The summer of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. continued on Saturday as he extended his hitting streak to 22 games with a first-inning single.

It ties a career-high for the slugger in a game where the Blue Jays as a whole couldn’t generate anything against the Oakland Athletics, falling 1-0.

Ernie Clement was the only other Jay who got a hit, coming in the bottom of the second, as the club struck out nine times at the plate. They would get some other base runners, with Brian Serven taking a walk, and Daulton Varsho one of his own in the bottom of the ninth. But the Jays couldn’t get a rally going against Athletics closer Mason Miller, who threw 15 100+ mph fastballs and two sliders to sit down strikeout George Springer, Guerrero Jr. and Spencer Horwitz in the bottom of the ninth.

For as much as there’s been a turnaround in the Blue Jays’ offence since the All-Star Break, hitting for a .739 OPS ahead of Saturday’s game — the 12th-best mark in the league — the loss to the Athletics was nothing short of a stark reminder of where this team is at.

Yariel Rodriguez did his part for the team, however, going five and two-third innings, allowing one earned run off five hits and one walk, while sitting down five batters. It was as solid of a performance as the club could’ve asked for, with his lone earned run allowed coming off a Brett Rooker home run that bounced off the top of the wall in left-field, off a fence, and back into the ballpark.

The Blue Jays continue their three-game set against the Athletics on Sunday, with first pitch set for 1:07 p.m. EST.

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@thenationnetwork.com.