Losing SUCKS

It was Sunday, January 3rd and after enjoying a wonderful Christmas dinner, New Year's dinner, and of course all the rest that comes with the festive season it finally hit me, losing is what surrounds me from countdown to countdown.

Sports is a wonderful thing and over the years it has taken up most of my waking/sleeping hours in many different forms. From playing to watching highlights to reading almost every article out there that includes rumours, trades, and even what players do in the locker room. Didn't expect a gangsta throw down though, via Arenas.

As the NFL year ended for my beloved Rams with another freakin' loss, this time to the 49er's, it hit me, losing sucks! Look at what I have endured with the Rams in the past 3 years. My Rams have put together 6 wins out of the possible 48 games and we all know most of those losses were complete blow outs.

What the heck happened?!? It was only 2004 when they had a great group of guys that had the potential to do some damage deep into the NFL playoffs. I don't know what sucks more, their 6 wins in the past 3 years or the upcoming 2010-2011 season. At least the NFL is known for their competitiveness in which teams can turn things around in a few seasons. Oh crap, uncapped salaries on the horizon? Damn!

How about the Leafs? Just another tough few years at the Air Canada Centre. Even before the 03/04 season (the last year the Leafs made the playoffs) we really didn't have a team on the ice that could make a run at the cup. People are going to bitch and moan about that statement but sometimes the truth hurts. We had the money and we spent it but I didn't see the value behind the moves. Signing free agents or trading youth/picks for stud names that were on the decline is not my cup of tea.

The years keep adding up for the Leafs and me but unlike the Rams, the Leafs have a brighter future. Adding some youth and keeping them will hopefully turn the ACC into a playoff arena where the real corporate fans can cheer them on. Seriously, we need to put some real fans in the platinum seats because watching a game of hockey and seeing suits behind the glass is pathetic. We need guys like Puddy with painted faces and letters on their chests pounding the ACC glass.

Gotta support the team

Moving down the street in the shadow of the CN Tower the boys of summer aren't really making me feel so great either. Having not seen the playoffs in almost what feels like forever doesn't hurt as much as the Rams and the Leafs. Maybe since I haven't seen/experienced the MLB playoffs in so long I'm numb to the 3rd place finishes in the tough AL East. We all know that the big time spenders in our division is the reason why the Jays aren't in the playoffs as a wild card team and you know what that is how life goes.

It was great how we spent the money and went for it with the signings of Wells, Rios, BJ, AJ, and to a lesser extent Overbay and Glaus. Again, it sucks that we have to compete against the boys who sign the elite FA's in their primes. Life is life. I'm not really sure if the Jays are going to be alright in the near future, it is just too early to tell especially with a new GM.

I wanted to talk about the Raptors and their situation but I'm a little depressed with all this talk about losing so I'm going to just stop.

In sports, like a roller-coaster, there are ups and downs. If this is how it feels during the downs, I'm hoping the ups will feel the opposite and some because I'm not sure how long I can endure the losing streaks year in and year out.

Seriously, losing sucks.

In Debt

Let's face it boys, Mr. Roy Halladay is not going to be a Blue Jay after the 2010 MLB season. He might not even put on a Jays jersey come Feb/Mar when spring training starts.

Before going on off on a few things that are on my mind, I would like to say something from the heart to Halladay.

I am sorry Mr. Halladay. I am sorry that the city of Toronto didn't give you what you deserve, a legitimate chance at the World Series. You signed on the dotted line and committed to the city of Toronto and in the end you gave us what mere mortals could only dream of doing. It is time for you to move on to another team in search of what you deserve, a beautiful world series ring. I just wish we had the resources, the luck, and/or anything that would keep you in town but in baseball and life, we all have to face a limited amount of anything and everything. I hope you have a great career and find what you desperately seek, a world series ring.

Reports are saying that Halladay will not sign with the Jays after his contract comes to a close after the 2010 season. Duuhhhhhhh! A man with talent like this who has reached a certain age is not going to sign with a team like the Jays. The Jays are headed for another losing season. Wow, that was kind of depressing to type out.

So, Mr. New GM, please trade Halladay before spring training and give him a chance to win a world series now. We owe it to Halladay. Look at what he has given us over the years. If the Jays decide to keep Halladay for another year, I am going to abandon the SkyDome in protest because I know there is a package out there that someone can offer that will allow The Doc to find a ring.

Please please please please, trade Halladay! We owe it to him!

Everyone in Toronto is going to miss you.

Worth $1,751,732?

2009 opening day payrolls according to USA Today.
Yankees - $201,449,189
Blue Jays - $80,538,300

Number of regular season victories.
Yankees - 103
Blue Jays - 75

Money spent per victory.
Yankees - $1,955,817
Yankees - $1,751,732 (World Series)
Blue Jays - $1,073,710

Difference per victory.
$678,022

A difference of $678,022 per win. Oh yeah, that includes a World Series championship. The old business mentality, "To make money, you need to spend money" holds true yet again. The Yankees go out and spend like crazy on talent and guess what happens, they bring home a championship. Not only are they bringing home a championship but they are giving themselves different revenue streams. Adding playoff games increases ticket revenue, all the merchandise from AL East champs, ALDS/ALDS champs, and of course the big one World Series champions gives the Yankees an opportunity to spend big time money on free agents and on their high salaries.

That is life and for all those fans who cheer for a losing team that spend almost nothing on salaries, you should be complaining to the owners instead of bitching about all the money the Yanks are spending.

If I was a rich S.O.B, I'd spend the extra $678,022 per game to win a championship, I'd do it in a heart beat. With the extra $678,022 spent on salaries, I'd recoup that in a second with TV rights, merchandise, and tickets sold. Actually, I would be making it all back and more.

81 to Go

Opening night at the ACC and the Raptors gave the fans of Toronto something to cheer about. The Raptors opened the new NBA season with a victory over the Cavs, who are favoured by many to take it all this year. What a game it was down at the ACC.

The city of Toronto and their loyal fans are in need of a team we can all rally behind and support for an entire season. The other tenants at the ACC are brutal and not showing any sign of playoffs, albeit it is still early. The Blue Jays had a great opening to their 09 season but faded quickly and descended to the bottom of the AL East. The Argo's, which I barely even notice, are 3-13. Enough said.

Toronto needs a team and the Raps, for one night, gave them some a team to support. I know it is only 1 game and bringing your A-game for opening night is not unusual, keeping it over the next 81 games is where the contenders stand in front of the pretenders.

Be honest, did any of you honestly, think the Cavs would come in and leave with an 0-2 record to start the 09-10 NBA season? Great night for Raps fans.

10/28/09 - Raptors vs. Cavs In 6 Minutes

Down and Out

YEAH BABY!!! JP is done with the Jays!!!

Wait...let me finish! There are so many people out in Blue Jay land that are jumping with joy after hearing of the dismissal of JP Ricciardi as the Jays General Manager. The guy came in 8 years ago with and what did he bring to the club. Four winning seasons, AJ, BJ, bloated contracts in Wells and Rios, $18mil for Thomas, $17mil for Koskie, and (in my opinion) a disaster in trade talks about Halladay. There was a lot of bad that has come with JP.

But looking back over the past 8 full seasons can you really put all the blame on the GM? Yes, he has the GM title and that is what comes with the territory so therefore he should take blame for what has transpired over the past 8 seasons. Some argue that he is not responsible for most of the decisions and Jay's fans should point their finger and direct their anger at upper management who JP reported to. Why do people even bother saying this BS about JP being the lightning rod when upper management is to be blamed. Maybe JP was a puppet and did whatever his superiors asked of him, we will never know. Ultimately, it all came down on his shoulders because he had the title of GM after his name. If he was opposed to the decisions coming from the top then he should have voiced his concerns and if they fell on deaf ears then a resignation letter should have been drafted and dropped off onto the proper desks.

Don't give me all this crap about JP shouldn't be blamed for the problems that Jays endured over the past 8 seasons. He was the GM and it was his team that took the field for the 162 games a year. It was his team that produced no post-season appearances. It was his team that finished with four losing seasons.

In my eyes, it doesn't matter who takes the GM office for the Jays because of how baseball is currently structured. The Rays showed it is possible to overcome the powers of the AL East but without a play-off birth in 2009, it proved my point, it was just a year that things went their way.

Looking ahead and all I see is a nice 3rd or 4th place finish in the AL East behind the usual suspects. You never know, our young guys can all put up career years and push us into the post-season and maybe even make a run at the World Series. Unlikely, but that's why we play the games.

NFL is HERE

Just a little tidbit for you. Did you know that the NFL will place a local blackout if the home team doesn't sell out within 72hrs of kick-off? I didn't know that. What if MLB used this policy? Comparing the NFL with MLB is like comparing apples and oranges espeically since one league has 8 homes games instead of like 81 for baseball. If this policy was implemented for the Jays, I think the Jays would completely disappear.

Hitting on the picture above, it seems the Madden Curse is alive and is setting it's target on the Cardinals. Troy Polamalu was injured in the NFL opener and as of right now, he has a sprained MCL and will be out 3-6 weeks. This could easily turn into a season ending surgery if they find more damage than expected. It has always been my dream to make the EA Sports cover but is it worth it? Especially in the NFL where careers are short and money is never guaranteed, being on the field and producing every Sunday is oh so important.

That would be so cool having your face on the yearly edition of any game EA Sports produces. If that happened to me, I'd buy thousands of copies and give it to everyone I know.

Another Jay Lost

He was once a Blue Jay...

Looking back at some of the great players who use to put on a Jays uniform and I always think about the guy pictured above, Chris Carpenter. Now that is he back from another arm injury, he's torn things up on the mound this year.

Just look at his stats when he was apart of the Blue Jays. Making his debut in 1997 and ending his tenure with the Jays in 2002, the Jays seemed to have made another huge mistake. His history of injuries and inconsistent play signaled a turning point in the view the Jays had of him.

After sitting out 2003 guess what he did after coming back from an arm injury. Guy goes out and puts up a 15-5 record with a 3.46ERA while grabbing the NL Comeback Player of the Year award in 2004. In 2005, wins the Cy Young Award and then has another huge year in 2006.

Oh how I wish he was still a Blue Jay. The thought of having him paired with Halladay and maybe if things still worked out back when AJ was still a Jay, that would be a pretty dirty starting rotation.

Hopefully Dustin McGowan doesn't turn out to be another Carpenter.

The Game of Baseball

The lazy days of summer are officially here. We are in August, the long weekend is over, and it is time to go back to work. The Jays have no shot at the post-season and you know what...I have finally reached a point that I don't care. With all the good that was the first 6 weeks of the season, the Jays just couldn't maintain their level of play, classic case of playing over their heads.

When ever I read blogs that complain everyday about the Jays or any sports franchise I feel for the writer. I pity them. Look at how they are living day in and day out. They have nothing better to do than just complain, moan, and bitch about the state, in this case, the Jays and their miserable 2009 season.

I hope all those bloggers out there wake up and realize that the Jays are not competing this year and in the near future. Suck it up and take it for what it is. The AL East is a beast that seems to eat up teams that don't have pinstripes or a monster.

Here is what I propose. Just go out and enjoy the game of baseball. Stop complaining about how the Jays aren't being led by the right guy and the players suck and all the rest of the negative stuff you can think of. It is fun, at times, to focus on the negative but when that is all you do with every post it kind of loses it's intended effect.

I have people always asking, "What is your favourite team?" To be honest, I have teams I favour but in the end all I want to see is a competitive game no matter what sport it is. Go out and enjoy the game of baseball. Head out to the SkyDome and throw back a few beers and just enjoy a game with your buddies. Trust me, the sun will rise tomorrow even if the Jays lose.

Still 2nd Something

Ouch!

Do I have anything else to say? For all of those Jays fans out there who were completely in love with the '09 Jays and their chances at the playoffs, I'm sorry to say that it just doesn't seem like it is going to happen. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of time left in the regular season for a run at the division or wildcard but realistically speaking, it just ain't happening.

There is a reason why averages are used for almost everything in the world. Anyone know where Snider is? How about Hill? Wells and Rios anyone? As I was stating at the start of the year, for the Jays to succeed and make a run at the division and the playoffs, they would need career years from most of their players. At the start of the season they were getting it. Think back to Hill, Snider, Lind, and Scutaro playing over their heads. Again, the law of averages. They were playing over their heads and now they are just playing at a level that brings them back to their career averages.

There is a playoff itch that I can't seem to get rid of. Toronto needs the playoffs. The Jays need the playoffs. I need the playoffs. Looking at the Jays through an unbiased view, I don't see a playoff team. They are at best a plus-500 team. Their pitching is sketch (what else can you say with so many injuries), the hitting is hit or miss (mostly miss), and the bullpen...let's say we went a little overboard with the signing of AJ and BJ during that one off-season. I can only say that because I'm looking into the past. For the record, I was happy watching the Jays spend some money and sign some high profile free agents.

For teams like the Jays, they need career years from a majority of their players for them to contend and win a World Series ring. For teams like the Yanks/Red Sox their players have so called off years see lines of .286avg, 36hrs, 106rbis, and 28 sb's. Just guess who I am talking about.

That is just the life I live as a Jays fan.

Look on the bright spot, we're still second...second last.

To the DL

Roy Halladay is officially on the DL and my The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly seems to have produced The Ugly. After reading and hearing about this through almost every sports writer out there, I was thinking how the Jays were going to handle this new DL stint. It seems every pitcher, player, or even bench coach is headed to the DL these days. In the end, maybe this is the best thing to happen to the Jays.

First, this is a great option to be safe than sorry. This is the franchise, leader, and straight up the man at the SkyDome. Putting him on the DL and having him recover and heal is better than having him go out there at 75-80% pitching and causing more damage to the groin or any other part of the body that is trying to compensate for the injury. I know a 75-80% Halladay is still better than almost 95% of the pitchers out there in the MLB when they are fully healthy but in the long run it's stupid to throw him out there.

Second, having Halladay on the bench recuperating might be what the Jays need to build some responsibility into the players and grow some hair on their chests. With their leader gone, players seem to know and understand that every single player on the team needs to contribute a little more. The little things that everyone puts in to try and make up for the loss of Halladay will in the end benefit the Jays. For every sacrifice bunt, legging out an infield hit, or throwing their body to catch that fly ball the Jays will be better off, not only now, but when Halladay returns. The loss of Halladay is not what the Jays need right now but it actually might be a good thing.

The DL is not a place where any player wants to be but if they put Halladay out on the mound instead of putting him on the DL, I would be a pretty disappointed in the Jays organization.

Good, Bad, & Ugly

The Good. Who doesn't love the throw back uniforms. Just classic!

The Bad. Halladay will miss his next scheduled start BUT is expected to start next Saturday against the Washington Nationals.

The Ugly. The groin strain is an injury that can linger and for a pitcher is one of the worst places to have an injury especially in the right groin for a right throwing pitcher like Halladay. If the injury turns out to be worse than initially thought, the Jays are going to be in rough shape. Halladay is the glue to this team.

Snider/Lind

The Jays started the season in a big way and guess who led the charge, the rookies! Okay, Wells and Rios pitched in with some hits and runs but in my eyes the big story here are the two youngins, Travis Snider and Adam Lind. Both chipped in with a bomb a piece. Just look at the numbers that they posted in their first game.

Adam Lind - 4/5, 2Rs, 1HR, and 6RBIs.
Travis Snider - 2/4, 1R, 1HR, and 1 RBI.

I will and have always rooted for the Jays but I still don't see them making the playoffs this year. This was great opening the season with a victory but the boys have the keep this going for another 161 games, the baseball season is nothing but a marathon especially through the hot/humid/hazy days of summer coming up.

They have plenty of places they need fixing, cough cough, pitching.

Looking on the positive side, the Jays do have a bright future with Rios, Wells, Snider, and Lind in the mix.

Home is Toronto

Dudes pretending to be Jays fans. Just nice to see people having fun at the Dome.

Griffey in Toronto

Now that the free agent season is kind of over with the big dudes signing, well with the Yankees, I think the Jays and their "amazing" GM need to start shopping. As I mentioned earlier this month, they don't have to go out and sign players to $150million contracts, we all know they can not afford to do that. Just go out and throw some 1yr contracts around that are filled with incentives.

Dudes like Giambi, Smoltz, Baldelli, and Saito are out of the picture so looking at the guys who are left, what about Griffey? He's old and he's kind of washed up but if you give him a bat and a DH spot he can still provide some pop especially in a hitters park like SkyDome.

What do you think JP? How about signing Griffey to a 1yr contract with a club option for a 2nd and lace the shit out of the contract with incentives. Yes he's old and yes we have a turf field but all he has to do is walk to the batters box and swing a bat. He can provide a left handed bat to separate Wells and Rios, yes I would have preferred Giambi but that is over with, so come on JP go out and get it done.

If all fails, think of all the revenue the Jays will get from selling Griffey merchandise.