Baseball Beginnings

I attended the home opener vs Red Sox on Friday night. Nice win by Jays. Lots of Red Sox fans there and frankly they should be a little less cocky. Low and behold at Sunday's game, Patti and I sat in a heavily populated Red Sox section. Beckett started and had a lot of zip on his fast ball. Blue Jays showed a lot of patience and eventually wore him down. After his second consecutive walk he was pulled and the Hurt hit a grand slam on his first pitch. This is when many of the Red Sox fans started to leave -I find it hard to believe that so many would come up from New England.

If they are Toronto area residents, they should consider getting on the band wagon for the Jays - they run well, play solid D, have great pitching and hitting should be enough to keep them going.

Chants abounded - Go Home Boston - and the crowd was really loud. John McDonald made his first start and completed one of the nicest plays you'll ever see from a short stop. Next play he and Vernon collide on a short fly ball - both down for a while but able to continue.

Manny Ramirez - I watched him make several half hearted defensive plays this weekend. I'm glad he's with the Red Sox - he epitomizes the "idiot" label.

The crowd is a lot more energized this year than the last couple. I think the Jays will continue to get strong starting pitching, good defense and hopefully timely hitting from the Hurt, Hill and something out of third and catcher positions.