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Sunday, July 31, 2011

{allcanada} Rasmus breaks out in series finale

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TORONTO--The Toronto Blue Jays spent the early part of Sunday honouring their past.

They then went out and reminded everyone why their present and immediate future is worthy of some attention as well.

On a day when Roberto Alomar's No. 12 became the first number retired in franchise history, the Blue Jays rode a strong outing from starter Brandon Morrow and a two-hit, two RBI day from newly-acquired Colby Rasmus to a 7-3 win over the Texas Rangers before a sold-out crowd of 45,629 at Rogers Centre.

The win allowed the Blue Jays (55-53) to close out July with a 15-11 record and an equally impressive weekend series victory over the A.L. West-leading Rangers (61-48) after holding them to three runs or less in each of the three games.

"A good series to win against Texas," said Blue Jays manager John Farrell following the game. "If we can take two of three we're making gains, we're making strides for sure."

As for Alomar, prior to the start of the game the former Blue Jay walked through the crowd and then across the diamond where he used to patrol second base before making his way to a stage in centre field where he was joined by several ex-Toronto teammates, family members and former manager Cito Gaston.

Following a speech by Blue Jays president Paul Beeston, the two men stood arm-in-arm and watched as a banner with Alomar's No. 12 dropped from the rafters and to officially take his number out of circulation.

"It's been a great day, I never expected so many people here," said Alomar, who on July 24 became the first player inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame wearing a Blue Jays cap. "The support they've given me has been unbelievable. This day will be a day that I remember for the rest of my life."

While the past couple of weeks may have belonged to Alomar off the field, the story on the field continued to be the resurgence of Edwin Encarnacion.

The 28-year-old --whose name had been bandied about in trade rumours and who still could be dealt should he clear waivers -- continued to wield a hot stick, smashing a two-run home run in the first inning off Rangers starter and losing pitcher C.J. Wilson (10-5) to give Toronto a 2-0 lead.

"When Eddie hit that two-run home run in the first, it seemed to set (the crowd) off and they were involved in the game," said Farrell. "It was a great atmosphere today."

Encarnacion will no doubt be sad to see July come to an end after hitting at a .312/.379/.505 clip for the month.

Meanwhile, Colby Rasmus -- acquired in Tuesday's 14-player blockbuster trade with the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago White Sox -- recorded his first two hits in a Toronto uniform including a two-out, two-run double in the fourth to put the Jays ahead 7-0.

Rasmus' third-inning single snapped an 0 for 13 skid.

"The first couple of days were definitely nerve-wracking, not being able to do some of the stuff I want to do," admitted Rasmus. "It was a pretty good day. I want to suck it up till Tuesday when we get back out there."

Toronto's seven runs were more than enough for starter Brandon Morrow (8-5), who rebounded nicely from a rough outing Tuesday against Baltimore to deliver seven strong innings of six-hit, two-run ball with two walks and a season-high 11 strikeouts to pick up the win.

Trevor Miller and Casey Janssen pitched the eighth while Frank Francisco closed things out in the ninth for Toronto in a non-save situation.

Morrow said the pre-game ceremony, sold-out crowd and strong performances by his fellow starters of late provided him with a welcome boost.

"I think it pumps up the guys on the field, it adds to that level of energy you can't really seem to get sometimes," he said of the packed house. "I think the rotation has found its stride. It's kind of one of those things where you pass the baton and want to keep going."

If the Blue Jays are to contend for a playoff position in 2012 or beyond they'll need much more of the same going forward from the 27-year-old Morrow and the 24-year-old Rasmus.

On Sunday at least, Farrell got an up-close look of what once was in Toronto and what he hopes is yet to come.

"On a day when we honoured one of the best players ever to come through this organization, in front of a packed house, there was a lot of electricity," he said. "It was a good showing all the way around."

NOTES: The Alomar ceremony delayed the start of the game by approximately 30 minutes… Farrell sat out Adam Lind for the second straight game to give him some rest… Prior to the game Farrell said he sat shortstop Yunel Escobar to give him rest, not as punishment for failing to run out a groundball in Saturday's 3-0 loss to Texas… Following an off day Monday, the Jays will open a three-game road series against the Tampa Bay Rays.

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