When I saw the Blue Jay’s lineup just before the start of the first game against Baltimore, I had reason to feel optimistic. Jose Bautista was back and I was expecting him to do some damage.
How did he do? Well, he went 0-4 at the plate. How did his team do? Well, they lost, again. This time by a score of 6-4. This was their sixth straight loss in a row.
Now don’t get me wrong, the fact that Joeybats (as the Toronto Blue Jays fans call him), didn’t get a hit, doesn’t mean I blame him for the Jays loss. They lost because they left too many men on base in the earlier innings, something they’ve been doing a lot lately.
Oh, I should add that Chris Davis wasn’t easy on the Jays either. He hit the long ball not once, not twice, but three times in the game.
Jeff Mathis made it interesting in the ninth inning when he hit a two run homer to cut Baltimore’s lead to two runs.
As for starting pitcher, Carlos Villanueva , he gave up five hits, four earned runs, one walk, and struck out four batters in 5.2 innings pitched.
Brandon Morrow
The second game saw the return of Brandon Morrow, one of the Jay’s best starting pitchers. Did it make a difference? No way.
It looked promising for the Jays at the top of the first inning when Edwin Encarnacion hit his 34th home run with Jose Bautista on first base, who walked earlier in the inning.
My hopes were dashed in the third inning when the Orioles scored two runs to tie the game. What made matters worse, Bautista left the game in that very inning due to discomfort in his wrist.
The Orioles took the lead for good in the bottom of the fifth inning. The would end up hammering the Jays 8-2.
As for Morrow, he had a mediocre night at best, giving up six hits, four earned runs, one walk, and struck out seven batters in 4.2 innings pitched.
After what I saw in this game, it’s getting harder to watch the Jays without getting bored. This was their seventh straight loss.
The good news for the Jays is that this afternoon’s game was postpone due to rain.
Maybe the day off will do them good before they have to face the powerful New York Yankees at the New Yankee Stadium for three games starting tomorrow night.
About Ellen Piehl