JAYS MAY NOT BE WITH LEATHER; SPECIFICALLY, VERNON WELLS' GOLD GLOVE

Keith Law of ESPN.com (subscriber content) has ruffled some Blue Jay feathers by saying flat out that Vernon Wells has told the team "he has no intention of signing a contract extension to stay in Toronto."

It's no secret that Vernon's agent may be pushing him to test the open market after the '07 season, but did Law have to come right out and saw it? Of course he did. It's his job. Except Law used to work for the Jays, so as you might have guessed, the organization is deeply PO'd at him right now, with GM J.P. Ricciardi even saying Law is "officially an idiot." (This from the man who just traded Eric Hinske to a division rival. Don't throw stones from a glass general manager's office, J.P.)

Wells "curtly" (Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star's word) denied it, of course, telling the Star that Law's report a "complete fabrication."

It's all the "sources said" type of stuff, so you don't know if there's any truth to it or if it's the equivalent of cow dung on the roadside. You see it, you smell it, but for chrissakes, don't go over and step in it. Oh, geez, why did you pick it up?

Not to get overly repetitive, but the feeling here is that the Jays probably could trade Wells, get three guys in return and have a more balanced team in '07. However, doing so would never fly in the all-important court of public opinion. Besides, if they did trade him, it could come across as the Ricciardi regime compounding some of its past mistakes. (Namely, entering into long-term deals with several players last winter without knowing the budget for 2007.)

Also, Law notes that part of Wells' supposed eagerness to leave stems from his being the only African-American player on the entire roster. That could be the case and it would be perfectly understandable, but if Wells also wants to move closer to his Texas home, then it's worth noting that the Houston Astros don't have a single African-American player on their current roster. The Texas Rangers have three, but that includes their starting centre-fielder, Gary Matthews Jr., who would presumably lose his job if Wells joined that team.

Related:
Lock It Up: Jays, Wells In For The Long Haul (Aug. 9)
Money Tight in Ted Rogers' Neighbourhood (Aug. 2)

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