The Blue Jays’ incredible futility with runners in scoring position continued tonight. They went 2 for 10, scoring only two runs in spite of getting a dozen men on base in the first five innings. The pitching was very good, but a brutal error at an inopportune time and a lack of support saddled Kevin Gausman with one of the tougher luck losses you’ll see.
It hurts to lose a game where you were the more effective team on both sides of the ball for 90% of it because of glaring incompetence in the other 10%. It’s the kind of thing that happens in a long season, though, and as long as they don’t make a habit of it they’ll ultimately be ok.
The Jays got two guys on in each of the first two innings, but couldn’t bring anyone home. They got on the board in the third. George Springer hit a ground ball single and advanced to third on a hit by Bo Bichette. Justin Turner hit a grounder up the middle that Bobby Witt jr. made a beautiful diving play on, but his flip to the bag was over the second baseman’s head, allowing Bo to get in safe and Springer to score. A Davis Schneider infield single loaded the bases, but one run was all they’d get.
They added on in the fifth. Turner hit a one out Texas leaguer into right field, Daulton Varsho lined a double, and Schneider was hit in the elbow to load the bases (which looked quite painful but he stayed in the game). That knocked Michael Wacha out of the game after 4.1 innings in which he allowed eight hits and walked three. An Alejandro Kirk sac fly tagged him with a second earned run before John Schreiber got Isiah Kiner-Falefa to fly out to escape the jam without further damage.
Unfortunately, after knocking Wacha around but failing to capitalize, they couldn’t touch the Royals’ bullpen. Schreiber and Chris Stratton combined for 2.2 innings of perfect relief, while James McArthur walked Kirk in the eighth and gave up a line single to Springer in the ninth but never allowed the Jays to really threaten.
Kevin Gausman deserved a better fate tonight. He wasn’t at his best, recording just two strikeouts, but he battled through 6.2 innings, allowing 7 hits and a walk but no earned runs. The first two Royals of the night reached on back to back singles, but a double play helped him escape that early jam, and he allowed only one hit over the following three innings.
The Royals’ damage came in the bottom of the fifth. Adam Frazier lead off with a double and advanced to third on a ground out. The Jays caught a break when he got himself hung up halfway home on a Michael Massey fielder’s choice grounder and was put out in a rundown. Kyle Isbel grounded to IKF, and that should have been the end of it, but Vladimir Guerrero jr. dropped the throw (which was on target and should have been a routine catch). Instead of ending the inning, Massey scored. Maikel Garcia and Witt followed with a bloop single and a two run double that put the Jays in an insurmountable 3-2 hole.
To his credit, Gausman stopped it there, worked around a Sal Perez double in the sixth, and recorded two ground outs to start the seventh before walking Garcia and being pulled.
Nate Pearson finished off the seventh, allowing a Witt ground ball single but getting Vinnie Pasquantino swinging to prevent further runs.
Tim Mayza worked a clean eighth and looked good, recording to ground outs and a K.
Jays of the Day: nobody
Kansas City Barbecued: Vlad (-0.165 and that doesn’t include the error), Kiner-Falefa (-0.121), Kiermaier (-0.101)
We’re back at 7:40pm ET tomorrow night for the third of the four game set. Yarial Rodriguez (0-0, 2.35) will make his third MLB appearance opposite Alec Marsh (3-0, 3.22).