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The Toronto Blue Jays optioned reliever Josh Roenicke to triple-A Las Vegas on Monday night and will activate lefty Brian Tallet to start Tuesday’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Roenicke is 1-0 in nine games with 4.97 earned-run average, but his 11 walks in 12 2-3 innings were a concern.

“We want him to go back and work on his control a little bit,” manager Cito Gaston said after a 3-2 win over the Rays. “He’s probably the hardest throwing right-hander out of that bullpen right now, but he does have control problems at times.”

Click here to read the full article – By The Canadian Press of http://slam.canoe.ca

What a revelation for Vernon Wells.

After being booed for two seasons by the Blue Jays faithful, the club’s centre fielder now knows what he has to do to win the fans’ love back.

Which is … flirt with the American League batting title and rewrite the Major League record book for home runs and RBI.

Discovering the cure for most major diseases wouldn’t hurt either.

Who knew it could be that easy?

Prior to Monday night’s home opener, Wells was hitting .350 with four homers and seven RBI in six games, which put him on pace this season for 108 homers and 189 RBI.

And when he was introduced before his first at-bat at the Rogers Centre, he was cheered.

And when he smashed a homer to deep centre field, with Adam Lind on board, to give Toronto a 6-4 lead, he was cheered even louder.

So it’s simple, really.

Put together the greatest season ever by a major leaguer, and all is forgiven.

Unfortunately, it’s unlikely Wells will continue his now-116 home run, 208 RBI pace.

Click here to read the full article – By STEVE BUFFERY of http://www.ottawasun.com

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In an apparent departure from his predecessor, Toronto Blue Jays general manager Alex Anthopoulos will give teams interested in trading for ace right-hander Roy Halladay a window to discuss a contract extension with the pitcher.


The Blue Jays’ Web site reports Anthopoulos would allow teams to talk to Halladay about an extension if it means the interested team will improve its trade offer. Halladay is signed through next season.

Former GM J.P. Ricciardi opposed the idea of a contract window when he was shopping Halladay last summer.

Click here to read the full article – By of sportingnews.com

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The Blue Jays have been waiting a long time for David Purcey to realize his potential. The big lefty showed flashes of his ability on the mound last season and was trusted with a spot in the club’s rotation when this year began.


On Monday night, Purcey helped lead the Blue Jays to a 9-2 victory over the Orioles at Rogers Centre, but it was a win that was a long time coming for the pitcher. The win was Purcey’s first in more than a year for Toronto — a drought that Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston did not expect.

“I didn’t think so,” Gaston said. “He’s still a kid, too, I guess.”

At 27 years old and with enough Major League service time to no longer be considered a rookie, Purcey is hardly a kid anymore. He was supposed to be a fixture in Toronto’s staff this year — rather that someone who needed another four months of seasoning on the farm with Triple-A Las Vegas.


Click here to read the full article – By Jordan Bastian of MLB.com

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The field was littered with equipment. A handful of helmets and bats were scattered in the grass down the first-base line at Yankee Stadium, and in the dirt behind home plate, the chest protector belonging to Blue Jays catcher Rod Barajas was abandoned.


A few minutes earlier, New York’s Shelley Duncan was gripping the straps of that chest guard, pulling Barajas out from the bottom of a dogpile during a heated altercation between the Jays and Yankees during the eighth inning of Toronto’s 10-4 victory on Tuesday night.

The late-inning eruption — ignited when Yankees catcher Jorge Posada took exception to a very wild pitch from reliever Jesse Carlson — overshadowed a game filled with positives for the Blue Jays. Toronto matched a season high with five home runs, including two from rookie Travis Snider, and ace Roy Halladay was effective in earning his 15th win of the year.


Click here to read the full article – By Jordan Bastian of MLB.com

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Blue Jays rookie Travis Snider laid off two pitches just outside the strike zone from Angels reliever Rafael Rodriguez before golfing a low fastball on the outside corner over the wall in left-center field.


Snider broke into a home run trot for the second time in six games, going 3-for-3 with a walk on Sunday afternoon. The Blue Jays knew Snider, the organization’s top prospect heading into this season, had power potential, but for Snider — and for manager Cito Gaston — the home run was just one of many positives to take away from Sunday’s tilt.

Click here to read the full article – By Erika Gilbert of MLB.com

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Travis Snider stepped into the batter’s box in the third inning of Tuesday night’s 10-9 loss, settling in to face Red Sox ace Josh Beckett in his first at-bat for the Blue Jays in three months. Five pitches in, the rookie showed off his powerful swing, launching a pitch over the wall in left for a solo home run.


With that, Snider was officially back after a tour with Triple-A Las Vegas to rediscover his swing and refine his approach. The young outfielder began the season as Toronto’s Opening Day left fielder, but he admittedly began piling too much pressure on himself and said the stay in the Minors helped him put things in perspective.

Click here to read the full article – By Jordan Bastian of MLB.com

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