Blue Jays get swept in final series of the pre-Vlad era
By Cam Lewis
5 years agohough this week’s two-game series against the visiting San Francisco Giants (11-14) was lined with joy due to the homecoming of longtime franchise anchor Kevin Pillar, it quickly turned sour as the Blue Jays (11-14) were beaten in back-to-back games in their first interleague series of the season.
Here’s a look at the good, the bad, and the weird from the tilt against the Giants:
The Good
Rowdy Tellez (2-for-6, HR, 4 RBI, BB) made some noise this week, thanks chiefly to his late-game grand slam Tuesday, while Eric Sogard (2-for-8, BB, HR, 2 R) also had himself a solid series. Socrates Brito finally contributed offensively, going 1-for-3 in Tuesday’s game with an RBI triple; his season’s OPS now stands at .342.
On the mound, Ryan Tepera (1.1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H) turned in a solid inning, fortunately rebounding from a rough second outing against the Athletics in Oakland.
The Bad
At the plate, Justin Smoak (0-for-7, 4 SO), Alen Hanson (0-for-2, SO, BB), Brandon Drury (0-for-8, 2 SO, 0 TB), Danny Jansen (0-for-3, 2 SO), Luke Maile (0-for-3), and Randal Grichuk (2-for-7, SO) all struggled, lending to just 11 hits earned by the team over the two games.
In addition, Freddy Galvis’ consecutive games played streak unfortunately ended at 349 games as he was kept out of the lineup due to a sore left hamstring. The Blue Jays are reportedly considering sending him to the injured list.
Daniel Hudson (1.0 IP, HR, ER) continued to struggle with the long ball, as did Thomas Pannone (2.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 HR). Starter Trent Thornton (5.0 IP, 4 ER, 6 H, 5 SO, L) had yet another subpar outing, with his ERA now sitting at 5.79 on the year.
The Weird
Lourdes Gurriel Jr., whose bobblehead was given out to the first 15,000 Blue Jays fans who entered Rogers Centre Wednesday, spent his day with the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons. Funnily enough, hoards of fans received a Gurriel bobblehead without having actually seen Gurriel appear in the game.
Looking Ahead
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. will finally make his major league debut against the Oakland Athletics Friday in the first game of a three-game series at Rogers Centre. For the Blue Jays, Marcus Stroman (1-3, 1.76 ERA, 29 SO), Aaron Sanchez (2-1, 2.77 ERA, 23 SO), and Trent Thornton (0-3, 5.79 ERA, 26 SO) will face off against Mike Fiers (2-2, 8.28 ERA, 20 SO), Brett Anderson (3-1, 3.04 ERA, 16 SO) and Chris Bassitt (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 7 SO).
For the first time this season, Rogers Centre will be abuzz with hope and excitement as the game’s best prospect gets set to make his major-league debut. Enjoy this one, Blue Jays fans.
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