¶Ù·¡°Õ¸é°¿±õ°Õ—The Blue Jays got away with one Saturday.
A lot of their recent games have had a playoff feel, but Saturday night’s 6-1 win over the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park, their eighth win in nine games since the all-star break, actually looked like one and, best record in the majors or not, the Jays were lucky to win.
Facing left-hander Tarik Skubal, arguably the game’s best pitcher, the Jays knew it was going to be a rough night, and it was.
“Going into the game, I knew runs were going to be at a premium,” said Kevin Gausman, who outpitched Skubal by allowing just one hit over six shutout innings while striking out 10. “You go into those games against those guys knowing that if you give up one, you’re probably going to get a loss. That’s what makes it so much fun.”
If not for Gausman’s brilliance, the Jays would have been in a hole instead of a 0-0 tie going into the eighth inning. That’s when Bo Bichette’s two-run single through a drawn-in infield opened the door that the Jays busted through in the top of the ninth with home runs from Nathan Lukes, George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
It hasn’t been an easy ride for the 45-year-old manager, who took over midstream in 2022.
It was the first time in a long time that the Jays had played a sloppy game.
Guerrero went one step too far on a missed bunt attempt by Tyler Heineman in the fourth inning and got picked off. The Jays had runners on second and third with one out and failed to score.Â
“That’s on me to try to tell (Heineman to) suicide squeeze no matter what,” manager John Schneider said after the game. “With a safety (squeeze), it’s me putting Vladdy in a tough spot to make a read. I don’t think Vladdy did anything wrong on that play.”
In the sixth, after Bichette worked a 13-pitch walk off Skubal to load the bases in as intense a plate appearance as you’ll see in July, Heineman hit a blooper to shallow centre and Springer went back to third base to tag up, despite no chance of him scoring if the ball was caught. He was thrown out at the plate, without a slide, after the ball dropped.
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“At the end of the day, I have to slide,” said Springer, who made up for the mistake with a single and a homer later, scoring twice. “I’m not going to try to figure out why or what, that’s on me. I need to score.”
Shaking off those missed opportunities, the Jays pounced on reliever Will Vest in the eighth inning, with pinch-hitter Joey Loperfido and Springer singling on the first two pitches. Vest’s third pitch went to the backstop, advancing the runners and setting up Bichette to be the hero.
The win clinches the season series against Detroit, so the Jays now hold the post-season tiebreaker against them.
Worry for Kirk
All-star catcher Alejandro Kirk was replaced in the fourth inning after taking a direct hit to the mask earlier in the game.
“He’s being evaluated for a concussion,” Schneider said. “Just want to be careful with him and see how he feels (Sunday).”
If Kirk has to spend any time on the shelf, the backup options at Triple-A are Ali Sanchez, who was 2-for-11 in a call-up earlier this season and Christian Bethancourt, who is hitting .182 with Buffalo.
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