AL Eastbound & Down

The Blue Jays game was on Sportsnet today and I had a chance to watch.  Anthony Gose entered the game as a pinch runner and quickly made an impression.  He took a huge lead and easily stole second base.  He also had one at-bat and though he struck out he had a good looking, aggressive swing on the first pitch.  He carries himself like a confident big leaguer already and he appears to be a gamer.

The Jays hammered the Phillies and easily won 10-2 on Sunday, read the MLB.com recap here.

 Jose Bautista recorded his third home run of the spring, while Yunel Escobar and Yan Gomes each had a pair of doubles in Toronto’s 10-2 victory over the Phillies on Sunday afternoon at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.

Toronto first got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third off left-hander Cole Hamels, thanks to back-to-back doubles by Gomes and Escobar. Bautista later followed with his sixth RBI of the spring to give the Blue Jays an early 2-1 lead.

That production continued in the third as Toronto recorded four consecutive singles to plate three more runs and chase Hamels from the game. Philadelphia’s left-hander surrendered five runs — four earned — on eight hits without striking out a batter in his fourth start of the spring.

Left-hander Brett Cecil got the start for Toronto and got himself into trouble in the first inning, but was able to minimize the damage. He gave up a one-out triple to centre fielder Shane Victorino, who would later come around to score on a single by Hunter Pence, but that’s all Philadelphia would score off Cecil.

The 25-year-old allowed four hits while striking out two and not issuing a walk in four frames. His fastball was registered between 85-87 mph, but Cecil appeared to be locating the ball down in the zone with more effectiveness.

Up next for the Blue Jays: The Blue Jays have an off-day on Monday afternoon, but right-hander Henderson Alvarez will get the start in a Minor League game and is expected to pitch five innings as he continues to build up his endurance. On Tuesday, Toronto travels to Fort Myers, Fla., to take on the Red Sox at 7:05 p.m. ET. Many regulars are expected to receive the day off, but right-hander Kyle Drabek will get the start against Boston’s Daniel Bard. Dustin McGowan gets to avoid the trip and will instead make a Minor League start.