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Instant Reaction: Blue Jays lose 8-3 to Pirates in final Spring Training road game
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Photo credit: © Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
Ryley Delaney
Mar 21, 2026, 16:45 EDTUpdated: Mar 21, 2026, 16:40 EDT
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The Toronto Blue Jays’ hopes of finishing .500 in Spring Training have come to an end.
In the penultimate Spring Training game, the Blue Jays fell 8-3 to the Pittsburgh Pirates, moving their record to 11-14-2. If you missed it, you can read about the Spring Breakout game here, but let’s take a look at what went on in this one.
The first run of the game came in the bottom of the third, as Bryan Reynolds hit a sacrifice fly to score Oneil Cruz. In the following inning, former Blue Jay Spencer Horwitz hit his first home run of Spring Training to put the Pirates up 2-0, followed by a second sacrifice fly.
One of the three runs the Jays scored came in the top of the fifth, as Nathan Lukes hit a two-out single with Andrés Giménez on second, scoring the shortstop. The comeback bid was short-lived, as Alika Williams hit an RBI single, followed by Cruz’s second home run of the spring, giving the Pirates a 6-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth.
With Geovanny Planchart on second in the top of the eighth, Jay Harry drove him in to make it a 6-2 game. Then, Cade Doughty hit a grounder that scored Harry, cutting the Pirates’ lead in half. Unfortunately, those were their last two runs, as the Pirates added two in the bottom of the eighth for an 8-3 victory.

Takeaways…

The big note of this game was Kevin Gausman, as the Jays’ Opening Day starter pitched five innings, giving up six hits, four runs (three earned), three walks, and two strikeouts. Gausman threw 78 total pitches, 49 of which were for strikes, and finished Spring Training with a 2.89 ERA.
Jorge Alcala’s rough Spring Training continued, as he gave up two earned runs out of the bullpen. Jesse Hahn pitched a scoreless inning with a walk, and Angel Bastardo gave up two earned runs with two walks and two strikeouts in two-thirds of an inning. Josh Fleming got the final out of the bottom of the eighth thanks to a strikeout.
Despite beginning the game with a lineup we could see on Opening Day, the Jays were unable to do much. Why? Well, Paul Skenes was on the mound for the Pirates. Overall, the Jays had five hits, two of which belonged to Andrés Giménez. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a double off Skenes, while Geovanny Planchart hit a double and Jay Harry hit a triple off José Urquidy.
Both George Springer and Nathan Lukes walked twice, with Lukes also reaching base with a single. Carter Cunningham had the other hit, a single.
This was the final road game, as well as the second-to-last game of Spring Training. Their last game is on Sunday at 1:07 PM ET, as the Jays host the Tampa Bay Rays in Dunedin. Dylan Cease will start the game for the Jays.
Ryley Delaney is a Nation Network writer for Blue Jays Nation, Oilersnation, and FlamesNation. She can be followed on Twitter @Ryley__Delaney.

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