Tower Talk: August 14, 2013

It’s a sentiment that many have shared in Toronto, but until now no one has really acted upon. It was a travesty when Rogers Communications decided to discard the SkyDome name from the concrete monstrosity the Blue Jays, Argos, and (sometimes) Bills call home. 8 years after that Rogers gaffe, a Facebook campaign has begun to show Rogers that the people of Toronto want to Bring Back The Dome. In today’s sporting economy, having a venue without corporate sponsorship is not going to happen, but renaming the stadium the Rogers SkyDome would be a wonderful compromise (seriously how did they not do this in the first place). Yesterday we wrote a story about Bring Back The Dome, so check it out.

Blue Jays

Josh Johnson is headed to the disabled list, essentially killing any value he may have been able to build after his last solid start. After clearing waivers Blue Jays fans were hoping to get some sort of return out of the big right-hander, but alas it wasn’t mean to be. Let’s hope he can come back and give the Jays a clearer picture on what to do with him this offseason. Oh, and Colby Rasmus might be headed to the DL along with him. #Blessthismess [National Post]

Todd Redmond pitched very well, and the Blue Jays still lost thanks to another implosion from their suddenly troubling bullpen. I would like to blame overwork on today’s ineffectiveness, but it was Sergio Santos doing the imploding, so rust is our excuse I guess? [Toronto Star]

David Cooper, the former Blue Jay that was let go in Spring Training after it was revealed he had a potentially career ending back injury has reportedly signed with the Cleveland Indians. There is no doubt in my mind that 2014 will be the year of David Cooper and he’ll lead the league in doubles (don’t worry, he’ll still have the least chin in baseball). [Jays Journal]

What Blue Jays are best at laying off bad pitches? Who takes hacks at those balls that he shouldn’t even consider? Nick Ashbourne throws it down with this awesome post over the Bluebird Banter. Some of the results will surprise you (hello Maicier Izturis), others will be exactly what you expected. [Bluebird Banter]

Maple Leafs

Tim Leiweke was a guest on the Fan590 yesterday where he remained tight-lipped about the status of RFA’s Nazem Kadri and Cody Franson. I would really, strongly prefer these not to drag into training camp, the last thing needed is bad blood between the Leafs and the players they’re trying to low ball. Leiweke also seems to think Joffrey Lupul‘s name is Jeffrey…not that he is one of the most important employees in your organization or anything Tim.  [National Post]

Nazem Kadri has apparently been working hard with the Leafs power skating instructor throughout the offseason to improve both his skating ability and his balance on the ice. This is one area where Kadri’s game could certainly use a boost, and if he has actually put in the work and this isn’t just simply a fluff piece that’s great news for the Leafs. [Toronto Sun]

Raptors

ESPN recently polled its basketball contributors to get some early predictions on the standings for the upcoming NBA season. Predictably the Raptors came in at 10th in the Eastern conference. You can’t really argue with the Raps in this position, although if certain pieces grow organically they could very well go as high as 6. An injury, or perhaps trade could see them plummet much lower as well. [ESPN]

As the predicted 10th place finish noted above will let you know, it may not be the best season in Raptorland…there will undoubtedly be one bright spot however and that is sophomore big man Jonas Valanciunas. Ever feeling said about the Raps? Well just bookmark this and come back to it whenever you need a boost. [Raptors Republic]

Bills

So apparently there are people that took Nathaniel Hackett’s comments about giving CJ Spiller the ball “until he pukes” literally? HC Doug Marrone actually had to talk to Hackett because people were upset? Wasn’t it clear that all Hackett meant is that Spiller is going to get the ball as much as humanly possible, as opposed to last year’s frustratingly small workload? People suck! [ESPN]

Ever want to get into the head of a professional football coach? Wonder how they come to design the ridiculous number of practices that are orchestrated throughout training camp? Then you better check out this piece that was filed on BuffaloBills.com, it’s fascinating and exceptionally well done for something posted on a team website. [BuffaloBills.com]

The Bills second preseason game is going to be blacked out, which would be upsetting if it weren’t ya know, the preseason. [BuffaloBills.com]

Bills fans that prized their bottoms not being frozen while sitting on the metal benches at Ralph Wilson in the middle of winter were rightly outraged when the NFL announced it was banning seat cushions earlier this offseason. Luckily for those fans it seems as if the NFL has back pedaled slightly on its stance, making an allowance for (pretty basic) seat cushions. [Buffalo Rumblings]

TFC

Has Max Urruti signed with Toronto FC, like actually for real this time? Maybe…or maybe not, I’ll believe it when he’s wearing his TFC kit and his on the field at BMO. [Walking The Red]