward to seeing what he would do this year.

Then this year didn't start well. He had a 4.69 ERA, before he went on the DL for the first time. Then came back to make 3 bad starts, it was clear that he was still hurting.

I think those that said that Brandon just could handle pain owe him an apology now. Poor guy.

Once again, who ever is writing this stuff has warped sense of humor.

The Philadelphia Phillies have had recent talks with second baseman Chase Utley about a contract extension, according to Jim Salisbury of CSNPhiladelphia. While the Dodgers, Blue Jays and Royals have been linked to Utley in trade rumors, Salisbury notes that Philadelphia is not listening to trade offers for the 34-year old.

Utley is in the final year of the seven-year, $85 million contract that he signed before the 2007 season, and will be one of the most coveted free agents if he hits the market this winter. According to Salisbury, the Phillies' are planning to move forward with Utley as one of the faces of the franchise, and have planned promotions centered around him for the week after the trade deadline passes.

At 34, Utley will likely be in line for a contract in the ballpark of the 3-year, $45 million one that Philly.com's David Murphy suggested this morning. In 72 games on the season, Utley is hitting .286 with 13 HR and 36 RBI.

The Phillies have told teams that they are not willing to sell key assets, but their recent struggles may change their thinking. While Utley, Jonathan Papelbon, Cliff Lee and Carlos Ruiz are almost guaranteed to stay put, third baseman Michael Young may be on the move. The 36-year old has drawn interest from many teams including the Red Sox, Yankees and Reds.

The Blue Jays start a four game series with the Houston Astros tonight. Houston is one of the few teams that have a record that's even worse than the Jays (whoops, better go look that up, yep they are still doing worse than us). They are 34-66, last in the AL West. They are a team of young guys, so Astro fans can at least hope for a brighter future.

I sent off some questions to David Coleman, from The Crawfish Boxes, SB Nation's Houston Astros blog and he was kind enough to answer them for us.

With the Astros' first season in the AL, what do you think of the change? Do you like the AL style of baseball?

It took a bit to get used to the AL. Early in the season, I still caught myself expecting double switches or the pitcher to be pulled because his spot in the batting order was coming up. Now, though, that's fallen away and the games are fairly routine. Except for when Houston would use Ronny Cedeno as a DH and drive fans crazy.

How is our once first baseman of the future, Brett Wallace, doing? How about the prospects we sent you for Happ. What are Joe Musgrove, Asher Wojciechowski, David Rollins and Carlos Perez doing? Do you expect to see any of them in the majors soon?

Wallace was terrible at the beginning of the year, but has hit better after being called back up. With Carlos Pena getting DFAed Sunday, Wallace figures to get the bulk of playing time at first, with Chris Carter splitting time in left and at DH.

As for the prospects, Asher Wojciechowski is the one making the most noise. He's at Triple-A and figures to be the first pitcher called up if/when Bud Norris gets traded. Rollins has has moments in High-A Lancaster's tandem starting rotation. Carlos Perez is also at Triple-A, showing good walk and strikeout rates, but his average is down and his power is non-existent. Plus, he's got Max Stassi on his heels for the title of best catching prospect in the system. Musgrove was a casualty of Houston's built-up depth and was sent to extended spring training before going back to rookie ball this year.

The Astros aren't great right now but seem to be putting together a team for the future, what's your ETA for contention?

The year everyone throws out there is 2015. By that point, prospects like centerfielder George Springer, first baseman Jonathan Singleton and shortstop Carlos Correa should all be in the majors leagues, joining the growing core of players who have been called up in the past few years. That's also tentatively when Houston should dip its toe back in free agent waters.

Who is your favourite Astro to watch?

For me, it's easily Chris Carter. I've gotten to watch Houston's batting practice a few times this year and he's a monster there. Plus, we inherited Carter's nickname from Athletics Nation of Trogdor, which is awesome to yell anytime he hits a home run.

With the deadline coming up, are you expecting any trades?

Bud Norris and Jose Veras should get traded for sure, but the thing with this front office is that anyone could be had for the right price. I don't expect anyone else to get traded, but if someone blows GM Jeff Luhnow away in an offer for Carter or even catcher Jason Castro, he might bite.

I have to ask about the Canadian, Eric Bedard. How is he doing?

If you'd asked me back in April, the answer would have been entirely different. Back then, it looked like Bedard was not long for the roster, after he had a horrible month and was demoted to the bullpen. Now? He just had his best start of the season, in the most Astro-ian way possible. Bedard took a no-hitter into the seventh inning, but couldn't keep going. He left without allowing a hit, but ended up losing a game that the Mariners only had one hit total in. It was embarrassing.

Is there anything else us Blue Jay fans should know about the Astros?

Houston is bad. There's no secret there. They've got some fun players and they've got some youthful exuberance. Shortstop Jonathan Villar just got called up and has had a good three game run as has rookie starting pitcher Jarred Cosart, who should start Sunday's game. The rotation is actually decent most of the time, but it's undermined by a terrible bullpen, which is typically how you get a terrible team overall.

Thanks David

Update, I sent David the question Steve02 asked about Alan Ashby, here is the answer:

Most of the feedback on Ashby this year has been positive. Fans were very happy to have him back, as he was a favorite here when he was on the radio. But, I've also heard some complaints that he doesn't seem to fit in well with the broadcasts and that he's not as up on the system. That should all fix itself in time.

However, I can't really give my personal opinions on it, because I don't get to watch Ashby. Houston is going through a carriage dispute with most of the major cable distributors on their new Regional Sport Network CSN Houston. Sixty percent of Houstonians cannot see the games and I fit right into that number. I wish I was able to give a better scouting report on Ashby, though. I loved him when he was the color guy on radio broadcasts.

On Thursday afternoon, Blue Jays manager John Gibbons went on MLB Network Radio on Sirius XM and told Jim Duquette that the club's experiment of trying out Brett Lawrie at second base is "over" and that the young Canadian will return to the hot corner for the remainer of this season.

John Gibbons mgr of Tor told us the Brett Lawrie experiment at 2nd is over, will play 3rd for the remainder of season @MLBNetworkRadio

— Jim Duquette (@Jim_Duquette) July 25, 2013

During his latest stint on the disabled list, Lawrie played three rehab games for the Buffalo Bisons stationed at second base. When he returned to the Blue Jays the weekend before the All-Star break, he started at second base six times and third twice. The original idea for trying him out at second--his position coming up in the minors in the Brewers' system--was to expand his positional flexibility. Via @StivBators, who tuned in to the interview, Gibbons said that another reason they wanted Lawrie at second was that he felt more comfortable with Mark DeRosaat third than second.

From an eye test, the Blue Jays suffered especially with Maicer Izturis at third and Lawrie at second. There were definitely some batted balls that went for hits because of Izturis and DeRosa's limited range and reaction time. The placement of Lawrie's strong arm at second also seemed wasteful.

Those who think the Jays have been doing Lawrie a disservice for flipping him back and forth between second and third would welcome this news. I've wanted Gibbons to try Jimy Williams' manoeuvre, flipping Lawrie and DeRosa / Izturis back and forth between second and third based on the batter's spray charts to put Lawrie where the batter hits more often. If nothing, that'd be fun to see.

Lawrie has only been hitting .203/.273/.345 since his return from the DL, but he has hit the ball hard several times for outs.

In the same interview, Gibbons said that the plan for Brandon Morrow is to cease throwing for six weeks then to start a "spring training-like program" to evaluate him further. He also mentioned that Drew Hutchison and Kyle Drabekare likely September call-ups.

Much thanks to Clint (@StivBators) for tweeting out the interview.

UPDATE:

Gibby says he made the decision to keep Lawrie at 3B for rest of season after watching him last night. "I'm dumb, I'm not stupid"#bluejays

— Brendan Kennedy (@BKennedyStar) July 25, 2013

Houston at Toronto, 6:07 pm (CT)

TV: CSN Houston, MLB.TV
Radio: KBME 790 AM, KLAT 1010 AM
Blue Jays SBNation Blog: Bluebird Banter

Pitching Match

LHP Erik Bedard (3-7 / 4.41 ERA / 1.48 WHIP) vs. LHP Mark Buehrle (5-7 / 4.83 ERA / 1.40 WHIP)

Preview

The Astros head north and cross the border to face the Blue Jays. The place that keeps the 'world' in World Series. The Blue Jays were the talk of season after trading for R.A Dickey and pillaging the Marlins at their request. Injuries and slow starts have hampered Toronto out the gate.

Edwin Encarnacion andJose Bautista, once again lead the way for the Jays in the power department with 20 plus homeruns each. Raja Davis has lit it up on the base paths with 24 stolen bases before the All-Star break. Adam Lind has once again become useful, batting .306 with 11 home runs and 37 runs batted in before the break. There have been a few misses shockingly (not really) Melky Cabrera has come back to earth batting 69 points lower then his 2012 average at .277. Emilio Bonifacio and Brett Lawrie are batting around the .200 mark. Finally Jose Reyes has only played 34 games thus far, but 34 great games none the less. As for the pitching staff, Esmil Rogers is the only starter with at least 10 starts with an ERA under four (3.76).

Toronto has lost six straight games since returning from the All-Star break. The Jays were outscored 48-28 over two series with the red-hot Rays and Dodgers. Joey Batts has been locked in, he has three home runs and five runs batted in in six games. Jose Reyes has a .345 on-base percentage with two doubles and two stolen bases.

Astros fans know tonight's starter for Toronto all to well, Mark Buehrle. The starter of game 2 in 2005 World Series for the White Sox jettisoned north this offseason. He has had an up and down year to say the least; in July alone he has switched two quality starts around an eight run outing against the Orioles. Much like his counter part tonight, Buehrle's goal is to eat up innings and keep his team in the game. He can no longer dominate a game with his stuff alone. Buehrle currently has his highest carer FIP (4.35*) since 2009. Chris Carter is 2-for-3 in his a career against Buehrle.

Erik Bedard returns to his homeland to pitch against the Jays tonight. Bedard rebounded from poor starts before the All-Star break with two straight outings of two earned runs or less. Including 6 1/3 hitless innings against the M's, in which the lefty exited the game as a result of 109 pitches thrown. Melky Cabrera (3-21) and Rajai Davis (1-8) are both batting below .120 against Bedard in their careers.

courtesy of FanGraphs

The Los Angeles Dodgers have designated left-hander Ted Lilly for assignment in order to make room for Elian Herrera, according to an announcement from the team. The team will now have ten days to trade, release, waive or outright the 37-year old.

Lilly, who has only made five starts on the season due to injury, was let go after a disagreement with the Dodgers about his future, according to ESPNLosAngeles.com's Mark Saxon.

The Dodgers DFA'd Ted Lilly after a disagreement about whether he would go to the minors to adjust to relief work

— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) July 25, 2013

With the Dodgers possessing a full starting rotation after the acquisition of Ricky Nolasco, Lilly's role with the team has been in doubt. He was expected to join the Dodgers' bullpen, but apparently did not want to go to the minor leagues to adjust to the change. He now is available to any team that is looking for a left-handed arm and willing to pick up the roughly $5 million remaining on his expiring contract.

While a team may take a chance on Lilly by claiming him off waivers, a trade with the Dodgers taking on some of his salary is the most likely scenario. Any trade would have to happen before next Wednesday, which is the non-waiver trade deadline.

In five starts on the season, Lilly is 0-2 with a 5.09 ERA, 7.0 K/9, and 3.9 BB/9. In fifteen major league seasons with the Expos (1999), Yankees (2000-2002), Athletics (2002-2003), Blue Jays (2004-2006), Cubs (2007-2010) and Dodgers (2010-2013), Lilly has posted a 130-113 record with a 4.14 ERA, 7.6 K/9, and 3.0 BB/9. He is in the final year of the 3-year, $33 million extension he signed with the Dodgers before the 2011 season, and will hit the open market this winter.

Earlier this year, I complained about the scarcity of Blue Jays prospects doing well. Some members rightly pointed out that a lot of the promising prospects were still in extended spring training and therefore not playing. As of right now, those players are playing, and have done so for a few weeks. It's time to check up on them, with the focus on Bluefield, for that is where most of the promising players are playing.

Hitters

Let's start with the hitters. D.J. Davis was last year's first-round pick, and is performing like one: .281/.371/.500. That's some special power for a player who is supposed to be valued for his amazing speed, though it helps that his three homers so far are joined by an astounding six in the triples column. Davis draws a good amount of walks, so his only weakness is making contact; 31 strikeouts in 29 games is a real concern. Hitters with this kind can fall off pretty dramatically as they are promoted through the system, like Marcus Knecht and Michael Crouse when they were promoted form Lansing to Dunedin. If it turns out Davis can make solid contact at higher levels as well, he could quickly propel himself to the top 50/top 25 prospects in all of baseball.

Mitch Nay doesn't have the strikeout concerns that D.J. Davis has; he has almost half the Ks. However, for a possible first baseman, Nay has lacked power with just six extra base hits. Two of those were home runs, so it's not like Nay is the next coming of Ben Revere, but the lack of doubles hurts his value. Overall, Nay's hitting .295/.368/.384, so the control of the strikezone is a huge positive, and it's not unreasonable to hope that the power is either a small sample issue or something that will come with time. Or, Nay could become the next Chris Hawkins: a contact hitter without the punch to hurt even low-A pitching. It's too early to tell, but he's looking better than Jacob Anderson (still on the DL) and Matt Dean (.255/.333/.343) from the previous year.

The third and last of the three prominent hitting prospects in Bluefield is shortstop Dawel Lugo. Like Nay, Lugo has little problems making contact, but unlike Nay, Lugo doesn't draw walks; he has just four so far, compared to fifteen for Davis and thirteen for Nay. Strangely, though, the shortstop has outhomered the rest of the Bluefield team with four home runs, two more than Nay. Of course, with a sample of just over 100 at bats, home run numbers aren't exactly reliable. Of note is that the native of the Dominican Republic is more than a year younger than Mitch Nay, and a few months younger than Davis. That, and the fact Lugo plays an important defensive position, make him the clear number two hitting prospect behind Davis and ahead of Nay.

Pitchers

As he's in the title of this article, you'll be expecting me to lead off with Jairo Labourt here. So I will. Jairo Labourt is a 6-foot-4 left-handed pitcher signed out of the Dominican Republic. He's got 23 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings with just 6 walks, which is of course great. But even better is that Labourt complements the strikeouts and lack of walks with a terrific groundball-rate of 64%. The one other Jays prospect I can think of who combines strikeouts with groundballs like that is Aaron Sanchez, but Sanchez had command problems when he was in Bluefield, and Labourt doesn't. That's not to say that Labourt's stuff is as good as Sanchez's, but it's unlikely that his stuff is bad.

Then there's Chase DeJong, a second round pick from last year's draft. DeJong's got 27 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings with just 4 walks, so his command is even better than Labourt. However, DeJong's not a true groundballer (so far), and quite a lot balls hit in play against him have gone for hits. Now, we know that BABIP for pitchers is rarely predictive at the major league level, but at the minor league level it might be more of a worry. Except that, you know, shaky defense happens a lot at these low levels, and the sample size is small. We'll likely find out at the higher levels if DeJong's purely a command guy or if he's got the "stuff" to make it to the big leagues.

Young Alberto Tirado is known for his fastball velocity, but his numbers have taken a bit of a hit now that he's no longer in the Gulf Coast League. With a K% below 20, and a normal batted ball distribution, Tirado's statistics don't impress as much as his fellow Bluefielders. But he might have more potential. Another prospect who doesn't K a lot, but seems to be improving in that regard, is Canadian Tom Robson. Usually, I would be slightly disappointed in a prospect who strikes out only 18 batters in 26 innings, but Robson currently has an out-of-this-world groundball percentage: 72%! It's unlikely he'll keep that up, mostly because that kind of a number is just unheard of.

Honorable Mentions

Among the hitters, only Derrick Loveless seems to be worthy of an honorable mention. His line sits at .256/.370/.444, with a sharp split between the nine games Bluefield played in June and the twenty they've played in July, as he's only hit .203/.333/.288 in the current month. Among the pitchers, Adonys Cardona is not yet a lost cause, despite being in Rookie-ball for the third straight year and having a 6.11 ERA. Cardona's strikeouts are still there, coupled with a good groundball-rate. His problems are command and an unsustainable (even at minor league level) .483 BABIP against. A better performer, but less heralded prospect is Shane Dawson, another Canadian. The 6-foot-1 lefty has 35 Ks in 27 1/3 innings, with a decent number of groundballs (nothing exciting, but also certainly not something to worry about). If word gets out about Labourt's effectiveness, Dawson would probably become my new favourite sleeper.

Overall, this crop of Bluefield prospects is exciting, but as always, players this far removed from the majors have a long way to go and are far from a sure thing to perform at higher levels. But for now, we can dream.

The Blue Jays continue their sweep of the Astros today with the team going up against 22-year-old right hander Jordan Lyles. After being drafted in the first round of the 2008 draft, Lyles has spent three years in the back end of the Astros' rotation. He's never really struck enough guys out to be better than a fourth starter, and many years of being a journeyman big leaguer likely await him. If you're wondering, he becomes a free agent after 2017. If someone wants to confirm that Lyles won't be a Super-Two candidate I'd appreciate it, because I spent about 20 minutes trying to figure it out. In 15 starts this year he has an ERA of 4.78 and a FIP of 3.84, while his K/9 is 6.17.

The South Carolina native throws a fastball, sinker, curveball, changeup, and slider. His hard stuff sits in the low 90's, but he has never been able to get many Whiffs/Swing on any of his pitches, which looks to be his achilles heel. The movement on his fastball, sinker, and changeup are all very similar so trying to pick up the sinker isn't as big of a problem against Lyles as it is for a pitcher with more movement:

Lyles works on the outside part of the plate against both righties and lefties rarely venturing inside:

He also sometimes decides not to throw the ball at the end of his delivery:

via thebiglead.fantasysportsven.netdna-cdn.com

Before Lyles' last start he actually had an ERA in the low 4's, another start before that it was in the high 3's, so the season hasn't been as bad as his line suggests. That being said, five days ago against Seattle, Lyles gave up 9 earned runs in 4 innings! That's a Blue Jays-esque type of blowup. In that game, 8 of the 9 Mariners' hitters were batting left-handed and combined with Lyles' career splits that support that decision, the Blue Jays should try to stack the lineup card with lefties.

The lineup I'd suggest would be:

1. Reyes SS
2. Bautsita RF
3. Encarnacion DH
4. Lind 1B
5. Cabrera LF
6. Rasmus CF
7. Izturis 2B
8. Thole C
9. Lawrie 3B

For the "Find the Link" today:

Find the link between Jordan Lyles and one of the pitchers' sandwiched between A.J. Burnett and Roy Halladay on the all-time strikeout list, whose career spanned 20 years!

Here's the current standings for "Find the Link":

1. getupkid: 18.5
2. expos&nordiques4ever: 15
3. davepaskar: 10
4. Goldenhawk99: 7
5. Siggian: 4
6. ABsteve: 3
7. yleviticus: 3
8. Mathlete: 3
9. JaysfanDL: 2.5
10. McBluejays: 2
11. RogerHunt: 2
12. Maj. Major Major Major: 2
13. Dr_Furious: 2
14. rcharris_85: 1
15. peter3309: 1
16. Damaso's Burnt Shirt: 1
17. dexfarkin: 1
18. fishedin: 1
19. Shift: 1
20. centerfield420: 1
21. plen: 1
22. madrush: 1
23. Belisarius: 1
24. Lutherie: 1
25. Cusefan: 1
26. bryfryy: 0.5

Enjoy the game!

The Blue Jays beat reporters received the lineup card for tonight's game against the Houston Astros and saw something peculiar, as can be seen in this Shi Davidi tweet:

#BlueJays lineup vs #Astros with a joke in the seventh and eighth spots? pic.twitter.com/7hRAUDdy4v

— Shi Davidi (@ShiDavidi) July 26, 2013

The printed lineup card showed Maicer Izturis batting seventh and at second base ("4") with Brett Lawrie bating eighth playing third ("5"), but then someone appended the numbers in black marker so that beside Izturis it reads "4/5" and beside Lawrie it reads "5/4".

Most of the writers were understandably confused and are suspecting that is a practical joke pulled by manager John Gibbons after all the stories of Lawrie bouncing back and forth between second and third base. Brendan Kennedy asked Luis Rivera about the oddity:

Just asked #bluejays infield coach Luis Rivera what's up with Izturis-Lawrie 4/5 on lineup card. "No idea," he says.

— Brendan Kennedy (@BKennedyStar) July 26, 2013

If Rivera didn't know about the move, it is probably a practical joke, either targeting the beat writers as a whole, or radio guy Mike Wilner who will be broadcasting the entire game while Jerry Howarth travels to Cooperstown.

But if it isn't a joke, maybe we are looking at a situation where Lawrie and Izturis would switch positions depending on the handiness (and I guess spray chart) of each batter, which is something I mentioned that I wanted to see. If you don't know about the Jimy Williams Manoeuvre, take a look at this article from Batter's Box, and scroll down to May 2, 1988. It is so crazy it might just work.

In either case this makes me like Gibby. If it is a joke, then it'll be great. If he does go with the Jimy Williams Manoeuvre, it'll be the greatest.

UPDATE

Awwwwww. Even before we can finish our wild speculations, Mike Wilner updates us with the news that Lawrie will be at third and Izturis at second tonight:

Lawrie will be playing 3b tonight, Izturis 2b. Gibbons said he has no idea who did that to the line-up card. #Bluejays#Jays

— Mike Wilner (@Wilnerness590) July 26, 2013

As expected, the lineup was just a joke on the media. Lawrie is at 3B, Izturis at 2B. "I don't know who did that," Gibbons said with a smile

— Gregor Chisholm (@gregorMLB) July 26, 2013

Houston at Toronto, 6:07 pm (CT)

TV: CSN Houston, MLB.TV
Radio: KBME 790 AM, KLAT 1010 AM
Blue Jays SBNation Blog: Bluebird Banter

Pitching Match

RHP Jordan Lyles (4-4 / 4.78 ERA / 1.42 WHIP) vs. RHP R.A. Dickey (8-11 / 4.75 ERA / 1.29 WHIP)

Preview

Once again, the Astros made an average pitcher look like Cy Young yesterday. Today they actually get a Cy-Young award winner on the mound. R.A. Dickey, the 2012 NL Cy-Young Award Winner, is what makes baseball great. After years of failing to make it as a straight power pitcher, Dickey found salivation in the knuckleball. The bastard pitch with a mind of his own. Dickey has become the master of the knuckleball and he throws it with an aggression never seen before.

Dickey's mastery of the knuckleball lead to a magical final season with the Mets, 20 wins and a 2.73 ERA. This past offseason he was traded to Toronto. Thus far, the true north has been unkind to him. Almost every single pitching category has gone in the wrong direction this season. His strike out-to-walk rate has dropped from 4.26 in 2012 to 2.08 this season. His ground ball-to-fly ball rate has completely flipped from 2011 at 1.11, .92 in 2012, and finally .78 this season. That said, Dickey would tell that this is the nature of the knuckler. He can't control it fully, he is only along for the ride.

In his four starts in July, Dickey at least to the sixth inning in each of them. Flip flopping between giving up two runs and four plus runs in each of those starts. In his latest start, he gave up four runs over six inning against the red-hot Rays. All four runs were a result of Tampa Bay home runs. Taking a look at Dickey's history against the Astros' lineup, Jason Castro is batting .375 (3-8) with a double of the knuckleballer. Brett Wallace has three doubles in 14 career at-bats, while Jose Altuve is hitless in five at-bats against Dickey.

On the mound today for the Astros is Jordan Lyles. Lyles is hoping to turn the page on rough nine earned runs outing against Seattle. The Mariners scored 10 runs on eight hits and two walks. The right hander has a 8.03 ERA over his last five starts after seven straight starts of giving up two earned runs or least. One bright spot, Lyles ERA on the road (3.50) is two runs lower then at home (5.73). This will the be first time the major of the Jay's line will have faced Lyles, only Josh Thole has two previous career at-bats against tonight's starter. Thole is hitless with one strikeout.

While browsing around at the price gouging liquor store recently, I caught the good old Toronto Blue Jays logo out of the corner of my eye. After meandering over to the can it was plastered on, I noticed that it was one of the Budweiser Blue Jays beer cans that have been floating around for a year or two. This season was the first season that the cans saw widespread releases in non-team markets, although Toronto seems to have had them for a while now. The price tag for the singular can was a little over $2 (they're a cool $10 at the Rogers Centre) and I figured after investing so much in the season emotionally and financially, what was another toonie spent if it made the games more enjoyable to watch. I also figured I could review the experience of drinking this Bud with everyone's favourite baseball team's logo emblazoned on it and recommend whether other Banterers should also make this $2 purchase in the future. As it turns out, incredibly, Budweiser has managed to truly capture the feeling of the Toronto Blue Jays in this beer.

First things first when talking about beer is the taste. As it turns out regardless of what logo is on the can, the beer still tastes like Budweiser. In truth, that was always going to be a tough hurdle to clear. With immense anticipation leading up to the drinking of the beer, the experience was off to a rough start before the first sip was even complete. I even had all my friends come over and watch me drink the beer. We unraveled a huge Canadian flag just before I drank said beer and proudly sang the national anthem.

After the rough beginning things never really got better as I dropped the can consistently, much more than I used to when I drank beer in Miami. I became pretty wobbly too, which is normal when I drink beer, but usually I know pretty much where I'm going to end up wobbling to. In fact last year in New York, I was so good at controlling my wobbling after drinking I won an award for my efforts.

I let one of my friends have some of the beer and to be honest, he's a bit of a hothead. We all know it, but no one really likes to admit to his face how much we hate brashness. Anyway, my friend really let everyone down by constantly letting the beer can roll through his legs when I tossed it to him and when he tried to throw it back to me he missed me by a good 20 feet. He didn't care though, because he knew we wouldn't stop being his friend in spite of his poor performance. #GetUseToIt

This beer lasted a lot longer than usual, and a lot more interesting things happened during the drinking of it. I had heard one of my energetic new acquaintances had some cool things he could do and shortly into the beer drinking session he did his usual party trick, but this time around he basically snapped his ankle after looking really awkward trying something he's quite accustomed to doing. He went home for a while, but came back by the time I was about halfway through the Blue Jays beer can. Like I said, this beer can lasts an excruciating long amount of time and doesn't really satisfy at all.

On a side note, there's another guy who hangs around with us who's a fair bit older. He's got some good jokes and he really knows how to slam a beer, but no one is really sure what value he brings to the table. Sure, he's good for a laugh every once in a while, but is it really worth having him around so often just for his presence. I'm sure we could find someone else that provides a little more value to our group than that old guy.

There are a few other people that are worth a quick mention as well. A younger guy from out west comes around every so often and really brings the intensity up a notch. Boy, he does a lot of stupid stuff and we're still not sure if he has a future with us or not. There's also a dude from down south who is quiet, but generally a good person to have around. He's definitely hit or miss and just a few days ago I tossed one of these Blue Jays cans at him and he let it bounce all the way over his head. I couldn't believe it, I needed to drink about five more before I got over it.

In closing, this Blue Jays can of beer is really something else. As I alluded to, it's a really painful experience that never brings much more than short bursts of satisfaction. I should have never gotten my hopes up so high when I looked at that can on the shelf of the liquor store thinking it would amount to anything more than the usual terrible experience of drinking a Budweiser. I thought for some reason this time would be different, but they always find a new way to make the beer a massive letdown. Unfortunately for me I just took another sip and faced the fact that I had been trying to avoid, this beer is only a little over half finished.

Rating: 4.55/10

Blue Jays 12, Astros 6

Quick trivia: Whose night was more rare, Edwin Encarnacion or Jose Reyes?

Encarnacion was the headline grabber with a pair of home runs, including a grand slam, in the seventh inning as the Jays blew the game open.

His solo shot led off the inning and was followed by an Adam Lind blast and a Colby Rasmus near-miss for a double. The Jays continued the offensive barrage, chasing Paul Clemens, Wesley Wright and Hector Ambriz en route to an eight-spot. The fireworks display ended when Encarnacion hit a grand slam off of Ambriz.

Long story short, Encarnacion hit two home runs in the same inning, which is awesome. He’s just the second Jay to do it (Joe Carter did it in 1993), just the 26th American Leaguer to accomplish the feat and the 58th in all of Major League Baseball.

But Jose Reyes somehow managed something more rare. You may have heard announcers discussing his bid for the cycle, for which he needed just a triple as early as the fourth inning. Reyes doubled in the first, homered in the third and singled in the fourth.

From there, he was cruelly walked twice, taking away his final chances at a three-bagger (in another cruel twist, he was left on deck in the eighth inning). Granted, there have only been 12 triples at Rogers Centre all year long, Reyes is without one and he may have had Josh Thole clogging the bases in front of him, but it would have been nice to try.

Instead, Reyes did something more rare than even the cycle. There have been 240 cycles in MLB history, but Reyes became just the 39th player to single, double, homer, walk twice and steal a base. It’s a random accomplishment, sure, but it’s a fun one.

He was also, cruelly, just that same triple shy of being the second player ever to have a Mega Cycle. In 1925, Pittsburgh Pirate Kik Cuyler hit for the cycle, walked and stole a base all in the same game and Reyes narrowly missed doing just that.

Anyway, there was a game to discuss…
It wasn’t a pretty one, but the good guys got the win, so who am I to complain? Oh, yeah, I’m the guy who saw four excruciating losses in five days live (Sat-Sun-Tues-Wed) and then sat at home for this awesome game. I digress.

It didn’t look good from the start, though. Something called a Marc Krauss hit a two run homer in the second and a two run double in the fourth, putting the Jays down 4-2 early. When Toronto tied it up, Krauss "cashed in" another by failing upwards, grounding into a double play that scored a run. Jason Castro added an RBI in the seventh and the Jays were stuck 6-4, looking at yet another disappointing ending.

But then, the big inning. You’re welcome, R.A. Dickey. Dickey, as you might have guessed given his line (6 IP, 5 ER, 8 K), Dickey was a mixed bag. Once again he coaxed strikeouts (not brag-worthy against these Astros, who strike out more than any team in the league) but surrendered some very hard hit balls. It’s getting quite frustrating to try and figure out the real Dickey when there is a lot of good and a lot of bad each outing.

Dustin McGowan struggled in relief and got a quick hook, with Brett Cecil, Steve Delabar and Aaron Loup shutting it down from there.

Worth Noting
Colby Rasmus had a huge game with four hits, two of them doubles, and he probably couldn’t be hotter right now. Since July 7, he has 24 hits (10 extra base hits) in 15 games.

Brett Lawrie also continues to swing the bat well – even though his recent numbers aren’t especially striking, it feels like he’s stinging just about everything, getting more barrels on balls and improving his approach. He homered and doubled in this one.

Breaking: Josh Johnson has already been pulled from tomorrow’s game, having given up a home run on the way out of Rogers Centre this evening.

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