Game #70 - New York Yankees (41-27) @ Toronto Blue Jays (34-36) - game recap

 

Alejandro Kirk drove in a pair and scored once in an 8-5 win over the Yankees

After an off-day yesterday, the Blue Jays continued the homestand against the Yankees. The two teams split the 4-game series in NY a couple of weeks ago with the Blue Jays outscoring the Yankees 14-13. Alejandro Kirk was activated off the 60-day IL, Tyler Heineman was DFA'd, Daulton Varsho was placed on the 10-day IL and Davis Schneider was recalled from AAA-ball. Trey Yesavage got the start with Alejandro Kirk behind the plate. Davis Schneider got the start in LF. Andres Gimenez was at SS and Ernie Clement was at 2B. Could the Blue Jays start the weekend with a win? Here is tonight's game recap.

Game Highlights:

• The Blue Jays opened the scoring in the bottom of the 1st as Alejandro Kirk doubled scoring Ernie Clement
• A batter later, Kazuma Okamoto annihilated a 2-run bomb to the 5th deck in left; also scoring Kirk
• The Blue Jays added a pair of runs in the bottom of the 2nd as George Springer whacked a 2-run blast to left; also scoring Andres Gimenez
• The Yankees got one back in the top of the 5th on a sacy fly by Paul Goldschmidt that scored JC Escarra
• A batter later, Cody Bellinger smacked a 2-run blast to right; also scoring Ben Rice
• The Blue Jays added a run in the bottom half of the inning as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. doubled scoring Springer
• A batter later, Kirk singled home Guerrero Jr.
• Ryan Weathers pitching line: 4.1IP 5H 6R (all earned) 1BB 2K 82 pitches (52 for strikes)
• Trey Yesavage pitching line: 5IP 4H 5R (all earned) 6BB 3K 81 pitches (42 for strikes)
• The Yankees got a pair back in the top of the 6th as Trent Grisham singled scoring Spencer Jones and Jose Caballero
• The Blue Jays added a run in the bottom of the 8th as Clement doubled scoring Springer
• Louis Varland threw a perfect 9th for his 12th save of the season
• Final score: Blue Jays 8 Yankees 5

My Take:

• Trey Yesavage battled through 5 innings, giving up 5 runs on 4 hits while walking 6 and striking out 3. Command was an issue once again  - just too many walks and you can't be doing that against a team that is capable of going yard. He got fortunate last time he walked a bunch of batters against the Orioles when he was able to produce a bunch of double plays to escape the jams,. Not so much tonight with the Yankees scoring 3 times off him. Hopefully he just needs to tweak a few things when he throws his side session in a few days.
• The bullpen gave up 3 hits, walked a batter and struck out 5 in 4 scoreless innings. Tyler Rogers  and Louis Varland both retired every batter they faced
• Welcome back Alejandro Kirk! The Blue Jays catcher made an immediate impact, overturning the first pitch of the game on an ABS challenge (he was unsuccessful in a later ABS challenge). Kirk went 3-5 at the plate with 2 RBI and a run scored. Kazuma Okamoto drover him in on a monster home run to the 5th deck in left! George Springer went deep, drew 3 walks and scored three times. Vlad drove in one run and scored a run. Nice job by the first 4 batters in the lineup. The only downside was seeing Davis Schneider go 0-2 - he should no longer be guaranteed a roster spot in spring training.
• The Yankees were 4-2 on ABS challenges
• The Blue Jays were 4-7 with runners in scoring position
• Up next, the Blue Jays try to extend the win streak to 2 games and notch their 10 series win of the season. Ace Kevin Gausman starts against Yankees righty Cam Schlittler

Game #70 New York Yankees (41-26) v. Toronto Blue Jays (33-36)

 

Game #69 - Philadelphia Phillies (37-31) @ Toronto Blue Jays (33-36) - game recap

 

Ernie Clement scored a run and drove in a run in a 7-4 loss to the Phillies

After a walk off win thanks to some smart baseball and a clutch hit from Brandon Valenzuela, the Blue Jays were looking to extend the win streak to 2 games and notch their 10th series win of the season. Max Scherzer was activated off the 15-day IL and Connor Seabold was DFA'd. Scherzer got the start with Valenzuela behind the plate. Yohendrick Pinago was in LF, Myles Straw was in CF and Nathan Lukes was in RF. Vlad was back in the field after DH'ing yesterday (George Springer served as DH today). Ernie Clement was at SS and Charles McAdoo got the start at 2B. Could the Blue Jays extend the win streak to 2 games and notch their 10th series win of the season? Here is tonight's game recap. 

Game Highlights:

• Max Scherzer notched his 3500th career strikeout in the top of the 1st. 
• Two batters later, Bryce Harper whacked a solo blast to the opposite field in left and into the Blue Jays bullpen to open the scoring. 
• The Phillies added 3 runs in the top of the 3rd as Alec Bohm drilled a 3-run blast to left-center; also scoring Kyle Schwarber and Harper 
• The Phillies added a pair of runs in the top of the 4th as Schwarber belted a 2-run jack to right-center; also scoring Justin Crawford
• Max Scherzer pitching line: 3.1IP 5H 5R (all earned) 3BB 4K 82 pitches (51 for strikes)
• The Blue Jays got one back in the botttom of the 6th as Brandon Valenzuela singled scoring Ernie Clement. Phillies 3B Adolis Garcia was charged with a throwing error on the play
• Jesus Luzardo pitching line: 5.2IP 4H 1R (earned) 4BB 8K 96 pitches (56 for strikes)
• The Phillies added a run in the top of the 7th as Bryson Stott singled scoring Harper
• The Blue Jays got one back in the bottom half of the inning on a bases loaded walk to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that forced in Myles Straw
• A batter later, Nathan Lukes scored on a sac fly by Clement
• A batter after that, George Springer scored on a sac fly Kazuma Okamoto
• Jhoan Duran threw a scoreless 9th for his 17th save of the season
• Final score: Phillies 7 Blue Jays 4

My Take:

• Max Scherzer was lit up for 5 runs on 5 hits while walking 3 and striking out 4 over 3.1 innings. He started out by finally collecting his 3500th career strikeouts. However, he was quite inefficient and just not locating his pitches. The Phillies took him deep twice for 4 runs. At 41 years old, Scherzer is significantly less effective than he was last year when he did a decent job in the second half of the season. I think he'll get at least one more start and a shot at moving into the top 10 in career strikeouts (he's just 6 strikeouts shy of tying Walter Johnson, who had 3509 career strikeouts) since Shane Bieber will need 2-3 more rehab starts before he's ready to join the rotation. At the very least, he can be a good mentor for some of the young pitchers on the staff and rookie catcher Brandon Valenzuela 
• The bullpen gave up 2 runs on 5 hits while walking 1 and striking out 5 over the last 5.2 innings. Spencer Miles retired every batter he faced.
• The offence rallied for 3 runs in the 7th on a bases loaded walk and a pair of sac flies and Brandon Valenzuela singled home a run. The veterans were a tad more productive today with Vlad and George Springer both getting on base 3 times via a pair of walks and a hit, but they need to do more
• Every Blue Jays starter except Yohendrick Pinago and Charles McAdoo reached base at least one and all but Pinago, McAdoo and Kazuma Okamoto had a hit
• Phillies catcher JT Realmuto succesfully overturned the only 2 ABS challenges on the day
• The Blue Jays were 1-6 with runners in scoring position
• Up next, after an off-day tomorrow, the Blue Jays continue the home stand as they welcome the Yankees to town. The two teams split the 4 games in NY last month with the Blue Jays outscoring the Yankees 14-13. The Yankees will start lefty  Ryan Weathers. The Blue Jays haven't set their rotation for the series yet.

Game #69 Philadelphia Phillies (36-31) v. Toronto Blue Jays (33-35)

 

Game #68 - Philadelphia Phillies (36-31) @ Toronto Blue Jays (33-35) - game recap

 

Brandon Valenzuela drove in the winning run in a 3-2 comeback walk-off win over the Phillies

After a loss yesterday due to Patrick Corbin imploding, the Blue Jays were looking to even the series and avoid their 9th series loss of the season. Dylan Cease was activated from the 15-day IL (and got the start with Brandon Valenzuela behind the plate) and Adam Macko was optioned to AAA-ball. George Springer got the full day off with Vlad getting the half day off as DH and  Chatles McAdoo at 1B. Jesus Sanchez was in LF, Nathan Lukes was in CF and Yohendrick Pinago was in RF. Could the Blue Jays even the series and avoid their 9th series loss of the season? Here is tonight's game recap.

Game Highlights:

• The Phillies opened the scoring in the top of the 1st as Brandon Marsh doubled scoring Trea Turner
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom of the 6th as Jesus Sanchez belted a solo jack to right-center
• Dylan Cease pitching line: 6IP 3H 1R (earned) 1BB 11K 93 pitches (60 for strikes)
• Zack Wheeler pitching line: 6IP 6H 1R (earned) 0BB 5K 96 pitches (60 for strikes)
• The Phillies took the lead in the top of the 9th as Bryson Stott doubled scoring Bryce Harper 
• The Blue Jays tied it in the bottom half of the inning on a wild pitch by Jhoan Duran that scored Myles Straw
• Same batter, Brandon Valenzuela singled scoring Daulton Varsho
• Final score: Blue Jays 3 Phillies 2

My Take:

• Dylan Cease fired 6 strong innings, giving up a run on 3 hits while walking 1 and striking out 11. He had out streaks of 7 and 8 batters. Cease has been the Blue Jays best starting pitcher and a great off-season signing by Ross Atkins. He should be considered for the all-star game.
• The bullpen gave up a run on 2 hits while walking 1 and striking out 4 over the last 3 innings. It's amazing how often a leadoff walk comes back to bite a pitcher in the ass. Louis Varland, who should not only be an all-star, he should be the reliever of the year, walked Bryce Harper on 4 pitches to start the 9th, saw him score when Bryson Stott lined a double opposite field. Sometimes you just have to tip your cap to a nice swing on a solid pitch. Mason Fluharty retired every batter he faced
• The offense came through when it mattered with a 2-run rally in the 9th. Brandon Valenzuela will only get credited for one RBI, but he played a huge role in Myles Straw scoring on the wild pitch to tie the game by waving the pinch runner home. Jesus Sanchez took starter Zack Wheeler deep for the other Blue Jays run on the day. Vlad hit leadoff and the move didn't really work with him going 1-4 on the day.
• Harper was successful on the Phillies only ABS challenge while the Blue Jays were 1-1 on ABS challenges
• The Blue Jays were 1-3 with runners in scoring position
• Up next, the Blue Jays try to extend the win streak to 2 games and notch their 10th series win of the season. Max Scherzer starts against Phillies lefty Jesus Luzardo