Jays Notes, 11-Apr-11: Davis Hurting, Patterson Activated

Well, Scott Richmond‘s stay with the Blue Jays was as short-lived as possible as he was optioned back to AAA Las Vegas after throwing to only 1 batter. He got the job done, and now gets to go to work to put himself back in play for a longer term role with the Jays should that opportunity arise in the future. He was sent down in favor of Corey Patterson, and for very good reason.

Rajai Davis is again having some ankle issues and will attempt to resolve the issue once and for all as Corey Patterson takes over in center field. Patterson was just activated by the Blue Jays to take that task on and will hopefully be able to provide the Jays with more production at the top of the lineup. The Jays had been forced to play Travis Snider in CF when Davis went down in yesterday’s game, making it a priority for them to get a better alternative in play ASAP. Needless to say that with a .156/.156/.188 line and only 1 SB so far in 2011, Davis has a lot of work to do to earn his new contract.

The ugly day for the Jays at the plate yesterday was mostly due to the filthy outing Jered Weaver had. His wipeout slider made all Jays hitters look foolish on numerous occasions. He kept the ball away and down from most hitters all day long, and although he got wild a few times in the game by isuing walks, he certainly had one of the best outings of his career. Travis Snider and Jose Bautista in particular both seemed upset at their performances against Weaver. Hopefully they’ll turn their bats on against the Mariners, but that may be hard to do when facing King Felix in the series openener.

If for some reason Corey Patterson continues to have health concerns and Rajai Davis can’t be relied on to play, Darin Mastroianni may be called upon as he is earning that shot in AAA thus far. He already has 7 hits in 18 ABs and a .389/.421/.389 line to go with it. On the down side, he hasn’t stolen a base thus far and was caught twice, which is odd for the speedster. The 25-year old is the favorite of many fans to earn the CF spot before Anthony Gose is ready, and if he does well enough he could become a decent trade chip for Alex Anthopoulos to use in the future.

In any case, the Jays really need to find some production at the top of the lineup. We all know that Yunel Escobar has done a great job in the 2-hole, but without production from the lead off hitter, the pressure on opposing team pitching is seriously decreased and makes it much easier to navigate through the Jays lineup.

Who’s going to step in and take that role? Well, it has to be Rajai Davis. There has been too much money and too many prospects invested in him to note take that role for the next 2 years at a minimum. But, if his ankle is a constant worry, it just may be  Mastroianni that becomes the most viable option. I, for one, would love to see him get his shot if Davis is down for a long period of time.

If you’re already missing the bat of Vernon Wells in CF, don’t. He’s hitting .100 for the Angels thus far in 2011 and has to be the most disappointing player on their team. He really seems out of sorts in their OF and is making some rookie errors in their OF, such as forgetting how many outs there are in yesterday’s game. His bat should come around, but it sure wasn’t worth the contract at this point in his career.

– MG

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