TORONTO – It didnt happen right away, this positive working relationship between centerfielder Colby Rasmus and hitting coach Kevin Seitzer. cheap nfl jerseys . It wasnt that the two men were at odds. Its just, sometimes, these things take time. Its especially true with a guy like Rasmus. Hes taken all kinds of advice through the years on how to be a better hitter and how to be a better player and sometimes too much information rattles around in his brain. "Weve crossed some humps for sure," said Rasmus. "Just getting to know each other better; him getting to know me a little better." It was a conversation in Kansas City that proved the turning point. Rasmus was scuffling, his batting average hovering around the so-called Mendoza Line (.200). Hed been trying things his way. Noticeable details, like how he would hold his hands out over the plate when he came set in his batting stance. There were less noticeable things, like his approach to particular pitchers, which also needed tweaking. Seitzer approached Rasmus. The coach asked his 27-year-old pupil to do it his way for one week. The hands came in a bit, the bat rested still on Rasmus shoulders to launch a more even swing through the strike zone and the results were immediate. Entering Sundays play, Rasmus had at least one hit in each of the nine games hed played in May. He was tied with Jose Bautista for the team lead with nine home runs. "I was probably more surprised than what he was that he was able to do it so quick and he did it immediately," said Seitzer. "It was amazing how he just went from a straight pull guy to having a willingness to go back through the middle of the field." For his entire career, Rasmus has been considered a dead pull hitter. Seitzer, with whom manager John Gibbons became familiar when the two served on Trey Hillmans coaching staff in Kansas City, was brought in to change the Blue Jays all-or-nothing offensive approach. The hitters would use all fields under his tutelage and get away from their pull-happiness. Seitzer would like to clarify. "I said, I dont care where the ball goes. What I care about is your approach," said Seitzer. "The quicker your hands, the better your swing, the more balls youre going to catch early and youre going to pull them but its the approach that allows for better recognition and the ability to repeat your swing path to where youve got a chance on balls that are cutting and sinking and the change of speeds." The hitting coach also plays the role of part-time psychologist. Different guys need different types of help. Rasmus doesnt need the proverbial kick in the rear. His issue never been work ethic; if anything, hes often worked too hard to the point of physical and mental fatigue. "Keep it light," said Rasmus of what he needs from Seitzer. "I guess make the game less than what it really is and I think hes learned that about me, that I dont need a lot of poking and prodding to give me a lot of energy out there because I like to compete, I like to play, I like to do good and I think hes starting to learn that about me. Hes been just kind of cutting up with me and trying to keep it light and we laugh. I think if Im laughing, its a good thing." Rasmus slash line had climbed to .234/.279/.516 before Sundays action. The on-base plus slugging is closing in on .800, moving toward the numbers of his two best seasons (.859 in 2010; .840 in 2013). His career on-base percentage of .315 suggests that statistic will improve as games pass by. The strikeout rate remains high, almost 33 per cent after Sunday, but Seitzer thinks Rasmus will end up cutting down on the whiffs with his new approach. "I feel like hes putting balls in play and fouling off more pitches that he would have swung through the first part of the season," said Seitzer. "Thats an encouraging sign for me." Rasmus admits to being too pumped up after hitting a grand slam in Pittsburgh. Hes still finding an even keel, having to remind himself that each at-bat isnt life and death. Seitzer has met a student hes better learning to understand as time rolls on. "I think Colbys very quiet, hes a very private person and what Ive learned about him is hes probably one of the most genuinely nice, kind, sincere, honest people that Ive ever been around," said Seitzer. "I told him he has an absolutely beautiful heart inside and I can see it. I see it everyday even when hes got a scowl on his face because hes either in his zone or a little frustrated." JANSSEN RETURNS The Blue Jays activated closer Casey Janssen from the disabled list in time for Sunday afternoons game with the Angels. Janssen strained his left oblique muscle on March 28 in Montreal. He felt a tweak during a warm up pitch, thought nothing of it and threw a scoreless inning against the New York Mets. He made three appearances for Double-A New Hampshire on a rehab assignment that began on Monday and concluded on Saturday. "In my last outing I told myself I was going to step on it a little bit more and get some more velocity and I did that," said Janssen. "Not that velocity is anything really but I know that the difference between throwing in a Double-A game and a big league game youre going to go through those adrenaline rushes where youre going to throw harder based on actual adrenaline and I wanted my arm to withstand it." Torontos bullpen entered play on Sunday with the fourth-worst ERA in baseball (4.77). Its 62 walks rank third-most in baseball. The Jays are hoping Janssens return settles down the relief corps as pitchers resume roles to which theyre more accustomed. "We had a nice bullpen last year," said Janssen. "We were able to pass the baton pretty well in the certain inning that they had and if we can back to that and start putting up some zeroes I think that would help everybody." "I just think it brings a bit of a comfort down there for those guys having Casey back," said pitching coach Pete Walker. "Obviously our staff, knowing that hes down there and hes a viable option to close out a game, it does put guys back into their more proper roles. Trying to mix and match and close out the ninth without him has been difficult." To make room for Janssen on the active roster, infielder Chris Getz was designated for assignment. ROGERS ALTERS DELIVERY Esmil Rogers, whos struggled early this season, looked noticeably different during his two-inning appearance in Saturdays game. He dropped to a three-quarters arm slot. Rogers went six up, six down. "He made a little bit of an adjustment the day before," said pitching coach Pete Walker. "Were trying to find a little more deception. Hes an over-the-top guy and maybe the hitters have a good view of the baseball. We just altered just a hair and he seems comfortable with it and he had a good outing (on Saturday)." Its been a tough year for Rogers. Hes allowed a staff-high five home runs in just 18 1/3 innings pitched and of late has been used by manager John Gibbons only in low-leverage situations. cheap jerseys . For Kyle Lowry, its become an accepted reality. He will be traded. The question is, when and where? The Raptors point guard is widely believed to be next on general manager Masai Ujiris chopping block after the first domino - Rudy Gay, Lowrys best friend - fell last week. wholesale jerseys . Yankees second baseman Robinson Cano, Detroit third baseman Miguel Cabrera and Minnesota catcher Joe Mauer each were selected for the fifth time.VAL-DOR, Que. -- Anthony Mantha increased his lead atop the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League scoring race on Friday as his Val-dOr Foreurs blanked the visiting Acadie-Bathurst Titan 3-0. Mantha had a goal and an assist for the Foreurs (38-18-2), giving him 50 goals and 102 points in 48 games this season. Anthony Richard and Ryan Graves also scored for Val-dOr, which extended its win streak to seven games, while Keven Bouchard made 22 saves for the shutout. Miguel Sullivan kicked out 34-of-37 shots for the Titan (18-35-6). --- SCREAMING EAGLES 6 ISLANDERS 4 SYDNEY, N.S. -- Guillaume Gauthier had two goals and two assists as Cape Breton held on to defeat Charlottetown. Raphael Corriveau scored twice for the Screaming Eagles (30-24-4), who led 5-1 after 40 minutes, while Cameron Darcy and Jeremy Beaudry each had a goal and an assist. Bradley Kennedy registered two goals for the Islanders (18-35-5), Spenser Cobbold had a goal and two assists and Daniel Sprong added a single goal. Cape Bretons Alex Bureau made 27 saves for the win. Charlottetowns Mason MacDonald turned away 39-of-44 shots in defeat. --- MOOSEHEADS 7 CATARACTES 1 HALIFAX -- Nikolaj Ehlers had a pair of goals and Jonathan Drouin scored once and set up three more as the Mooseheads crushed Shawinigan for their fifth straight victory. Darcy Ashley, Philippe Gadoury, Luca Ciampini each had a goal and an assist for Halifax (39-18-3) while Brandon Vuic added a single goal. Felix-Antoine Bergeron scored the lone goal for the Cataractes (16-35-8). Zachary Fucale made 22 saves for the Mooseheads as Shawingans Marvin Cupper stopped 35-of-42 shots in defeat. --- SAGUENEENS 4 PHOENIX 1 SHERBROOKE, Que. -- Nicolas Roy scored twice and Julio Billia stopped 39 shots as Chicoutimi downed the Phoenix to halt a six-game skid. Laurent Dauphin and Simon Tremblay also scored for the Sagueneens (26-31-1). Mathieu Laverdure scored for Sherbrooke (15-36-7), which lost its 10th in a row. Francis Desrosiers turned away 26-of-30 shots for the Phoenix. --- TIGRES 3 REMPARTS 0 VICTORIAVILLE, Que. -- Francois Tremblay only had to stop 17 shots for his fifth shuutout of the season as the Tigres blanked Quebec. wholesale nfl jerseys. Carl-Antoine Delisle had a goal and an assist for Victoriaviile (30-22-6), which snapped a three-game slide, while Julien Leduc and Jan Mandat added a goal apiece. Mikhail Grigorenko was a team-worst minus-2 for the Remparts (34-16-9). Adam Chapman picked up a match penalty 4:56 into the game for checking-to-the-head. Quebecs Callum Booth turned away 36-of-39 shots in a losing cause. --- OCEANIC 4 ARMADA 1 BOISBRIAND, Que. -- Frederik Gauthier scored twice as Rimouski toppled the Armada for its seventh straight win. Peter Trainor and Samuel Courtemanche also scored for the Oceanic (36-15-7). Blainville-Boisbriand (37-12-9) got its goal from Christopher Clapperton. Philippe Desrosiers made 25 saves for Rimouski while Etienne Marcoux gave up four goals on 28 shots for the Armada. --- OLYMPIQUES 8 DRAKKAR 4 GATINEAU, Que. -- Martin Reway scored once and added four assists and Emile Poirier and Simon-Tardif Richard each had a pair of goals as the Olympiques doubled up Baie-Comeau. Vaclav Karabacek scored once and set up two more for Gatineau (36-19-4), while Jake Coughler and Taylor Burke added single goals. Alexandre Belanger scored twice for the Drakkar (40-15-4), who had their three-game win streak stunted. Gabriel Verpaelst and Alec Jon Banville also scored for Baie-Comeau. Robert Steeves made 21 saves for the Olympiques. Baie-Comeaus Simon Lemieux allowed four goals on 16 shots before giving way to Philippe Cadorette, who stopped 15-of-18 shots in 27 minutes of relief. --- HUSKIES 6 WILDCATS 1 ROUYN-NORANDA, Que. -- Jean-Sebastien Dea and Jason Fuchs scored 19 seconds apart in the second period as the Huskies went on to down Moncton. Liam OBrien, Mathieu Lemay, Francis Beauvillier and Redgie Bois also scored for Rouyn-Noranda (32-21-5) and Marcus Power chipped in with two assists. Christopher Caissy scored the only goal for the Wildcats (30-27-3). Alexandre Belanger made 21 saves for the Huskies. Monctons Alex Dubeau gave up five goals on 24 shots before getting pulled. Jason Rioux made 25 saves in 33 relief minutes. cheap jerseyscheap jerseys from china ' ' '
