Early Surprises

Sure it's still early in the season, but we have seen some slumps and some quick starts that definitely warrant some attention.  I, for example, am stuck watching the top draft pick of my fantasy team, Prince Fielder, squander away with a mild 4 homeruns on the year so far (teammate Rickie Weeks has 5). Ryan Howard is posting equally lonesome numbers, as is Mark Teixeira, who batted .136 through the month of April.  There are those players who tend to get off to slow starts, but there are then those that have fans pulling at their hair waiting for a little sign of life. On the other end of the spectrum however, there are a few new names, and a couple old ones, making some waves early on.  Is it all smoke and mirrors? Only a 162 game season will provide the answer, but here are some notables from early on:

1. Andre Ethier, OF, LA Dodgers

Sure he hit 31 homeruns last year, but who expected him to be leading the majors in batting average (.385) and RBIs (37), as well as the National League in dingers (11).  In fact, only one other player in baseball has hit more round-trippers this season, and he's #2 on this list.  Now if only the rest of the Dodgers can pull up their boot straps.

2. Paul Konerko, 1B, Chicago White Sox

Sure it's a contract year, but nobody expected this 34 year-old to be leading the league with 13 homers, not to mention a 1.115 OPS (still a little shy of Ethier's whopping 1.182). Add in a .710 slugging percentage, (again, second to Ethier who is batting a .738) and Konerko should be in line for a raise from his measly *cough* 12 million a year if he keeps these numbers up.

Oh the Times We Had...

Yesterday afternoon I got a text from my friend Matt stating simply: "Halladay to Philly". My heart sank a little bit, and without even thinking, I forwarded the message to my friend Derrick. Some time passed and I received a response:

"For what"

No question mark, just a two word statement that embodied more than it meant. Twelve seasons with the Blue Jays, a six time all star, and a Cy Young Award, yet for twelve seasons, not a single playoff appearance. Only once did the Jays even manage to place higher than third in their divison. It saddened me more to think of how we squandered a hall-of-fame career on bad business decisions, letting him pitch complete games (led the AL four times) and amass wins (130 wins in 8 seasons, also an AL best), to no avail. We had our chance to relive the heydays of the early nineties, but alas, we let it slip through our grasp. Now we're headed into the "rebuilding phase" and letting go one of the best pitchers in the game and I must reiterate Derrick's sentiments, "for what?" Only I added the question mark.

When the Jays brought in Ricciardi, an underling of the famous Billy Beane in Oakland, Toronto had high hopes. Beane had transformed what had looked like a group of misfits and seemingly terrible draft picks into keys for success. Ricciardi was supposed to do the same here, only he forgot the cardinal rules that Billy lived by, not signing players beyond what they were worth. This included a horredous deal to closer BJ Ryan (5 years for $47 million, which, after realeasing Ryan, the Jays had to eat $15 million of), and monster contracts with Alex Rios (now gone) and Vernon Wells (still underperforming). It's all been quite the disaster (think 2012) and now we've gotten rid of the only thing worth watching for Jays' fans for... what exactly?

There is still no word on what the Jays will receive in compensation for this beast of a pitcher. There has been some talk of the prospects involved, but essentially we're ditching the Doc, plus $6 million which is headed to the Phillies, for a few nameless. Given Ricciardi's track record, I must say that I have little faith in what is transpiring. I understand that this is a rebuilding phase that the Jays are entering, but with J.P. screwing things up all over the place, I wish he was leaving as opposed to our beloved Halladay. Then maybe we could truly rebuild.

Well, I wish the Doc good luck in his endeavours, and I have to say that next year, I will be a Phillies fan, as I assume a lot of other Torontonians will be. Thanks for your time and patience Roy, now go win a World Series and make us all proud.

Remember Pedro's Little Friend?

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic — Nelson de la Rosa, once recognized as the world's shortest actor and a ubiquitous good-luck charm for the Boston Red Sox during their victorious 2004 World Series run, died Sunday, a day after visiting New York, his agent said. He was 38.

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