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The Toronto Blue Jays are going to be brutal this year, a miserly squad playing in the shadows of the free spending Yankee and Red Sox squads. How can they sell this unpalatable approach to the public? Well Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star gives us the spin in today’s paper. They are going to be aggressive and exciting like the - wait for it - Toronto Maple Leafs! Yeah! People love the Leafs, so the Jays are going to be just like them! The next step according to Rogers, whoops!, I mean Griffin, is the trading of Roy Halladay for prospects. Aggressive prospects. Hungry ones, just like the Leafs! The Jays will save money and reward fans with exciting, no holds barred baseball. And did I mention the Jays will save money? Griffin fulfills the role of local hack floating a trial balloon, the elimination of the team’s best player, and accompanies it with a serving of smarm. Triple A ball in the Big Smoke is going to be dressed up with shoulder pads and bright red lipstick. Wanna kiss?…despite landing CC Sabithia, the New York Yankees continue their red hot pursuit of ex-Jay A J Burnett. The current offer for the pitchers services clocks in at a whopping 85 million for five years. The Yanks open their new stadium next year and clearly want a team that justifies the exorbitant seat prices they intend to charge - including an unprecedented 30 bucks a whack for the upper tier…outfielder Manny Ramirez has completely left the radar with an expected bidding war never materializing. Are teams blanching at offering a multiple year contract or, possibly, balking at the prospect of having to deal with agent Scott Boras? With the Yankees still alive in the bidding for Burnett and Petit, I don’t expect them to shower interest on the ageing malcontent anytime soon…after last nights 122-88 blow-out of Washington, the Boston Celtics sit at a stunning 21-2. Are you getting the feeling we should stop the season now and let the Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers settle it? …Roberto Luongo was lauded for his return to the ice last week, well ahead of schedule, as he nurses a tender groin. It now appears his enthusiasm has caused a recurrence of the problem and hampered the recovery schedule…Luongo still leads the NHL in shutouts this year with five. Tied for second with three apiece are Miikka Kiprusoff of the Calgary Flames and Niklas Backstrom of the Minnesota Wild…the Dallas Stars have given up five or more goals in a game eleven times this year. The tailspin of the highly regarded Stars is being pawned off on the destructive influence of Sean Avery but, clearly, the imp wasn’t giving up all those goals…Alexander Semin played for the Washington Capitals Wednesday night. The player, who was leading the NHL in scoring before missing twelve games, is apparently killing time until his next injury…Carla Colaiacovo scored his first goal of the season last night for the St Louis Blues. The Blues lost 6-2 to the Los Angeles Kings…other ex-Leafs in the news include Scott Clemmensen, starting goal and playing well for the New Jersey Devils, and Brad Boyes, helping the Blues along with fifteen goals this year. Both Clemmensen and Boyes would look good in Leaf jerseys this season, Colaiacovo, not so much…Drew Brees had a dreadful first half against the Chicago Bears last night. He was 10 of 24 for 93 yards while the Bears streaked away to a 21-7 lead. If the Saints do not make the playoffs this year, can an MVP award for the Saints QB be justified? I say absolutely not…on the Dallas Cowboys December schedule; N Y Giants, Baltimore Ravens and at the Philadelphia Eagles. Tony Romo and his associates like nothing more than talking a great game. It is time to shut up and put up…I can’t take a rookie QB over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their pissed off defence. I just can’t. The Bucs are going to re-introduce themselves to Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday and I’ll be giving the points…my book has no line posted for the St Louis Rams - Seattle Seahawks “festival of crap” showdown on Sunday. Where is their sense of humour?…cruiserweight Steve Cunningham brought over Pole Tomasz Adamek, seemingly with his best days behind him, for his first defence of his IBF Cruiserweight title last night in Newark, New Jersey. I always emphasize, you do not mess with the “tough as iron” crazy ones. You ignore them. Now Cunningham, like Miguel Cotto before him (see:Antonio Margarito), grasps the concept. He was knocked down three times en route to losing his title via a twelve round decision…did you catch the press conference promoting tomorrows heavyweight farce between Vladimir Klitschko and Hasim Rachman? Rachman showed up in a thick winter coat, refused to remove it, and then kept falling asleep. I’ll get the over/under for the scrap and post it tomorrow to see if we can find a wagering opportunity. Even the extra cautious Klitschko should be able to dismiss Hasim quickly given the circumstances surrounding this sham…