DETROIT – Pat Hentgen isnt traveling with the Blue Jays this season, having ceded his role as bullpen coach to Bob Stanley in order to spend time with his ailing father, but his eyes light up at the mention of the ballclub. "You know I watch every single game, right?" He once again holds the title of special assistant to the organization, which affords Hentgen the opportunity to rove through the minor league system. Hes at home a lot, he needs to be with his dad battling cancer, but he may as well be at the field with the way he scrutinizes each development. "Buehrles great start right off the top, 10-1 is huge, it reminds you of what Buchholz did last year for the Red Sox," said Hentgen. "On top of that, Dickeys solid. Hutch is solid. The starting rotations been pretty solid overall so I think thats been a big difference." The statistics back Hentgen up. How many times did you hear general manager Alex Anthopoulos say, last year, no team that ranks in the bottom five in starting staff ERA has a chance to compete? The answer: more than a few times. The Blue Jays starters ERA of 3.77 ranks 14th in baseball and is the best in the American League East. Last year, only the Minnesota Twins had a worse staff ERA than Torontos. Rare was the occasion last season, when Hentgen presided over the disappointing clubs bullpen, its greatest strength, its best players were on the field at the same time. Brett Lawrie missed the start of the season with a strained oblique. Jose Reyes rolled his ankle in the second week of the season and Lawrie, back from the oblique, did the same in late May. The two werent on the field together until after the All-Star Break and by then, it didnt matter because the Jays were out of the race. Now, Lawrie is the key to manager John Gibbons rotation which features Juan Francisco at third base against right-handed starting pitching and Steve Tolleson at second base against left-handers. Lawrie fills the positional void on the infield. "I like the fact that theyre getting platoons because sometimes those guys need the rest," said Hentgen. "When you run the same nine guys out there every single day, its not easy for the position players, especially on our turf. The rotation of the designated hitters is a nice move." Blue Jays fans old enough to remember Hentgens heyday will recall his nasty, looping curveball. Naturally, Hentgens impressed with 23-year-old rookie Marcus Stroman. "He really spins the ball well, really well actually," said Hentgen. "I think hes got multiple looks with his breaking ball. He can curve it, he can slide it, he can cut it, you know, talented guy. I think hes just got to focus on staying on top of the ball and driving the ball down with his fastball, especially when hes behind in the count. Hes got great stuff and hes a hell of a competitor." What about adjustments? Stroman made the likes of Eric Hosmer and Billy Butler look silly on two-strike curveballs last Saturday. Stroman will start Friday nights opener against St. Louis and surely, the Cardinals will have a better book on the young righthander. "Second time through the league, you have to make an adjustment as a pitcher because the hitters will and I think that he will," said Hentgen. "Hes athletic enough and hes good enough. Hes just a young guy whos trying to get his feet wet here and get established. Hes got a great start under his belt already and probably looking forward to his next start here. I think he shouldnt change a thing. He should go at St. Louis like he just did against Kansas City." Hentgen isnt trying to split the atom with his analysis of the current Blue Jays. Continued good health, he believes, is the key. "The starting pitchers have got to stay healthy," said Hentgen. "The key relievers, the core guys out there, they have to stay healthy and obviously the position players. We saw what happened last year when we lost Reyes and Lawrie and Jose (Bautista). Its not easy when you lose three-fifths of your rotation and three of your position players." Encarnacions Special Month Edwin Encarnacion is the American League Player of the Month for May, the first time in his career hes been awarded the honour. "Its a lot more special for me because the way weve been playing, weve been winning games so thats the more important thing for me and my teammates," said Encarnacion. "Its nothing about just myself. Its just something that we want to play like a team and win like the way weve been doing so thats made it more special." The numbers dont lie. Encarnacions 16 home runs in May set a Blue Jays franchise mark for a single month; he became only the third player in major league history to have five multi-home run games in a single month (Harmon Killebrew – May, 1959 and Albert Belle – September, 1995). He led the league with a .763 slugging percentage and 22 extra-base hits. Encarnacion is also putting together a strong season at first base. "I feel very proud about my defence," said Encarnacion. "I worked very hard during the offseason. Its something you have to do great. If you dont play good defence, you cant win games." Lineup Construction When the Blue Jays face a right-handed starting pitcher, Adam Lind and Juan Francisco are in the lineup. Manager John Gibbons has, typically, employed two different middle-of-the-order constructs in these situations. 3. Bautista4. Lind5. Encarnacion6. Francisco Or 3. Bautista4. Encarnacion5. Lind6. Lawrie7. Francisco Gibbons picked the latter for Tuesdays game against Tigers right-hander Anibal Sanchez. "Weve bounced them back and forth a couple of times," said Gibbons. "Tonight, Im looking at Eddie. You know, Sanchez has been tough on Francisco. Hes got the good breaking ball and good off-speed stuff so space them out a little bit." Gibbons went with the first lineup on Sunday, a 4-0 win over the Royals and right-hander Jeremy Guthrie. "The other day against Guthrie, I mean Francisco had three home runs off him in six at-bats," said Gibbons. "I just look at the pitcher were facing, this guy can maybe give him trouble, maybe thats the case, protect Eddie with Lindy there instead." Injury Updates Colby Rasmus is rehabbing his injured right hamstring in Dunedin, Florida without a timeline for his return to the Blue Jays. His skipper hasnt received any updates of late. "No," said manager John Gibbons. "When I do, Ill let you know." Rasmus has been on the disabled list since May 13. The word is hes progressing toward getting into game action. As for Sergio Santos, out since May 10 with a strained right forearm, hes scheduled to throw a bullpen session at Comerica Park on Thursday. If that goes well, hell throw another bullpen session in Toronto on Sunday. If that goes well, Santos expects to join the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons on a rehabilitation assignment next week. Baltimore Orioles Shirts . That further limits the options of Australia coach Ewen McKenzie, who on Monday suspended six players who were involved in a night out in Dublin ahead of the Saturdays 32-15 win over the Irish. The Wallabies play Scotland on Saturday before facing Wales on Nov. Custom Baltimore Orioles Jerseys .J. -- Travis Zajac of the New Jersey Devils took a lot of grief considering his scored the first of his career-best three goals just 12 seconds into a crucial game against the Florida Panthers. https://www.cheaporioles.com/. Neither player was available Saturday for the Knicks 107-98 loss in Atlanta. "Were going in a different direction and weve got to figure out another spot or two for our ballclub," coach Mike Woodson said before the game. Stitched Orioles Jerseys . - The Seattle Seahawks have signed nine players to 2014 future contracts, including quarterback B. Baltimore Orioles Pro Shop .com) - The Atlanta Hawks have stepped up to every challenge during their 14-game winning streak and will face another daunting task Friday with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder in town.Oakmont Country Club, venue for this weeks US Open, is regarded as one of the toughest golf courses in the world. If professionals struggle, how does an 8-handicapper tackle it? We sent Finlay Hutchison to find out... What happens when an 8-handicapper plays perhaps the worlds hardest golf course? After a difficult round in 2007, Tiger Woods famously said: A 10-handicapper wouldnt break 100 round here. Ernie Els, who won the first of his two US Opens at Oakmont in 1994, added: My dads a good 11-handicapper and he wouldnt break 105 on a US Open course. Ahead of the 2016 event, Sky Sports was lucky enough to play this golfing behemoth on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, a week before the tournaments start date, and it wasnt pretty. Daily Telegraph writer Mark Hughes attempts to extract his ball from the famous Church Pews on the third hole On the surface, there is nothing about Oakmont Country Club that appears too difficult. There are no trees, there are no water hazards, the wind never gets too strong and it certainly isnt the worlds longest course. So what makes Oakmont famously tough? Angel Cabrera was five over par here when he held off Woods and Jim Furyk to land his maiden major in 2007, a week when the field managed to break par only eight times between them over the four days play. Independent journalist Conrad Leach and caddie Dustin Folio search for a ball in the punishing, dense rough First impressions reveal that accuracy off the tee is crucial. The US Open is famed for penalising errant shots and with fairways often cut just 20 yards wide, the punishments for not being super-straight are severe.If fairways are found, approach shots are never too treacherous. With anything from 100 to 175 yards in on most occasions, Oakmont temporarily takes away the torture and provides some relief. However, as soon as one goes wayward, the course reveals its sadistic other half. Mike Davis, the executive director of the USGA, has been compared to a James Bond villain Speaking to USGA executive director Mike Davis, one of my playing partners compared the US Open figurehead to chief James Bond nemesis Blofeld. But does he really watch the action, stroking his favourite pet with pleasure as players hack out of rough as thick as a bog brush, four-putting their way to double-bogey and beyond?Daviss response to this is characteristically dry: Fans have come to expect to see, one week a year, the players tested. Were going to test your accuracy, ability to recover, distance control and scrrambling on the greens.dddddddddddd If youre accurate youll get rewarded. Umissable Summer of Sport Sky Sports will show the US Open as part of a huge summer of sport that includes international rugby On a personal note, the middle cut of rough is impenetrable with anything lower than an 8 iron and the deep rough will have you attending the famous church pew bunkers with more on your agenda than just a hack back to the fairway.Elsewhere, Oakmonts other defence is its greens. Speaking to the club pro, the greens a week before the tournament were US Open speed at 14.5 on the stimpmeter - a contraption, unsurprisingly, conceived at this very course. A 288-yard par-three? Welcome to Oakmont! The majority of them are at best upturned saucers. Rick, a wisened caddie of 45 years on this hallowed turf, said: If you cant hit with spin you wont stay on the green. And he wasnt wrong - sorry again Rick.When they are eventually found, the often-used expression like putting on glass rings especially true. A framed saying in the clubhouse notes: Oakmont is the only course where you think about your second putt before youve hit your first. Crews prepare the first hole at Oakmont Country Club Personally speaking, putting is usually the scorecards saviour with trusty Nubbins in the bag - the best £10 ever spent on ebay or anywhere else for that matter. Sadly this didnt prove to be the case during the round and a desperate scramble to two or even three-putt became the depressing norm.So how did I get on over 18 holes? Playing pretty well, six pars were wrenched from the course largely due to accuracy off the tee. However, on holes that werent parred, Oakmont dished out the punishment and I finished with a 99 that didnt include putts inside three feet. You be the judge come Sunday. As another of my playing partners put it to me on the third tee: Ive just played two of the best holes of my life and Ive come away with two eights.As a result, a popular topic for discussion is would you like to be a member of such a brute? Speaking to some of the locals, they cant wait to see how the pros fare later this week. They too want to see some big numbers as there is certainly kudos in being a member of, or having played, the worlds hardest golf course. Also See: McDowell relishing Oakmont Campbell: Oakmont brutal Opinion Golf on Sky Sports 4 Get Sky Sports ' ' '