Jays win streak ends at four with lethargic performance and 6-3 loss

Indians v Jays. Game two of three.
Morrow v Talbot.

Line-ups: Indians: Brantley, A. Cabrera, Choo, Buck, Santana, Sizemore, O. Cabrera, LaPorta, Hannahan and Talbot pitching.
Jays: Escobar, Patterson, Bautista, Rivera, Arencibia, Hill, Thames, Davis, Nix and Morrow pitching.

Jays lose this one 6-3 and the score flatters them as they were losing 6-0 until the last few innings.
Brantley and Santana both had three hits as Indians hit twelve. But they included six doubles and a triple in that listing and no wonder it always seemed that someone was in scoring position, they were !

Jays themselves had ten hits, but not successfully in scoring position (2-7), as they did so well in the series opener. Bautista with three hits but all singles tonight and all to right field, Escobar and Hill each had two. Escobar includes his home run in that total along with three walks which in itself is good to see for his leadoff position.

This was one horrible game for a variety of reasons. There was no life at all, Jays players sleepwalking through the first few innings but by then it was all over.
Yes Escobar did get on base all night but it was the two plays that he didn’t do that stick in my mind. One the failure to go to second for the throw by Arencibia. JP had to wait until Escobar realised he had a play and by then it was too late.

Another play in the fifth inning when he was on first and the ball bounces away from the catcher, he hardly moved let alone try to take second. Most players are already set up on the grass before the pitch and ready to go on a wild pitch, not Yunel. Two plays later and a double play ends the inning. Does not get my star tonight.
Ditto Arencibia and the hitting let alone the defensive dropped ball on relay that had the runner dead halfway down from third. That was huge as it lead to run scoring here and the difference in the game tonight. On his hitting he had a clueless night, first pitch out and two call strikeouts, unable to select he right pitch. Yes his first year in the majors but they were still poor plays.

For the rest, Bautista does his usual and what I liked with his three singles tonight was that they were all to opposite field. Still far too much pressure on the guy to win every game for the team. Others have to pick up the slack and on a consistent basis not just one or two games.

The other weird play, to many fans at the game at least, pinch hitting by Encarnacion in the ninth of all people. Sure matchups and patterns but this is Encarnacion we are talking about, predictably the fly ball out even though it went to the wall, the objective was to get on base and move Bautista over.

It was a very hot and humid day on Toronto today and the mugginess obviously transferred to Jays as lethargic is the only word to describe their performances’ tonight. They seemed to forget that this was Cleveland and one only had to look at the line-up on the score board to see the six players with more than 20 RBIs and the homerun production by every single player I the starting line-up. His is not a team to take lightly and I fear Jays did just that to start with and by the third it was too late to wake up, Despite getting three back, the fifth inning three runs for Indians were the key.

Morrow nine strikeouts, on the stats column look good but they hid the first three hits two doubles and a home run. He was hit around big time tonight despite the nine strikeouts, and of course with the strikeouts came deep counts and he was gone by the sixth.

No energy and it showed the total lack of attempted stolen bases let alone succeeding. If you have speed on the bases surely it should be used.
Along with the miserable night at Rogers Center was that no sooner had the news been heard that long awaited call-up Brett Lawrie would be with big team in Baltimore on Friday than he was hit on the left hand in the first inning of the game in Vegas and taken out of the game.

At the time of writing this, the latest is a tweet from Lawrie “pls be bruised”. Jays have long history of hand injuries and the lengthy rehab time, it would be so very cruel to deny Lawrie his chance after he has worked so hard for it.
Evidently Adam Lind is also scheduled for return on the road in Baltimore. Fans are for an interesting weekend.