Today’s lineups:

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (66-82)
Fourth place AL East, 28.5 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, LF
4. Vernon Wells, CF
5. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
6. Rod Barajas, C
7. Kevin Millar, 1B
8. Randy Ruiz, DH
9. Jose Bautista, RF 

Starter: RHP Roy Halladay (15-9, 3.03)

TAMPA BAY RAYS (76-73)
Third place AL East, 19.0 GB

1. Jason Bartlett, SS
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Ben Zobrist, RF
5. Pat Burrell, DH
6. Willy Aybar, 1B
7. Gregg Zaun, C
8. Akinori Iwamura, 2B
9. B.J. Upton, CF

Starter: LHP David Price (8-7, 4.60)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

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Where has Randy Ruiz gone?

For each of the past six games, Ruiz has been absent from the Blue Jays’ lineup, leaving some to wonder if anything is wrong with the Bronx Bomber. Don’t worry, there is nothing ailing Mr. Ruiz.

Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said the reason for Ruiz’s sudden disappearance from the starting lineup is simple.

Adam Lind was hit on the foot by a pitch on Sept. 11 and, after taking a day off, returned as a designated hitter to ease his way back into the mix.

Lind had been playing the outfield for the most part when Ruiz was called up. but has been back as the DH for the past six games. This being the case, Ruiz has been relegated to the bench until Gaston feels comfortable sending Lind back to the outfield, which could be soon. Tonight? It’s Johnny Mac in left.

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (66-81)
Fourth place AL East, 27.5 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, DH
4. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
5. Lyle Overbay, 1B
6. Jose Bautista, CF
7. Travis Snider, RF
8. Raul Chavez, C
9. John McDonald, LF 

Starter: LHP Ricky Romero (12-8, 4.22)

TAMPA BAY RAYS (75-73)
Third place AL East, 19.0 GB

1. Jason Bartlett, SS
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Ben Zobrist, CF
5. Pat Burrell, DH
6. Willy Aybar, 1B
7. Gabe Kapler, RF
8. Dioner Navarro, C
9. Akinori Iwamura, 2B

Starter: RHP Matt Garza (7-10, 3.84)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

Travis Snider has noted that he is still making some adjustments in the batter’s box. Mechanical adjustments. Mental adjustments. The rookie is still going through a learning process.

On Friday at Tropicana Field, manager Cito Gaston shared some more specifics as to what exactly Snider is working on. Swing-wise, Snider is working on a better weight transfer. Approach-wise, the rook has shown more of a willingness to discuss situations with his coaches during games.

“He’s still working,” Gaston said. “There’s still a lot of work to do with him. [Hitting coach Gene Tenace has] got him not so spread out. We’re trying to get him a little bit more upright and trying to get him to start his weight on the back side, as opposed to starting on the front side and shifting back.”

“It’s still an ongoing project with him to get him started on time. He talks to us more on the bench now than he did before he [was sent to Triple-A in May]. He talks about situations more, which he was having a little trouble with that last time. But, now he will talk to you about it. He’s trying to learn how to handle that.”

Gaston said he is hoping Snider can learn how to take in-game suggestions and apply them to his following plate appearances, rather than feel overloaded with information when he walks to the plate. Gaston pointed to Adam Lind, who has shown an ability to take tips from his coaches during a game and make the proper adjustments quickly.

Since being recalled from the Minors last month, the 21-year-old Snider has struggled for the most part. Over his last three games, he does have five hits, two homers and a .385 average, but in the 27 games prior to that, Snider hit .195. On the current road trip, Snider has struck out 11 times in 22 at-bats.

UPDATES: Scott Downs (right hamstring) and Brian Tallet (right foot) are day-to-day after suffering injuries on Wednesday night in New York. Gaston wasn’t ready to say Downs might be done for the year, and maybe that has something to do with the fact that Toronto has no lefties in the bullpen right now (Jesse Carlson’s suspension lasts through Saturday). Gaston said Tallet is still sore, but he’s trying to get healthy in time for a start on Tuesday. If he can’t go, the Jays would like do the ol’ bullpen-by-committee start. Remember, Marc Rzepczynski and Brett Cecil have been shut down and they were not be used. … Dustin McGowan (right shoulder/left knee) stopped by the Blue Jays’ clubhouse at the Trop on Friday and was all smiles as he walked through and said hello to his teammates. McGowan’s status for next season is essentially unknown.

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (66-80)
Fourth place AL East, 27.5 GB

1. Jose Bautista, RF
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, LF
4. Vernon Wells, CF
5. Lyle Overbay, 1B
6. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
7. Rod Barajas, C
8. Travis Snider, LF
9. John McDonald, SS 

Starter: RHP Scott Richmond (6-9, 5.03)

TAMPA BAY RAYS (74-73)
Third place AL East, 20.0 GB

1. Jason Bartlett, SS
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Ben Zobrist, DH
5. Willy Aybar, 1B
6. Gregg Zaun, C
7. Akinori Iwamura, 2B
8. Gabe Gross, RF
9. B.J. Upton, CF

Starter: RHP James Shields (9-11, 4.03)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

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Some suspensions and fines have been dished out for Tuesday night’s rumble in the Bronx between the Fightin’ Jays and Bombers.

Yankees catcher Jorge Posada and Jays reliever Jesse Carlson — the two at the heart of the fracas — were each dealt four-game suspensions and fined $3,000 by the league.

Carlson said that he told Blue Jays player rep Vernon Wells that he did not feel he deserved as much as Posada and a few minutes later, Wells called Carlson and said the suspension had been reduced to three games and the fine was also trimmed. Carlson will begin sitting out Wednesday.

Word is that Posada’s suspension will also begin Wednesday and has also been cut down to three games — not four. Fines were also handed to Yankees pitcher Edwar Ramirez — maybe to replace Rod Barajas’ mangled chest protector? — and hitting coach Kevin Long.

New York’s Shelley Duncan has also been suspended three games and fined. Blue Jays catcher Barajas also received a $1,000 fine, but he said he plans on appealing. Rod’s fine was for “verbal abuse”, but he said he was not given further explanation and he planned on appealing.

As for that one replay that appeared to show mild-mannered John McDonald taking a swing at Yanks skip Joe Girardi, they both insist it did not happen. Girardi called Johnny Mac a “peacemaker” and a “good man” and the pair met on the field before Wednesday’s game to talk things over. McDonald was trying to pull players off the pile and the one camera angle made it look like he swung at the manager.

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (66-79)
Fourth place AL East, 26.5 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, DH
4. Vernon Wells, CF
5. Lyle Overbay, 1B
6. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
7. Rod Barajas, C
8. Jose Bautista, RF
9. Travis Snider, LF

Starter: LHP Brian Tallet (7-9, 5.26)

NEW YORK YANKEES (93-53)
First place AL East, — GB

1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Jerry Hairston Jr., LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Hideki Matsui, DH
6. Nick Swisher, RF
7. Robinson Cano, 2B
8. Melky Cabrera, CF
9. Jose Molina, C

Starter: RHP Chad Gaudin (1-0, 3.42)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

After a little more than two weeks away from the ballpark, I’m back on the Blue Jays beat down the stretch. It was a wonderful little break, considering my wife and I welcomed our first son, Hayden Charles Bastian, into the world on September 1.

Thanks to all who sent me congrats notes via Twitter, blog and e-mail. I didn’t respond to very many, but all were received and appreciated. But, after spending the last weeks at home with the fam, it’s time to get back to work and finish out this ’09 season.

As for the Jays, not a whole lotta news to speak of this evening. Joe Inglett is still day-to-day with sore ribs, Jeremy Accardo has been fighting a flu bug for the past couple days and catcher Kyle Phillips will likely be behind the plate again for lefty David Purcey on Monday.

As for tonight? It’s a familiar lineup with Doc on the hill in the Bronx. Not a bad way to kick off my return to the pressbox.

Today’s lineups:

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (65-79)
Fourth place AL East, 27.5 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, DH
4. Vernon Wells, CF
5. Lyle Overbay, 1B
6. Edwin Encarnacion, 3B
7. Rod Barajas, C
8. Jose Bautista, RF
9. Travis Snider, LF

Starter: RHP Roy Halladay (14-9, 3.03)

NEW YORK YANKEES (93-52)
First place AL East, — GB

1. Derek Jeter, SS
2. Johnny Damon, LF
3. Mark Teixeira, 1B
4. Alex Rodriguez, 3B
5. Hideki Matsui, DH
6. Jorge Posada, C
7. Robinson Cano, 2B
8. Nick Swisher, RF
9. Brett Gardner, CF

Starter: RHP Sergio Mitre (3-2, 7.02)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

I am stepping away from the Blue Jays beat for a few weeks. I’m heading back to Chicago now that Baby Bastian is starting to figure out where the exit is located and could be showing his face any moment now. So, I won’t be blogging for a while and the updates on Twitter (@MLBastian) will be minimal over the next couple weeks.

Catch you down the road….

~JB

Today’s lineups:

TAMPA BAY RAYS (68-56)
Third place AL East, 10.0 GB

1. Jason Bartlett, SS
2. Ben Zobrist, 2B
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Pat Burrell, DH
5. Carlos Pena, 1B
6. B.J. Upton, CF
7. Dioner Navarro, C
8. Gabe Kapler, LF
9. Gabe Gross, RF

Starter: RHP James Shields (7-10, 3.81)

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (57-66)
Fourth place AL East, 20.5 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, LF
4. Lyle Overbay, 1B
5. Vernon Wells, CF
6. Randy Ruiz, DH
7. Rod Barajas, C
8. Travis Snider, RF
9. Jose Bautista, 3B

Starter: LHP Brett Cecil (5-2, 4.58)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

After Ricky Romero’s outing against the Red Sox on Tuesday, when the rookie left after allowing six runs in just 3.2 innings, Blue Jays pitching coach Brad Arnsberg decided to switch things up for the pitcher.

“Right after my last start against Boston,” Romero recalled, “as soon as I went into the dugout, he was like, ‘We have nothing to work on. You’re not going to throw a bullpen this week.'”

So, Romero listened and skipped his usual between-start mound workout. Instead, he did one light flat-ground before taking the mound again on Sunday. Romero then limited the Angels to two runs over six innings en route to his 11th win of the season.

Romero said the lighter work load helped. The young lefty noted that he felt much stronger as the game went on against Los Angeles.

“I did,” he said. “I was talking to some of the guys about it. In the sixth inning, I was throwing kind of hard, as opposed to last week I think I ran out of gas pretty quick. My velocity was down a little bit, so people were wondering what was going on. I wanted to come back and kind of show them that I’m good.”

Going forward, Romero said he may or may not be throwing bullpens between outings — it’ll depend on how he feels. This week, an off-day on Thursday will help and he is scheduled to make his next start on Saturday — not Friday. That will give him an extra day to rest his arm, which has logged 145.2 innnings between Triple-A and MLB this year.

After they pitch on Sept. 4-5, respectively, the Jays plan on shutting rookie lefties Brett Cecil and Marc Rzepczynski down for the season due to innings limitations — roughly 150 for Cecil and 160 for Zep. Romero does not face a similar problem. His career-high in innings is 164.1 in ’08 and he’ll likely fall around 190 this season.

That is if Romero averages roughly six innings per start down the stretch. Having 30-40 more innings than the previous season is what the Blue Jays try to shoot for with their young arms (see: Cecil and Rzep). Romero said he feels great right now health-wise and plans on pitching through the end of the year.

“I already told them that I’m fresh,” Romero said. “I’m ready to go through the whole year. I just look at it as, if i’m going to be one of the guys here, I feel like I need to go the whole year and kind of get on that consistent year-to-year thing. My arm is fresh. It feels good. I haven’t had any arm problems all year and I bounce back pretty quick.”

OTHER ITEMS: The Blue Jays activated LHP Scott Downs from the 15-day disabled list prior to Monday’s game against the Rays and placed Edwin Encarnacion (left hamstring/knee) on the 15-day DL. Downs moves into the bullpen, but might not be used as the closer right away. RHP Jason Frasor has held that role since Downs has been out. … Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said that ace Roy Halladay will make his next start on Sunday in Boston, giving the right-hander an extra day of rest.

Today’s lineups:

TAMPA BAY RAYS (67-56)
Third place AL East, 10.5 GB

1. Jason Bartlett, SS
2. Carl Crawford, LF
3. Evan Longoria, 3B
4. Ben Zobrist, 2B
5. Carlos Pena, 1B
6. Pat Burrell, DH
7. Gregg Zaun, C
8. Gabe Gross, RF
9. B.J. Upton, CF

Starter: RHP Jeff Niemann (11-5, 3.71)

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (57-65)
Fourth place AL East, 20.0 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, LF
4. Lyle Overbay, 1B
5. Vernon Wells, CF
6. Randy Ruiz, DH
7. Rod Barajas, C
8. Travis Snider, RF
9. Jose Bautista, 3B

Starter: RHP Roy Halladay (13-6, 2.78)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

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One thing that is not settled going into next season is the Blue Jays’ closer role. B.J. Ryan is gone — though his $10 million 2010 salary is still on the books — and the team is not 100 percent convinced Scott Downs will be the full-time replacement.

Asked if Downs would be defined as “the closer” going into next spring, this is what manager Cito Gaston had to say:

“Probably not. We’ll just wait and see. To say, ‘Who’s your closer?’ and to try to see which one does a better job in Spring Training is a little tough to do.”

By that last statement, Gaston meant that it’s difficult to simulate a ninth-inning situation in the spring, when most big leaguers have bailed long before the final frame. It stands to reason that Downs and Jason Frasor, who both are eligible to become free agents after 2010, will be the leading candidates for the role next year.

Downs has been great over the past few years as Toronto’s main setup man, but his performance as the closer this year — after Ryan was stripped of the role in April before being released on July — has been shaky. Part of the reason for Downs’ struggles, a main reason actually, is he has been dealing off and on with a left foot injury.

Gaston does not believe the injury, and the lack of save chances, have really given Downs an opportunity to show if he is the right person for the closer job.

“Downs did great as a setup man,” Gaston said. “But he hasn’t really had the opportunity to show us that [he should be the closer] one way or the other — not much. He’s had a couple of times out there that didn’t work out, but as far as really showing us that he’s the guy, he hasn’t had the opportunity because he’s been hurt.”

Downs, who is coming off a three-outing Minor League rehab stint with Class A Dunedin, was scheduled to rejoin the Jays on Sunday, according to Gaston. The manager said that Downs would “probably” be activated from the 15-day disabled list on Monday, but he might not move directly into the stopper role — currently held by Frasor.

“We’ll see how it goes,” Gaston said. “If he got here tomorrow and I said, ‘We’re going to stick him in the closer’s spot right away,’ I’m not sure if that’s fair to him, either. We’ll see who’s hitting. We’ll see what numbers we’ve got on guys and see if it’s a possibility for him to do that.”

Today’s lineups:

LOS ANGELES ANGELS (74-47)
First place AL West, — GB

1. Chone Figgins, 3B
2. Bobby Abreu, RF
3. Torii Hunter, CF
4. Vlad Guerrero, DH
5. Juan Rivera, LF
6. Mike Napoli, C
7. Kendry Morales, 1B
8. Howie Kendrick, 2B
9. Erick Aybar, SS

Starter: RHP Trevor Bell (1-0, 5.91)

TORONTO BLUE JAYS (56-65)
Fourth place AL East, 20.0 GB

1. Marco Scutaro, SS
2. Aaron Hill, 2B
3. Adam Lind, LF
4. Lyle Overbay, 1B
5. Vernon Wells, CF
6. Randy Ruiz, DH
7. Jose Bautista, 3B
8. Travis Snider, RF
9. Raul Chavez, C

Starter: LHP Ricky Romero (10-5, 3.95)

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter: @MLBastian

~JB

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Friendly neighbourhood Blue Jays associate reporter Erika Gilbert here, filling in for Jordan while he gets a couple of days off.

On Snider’s spot in the lineup:

Travis Snider is hitting ninth again today, after batting sixth on Friday.

When Snider got out to a hot start to the season, a lot of fans were hoping he’d get moved up from ninth in the batting order. Given the type of hitter he’s expected to be down the line, a spot in the middle of the order seems to be in his future.

Cito Gaston wanted to keep Snider in the nine-hole, though. He didn’t want Snider to feel any extra pressure.

Snider was finally moved up yesterday, batting sixth for the first time. Given what Cito had to say about the change in the order in yesterday’s pre-game chat with reporters, it’s not really surprising that Snider’s back hitting ninth.

“It’s actually out of necessity — more that than anything else,” Gaston said. “We could use an extra bat up here in the middle of that lineup to do
some damage. It’s not the fact of what I said earlier [taking the pressure off] because if we had
the same lineup here he’d probably be hitting ninth, but we don’t have
the same lineup anymore. [Scott] Rolen’s not here, and [Alex] Rios is not here, so that
changes things a little bit too.”

Raul Chavez was in the lineup yesterday, and Rod Barajas is catching today. Here’s what Cito had to say about the bottom of the order:

“Today with the lineup with Barajas back in there… it’s just a choice for me, moving back down there so we have some speed back there. [Snider] didn’t do anything wrong to be put back down  there. It’d be the same thing if I put Barajas hitting ninth — he just hit fourth the other day. You  plummet real quick don’t you?”

Some notes on playing time:

-Jose Bautista has gotten a little less playing time since Rolen was traded, since Bautista used to fill in when the team played day games after night games. Cito said Bautista will probably be getting more playing time down the stretch than he has since the Edwin Encarnacion era began.

-Cito on the catching situation: “We might bring another catcher [in September]. The biggest thing with Barajas is he is a free agent. I want to make sure he gets some playing time in, but also maybe play Chavez a little bit going down to the end. Next month is one off day … so he’ll probably play a little bit more.”

You can follow me on Twitter at @e_gilbert

-Erika