Game #152 Toronto Blue Jays (69-83) @ Baltimore Orioles (44-108) - game recap

DJ Stewart scored both Orioles runs, one off a towering solo HR as the Orioles edged the Blue Jays 2-1

After a solid comeback win, aided fittingly by a throwing error by the Orioles that allowed a pair of runs to score, the Blue Jays were looking to complete their third sweep of the season against the worst team in baseball. The struggling Marco Estrada, who's time in Toronto may be drawing near if the Blue Jays opt to not re-sign him. Estrada hasn't been as effective the last month or so as he has not been 100% healthy. He was facing righty Jimmy Yacabonis, who came into the game with an 0-2 record and 7.22ERA in 9 game (4 starts). Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights

• The Orioles took the lead in the bottom of the 3rd as DJ Stewart hit a solo HR to right off the foul pole
• Jimmy Yacabonis pitching line: 4IP 2H 0R 1BB 4K 64 pitches (39 for strikes)
• Marco Estrada pitching line: 6IP 4H 1R (earned) 1BB 5K 98 pitches (66 for strikes)
• The Orioles added a run in the bottom of the 7th as Cedric Mullins singled home Stewart
• The Blue Jays got one back in the top of the 8th as Billy McKinney homered to straightaway center
• The comeback fell short and the Blue Jays went quietly in the 9th
• Final score: Orioles 2 Blue Jays 1

My Take

• Marco Estrada played great today giving up one run (on a solo HR), 3 other hits and 1 walk over 6 innings. This was vintage Estrada tonight: lots of lazy fly balls and pop-ups. He retired the first four batters of the game before Aledmys Diaz booted a ground ball. While I'm sure Estrada will get one more start, I'd be inclined to shut him down tomorrow and end his season on a positive note.
• The Blue Jays were 1-5 with runners in scoring position. They loaded the bases with nobody out in the 4th but got nothing out of it. Billy McKinney was thrown out trying to score on a short sac fly and Aledmys Diaz flew out to end the inning.
• McKinney and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. each had 2 hits today and those were the only 4 hits the team got all day. Justin Smoak walked twice and Kevin Pillar was hit by a pitch
• Rowdy Tellez pinch hit in the 9th and popped out to second base to end the game
• Danny Jansen came in as a defensive replacement in the bottom of the 8th. He did not get an at-bat
• Up next, the Blue Jays return home for their final home stand of the year. They will face the Tampa Bay Rays for four games starting tomorrow, followed by the Houston Astros Monday-Wednesday. Reliever Ryne Stanek will start the game for the Rays, facing Sam Gaviglio.

#151 - Toronto Blue Jays (69-82) at Baltimore oriLOLes (43-108)

Look at this beauty I found online...

Wednesday, September 19, 2018 | 7:05 pm

LOL Park at Camden Yards | Baltimore, MD

Marco Estrada (7-12, 5.75, 1.44) vs. Jimmy Yacabonis (0-2, 7.22, 1.53)

PREAMBLE:

Prepare to shed a lot of tears tonight as it'll be the last time the Blue Jays face the oriLOLes this season.  They've gone 14-4 so far.  So much fun beating them up.  Tonight, the Jays go for a series sweep and redemption for getting swept in Baltimore three weeks ago.

Marco Estrada goes out there to see if he has anything left in the tank; based on his last outing against the Yankees, it really doesn't look like he has much left.  Jimmy Yacabonis is his counterpart on the mound tonight - it's kinda like tossing a string of spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks at this point in time.

Game #151 Toronto Blue Jays (69-82) @ Baltimore Orioles (43-108) - game recap

Lourdes Gurriel Jr singled in the game winning runs as the Blue Jays came from behind to defeat the Orioles 6-4

After a convincing shutout over the basement-dwelling Orioles, the Blue Jays turned to Aaon Sanchez, who has turned in two solid performances in September. Reese McGuire started his 4th game behind the plate tonight. I have been impressed with his speed and poise behind the plate. Baltimore sent Dylan Bundy to the mound, looking for his 9th win of the season.  Who will win tonight's meaningless game? Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights

• The Orioles opened the scoring in the bottom of the 1st as Cedric Mullins homered to straightaway center
• The Orioles added a run in the bottom of the as Trey Mancini scored on a sac fly by Breyvic Valera that was initially called out but was overturned upon replay when it was found that Reese McGuire did not have control of the ball and had not tagged Mancini
• The next batter, DJ Stewart singled and eventually scored on a play that was an absolute comedy of errors. Stewart singled on a line drive to right. Billy McKinney threw the ball to nowhere in particular. Aaron Sanchez then threw the ball past Reese McGuire, allowing Valera to score and the umpires then awarded Stewart home plate. Essentially there should have been at worst runners on 1st and 3rd with 1 out. Instead,, thanks to two horrible throwing errors on the same play, 2 runs scored on the weirdest inside the park home run you'll ever see.
• Aaron Sanchez pitching line: 4IP 4H 4R (2 earned) 3BB 1K 77 pitches (44 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays got one back in the top of the 5th as Dwight Smith Jr. doubled home Aledmys Diaz
• The Blue Jays got another back in the top of the 6th as Billy McKinney scored on a ground out by Justin Smoak
• The Blue Jays tied the game in the top of the 7th as the Orioles committing their own throwing error as Orioles third baseman Wilkerson threw the ball away allowing Devon Travis and Rowdy Tellez to score
• A batter later, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. singled, scoring Reese McGuire and Teoscar Hernandez
• Dylan Bundy pitching line: 6.2IP 7H 5R (2 earned) 1BB 6K 105 pitches (69 for strikes)
• Ken Giles pitched a perfect 9th to remain the only closer to be perfect in save conversions. Tonight was his 23rd save of the season.
• Final score: Blue Jays 6 Orioles 4

My Take

• This was not the best game for Aaron Sanchez. He gave up 4 runs on 4 hits and 2 costly throwing errors on the same play. He also walked three batters. The game started about as bad as you can for Sanchez as the first batter of the game took him yard. The Orioles had at least one runner on base every inning tonight. Sanchez will likely get 2 more starts before his season ends. Hopefully the next 2 starts are more positive than this one.
• I don't even know what to say anymore. I thought I had see it all this year with the lackluster defense, until tonight. With one out in the first and a runner on first, DJ Stewart lined a single to right. The play should have ended right there but Billy McKinney tried to play hero and gun down Breyvic Valera, who was going from first to third on the play. McKinney's throw was horrible going nowhere near any of the infielders. Aaron Sanchez ran over, grabbed the ball and tried to throw out Valera at home. He completely missed Reese McGuire and the ball went out of play, allowing Stewart to score on a single! McKinney has to be aware of the situation and make the smarter play in just getting the ball to the cutoff man. Worst case, there would have been runners on 1st and 3rd with one out and Sanchez would have been a double play ball from getting out of the inning allowing just one run.
• Dwight Smith Jr. started in LF and misplayed a ball off the fence allowing Trey Mancini to get a triple on the play. He sort of made up for it in the 5th inning when he drove in the Blue Jays first run on a double. He was 1-3 today and struck out once
• Reese McGuire had an up and down day today. Defensively, he had zero chance of catching that errant Sanchez throw that led to 2 runs. He also missed out on tagging out Trey Mancini when he could not corral the throw home cleanly. McGuire threw out one base stealer (Adam Jones to end the 1st) and had 2 others (Jonathan Villar and DJ Stewart) steal bases off him. He was 0-3 at the plate, but drew a walk and scored the game winning run.
• Rowdy Tellez started at first base and was 1-4 and scored the Blue Jays 3rd run. He was involved in 13 plays defensively.
• Jose Hernandez pitched a scoreless 7th inning, retiring all 3 batters he faced.
• Up next, the Blue Jays go for the series sweep as Marco Estrada takes the mound looking to rebound from a rough start where he was lit up for 8 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks in 2.2 innings. He'll be facing an unannounced Orioles starter.

#151 - Toronto Blue Jays (66-82) at Baltimore oriLOLes (43-107)

Tuesday, September 18, 2018 | 7:05 pm

LOL Park at Camden Yards | Baltimore, MD

Aaron Sanchez (4-6, 4.90, 1.55) vs. Dylan Bundy (8-14, 5.48, 1.40)

PREAMBLE:

After a virtuoso performance from Ryan Borucki in a 5-0 win in the opener, the Blue Jays look to carry on the momentum into game 2 of the series.

Aaron Sanchez looks to continue his solid September and end the season on a good note as he takes the ball on the mound tonight.  His opponent, Dylan Bundy, has given up a major league-leading 38 HRs so far this season.  Om nom nom.

Game #150 Toronto Blue Jays (68-82) @ Baltimore Orioles (43-107) - game recap

Ryan Borucki threw 8 outstanding innings as the Blue Jays shut out the Orioles 5-0

After taking 2 of 3 from the mighty Yankees on the weekend, the Blue Jays head into Baltimore looking to snap a three game losing streak against the AL East basement dwellers. The Orioles have five fewer wins than the Red Sox have losses. The Blue Jays sent rookie phenom Ryan Boucki to the mound today, while the Orioles countered with reliever Evan Phillips in a bullpen day for the Orioles. Could the Blue Jays snap the shameful three game losing against the worst team in baseball? Here is today's game recap.

Game Highlights

• The Blue Jays opened the scoring in the top of the 2nd as Rowdy Tellez singled scoring Kevin Pillar
• A batter later, Danny Jansen hit a 2 run HR to left, also scoring Tellez
• Evan Phillips pitching line: 2IP 3H 3R (all earned) 0BB 2K 25 pitches (13 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays added a run in the top of the 7th as Pillar homered to left-center
• Ryan Borucki pitching line: 8IP 3H 0R 1BB 7K 105 pitches (67 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays added a run in the top of the 9th as Aledmys Diaz homered to straightaway center
• Final score: Blue Jays 5 Orioles 0

My Take

• Ryan Borucki was excellent tonight, allowing just 3 hits and walk. Only one ball left the infield between the 6th and 8th innings (a line out caught by Grichuk). Borucki retired the first 6 batters he faced and the final 8 batters he faced. The only inning where Borucki git in any kind of trouble was the 3rd inning when he allowed back to back singles to start the inning. He got out of that in ning with a double play and a ground out. At this point, Borucki looks like he could get the opening day start next year the way he's been pitching all year.
• Tim Mayza was also excellent today striking out the side to end the game
• Rowdy Tellez had a busy night in the field as Ryan Borucki induced a ton of ground ball outs tonight. He was involved in 11 plays tonight. At the plate, he was 1-3, driving in the game's opening run.
• Danny Jansen did a great job calling the signs tonight. He was 1-3 at the plate, hitting a 2 run HR tonight. On the downside, he allowed Jonathan Villar to steal a base against him tonight. With the way Borucki was pitching tonight, the stolen base was moot, but he needs to improve this area of his game.
• Richard Urena was 0-3 at the plate tonight. He was involved in 4 plays tonight as the second baseman.
• Congratulations to the Baltimore Orioles on setting a new franchise record for losses in a season. It is not easy to be so inept.
• Up next, the Blue Jays go for the series win against Baltimore as they send Aaron Sanchez, who will be looking to build on a solid month of September where he is 1-1 with a 2.77ERA. He'll be up against an unannounced Orioles pitcher.