TOWERS STRUGGLES AGAIN; WHO'S GOING TO TAKE HIS PLACE?

John Smoltz in a Jays uniform? Get out of town.

It probably won't happen. However, the point has been argued to death around here for almost two months that the Blue Jays need to deal for starting pitching to have a legit shot at winning the AL East, especially after Josh Towers' latest effort (six earned runs in four innings) in a 7-4 loss to the Mets raised his ERA to a highly appropriate 9.11.

So yes, if Towers was 5-5 instead of 1-9, the Jays could conceivably be a half-game behind Boston instead of 4½ entering their off day on Monday

Getting back to Smoltz, you have to wonder if the Braves might be willing to move him, if Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi makes an offer they can't refuse. Of course, whether or not Smoltz would want to leave is another story, and if he did, you wonder if he might not want to finish his career close to home with Detroit, the team that originally drafted him.

A tender groin on the 39-year-old likely Hall of Famer sends up some red flags, but here's where it's worth noting that the Braves hold an $8 million (all figures US) club option him for 2007. It seems there's some chance the penny-pinching Braves might be willing to pick up some of his remaining '06 salary to save themselves the $8 million hit next year.

Otherwise, the Jays are looking for a starter who fits this criterium:

A) Comes cheap;
B) Will be effective;
C) Is going to be available.

And how is Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi supposed to keep from getting fleeced when three months of running out Towers and Ty Taubenheim has pretty much shown the Jays are in a bad way for starting pitching? There's the rub.

The two pitchers most often rumoured to be on the move between now and the July 31 deadline are Dontrelle Willis and Jeff Weaver. Of the three, it's doubtful the Marlins would ever part with Willis, and if he does the bidding is sure to get too rich for the Jays' blood, while Weaver (3-9, 5.82 ERA) isn't even the best Weaver pitching for the L.A. Angels. Here's a couple who might be available if their teams can get out there and start sucking in the next 3-4 weeks:

• Paul Byrd, Cleveland. Unfortunately for the Jays, even a pro-rated portion of his $7 million salary would be a bit much, and Byrd is just another soft-tosser.
• Jamie Moyer, Seattle. By baseball standards he is slightly younger than carbon (43 in November), but he can pitch. His team blows, but it's in the AL West, so a 38-39 record puts the Mariners only four games out of first place. If Seattle really goes in the tank over the next three weeks, there might be some Moyer rumours (he's on a 1-year contract).
• Carlos Zambrano, Chicago Cubs. Keep dreaming.

Just have to wonder if something could be up with Smoltz. It's probably just a dream. Also, as long as we're talking former Braves 20-game winners, it's worth noting the Orioles just picked up Russ Ortiz, who was 0-5 with Arizona before being released. Ortiz is supposed to make a start next weekend; if the Orioles figure that with the magic of a Leo Mazzone makeover (Mazzone was Ortiz's pitching coach in Atlanta), there might be a taker out there for him. Baltimore's intentions probably couldn't be anything different.

That's all for now. Send your thoughts to neatesager@yahoo.ca.