Mark 'em Dead

It's no surprise that Shaun Marcum was as spectacular as he was last night in Kansas City, afterall he was pitching in front of friends and family. Sure, he got the jitters in the first, walking DeJesus to leadoff the game, but after that he was downright fantastic, allowing one hit in 6.2 IP. And as much as I don't like Darrin Fletcher (I don't know why, he's a great guy, he just pisses me off) I think he had a point when he said that giving up that hit was all for the best. If he retired him, he'd still have to leave the game because of his leg problem, but he'd still have a no-hitter intact.

All in all, a win is a win, and because of Johnny Mac's amazing defence, Marcum picked up his 9th win of the year when The Wizard barehanded a flip from Aaron Hill to get the runner at second and make a strong throw to first to get the runner by mere steps. If the runner at first wasn't called out, the runner on third would have scored and tied the game, meaning Marcum couldn't have gotten the win.

Vernon Wells hit a two-run double into the left-centre field gap for all of the Jays' scoring, Rios and Overbay came in to count. All in all, the offence was good, even though only two runs got scored... every starter got at least a hit-- except for, of course, Troy Glaus.

Damnit Troy Glaus, I don't know what's wrong with you but it's pissing me off anyhow. You were hitting around .290, on pace for a respectable year at least, but hey-- maybe Glaus just feels more comfortable hitting around .250? Bullshit, he just can't see the ball to save his life. Popups and strikeouts; it's hard to think that he's only 31, he looks like he needs a cane to stay balanced. I thought Gibbs would be smart and bench him yesterday, give him two days off to rest like he did with Frank Thomas (except Thomas had 3) and look how he's turned out. Yesterday marked the first time since August 1st that the Big Hurt didn't drive somebody in, that's insane. Also since August 1st, he's raised his average from .249 to .266, a respectable average for an aged power hitter.

Hell, Thomas is one of the few Blue Jays that hasn't missed any games due to injury. And we were worried about his health... Haha.

Somewhat Slumping

Rios is hitting the ball well, yes, batting .444 in his last 9 AB, but strangely enough he hasn't had a homerun in 16 games. Strangely enough, Rios' last 5 HR came on series openers. Isn't that strange at all? No, you're dumb.

Wells is in the same situation. Although he's hitting well average wise, he hasn't had a homerun in 15 games. However, in those last 15 games he has 16 RBIs because he's hitting so well with runners in scoring position.

Tonight's Matchup

Today features Dustin McGowan versus the 23-year old rookie right hander Leo Nunez. Nunez is a relief pitcher, though, and although his ERA is only 1.93, he's only played 3 games; 2 starts. McGowan will be looking for his fourth straight quality start and ninth win of the season.