Blue Jays Closet - St. Patrick's Edition

First, a few thoughts. Blue Jays fans are caught up in our annual dance of being excited, while trying not to be too excited. Everybody knows Spring Training doesn't mean anything, and Grapefruit League opponents might as well be high school teams (I believe the Jays played against Canada's Under-18 team at one point)... but still. When you're 13-4, it's hard not to get a bit excited.

Of course, we still don't know anything about the rotation, or our left field dilemma, it's nice to see the Jays winning.

Today.... from the Blue Jays Closet. As mentioned in the last post, we made a trip to Dunedin last March and caught some pre-season action. While poking around in the stadium shop, I bought the aforementioned hat, and one other item. Considering it was March, and St. Patrick's Day was approaching, they Jays were apparently selling off the extra green jerseys they had ordered/created/acquired. There were only about 15 on the rack for sale, in kelly green spring training nylon mesh, and in numbers ranging from the barely acceptable 28 (Al Leiter, Shawn Marcum) to the outrageous  64 ,78, and 82. I think there is an unwritten rule that if your uniform number is higher than 50, you have a 0.1% chance of making the team out of Spring Training.

Anyway, I snatched up St. Patrick's Day jersey #28, and although we were back in Toronto by then, I made sure to wear it on the 17th, while I consumed my Guinnesses... Guinneesees.... pints. I love this jersey because it's unique, and because it's got a good story behind it. I also love that almost nobody else has one!

And considering Colby Rasmus is wearing 28 this year, I'll hopefully be able to rock that number proudly.

Blue Jays Closet - Preseason Edition

A few notes... First, I'm thrilled that MLB has finally added another playoff spot. Although this year, one team will have an extremely short (one game) playoff run, it'll be at least 2 next year. This just means that the Jays have a better shot at sneaking into the playoffs, even with a 3rd place finish in the AL East. That being said, the Blue Jays finished 2006 in 2nd place in the AL East, and wouldn't have gotten a 2nd, or even a 3rd, Wild Card spot. Even so, it's going to make the late season playoff runs a little more exciting.

Now to introduce a new feature! Where a lot of these Blue Jays blogs focus on prospects, Moneyball-esque numbers, and extra thorough analysis, I'm not that kind of baseball fan. I'm more about the feeling, the experience, and the memories. As such, I have a huge collection of ticket stubs, hats, jerseys, magazines, and memorabilia all with a particular story. So every now and then, I'll showcase an item from my Blue Jays Closet.

Because Spring Training Baseball just got underway, the first item out of the closet is going to be Dunedin-related. This time last year, I was down in Florida and managed to catch a game at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium in Dunedin. It was supposed to be two, but some horrible northern weather got me there two days late. As it was my first trip to Dunedin, I felt the need to get some Grapefruit League Blue Jays gear.

And so, I present the rarely-seen (in Toronto, at least) Dunedin Blue Jays hat. Obviously, they were wearing it in the more traditional blue & grey, but it'll be interesting to see how they adjust to the new (old) logo. I wish I could have made it down this year to see!