Things worth mentioning…

• Things started off really well as the Jays kicked Kyle Hart around for four runs in the first inning. It looked like it was going to be a laugher in the second inning when the Jays loaded the bases with just one out but a Vlad Jr. double play ended the inning and cost the team a huge inning. That would eventually come back to haunt them because as bad as Boston has been this year, they can still hit.
• Before I get into the meltdown, I’ll mention the infuriating strike zone last night. Hart was all over the grid, but got the benefit of the doubt from the home plate umpire, who called strikes on a handful of pitches outside the zone.

• You obviously never like to sit there and whine about balls and strikes because it generally all tends to even out, but this strike zone was particularly infuriating because of the role it played in Boston’s big inning. The Jays came into the sixth inning with a 6-3 lead. Given how exhausted the bullpen is, Charlie Montoyo opted to keep Chase Anderson in the game. He walked the leadoff batter and was subsequently pulled in favour of Wilmer Font. The first batter Font faced was Christian Vasquez. It looked like Font had caught Vasquez looking, but the pitch was called a ball. Vasquez would foul the next pitch off and then crush a double to centre field.

• Of course, Font’s meltdown is on him, not the umpire, but that certainly doesn’t help. The worst part of Font’s outing came a few batters later when he plunked Jose Peraza up 0-2 in the count. The Sox would pile on six runs in the sixth and the Jays weren’t able to recover, ultimately dropping the game 9-7.
• Another note from the game… Travis Shaw was removed between the second and third innings with knee discomfort. Shaw hasn’t been amazing this year, but losing him would obviously be a big blow because it would mean seeing more of Brandon Drury, who now owns a whopping 0.358 OPS. Given how bad Drury has been, we might see Vlad shift back to third if Shaw is out for any length of time.