Marco Scutaro returned to his roots and didn't take long to leave his mark.
The first pitch of the game, Scutaro doubled. Nothing new for the former A's infielder. The valuable Scutaro has been a key factor with Toronto's high-potent offense this year. Scutaro is batting leadoff because of his on-base percentage (.400 at game time), which is ironic. For most of his time with the A's, the knock on Scutaro was his low on-base percentage.
He worked hard trying to improve that statistic, which was vital to existence with the A's, but the A's didn't have enough faith and dealt him to Toronto in November 2007.
He had a .351 on-base percentage last year, and this year he leads the AL in walks with 28.
He never opened a season in Oakland as an everyday player, but he often found himself as a regular due to injuries to various infielders. For the first time, he opened this year as an everyday guy.
Scutaro has five home runs. On the A's, he'd be the leader.
In Friday's 5-3 loss at Oakland, Scutaro had one hit, the first-inning double. He was stranded.
A'S 5, BLUE JAYS 3: Toronto had won six straight over the A's but lost Friday night at Oakland. Another streak that ended was rookie Scott Richmond's winning streak, at five games. The Blue Jays scored three runs in the second, but the A's answered with five in their half of the inning.
