What you see on the left is the classic logo of the Toronto Blue Jays, the one the Jays wore in 1977, the one they wore during back-to-back World Series championship wins in ’92 and ’93. What you see on the right is the club’s new logo for 2012, an image that leaked on Wednesday and follows the Miami Marlins 1970s gas station clusterf**k in a string of recent, could-be should-be logo leaks.

Just like the Marlins leak, the team won’t confirm or deny, but makes it pretty clear that they aren’t going to deny. From thestar.com:

“We won’t comment on rumours or speculation … at such a time as when we have an announcement to make, we will happily release that information,” [Jays’ spokesperson Jay] Stenhouse said Thursday.

Two things:

1. Canadian spelling of “rumors” left in for your enjoyment
2. Do you think Jay Stenhouse got the Jays spokesperson job because his name is “Jay”?

If this turns out to be their new logo, it beats the hell out of their last decade of tough guy muscular birds and italicized art deco disasters. It’s what an updated logo should be — a cleaned-up, sleek design that keeps with the times without pretending the greatest and most prosperous times in your team’s history didn’t happen. It also (hopefully) prevents the Jays marketing team from thinking “creepy looking man-birds” is what people want to see.

Because seriously:

Read the rest of this entry »

Vernon Wells redefined the meaning of common sense on Sunday when he announced that he would not *GASP!* opt out of his contract after this season. Five years ago, Wells signed a 7-year contract with the Toronto Blue Jays worth $126 million, so it shouldn’t take a math genius to figure out why he wouldn’t want to stick out those final three years, despite the fact that he’s not worth even half of what he’s being paid.

And you can’t blame the guy, because who the hell would give up that kind of cheddar? But just in case you were wondering, Wells offered up his reasoning.

“Why would you waive your no-trade clause (to accept a trade to the Angels) and then opt out one year later?

“Maybe it’s just society, but people put too much on struggling,” Wells said. “All of a sudden, everything is negative – you’re a bad guy; you’re unhappy. It’s a struggle, yeah. But that’s all it is. I’ve struggled before. Baseball is such a different game. You can be an All-Star one year, struggle the next year and become an All-Star again.

“It is what it is. … (Southern California) is a great place to live, a great place to play. I’ve got a lot of good years left and I look forward to having them there.”

(Via OC Register)

Well, he has three years left, sure. Unless the Anaheim Angels of Anaheim can find a team that would be dumb enough to take on that kind of contract. Maybe the Blue Jays are interested.

Read the rest of this entry »

Tampa Bay Ray Evan Longoria was robbed during Spring Training, and yesterday he was able to find some closure. From a report via Tampa’s News Leader™ WTSP 10

A Port Charlotte man was arrested Wednesday for his involvement in the burglary and grand theft of a Tampa Bay Rays spring training rental home earlier this year.

Steven Charles Vaughn, 22, is charged with Armed Burglary of an Unoccupied Dwelling, Grand Theft and Dealing in Stolen Property. Vaughn was already in jail on unrelated charges.

While the Rays were at a spring training game in nearby Charlotte Stadium on March 26, thieves got into their home and stole $60,000 worth of items, including numerous electronics, watches, jewelry and an AK-47 that belonged to third baseman Evan Longoria.

His jewelry and his what?

Yes, apparently Evan Longoria has a stash of automatic weapons in his home, and it may or may not be because he’s one of Gillette’s “Young Guns”. Regardless, it’s always good when a robbery gets solved, and The Dugout is pleased to present this exclusive transcript of the police report that led to an arrest. Of, uh, a guy already in jail. But still.

Today’s Dugout is after the jump.

Read the rest of this entry »

On July 5, in the 10th inning of a 2-2 game against the Oakland Athletics, Franklin Gutierrez and Brendan Ryan scored to give the Seattle Mariners a 4-2 victory and a .500 record. Normally that kind of story wouldn’t be worth telling, but it was also the last time that Seattle has won a game. Since that night in Oakland, the Mariners have lost 17 games in a row. The American League record is 21 (1988 Baltimore Orioles) and the Major League Baseball record is 23 (1961 Philadelphia Phillies). After last night’s 4-1 one-hit loss to C.C. Sabathia and the New York Yankees, it’s looking like a record could be on the cold, rainy Emerald City horizon.

As a St. Louis Cardinals fan, I’m generally regarded as one of the most intelligent, classy and, in this case, sympathetic fans in sports. Seattle fans are a good, knowledgeable and loyal bunch, but they’re never really regarded in the same conversations as the other heartbroken fan bases in sports, like those of the Pittsburgh Pirates or the Cleveland Anythings. After losing the Supersonics to Oklahoma City and Super Bowl XL to the Pittsburgh Steelers, the fans of Seattle sports really only have the Mariners to hang their hopes on (with all due respect to Charlie Whitehurst and your 2011 Seahawks).

That’s why this losing streak is just so sad. Sad enough that I thought we could take a look back at the games, with the help of some really sad pooches. Oh, and for full appreciation of a Mariners fan’s sorrow, play this song in another window.

Special Breaking Score Update: There’s been a new dog added to reflect today’s Yankees-Mariners outcome.

Read the rest of this entry »

But the question remains: Are the Cleveland Indians “for real”?

Okay, so a one-and-a-half game lead in the AL Central might not constitute “awesome”, but watching Travis Hafner crush a ball into right field to defeat the Toronto Blue Jays and give the Tribe their second walk-off grand slam victory of the season felt that way. Blogs great and small have been asking that “are the Cleveland Indians an actual baseball team” question since the first week of the season and chances are they’ll be asking it well into September. If the Indians are three outs away from winning game four of the World Series to sweep the Phillies (or the Pirates, or whoever) the announcers will be on their Twitters, asking followers if now is the time to consider Cleveland a contender.

IT IS TIME TO DO THAT NOW. It is five past Tribe Time.

I’ve been watching this video over and over for the last half hour, so I thought I’d put it up on my website, where I could at least get a little traffic, and maybe a disgruntled Toronto fan stopping by to point out how the Jays play in the AL East and the Tribe plays in a ball pit with some kids dressed like the Twins. That’s true. It’s also true that we’ve got three months left in the season, and Cleveland could still finish 14 games behind the Tigers. It’s true that Cleveland is a terrible town full of terrible sports fans who still aren’t supporting their team and won’t buy an Indians shirt until they’re in the ALDS, but I love them all, dammit, and I am totally and completely expecting four-to-five more walk-off grand slams before the season is over.

Now isn’t the doldrums of sports fandom, folks. Now is the best.

And Magic Johnson, who was awesome.

Sports

Remember When Magic Happened in the 1980 NBA Finals? - I don’t, really, because I was only a few months old. I also don’t really remember the Miracle on Ice, but I’m going to tell people I do. I remember going to see E.T. and Empire Strikes Back at around this age, though, so you see where my mental priorities lie. [Smoking Section]

The Rogers Centre Field-Stormer, or The Industry’s First Television Star - The new era of instant, viral success has made us a society of doers, not thinkers, and the “doing” always seems to be stupid. I’ve got to be famous and it has to happen RIGHT NOW, I’m going to RUN WHERE THEY TOLD ME NOT TO, YEAHHH. [SBN]

Brothers and Sisters Make Bad Roomates: the KSK Sex/Fantasy Mailbag - These are always worth a read, but you don’t need me to tell you that. I’d start up a With Leather mailbag, too, but I don’t feel like explaining how I’m not gay five times a week every week for the rest of my life. [KSK]

10 Amazing Quotes From Brittney Palmer’s Cagewriter Interview - If you missed yesterday’s Maggie Hendricks-approved analysis of a Maggie Hendricks interview with a 12-year old middle school student who also happens to be a sexy Octagon Girl, check it out. [With Leather]

The Incredibly Strange Love Affair of Kyrie Irving and @MISSHAWAII - I’m not the type to toss a “BITCHES BE CRAZY” tag on posts, but wow, bitches be crazy. [With Leather]

Not Sports

Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum’s “21 Jump Street” To Be Rated R, Son - Because another R-rated comedy made money so producers went GO GO GO GO. The movie also stars the adorable Valerie Tian, who has maybe the worst filmography of all time (so far it includes Drillbit Taylor, Charlie St. Cloud, The Boy Who Cried Werewolf and a direct-to-video Robert Duvall western from 2006. Holy sh**. [Film Drunk]

Lobster Dog Vs. Lobster Dog - This is just a link to more links, but you should probably see a dog dressed as a lobster preparing to battle something called a “dog” covered with real lobster. [Warming Glow]

Super Mario Gets Some Sweet Converse Sneakers - I would pay good money for these shoes if I was still 15. Make some Excitebike shoes and we’ll talk. [Gamma Squad]

10 Great Things You Might Know Troy McClure From - “Hi, I’m Troy McClure! You may remember me from such TV shows as ‘the good seasons of The Simpsons’.” [Fark]