Jays win Indians series with gutsy pitching performance from Villanueva

Indians v Jays. Final game of series. Sunday July 15th. Jay have chance to win the series today against strong team. Villanueva v Lowe. On paper favours Cleveland. News of Santos shoulder surgery announced before the game. I guess that means Casey is the closer now for rest of the season. Most fans can live with that the way he has been pitching the first half. Lineups: Cleveland: Choo, Cabrera, Kipnis, Hafner, Santana, Brantley, Kotchman, Damon, Hannahan and Lowe pitching. Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Johnson, Francisco, Arencibia and Villanueva pitching. Davis sitting and long overdue in a horrible 0-24 slump. Note Snider hit another home run last night for Vegas. But I doubt we will see Travis until September if then, meantime Francisco gets a chance to show off his talents. Top 1st: Where is everybody ??? Stadium very empty for a Sunday and after two great 32,000 plus crowds this weekend. Seats behind me are empty and there are large sections in 100 level empty. Roof is closed storms are forecast outside but makes it hot and humid inside. Choo leading off, strikes out swinging, good start. Cabrera singles to right to Bautista. One on one down for Kipnis, wild pitch just in front of Arencibia but he cannot find it at first, and Cabrera to second. Kipnis ball four, two on one down for Hafner, fly ball to left Francisco makes the out. Two down for Santana, strikes out swinging. Nice inning for Villanueva. Bottom 1st: Lawrie, strikes out, Rasmus grounds to Kotchman at first, two down. Bautista grounds to Hannahan at third, throw to Kotchman and Jays go quietly in the first. Top 2nd: Brantley, lines to centre, stand up double. One on for Kotchman, fly ball to Bautista, Brantley tags and beats the throw from Jose because Escobar cuts it off, that may have had a chance Yunel, Jose threw a bullet. Damon with runner at 3rd and only one out. Damon pops it up to Johnson, two down. Hannahan strikes out swinging, throw to Edwin for the out. Two innings in the books for Carlos. Every inning is a plus. Bottom 2nd: Encarnacion high fly ball to Brantley in centre, one down. Edwin just got under that or that would have gone a mile again. Lind, grounds back to Lowe, throw to Kotchman at first, two down. Escobar, grounds to Cabrera, throw to Kotchman to end the inning. Top 3rd: Choo grounds to Encarnacion at first, one down. Cabrera, just misses going out in left here with rocket to left barely foul, Villanueva avoided a bullet there, strikes out, two down. Villanueva is really slowing the game with very deliberate pitches, makes Frasor look fast. Arencibia not helping with constant visits to the mound. Kipnis lines it hard back at Villanueva, Carlos puts out his glove and the ball sticks, great ending to the inning, reflex action but great catch. Bottom 3rd: Johnson, nice at bat, ball four, very patient Kelly, he really worked that count. Francisco, there goes Kelly and steals second Santana throw gets away and Kelly to third on the error. I love the aggressiveness; Kelly tries to get the edge anyway he can, runner at third and nobody out, surely a run here. Francisco strikes out swinging. Arencibia, there we go singles to Brantley in centre, here comes Kelly to score first run. He earned that. 1-0 Jays. Lawrie with one on, grounds to Hannahan throw to Kotchman at first, two down. Arencibia moves up to second on the play. Rasmus, there we go Colby, lines it to Brantley in centre, here comes Arencibia, 2-0 Jays. Rasmus hit was almost a golf swing, he really went after that low pitch and hit it inches off the ground. Colby has been hitting well this series without much luck as at least two outs have been very hard hits but right at a fielder. Bautista, Jose singles to Damon in left, Rasmus to 3rd. Here comes the coach to calm down Lowe or more like it strategise. Encarnacion there goes Jose and takes second, strange steal as it now leaves first open if they want to put Edwin on. Ball four. Hmmmm. I wonder. Bases loaded. Lind, pitching him away, and ball four, here comes Rasmus 3-0 Jays. But I wonder, Escobar now at bat with bases loaded, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging on three pitches. Easier out than Lind. A Lind single would score at least two. Escobar meantime is a much better bet for an out. Top 4th: Hafner, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin one down. Santana, the shift right on and there he does it, Santana bunts to left and nobody there. We mentioned this yesterday when the Indians popped up an easy out with nobody at third. It did not hurt them yesterday, today may be a different story. Farrell should know that teams will adjust, will be interesting to see if he does it with Ortiz in Boston this week. Brantley, pops it up to Escobar, one down. Kotchman ball four and two on one down. Villanueva again in trouble. Damon, strikes out swinging. Villanueva escapes this time. Bottom 4th: Johnson leading off, lines first pitch hard to left but right at Damon for the out, Francisco, strikes out swinging. Arencibia, two down, fly ball to Brantley in centre. Three up and down for Lowe. Top 5th: Hannahan, ball four, leadoff walk. It has not been easy for Villanueva today, he has been slowing the game down as well to try to make the pitches. Choo with one on, strikes out swinging, one down. Cabrera, grounds to first, Edwin steps on the bag, throw to Escobar at second double play ball, perfect ending. Bottom 5th: Lawrie, grounds to Cabrera at short, throw to Kotchman, one down. Rasmus, lines it hard to Brantley at centre but for the out. Bautista, strikes out swinging, not a good at bat by Jose. Top 6th: Kipnis leading off, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin, one down. Hafner, strikes out swinging, two down. Santana, ball four. Brantley, one down one on, another ball four, Carols must be tiring, it is very hot in here with the roof closed and the crowd has grown since the start which does not help the humidity level. Here comes Bruce Walton, hang in there Carlos, one more out. 100 pitch count which is really stretching Villanueva. Kotchman, strikes out swinging. That will be it for Villanueva; he should be pleased with that outing. Bottom 6th: Encarnacion leading off, Lowe pitching around Edwin again, getting respect after yesterday’s two home run game. Lind, oh dear, grounds to Kipnis at second, throw to the bag over to Kotchman, double play ball. That hurts. Escobar, grounds to Hannahan at third, throw to Kotchman to end the inning. Lowe has pitched as well if not better than Villanueva. One poor inning. Top 7th: Fraser now pitching. Damon, fly ball to Bautista in right. Jose runs in hard to make the catch almost in the infield. Hannahan strikes out swinging, two down. Top of the order Choo, singles to Bautista in right. Two down one on for Cabrera, grounds weakly up the first base line, Fraser grabs and tags him for third out. Cabrera arguing with umpire that he was blocked by Fraser, but no good. Good inning for Frasor. Bottom 7th: Sidearmer Joe Smith now pitching for Lowe. Johnson, strikes out swinging, one down. Francisco, there we go Ben, lines to Choo in right, stand up double. Davis now in pinch running for Francisco. Arencibia, there goes Rajai and oh dear, he is picked off, they knew it was coming. That is not good by Rajai with only one out and in scoring position. Now two outs and nobody on. Arencibia, strikes out swinging. Top 8th: Davis stays in left. Oliver now pitching. Kipnis, lines it to Escobar, throw to Edwin just in case umpire calls safe. Hafner, pops it up to Encarnacion at first, two down. Santana, fly ball to centre for Rasmus to make the catch. Three up and down for Oliver, six pitches. Oliver excellent as usual. Bottom 8th: Lawrie leading off, pops it up to Cabrera at short one down. Rasmus, fly ball to Choo in right, two down. Bautista fly ball to right and bounces over the walk, ground rule double for Jose. Encarnacion with runner at second. Grounds to Hannahan at third, throw to Kotchman at first to leave Jose out there. Top 9th: Oliver still out there, after only six pitches in his last inning Farrell can gamble with good odds here on Oliver. Better than the alternative ads we see sign up Cordero warming up in bullpen, horrors, come on Darren. Brantley, fly ball to centre but over head of Rasmus, stand up double to lead off, ouch. Kotchman, grounds to Lawrie, throw to Edwin for the first out. Duncan pinch hitting for Damon, grounds to Escobar at shirt, throw to Edwin, two down. Jose Lopez inch hitting for Hannahan, grounds to Escobar, this should do it, throw to Edwin for the out and the win. Jays win 3-0 and win the series. Now head to New York with that wild card still in sight depending on Orioles result this afternoon. Announced crowd at 26,000, it is much smaller than the first two games, strange for a Sunday. The excellent: Today has to be Villanueva, not an easy outing, he walked five, but he made the pitches when he needed. Indians went 0-10 with runners in scoring position and he had a lot to do with it. I would also rank Kelly Johnson today for his performance. It was his walk and stolen base that started the runs in the 3rd. The Jays bullpen of Frasor and Oliver today kept Indians off the scoreboard. Not so good: Escobar out with bases loaded. Rajai Davis getting picked off as he enters game as pinch runner for Francisco.

Jays offence explodes for 11 but need Janssen to rescue them as Indians fight back

Indians v Jays. Game two of three. Jays hoping to make up for last night’s disappointing lack of offence. For this very good hitting team to lose 1-0 is painful. Today Laffey going against Jiminez. Lineups: Indians: Choo, Cabrera, Kipnis, Lopez, Santana, Brantley, Duncan, Kotchman, Marson and pitching. Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Johnson, Davis, Arencibia, and Laffey pitching. Great crowd today after another excellent 32,000 last night. Top 1st: Choo, grounds to Johnson at second, throw to Edwin for the out. Cabrera, pops it up to Johnson. Two down for Kipnis, takes strike three to end the inning. Good start for Laffey. Bottom 1st: Lawrie, grounds to Lopez at third, throw to Kotchman playing at first today. Rasmus, ball four, one on one down for Bautista, ball four, back to back walks, Encarnacion, fly ball to Choo in right. Rasmus tags and goes to third on the play. Lind, lines this one hard to right and off the bullpen wire wall, here comes Colby followed by Jose, Jays go out ahead early 2-0. More runs than last night already with only two outs. Escobar, two down and Lind at second. Pops it up to Kotchman at first to end this one but Jays strike first. Top 2nd: Laffey has a lead to work with now which is more than Romero had last night. Lopez, singles to Rasmus in centre. One on for Santana, ball four, two on, how to pitch after given two run lead. Farrell must be fuming. Brantley, grounds to Escobar, bases loaded. Oh boy.... Nobody out. Duncan, NO he hits him, looks as if it hit his trouser leg but Duncan will take it. Here comes Lopez to score. 2-1 Jays. Bases still loaded, Laffey in a mess here. Kotchman, this will do, grounds to Escobar, on to Johnson over to Edwin double play ball as Santana scores. 2-2 but two down. Marson with Brantley at 3rd on the play. Strikes out swinging. Laffey recovers but we are back to square one again. Bottom 2nd: Johnson, ball four, leadoff walk a good start. Davis, fly ball to Choo in right. One down one on for Arencibia. Pops it up to Kipnis at second.Two down. Lawrie, there goes Johnson and safe at second. Ball four to Lawrie, two on for Rasmus. Here comes the pitching coach. Strikes out swinging to leave two on. Top 3rd: Choo, fly ball to left centre, bounces over the wall, ground rule double. Laffey not exactly lights out this afternoon. Cabrera, that’s better strikes out swinging. One down for Kipnis, fly ball to left but Davis makes the out, two down for Lopez, grounds to Lawrie tags out Choo as he comes to third to end this inning. Laffey escapes damage again. Bottom 3rd: Bautista, lines it to right, stand up double for Jose. Encarnacion, gets hold of this one high to left and this one is out of here, two run home run for Edwin, 4-2 Jays. Edwin earning that $27 million contract. Lind, singles to Cabrera. Escobar, hammers this one to left and over the bullpen into the seats, another home run, here comes Lind followed by Yunel and Jays have broken this one wide open 6-2. Johnson, keep it going Kelly, lines it to Brantley in centre, another double, Davis. There goes Kelly and safe at third, his second stolen base today. Davis strikes out swinging, the first out of the inning. Arencibia, one down one on, lines this one to Choo in right, another double, here comes Kelly to score, 7-2. Jays have scored five this inning, where were these bats last night for Romero? Here comes the coach and that is it for Jiminez, leaves shell-shocked at the sudden attack by Jays hitters. Scott Barnes now pitching. Lawrie with Arencibia at second, one down. Lines this one to Choo in right, busy guy is Choo today, and here comes Arencibia, Lawrie to second, fourth double of the inning. 8-2 Jays. Rasmus, one out, one on, there goes Lawrie to third as Colby strikes out swinging. Two down and runner at third for Bautista who started this outbreak. Staying clear of Jose here and ball four. Encarnacion with two down and two on. Barnes pitching carefully to Edwin as well and now ball four to load the bases, playing with fire here. Lind singles back up the middle to Brantley, here comes Lawrie followed by Bautista, 10-2 Jays, Edwin on third. Another visit by the pitching coach. Wearing out a path today. Escobar, takes strike three, but Jays have scored eight and blown this one wide open for Laffey. Still only the third. This crowd loves it. Top 4th: Santana, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin for the first out. Brantley, ball four. Duncan, oh no, hammers this one to left and this one is out of here, two run home run and Indians get two back. 10-4. Kotchman, pops it up to Escobar for the second out. Marson, singles to Rasmus in centre. Here comes pitching coach, just throw strikes here Laffey, you have a six run lead. Choo, ball four, Marson to second, not what Bruce Walton ordered. Cabrera with two on, pops it o to Encarnacion for third out. Indians get two back but also leave two out there. Bottom 4th: Johnson, pops it up to Kotchman at first. Davis one down pops this one up to Kipnis at second, two down for Arencibia, that’s better JP, lines this one to right and bounces over the wall, another ground rule double. Lawrie with runner in scoring position. Grounds to Kipnis at second throw to Kotchman to get Lawrie at first. Jays leave one out there. Top 5th: Kipnis singles to Bautista in right. Leadoff guy on base. Lopez, pops it up to Lawrie for the out. One down for Santana, strikes out swinging, two down. Brantley, singles to Davis in left, Kipnis to second. Two on two down for Duncan, line this one to left, here comes Kipnis and the throw form Davis, out at the plate, great throw by Davis. Not sure who is most surprised, the Indians or the Jays fans. But Jays will take it as Indians leave two more out there. Bottom 5th: Ex-Jay Jeremy Accardo now pitching. Jays probably wish he were still in their bullpen. Rasmus, hits this one very hard but right at Cabrera at short, robs Colby of a hit. Bautista, fly ball to Choo in right, Jose favouring opposite field today. Good to see, especially with Yankees series next week and the short right field. Encarnacion, oh wow this is a moon shot to centre, and into the restaurant, that is a monster home run, his second off the day. Some lucky soul has a great lunch souvenir. 11-4 Jays. Lind, three hit day, singles to left, make that 4 hit day. Everyone going opposite field, Jose, Lind, and Colby. Escobar, grounds back to Accardo throw to Kotchman to end the inning. Yunel leaves another on base. Top 6th: Rookie Aaron Loup now pitching for Laffey. Laffey stands to win this one. Kotchman, grounds to Encarnacion, takes it himself for the out. One down, Marson, same play, grounds to Edwin at first. Two down, Choo, grounds to Johnson at second throw to Edwin and the inning is over just like that for the rookie. Very nice, three up and down, just throwing strikes and keeping it simple. But if he can pitch like that he will get a place in the Jays revolving bullpen. Bottom 6th: Accardo still pitching. Johnson leading off, grounds to second, Kipnis throw to Kotchman for the out at first, One down Davis grounds to Cabrera at short, throw to Kotchman at first, two down for Arencibia, two hit day for JP, not this time as he hits fly ball to Duncan in left for the third out. Top 7th: Loup getting another inning. Cabrera fly ball to right but Jose makes the out. One down. Kipnis, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, two down. Lopez, 2-2 count grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin. Not bad at all for a rookie in his major league start, two shutout innings for Loup debut. Very nice pitching by the rookie. Bottom 7th: Esmil Rogers now pitching. Lawrie leading off. Singles to right, number two today and the beat goes on. Rasmus, robbed last at bat by the catch off a line drive at short. 0-2 count, lines this one hard to centre but a long out. One down for Bautista, on base three times today. Pops it up to Kotchman at first, Encarnacion two home runs today. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Top 8th: Jesse Chavez now pitching. Santana, full count, ball four. Brantley, hammers this one high to right and yet another home run, not good Jesse. 11-6 game. After Loup pitching Chavez not looking very good. Duncan, singles to right, should have left Loup in there Manager Farrell. Kotchman, 2-2 count, NO WAY, he hammers this one even higher to right and another two run home run, loads of boos here as Indians within 3. 11-8 game and Chavez. leaves to loud well deserved boos, that was awful. And totally inexcusable. Drew Carpenter now pitching. Still nobody out. Loads of pressure on Carpenter here, Marson. 3-0 count, have to throw strikes Carpenter. Bronx cheers as he does. Full count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, first out of the inning, more Bronx cheers. Choo, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Cabrera, full count, wild pitch for ball four. NO wonder Farrell looks sick. Must have nightmares about his pitching squad. Now Casey Janssen warming up. So much for his day off. 3-1 count, ball four, can you believe it ??? Back to back walks. Tie run !!!! at the plate... unbelievable. Here comes Farrell. Poor Casey. This is not good and the way a closer should be in the game. Casey has had no chance to get ready, prepare for the closing. To go from a day off, and an eight run lead ten minutes ago to this. This is very different situation. Hafner two on, two down. so much for the shift as he pops it up to third, nobody there. What a circus. Lawrie is in shallow right. 0-2 count, Cabrera takes third, now half way down the line Janssen has to run over to move him back as Lawrie not there. Crazy. As if he didn’t have enough to worry about. 2-2 count. Singles to left, Cabrera scores. 11-9 game. The big shift right experiment backfires on Farrell today. Santana with two on. Whoa... lines it into into right and Jose makes the sliding catch. Five runs inning. Awful, awful pitching. Chavez and Carpenter. Maybe one way bus tickets to Vegas after that performance. Bottom 8th: Can Jays offence do it again. Lind going for five hit game. Rogers still pitching and why not, Jays are imploding, he could get a win. 2-2 count, grounds back off Rogers bounces all the way to Kotchman, flips to Rogers, Lind out at the bag. Weird play as Lind knocked off the bag. Escobar, pops it up to Brantley, two down for Johnson. Full count, pops it up to third. Not good at all. How can the momentum shift and so fast in a game that was way out of reach an inning ago? Top 9th: Brantley, Duncan and Kotchman already have seven of the 9 Indians RBIs. Duncan pops this one up to Escobar, one down. Duncan, 3-3 today, oops almost hits him, high inside, that one got away. 2-2 count, high fly ball to left, Davis has it in the corner, very close. Two down for Kotchman, grounds first pitch to Lawrie throw to Edwin and Jays win although the ugliest win you could hope to see. Janssen instead of a day off has to get four outs for save number 13. Excellent: The offence especially Encarnacion with his two home runs but also Lind going 4-5 today. Loup debut, two excellent scoreless innings after Laffey. Jays have nine extra base hits today including six doubles. 9 RBIs from the middle of the order, but this was offensive output from all the starters except for Davis, the only one not to get on base. Lousy: Chavez and Carpenter. Maybe the swansong for Chavez but it didn’t happen with Cordero. Chavez and Carpenter 41 pitches. Chavez faces four hitters and can get no one out. (Compare: Loup 21 pitches for six outs and two innings.) Note to Manager: Shift right obsession has to end. It could have cost the Jays the game today.

Romero much better but no run support as Jays get shut out by Indians

Indians v Blue Jays. Game one of three. First game after All-Star break, ready to go or rusty? Romero tonight, who knows which Ricky will turn up. Most observers see to think it is all mental with Ricky, let’s hope a trip home has him relaxed. Lawrie back in the lineup after missing with the back injury, Jays need him healthy for the second half. No trades to announce today, we dream on. Lineups: Indians: Choo, (Asdrubal) Cabrera, Kipnis Hafner, Santana, Brantley, Marson, Hannahan and Masterson pitching Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Johnson, Davis, Arencibia and Romero pitching. Top 1st: Choo, 2-2 count, lines it hard but right at Davis in left, one down. Cabrera, 1-2 strikes out swinging, two down for Kipnis, 2-2 pops it up to Lawrie behind third. Pitch count 14. Bottom 1st: Lawrie, says his back is fine, the break came at perfect time to get everything relaxed. Grounds first pitch to Cabrera at short, throw to Santana at first, one down. Rasmus, 2-2 count, grounds to Santana at first flip to Masterson two down for Bautista. Full count, strikes out swinging at ball four. Pitch count 13 but Masterson looking very good first inning. Top 2nd: Hafner, OH boy... turns on this one and high to right, no doubt about this one, 1-0 Indians, terrible pitch, Hafner not going to miss that one, looked like a bp pitch. Santana, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin for the out. One down for Brantley, grounds to right, off the glove of Johnson into right field. One on one down for Marson, grounds to Johnson, throw to Escobar to get Brantley at second, two down for Damon. Lines it to left for a single. Two on two down for Hannahan. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. However Jays are playing catchup early. Pitch count 31. Bottom 2nd: Encarnacion, should be a lot happier with that big 3 year contract. Lines it hard to centre, but Brantley tracking it down for the out on the track. One down for Lind, singles into centre. One on one down for Escobar. 2-2 count, grounds to short, throw to second over to first, yet another double play ball by Escobar. Yunel speciality these days. Pitch count 27 for Masterson, has everything under control so far. One run may be enough for him tonight. Top 3rd: Top of the order again, Choo, first pitch lines it to centre for Rasmus to make the out. One down for Cabrera, 2-2 strikes out swinging. Two down for Kipnis, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Ricky much better inning. Pitch count 43. Bottom 3rd: Johnson, singles into right. Davis, ohh boy grounds to second, steps on the bag throw to first, yet another double play. Davis and Escobar ruining this one for the Jays. Arencibia, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging on ball three. The master Masterson teaching the boys tonight. Jays hitters outclassed so far. Pitch count 36. Top 4th: Hafner, 0-2 Romero lucky to get away with that one to Hafner. Takes strike three, Hafner disagrees but that was a great pitch. One down, Santana. 3-1 count, low ball four. Brantley, one on one down. Lines it to Davis in left, throw not enough to get Brantley for the double, two in scoring position and Romero in big trouble. Marson, full count, strikes out swinging but that was number nine hitter and he took him to full count, now he has to deal with the top of the order and pray hard. Damon, It worked, Damon grounds first pitch to Escobar, throw to Edwin and Romero escapes but not a good inning pitching to the bottom third of the order. Pitch count 62, he might just get through six tonight. Bottom 4th: Romero needs run support and a lot of it by the look of it. Lawrie, bounces to third, long throw but in time to get Lawrie at first. One down for Rasmus. 2-2 count, grounds to first, throw to Masterson covering just beats Rasmus, two down for Bautista. Full count, grounds to third, throw to Santana at first in time. Pitch count 54. Does not look good for Jays hitters tonight. Top 5th: This game is really humming along just over an hour. Both pitchers moving fast. Hannahan, 3-0 count, Romero wild now. Fly ball to centre for Rasmus to make the out. Choo, bounces back to Romero throw to Edwin, two down. Cabrera, grounds to Lawrie, lone throw to Edwin for third out. Pitch count 73. Good inning for Romero. Bottom 5th: Encarnacion, grounds to third, throw to Santana at first for the out. Lind, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging on a pitch almost head high. Nothing much changes does it. Escobar at least no double play here. Two down, singles back up the middle great play by Kipnis but throw gets away from Santana, Escobar safe, why could that not have happened his previous at bat. Johnson, wild pitch and Escobar to second. Grounds to second throw to first to end the inning but Jays get a player to second albeit on a wild pitch. 68 pitches. Top 6th: Could be Romero’s last inning. Kipnis, 3-0 ball four, leadoff guy on base. Hafner, they have Kipnis picked off and throw to Escobar at second for the out. One down, full count, pops it up to Escobar, two down. Santana, full count, singles into centre, one on two down. Brantley, two hit night, make that 3-3 as he lines it to right, he has Romero’s number tonight. Two on two down for Marson, bounces back to Romero, throw to Edwin to get himself out of that mess. But 96 pitch count so that might be it for Romero tonight. He has flirted with trouble all night. Bottom 6th: Meantime Masterson has breezed through the Jays without any problems and has looked completely in charge since the first pitch. Davis, full count, strikes out swinging. One down for Arencibia, lines first pitch to right. Finally a clean base hit. Lawrie, grounds to third, Hannahan bobbles it but throw to first still gets Lawrie. Two down for Rasmus, but Jays have player at second. Full count, pops it up to Hannahan for third out. Pitch count 87 but he will be out again. Top 7th: End of road for Romero, still struggling with his control. Frasor now pitching. Damon, 3-1 count, grounds to Escobar, off balance throw bounces the ball several times to Edwin not in time. Leadoff guy on. Hannahan, there goes Damon, strike three and Hannahan out as Damon takes second without a throw as Arencibia drops the ball. Choo, 1-2 count, grounds back up the middle, Escobar makes the play and throw to first to get Choo, two down as Damon to third. Cabrera, full count, pitch number eight, pops it up Edwin sees it at the last moment to make the catch and Fraser is off the hook. 22 pitches though for that inning and the game has slowed considerably, two hours now for six and a half. Bottom 7th: Will Jays ever get to Masterson? Cunningham now in defensively for Damon in left. Bautista to lead off, 0-2 tonight unable to solve Masterson as with most of his teammates. 1-2 count, fly ball to Brantley in centre for the out. Encarnacion, full count, inside ball four, the only way Jays are getting on base as Masterson really turning it on now this inning, Lind, one on one down. Singles to left, two on but here comes double play specialist, Escobar. Pinch runner for Lind, Ben Francisco. Manager Acta out. Now Indians bullpen working but Masterson staying put for now it is Escobar after all. 0-2 count, strikes out, Jays fans sigh of relief, two down for Johnson grounds back up the middle but right at Cabrera takes it himself to the bag to get Francisco. Jays leave two out there but have not looked like scoring all night even with men on base. Masterson has pitched a gem. Top 8th: Oliver now pitching. Kipnis, full count, outside ball four. Hafner, finally, grounds to Johnson over to Escobar, back to Edwin, double play, first for Jays tonight to help Oliver here. Santana, two down, 3-1 count, that looked a strike, but no, ball four. Oliver and thousands others disagree. Brantley, perfect there goes Santana on first pitch but Arencibia throw there to Escobar for the out by a mile. Not very smart base running. Bottom 8th: Jays running out of chances now. Pestano now pitching, miniscule ERA of 1.75. Good luck guys. Kotchman at first for Santana probably benched for that last out. Davis leading off. Opposite field fly ball to Choo in right for the first out. Arencibia, one down. Full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Lawrie. 2-2 count, takes strike three on the corner. Top 9th: Casey Janssen now pitching. Needs the work. Brantley, 2-2 count, takes strike three, just froze him, great pitch. One down for Marson, slices it to right for a long single as Bautista gets it back in fast. One on one down for Cunningham, 1-2 count, takes strike three, two down for Hannahan. Bounces to Escobar throw to Edwin for the third out. Casey did his job but am not betting on this one for the Jays. Bottom 9th: Chris Perez the closer now pitching. 24/26 saves, good luck. Rasmus, connects n first pitch but high fly ball out to centre, gets underneath it. One down for Bautista 0-3 night terrible night for Jose. 2-2 count, grounds to short, throw to first, two down and Bautista 0-4 night, ouch. Encarnacion, full count, strikes out swinging. Jays lose 1-0 but were never in this one. Masterson dominated them from first pitch. The good: Romero on paper gives up one run and much better. Arencibia throw to get Santana by a huge margin. The not so good: Jays hitters ? well most of them still on vacation based on this performance tonight. Top four in lineup go 0-14. Bautista may have to eat his words about needing pitching, pitching staff and the fans definitely disagree tonight. The terrible double plays given up by Escobar and Davis.

Jays win squeaker with home run power and bullpen of Oliver,Frasor and Janssen

Jays v White Sox. Game three and final game pre All-Star break. Jays need to finish on a high note today with a win anyway they can, stop the losing streak, stay close to the others in the division and not least get the bats going again. Lineups: Jays: Davis, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Johnson, Vizquel, Mathis and Cecil pitching. White Sox: De Aza, Youkilis, Dunn, Konerko, Rios, Ramirez, Viciedo, Flowers, Beckham and Axelrod pitching. Top 1st: Davis, 2-2. Full count. ball four way outside. Rasmus, will Davis go? Or rather when will he go? WOWEEEEEE. Rasmus hammers this one opposite field and there it goes over the fence in left center. 2-0 Jays. Bautista full count, low ball four. Encarnacion, can Jays break it open here? Nobody out. Ball one, YES INDEED EDWIN, a rocket to centre, over the 400ft sign, this one is over the wall, another home run, 4-0 Jays. Lind, full count, grounds to second, throw to first for the first out. 23 pitches. Keep it going friends. Escobar, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Johnson, bounces back to Axelrod, throw to first for the out. 30 pitches for the inning but only seven for the three outs. Middle of the order need some correction. Bottom 1st: Cecil now with a great lead to start with. Romero probably wishing this had been yesterday. De Aza leading off. 1-2 count, lines it the wall in left, stand up double. Youkilis, 3-1 count, ball four, two on nobody out, not good Brett. Dunn, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down two on for Konerko, need a ground ball here Brett. Pops it up to Johnson at second, two down. Rios, full count, oh boy, hammers this to left and into the seats, three run home run. Awful. 4-3 game. Ramirez, pops it up to Johnson for the out but Cecil has just given back three and 25 pitch count. Terrible. Top 2nd: Cecil has given White Sox something to fight for now and after being staked to a four run lead, no excuses for that at all. Vizquel, grounds it back up the middle, Ramirez should have had that, off his glove but no error given. Mathis, swings at a pitch halfway to first. Lets this one outside go by, Vizquel going, ball two and safe at second. Not bad for a 41 year old guy. Mathis strikes out swinging. Nowhere near the pitch. Davis again, one down one on. Bunting and hits his hand. Trainer out fast stays in game but that will hurt his swing. Axelrod has thrown so many pitches off the plate. Jays hitters had better note. Fly ball to left for Viciedo to make the second out. Vizquel holds at second. Rasmus with two down. This will do, a classic Colby swing and hammers it to right bounces into the seats ground rule double as Vizquel scores. 5-3 Jays. Bautista, full count, strikes three, umpire says he went around but replay says no. Robbed there and Jose does not like it. Pitch count 49. Bottom 2nd: Now can Cecil do any better or is it going to be one of those slugfests today? Viciedo, pulls it to left and off glove of Escobar, leadoff single. Flowers, this should be two, grounds to Escobar, to Vizquel over to Edwin for double play ball to rescue Cecil here. Beckham with two down, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Nice inning by Cecil to hold the lead. 32 pitches. Seven pitch inning. Top 3rd: Encarnacion leading off. Full count, lines it hard to left centre but De Aza makes the running catch at the wall. Lind, grounds back to Axelrod, throw to first for the second out. Escobar. 2-2 count, slices it to right and drops in for a single. Escobar slow to get out of the box and only a single. Johnson, 2-2 count, WHOA Kelly hammers this one to right centre and this one is out of here, another two run home run for the Jays who go out 7-3. Vizquel, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging to end the inning but Jays have added two more. 70 pitch count. Bottom 3rd: Cecil with a four run lead again. De Aza, 3-0, come on Brett don’t walk the guy here. Fly ball to Bautista in right for the out. Youkilis, pops it up for Edwin to make catch in front of the dugout. Two down for Dunn. Full count, low ball four. Konerko, 3-0 count, Cecil control wavering here this inning. High ball four, back to back walks, not good. Especially with Rios now at bat, Cecil had better pitch him down and way this time or he is in big trouble. Strike one down and away, strike two down and away, strikes out swinging, down and away. That is what you should have done first inning Brett. Pitch count at 53. May get his six innings in but he has to cut down on the balls. Top 4th: Axelrod is finished. Brian Omogrosso now pitching. Mathis leading off. Full count, WHOA !!!!!! Mathis gets hold of this one home run into the left field seats. 8-3 Jays. Home run number four for the Jays today and Bautista does not have any of them. Davis, please no bunting. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Rasmus, 2-2 today. Not this time, fly ball to left for to make the catch. Bautista, full count, outside ball four. Walk number two for Jose today. Encarnacion one on two down. 1-2 count, lines it hard to left but right at Ramirez to make the catch. Jays get one more for Cecil to work with. Bottom 4th: Cecil can concentrate on throwing strikes and keep that ball total down. Ramirez, 2-0 oh boy. Pops this one up to Johnson at second. One down. Viciedo, lines it to right, and goes under the wall padding, umpires call a double. Flowers, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Beckham, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Pitch count 68. Top 5th: Lind, pops it up to Viciedo in left for the out. Escobar one down. Pops it up to Rios in right. Two down for Johnson. Full count, low ball four, one on two down for Vizquel, grounds first pitch to second. Bottom 5th: Big inning for Cecil, facing the top of the order. De Aza, Oh dear, hits him. Not what Cecil wanted. Youkilis, 0-2 count, lines it to left center and De Aza to third. Two on for Dunn, Cecil playing with fire again. Grounds to Johnson, throw to second to get Youkilis but no double play. De Aza scores, 8-4 Jays. Konerko, runner at first. Chavez now warming up in bullpen. Full count, grounds softly to third Vizquel bobbles it, and both runners safe. Ball bounced off the edge of the grass. Error to Vizquel. Rios, two on, hammers it to centre, Dunn scores. 8-5 Jays. That is it for Cecil and he can blame no one but himself. Both runners in scoring position. Chavez now pitching. Ramirez, lines first pitch to right. Both runs score and Ramirez to third on the play. Triple. 8-7 Jays. Viciedo, one down, one on. Luis Perez warming up. 2-2 count strikes out swinging. Two down for Flowers. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, nice pitching. Top 6th: One run ballgame, hitters have to get back to work again. Mathis leading off. Pops up first pitch to Dunn, one down. Davis, 3-1 count, low ball four. Now to put some running pressure on. Rasmus, two hit day, that is it for Omogrosso. Lefty lefty, rookie pitcher Leyson Septimo, now pitching. 2-0 count, there goes Rajai and safe on the throw. Now for third. There he goes first pitch. Scouting reports should be read. Every Jays fan could predict that. A pitch out would have got him. Full count, wild pitch and here comes the run, 9-7 Jays, speed kills. Ball four and Colby at first. Bautista, change of pitcher. Nate Jones now pitching. 2-2 count, lines it to left, fan interferes but umpire says Rasmus scores. 10-7. Manager Ventura disagrees but umpires confer and agree, run stays. Bautista at second Encarnacion now. Full count, low ball four. Lind with two on. 0-3 today. There we go, lines it to the wall in left centre, here comes Jose 11-7 Jays. Lind at second Edwin at third. Escobar now can break this one open. Base hit Yunel don’t try to be a hero. 0-2 count, bounces to third, throw home and Edwin is tagged out. Two down. Lind stayed at second. Johnson. Full count, grounds to Dunn, throw to Jones for the out. Jays are back where they started in the first and again in the fourth innings. Can they hold it this time? Bottom 6th: Perez now pitching. Beckham, 1-2 count, singles to Davis in left. De Aza, bounces to Johnson, tags Beckham but no chance for two. Youkilis, pulls it to left, here comes De Aza, stand up double. 11-8 Jays. Dunn, full count, strikes out swinging, great pitch. Two down for Konerko. Grounds first pitch to Escobar, throw to first to get Konerko. Top 7th: It would be nice to get that run back but bottom of the order. Vizquel leading off. Hector Santiago now pitching. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down. Mathis, full count, lines it down the third base line stand up double, nice eight pitch at bat by Mathis. Top of the order again Davis. 1-2 count, grounds to Dunn steps on the bag for the out but Mathis to third. Rasmus, two down runner at third. 3-1 count, high ball four. Two on for Bautista. 2-0 count, Santiago being careful with Jose. 3-1, base open, full count as Jose swings and misses. Pops it up to Ramirez for the out. Bottom 7th: Perez still pitching. Rios leading off. 2-2 count, pops this one up Edwin should have had that one in foul ground, drops behind him. 2-2 count, lines this one off the wall in centre for stand up double, that missed catch by Edwin could prove crucial. Ramirez, 2-2 count, slow bouncer to Escobar, no throw. Perez injured and now out of the game. Not good. Frasor now pitching. Two on and nobody out. Unbelievable. Viciedo fly ball to Davis, sac fly as Rios scores. 11-9. Pierzynski. Ramirez stays at first. Now a balk by Frasor can anything else go wrong here? Ramirez to second. There goes the double play option. 3-1 putting him on. Intentional walk. Good call as long as Frasor can get ground ball. Beckham, 1-2 count, that’s better takes strike three, great pitch. Two down but now the top of the order. De Aza, two on two down. 2-2 count, YES great pitch strikes out looking. VERY nice. Top 8th: Santiago still pitching. Can Jays hitters do it once more? Get those two runs back. Edwin to lead off, maybe atone for that dropped ball which lead to the last two runs. Fly ball to right for the first out. Lind, full count, low ball four. One on, problem is Escobar is behind you Adam. Fly ball first pitch to De Aza for second out. At least it was not double play to end the inning. Johnson, full count, grounds to first, throw to Santiago for third out. Bottom 8th: Oliver now pitching. Youkilis, grounds to first Edwin makes nice stop but throw to Oliver too late to get Youkilis. Dunn, pops it to left, gets there but unable to catch it. Foul ball. 2-2, takes strike three, great pitch. Dunn not happy. What is happening ??? Farrell out there and calling for Janssen ??? one out in the 8th? Oliver is THE best of the bullpen and he faces two hitters. Farrell rolling the dices bigtime here. All or nothing. Konerko, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Rios who has killed Jays today. 3-4 already. 2-2 count, fly ball to Rasmus in centre for third out. Top 9th: Jays really need some insurance runs here. Two is not enough against this team. Vizquel leading off. Lines it to centre but in the air for De Aza. Mathis, Ventura losing it here, thrown out but he gets the crowd riled up which was his purpose no doubt. Fly ball to right centre two down. Davis last chance to get on base and he does by getting hit on the foot. Rasmus with Davis at first, will he steal? 0-2 count, there he goes and safe on the throw. Delayed steal great play. 1-2 count on Colby, strikes out swinging. Bottom 9th: Here we go...Janssen going for the save. Ramirez, 1-2 count, lifts it into shallow right. One on for Viciedo, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, great pitch. One down for Pierzynski, pops it up to Escobar for the second out. Beckham, 2-2 count, lifts it into left, two on and the top of the order coming up. Not good scene Casey. De Aza, strike one, goes around, appeal yes he does, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Great pitch Casey. The Farrell gamble pays off. The excellent. Home run kings: Rasmus to get it all started. Encarnacion, Mathis and Johnson. Frasor relief inning and gets the win, I like that. Casey Janssen making five pressure outs for the save number 12. Team effort: 10 hits spread around everyone except Davis but he gets two walks and three stolen bases today a great alternative for hits. The awful: Cecil first inning given huge lead and gives it back. Does the same again in the fifth. Back to “work in progress” for Cecil. Encarnacion dropped pop up by Rios in the 7th.

Romero much better but not perfect enough as Jays lose another

Jays v White Sox. Game two of three. Romero today with lots to prove, bottom line should he be sent down to regain his “missing talents”. Maybe the break is a good marker, perform today or au revoir. Will Ben Francisco be in the lineup today in left? If as Farrell maintains the lineup is struggling because they are tired and bench is thin with three extra pitcher, how come Francisco, Mathis and Vizquel are very rarely used. Something has to change and soon. Lineups: Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Davis, Vizquel, Arencibia, and Romero pitching. White Sox: De Aza, Youkilis, Dunn, Konerko, Rios, Pierzynski, Viciedo, Ramirez, Hudson and Gavin Floyd pitching. Top 1st: Lawrie, singles to De Aza in centre, good start for Jays. Rasmus, full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Bautista, another full count, fly ball to De Aza in centre for out number two. Encarnacion, 2-0 there goes Lawrie, grounds to short, throw to first for the third out. Bottom 1st: De Aza 0-2 count, grounds to Lind at first, throw to Romero covering for the out. One down for Youkilis, ball four, Dunn, singles to Bautista in right. Youkilis to third on the play. Konerko, strikes out swinging. Rios, grounds to Escobar at short, throw to Vizquel covering at second to get Dunn for the third out. Top 2nd: Lind grounds to Ramirez at short, throw to Konerko at first, one down for Escobar, fly ball to Rios in right, two down. Davis, grounds to Youkilis at third, throw to first for third down. Bottom 2nd: Pierzynski, fly ball to Davis in left for the out. One down for Viciedo, grounds to Lawrie at third, throw to Lind for the out at first. Ramirez, fly ball to left for Davis to make the out. Top 3rd: Vizquel lines to Ramirez at short, one down for Arencibia, pops it up to Konerko at first, two down for Lawrie, strikes out swinging to end the inning. Bottom 3rd: Ex-Jay Orlando Hudson, strikes out swinging, one down. De Aza grounds to Escobar at short, throw to Lind, two down. Youkilis, grounds to Vizquel at second, throw to Lind. So far Romero looking good today. Problem is so is Floyd. Top 4th: Rasmus, fly ball to Viciedo for the first out. Bautista, grounds back to Floyd, throw to Konerko for the out. Two down for Encarnacion. Ball four. Edwin on base. Lind with two down and one on. There goes Edwin, and safe at second, stolen base for Edwin. Lind fly ball to De Aza in centre, leaving Edwin out there Bottom 4th: Dunn, ball four. Romero gives up his first walk today. Konerko, singles to Bautista in right. Dunn moves up to second and Romero in trouble for the first time this afternoon. Rios, perfect, grounds to Escobar, over to Vizquel on to Lind, double play ball. Thank you Alex. Two down for Pierzynski, oh dear, hits him. One on two down for Viciedo, grounds to Escobar at short, throw to Vizquel to get Pierzynski at second. Romero in trouble for the first inning but manages to get out of it. Top 5th: Escobar, strikes out swinging. One on for Davis, pops it up to Konerko at first, two down. Vizquel, grounds to Hudson at second on to Konerko for third out and Floyd continues to roll on here untroubled by the quiet bats of the Jays. Two runs in the last 14 innings. Bottom 5th: Ramirez leading off, singles to Rasmus in centre. One on for Hudson, bunting to Lawrie, throw to Lind to get Hudson but he did his job with Ramirez at second. De Aza, fly ball to Davis in left for second out. Youkilis, gets hold of this one and carrying over Rasmus and over the wall in centre, two run home run to open up this stalemate. 2-0 White Sox. Dunn, two down, fly ball to Rasmus for the third out but White Sox draw first blood today. Top 6th: Arencibia, there we go, singles to De Aza in centre to lead off the inning. Lawrie, oh boy, grounds to Ramirez at short, over to Hudson on to Konerko for double play. Two down for Rasmus, ball four, one on two down for Bautista who has been so very quiet here in Chicago so far. Grounds to Youkilis, throw to second to get Colby at second and end the inning. So far Floyd has baffled the Jays hitters Bottom 6th: No Lawrie at third. Johnson in to replace Brett and takes second as Vizquel moves to third. Hope this is not serious and just giving Lawrie a break. Konerko, pops it up to John son at second, one down for Rios, ball four and second walk to Romero today. Pierzynski, grounds back to Romero, turns and throws to Escobar to only just get Rios. Seemed to take his sweet time on that play, not good with speed of Rios. Two down. Viciedo grounds to Vizquel at third, long throw to Lind but he gets him to end the inning. The old guy can still throw. Top 7: Floyd still out there and has shut the Jays offence completely down today. Encarnacion leading off, lines this one very hard to Viciedo in left for a single. One on for Lind, gets hold of this one fly ball to centre but dies on the track to De Aza to make the catch. Escobar, singles to left and Edwin moves up to second, two on one down for Davis. Groan, grounds to Ramirez at short, over to Hudson on to Konerko. Double play ball as Davis kills one of the best chances Jays have had all afternoon, it would be Davis. Bottom 7th: That is it for Romero, Fraser now pitching. Ramirez, fly ball to Bautista in right, one down for Hudson, grounds to Johnson, on to Lind for the second out. De Aza strikes out swinging. Nice inning by Fraser, he did his job. But the bats need to wake up here. Top 8th: Vizquel leading off, lines hard to left but Viciedo makes the catch, one down for Arencibia, grounds back to Floyd, throw to Konerko at first two down. That is it for Floyd. Has done his job today, completely baffling the Jays hitters. Matt Thornton now pitching. Lefty lefty for Johnson, fly ball to De Aza to end the inning. Jays hitters running out of chances now. Bottom 8th: That is it for Frasor, 14 pitch day for him. Oliver now pitching. Evidently Lawrie has injured his back, not the news Jays fans want to hear. Maybe the break is at the right time and gives him most of next week to recover, but back injuries are not good news. Youkilis, grounds to Lind, one down for Dunn, strikes out swinging, two down. Konerko, grounds to Vizquel at third, throw to Lind for a quick three up and down inning by Oliver. This guy has earned his money this first half of the season, Mr. consistency every outing. 13 pitches. Top 9th: Thornton still out there to finish this one off. Rasmus leading off, strikes out swinging. Bautista, finally a hit as he lines it hard to Viciedo in left, and Oh my !! Viciedo drops it, sun in his eyes as he misses it completely, but NO !!! Jose. Relay to Ramirez and throw to Youkilis gets Bautista sliding in at third. Jose furious and arguing with umpire, saying he missed his arm, Butterfield gets between them, replay inconclusive, but maybe should have stayed at second Jose with Edwin behind you. Encarnacion two down, takes strike three and Jays lose yet another. Ending the first half miserably. Two runs in eighteen innings. Tomorrow we can hope they can salvage at least one win and avoid a sweep but they may have to do it without Lawrie. Surely Farrell will put Mathis and Francisco in there. The good: Nothing much today. Romero, good and much better, but not perfect which he needed to be today. His offence not giving him any run support. The bad: The Rajai Davis double play. Bautista out at third in the ninth.

Davis ruins Laffey's night

Jays v White Sox. Game one of three. Final series before the All-Star break and incredible as it sounds the Jays are still within striking distance. Easy to ignore the problems of Cordero but just this week alone those two losses would have pushed the Jays within a game of second place. No question he has to go, Farrell today still believes in his stuff. He must be watching a different player from the rest of the fans. His own assessment last season was that he mismanaged his handling of the bullpen, so far John some of us see no difference this season. Not just with Cordero but with the rookies. The other discussion item today was regarding Romero and whether the Jays should bite the bullet and send him down as they did with Halladay years ago to get him sorted out and with great success. Fat chance with a vote from Farrell but on this one he may well be overruled by Alex. Another tough series this weekend for the Jays. White Sox leading their division and strengthened with Youkilis at third. This is one strong lineup. Plus Peavy pitching already has four complete games. Plus Jays have to contend with this incredible humidity and heat as with most of the east, and no one will want to be out there in the field for long innings. Tonight lineups: Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Davis, Johnson, Arencibia, and Laffey pitching. White Sox: De Aza, Youkilis, Dunn, Konerko, Rios, Pierzynski, Viciedo, Ramirez, Beckham and Peavy pitching. Top 1st: Lawrie, bounces slow bounces up the middle and safe at first, no throw. Speed. Rasmus with one on. First pitch high fly ball to De Aza in centre for the first out. Great swing just not far enough Colby. Bautista, 0-2 count, lifts it into shallow left centre, Lawrie had to hold for possible catch and only advances to second. Two on, one down for Encarnacion. How about a double steal John? No way, Jays have lost that aggressive approach. Full count, there go the runners strike three and throw gets Jose at second, double play ball. Oh dear. A few pitches too late to try that John. But to be fair Edwin just took that pitch and did not help his runners. 14 pitches. Bottom 1st: De Aza, lines it to third, great catch by Lawrie, one down for Youkilis, 3-0 count, outside ball four, those were very close pitches Mr. umpire. Dunn, one down one on. Shift right with Lawrie behind first. 2-2 count, takes strike three, two down for Konerko. Singles back up the middle, two on two down for ex-Jay Rios. Pops it up to Rasmus in centre for the third out. 18 pitch count. Top 2nd: Lind leading off. 3-0 count, takes strike one. Drives this one high to opposite field left and this one is out of here, home run for Lind, 1-0 Jays. Escobar, grounds to Ramirez at short, throw to first for the first out. Davis, 1-2 strikes out swinging, two down for Johnson now hitting number eight, long way down from the number two spot. Full count, low ball four. Arencibia with two down and one on. 2-2 count, just gets under this one and pops it up to Ramirez in shallow left. 37 pitches. Bottom 2nd: Pierzynski, first pitch fly ball to Rasmus in centre for the out. Viciedo. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Ramirez. Grounds to Lawrie at third, throw to Edwin for the out at first. 27 pitches, very nice. Top 3rd: Top of the order again, Lawrie, lifts it to Beckham at second, fumbles the ball off his glove and once again Lawrie speed gets him to first to beat the throw, Rasmus lifts it into shallow left for Ramirez to make the catch, one down for Bautista. 2-0 keeping it away from Jose here. 3-1 count, low ball four, two on one down for Encarnacion. Deja vu first inning. Pitch number 50 for Peavy. 2-2 count. Fly ball to Rios in right for second out, Lawrie holds at second. Lind, two on two down. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. 56 pitch count after three for Peavy. Bottom 3rd: Beckham leading off. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down for top of the order De Aza, 2-2 count, grounds back to Laffey, throw to Edwin at first, two down. Youkilis, 2-2 count, fly ball to Davis in left for the out. 41 pitches. Top 4th: Escobar leading off. 3-0 count, drives this one to right centre and De Aza makes the catch at the wall. Robs Yunel of a double at least. Davis, one down, bunting up the third base line, nice bunt but Youkilis was ready and bare hand throw gets Davis. Johnson, 2-2 count, loops it into shallow centre for a single. Arencibia, 1-2 count, takes strike three. Pitch count 75. Wild games in Cleveland and Boston. Tampa beating Indians 10-2 and Boston now ahead of Yankees 7-6 after being down 5-0 in the first inning. Bottom 4th: Heart of the White Sox order Dunn leading off. Grounds first pitch to Edwin at first, one down. Konerko, 2-2 count, bounces to Lawrie at third, throw to Edwin at first, two down for Rios. 2-2 count, singles to Rasmus in centre. One on two down for Pierzynski, grounds to Johnson, throw to Edwin for the out. Pitch count 55. Top 5th: Top of the order Lawrie. Third time he has lead off the inning tonight. Peavy muttering at the umpire on the calls. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down for Rasmus, grounds hard to second but great save by Beckham robs Colby of a hit. Throw to first for second out. Bautista, full count, strikes out swinging. Pitch count 91. Bottom 5th: Viciedo, pulls it to left to the wall for a stand up double. Ramirez, same again and Davis airmails the throw way over head of Arencibia for Viciedo to score easily. That was not a difficult throw and on the money would have had the runner. Ramirez to third on the play. Beckham. And another hit to left in front of Davis and Lawrie and here comes Ramirez, 2-1 White Sox. Davis also bobbles the flip throw from Lawrie and then overthrows the fielder again. That was horrible sequence and now Walton out there to calm things down. Laffey let down by Davis here bigtime. Beckham at second. De Aza. 2-1 count, fly ball to Rasmus, his throw to Lawrie is right on the money but Beckham safe. One down finally but another runner at third. Youkilis, 2-2 count, lines it to left. Sox are pulling Laffey to left on every hit, here comes Beckham, 3-1 White Sox. Dunn with shift right on. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Konerko. Not out of this inning yet by any means. Lines it hard to left but a great leaping catch by Lawrie to end this one. 77 pitches but thanks to Davis, Jays need a left fielder who can field and throw. Maybe time to try Ben Francisco out there, his bat is much better than Davis and he can field. Top 6th: Jays playing catchup but not impossible by any means. Encarnacion leading off. 1-2 count, singles to right. One on for Lind, 0-2 strikes out swinging. Peavy did not throw over to first once, come on Edwin make the guy work for it at least. Escobar, 100 pitches for Peavy. Lines to second throw to first to double up Edwin. That is the second time Jays base runners have been caught like that. Pitch count 102. Bottom 6th: Jays hitters did not give Laffey much chance to relax there after that last inning. Rios, pops it up to Edwin to make the catch in the camera bay. One down for Pierzynski, no doubt about this one though, a moon shoot to right and Jose watches it go into the crowd. 4-1 White Sox. Viciedo grounds first pitch off the mound to Escobar throw to Edwin for the second out. Ramirez back to Laffey but overruns it and unable to handle it and throw too late to get him at first. Beckham. Two down one on. 2-1 count, there goes Ramirez but Arencibia ready and great throw gets him sliding in to second. Nice play by Arencibia. Pitch count 89. Time for the bullpen John, it is very very hot out there. Top 7th: Davis? or pinch hitter ? No luck. Pops it up to Youkilis at third for first out. Johnson. Lines it hard but right at second throw to Konerko at first for second out, Arencibia. Full count, pops it up to Rios in right. 113 pitch count. I guess not much faith in the White Sox bullpen if you make Peavy go this far in this heat. Bottom 7th: Jesse Chavez now pitching. That makes sense and not just for the scoreline but for Laffey’s health. Beckham pops it up to Bautista in right for the out. De Aza, 0-2 count, bounces to Johnson throw to Edwin, two quick outs for Chavez. Youkilis, 3-1 count, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin. Nice easy inning for Chavez. Top 8th: Will Peavy be out there? Yes he is, that is crazy. Lawrie leading off. Fly ball to centre for the out. Rasmus, now the White Sox manager is out there, what a waste of time just for the lefty matchup with Rasmus ??? Matt Thornton now pitching. Rasmus, whoa, has to duck from the first pitch. Another high and outside, might be why Peavy was in there for so long. Moonshot by Colby to right but foul, that was a Colby rocket, Thornton gets a break. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Bautista two down, 1-2 count, takes strike three, Jose has a quiet talk with the umpire, they must be so hot out there, we forget that they do not get chance to sit as the players do and to concentrate like that for three hours with those outfits and the protection must be tough. Bottom 8th: Dunn, takes strike three and Dunn has a fit. Konerko, first pitch lines it into shallow centre. One on one down. Rios, oh boy, grounds to Edwin steps on first, throw to second hits Konerko in the back. Safe at second. Two down Pierzynski, intentional walk. Two on for Viciedo. Pops up the first pitch high to shallow centre for Rasmus. Nice pitching by Chavez. Yankees back on top of Red Sox 10-8. Top 9th: Last chance for Jays tonight. Addison Reed the closer, 12 of 13 attempts. Encarnacion, full count, almost hits him inside. Ball four. One on for Lind. That’s the way Adam, lines it into left, Edwin to third on the play, Lind at first. Tying run now in Escobar. Ben Francisco now Pinch runner for Lind, this is where Davis should be playing. Fly ball to center right, Edwin scores 4-2 game but one down for Davis. 0-2 count. Oh boy grounds to short throw to second over to first another double play. Jays lose this one but not an impressive game from Davis with bat or glove. Let’s see tomorrow whether Manager agrees. Will this be Romero’s last chance? The very good: Lawrie defence. Lind home run and single in the 9th to get tie run at the plate. The good: You have to give Laffey a good here. He was definitely victimized by his defense behind him and specifically Davis in left. He held the White Sox scoreless until the three run 5th. Very poor: Davis in left field. Ruined night for Laffey. To cap a miserable game representing the tie run he grounds into a game ending double play. Three inning ending double plays by the Jays. That should not happen, but if there is no aggression with runner at first the odds are much greater.

Farrell strange pitching decisions contribute to Jays loss

After being on the moon for the last two weeks and isolated from MLB news, where the Euro 2012, the Olympics and Wimbledon rule paramount, it is interesting to see how little has actually changed. Amazingly after the last two weeks, Jays are still close in this division race. After the Yankees the other four are within two games of each other. Given the breakdown of the Jays rotation that is an amazing achievement. The obverse of course is the “what ifs” and a fit rotation. Royals v Jays. Game four of four game series. Two excellent pitching games from Cecil and Villanueva. Can Alvarez do the same? Jays would love to win this series before heading to tough first half finish in Chicago. Lineups: Royals: Gordon, Escobar, Hosmer, Butler, Betancourt, Moustakas, Francouer, Perez, Dyson and Hochevar pitching. Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Encarnacion, Lind, Escobar, Davis, Johnson, Arencibia and Alvarez pitching tonight. Top 1st: Gordon leading off, great pitch, strike three looking, one down for (Alcides) Escobar, full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Hosmer, grounds to Johnson at second, throw to Encarnacion at first to end the inning 12 pitches, great start. Bottom 1st: Lawrie flirting with .300 average. Grounds to Betancourt at second, throw to first for the out. Rasmus, quietly asserting his class in the number two spot, now with 16 home runs and on pace for 30 plus for the season. 2-2 count, doubles into the right field corner, after an eight pitch at bat. Bautista with runner in scoring position. Grounds to second throw to Hosmer at first for the out but Rasmus to third on the play. Encarnacion. Bounces to Moustakas at third, throw to Hosmer to get Edwin. Jays threaten but come up empty handed. 15 pitches with more than half for the Rasmus at bat. Top 2nd: Butler, 2-2 count, takes strike three. Number three for Alvarez already. Betancourt, bounces first pitch to Lawrie in front of Escobar, throw to Edwin for the second out. Moustakas, 2-2 count, high fly ball to Rasmus in centre for the out. Pitch count 25. So far so good. Bottom 2nd: Lind, 3-1 count, pops up ball four to Moustakas at third. Escobar, one down, fly ball to Francouer in right. Ball carried but not hit very hard. Two down for Davis. First pitch swinging right back to Hochevar, throw to first 26 pitches, thanks to Davis. Give me the eight pitch at bat by Rasmus ending in a double. Top 3rd: Francouer, bounces to Lawrie at third, bare handed play and throw to get Francouer at first. Nice play. One down for Perez, grounds to third, Lawrie can only knock it down, no play as Perez safe at first. Dyson, number nine hitter. 1-2 count, lines past a diving Johnson into centre field for a stand up double. Perez stops at third on the play. Gordon with two in scoring position. 3-1 count. Alvarez rattled here. Ball four to load the bases with only one down And Escobar at bat. Singles to Bautista in right, run scores and bases stay loaded. 1-0 Royals. Hosmer, 1-2 count, singles to Davis in left, another run scores 2-0 Royals and bases stay loaded. Butler, Alvarez playing with fire with this part of the lineup. 2-0 count, oh boy, grounds to Lawrie , throw to second gets away into right, two runs score 4-0 Royals. Error to Lawrie. still only one down. Betancourt, bullpen working. Two on, still only one out. Full count, could be his last pitch if hitter gets away. Outside ball four. No movement from Farrell, rolling the dice here. Moustakas with bases loaded yet again. 1-2 count, fly ball to Rasmus, run scores 5-0 Royals two down. Francouer with two on and two down. Full count, lines to Lawrie, this time no error and throw to Edwin to end this awful, 66 pitches, a 40 pitch inning. This game could be over already before bottom of Jays order gets a bat tonight. It will be interesting to see what Jays have here, Very humid in Toronto today and the long inning would not help the Jays hitters. But Lawrie for one owes Alvarez tonight. Bottom 3rd: Johnson first at bat, lines it to the wall in right for stand up double, good start. Arencibia, full count, WHOA JP hammers this moon shot to left and into the second level, off the facing, two run home run. 5-2 game. Lawrie chance for him to redeem himself also. Grounds to third, throw to first for the out. One down for Rasmus. Full count, inside ball four. Two on for Bautista lines it to left but out at the wall, two down for Encarnacion. 3-1 count, grounds to short throw to second gets Rasmus at second. 50 pitch count. Top 4th: Alvarez getting another chance. Perez grounds to Escobar throw to Edwin, one down. Dyson, same play, to Escobar to Encarnacion at first, two down. Top of the order Gordon, singles to Rasmus in centre, one on two down for Escobar, full count, hit and run Gordon going and Escobar lines it to Davis in left for a double. Gordon held at third, he could probably have secured in Davis arm. Two in scoring position for Hosmer, grounds first pitch to Edwin throw to Alvarez covering for third out. No damage done. 77 pitch count. Bottom 4th: Lind leading off. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Escobar. Lines it the wall in right centre, but Escobar chugging into second, his lack of speed hurting his chance for a triple there. Davis, bunting, cannot get it down. Lines this one right at Betancourt at second for the out throw to Alcides Escobar and doubles up Jays Yunel Escobar already halfway to third. Jays base running haunts them yet again. Pitch count 60. Top 5th: Butler, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Betancourt, grounds first pitch to Escobar, throw to Edwin two down. Moustakas, 1-2 strikes out swinging. 85 pitch count. Eight pitch inning for Alvarez. Bottom 5th: Johnson leading off. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Arencibia, one down. 1-2 count, grounds to Escobar, throw to first gets away from Hosmer and Arencibia safe on the error. Lawrie, fly ball to Dysion in centre, two down for Rasmus bounces to first and oh dear Hochevar dies not get to the bag and Rasmus safe. Whoa. Great speed by Colby there. Hochevar right foot hit the bag at an angle trainer and manager out there, leaving him in there for Bautista, big at bat here with tying run, two on and two down. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Top 6th: Francouer grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Perez singles to Bautista in right. That is it for Alvarez 94 pitch count but victimized tonight by Lawrie. Luis Perez now pitching, one down one on. Dyson pops it up to Rasmus in shallow centre for second out. Gordon, high pop up to Davis in left to end the inning. No damage done. Bottom 6th: Tim Collins replacing Hochevar. Encarnacion leading off. Full count, pops it up to Francouer in shallow right. One down for Lind, lefty-lefty, 0-2 count, strikes out. Need a pinch hitter there John. Two down. Escobar, full count, high ball four. Davis, two down and runner at first. 0-2 strikes out on high fast ball. Top 7th: Alcides Escobar leading off. 2-1 count, grounds to Yunel Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Hosmer bounces first pitch to Johnson at second, throw to Edwin two down. Here comes John Farrell. 13 pitches ??? I don’t get it. I hope Farrell does. Sam Dyson in today from New Hampshire AA. And facing Butler ??? 3-0 count, Inside ball four. That was some decision that backfired for Farrell. Surely Perez could have taken the third out????? Betancourt, 0-2 count, oh boy, throws it high over the head of Betancourt to the backstop, Butler to second. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, BUT that was a very risky call by Farrell. Plus I don’t think it helps Perez much by getting him up and only throwing 13 pitches. He is a long relief guy and could be pitching at least two innings here. This is how arms go south in September if not before. Bottom 7th: Johnson grounds back up the middle, Escobar makes the play and throw to Hosmer at first for the out. One down for Arencibia, hammers this one high to left centre and just gets over the wall second home run tonight for JP. 5-3 Royals and that is it for Collins. Greg Holland now pitching. Top of the order Lawrie 2-2 count, takes strike three down the middle. Not good at bat by Lawrie. Two down for Rasmus. Pops it up to Escobar at short. Jays get one back but they need more and running out of time to do it. Top 8th: Dyson out of there and Jays fans worst nightmare, Cordero now pitching. Moustakas, singles to Rasmus in centre. One on for Fancouer. Grounds it up the middle, no play possible by Escobar and Johnson collide going for the play. Two on and nobody out, wait for the boos any minute. Perez, singles first pitch to left, bases loaded and nobody out. Why oh why is this guy still on this team and pitching?? Another weakness of Farrell and his handling of the pitchers. Dyson, bases loaded and nobody out. Bounces to Johnson, throwing home to get lead runner. One down but bases still loaded for Gordon top of the order. Singles first pitch to Bautista, here comes the run number six and bases stay loaded. Escobar, 6-3 Royals, one down and bases loaded. Strikes out swinging, two down. Hosmer. Grounds to right. Johnson nobody covering first, now Cordero runner safe throws to home plate second runners scores, two more runs, Now Farrell comes out, he has the weirdest sense of timing. 8-3 game and boos are loud and clear. Surely he will be out after this latest. Another rookie Drew Carpenter now pitching two down two on. And game way out of reach even for this team of hitters. Butler, first pitch swinging lines to Bautista for the out. But Farrell and Cordero have ruined this one. Bottom 8th: Crow now pitching for Royals. Bautista leading off but even he cannot score five. Grounds to third, throw to first, one down. Encarnacion. 3-0 count, outside ball four, semi-intentional walk there. Lind, singles back up the middle. Two on one down for Escobar. 2-0 count, singles to left, here comes Edwin hesitating a little there rounding third but beats the throw. 8-4 Royals, two on for Davis. Runners at first and second. 2-1 count, grounds to third, throw to first, two down runners move in to scoring position. That is it for Crow. Jose Mijares to finish it off. Ben Francisco pinch hitting for Johnson, YES Ben, lines it to the wall in right centre, both runners score, and Ben all the way to third, two RBI triple. 8-6 game. That is it for Mijares. Arencibia with Francisco at third. Herrera now pitching. Grounds to third, throw to first just beats Arencibia. Jays get three back but will it be enough? Top 9th: Carpenter still pitching. Vizquel in at second for Johnson. Betancourt leading off. Hammers this one high to left and over the fence. Home run and run number nine for Royals. 9-6 game. Moustakas grounds back to Carpenter, throw to Edwin for the out. One down for Francouer, strikes out swinging, two down for Perez, ground to third, Lawrie unable to make a play. Of his bare hand. One on two down for Dyson, lines this high to right over Bautista and off the wall, Perez holds at third, Dyson at second. Two more in scoring position. Top of the order Gordon, fly ball to Bautista in right for third out but Jays need three to tie. Bottom 9th: Lawrie leading off. No need for heroics Brett, just get on base. Jonathon Broxton closing this one out 20 save guy. Three blown. Lawrie grounds to first, throw to Broxton in time, to get Lawrie, one down. Rasmus, 2-2 count, singles to right. This guy continues to impress. Bautista not a good night for Jose tonight 0-4. 2-0 count, keeping the ball away from Jose here. High 3-0. Takes it, 3-1. Lines it hard to left, great catch at third and throw fto first to double uo Rasmus. Not a great way to end that one. But the problem tonight lay in John Farrell’s strange pitching changes and another awful outing by Carder who surely had [played his last game as a Bloue Jay. The very good: Arencibia tonight with the two home runs. But also Rasmus again, a great eight pitch at bat in the first for a double and another good at bat in the ninth to get on base. Ben Francisco pinch hit triple and two RBIs. Terrible: John Farrell handling of the pitchers. Luis Perez faced four hitters and used only 12 pitches. Two quick outs for Perez in the 7th and he is pulled for the rookie Dyson who faces only two and threw 12 pitches. Stranger still he is pulled for Cordero to start the 8th. Cordero was in trouble from the start and faced seven and threw 20 pitches. Cordero but he should not even be out there. Not good: Lawrie cost Alvarez in the third,