Jays lose series to Astros with lousy situational hitting

Astros v Jays. Game three, series decider.

Jays need to win this one for the series and avoid major embarrassment losing to the team with the worst record in the majors, and at home!! Bautista with 4 RBIs yesterday carried the team yesterday. The others need to step up big-time. The problem that I see is twofold one unable to bring in runner in scoring position and two the younger guys trying to hit for the fences every at bat. Oh so often all that is need is a base hit single. Just put the ball in play up the middle or looper into the outfield. Staying out of double plays would also help and running earlier in the count to avoid this, but with the free swinging philosophy (or practice) which could be two totally opposite directions, the runners do not get the chance to steal and stay out of the double play. The return of Lind might make an impact behind Bautista, but for now teams are going to pitch around him.

Line-ups: Astros. Bourn, Sanchez, Pence, Lee, Wallace, Johnson, Barmes, Bogusevich, Towles, and Wandy Rodriguez pitching.
Jays: Escobar, Patterson, Bautista, Hill, Rivera, Arencibia, and Drabek pitching.

Top 1st: Bourn, 3-1 ball four high, not good Kyle not this guy on base. Sanchez, strikes out but ball gets away and Bourn to second on the play. Pence with runner in scoring position. There goes Bourn and safe on the throw. Grounds to Escobar, looks Broun back and throw to Rivera two down. Lee fly ball to Davis in centre but 20 pitch first inning for Drabek.
Bottom 1st: Escobar, nice, lines to centre and bounces over the wall ground rule double to start off. Patterson, grounds to second throw to first, Escobar to third for Bautista, no, grounds to short, Escobar has to hold, Bautista out at first, two down for Hill, 0-2 count, full count, ball four. Rivera with two on. Grounds to third throw to first for the out. Jays lose opportunity there to go out ahead. This is exactly the problem they have had all season. Someone, besides Bautista has to start to hit with runners in scoring position.

Top 2nd: Wallace, full count, ball four, Johnson, strikes out swinging, one down one on for Barmes. 2-2 count, lines it to Patterson in left, two on one down for Bogusevic, lines to Patterson in left, two down. Runners hold. Towles, fly ball to Bautista for third out, not sure Jose realised that.
Bottom 2nd: Arencibia leading off. Strikes out swinging, one down for Davis. Full count. Doubles into right centre. Encarnacion, singles into centre, goes to second on the throw Davis at third. Nix, strikes out swinging. Not good Jayson. Escobar with two in scoring position. 3-1 count, this is your pitch Yunel. Ball four, bases loaded for Patterson. Pops up to Towles and Jays leave three more out there. This cannot go on all season long John Farrell, you have to do something.

Top 3rd: Bourn, singles into left. Sanchez, singles to Davis in centre. Drabek fooling nobody today much like Morrow yesterday. Pence, grounds to Nix, tags Davis as he goes by, one down. Lee, grounds to Nix steps on third to get Sanchez at third, two down for Wallace, full count, singles up the middle here comes the run and Lee goes to third on the play safe on the throw 1-0 Astros. Johnson, grounds to Nix long throw to Rivera for third out.
Bottom 3rd: Jays playing catch up. Bautista leading off. Strikes out swinging, Hill, 3-1 count, pops up to shallow right centre. Two down for Rivera, 2-0 count, whoa... hammers this one right off the meat of the bat with that crack, way into left field seats second deck, home run to Rivera and this one is tied up 1-1. Arencibia, 2-2 count, singles into left. Davis, 3-1 count, ball four, two on two down for Encarnacion. High pop up to left field for third out.

Top 4th: Barmes, strikes out swinging, one down for Bogusevich, pops first pitch up to Nix two down. Towles, pops up to Davis for third out. Three up and down for Drabek.
Bottom 4th: Nix grounds first pitch to third, one down. Nix really struggling since his return. Escobar, grounds first pitch to third, long throw but gets him at first, two outs in two pitches the old free swinging undisciplined hitting by Jays. Patterson. Pops up second pitch to short. Three outs in four pitches? that is bush league whatever team is doing it.

Top 5th: Bourn always leading off it seems, lines first pitch to Bautista in right, nice running catch by Jose. Ione down for Sanchez, loops it into no man’s land shallow centre, one on one down for Pence. This one is trouble. Pence lines it into seats in left centre, home run. 3-1 Astros. Lee first pitch lines it into right, Drabek rattled again here, has to learn to control it. Wallace with one on and one down. Grounds to Hill, throw to Escobar over to Rivera, double play ball to end this one but not before Astros get to Drabek.
Bottom 5th: Bautista leading off, strikes out on ball outside, Hill pops up to short, two down. Rivera, strikes out looking same pitch that got Jose, outside on the corner.

Top 6th: Johnson singles over head of Hill into shallow right centre, one on for Barmes, Johnson running and throw gets him at second, not a great throw but enough. 2-2 count, full count, way outside, ball four, one on for Bogusevic, 2-0 count 94 pitches. Camp warming up in bullpen. 3-0 count. Full count, grounds to Escobar throw to first to get him hit and run on and Barmes safe at second.Towles, 3-0 full count, grounds to Escobar throw to first to end this but that is the end of Drabek, not a good outing today, far too many deep counts which pushed the pitch count to that 104 in only six innings. Has to learn to get the count down.
Bottom 6th: Arencibia, gets hold of this one high fly ball into left field seats, and Arencibia has pulled it back to 3-2 game. Davis, strikes out swinging, one down. Encarnacion 2-2 count, lines it right at Johnson at third, nice jumping catch for second out. Nix, fly ball out to centre.

Top 7th: Camp now pitching. Bourn leading off. He has been a real pain for Jays this weekend. Full count, lines it to centre, Davis makes nice running catch. One down. Sanchez, grounds back to Camp throw to first two down. Pence, singles to Davis in centre. Lee, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging to end the inning, nice work Shawn.
Bottom 7th: Can Jays hitters find their bats now? Change of pitching might help. Lopez now pitching. Top of the order, Escobar. 3-0 count, takes one ball four to get on base. Patterson, first pitch swinging after a guy has just walked. Pops up to Towles, awful at bat. Bautista, 0-3 today, grounds to Johnson, over to second, on to first double play. A day to forget for Jose but then again this team should not rely on one guy.

Top 8th: Rzepczynski now pitching. Wallace leading off. Doubles to left field wall. Johnson, grounds to Escobar throw to Nix at third gets him. One down for Barmes singles into left. Two on one down for Bogusevich, grounds to Nix, steps on third throw to first not in time. Two down for Towles. OH GREAT play, grounds up the middle but Hill diving to his right gets the ball and flips to Escobar for the out, that saved a run there.
Bottom 8th: Hill leading off. Fly ball to Bourn in centre. Rivera, 3-1 count, ball four, one on for Arencibia. 2-1 count and here comes the manager to change pitchers in the middle of an at bat, you don’t often see this. Melancon to pitch. Do you swing or take? Arencibia takes a strike, hmm... 2-2 and does it again takes third strike. Not good JP. Davis with two down. Strikes out swinging. The Arencibia at bat was the key there. JP has to learn better pitch selection. A new pitcher coming in on 2-1 count is going to throw a strike and most times fast ball, Melancon did that almost down the middle but it was hittable if he were waiting for it.

Top 9th: Casey Janssen now pitching. Bourn, Jays killer this weekend. Loops into centre for Davis to make the catch, nice running catch by Rajai. One down for Sanchez, ground ball to Escobar throw to Rivera at first for the second out. Pence, strikes out swinging.
Bottom 9th: Jays running out of chances now and have not looked world beaters today or in fact all weekend against a far inferior line-up. Encarnacion leading off 0-2 count, grounds to second, throw to first, one down. Thames pinch hitting for Nix. Strikes out swinging, over-matched there. Escobar last chance for Jays, bounces one to short, long throw but Escobar safe at first on the throw. Patterson, two down and one on. McCoy pinch running for Escobar. Doubles into the right field corner. McCoy into third, two in scoring position for Bautista. Intentional walk. Exactly what we mentioned at the beginning of this game. Would they do this if Jose were better protected by Lind? Bases loaded. Hill, grounds to Johnson at third, throw to first and Jays lose another and the series.

We had big hopes of a Jays sweep this weekend over the worst team in the majors but instead Jays play some of their worst baseball of the season, poor pitching, even worse hitting and a major disappointment and embarrassment. They will have time to think about it on the plane to New York but not a good way to head into Yankee Stadium. Jays can hope that they see Lind back in line-up this series. If not, my fear is that it could end in back surgery and that would not be good for Adam at all. Jays would need huge career year from someone to make up for that loss. It was ironic to see Wallace playing so well in the two games he played. He would be fixture at first right now and may even be hitting behind Jose at cleanup. I like Aaron but right now he is lightweight support for Jose.

The good: Not much today. The bullpen as is often the case. The home runs by Rivera and Arencibia. Some great defence by Hill and that is it today.

The not so good: Drabek, far too many long counts, not great control. The hitters unable to adjust to a very liberal strike zone which the umpire applied consistently all afternoon, hitters did not adjust at all. Poor pitch selection. Unable to bring in runners once again from the very first inning with that leadoff double by Escobar. Three chances and unable to and in the end that cost them this game. A very poor over all game along with Friday night and the series.