Plunking Jose Bautista isn't a good plan. Jays pound Rays.

Blue Jays 13 Rays 5

If I'm putting together the scouting report for a team that is going to face the Jays, first thing I say is Do Not Bean Jose Bautista. That's twice now that he has been hit with a pitch then homered in his next at bat. This time it was in the same inning. 

All you needed to do, tonight is watch the one inning, the Blue Jay 6th. Fred Lewis started it with a bunt single. Dewayne Wise singled. Bautista was hit by pitch. Vernon Wells doubled. Adam Lind doubled. John Buck doubled. Then the Rays took Jeff Niemann out of the game. Didn't help much. Aaron Hill hit a homer. Snider struck out, 1 out. John McDonald walked (very nice to see). Lewis pops out, two out. Wise singles again. Bautista homers. Wells doubles for the second time in the inning. Lind flies out to end it. 10 runs score and the game is won.

We got a run in the 3rd off a Johnny Mac homer and 2 more in the 8th for the baker's dozen.

We had 15 hits on the day. Every player in the starting lineup had at least one. Wise had three singles. Lewis, Bautista and Mac had 2. Jose drove in 4 runs. He now has 43 home runs and 103 RBI. and it isn't even September yet, for a couple of hours anyway. Nice to see Wells hit the ball hard. And Hill and Mac too. McDonald's line for August is .382/.417/.765. Who says he can't hit. I mean, other than me. Small sample size things are fun, but you have to enjoy hot streaks. 

Ricky Romero wasn't great but didn't have to be. He went 7.1 giving up 3 hits, 5 walks, 5 k. 5 runs, 4 earned. He had trouble keeping pitches down. The unearned run came after a McDonald error, his third in 2 games. He rushed a throw. I like him at short a lot more than at 3B.

 Originally 3 more of those runs were unearned. Aaron Hill missed a ground ball and it was called an error at first. It hit Romero and changed direction, so it was a tough play but he should have made it. But then Hill homered, so all is forgiven. 

Jays of the Day are Wells (.165 WPA), Wise (.152) and Bautista (.108).  Honorable mention to Mac, Hill and Lewis. Romero had Suckage numbers (-.108), because he had the bad inning before we scored 10 and after the big inning the game was won so he had no chance to bring the number up. But can't give him a Towers award for that.

Tomorrow Shaun Marcum goes against David Price in the series rubber match. And, yeah, it isn't only on Sportsnet One. Stupid Rogers sons of b....