Spring Training Article...

"You don't hear much wood do you?" said Blue Jays hitting coach Mickey Brantley, who was sporting a wide grin as he darted between the two diamonds where live batting practice was taking place on Wednesday.

The problem wasn't with Toronto's hitters, though. The quiet bats had a little something to do with the fact that Roy Halladay was throwing off one mound and A.J. Burnett was firing away on the other. It was the first time this spring that Jays pitchers threw to batters, and the top two hurlers on the roster were the first to take the hill against some brave volunteers.

"It's not fun to see that first," Russ Adams said after facing Halladay.

Batters would rotate in and out after seeing five pitches, and the hitters weren't required to swing, but it didn't take long for the first attempt. Catcher Mike Mahoney, who had never faced Halladay before, swung at the former Cy Young Award winner's fourth offering, which promptly shattered his bat.

"He throws fast," was all Mahoney could muster as he shook his head and went to retrieve a new piece of lumber.

Read the rest of the article here -- http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060222&content_id=1319645&vkey=spt2006news&fext=.jsp&c_id=tor