It's early, but Blue Jays haven't begun to fly right yet

Their big free agent signing, A.J. Burnett, was in a Dunedin Blue Jays uniform throwing in an extended spring training outing yesterday and is scheduled to make his first start Saturday in Chicago.

Their top pitcher, Roy Halladay, went home to Toronto to heal a pulled muscle in his right forearm and will miss his next start.

The Blue Jays are supposed to compete with the Yankees and Red Sox in the American League East after a busy offseason in which they added Burnett, closer B.J. Ryan, first baseman Lyle Overbay, third baseman Troy Glaus, and catcher Bengie Molina to the payroll.

''There are two teams ahead of us and we have to prove we can compete against them," said Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi following yesterday's 5-3 loss to the Red Sox.

''They're a good ballclub. They've got good pitching, good talent. They and the Yankees are still the teams to beat and we have to show we can beat them over a full season."

They couldn't do it yesterday.

Though the Jays had Josh Beckett on the ropes in the first inning, making him throw 36 pitches, they could muster only Overbay's bases-loaded walk before former Sox infielder Shea Hillenbrand grounded into a 6-4-3 double play. That ended what was, effectively, the final Jays' threat until Frank Catalanotto's fly ball to deep right was misplayed by Wily Mo Peña into the Jays' bullpen for a home run off Keith Foulke in the eighth.

Hillenbrand is usually a hot early-season hitter, but he's hitting .192 after seven games.

''I don't think I'm that far away, but it's frustrating to leave the bases loaded like that," said Hillenbrand who was ahead on the count, 3-1.

''I've seen [Beckett] pitch on TV before and he's got a great arm," said Blue Jays manager John Gibbons. ''When he's on, he can shut you down. He gets into jams and he can get out of them and that's a sign of a great pitcher. He settled in and gave you seven strong ones."

Vernon Wells, beginning his eighth season with Toronto, said he's settling in for what he hopes to be a season-long pennant race against the Sox and Yankees.

''It's not going to be an easy division," Wells said. ''The Red Sox and Yankees have excellent talent and look at a team like Tampa Bay.

''They have some good young pitchers who can shut you down over there. You can't take anyone for granted. It's early for us and we have to get everybody back and pull together as a team. But since I've been here, this is the best chance I think we have of winning consistently and competing."

Josh Towers started and lost for the Jays, hurling six innings and allowing eight hits and four runs, all of which came in the second inning. Towers didn't feel he was missing the strike zone by much in the second when he walked a man, gave up a single, then allowed an RBI double to Mike Lowell, a two-run double to Adam Stern, and an RBI double to Kevin Youkilis. But Towers, who doesn't have overpowering stuff, began inching his offerings too close to the middle of the plate.

''He's got to pitch ahead to be effective," Gibbons said. ''He was throwing some pitches, he wasn't missing by much if he was missing. When he had to bring it over the plate they hit him. Then after that he kind of found his groove and pitched a good ballgame, kept us in there from there on."