5
No sign yet of Vernon Wells, who pulled up lame stealing third base during the sixth inning of last night's 9-8 win over the Orioles.
And of course, with the way things have been piling up on the Blue Jays of late, the news is not good.
“The way our luck is going, we always prepare for the worst,” said general manager J.P. Ricciardi about 15 minutes before he learned that Wells has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 strain of his left hamstring and will be lost to the club for between four to six weeks.
“It doesn't pay to be fast,” cracked teammate Matt Stairs to a group of reporters who were hovering around Wells's empty locker, hoping to have a word.
Wells was clutching at the back of his leg at third base after the play and did not come out to play centrefield for the seventh.
The Jays also announced that initial investigations on pitcher Dustin McGowan's sore right shoulder indicate that he has not suffered any new tearing in his rotator cuff, which is good news.
The soreness that he experienced in his start on Wednesday night could just be inflammation.
Still, McGowan will be lost to the club for at least a month, and probably longer.
As for Wells's replacement, the Jays haven't said yet.
Why not bring up Travis Snider, their No. 1 pick in the draft in 2006?[amp]nbsp; He's hitting .268 in Double A with New Hampshire and leading the team with 13 home runs.
With the way this season is turning for Toronto why not bring him up and start him in the outfield like the Jays are doing with Adam Lind?
At the very least it would give the fans something to cheer about.
The lineups:
Orioles
1.[amp]nbsp;Brian Roberts, 2B
2.[amp]nbsp;Nick Markakis, RF
3.[amp]nbsp;Kevin Millar, DH
4.[amp]nbsp;Aubrey Huff, 1B
5.[amp]nbsp;Ramon Hernandez, C
6.[amp]nbsp;Melvin Mora, 3B
7.[amp]nbsp;Jay Payton, LF
8.[amp]nbsp;Adam Jones, CF
9.[amp]nbsp;Brandon Fahey, SS
Pitcher: Jeremy Guthrie
Blue Jays
1.[amp]nbsp;Joe Inglett, 2B
2.[amp]nbsp;David Eckstein, SS
3.[amp]nbsp;Alex Rios, CF
4.[amp]nbsp;Matt Stairs, DH
5.[amp]nbsp;Rod Barajas, C
6.[amp]nbsp;Scott Rolen, 3B
7.[amp]nbsp;Brad Wilkerson, RF
8.[amp]nbsp;Lyle Overbay, 1B
9.[amp]nbsp;Adam Lind, LF
Pitcher: John Parish
