The Jays took a beating this afternoon at the hands of the Detroit Tigers, losing 10-4.
That said, the news wasn't all bad. Casey Janssen had a pretty solid outing - pitching 3 innings, and giving up just one run on 2 hits (he did walk two and hit another) while striking out one. Janssen tired in the third inning after a Brad Emaus error extended the inning, and that's when he hit a batter and walked another. But overall it was a good outing for him and you can't argue with the results either.
Mike Maroth, another hopeful for a Jays rotation spot, didn't fare as well. Maroth slipped out of the first two inings but things really derailed in his third. Overall, Maroth had an awful line, yielding 7 hits, including a home run, and 3 walks in 2 2/3 innings for 5 runs, 4 of which were earned. Maroth wasn't helped by two Brian Jeroloman passed balls in the same inning. Since I don't see any reason to send Maroth to AAA, let alone the Jays, I didn't mind seeing him get knocked around a bit.
Of course, Maroth looked better when Rick Bauer really let things get out of hand, giving up another 4 runs in just an inning and a third on four hits. He wasn't fooling anyone. Robert Ray, though, turned in a quality ninth inning.
At the plate, the top of the Jays order fared quite well, particularly against Tigers starter Dontrelle Willis. Adam Lind plated two runs with a well-hit triple to centre field in the first inning, while Aaron Hill was 1-2 with an RBI double and a walk. Russ Adams walked and reached on an error to score two runs. That was most of the Jays offense, to be honest, though I'm leaving out singles by Lyle Overbay, Jose Bautista, John McDonald (bringing his batting average up to .130, to Alan Ashby's delight), and Brad Emaus. Hill also made what sounded like a great jumping catch to save the third inning for Janssen.
Tomorrow, the Jays return to Dunedin where Brad Mills will take the mound for our heroes.