Jays get shutout for first time this season, lose first game of doubleheader to Nationals

Blue Jays 0  Nationals 2

The interesting part of the game was the top of the 7th. We finally get two guys on against Jordan Zimmerman. Finally. Chris Colabello and Josh Thole each single. We have a shot at getting back in the game. Then, Ezequiel Carrera bunts. Actually, he gets ahead 2-0 on the count, then bunts. (Insert loud swear here).

So we have runners on second and third and we bring in Edwin Encarnacion to pinch hit for Ryan Goins. Zimmermann pitched around Edwin. He got one strike call but that was a bad call by the ump. The bunt allowed Zimmermann to put Edwin on first and waste your best pinch hitter.

Russell Martin, pinch hitting for R.A. Dickey, grounds into a double play and that's the inning.

Now it could have worked. It is on Russell for hitting into the double play. A single and we are tied. A fly ball or a non-double play grounder and it's 2-1 and with an out left. A strikeout and we still have the bases loaded. In reality, getting the bases loaded with 1-out should have been a good thing.

I hate bunts, if it was me, I'd never bunt unless it was the pitcher or a 1-run game and in the 8th inning or later. And very rarely then.

Anyway, R.A. Dickey was very good, and we didn't score for him. One bad inning, but other than that he was great. When the first 2 Nationals singled, in the first inning, I thought it was going to be a long day, but he got the knuckleball working after that.

In the 5th, when he gave up his 2 runs, pitcher Jordan Zimmermann led off and R.A. got to a full count, throwing knuckleballs, but, with it the pitcher, needed a strike and threw his batting practice fastball over the plate and Zimmermann hit it. With it the pitch, you don't want to take the chance of walking him. Unfortunately, he followed that with a 4-pitch walk to Yunel Escobar. A bunt, a Bryce Harper single and a Ryan Zimmerman (1 n) sac fly and we are down 2-0.

In all R.A. went 6, allowed 8 hits, 2 earned, 1 walk, 6 k.

Bo Schultz pitched the last 2 innings, 1 hit, 1 walk, 1 k. He looked decent.

Our great offense managed just 6 scattered singles and 1 walk. Zimmerman is a good pitcher but we could have made him work a bit more. 9 innings on 105 pitches, he rarely had a work up a sweat.

If there is good news, I don't know how Jerry is going to blame this loss on Reyes.

Jay of the Day: Josh Thole (.096 WPA). 2 for 4 and his 2 outs were hard hit balls, the only Jay to reach base twice.

Suckage: Martin (-.232 for hitting into that double play) and Justin Smoak (-.118 on an 0 for 4 with 2 k).

We had 573 comments, not bad for a Tuesday afternoon. Momus led us in a losing cause. Good work.