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Chris Bassitt following Monday’s loss in Tampa: “We’ve got to clean a lot of things up”

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Photo credit:Dave Nelson-USA TODAY Sports
Cam Lewis
9 months ago
Nothing is going right for the Toronto Blue Jays.
After a homestand that featured losses in three of four to the Yankees and a sweep at the hands of the Orioles, the Blue Jays kicked off their four-game set with the American League-leading Rays with a frustrating 6-4 defeat.
Chris Bassitt had a scoreless streak that started all the way back on April 30 when the Blue Jays were facing the Seattle Mariners snapped at 28 2/3 innings when the Rays put three runs across the board in the second inning of Monday’s game. Those runs were unearned, as Christian Bethancourt drove in the first one on an error by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that should have been the third out of the inning and Jose Siri then came up and launched a two-run homer.
Tampa scored another run in the next inning that was again unearned because of an error. Yandy Diaz opened up the third inning with a walk, Wander Franco reached on another error by Guerrero Jr., Bassitt got Brandon Lowe and Randy Arozarena to fly out, and then Isaac Parades drove in Diaz.
Bassitt wound up going 6 1/3 innings, allowing six runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out four. The only two runs that he was charged with were solo home runs hit by Arozarena and Luke Raley in the sixth and seventh innings.
After the game, Bassitt said that the Blue Jays need to tighten things up, but also stressed that the team needs to not panic so they avoid the snowball effect.
“You can’t give multiple outs to a really good team and expect to win,” Bassitt told reporters after the game, per MLB.com’s Keegan Matheson. “We’re just not playing good baseball right now. We’ve got to clean a lot of things up. From a pitching standpoint to base running, all facets of the game, we’ve got to clean it up.”
The two errors that Gurerro made against the Rays on Monday were the first two of the season for the 2022 American League Gold Glove winner. He echoed Bassitt’s sentiments that the Blue Jays need to remain positive.
“It’s a long season. A lot of ups and downs,” Guerrero told Sportsnet’s Hazel Mae. “We all come in early, get our work in, and do what we can to win some games… Keep our heads down. Stay positive, and things are going to turn around.”
This lull over the past week has seen the Blue Jays fall to 25-23 on the season, dead last in the American League East and nine-and-a-half games back of the Rays for first place.
The Major League Baseball season is a marathon and not a sprint and surely we haven’t yet seen the best of this team, but climbing up the standings will become a significant challenge if the Blue Jays continue to struggle with teams they’re competing with for playoff spots.

ARTICLE PRESENTED BY BETANO

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