The Blue Jays had some pressing needs in the off-season, including two starting pitchers and possibly a second baseman. Womens Air VaporMax Online . They decided to put their faith in Ryan Goins at second and either through budgetary constraints or trades that fell through were unable to get the needed arms. Still youve got to give Alex Anthopoulos credit for some of his bargain basement pick-ups that have shored up the Jays in a couple of areas. Lets start with Juan Francisco, who was picked up on waivers from Milwaukee in April. Though not nearly the third baseman Brett Lawrie is, his presence and bat have allowed skipper John Gibbons to shift Lawrie to second, at least for the short term, to give the Jays a stronger all-round lineup. Francisco is hitting .292 and is nearly halfway to his career high of 18 homers of last season. Hes slugged eight so far with 19 runs batted in. Hes also insurance at 1B and DH if Adam Linds back acts up again. Steve Tolleson was signed as a free agent back in December to provide some middle infield depth. On the days, Lawrie is at third (mainly against lefties), Tolleson has done a solid job at second, and even showed a flare for pitching in that 15-4 blow-out loss to Cleveland last week. His presence also allows for more developement time for Goins in Buffalo. Dioner Navarro has been a big upgrade behind the plate over J.P. Arencibia and has developed a great chemistry with lefty Mark Buehrle, whos off to the best start of his career at 7-1 with a 2.11 ERA. Navarro, who was signed as a free agent in December, has also knocked in 17 runs. Erik Kratz, who shares the back-up catching role at least for now with Josh Thole, helped guide Drew Hutchison through the best start of his career Friday night at Arlington in a complete game 2-0 victory over the Rangers. Kratz, who came over from the Phillies along with reliever Rob Rasmussen for reliever Brad Lincoln, keyed a two-run rally against Texas with a bunt single. Hes also shown a little pop in his limited role with two home runs. Another bargain pick-up who might have an impact is 25-year-old Australian-born righthander Liam Hendriks. With Marcus Stroman returning to Buffalo to hone his abilities as a starter, Hendriks is the odds-on favourite to be called up and fill the vacant spot in the rotation on Saturday against Oakland. Hendriks, who went 2-13 with a 6.10 ERA in brief stints with Minnesota, went through a whirlwind two months in the off-season. He was claimed by the Cubs from Minnesota, then by the Orioles and finally in February, the Blue Jays picked him on waivers. He has been off the charts good with the Bisons, going 5-0 with a league-leading 1.48 ERA. Hes also walked just three batters in just over 48 innings. Hes also pitched into the seventh inning three times in his seven starts. So as disappointing as the Blue Jays off-season was in terms of a lack of big-name pick-ups, it clearly wasnt a total loss. Update From The Minors The immortal Cy Young pitched well into his 40s and when he ultimately retired, he said it was nothing to do with his arm. He said he had plenty of pitches left. It was his legs that wouldnt take the rigors of pitching anymore. The same thing may be happening with the beleaguered Ricky Romero, who had stem cells injected into both of his knees back in October. But he told the Buffalo News he still has good days and bad days with his knees and, although he wasnt making excuses, that might explain why his control is getting worse instead of better. On Friday, Romero walked a Bisons franchise record of nine in just two-2/3rds innings in what became a 4-1 loss to Gwinnett at Buffalos Coca Cola Field. In his last four starts, Ricky has walked 24 batters. Hes leaving the team for a few days to go back to California for his younger brothers college graduation at Long Beach State. Hes hoping to rejoin the Bisons this weekend in Louisville, but hoping to is the operative phrase. Anthopoulos told the Buffalo News that numerous options are being concidered, including sending Ricky to Double A New Hampshire, or maybe even extended spring training in Dunedin, or possibly even putting him on the disabled list to deal with his knee issues. Kyle Drabek hasnt exactly turned it around at Buffalo, either. He also pitched in that doubleheader on Friday ande didnt walk anyone, but gave up eight runs, six earned on 11 hits in five innings in a 9-3 loss in the second game of the twinbill. Lefty Sean Nolin, who pitched briefly with the Blue Jays last season, might have been a call-up candidate, but hes on the disabled list with a groin strain retroactive to May 14th. Not Missing a Beat You might have thought the Tigers might stumble a bit this season in the wake of the retirement of skipper Jim Leyland and the Prince Fielder trade to Texas. Not at all. Theyve won six in a row and have the largest division lead in the Majors at 6.5 games over Kansas City. They just finished sweeping a three-game series at Fenway and havent missed a beat under new skipper Brad Ausmus. Ian Kinsler, who came over from Texas in the Fielder trade, is doing a stellar job out of the lead-off spot and is hitting .315. He went 4-for-5 Sunday against Boston. An unsung hero for Detroit is suddenly heathy as DH Victor Martinez is hitting .331 with 10 homers and 25 runs batted in. Hes hitting clean-up right behind Miguel Cabrera and helping Detroit to the best road record in the Majors. All About Timing The Blue Jays might be hitting Boston Tuesday at just the right time. The defending World Series champions have dropped four in a row and have fallen to 20-23, fourth in the AL East, two games back of the Blue Jays. An odd stat, no team in the American League East has a winning record at home, heading into Week 8 of the season. The first-place Yankees have the best mark and they are only 11-11. To take that a little farther, only two teams in the other two divisions have losing records at home: Seattle and Houston. Miami has the strangest home/road splits. They have a Major League best 17-5 record at home, and a Major League worst 6-17 record on the road, for a total record of 23-22, the same as the Blue Jays. Cheap Air VaporMax Discount .com) - Patrik Elias registered the winner in the shootout as New Jersey nipped Toronto 2-1 at Prudential Center on Wednesday. Grey Air VaporMax On Sale .J. Ellis have avoided arbitration, agreeing to a one-year contract. http://www.cheapairvapormaxoutlet.com/ . The 30-year-old Texas native was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 20th round of the 2001 amateur draft. Duke spent six years in Pittsburgh and also had stints with Arizona, Washington and Cincinnati.OKLAHOMA CITY - Tony Parker is dinged up again, and his status is unclear heading into the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat. The San Antonio Spurs All-Star point guard did not play in the second half or overtime of the Western Conference finals-clinching win over Oklahoma City on Saturday because of a sore left ankle. Spurs coach Gregg Popovich doesnt know what shape Parker will be in for Game 1 on Thursday in San Antonio. "I have no idea," Popovich said Saturday night. "I dont know what the deal is." Popovich said Parker sprained the ankle in Game 4 and aggravated it in Game 5. Popovich considered starting Manu Ginobili at point guard in Game 6 against the Thunder because Parker was having trouble during pregame. At halftime, Popovich made the decision to hold him out. "He came to me about eight minutes on the clock (before the second half) and said he couldnt go," Popovich said. "He couldnt cut. He was limping on it. He couldnt cut sideways or forward really." Popovich said he thought playing Parker in the second half would have hurt the team in the long term. "I didnt want him to be a hero because he was 50 per cent or less, we thought," Popovich said. "Thats probably bad for the team if you think about it. It was a tough decision to try to figure out whether to play him, and if you lose the game and it affects him for Monday night, then youre going to feel like you made an unwise choice." Parker has been plagued by injuries this year. He averaged 16.7 points and 5.7 assists while shooting 50 per cent from the field during the regular season, but he missed 22 games. He strained his left hamstring in Game 5 of the Western Conference semifinals aagainst Portland and did not return. Supply Air VaporMax Shop. The Spurs won that game easily to clinch the series. Once again, his teammates bought him some rest. Had the Spurs lost Game 6, they would have faced an elimination game at home Monday against the Thunder. "We didnt know how much Tony was hurt in his ankle," forward Boris Diaw said. "But we didnt want to go to Game 7, and we didnt know if he would be ready to play if we did or if he would be 100 per cent, so we tried to get it over with tonight." Still, the Spurs have proven all season they can win without key players, posting the NBAs best record despite a series of injuries. "We have to continue to play basketball regardless of who is on the floor and our reserves did a great job - Cory (Joseph), Patty (Mills) - they stepped in and continued to run the offence and push the pace and playing good defence on their guards as well," guard Danny Green said. Joseph started the second half of Game 6 against Oklahoma City and helped engineer a 37-point third quarter. "Cory was very good," Ginobili said. "I mean, its hard to play when you dont have many opportunities to play in close games and stuff. But he did very well in Game 3 and 4 here. He always brings the juice, aggressiveness, competitiveness. He attacks the rim well. I think he made a few key plays." The Spurs said they excel without their stars because they are about a system, rather than individuals. "We have been doing what we did the whole year, which is passing the ball to each other, getting some movement, getting pace and getting into a good rhythm," Diaw said. "Always trying to set up a good shot for a teammate." ' ' '