Frustrating Loss, Again

Blue Jays 3 Orioles 8

We get 12 hits and just 3 runs. Baserunners every inning but one. If you do that badly with the bats, you shouldn’t win.

These are just random notes because I don’t want to discuss the game.

• George Springer and Cavan Biggio overslid the bag at second on stolen base attempts. I know we want to be aggressive, but that’s gotta stop.
• Brandon Belt, on second, goes to third on a ground ball hit to short and is an easy out. Don’t advance on a ball hit in front of you. I don’t know what he was thinking.
• Kevin Kiermaier made an amazing jumping catch right at the center field wall. On of the best catches I’ve ever seen. Of course, a far easier fly ball fell in the ninth inning because Kiermaier didn’t take charge in the outfield.
• Bo Bichette also made a terrific play with the glove. A diving grab of a ground ball flips to second while on the ground to start an important double play.
• Vlad had a terrible day at the plate. Three strikeouts. One hard-hit ball back to the pitch that the pitch deflected saved us from a double play.
• He also made a bad decision in the field. In the third, with one out and a runner on third. A ground ball that he had to move to get, but he still threw it home late. It didn’t cost us. Gausman got out of the inning.
• Another terrific wasted start for Kevin Gausman. 8 innings, just 6 hits, 2 earned,4 strikeouts. That should get a guy a W.
• We scored one in the second. Matt Chapman homered.
• And one in the seventh: Springer walked, Bo singled. Both runners moved up on Vlads ground out off the pitcher’s glove. An intentional walk to Belt (???) loaded the bases. And Chapman’s sac fly scored the run.
• Nate Pearson threw a great ninth inning. After Kiermaier missed the ball, he had a runner on second with no outs. But Nate got a flyout and two strikeouts. The tenth didn’t go as well. He gave up a run-scoring single (with the Manfred Man on second) to Cedric Mullins to put the O’s up 3-2. But he got a strikeout/throwout (heck of a throw Kirk) and a flyout and got out of it down just the one. That’s an unearned run.
• In the Jays' half of the tenth, John used his last man on the bench, Daulton Varsho, to be the runner at second. Chapman up, and he struck out on 7 pitches. But Whit Merrifield singled up the middle to tie the game. Amazingly that was our 3rd hit with RISP today in 13 chances. But then Whit was picked off first base. You can’t write this stuff.
• In the eleventh. Garcia in. Ryan McKenna starts the inning at second. Yimi got Mountcastle to strike out. Adam Frazier singled runners on the corner. Austin Hays singled 4-3 O’s. Gunnar Henderson singled, bases loaded. Terrin Vavra singles, and we are down 6-3. An out later, Mullins doubled in two more, 8-3. Garcia was finally taken out (he has pitched a ton lately), not that it mattered. Anthony Bass is in and finishes the inning.
• Bottom of the eleventh. Kirk on second. Mike Baumann is in to pitch. Biggio struck out. Kiermaier popped out. And so did Springer.

Just a terrible game.

Jay of the Day Gausman.

The Other Award: All the batters.