Perception vs Reality: Platinum Seats

*This post is coming a week late but the motivation just isn't there when you lose a game to the Sens by a score of 5-0.

A couple of months ago, on an early summer's day, the Leafs announced that they were giving out chances to win tickets to the Coke Zero Fans First game. I was working downtown and knew they were at Much Music so I took the early GO train and made an attempt to line up for whatever they would be doing. The line wasn't too long but the planners were adamant on starting at 8:30 am sharp. With a half hour to go, the humidex close to 40C and Sens_Sucks a few feet away from me, I couldn't wait for the line to start moving.

The hockey gods must have heard my silent prayers because ten minutes later and one of the Coke dudes started handing out complimentary tickets.

SWEET MOTHER OF JESUS!!!

SEATS RIGHT UP AGAINST THE GLASS! This will probably be the only time I will ever be able to catch a game in the first row without selling a kidney. I've dreamt of this many times but never thought it would happen. Now the only thing standing between me and the game is father time.

As I got to the ACC, I looked around for the entrance to the platinums but couldn't find one. Turns out that there's some secret entrance behind the stairs to the upper levels. While walking down those steps and into the dimly lit corridor, I felt like Ray Liotta in Goodfellas. This is what it's like to be a gangster (or a wealthy businessman). I put down my beer, took my seat and waited for our heroes to take the ice.

Enter Sandman starts booming from the speakers, Andy Frost's voice greets the crowd, the gates open and Gustavsson is leading the way. Oh shit, it's about to begin! Let's see if a game in the platinums are all it's cracked up to be.

Perception: I'm so close as you can get, without being in the same booth as Pierre McGuire. I will literally be able to smell the players' blood and sweat!

Reality: Despite it being a free "Fans' first" game, the lady beside me made sure I got an authentic experience by ordering sushi so all I smelled was raw fish and wasabi.

Perception: I'm right up against the glass! I can't get any closer to the action. The view must be impeccable.

Reality: WTF, ref?! Get the fuck out of the way! My seats were right by the blue line and I was blocked out of the play any time the puck was in the zone for an extended period of time.

Perception: So we have periods one and three in the Leafs end. That's okay, our D should be much improved this year. Dion's leadership will provide direction and I'm sure Komisarek and Beauchemin will be way better than they were last year. I can't wait to see that up close.

Reality: Komisarek and Beauchemin didn't play, I saw Nick Foligno blow by Dion Phaneuf and I got real close to the Leafs defence...when they were sitting in the box serving a penalty.

Perception: At least I will get to see the Leafs' offence up close in the second period. I can't wait to see how Versteeg will fit into the picture. He will provide some much needed secondary scoring. Also, KADRI!!!1

Reality: 0-6 on the powerplay in the second period including two 5 on 3's!

Perception: With TIFF finishing up, I'm sure I'll catch some celebrities in the platinums too!

Reality: I had to squint my eyes to see a group of Raptors players across the ice from me...I only found out their names from Demar DeRozan's tweet...and then I had to use google to see who on the Raptors was named "Joey"...

Perception: It's a preseason game, I don't give a damn if we win but I can't wait until we score a goal so I can bang on that glass!

Reality: We get shut out 5-0 and the loudest ovation that night came when Wendel Clark made an appearance.

I don't know if I can say that sitting against the glass have met my expectations. Platinum seats are great as an experience but they definitely aren't the best seats in the house. When the puck was in my zone, the linesman stood right in front of me, and when the puck was in the other end, I had to crank my neck until it cramped just to get a glimpse of the action. If wealthy Bay street brokers want to pay ridiculous amounts of money to sit so close, then good on them. I definitely wouldn't recommend these seats to the hardcore fans. I think I'll stick to the upper bowl where I can see the whole rink. Perhaps if the Leafs put up more of an effort and won, I might have changed my mind about the seats. I doubt it though, I've always been a glass is half empty kind of guy.

Small Victories

Despite:

• Shaun Marcum pitching great but the bullpen throwing shitballs
• Kevin Gregg walking in the winning run on 4 pitches
• Randy Ruiz not being freed
• Francona not putting in Papelbon for the save (I have him on my fantasy team...don't judge me!)
• and spending $10.25 for a tallboy of Keith's

I left last night's game with a smile on my face because during the middle of the ninth, a father and son a section over saw my sign, gave me a thumbs up and chanted down to Cito to free Ruiz. Small victories.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly - White Sox vs Jays Edition

Back from the Jays game. Just a quick run down of the good, the bad and the ugly I witnessed at the dome today.

The Good

Ricky Romero - RR Cool Jay was lights out in his second start of the season, striking out a career high 12 batters in 8 innings. With only one hit allowed, it was easily the most impressive start of young Romero's career. Gems like today's game makes us all forget about Troy Tulowitzki and trading away Roy Halla...okay, maybe not.

The Bullpen - Sure, they only pitched one inning but it was an important one as Kevin Gregg got the job done without allowing a runner on base. Faith in the bullpen has once again been restored. Now the question is, should Frasor still keep his job as closer?

Melons - Props to the girl who lifted her shirt on the jumbotron during the 8th inning. Sure, she had a bra underneath but I won't complain. Also, was today D-Cup night at the dome or something because the ladies sitting in and around our section appeared to be extra busty tonight.

Luchadore - Shout out to the dude sitting behind me with the luchadore mask. I really don't have much to say other than keep being awesome.

The Bad

The Klansmen - There were 4 guys in the 500s who wore white hazard suits or something which had a faint outline of "JAYS" on their suits. The letters were so faint that you couldn't see them from far. They just looked like white hooded suits...

AJ Piershitski - Faked getting hit by a pitch in the 8th right before Rios belted a home run...the only hit Romero gave up. Who knows what would have happened if the umps didn't mess up the call. Actually, I do. Pierzynski would have struck out swinging like he did the two other times he was up.

Booing Alex Rios - Personally, I don't see what the booing is all about. Rios was never good enough for me to be bitter about his departure. It's not like he has become the 5-tool guy we've always wanted him to be with the White Sox. I'm going to credit his home run to karma!

Furry Vengeance - The advertisements were all over the ball park. I can't believe a movie with the title "Furry Vengeance" is G-rated.

Man who packs dinner to the game - Dude in front of me brought a whole meal to the game. His main course was some home made lasagne, followed by some green olives and topped off with some honey roasted peanuts. It was more weird than bad but olives are gross. EWWW

The Ugly

Lyle Overbay - After today's one for four performance, Overbay raised his batting average to .100. It's no wonder that seven of Vernon's ten hits has been for extra bases. He knows that with Overbay stepping up to the plate after him, there's no way he's advancing along the basepaths.

Random Sports Jerseys - What is it about sporting events that makes people think they can get away with wearing random sports jerseys to them? I saw a Barry Bonds jersey, an A-Rod jersey, a number of Raptors jerseys, a number of Leafs jerseys, a couple of Team Canada hockey/baseball jerseys and a Colin Doyle Toronto Rock jersey. Though to be fair, that could very well be Colin Doyle sporting his own jersey. I wouldn't know because I don't know what Colin Doyle looks like.

The group of Jersey Shore stand-ins behind me - There were a group of 5-6 Ed Hardy/Affliction wearing douchebags with their guidette girlfriends. This probably explains the bustiness in my section but man, were those broads annoying. From the 3rd inning on, I kept hearing them talking about how Amanda and Tamara got into a big fight and that they don't think Amanda will be coming back. I was hoping Amanda would come back so I could record that scrap and put it on youtube. Unfortunately, she never did, making a loser out of everybody within earshot of them.

The Post is Brought to you by the Number 2

Two...two wins in a row at home. Ah-ha-ha!

Count 'em, ladies and gents. Today's win makes two in a row and seven in our last ten. Let's keep it rolling, boys. Tomorrow will be a big test against the Bruins. Let's see how we respond after the spanking they gave us on Saturday.

Two wins for me!

I don't get to go to a ton of games but I've been to enough that I have lost count. Whether it was at the Gardens of at the ACC, there was one underlying theme. I went home winless. Prior to this preseason, I have never seen a Leafs win live before. The closest I've ever gotten was a 1-1 tie against New Jersey back when Reichel was still here. Now I finally broke my streak this pre-season in a shoot out win against the Pens and witnessed my first official win live tonight! That's right, baby! I can go to games guilt-free!

Two Big Signings

It took some time but Beauchemin and Komisarek are finally starting to pick up their game. Both of these signings were supposed to give us one of the more intimidating defences to play against. While both players didn't pay immediate dividends, Burke's and Wilson's patience in them are starting to pay off. Komisarek (for the most part) has stopped taking dumb, unnecessary penalties and Beauchemin is starting to look very sound defensively and also provides a canon on the powerplay.


Number 2

No, that wasn't a highlight from last year, that was a hit Schenn threw on Jon Sim just a couple of hours ago. Like Komisarek and Beauchemin, Schenn is finally starting to look comfortable. He's finishing his checks, he's not chasing the puck and he's not letting his man slip by him as much as he did earlier in the season. Ron Wilson has noticed and as a result, Schenn's minutes have started to steadily increase. He played 19:25 tonight compared to the 10 minutes a game he was getting just a couple of weeks ago. Welcome back, OLAS.

Two goals against

I don't know if it's his health, a fluke or Francois Allaire but Toskala has only allowed two goals in each of his last two starts. Sure, the Leafs have played better defensively but this is still Vesa Toskala. I can't really explain it but I don't want this to end. I BELIEVE IN VESA TOSKALA??/

Two annoying fans

I sat behind two very annoying fans. I knew it was going to be a long night when during the warm-up, one of them asked the other who was in net for the Isles and he responded with "I think Garth Snow."

Other annoying things they did
-They kept trying to heckle Roloson (from the 300s) by screaming "Rolllllll-sooooon"...you know there's another O in there somewhere
-Kept referring to Grabovski as Grabovs. I've heard Grabbo and Grabs but Grabovs? That just sounds weird
-They spat out incorrect facts. Roloson faced 61 shots and stopped 58 the last game. He didn't stop 62
-They added "son" to the end of every sentence and described things as "ill"


Two times the fun

They played "the song" twice! Once before the game and once after. I need that for my ipod. Haters gon' hate!

The Leafs 2009 Skills Competition

I grew up loving the sport of hockey but sadly, road hockey outside my house is about as competitive of a level as I got to. Heck, I might be the only person born in Saskatoon that doesn't know how to skate! This is why I love skills competitions. It's simply a treat for me to admire the skill level of these athletes up close. Here's a recap of the 2009 Leafs Skills Competition.

Schenn and Finger right before the puck control relay

It all started with the puck control relay. The blue team of Schenn, Finger and Beauchemin beat out the white team of Exelby, White and Kaberle due to Exelby stumbling. This is why you're a healthy scratch, XLB!

The blue team got another point as Komisarek beat out Orr in the individual puck control relay. Seriously, who picks these players? Why is Colton Orr in this event?

The White team giving Primeau a shower

The next event is the fastest skater. My personal pick going into the event was Phil Kessel who ended up having the worst time.

As each skater skated by the benches the opposing team would shower them with their water bottles. I don't know if they were filled with water or yellow Gatorade but there's a golden shower joke in there somewhere. Here's a list of the participants and their times

Jason Blake - 14.09
Phil Kessel - 14.85
Mikhail Grabovski - 14.32 (this was timed with the manual stop watch because the clock messed up and had him at 9 seconds)
Christian Hanson - 14.46
Nikolai Kulemin - 14.05
Wayne Primeau - 14.72

I had no idea Kulemin was that quick.

Hagman winding up for the shot

Next up is my favourite event; the hardest shot. My personal pick for this event was Francois Beauchemin edging out Poni.

Here are a list of the participants and what they clocked

Jeff Finger - 85.6 // 89.7
Tomas Kaberle - 95.1 // 95.7
Alexei Ponikarovsky - 95 // 90.4 but the shot didn't hit the net
Lee Stempniak - 89.7 // 93.3
Francois Beauchemin - 102.2 // 99.8
Niklas Hagman - 95.9 // 84.9
Mike Komisarek - 97.4 // 101.5
Nikolai Kulemin - 93 // 98.4

Looks like my picks are 1 for 2 so far. Poni didn't fare as well as I thought he would though. Also, if Kaberle can blast it at 95+, he should definitely be shooting the puck more often!

The moustache is in full force

Next event was the accuracy competition. My personal pick for this one was Tomas Kaberle going for another 4 for 4 like he did a couple years back. Unfortunately, he was a passer and didn't even get to shoot!

Here are the participants and the results

Niklas Hagman - 2 for 8
Matt Stajan - 2 for 8
Lee Stempniak - 4 for 8
Phil Kessel - 2 for 8
Rickard Wallin - 4 for 5
Christian Hanson - 3 for 7

Rickard Wallin? Seriously? I thought he got deported back to Sweden or something. Kessel rang a couple off the post but most shots were around the middle of the net...you know, right where a goalie's chest would be! No wonder we can't score!

The panel of judges with Monika. My restraining order wouldn't let me get any closer.

They then had a "creative" shoot out challenge. Each player had 2 shots each and the judges (those puck bunnies and Carlton) would score the attempts based on creativity. I believe the shooters were Kessel, Blake, Grabovski and Hagman. Blake was the only player to score and he didn't do the spin-o-rama. What's up with that?

Grabvoski playing keep away with a kid during a break in the action

Next was the 3 on 1 event. This event featured 3 skaters against 1 defenceman and a goalie. The team had a minute to score as many goals as they could. Engelage was in net against the blue team and MacDonald was in net against the White team. Unfortunately, I didn't jot down the participants for this event so if memory serves me right it was

Kessel - Stajan - Ponikarovsky vs White. They scored 1 goal.
Blake - Grabovski - Kulemin vs Komisarek. They scored 2 or 3.
Primeau - Mayers - Hanson vs Exelby. They scored 1.
Hagman, Stempniak, Orr vs Schenn. They scored 1 or 2.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

The IR squad of Gunnarsson, Gustavsson and Mitchell.

The last event was the Breakaway. Every shooter got a shot. Only Kaberle, Orr, Stajan and Beauchemin advanced past the first round...on Joey Macdonald and Andrew Engelage! You think our shoot out can use some help? #WeMissYouMats

Francois Beauchemin ended up winning it with the lone goal in the second round via wrist shot.

Hagman, Blake and Kaberle

The White team ended up beating the Blue team by a score that nobody cared about. I was surprised to see Engelage in net instead of Toskala. He wasn't with the injured guys either. Did he get released? Somebody please tell me he did...

This was my first Skills Competition and I had a good time even though my friend was late and I had to wait outside for a good half hour...I could have gotten a Burkie's Dog! The atmosphere was totally different from a game. I guess this is what happens when you replace suits with jerseys. Surprisingly, I didn't spot too many jersey fouls but I did see 2 Pogge jerseys (1 Leaf, 1 Marlie) and a Stralman jersey. I hope nobody bought Tlusty jerseys!

I'm not sure how many tickets were available but the Leafs did a good job making this an event affordable for the kids. Even as I waited outside for my friends this man came up to me and offered me a couple of tickets for free! Speaking of free, people will take anything for free...including styrofoam accuracy targets that says Rogers of them. WHY WOULD ANYBODY WANT ONE OF THOSE???

If anybody is interested, here are the rest of the photos I took

First Impressions

So the first pre-season game has came and gone. Not a ton you can gather from it but it was enough to make me salivate a bit. Here's my impressions of the whole event.

The Tail-Gate

I guess the idea was nice but a tail gate party organized by a billion dollar corporation? That just spells fail right there. Where are the lawn chairs? Where are the BBQs? Where are the RVs?

If you were hungry, the only could choose between Pizza Pizza and...well, Pizza Pizza. If you were thirsty, you can get a free can of Coke Zero or buy an overpriced tallboy. There were a few badly organized events as well. I noticed a Johnny Bower signing. At least I think it was a signing as I didn't see any signs or information about whether it was a signing or just a meet and greet. There was also a ball hockey tournament that was played in a fenced area about the size of a grave plot. It seemed like anybody could sign up as I saw a team of 20 something year olds demolish a team of 8 year olds. And like with any corporate event, there were sponsors trying to get you to sign up for shit. For the last time, Toronto Star, I don't want to sign up for your paper because 1) I can read it online 2) Damien Cox, Dave Feschuk and Rosie Dimanno...nuff said and 3) I don't really appreciate your telemarkets calling me every few months to beg me to subscribe to their special offers. The only saving grace was that they hired a decent band in Sloan. Imagine if went with Simple Plan or Nickelback instead.

Seat-Service

I was lucky enough to sit in the golds. I'm sure this isn't available in every seat but they offer seat-service in the golds. Considering how rich, lazy and fat the people who usually sit in the golds are, I bet they find it mighty convenient to have their food delivered to them. I'm not hating, because I would hate to stand in line for 15 minutes just to get a beer but can the servers at least wait until play stoppages to walk up and down the aisles?

Tyler Bozak

I was excited about getting Bozak before I even knew who he was. I mean, his name is just so fun to say and he's the motherfuckin' Seventh Samurai! This kid will be a good player for a long time. Looks like a natural leader out there. Great speed, a good set of hands and defensively responsible. Looks like Wilson trusts him enough to put him on the point on the PP and he also took an important faceoff with less than a minute left in Bruins' territory. As for the shortie he scored, my errection still hasn't subsided.

Viktor Stalberg

When was the last time you had faith in the Leafs' group of prospects? For as long as I've been a fan, I don't remember being so excited for the young kids. Stalberg has blazing speed for somebody who's 6'3. I imagine Kaberle firing cross ice passes to a streaking Stalberg will be a beautiful sight for years to come. The whole Animal House Line (is that what we're coining it?) looked good but I thought Bozak and Stalberg outshone Hanson.

Nazem Kadri

I thought Kadri played a strong but not outstanding game though he seemed to get better when he got some quality linemates later in the game. Had some good chances and almost tied it late in the game. He's a highly skilled forward with a mean streak which could be seen on a few tenacious forechecks. I definitely see why Burke drafted him. I'll enjoy his short stay with the big club but I'd love to see him come back next year to contend for a spot once he adds some more muscle.

Phil Oreskovic

Two bad penalties, two lost fights...not quite the way to make the team. With the logjam we have at D, I don't see Oreskovic getting a shot with the Leafs this year. I would even guess that he would be a career minor leaguer.

Colton Orr

This man is one bad motherfucker. He was on full display in the first, hitting everything that came in sight. He will definitely be a fan favourite if he isn't already. But apparently with all that brawn, he does have a soft side as he displayed when he was giving Kadri some advice. I have yet to see this as I was at the game. Hook up a link if there's one available!

Andre Deveaux/Jay Rosehill

They both know their roles and both wanted to impress as they both dropped their gloves. There's no way they will both make the team so they are in direct competition with each other. My guess is that they both won't make the team and will spend the rest of their careers in the AHL with the occasional NHL call up when Colton Orrs breaks his fist over Georges Laraques' face. Take that, vegan!

Jason Allison

Jason Allison was slow three years ago...having not played since did not make him any quicker. He tried to make an impact out there early on but as the game progressed he just floated in the neutral zone. It also seemed like he lost a lot of face offs. Not much to say other than he won't be making the cut.

Jersey Fouls

I'm not sure if it was the free game factor or not but there were plenty of jersey fouls to be seen. Most of which were personalized with their last name. I did notice a #64 with the name Mojo Radio (which is now defunct). Unfortunately, I didn't see anything clever or any #69 McLovin jerseys. Oddest jersey I saw was a #30 Tom Barrasso. Tom Barrasso played 4 games on the Leafs in the 01-02 season. If you tell me that that's really a lie and that you just went in to his wikipedia page and added that, I would totally believe you. I have no idea what his thought process was when getting that jersey. The only explanation is that his last name is Barrasso or he is related.

The Wave

How does one start this idiotic event? I mean, it would have to make more than one person to get the wave going, right? Does the person starting this yell out "Let's do the wave!" before standing up and flailing their arms in the air? Do they arrange it with a group of people they're sitting with? Does the retard signal in their brain just go off simultaneously? The wave is something I never understood and will never participate in. I reckon that the guy who starts the wave is also the first guy who slows down to stare at an accident on the highway.

Burkie's Dog House

With all the articles surrounding Burkie's Dog House, there's no way I could have went to the game and not try this. I got the bacon wrapped dog and it was as good as it sounds. The hot dog was topped with cheddar, honey mustard and caramelized onions. It was good eatin but $8 for a dog is a bit much. I shall find that prime rib sandwich the next time I head to a game.

Downs Syndrome

Doc in the Bullpen

This week simply hasn't been great for Scott Downs but before I get into that, I guess I'll have to talk about Friday's game.

The rain was out but we didn't care, we were on a mission to see Doc and a little precipitation wasn't going to stop us. After a hot dog and a little pre-drinking, we were ready to enter the dome to see our hero take the mound (at least) one last time.

We got to our seats a half hour early and the good Doctor came out (to a small ovation) to stretch. Arnsberg and Barajas made their way from the clubhouse to the bullpen to catch Doc. Arnsberg was drinking a Red Bull.

I decided to sneak to the seats down by the bullpen to watch Halladay in action, up close and personal. Now I've been to live ball games plenty of times before but watching a pitcher from a distance, you really don't get a feel for the velocity in the pitches. Doc's fastball is in the low 90's and man that was quick. His breaking stuff kept catching the outside corner too. I would hate to have to stand in the box and try to get a hit off him. I managed a couple of pictures (sorry for the crappy quality. I should really invest in a camera) and got a few decent videos of his bull pen session.

As I was making my way back to my seat the anthem started playing. Now I never understood the reason for the anthem at sporting events but whether you like it or not, it's there. Which also means, give it some respect aka shut the fuck up and take off your fuckin hat. As I stood at the top of the stairs, I could see three or four hats on people's heads in that one section alone. I'm 24 years-old so I'm hardly from Don Cherry's era nor am I like your crazy Uncle who starts every third sentence with "Back when I was in 'Nam..." but I am a proud Canadian and that just made me sick.

As the game got on it's way I noticed that the crowd was a little small considering the circumstances. I was expecting a much larger turn-out like 35,000 or so but the attendance was at a little more than 24,000. Pretty lame, Toronto. Luckily for us, we sat behind a loud and obnoxious (and probably the only) Marlins fan. He kept ragging on how his team has won three World Series since '93 (umm...buddy, if you were such a die-hard fan, you would know that the Marlins only have two championhips). I got to give him credit though; I'm shocked he was even aware of the Marlins' existance considering he looked like he was still living in 1988. He wore black acid washed jeans, a Marlins jersey (probably with a Poison or Guns 'n' Roses t-shirt underneath), a black bandana with hair that would have made Kenny G jealous.

Doc was a little uncharacteristic early on, giving up a hit and issuing a walk in the first but he managed to get out of that mini jam unscathed. He wasn't as lucky in the third. After giving up another walk to Bartlett, Bossman Jr. pushed the runner to third on a double with no outs. Both runners ended up coming home but only one earned against Doc as Upton got to third on a pass ball on Barajas. The Jays ended up getting those runs back in the bottom of the inning on a Scutaro single and a Hill double. Once the score was tied at 2-2, Doc settled down and was pretty much vintage Doc from that point onward. Well, until the 9th anyway. In the 9th, he gave up another walk (third of the night) and then a single to push runners on the corners with two outs. It's okay, this is Doc we're talking about. He ended up getting the next guy to ground out to end the inning.

As Halladay was making his way to the dug out, the crowd was up on their feet giving him a standing ovation. Not only for the great game he pitched today but also for the past 11 seasons. Doc was all business as usual. There wasn't a tip of the cap, but that's okay, we understood; the score was tied, there was still work to be done. Once Doc got to the bench Cito trotted over and shook his hand. After a brilliant 9-inning, 116 pitch effort, the book on the Doctor was closed. His line was definitely impressive (9 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 10 K). C'mon Jays, let's get a run in buttom of the 9th to give Doc the win, walk-off style.

Hill started it off. Garza threw a slider down and away. Ball 1. Next pitch was a fastball down the middle that blew right past Hill. One and one. Next was a hanging breaking ball...and with one crack of the bat, Hill deposited that off Windows restaurant. That was it! Jays win! Everybody came pouring out of the dug o...I felt a nudge from my buddy. I woke up just in time to see Rolen go down swinging. Garza just struck out the side and we're headed to extras. Fuck. The 10th is just something I don't really want to get into. To sum it up: Scott Downs had two on and two outs but gave up two runs too many. Jays lose 4-2.

I'm sorry, we couldn't get you your league-leading 12th win, Roy but thanks for the memories.

On to yesterday's game. I don't have much to say on it since I didn't see the whole thing. I was watching it during lunch and left the restaurant before the 5th inning. But hey, Aaron Hill looked more like Hank Aaron and the Jays were up 8-0. What me worry? I had better things to do than watch a blow out; like pick up a suit for a wedding. So off I went. An hour later, I get a text message from my friend that read "Jays blew a 9-1 lead. Game is going to extras" WHAT. THE. FUCK?!

Scott Downs comes in in the 12th to blow the game again...

I really hope BJ Ryan syndrome isn't contageous

I really don't know what's up with Scott Downs but he just hasn't been the same after his toe injury. In the last week, he's had an abysmal ERA of 15.00 and a WHIP of 3.33 (no wonder my fantasy team's ERA is over 7 and WHIP is over 1.50). I know filming 500 Days of Summer must have been fun but please remember that you're still a major league closer. Perhaps The Blue Jay Hunter was right, maybe Cito should have sat Downs yesterday and put in Frasor. The Blissfully Oblivious Bench Boss with another questionable decision in a year which many were made (not moving Vernon and Rios down earlier in the season, keeping Millar vs lefties, not hitting Overbay higher when he was hot, etc). Regardless, the way the Jays' luck have been, we would have eventually gone to Downs and he would have lost the game in the 15th instead of the 12th. I'm with eyebleaf though. I still believe in Scott Downs!