Give Ruiz a chance!

Hi All,
Brandon Morrow definitely made it an interesting game yesterday. I'm sure there were plenty of fans tuning in on the FAN or watching the game (and maybe even a handful who made the trip down to Camden Yards) who could only think during that first inning - "WE GAVE UP BRANDON LEAGUE FOR THIS!?". But fans often jump to conclusions way too quickly. His battery mate, John Buck, said afterwards that it was most likely just excitement and nerves that led to Morrow surrendering 3 earned runs in the first inning, but probably even worse, 4 walks, and one hit batsman. The new Jay settled in and ended up striking out 5 through 5 innings of work and kept his team in the game. He showed that by far, he is the hardest throwing pitcher in the Jays' starting rotation with a fastball that topped off yesterday at 97mph, whereas the rest of the current Jays' starters are lucky to hit 92-93mph on the radar gun. Look for a solid performance from Morrow next Wednesday against the White Sox where he faces a group of hitters to whom he has only given up 6 hits over 34 ABs.

The other story I feel is worth noting and giving a little analysis to is the Randy Ruiz Situation. I understand that we're only 4 games into the season, but I think it's unacceptable that Ruiz has not received a single at bat, and that Cito has only used one pinch hitter thus far - John Buck. With Ruiz' defensive deficiencies, and Cito's commitment to both Overbay and Snider to play them as everyday, non-platoon players, Cito admits, "At this point in time, we just just don't have any space for him." Snider, who is by all accounts supposed to be a key piece to the future of this franchise, needs to be shown that management has the confidence in him to face left-handed pitching, unlike the 2009 season where they handled him with kid gloves, giving him at bats almost exclusively against righties before his demotion to Triple-A Las Vegas in May.

Overbay is a completely different story. This is surely Overbay's last year in a Toronto uniform, given that this is his last year under contract with the team, and that they have Brett Wallace as the first baseman of the future down in Vegas currently. If I were a betting man, I would say Overbay is traded to another team before the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline. Cito, being the players' manager that he is, is likely to give Overbay plenty of time to shine and show his stuff in preparation to enter the free agent market at the end of the season. But given that this is a re-building/re-tooling year (however you want to refer to it - we all know what it is) the Blue Jays have no illusions of making the playoffs this year. They'll probably be more than happy if they manage to beat out Tampa for 3rd place in the AL East. So having said all that, GIVE THE 32-YEAR OLD, ALMOST-ROOKIE A REAL SHOT, AND SEE IF YOU'VE ACTUALLY GOT SOMETHING! This is the person who led the Blue Jays in 2009 (in limited action, yes, 115 ABs, but that's still a decent sample size) in on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS. Also, in terms of all players who finished the season with the Blue Jays, he led the club in terms of batting average, hitting .313 on the year. (Scott Rolen hit .320). He has hit at every level in his long minor league career, and had arguably his best season ever hitting .320/.392/.584 with Triple-A Las Vegas and earning the Pacific Coast League's Most Valuable Player Award.

Randy Ruiz is definitely psyched to have been apart of a major league opening day roster for the first time ever earlier this week, but that high will certainly wear off shortly if he's not getting at bats, and he will be left wondering to himself, "What on earth do I have to do to prove that I am ready to be given a real shot in the major leagues?!" The Jays have nothing to lose with Ruiz, but very well may have found a diamond-in-the-rough. Now they've just gotta dig that diamond out, polish it off, and see how many karats it weighs... or... how many home runs it can hit!