The Blue Jays had some pressing needs in the off-season, including two starting pitchers and possibly a second baseman. Adrian Dantley Jersey . 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. Rudy Gobert Jersey . -- Rodney Stuckey scored 15 of his 21 points in the second half, and the Detroit Pistons beat the New York Knicks for the first time in eight meetings, 92-86 on Tuesday night. Custom Utah Jazz Jerseys . Perhaps their first trip to the city of Winnipeg in 16 years can serve as the shakeup they need. http://www.officialjazzauthenticstore.com/kids-jae-crowder-jazz-jersey/ .com) - American Madison Keys grabbed a first- round victory on Sunday in a rainy start to the Apia International Sydney tournament. NEW YORK -- Baseball writers could elect a quartet of players to the Hall of Fame for the first time in more than a half-century. Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas appeared to be on track to gain election from the Baseball Writers Association of America on Wednesday, and Craig Biggio could join them. The last time four players received the required 75 per cent was in 1955, when Joe DiMaggio, Gabby Hartnett, Ted Lyons and Dazzy Vance all got in. Surprisingly, it was the third ballot appearance for DiMaggio, who fell 81 votes short in 1953 and 14 shy the following year. When he announced his retirement in December 2008, Maddux wouldnt talk about the Hall. "I think theres a lot of good players in there," he said. "Dont really have any thoughts on it." Maddux could break the mark for highest percentage (98.84), set when in 1992 when Tom Seaver topped the record Ty Cobb set in 1936. "I just have just never come across any human being, whether theyre a voter or just a fan, that doesnt think Greg Maddux is a Hall of Famer and one of the greatest pitchers who ever pitched," The Boston Globes Nick Cafardo said Tuesday. "I cant imagine someone not voting for him. So I would guess that hes going to break Seavers record." Maddux is among three high-profile players on the BBWAA ballot for the first time, joined by his former Atlanta teammate Glavine and Thomas. Holdovers include Biggio, who topped voting at 68 per cent last year, 39 votes short of the 75 per cent needed for election. It was only the second time in four decades the BBWAA failed to elect anyone. Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, a former reporter for the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, said Tuesday the only player he voted for was Jack Morris, on the writers ballot for the 15th and final time after falling 42 votes shy last year. "To me, I didnt exclude Maddux. I excluded everybody from that era, everybody from the Steroid Era," Gurnick said. "It wasnt about Greg Maddux, it was about the entire era. I just dont know who did and who didnt." Gurnick said Morris also was the only player he voted for in 2013 and added he intends to abstain in future elections. "Some people quibblle over when the era starts, but the bulk of his career was in my opinion well before all of the widespread use of performance-enhancing drugs," Gurnick said. Utah Jazz Jerseys. Given that 569 ballots were submitted in 2013, Maddux likely could be omitted from six this year and still break the record set by Seaver, who received 425 of 430 votes. Seaver was left off by Paul Hagen of the Philadelphia Daily News, Bob Hertzel of The Pittsburgh Press and freelance writer Bob Hunter. They all submitted blank ballots to protest the decision by the Hall of Fame board of directors to bar Pete Rose from the vote because of his lifetime ban from baseball following a gambling probe. Retired writers Deane McGowen and Bud Tucker also did not vote for Seaver. "If it had cost Seaver anything, yeah, I probably would regret it at some level, but it didnt really cost him anything," Hagen, now with MLB.com, said Tuesday. "He still got the highest vote (percentage) total ever, and he wouldnt have been unanimous anyway." The Steroids Era has impacted the vote totals of players with stellar statistics. In initial appearances last year, Mike Piazza was at 57.8 per cent, Roger Clemens at 37.6, Barry Bonds at 36.2 and Sammy Sosa at 12.5. Mark McGwire received 16.9 on his seventh try. The Baseball Think Factory website compiled votes by writers who made their opinions public, and with 194 ballots had Maddux at 99.5 per cent, followed by Glavine (95), Thomas (90) and Biggio (78). The websites count had Piazza (69), Morris (61) and Jeff Bagwell (58) falling short along with Tim Raines (54), Bonds (42), Clemens (41), Curt Schilling (37) and Mike Mussina (26). McGwire (11) and Sosa (8) had little support. Approximately 600 writers who have been members of the BBWAA for 10 consecutive years at any point considered the 36-player ballot. Next years ballot could be even more crowded when Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, John Smoltz, Carlos Delgado and Gary Sheffield become eligible, five years after their retirements. The BBWAA last month formed a committee to study whether the organization should ask the Hall to change the limit of 10 players per ballot. 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