Less than one full year into his MLB career, Toronto Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage has gained a reputation for being effectively wild. But on Saturday night against the San Diego Padres, Yesavage leaned a little too far towards the wild side.

The 22-year-old right-hander tied a career high with seven free passes issued in 1.2 innings, allowing four runs on only one hit. Even with a big home run from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the Blue Jays were unable to overcome Yesavage’s loss of control or the Padres’ persistent offence, falling 8-7 and dropping to 45-50, 1.5 games back of the Seattle Mariners for the third American League wild-card spot.

Even though the Blue Jays came out on the losing side, their previously floundering offence stayed hot; they’ve now scored 31 runs in their last four games.

The big swing came in the sixth, when with a pair of runners on base and Toronto down 7-4, Guerrero Jr. tied the ballgame in one fell swoop.

Facing reliever Bradgley Rodriguez ahead 1-0 in the count, Guerrero got a sinker on the inside corner and yanked it into the seats. Swings like that have been few and far between for the star first baseman, who has only six home runs on the season. But Guerrero’s talent level and track record mean that he’s capable of more. His two home runs in the last three games and the Blue Jays’ winning three of four provide a shred of hope amid the team’s suboptimal circumstances. 

But Ty France quickly quelled his old team’s momentum by responding to Guerrero’s blast with the go-ahead homer in the bottom of the sixth — his 11th of the season.

The Blue Jays’ misfortune started when Yesavage walked the first three batters he faced on 13 pitches — few of them close. He threw 10 straight balls at one point and was wholly unable to find the zone throughout his outing. It’s become a concerning trend for Yesavage, who’s now walked five or more batters in four of his last eight starts. He threw only 20 of 59 pitches for strikes, his lowest strike percentage of the season, and threw only one first-pitch strike all night. It didn’t come until he faced Fernando Tatis Jr. for the second time, on his second trip through the Padres’ order.

But the walks were contagious, and Walker Buehler put Kazuma Okamoto and Daulton Varsho on to start the second. They were promptly plated by an Alejandro Kirk double and Andres Gimenez groundout. That set up the suddenly hot Jonatan Clase with two runners on base, and he golfed a low sweeper over the right-field fence to tie the game 4-4. Buehler walked four in the frame and the two teams combined for 17 walks overall, tied for the second most in MLB this season.

Clase drew a pair of walks himself.

In the fourth inning, Braydon Fisher made his first appearance after returning from the bereavement list. Fisher’s father, Normand, died unexpectedly from a stroke on Monday.

Mason Fluharty followed with a scoreless fifth, the Blue Jays’ first scoreless inning of the game. But Fluharty stayed in for the sixth and gave up the decisive shot to France when he hung a sweeper on the ninth pitch of the at-bat.

The Padres’ fire-breathing backend of the bullpen, Adrian Morejon and Mason Miller, locked down the final two innings, respectively. Although the Blue Jays put up a valiant effort against Miller in the ninth, as Nathan Lukes slashed a ground-ball single and George Springer hit a 105 m.p.h. liner that was caught on the warning track in centre.

In a Blue Jays season marred by injury and inconsistency, Guerrero’s underperformance has been the biggest disappointment. He’s clearly trying new things to get the bat going, declining to wear batting gloves over the last two games.

The Blue Jays conclude their series against the Padres and unofficial first half of the season at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. Guerrero carrying forward his newfound success at the plate could go a long way towards sending the Blue Jays into the break with a win.