Maybe we should recap game seven of the Stanley Cup Final instead. It was a heck of a game. I was hoping a Canadian team would win it, and the Oilers did a great job coming back from 0-3, but it looked like the top guys just ran out of gas. They had chances in the third, but there was a wild scramble where I was sure the puck would find its way into the net.
Anyway, the Jays game.
It is nice to see Vlad find his power stroke. His third home run (a three-run homer) in the past four games was crushed, 471 feet, 113.1 mph off the bat. Those ones look very impressive in Fenway when they clear the wall:
The little skip step is cute.
And the offense did its job, for the most part. Six runs on nine hits. Vlad had three of them, with a double going along with the home run.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa had two hits, in the leadoff spot and scored two runs. Spencer Horwitz, Justin Turner and Kevin Kiermaier each had an RBI single.
We had 0 fors from George Springer (including a rather deflating double play ball with two on in the fourth (we are going to continue to bat him in the middle of the order, no matter what), Addison Barger (whose batting average is below the Mendoza line) (how many remember seeing Mario Mendoza play?) and Davis Schneider (whose batting average is nearing the Mendoza line).
We were up 6-2 going into the eighth. That should have been a win. But the bullpen has been overworked and is missing some of the better arms. (It still doesn’t mean we should be going to Tim Mayza in a high-leverage spot).
Chris Bassitt made yet another terrific start. 7 innings, 5 hits, 2 earned, 1 walk with Rafael Devers’ two-run homer in the fourth, the only black mark against him. He’s been our best start of late, with a 1.67 ERA in his last 7 starts. And yet he doesn’t have a decision in his last four. He should be suing for lack of support.
We should be able to handle two innings and a four-run lead, even with Jordan Romano and Yimi Garcia out.
Nate Pearson came in, and I was pretty confident. Nate got a popout. And then another popup to third base that Addison Barger seemed to lose in the sky. Those things happen at Fenway; sometimes, the ball gets above the lights and disappears. I thought IKF should have come over to help out, but it is possible he lost it too. A bad moment, but we were still up four.
But I think Pearson let the mistake get to him and he gave up a David Hamilton home run. But he bounced back with a strikeout.
Then John Schneider decided to bring in Tim Mayza, to face the lefty, Rafael Devers.
This was the moment I knew we would lose the game. Mayza…he’s had such a good career with the Jays, but this year, I don’t know if there is an injury or what but he just doesn’t have it.
And Pearson was throwing well. Yeah, he gave up the home run, but he was rattled (he shouldn’t have been, but that’s life). He’s a much better choice than Mayza this year.
But the Red Sox had Devers coming up, and we had to be slaves to platoon matchups, I guess.
The problem is that if Devers singles (he did), you have an RHB coming after him, Tyler O’Neill, who is hitting .355/.487/.742 against lefties, and we have the three-batter rule now.
Being fair to Mayza, he got O’Neill to pop one up to center field, and we have Kevin Kiermaier out there, who isn’t in the game for his bat. Kiermaier dived, and, well, the ball hit his arm above the glove. Kevin has to catch those. There is a .170 expected batting average on that ball; your Gold Glove outfielder should catch that 10 out of 10 times.
I think the losing streak is affecting everyone, but that was a play that had to be made:
Suddenly, the tying run is on second base.
The Red Sox brought Rob Refsnyder into the game. John decided to intentionally walk him (Mayza had to stay in the game). The Red Sox went to another pinch hitter, Romy Gonzalez.
In comes Zach Pop (why not Chad Green at this point, this is the game right here, Pop has been OKish (ERA 4.98, batters hitting .250/.295/.488), but this is the biggest moment of the game.
Anyway, another soft fly to center and the game is tied. Dan Shulman said “Can you believe it?” I think all of us answered him with “Yes”.
Pop got out of the inning with the tie (Tyler Heineman doesn’t strike much fear into pitchers).
Anyway, tie game going into the ninth. Alejandro Kirk starts us off with a single. Steward Berroa comes in to pinch run. Kiermaier is up (obviously, Daulton Varsho’s back is too bad to send him up to bat). Kiermaier is in there to bunt. And he fails on two pitches (both out of the zone) and then chases high for the strikeout.
IKF up, and Berroa tries to steal, but is out, and IKF grounds out.
In the bottom of the inning, Pop is still in. He gets a ground ball to Horwitz at second, but Spencer has trouble getting it out of his glove.
Then, there was a phantom balk. Why? Because the umpire figured, ‘Why let the players be the stars of the game? I want attention.’ I don’t know; I don’t see it. He came to a stop. He did what he always does.
How many other ways to rattle a pitcher are there?
Anyway, a single, and the game is over.
I’m unsure if this is a comedy or a tragedy, but it isn’t fun.
Jays of the Day: Vlad (.333 WPA, 3 hits, 3-run homer), Turner (.130, 1 for 3, walk, RBI), Bassitt (.117). Horwitz had the number (.145) but had that error.
The Other Award: Pop (-.607, not fair, there was the error, the supposed balk call), Mayza (-.140, but had Kiermaier made that catch, he would have had a JoD), Springer (-.260, 0 for 4, but let’s keep batting him fifth), Davis Schneider (-.117, 0 for 4), and Berroa (-.111 for the caught stealing). And Berroa for the popup that wasn’t caught, and Kiermaier for the other fly that wasn’t caught and the failure on the bunt.
And John, for bringing Mayza in and for batting Springer fifth (though, really, we don’t have anything who should be in that spot).
And me for watching the game on my phone in the bar, which had the hockey on every TV. A friend teased me for watching the wrong game; though I can multitask, I can be disappointed by two teams simultaneously.