Alex Rios, mere seconds after making my day
When in need of a few wins and the Baltimore Orioles are nowhere to be found, who do you call? The Chicago White Sox, of course. The Jays knocked off Ozzie Guillen and co. for the fourth straight day this afternoon, winning 3-2 to sweep the set. That imminent losing streak after dropping a pair to the Yankees? Well, it’s still yet to appear.
I’ve been trying my best to keep my expectations in check, but this is getting pretty, pretty, pretty exciting. Today’s win, the 10th straight at home against the White Sox, gives the Jays a 27-14 record, leaving them a few percentage points behind Manny Ramirez and the Dodgers for the best mark in the majors. Toronto’s 234 runs scored is tops in the league and their +60 run differential ranks second.
As for today, Scott Richmond was lights out, shutting out Chicago through seven and bouncing back after a nightmarish outing against New York last week. My boy Jesse Carlson ran into some tough luck in the eighth, giving up a two-out infield single to Jermaine Dye and then a two-run shot to Jim Thome in the eigth, but the offense picked him up, with Alex Rios driving in the winner on a two-out triple in the bottom half of the inning.
Another day, another character-building win. Next up is a three-game set at Fenway with the second place Red Sox — now excuse me as I go listen to Journey and get mentally prepared.
