Eight scoreless innings from Chris Bassitt lead Toronto Blue Jays to series win over Washington Nationals

With the hound on the mound, there wasn’t much for the Toronto Blue Jays to worry about on Wednesday afternoon as they secured a series win over the Washington Nationals.

Bassitt caught fire throwing eight scoreless innings for the Jays as the bats came alive in a 7-0 shutout victory. It wasn’t just that he kept them off the scoreboard, but he limited the baserunners allowing just three hits and issuing just a scant walk to Keibert Ruiz — the batter whose three-run shot in the top of the fifth Tuesday pushed the Nats to victory.

His performance on the mound was nothing short of spectacular, and his effort gave him his eighth appearance this season in which he went six or more scoreless innings, a league-high.

With Bassitt carving Washington up, it allowed the Jays batters to make more than enough noise. Big surprise, but it was once again Davis Schneider who helped push the offence. He walked in the top of the first inning allowing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to get on base for a single. While Whit Merrifield struck out, the pair of baserunners conducted a double steal to perfection getting themselves into scoring position.

An Alejandro Kirk — one of two on the afternoon as he went 3-for-3 at the plate — gave Schneider and Guerrero Jr. the time to jog home. While George Springer would go 0-for-4 and Merrifield 1-for-4, it was the depth bats who came up for the Jays.

It was Ernie Clement who went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, and Santiago Espinal going 2-for-4 driving in two runs of his own which played a key part in the Jays’ victory.

All in all, it was the kind of performance the Jays needed to have in not just this series as a whole, but this whole run against sub-.500 clubs. And truth be told, it couldn’t have come at a better time given their inability to close out the comeback on Tuesday night.

Now, the Jays turn the page once again getting an off-day Thursday before a trip to Coors Field through the weekend offers the bats an opportune time to heat up.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.