That was a game that the <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/">Toronto Blue Jays</a> needed to win.

On Friday evening, they started a three-game weekend series against the Chicago White Sox, falling 7-1 to move to 40-35. Let’s take a look at what went wrong in this game.
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The White Sox took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, as Andrew Benintendi hit his eighth home run of the season on a first pitch. They extended their lead to three in the top of the second, as Austin Slater and Benintendi each hit an RBI single.
Things went from bad to worse for the Blue Jays, as Luis Robert Jr. hit a two-run home run in the top of the third, giving the White Sox a 5-0 lead. In the same inning, Josh Rojas hit a two-RBI double, making it a 7-0 game.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
441 FEET 🤯 <a href="https://t.co/6Nr0db69G6">pic.twitter.com/6Nr0db69G6</a>
&mdash; Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) <a href="https://twitter.com/whitesox/status/1936211125428748407?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 20, 2025</a></blockquote>
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The Jays scored their only run in the bottom of the eighth, as Tyler Heineman drew a lead-off walk, advanced to second on a shallow sacrifice fly, and was driven in by Bo Bichette. At least they ruined the shutout.
<h2>Takeaways…</h2>
The need for pitching ahead of next month’s trade deadline is becoming increasingly evident. As it stands, the Blue Jays have two spots in their rotation that are questionable, including <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-recall-spencer-turnbull-option-paxton-schultz">Spencer Turnbull</a>’s spot in the rotation.
This evening, Turnbull retired six outs, giving up four earned runs in two innings, walking and striking out two to bring his season ERA to 7.11. At a certain point, these bullpen games are going to wear out a pitcher, but you can expect Max Scherzer to start the next time this spot comes up. Eric Lauer has also been pitching well in one of the rotation spots.
Mason Fluharty had a rough game, giving up three earned runs while striking out three and walking two in an inning of work, bringing his season ERA to 4.55. Nick Sandlin made his return, allowing a double but striking out a batter in his scoreless inning. Chad Green, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-brendon-little-went-from-being-involved-in-small-trade-to-one-best-left-handed-relievers-in-baseball">Brendon Little</a>, and Jeff Hoffman all pitched scoreless innings, with Little striking out two.
<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/braydon-fisher-emerging-reliable-arm-blue-jays-bullpen">Braydon Fisher</a> also made an appearance, striking out four of the six batters he faced. When he comes out of the bullpen, he’s pitched 17.2 scoreless innings, allowing eight hits, two walks, and striking out 42.6% of batters. The Blue Jays have a dude.
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Dude what. <a href="https://t.co/sy9niB7sFp">pic.twitter.com/sy9niB7sFp</a>
&mdash; Ryley Delaney🏳️‍⚧️ (@Ryley__Delaney) <a href="https://twitter.com/Ryley__Delaney/status/1936219110142099603?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
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As suspect as the pitching was in this game, the Blue Jays&#8217; offence was not nearly good enough. Bo Bichette was by far their best batter, going 3-4 with a double and two singles. Ernie Clement had four plate appearances, finishing with two hits, both against lefties. George Springer and Nathan Lukes had the other two hits.
The Blue Jays grounded into two double plays, ending any chance at a rally. As a whole, they were 2-6 with runners in scoring position, with six runners left on.
They’ll be back in action on Saturday at 3:07 PM ET, as Jose Berrios is the expected starter for the Jays. The Blue Jays still have a chance to win the series, but they need to win against the bad teams.
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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/author/ryley-delaney">Blue Jays Nation</a>, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/author/ryley-delaney">Oilersnation</a>, and <a href="https://flamesnation.ca/author/ryley-delaney">FlamesNation</a>. She can be followed on Twitter <a href="https://x.com/Ryley__Delaney">@Ryley__Delaney</a>.
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That was a game that the <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/">Toronto Blue Jays</a> needed to win.



On Friday evening, they started a three-game weekend series against the Chicago White Sox, falling 7-1 to move to 40-35. Let’s take a look at what went wrong in this game.
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The White Sox took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, as Andrew Benintendi hit his eighth home run of the season on a first pitch. They extended their lead to three in the top of the second, as Austin Slater and Benintendi each hit an RBI single.

Things went from bad to worse for the Blue Jays, as Luis Robert Jr. hit a two-run home run in the top of the third, giving the White Sox a 5-0 lead. In the same inning, Josh Rojas hit a two-RBI double, making it a 7-0 game.

https://twitter.com/whitesox/status/1936211125428748407

The Jays scored their only run in the bottom of the eighth, as Tyler Heineman drew a lead-off walk, advanced to second on a shallow sacrifice fly, and was driven in by Bo Bichette. At least they ruined the shutout.
<h2>Takeaways…</h2>
The need for pitching ahead of next month’s trade deadline is becoming increasingly evident. As it stands, the Blue Jays have two spots in their rotation that are questionable, including <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-recall-spencer-turnbull-option-paxton-schultz">Spencer Turnbull</a>’s spot in the rotation.

This evening, Turnbull retired six outs, giving up four earned runs in two innings, walking and striking out two to bring his season ERA to 7.11. At a certain point, these bullpen games are going to wear out a pitcher, but you can expect Max Scherzer to start the next time this spot comes up. Eric Lauer has also been pitching well in one of the rotation spots.

Mason Fluharty had a rough game, giving up three earned runs while striking out three and walking two in an inning of work, bringing his season ERA to 4.55. Nick Sandlin made his return, allowing a double but striking out a batter in his scoreless inning. Chad Green, <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/toronto-blue-jays-brendon-little-went-from-being-involved-in-small-trade-to-one-best-left-handed-relievers-in-baseball">Brendon Little</a>, and Jeff Hoffman all pitched scoreless innings, with Little striking out two.

<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/braydon-fisher-emerging-reliable-arm-blue-jays-bullpen">Braydon Fisher</a> also made an appearance, striking out four of the six batters he faced. When he comes out of the bullpen, he’s pitched 17.2 scoreless innings, allowing eight hits, two walks, and striking out 42.6% of batters. The Blue Jays have a dude.

https://twitter.com/Ryley__Delaney/status/1936219110142099603

As suspect as the pitching was in this game, the Blue Jays' offence was not nearly good enough. Bo Bichette was by far their best batter, going 3-4 with a double and two singles. Ernie Clement had four plate appearances, finishing with two hits, both against lefties. George Springer and Nathan Lukes had the other two hits.

The Blue Jays grounded into two double plays, ending any chance at a rally. As a whole, they were 2-6 with runners in scoring position, with six runners left on.

They’ll be back in action on Saturday at 3:07 PM ET, as Jose Berrios is the expected starter for the Jays. The Blue Jays still have a chance to win the series, but they need to win against the bad teams.

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Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for <a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/author/ryley-delaney">Blue Jays Nation</a>, <a href="https://oilersnation.com/author/ryley-delaney">Oilersnation</a>, and <a href="https://flamesnation.ca/author/ryley-delaney">FlamesNation</a>. She can be followed on Twitter <a href="https://x.com/Ryley__Delaney">@Ryley__Delaney</a>.

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