Tough loss. Bowden Francis continued his rough season, and while the bullpen did a good job keeping the Jays in touch the offence couldn’t quite close the gap.
Nathan Lukes was forced to leave the game in the fifth. The report is that it was due to a migraine, rather than an injury, so hopefully it’s a one night issue and he’ll be available tomorrow.
Bowden Francis struggled again tonight. He sat the Tigers down in order in the first, but Riley Greene lead off the second with a home run on a towering fly to left field to stake Detroit to a 1-0 lead. He got into a further jam after that, hitting a batter and giving up a single before a K and a ground out got him out of it.
He conceded a pair of singles in the third, but managed to avoid more runs. Zach McKinstry added a solo homer of his own in the fourth, though, to double Detroit’s advantage.
Again two of the first three Tigers singled in the fifth. This time Francis couldn’t get off, giving up a line double to Greene that ran the deficit to four. He got one more put before a pair of walks loaded the bases and drove him from the game. All in all he went 4.2 innings, conceding 4 runs on 8 hits, 2 walks and a hit batter and striking out 6. Mason Fluharty picked up the torch, striking out Trey Sweeney to get Toronto out of the inning. He’d return to pitch a 1-2-3 sixth.
On the other side, the offence had a hard time figuring Jack Flaherty out. They scattered just two hits and two walks across the first five innings, with Bo Bichette’s lead off first inning double representing the only man to reach scoring position. They got on the board with a little luck in the sixth. Vladimir Guerrero jr. was badly fooled by a curveball in the dirt but was just able to get the bat on it, reaching on a swinging bunt. That set up Daulton Varsho for a two run opposite field shot into the Jays bullpen, which cut the lead to 4-2. Flaherty was pulled at that point, with reliever Brendan Haniffee recording the third out.
Brendon Little worked around a walk in a scoreless seventh. Addison Barger lined a ball off the very top of the wall in dead centre in the bottom half. It was initially called a home run, but on review it was clear that it hasn’t ever left the yard and Barger was placed at second. The reversal didn’t end up mattering, as Myles Straw hit a ground ball single up the first base line that scored him anyway, cutting the lead to one. Straw stole second, just barely surviving a Tigers challenge on the safe call, but was stranded.
Javier Baez pushed the lead back to two in eighth. He took a high Chad Green fastball to deep left field for a two out solo shot. It was throwback Baez, chasing 95 up and in but overcoming questionable decisions with electric hand speed. Bichette kept the homer parade going in the bottom half, launching a hung Tommy Kahnle change up high and deep to left to make it 5-4.
Yariel Rodriguez pitched the ninth. He got some help from Jonatan Clase, who made a great throw to get Gleyber Torres at second on a ball lined off the left field wall, and turned in a scoreless inning. Beau Brieske got the call to try to close it out for Detroit. Myles Straw managed a two out line single to get the winning run to the plate, and Michael Stefanic added a ground single to put it on base, but Ernie Clement (hitting for Clase) grounded back to the mound to end the game.
Jays of the Day: Bichette (0.155), Straw (0.209)
Less so: Francis (-0.194), Vlad (-0.122), Lukes (-0.119), Clase (-0.159), Kirk (-0.160)
We’re back tomorrow afternoon at 3:07pm ET. Reese Olson (4-3, 3.38) will go for the Tigers. As of right now the Jays haven’t announced a starter. See you there.