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TORONTO - Kevin Pillar doesnt know how long his second shot with the Blue Jays will last but hes here, excited to play and eager to use the opportunity to showcase the strides hes made toward becoming a consistent major league player. Amongst Torontos starting outfielders, only Jose Bautista is signed for next season. Colby Rasmus and Melky Cabrera are in the final year of their deals. "I think guys like myself, guys like Anthony (Gose), know that theres potential for some openings in the outfield coming up," said Pillar. "Were really here to just take care of our business. Any time you get to go out on a big league field its an audition, not only for your team but all the other 29 teams out there. As guys who play the game we want to play in the major leagues. Ideally we want to play for the Blue Jays, theyre the team that drafted me and theyre dear to my heart but anytime you step onto the field you know its an audition for a major league job somewhere." Pillar joins the club red-hot at the plate. After stumbling out of the gate to a .114 batting average (5-for-44), Pillar has gone 38-for-97 (.392) since, which included an 18-game hitting streak. At the time of his recall, hed reached base safely in each of Triple-A Buffalos last 26 games. His nine walks represent an upward trend over his time with the Bisons last year. Pillar has struck out 16 times which, prorated, is a positive trend downward. "Just getting back, using the whole field and being aggressive in counts, hunting the heater and getting better pitches to hit," said Pillar of his early-season adjustments. "Kev, in the minor leagues last year, had a tremendous year," said manager John Gibbons. "He came up here, got his feet wet and it was a little bit of a struggle for him last year. Went back down there to Triple-A this year and really got it going again. Hes a good baseball player. A real good defender, good baserunner and the guy can hit." Like Chad Jenkins and Jonathan Diaz (the man whose roster spot he took – Diaz was optioned to Buffalo on Tuesday) the day before, Pillars travel day began in Charlotte and involved a complicated path to Toronto. He flew from Charlotte to Baltimore, changed planes and flew into Buffalo. After quick stops at his apartment to gather clothes and toiletries and at the Bisons home, Coca Cola Field, where he transferred his equipment to a bag with a Blue Jays logo, he picked up the waiting car service for the drive to Toronto. This time when Pillar arrived in the clubhouse, he knew what to expect. He knew where to go to find what he needed. Its nice to feel comfortable. "That was a huge difference compared to last time," said Pillar. "Coming in, I walked in on egg shells. I didnt really know anyone here. I was greeted with open arms. At least I knew where my locker was, I knew where things were at this time. Its definitely a different feeling this time." "Hes coming back the second time, you know the shock, now he knows what to expect, said Gibbons. "The awe of the big leagues is kind of out the way now. The first time you show up you dont know what to expect and youre kind of overwhelmed or you can be sometimes." Pillar started in centerfield in place of Colby Rasmus on Tuesday night. Rasmus is nursing a tight right hamstring, the condition of which Rasmus said was improving. After Monday nights game, in which Rasmus was removed to start the seventh, Gibbons offered that maybe Rasmus was in need of a stint on the disabled list. Rasmus is hoping to avoid the DL and by Tuesday afternoon Gibbons had changed his tone, sounding hopeful Rasmus would need only a day or two on the bench. Meanwhile, while hes here, Pillar just wants to relax. "I dont have those same butterflies that I did six months ago when I came here the first time," said Pillar. "I kind of feel like Im here on a business trip and Im prepared." 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Some teams got significantly better, some teams divested themselves of talent and some teams had quiet afternoons, keeping the status quo.SEATTLE -- Learning that former Padres Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn had died completely changed Chris Youngs outlook on pitching against his former team. "I think any fun about pitching against them disappeared this morning with the news of Tony passing," the Mariners right-hander said after Seattles 5-1 win over San Diego on Monday night. "My condolences go out to his family, the Padres organization, the city of San Diego. He meant a lot to everyone there and Im grateful I had the opportunity to work with him and get to know him." The loss capped a sombre day for the Padres organization. Gwynn, 54, died Monday morning of oral cancer, a disease he attributed to years of chewing tobacco. "Even though were away from San Diego I think the Mariners did a good job of putting Tony out there," Padres manager Bud Black said. Kyle Seager hit a three-run homer in the first inning, Brad Miller added a solo shot, and Young threw six shutout innings against his former team. San Diego was on the verge of being shut out by Young (6-4) and a pair of relievers until Carlos Quentin hit a solo homer leading off the ninth. But Gwynn was on everyones mind at Safeco Field. Seattle honoured Gwynn with a video tribute and moment of silence before the game and put a 19 on the dirt in the hole between the shortstop and third baseman. Gwynn called that the "5.5 hole" and many of his 3,141 hits went through it. San Diego added black armbands to its uniform in honour of Gwynn, and his No. 19 jersey hung in the Padres dugout. His jersey also was scattered among fans in attendance. "He is the city of San Diego. You talk Padres baseball, Tony Gwynn is everything there," Young said. Seagers homer came on a 3-0 pitch from San Diego starter Tyson Ross (6-6). Coming off a 4-for-4 performance on Sunday, Seager was given the green light and hit his 10th homer of the season. Miller followed with a ssolo homer an inning later.dddddddddddd. Robinson Cano added an RBI double as Seattle scored all five runs in the first two innings. Seager leads Seattle in home runs and has seven hits in his last 10 at-bats with six RBIs. James Jones also stole three bases and scored twice for Seattle. "Its a good feeling that the skipper has confidence in you, thats always good," Seager said. "In that situation I had seen a couple of pitches ... when you get the opportunity you have to make sure you capitalize and get a ball in the air. Young was once an All-Star for the Padres and has become a valuable acquisition since joining Seattle at the end of spring training. After losing his last two starts, Young gave up two hits in the first inning and then cruised. He retired 16 of the final 19 batters he faced, giving up a pair of singles and issuing one walk. He matched his season high with six strikeouts. Joe Beimel, who gave up the final home run in Gwynns career, pitched one inning of relief for Seattle. Tom Wilhelmsen then got the final six outs, but couldnt complete the shutout giving up Quentins third homer of the season. Ross had allowed only one homer in his previous six starts, but struggled all night. He walked a career-high seven and at least one in every inning. Ross pitched into the sixth inning and helped save the Padres bullpen. "My command wasnt very sharp tonight," Ross said. "I kind of grinded through some innings there and overall just wasnt in the strike zone early and often enough." NOTES: Young has now faced all 30 teams in the majors. ... Seattle hopes to send injured 1B Justin Smoak (quad) out on a rehab assignment Wednesday. Corey Hart (hamstring) and Michael Saunders (shoulder) could join Smoak on rehab assignments by the end of the week. ... In 11 career games against Seattle, Gwynn hit .261 (12 for 46) with three doubles and four RBIs. ' ' '