Injuries, Insanity and Travis friggin Snider

Ok, since I've been idle lately, this is going to be sort of a monstrous post, in reverse order of the title.


Travis friggin Snider

After looking disturbingly average in the Cleveland series, Snidey-poo went off for two bombs against Minnesota on Monday night. This is the part where we take a collective breath and remember that young Travis just turned 21 and has played less than 50 big league games. He gives the Jays a real x-factor at the bottom of the order right now as he is a rookie with middle of the order talent/power, hitting in the nine hole. I don't think he'll be there for long, but it's fun to see AL pitchers anticipating a break at the bottom of the order and seeing that soon to be patented Travis Snider bat waggle up there at the dish. It's not just the homeruns, it's the way he approaches everything. He takes things in stride like a veteran but plays with a rookie's enthusiasm. Scott Rolen, the Jays most rugged veteran player and a proven winner, was quoted as saying that (Snider) 'He wants to be a rookie. He loves talking to guys and is always trying to learn. He's not trying to be something he's not'.
I find this mind numbingly genuine and amazing in a society where young players are polished and coached from a ridiculously early age. Snider is having fun being in the big leagues and he is a damn good player. Much has been made of his family struggles making him stronger (His mother battled cancer and was then subsequently killed in an automobile accident) but none of that would matter if he didnt have the will to succeed and the ability to do at a high level. He has both in spades. The sky is the limit for this kid.

Insanity

Josh Beckett got suspended SIX games for finishing a pitch? For those of you who didnt see it, this is the clip.

Abreu clearly called time very late and Beckett, a hard thrower, finshed his motion, the way he is supposed to (so as to avoid injury). Yes the release point was unfortunate... and maybe there is some residual Yankee-Red Sock bad blood between Beckett and Abreu... (Beckett has been known to throw at guys) but this really looked like an accident and a massive over-reaction by baseball.

In defense of the MLB, in regards to suspending starting pitchers, a six game suspension really only amounts to them missing one start, since they only play one out of every five games. The problem here is that starts are 'scheduled' for health reasons. Theoretically, a pitcher is eligible to pitch in every single game, they just physically can't without injuring themselves. So suspending a starter for anything less than five games makes no sense. Regardless, Beckett is appealing the suspension and under the silly rules of the CBA, the suspension is automatically deferred until the lengthy appeals process goes through. This is why 95 percent of players who are suspended appeal and either wind up serving less games than are originally given to them OR serve the games later in the season, generally at a less important time. I honestly feel that the opponents that the games are served against are a major factor in whether a player appeals. And so they should be, given the stupid system. I think there should be a NFL Challenge Style Ruling here. For those who aren't familiar, in the NFL you are allowed to challenge certain types of plays, which the coach signals by tossing a red flag on the field. If they win the challenge, the ruling is reversed. However, if they LOSE the challenge, they are stripped of a timeout (which is a huge punishment in football, where clock management is crucial). The MLB should have a similar type of punishment hanging over players who lose their appeals. Should they have the right to appeal? Absolutely. But it shouldnt be without consequence. This is another reason why the MLB is the worst run professional sports league (the biggest reason of which is the lack of a salary cap). and yes I'm including the NHL.

Injuries

Jesse Litsch attempted to pitch through pain for three or four innings last night, relating later that he felt pain in the first inning while facing the Twins number three hitter, Justin Morneau. He will thusly miss a month, further crippling an already decimated starting staff. One has to wonder if this had anything to do with JP Ricciardi's public criticism of AJ Burnett's inability to pitch through pain during his time as a Jay. Jesse, being a team guy, wants to impress the bosses and winds up on the DL. Beautiful.

AL East

Surprisingly, the Jays and Orioles are leading the division and have looked extremely good while doing so. The Orioles however, have less to be enthusiastic about than Toronto. They ran into the Yankees (wh0 have since righted themselves) and maybe won a couple games they really shouldnt have. Their pitching staff is pretty ugly from top to bottom and doesnt look to have much long term potential. Toronto has genuinely looked solid as an offense and are winning games without much production from their two best (on paper) hitters, Vernon Wells and Alex Rios. Both have been decent but certainly Adam Lind (leading the MLB in RBI's) Aaron Hill and Travis Snider have been the leaders. Scott Rolen has been solid as well and Marco Scutaro has been a great catalyst thus far.

The Yankees, after ominously bad beginnings, have improved gradually and sit at 4-4. CC Sabathia had a great second start and Burnett has been lights out so far. The question mark is Chien-ming Wang, who's sinker isnt sinking. He's getting torched, but it appears to be a mechanical issue as opposed to velocity or an injury. If he rights his ship, the Yanks could be tough.

The Rays have been average but are showing signs of being the team that captivated baseball gans last October and the BoSox have been pretty bad, bringing up the rear with a 2-6 record.

It's still very early, but I feel comfortably predicting that the Jays will win the World Series this year and every year until I expire, in roughly 2087.

good day