Jays Lose in Extras

Angels 3 Blue Jays 2 (ten innings)

That was an interesting game. Both teams had many chances to score and got to the ninth inning with just one run. A loss, but not one of those soul-crushing losses that we seem to get most times.

I’m not sure if Jose Berrios was great or lucky, I’m not sure which. He went 6 innings, allowed 6 hits, and 2 walks with 6 strikeouts, allowing just one run. The Angels had two on with one out in the first. Two on, no outs in the second. Two on, one out in the third. Two on with two outs in the fourth. But only scored in the third. In the fifth and sixth, he finally had clean innings.

They only scored in the third: Ohtano started the inning with a single (without John getting told off for pitching to him). After a flyout, Mike Moustakas singled him to second. A hit batter (Matt Thaiss, who was hit twice and left the game after the second one, which got him on the arm, I hope he is ok). And then a Hunter Renfroe sac fly scored Ohtani.

The Angels wouldn’t score again until the tenth.

We had good work from the pen again:

• Génesis Cabrera: Pitched the 7th and got the first out of the eighth.
• Jay Jackson: He had a bit more trouble getting the last two outs of the eighth. He hit Thaiss and then gave up a Hunter Renfroe single (maybe he was the one we shouldn’t have been pitching to today), but then got a flyout and a strikeout to end the inning.
• Tim Mayza got the ninth: After an out, he walked Luis Rengifo and intentionally walked Ohtani, then got a couple of ground outs.

Unfortunately, the tenth didn’t go as well. Without Romano (who hadn’t allowed a hit in extras), Yimi Garcia came in, and Renfroe homered after a sac bunt, putting us down by two.

We didn’t do much offensively.

We got our run in the fifth: Daulton Varsho doubled and came home on Whit Merrifield’s single.

Things looked good in the bottom of the tenth:

• With Cavan Biggio on second, Vlad singled, making it a one-run game.
• Matt Chapman had a very good at-bat, taking a walk, moving Vlad to second.
• George Springer looked to be having a good at-bat but was called out on a strike three a couple of inches off the inside corner—just a terrible call (in keeping with a series of terrible ball and strike calls).
• Cavan Biggio struck out, chasing high (though they might have been called strikes, the zone was huge, and there were a lot of high strikes called).
• And Danny Jansen pulled a pitch into left, but not deep enough.

We had chances:

• In the first: Bo and Vlad had one-out singles but didn’t score.
• In the sixth: Matt Chapman led off with a double, but we didn’t score him.
• In the seventh: Daulton Varsho had a one-out double (his second of the game), but we stranded him there.
• In the eighth, Vlad and Kirk walked. Jansen grounded one to third, but Eduardo Escobar dribbled the ball, and Vlad beat him to third base. Great running from Vlad, called out on the field but overturned on appeal. But Santiago Espinal ground out to end the inning.

We had 8 hits and 4 walks. Vlad and Daulton were the only ones with 2 hits.

Springer was 0 for 5, but he hit the ball hard three times (102.1, 100.0 and 97.6), but they found gloves. And he had that horrible strike-three call in the tenth.

Kirk was 0 for 3 with a walk; the day after, he had 2 home runs.

Danny Jansen was 0 for 5. He also had a couple of hard-hit balls (104.3 and 98.2).

Jays of the Day: Berrios (.202 WPA), Mayza (.134), Jackson (.107), Vlad (.282), and Chapman (.123).

The Other Award: Garcia (-.413), Springer (-.382), Jansen (-.213), Espinal (-.192, also had a ball go through him at second in the first inning), Biggio (-.162, all on the strikeout in the tenth) and Bo (-.092).

Tomorrow the Orioles are in Toronto for the start of a four-game series. Kyle Gibson (9-6, 4.68) vs. Chris Bassitt (10-5, 3.91).