NEW YORK – The Blue Jays entered Thursdays series finale at Yankee Stadium losers of eight of their last 11 games. Air Jordan 1 Sale . Theyd dropped 15 in a row in the Bronx dating back to 2012 and had seen their lead over their pinstriped rivals in the American League East dwindle to two and a half games. This is a slump. Its lasted for about two weeks. The downturn comes on the heels of a terrific May, when Toronto won 21 of 30 games and Edwin Encarnacion captured the imagination of fans with his 16-home run month. This is not is the end of the world, nor does this slump suggest a long-term trend. This is on the offence and thats a good thing because theres too much talent in the Blue Jays lineup for the widespread malaise to continue. To wit: The starting pitching has been fine. You could say its been good and you wouldnt be wrong. In the last 11 games, Jays starters have allowed four or more earned runs only twice and have pitched to a staff ERA of 3.71. The starting pitching was supposed to be the weakness. So far it has held up. The Jays have hit only four home runs in their last 11 games. Not surprisingly, three of the home runs came in two of the three victories. Toronto continues to lead baseball with 93 team home runs, which is crucial to the clubs attack. Of the 338 runs the Jays have scored this season, 147 (43.4 per cent) have come via the long ball. Jose Bautista hasnt hit a home run in 11 games, his longest power drought of the season. Hes still hitting for a respectable average, .275 with five of his 11 hits going for doubles, but the Jays miss his power bat as the club struggles, having scored three or fewer runs eight times in the span. This is a phase, both for the individual and for the ballclub, Bautista said, that was bound to happen. "If you can execute every single day for 162, youd probably win 140 games," said Bautista. "We dont expect to execute every single day. But we do have to pick it up. Its one thing, were running into some St. Louis good pitching, some other pitching staffs. I dont want to speak badly or worse about the Yankees or the Orioles but its not the same. We faced much better pitching at home during the last homestand than we have on this road trip, except for Tanaka, who did a tremendous job. So we shouldve won some of these games that we lost." It hasnt helped, either, that Edwin Encarnacion has hit only one home run in the last 11 games. "Weve lacked some timely hitting," said Bautista. "Our pitching has been there enough, I think, that we shouldve won some of these games that weve lost. We just need to keep going on offence. We got really hot at one point and kind of hitting a little cold spurt now. Weve just got to overcome it and not get 10 hits a day but get them when you get the baserunners on." Bautista has repeatedly acknowledged hes bought in to hitting coach Kevin Seitzers philosophy of using all fields. The slugger has become a better all round hitter. His 1,000th career big league hit, achieved in the eighth inning of Wednesday nights loss, was a double to right field. That alone would have been a story last season. This year its commonplace. "I think Im more aware of some situations where people are going to keep challenging me inside, especially when Im behind in the count or theres the right situation when theres a defensive shift," said Bautista. "Why not try to go over there and it ended up working out again? But the previous at bat I tried going that way and I hit into a force out, when Melky got forced out at second. So it works sometimes, sometimes it doesnt." Its difficult to watch a team go into a funk, especially when it had become customary for fans to watch Toronto out-slug and, often, out-pitch opponents. Despite the recent struggles, the Jays offence remains top 10 in important statistical categories: Home runs – 93 (1st)On-base percentage - .329 (5th)On-base plus slugging percentage - .760 (2nd)Walks – 243 (9th) Air Jordan Sale .Mihajlovic was sent off minutes from the end of Thursdays 2-0 win over Brescia and has been punished for using a disrespectful expression toward the fourth official and throwing the contents of a bottle of water at him, thus assuming an intimidating attitude. Nike Shoes Sale . The second-ranked Jayhawks will play the Miners of Texas-El Paso at Imperial Arena in the Bahamas. The game can be seen live on TSN2 starting at 7pm et/4pm pt. https://www.wholesaleshoesforcheap.com/ . Behind the talents of rookie Johnny Gaudreau, the Flames will look to keep pace Thursday night when they face the Minnesota Wild in the second of a six-game homestand.The Hamilton Tiger-Cats would be forgiven if they entered this year with the team they finished with last season. The Henry Burris-led squad finished second in the East Division before advancing to the Grey Cup where they ultimately fell to the home field advantage wielding Saskatchewan Roughriders. For a team that finished 6-12 the previous year, and hadnt made a Grey Cup appearance since winning the trophy in 1999, that qualifies as progress, a significant amount. And more than that, you could argue the team was on the cusp of greatness, a couple tweaks away from finishing the job in 2014. But the Ticats opted against trotting out the same lineup – or a very similar one at least – to take another shot this season. Instead they went for a big shakeup at a key position, one that may lead to some immediate regression, but that could pay off handsomely in the future. Gone is Burris, one of the teams leaders the past two years, and his league-leading stats. After throwing for 10,292 yards and 67 touchdowns the past two years with the Ticats, head coach and general manager Kent Austin allowed Burris to leave in free agency where he signed with the Ottawa Redblacks. The team opted instead for promising youngster Zach Collaros, who proved he more than belonged in the league – and may offer a lot more with extended play – with the Toronto Argonauts last year while Ricky Ray was sidelined with a shoulder injury. Despite Burris taking the Ticats to the peak of the mountain last year, theres a perception hes maybe not the guy to get a team over the mountain, and the Ticats decided to cut bait and build with a quarterback they feel more confident in. For all Collaros heroics filling in and keeping the Argos in contention last season, hes still a young quarterback with just 298 CFL passing attempts to his name. While the Ticats are convinced theyre in for big things with Collaros at QB, and theyre not the only ones as evident by the mini bidding war that went on to secure his services, some growing pains should still be expected with a 26-year-old pivot, especially one learning a new offence. So while Burris may have been the better option for Hamiltons prospects in 2014, considering his age and difficulty winning the big one, going with Collaros upward trending career is the smarter move for ultimate success. Hamilton hopes theyre taking one step back to make two steps forward. This reasonability of this move is buoyed by the general strength of the roster surrounding Collaros. Hell be in the backfield with one of the most exciting running backs in the league in CJ Gable, who finished fourth in the league in rushing with 782 yards but was tthe clear frontrunner in highlight reel spin-o-ramas frequently seen on Sportcentre Honour Rolls. Yeezy 350 Sale. And the Ticats already robust receiving corps added more talent this off-season. Joining Andy Fantuz, Bakari Grant, and Greg Ellingson will be Cary Koch, an underrated threat who spent the first four years of his CFL career split between Saskatchewan and Edmonton, really breaking out with the Eskimos the past two years. And while the addition isnt likely to help Collaros directly, Craig Butler joins an improving defensive unit. Notes Expansion Draft The Tiger-Cats got off easy in the first two rounds of the expansion draft before a surprise pick in the third. Backup running back Chevon Walker and FB John Delahunt were grabbed in Round 1 and 2 before Marwan Hage, surprisingly still available, was taken by the Ottawa Redblacks in the third round. It was clear the Ticats were moving on from Hage after he was left available in the final round of the draft. Hage Retires Hages time in Ottawa wasnt lasting, and the affable offensive lineman did the right thing in returning to Hamilton to retire. It was as good an ending to a solid 10-year career that Tiger-Cats fans could have hoped for, not having to see him in another teams colours. Free Agency Its hard to argue the Ticats werent the winners of free agency after landing their quarterback of the present and future in Collaros, another weapon in the receiving corps in Cary Koch, a decent offensive line replacement in Steve Myddleton, front seven defensive help in Ted Laurent and Abraham Kromah, and a solid Canadian safety in Craig Butler. CFL Draft The Tiger-Cats took a chance on their second of two first round picks and paid for it when Manitoba defensive lineman Evan Gill, a player they traded up for, decided he would return to school and try his luck at an NFL tryout next season. Gill entered the draft a bit of a risk with a quad injury but the Ticats selected him anyway, perhaps opting for the long play. The team also selected Western LB Beau Landry, one pick before Gill in the first round, who later signed with the team. After the first, Hamilton didnt make another pick until the fifth round, taking Toronto LB Christopher Johnson. The Ticats wrapped the draft up with sixth-round defensive linemen Mathieu Girard (Montreal) and Stephen Mawa (UBC), and seventh-round defensive lineman Martin Pesek from Acadia. Tim Hortons Field After a successful campaign at the University of Guelph last season, the Ticats return home to Hamilton for 2014, to the same location Ivor Wynne Stadium once stood. Tim Hortons Field projects to be ready for Hamiltons home opener in Week 5 against the Redblacks. ' ' '