Lack of hitting hurting as Jays lose another series against Rays

Jays v Rays. Game two of three. No good news. Bautista, waiting for the second MRI or rather the third as he moved during the second and had to repeat, but it does not look good. Jays fans may have to start thinking that we will not see Jose bat again this season. Lawrie throwing but still not in the lineup. Lind still working out ditto Frasor. What a broken record. Gose in for Sierra tonight but this lineup still looks like the one in Vegas. However all of them are getting invaluable exposure. You can already see the improvements in all of them. The bullpen is the bright light on this scene a great outing by Chad Jenkins last night. Jays need some leadership with the bat. Red Sox have already lost this afternoon so Jays have a chance tonight to get level. Jays: Davis, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Escobar, Cooper, Johnson, Mathis, Gose, Hechavarria and Villanueva pitching. Rays: Jennings, Upton, Joyce, Longoria, Zobrist, Pena, Keppinger, Molina, Rodriguez, and Alex Cobb pitching. Top 1st: Another empty stadium, official count last night was 13,000 but they must be counting tickets sold as opposed to bodies in the ballpark. Davis leading off, grounds to Zobrist throw to Pena at first for the out. Rasmus, 1-2 count, shatters his bat grounds to Zobrist, throw to Pena, two down for Encarnacion. DH tonight. 2-2 count, lines it into left. One on two down for Escobar. 1-1 count, grounds to third, throw to second to get Edwin. Pitch count15. Bottom 1st: Jennings leading off. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, three pitches one down. Upton, 2-0 count, lines it hard to third, Hechavarria knocks it down but throw off the glove of Cooper. One on for Joyce, first pitch pop up to Johnson, two down for Longoria. 2-2 count, there goes Upton, throw not in time and hits him, full count Upton at second. Strikes out swinging, very nice Carlos. Top 2nd: Cooper leading off. This guy has had more than enough time to settle in. Time for some production David. Grounds weakly to third, throw to first, one down. Johnson, having a miserable time with his bat. Full count, lines it hard to Pena at first, throw to Cobb for second out. Mathis, 0-2 count, loops it into left. One on but two down for Gose, no bunting here Antony, hit away. First pitch fly ball to left for the out. Oh dear not like that. Bottom 2nd: Zobrist leading off. 3-0 count, ball four. One on for Pena, 2-1 count, drives it to centre, Rasmus makes the out, one down for Keppinger. 0-2 count, grounds to Escobar, bounces the throw to Johnson and not able to make two outs. Man, not good Yunel concentrate. Two down from ex-Jay Jose Molina. Singles first pitch into right centre. Two on two down. Rodriguez. 1-2 count, strikes out, Escobar mistake costs five pitches. Top 3rd: Hechavarria, 2-2 count, takes strike three. Davis, 2-2 count, hits him, ouch. One on one down for Rasmus. Time to hit it out Colby. 1-2 count, hit and run, perfect, Colby singles into right, Davis all the way to third. Encarnacion now, runner on the corners and one down. 1-1 count, this will do, lines to left, Davis tags and scores. Sac fly for Edwin and RBI # 75. 1-0 Jays. Two down for Escobar, chance to redeem his fielding mistake, Rasmus at first. Full count, Rasmus running as Escobar singles into centre, Colby all the way to third. Cooper with two on. Takes strike one, fly ball to Upton in centre for the out. Cooper has to start producing in these situations. Pitch count 54. Bottom 3rd:Jennings, full count. Pulls it to Davis in left, throw not in time, Jennings leadoff double. Upton, 0-2 count, lines it into right field corner and just like that game is tied up 1-1. Still nobody out. Upton at second, Joyce, lines it to Gose in right, Upton holds at third. Two on nobody out and Longoria. That’s ok, grounds to Escobar, to Johnson over to Cooper double play for a run as Upton comes in from third. 2-1 Rays, two down. Zobrist. Full count, Pena. 3-0 count, low ball four. Here comes Walton, settle down here Carlos. Keppinger with two on, 2-0, oh dear, come on Carlos. Full count, singles back up the middle, here comes the runner Zobrist, 3-1 Rays. Molina, two on two down. Fly ball to Davis in left. That failure by Cooper looms large now. Pitch count 60. Top 4th: Yankees and Orioles winning 7-1 and 5-0 respectively. Johnson leading off. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down for Mathis, strikes out swinging. Gose, two down strikes out swinging, Cobb strikes out the side, terrible hitting by this lineup. This team tonight only has three in the lineup that you could call bona fide hitters and you are not going to win many games with that. The other problem of course is that this puts tremendous pressure on the starters. Pitch count 69. Bottom 4th: Rodriguez, 1-2 count. singles past a diving Escobar into left. One on for Jennings. First pitch swinging, they want it over quickly as well, lines out to Rasmus in centre, one down for Upton. Now they have Rodriguez picked off, balk called on Villanueva, nothing going right tonight. Rodriguez to second. 1-2 count, takes strike three, Upton does not like the call, tough. Two down for Joyce. Whoa, lines this one high to right BUT Gose makes the third out at the wall. Almost out of there. Looked like two runs all the way. Pitch count 71. Top 5th: Can these Jays hitters get something going here? Hechavarria leading off. 1-2 count. Ouch hits him. One on for Davis. You run Hech. Put some pressure on Cobb here. Nothing to lose . Davis grounds to third, throw to second over to first, double play. Another major reason for Hech to run. Farrell has to do something here to scratch out the runs, send the runner might be a start, nothing to lose. Two down for Rasmus. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Thanks Rajai. 77 pitch count. Bottom 5th: Longoria, full count, great curve ball to strike him out looking, wow. One down for Zobrist. 1-1 count, slow bouncer to Cooper at first, only just beats him to the bag. Hustle David. Two down for Pena. 2-1 count, bunting to third Villanueva makes the play and throw to get Pena. Three up and down. Nice inning. Carlos doing his part, how about the bats? 84 pitch count. Top 6th: Snider 2-3 so far tonight, oh Travis we miss you bigtime. Encarnacion leading off. Pops up to Pena, one down. Escobar, 1-2 count, fly ball to Upton in right centre, two down for Cooper. 2-1 count. Grounds back to Cobb, throw to first to end the inning. Bottom 6th: Keppinger, 0-2 count, pops up to Cooper for the out. Molina, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Rodriguez, full count, strikes out swinging. Nice pitching Carlos, you have done your job. 103 pitch count. Top 7th: Johnson, 2-1 count lines the other way into left field corner, stand up double for Kelly. One on for Mathis. Rays bullpen working. McGhee. Showing bunt. 0-1 count. Bunts up third base line and Johnson to third. Mathis out on throw to first. One down for Gose. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Hechavarria. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Should Farrell have pinch hit Vizquel for Hech ? He will say learning situation. Bah humbug! Bottom 7th: Delabar now pitching. Jennings, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down. Upton, 2-2 count, pops up to Johnson, two down for Joyce. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Three up and down for Delabar. Pitchers have been doing their job. Top 8th: Top of the order. Davis. Joel Peralta now pitching. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Rasmus. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Encarnacion. 2-2 count, strikes out looking. Man. Bottom 8th: Brad Lincoln now pitching. Longoria, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Longoria does not agree. Too bad. Zobrist. 2-1 count, lines it past diving Johnson into right. One on one down for Pena. 2-2 count, Howell and Rodney warming up in Rays bullpen, not sure why Maddon thinks he needs two tonight, Jays hitters have not threatened all night. Pops it up to Rasmus in centre, two down for Keppinger. Grounds to Escobar, throw to Johnson for the out. Nice inning by Lincoln. Top 9th: Last chance for the underperforming bats. Five hits one run. 0-3 in scoring position. Detroit making a run of it against Yankees, 9-7 Yankees in the 8th. Rodney pitching, he wants another easy save here. Escobar first pitch fly ball to right. Cooper, fly ball to left and oh my, this one bounces on the low wall 315 ft. and is out of here, home run, that was one freaky hit and run. That should also have been caught by Jennings, but Jays will take any run they can get any way they can. 3-2 Rays. Johnson, pops it up to short, two down for Mathis. I don’t think he will be bunting, 0-2 count, lines it to short for the out. Jays lose 3-2. On paper looks good but this was not even close. Jays lose another series to the Rays and will have to fight harder than this to avoid the sweep tomorrow. And don’t even think of the home series Yankees, White Sox and Rangers will eat this team alive the way they are hitting right now. Far too much pressure on the pitchers by the lacklustre hitting lineup. In my book Rasmus and Encarnacion are the only two legitimate hitters, that will not win many games. The very good: Once again the pitching. One rough inning by Villanueva, but Delabar and Lincoln combined with Villanueva for five shutout innings and that is excellent in my book. Not good: Uninspiring managing by Farrell, he has to send the runners especially the rookies with speed. Show some aggression. I still believe a pinch hitter for Hechavarria with runner at third and two down. Vizquel, Gomes and Sierra all better options in my book than Gose and Hech. Cooper has to come through with runners on. Johnson and Escobar have to show some leadership to the rookies.

Jays lose series opener to the Rays

Jays v Rays. Game one of three. Big test for the Jays tonight, start of two series against division rivals. How will the rookies fare? Tonight Rasmus back in the lineup and J. Happ starting his first for the Jays. The tough part is that it is Tampa and also Shields pitching. The other bad news is that McGowan will be having yet more surgery. How much longer can he do this or will it be the end of his career? Hutchison also going under the knife for Tommy John surgery which means we will not see him again until 2014 season. Again the obvious questions re the Jays coaching staff. Is there a problem with their methods? I would imagine that Rogers have already asked the question, they are not going to keep on paying out big $ to have so many of their investments sitting out season after season. Lineups: Jays: Davis, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Escobar, Cooper, Sierra, Johnson, Mathis, Hechavarria and Happ pitching. Rays: Jennings, Upton, Zobrist, Longoria, Keppinger, Roberts, Rodriguez, Lobaton, Johnson, and Shields pitching. Longoria back in the lineup after DL. Why could they now wait until after this series? Jays get no breaks. Top 1st: Where is everybody ? Empty stadium. Must be rough to play in an empty stadium at home. The good is that I guess everyone can have a front row seat. Davis leading off, 2-0 pops it up to Zobrist in right, one down for Rasmus, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Encarnacion. 2-1 count, grounds to Roberts at third to end the inning. Bottom 1st: Jennings, 2-2 count, fly ball to Sierra in right. One down for Upton. 2-2 count, takes strike three. Two down for Zobrist. 2-2 count, takes strike three looking. Great start for Happ. Top 2nd: Escobar, 2-2 count, pops it up to shallow right and Rodriguez makes nice over the shoulder catch. One down for Cooper, DH tonight with Edwin playing at first. Lines it hard but right at Rodriguez at second to rob Cooper of a base hit. Two down for Sierra, grounds to third long throw just gets Sierra, he has speed. Shields rolling along here. Bottom 2nd: Longoria leading off, grounds back up the middle great stop by Happ and throw to Edwin, great reflexes, one down for Keppinger, 2-2 count, high pop up to Edwin for the second out. Roberts, full count, this is trouble pops it up to right and ball drops, Roberts to second. Rodriguez, loops it into shallow right and here comes Roberts to score 1-0 Rays. Lobaton, lines it off the glove of Hechavarria into left. Rodriguez to third. Lobaton at second. Johnson, two in scoring position two down. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Top 3rd: Johnson, hitting at the bottom in number eight. Lines this one very hard to right centre but Zobrist makes the out. One down for Mathis. 2-2 count, pops it up to Lobaton. Two down for Hechavarria 2-1 count, singles back up the middle, nice hit first major league hit. There goes the no hitter for Shields . Davis, two down one on. 2-2 count, grounds to short flip to second to get Hechavarria to end the inning. Bottom 3rd: Jennings, 2-2 count, looper into shallow centre, one on for Upton, lines it to right and Jays get a break as it bounces over the wall, ground rule double, Jennings has to hold at third, he would have scored on that. Double for Upton, Zobrist, two in scoring position nobody out 3-0 count, outside ball four, bases loaded for Longoria, ouch, nowhere to put him either.2-1 count, Happ starting to lose the zone here. This will get one, fly ball to right and Sierra makes the catch up against the wall, Jennings tags and scores 2-0 Rays. Keppinger with runners at the corners. 1-2 count, fly ball to Davis in left this will score Upton, 3-0 Rays. Roberts, with Zobrist still at first. 3-1 count, pops it up to right Sierra makes the out. Top 4th: Rasmus leading off. Full count, sayonara, uppercut by Colby and this one is out of here in right centre, home run to Rasmus, welcome back we missed you Colby. 3-1 Rays. Encarnacion, 1-2 count, goes around and strikes out. One down for Escobar, grounds to short, throw to first, two down for Cooper. High fly ball to Upton in center for the out but Jays get one back. Bottom 4th: Rodriguez leading off. Grounds to Hechavarria, throw to Edwin one down for Lobaton. 0-2 count, fly ball to Davis in left for the out. Johnson with two down, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Nice inning for Happ, he works very quickly as does Shields. Top 5th: Sierra leading off, Walton getting the bullpen working. Full count, fouls it off his foot after fouling it off his shin, he is in real pain this time, here comes the trainer. Fly ball to Upton for the out. One down for Johnson, full count, drives it the opposite field but for the out in left, two down. Mathis, 2-1 count pops it up to right for Zobrist to make the out in shallow right. Jays having problems solving Shields tonight. Bottom 5th: Top of the order Jennings, lines first pitch into the left field corner, stand up double to lead off. Brandon Lyon working in the bullpen. Upton, full count, strikes out swinging, one down. Zobrist, this will do it lines it into right, here comes Jennings to score 4-1 Rays. Zobrist at second for Longoria. That is it for Happ tonight. Not a bad outing, just needed some run support. Lyon now pitching. Longoria, full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Keppinger. Chad Jenkins getting loose in the bullpen. Grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin for third out. Top 6th: Hechavarria, full count, 75 pitches for Shields. Looked like ball four but this is Shields and he gets the call strike out, that was tough call for Hechavarria. Davis, bounces to short, throw to first, two down for Rasmus, another full count, outside ball four. One on two down for Encarnacion, hitless tonight. 0-2 count, third full count, home run swing to left but dies at the wall. Almost Edwin. Pitch count 93 for Shields. Bottom 6th: Chad Jenkins now pitching, major league debut. Roberts, 2-2 count strikes out swinging. One down for Rodriguez, 2-2 count, lines it hard back up the middle but Jenkins makes a great play to catch this, great reflex play, two down. Lobaton, pops it up and Escobar makes nice grab in shallow left centre. Good inning by young Jenkins. Top 7th: Escobar leading off. 2-2 count, hits him. One on for Cooper, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging at ball way outside. One down for Sierra. McGhee warming up in bullpen, no need grounds to short, over to second on to first inning ending double play ball. Bottom 7th: Johnson, pulls it past a diving Johnson into shallow right. Leadoff single. Jennings, bunting and good, Jenkins throw to first to get Jennings as Johnson to second. One down for Upton, 0-2 count, fly ball to Sierra, throw keeps Johnson at second. Two down. Zobrist, 2-2 count, takes strike three. Two scoreless innings for Jenkins. Very nice. Top 8th: Johnson, leading off. Strikes out swinging. One down for Mathis, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Hechavarria, 2-0 count, grounds to third, throw to first. Three up and down. No pinch hitters John? Bottom 8th: Longoria, singles to centre, one on for Keppinger, Sam Fuld pinch runner for Longoria. Pena pinch hitter for Keppinger. Maddon takes these games seriously. 2-1 count, fly ball to Davis in left for the out. Roberts, one on one down. 0-2 count, grounds to Encarnacion, throw to second back to first and mix-up with Jenkins not giving Edwin the room and runner safe. Two down. Rodriguez 0-2 count, lines it to Rasmus for third out, Three scoreless innings for Jenkins, excellent job. This bullpen is looking stronger by the day. When will the hitters be the same? Lind rehabbing well, Lawrie day to day. Bautista the big enigma and another MRI tomorrow which is not good. Wrist injuries always tough healing. We may not see Jose this season. Top 9th: Last chance for the Jays. Rodney pitching. Davis leading off. 2-2 count, strikes out, one down for Rasmus, singles the opposite way into left. Two hit night for Colby. Encarnacion 0-2 count, umpire warns Rodney for wiping hands on the ball, wild pitch and Rasmus to second, lines it hard down the line but Roberts makes great stop at third and throw to first to get Edwin. Two down. Escobar, 2-2 count, bounces to first, takes it himself for the out. Jays lose the opener to the Rays 4-1. The good: Rasmus two hit night including the home run plus a walk. He is doing his bit but not so much the others. The bullpen Chad Jenkins three innings 41 pitches 30 strikes. Excellent outing. Yankees and Boston lose tonight. Baltimore still in extra innings. The not so good: Only three hits for Jays.

Jays come from behind to beat Oakland with home run power and speed

Jays v A’s. Final game of four game series. Great win yesterday with the rookies, almost like a Hollywood movie. Can it carry over to today? Odds are not great but the rookies may have other plans. After this series they head east to St. Petersburg and the hot Rays. Today Lawrie and Rasmus taking another day off and plus the off day tomorrow should give their injuries time to heal. The not so good news is re Bautista as the word is now “may” return this season, that would not be good news. Fraser and Lind both starting to work. Not much room for Frasor in this new bullpen which is looking stronger by the day. Lineups: Jays: Davis, Gose, Encarnacion, Escobar, Johnson, Mathis, Gomes, Sierra, Hechavarria and Laffey pitching. How many of these players did you expect to see in a Jays starting lineup this season? Interesting Escobar backing up Edwin today but Kelly has definitely been struggling. I like the speed at the top. A’s: Crisp, Gomes, Reddick, Cespedes, Carter, Inge, Norris, Rosales, Weeks and Milone pitching. Top 1st: Davis leading off, hammers this one to left, stand up double to lead off. How long will he stay there? Gose bunting, there goes Rajai to third, throw to first to get Gose but here comes Davis all the way home and beats the throw back to Norris, wow speed kills as Jays go ahead 1-0 on pure speed. Norris was concentrating on Gose letting Davis take third but I don’t think he expected Davis to keep on running. Encarnacion grounds back to Milone throw to Carter at first, two down. Escobar grounds to Rosales at short, throw to Carter to end the inning but Jays strike first. Bottom 1: Crisp leading off, strikes out swinging. Gomes pops up to Escobar at short, two down. Reddick strikes out swinging. Always a good sight the way this guy has owned Jays pitching the last two series Top 2: Johnson leading off, hits him. One on for Mathis, there goes Kelly and throw by Norris gets him at second. Jays base running has been the pits. Jays lineup cannot afford to giveaway outs. Mathis pops up to Carter at first, two down for Gomes, strikes out swinging. Bottom 2nd: Cespedes, drives to centre but Gose makes the out. Carter, fly ball to Sierrra in right, two down. Inge, singles to Gose. One on for Norris, lines to Davis in left here comes Inge to score. 1-1 game. Norris at second. Rosales strikes out swinging. Jays lead did not last for long. Top 3rd: Sierra leading off fly ball to left for Gomes to make the out. One down for Hechavarria, same again, fly ball to Gomes, two down for Davis, strikes out swinging. Three up and down for Milone. Bottom 3rd: Weeks leading off, ball four, come on Laffey. Crisp, one on fly ball to Gose in centre. One down. Gomes singles to left, Weeks to 3rd. Two on for Reddick, oh man, high fly ball to right and this one is out of here, three run home run for Reddick yet again the destroyer of this Jays pitching staff. 4-1 Oakland. Cespedes grounds to Escobar throw to Gomes. Two down for Carter fly ball to Gose for third out but Oakland has taken the lead. Top 4th: Gose, leading off, there we go Antony singles to left. Maybe finally getting his major league bat going. Encarnacion, YES Edwin, hammers this one to centre and this one is out of here as they say, two run home run for Edwin. Number 29. Jays get two back, 4-3 Oakland. Escobar fly ball to Reddick in right. Johnson one down, singles to Reddick in right, one on one down for Mathis. Pops up to Carter at first. Gomes one on two down, strikes out swinging. But Jays get two back and this game is not over yet Bottom 4th: Inge singles to Sierra in right. Norris, perfect, grounds to third, Hechavarria to Johnson over to Gomes. Double play ball. Rosales two down fly ball to Gose in centre. Laffey did what he had to here and shut the A’s down. Top 5th: Sierra, grounds to Inge at third, throw to Carter at first, one down for Hechavarria, fly ball to Reddick in right, two down. Davis, pop up to Rosales, he can’t get to it, it drops and Rajai safe at first. Gose, lines this to left and in to second with that speed, single and a double for Gose today, great to see his bat working. Davis to 3rd. Encarnacion, two on two down, no not itching to Edwin, intentional walk to get to Escobar with bases loaded. Escobar, oh wow, right through the infeld gap singles to Gomes. Here comes Davis, here comes Gose with that speed no problem, 5-4 Jays. Edwin to 2nd. Two on two down for Johnson. Yes Kelly, soft fly ball blooper to left and here comes Edwin to score 6-4 Jays. Escobar to 2nd. Mathis, strikes out but Jays have stormed back here to retake the lead and all with two down. Bottom 5th: Laffey with the lead again. Weeks leading off, grounds to Johnson throw to Gomes at first. One down for Crisp, fly ball to Sierra in right, two down. Gomes doubles to left. Reddick, oh no. Not this guy, two down with runner at second. Perfect strikes out. Nice pitch Laffey. Top 6th: Gomes leading off, grounds to Rosales at short, throw to Carter at first. One down for Sierra, singles to left. One on for Hechavarria, grounds to Inge at third, throw to second to get Sierra. Hechavarria to 1st. Davis, two down one on, pops up to Carter to end the inning. Bottom 6th: Jays getting close to bullpen time if Laffey can hold the A’s here. Cespedes leading off fly ball to Gose, one down for Carter fly ball to Davis in left, two down for Inge, grounds to Escobar throw to Gomes. Three up and down for Laffey very important inning. Excellent job. Top 7th: New pitcher Evan Scribner for Milone. Gose leading off, two hits today plus the great first inning bunt, not this time grounds Carter. Encarnacion, hammers this one to left stand up double for Edwin, great to see his bat coming alive as they say. Home run and double today. Escobar, pops up to Rosales in foul territory. Two down for Johnson, strikes out swinging. Bottom 7th: Bullpen time for the Jays and they can actually look forward to this these days with the strength that they now have down there. This is going to help the starting rotation no end knowing that they do not have to pitch seven or more innings to help the side. Brandon Lyon for Laffey. Norris, takes strike three. One down for Rosales, oh dear, lines to left for a stand-up double. Weeks with runner in scoring position, strikes out swinging. Two down one on. Crisp, this is trouble, lines to Sierra in right here comes Rosales to score, 6-5 Jays. Gomes, two down, Crisp at second in scoring position, strikes out swinging. Jays still have the lead. Top 8th: Mathis leading off, grounds to Rosales at short, throw to Carter at first, one down. Gomes pops up to Rosales at short, two down. Sierra, there we go, singles to Crisp in centre. Cooper pinch hitting for Hechavarria. Nice, singles to Gomes in left. Sierra to third. Two on two down. Here comes the Coach. Davis pops up to Carter at first. Bottom 8th: Gomes from first base to third. Cooper at first. Loup now pitching. Reddick, watch this guy Aaron, grounds to Johnson throw to Cooper at first, goodbye Mr. Reddick, hopefully the last time we see you this series at least. Cespedes fly ball to Gose in centre, two down. Carter, ball four, not good Aaron. That is it for Loup, Steve Delabar now pitching two down one on, for Inge, perfect, strikes out swinging. Top 9th: Figueroa now pitching. One run lead here friends another would really help our blood pressure. Gose takes strike three. Encarnacion grounds to Inge at third, throw to Carter at first. Two down for Escobar, fly ball to Crisp in centre. Bottom 9th: Casey Janssen to try to save this one. After a week of doing nothing he has certainly been heavily used in this four game series. Norris leading off, strikes out swinging. One down. Brandon Moss pinch hitting for Rosales. Ball four. One on for Weeks, tying run at the plate. Tension here. Sogard pinch running for Moss. Excellent, Weeks lines hard to left Gomes makes great catch and throw to Cooper to first to get Sogard, double play ball to end this game. He would have scored if that had got by Gomes. Jays win again. An amazing win by the rookies to split the four game series when it looked as if they could go seven losses in a row. Now they can head east on a good high and to look forward to the return of Lawrie and Rasmus in St. Petersburg. The excellent: The whole lineup, despite missing Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Lind, Arencibia ( and don't forget Snider's traded bat) but you know what I mean, they still get 12 hits. SPEED, when Lawrie and Rasmus return, this team will have speed throughout the lineup and this is going to add a huge new dimension to this team as demonstrated in that first inning by Gose and Davis. Edwin comes through with the two run home run. Edwin also with no extra base hits on this road trip was 4-24 at the start of the game, home run and a double will help everybody. We can now see why so much has been made of the minor league depth of the Jays, these guys are now really helping out. Gose settling in with his bat, his speed and defense are already producing. Sierra still rough with his base running but his bat looks good. Yan Gomes for his versatility at first, third and catching is a great utility guy. Add in the bullpen depth and this team is starting to show the potential for a long time even without the big guys. September should be a great month as Jays act as spoilers and make a strong statement to the division. The not so good: Nothing today, a great game, and a most unlikely win against a strong team going hard for the wild card.

Jays break the losing streak with extra innings win

Jays v Athletics. Game three of four. That was one excellent game last night despite the loss. Jays scratched and clawed their way for 15 innings. Helped by the dramatic two out full count ninth three run homer by Mathis to tie the game. But also the great bullpen contributions of nine innings without a run. Farrell must have been delighted with that performance and for the future of this team when everyone is fit again. So many changes today. On the downside the recent injuries last night, Lawrie day to day with strained rib cage injury, Rasmus down with groin injury. Hechavarria, is with the club for first time and will start at third for first time in his career. Cecil on the bus to Vegas. May be just a numbers game as Jays need position players not pitchers right now and for a week until hopefully some of the injured return. Today Romero, will this be the day when he rises above the mental angst and throws a no hitter? Jays fans would gladly take seven shutout innings from Ricky today. A quality start is a must with this beaten up lineup that now looks like a AAA team. Imagine a lineup without Lawrie, Rasmus, Bautista, Lind, Arencibia, Snider ??? That is what we have today friends. Lineups: Jays: Escobar, Johnson, Encarnacion, Cooper, Davis, Gomes, Sierra, Gose, Hechavarria and Romero pitching. The bottom five are all Vegas alumni this season. On paper this is asking for a huge double figure score by the A’s, but that’s on paper and we do not play the games on paper. Athletics: Weeks, Taylor, Reddick, Carter, Gomes, Inge, Norris, Kottaras, Rosales and A. J. Griffin pitching. Top 1st: Much as I am not a fan of Escobar, I like the idea of his leading off today, he will want make statement to Farrell. I wish him luck, along with Kelly and Edwin he is the experienced lead guy today in this lineup. Full count, pops it up to right, Taylor very slow to get over and lets it drop. Same again and same result. Yunel goes the other way here and singles to centre Good start Yunel. Eight pitch at bat as well. I like that. Johnson, fly ball to Reddick in centre, one down. Encarnacion, A’s pitched around him all night last night. Playing at first today, let’s see if it makes any difference, 3-1 count, gets under this and skies it to left for the second out, but a couple of good hits in that at bat. Cooper, 2-1 count, pops up to Weeks at second. Pitch count 19. Bottom 1st: Weeks leading off. Full count, fly ball to right centre Gose tracks it down no problem, one down for Taylor, bounces up the middle Escobar makes the play and throw to Edwin, two down. Reddick, fly ball to Sierra in right for the out. Nice inning by Ricky. Nine pitch inning. Exactly what the doctor ordered. Top 2nd: Davis leading off, grounds to Carter at first, takes it himself for the out. Gomes, this is a guy who needs to break out, we have seen his power but not recently.2-2 count, fly ball to Reddick in centre, two down. Sierra, 1-1 count, oh oh, problem with Griffin, trainer and Melvin out there and he is out of here. We have seen this before many times but Jays players not other teams. Jordan Norberto now pitching. 2-2 count, bounces up the middle, throw not in time, safe. One on two down. Gose, lines it to left centre wall and here comes Sierra, throw beats him out at the plate, man this Jays base running is the pits. Butterfield was criticised last night sending Vizquel, ditto now. That should have been second and third runners, this team does not have the luxury of taking chances. Plus Butterfield has to remember these are rookies. And maybe Sierra has to remember how many outs as he did not run on contact and hesitated when the ball was hit thinking it would be caught. Bottom 2nd: Carter, full count, high ball four. Gomes, lines to Escobar, throw to Edwin but Carter back to first in time. Inge, one down one on. Bounces in front of the plate, Romero throw to second to Johnson for the out. Two down Inge at first. Norris, wild pitch gets away, we have to have at least one. Inge to second. 1-1 count, Lines it to right off the wall, here comes Inge 1-0 Oakland. Norris at second. Kottaras, 1-2 count, grounds to Edwin, makes a great diving stop and throw to Ricky for the out. Edwin saves a run there. First base is an improvement today with him out there and I think it will also help his bat. 28 pitch count. Top 3rd: Hechavarria first major league at bat. Full count, strikes out swinging, one down. Escobar, 2-2 count, grounds to short, throw to first, two down, Johnson, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Bottom 3rd: Rosales lines single to right, one on for Weeks, strikes out swinging, one down. Taylor, 2-0 count, perfecto, grounds to Escobar, throw to Johnson, over to Edwin double play ball. Nice. Eight pitch inning. Pitch count 36. Top 4th: Encarnacion, 1-2 count, singles up the middle. One on for Cooper. 2--1 count, Edwin running and Cooper grounds to Inge at third throw to first, no chance for two. Davis lines to left and Edwin to third. Holds at third. Davis at first. Gomes, now they have to worry about Davis at first. There he goes and throw high and Davis with steal number 29. Two in scoring position, full count, fly ball to shallow right but Edwin holds Two down for Sierra, full count, grounds to Inge throw to first to get Sierra and Jays leave two more out there. Awful. Bottom 4th: You have to feel sorry for Romero, trying to win but with a hitting lineup like this poor guy. Reddick, 2-2 count, fly ball to Davis in left for the out. One down for Carter, 1-2 count, takes strike three, nice pitch Ricky, two down. 2-2 count, pops it up to Sierra in right for third out. Pitch count 53. Must be depressing to see these small crowds when the team is leading the wild card race. What do they get when they are losing ? Top 5th: Jays have had their chances five hits. Gose, full count, pops it up to Rosales at short, one down for Hechavarria. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Escobar, 2-2 count, grounds to third, throw to First for the out. Bottom 5th: Inge 2-0 count, bounces to Escobar, throw to Edwin, one down. Norris, grounds to Hechavarria, nice throw to Edwin, two down. First play he has had to make. Kottaras, grounds to Johnson, off his glove into centre, one on two down. No error given but should have been. Rosales, full count, low ball four, two on for Weeks. 2-0 count, here comes Walton. 3-0 count, ball four to load the bases. Thanks Kelly. Taylor, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, way to go Ricky, despite Johnson’s efforts. Pitch count 75. Top 6th: Johnson time to redeem yourself Kelly, full count, strikes out swinging. Here comes Manager Melvin call to the bullpen. Neshek now pitching pitched last night. Encarnacion, full count. Grounds to Weeks, throw to first two down. Cooper. First pitch swinging fly ball to right for the out. Bottom 6th: Reddick leading off. Pops it up and Edwin loses it in the sky and drops behind him. Try again pops it up to Escobar, no mistake this time. One down for Taylor pops it up Edwin has it this time. Three hits in a row. Gomes, bounces to Hechavarria, throw to Edwin for third out. Nice pitching Ricky. Seven pitch inning. Pitch count 82. Top 7th: Davis leading off. 2-2 count, fouling them off here, fly ball to Taylor in shallow right, one down for Gomes. 3-0 count, outside ball four. One on one down for Sierra, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging on three pitches, lots to learn yet. Two down for Gose. 2-1 count, lines it hard to second, throw to the bag gets Gomes. Bottom 7th: Inge, 2-2 count, goes around, strike three. One down. Norris, full count, inside ball four. One on one down for Kottaras. Delabar warming up for Jays. Wild pitch, Norris to second. Kottaras strikes out swinging. Two down for Rosales. Fly ball to centre and Sierra takes it away from Gose, oh boy that could have been nasty. He would have a shock trying to do that to Colby. Ricky gets through seven. 99 pitches. Good outing Ricky. Top 8th: Balfour now pitching, Hechavarria, full count. Pops it up to Rosales for the out. Top of the order Escobar. 2-2 count, pops it up to Taylor in shallow right, two down for Johnson, another miserable game in the field as well as at bat. Grounds to first for the out. Bottom 8th: Delabar pitching. Weeks leading off. 1-2 count, strikes out looking, Weeks arguing this call lucky not to get thrown out here. Taylor, full count, takes strike three, great pitch. Two down for Reddick, 0-2 count, yes, strikes out swinging. Nice pitching by Delabar. Top 9th: Cook now pitching, Encarnacion leading off. Last opportunity. Oh man first pitch pop up to first. One down for Cooper, 1-1 count, YES David, drives this high and deep over the wall in left centre and the 388 ft sign, home run and this game is all tied up 1-1 game. Davis, 1-2 count, pops it up to Carter, two down. Mathis, last night’s hero, pinch hitting for Gomes. 0-2 count, lines it to left center but not enough. Three out. Bottom 9th: Carter, 3-1 count, outside ball four. Gomes 2-2 count, fly ball to Gose in centre, one down, that is it for Delabar. Casey Janssen to face Inge. Grounds to Escobar, steps on the bag, throw to Edwin, double play. Extra innings once again. Top 10th: Blevins now pitching, Sierra, lines it to Gomes in left, no catch and Sierra almost caught out again on the bases, make up your mind. Moises. One on for Gose, bunting. Gets it down and throw to first to get Gose but Sierra at second. One down, Hechavarria. 3-0 count, ball four. Escobar, two on and one down. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, lucky break for the Jays no double play. Johnson, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, so much for the two veterans. Bottom 10th: Jesse Chavez now pitching. Norris, full count, drives it to centre, nice diving catch by Gose for the out, great play. No need to rush back Colby. One down for Kottaras, full count, ball four. One on one down for pinch hitter Sogard. Fly ball to right centre, Sierra and Gose again, Gose makes the catch two down. Weeks, 1-1 count, lines it into shallow left, two on and two down for pinch hitter Crisp. Full count, ball four to load the bases. Reddick oh boy, with bases loaded. 0-2 count, takes strike three, whoa. Top 11th: Encarnacion, singles into left. One on for Cooper, crowd a lot quieter than last inning. Showing bunt, oh boy. 0-2 count, what is the point. Lines this one hard to third, but Inge makes the out and throw to first but Edwin dives back in, one down for Davis. There goes Edwin and safe no throw as Kottaras drops the ball. 3-1 count, low ball four. Mathis with two on and one down. Full count, there go the runners, Mathis strikes out, throw to third and ball goes into the outfield, Edwin scores. 2-1 Jays on the error. Sierra, runner at third, high off the wall in left here comes Davis 3-1 Jays. Gose with Sierra at second. 1-2 count, grounds to Weeks, and Sierra coming home is out at the plate. But Jays get two. Why is Sierra coming home ? Once again issue with this base running. Bottom 11th: Oliver now pitching, Moss, full count. Drives it high to centre for Gose to make the out, one down. Gomes, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down can the Jays do it????? Inge, 0-1 count, lines it to Davis in left and YES my friends Jays have won this one 3-1. The six game losing streak is at end. Ironically Jays win this one with the patched up lineup with six minor leaguers. But they deserved this one no doubt at all. Tomorrow the decider and maybe Rasmus will be back in the lineup but another day plus the off day rest may be a better alternative for both Colby and Brett. The good: Once again the bullpen but also Romero today although he does not get the win, he deserved it, great pitching all through. The lineup which is probably the weakest one that Jays have put out all season and they come through to break the losing streak. And against a very good team playing for the wild card. The not so good: Base running will be the Jays undoing, surely this should be an issue at the minor league level, where do these young players learn the skill? At the same time bunting skills should be added to the basic skills.

Extra innings thriller loss by Jays

Jays v Athletics. Game two of four. Jays losing streak now at five, will it end tonight with Cecil pitching? Jays face minor league callup Dan Straily tonight, lots of hype preceding this guy, not only is he a rookie but also an amazing strikeout ratio, that does not look good for the freeswinging Jays tonight. My guess on attendance last night was right on. 10,838 ouch and that is when they are in the playoff role. What would it be if they were out of it. One change from last night’s lineup, Mathis catching tonight. Last night they had their hits and in fact outhit Oakland but unable to bring them in when it counted. Rasmus had his two hits but unable to get one in the ninth with two on, Edwin finally broke his 0-13 slump, maybe he is now on a hit streak, this team needs his bat. But for the rest of them sadly missing in action and time to perform. Yankees have already won and ended the Mariners win streak. Boston, Tampa beats the Orioles. Jays need to win just to stand still. Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Johnson, Escobar, Cooper, Davis, Mathis, Gose and Cecil pitching. In his last three starts Cecil run support has been under 1.00, wow that hurts a pitcher. Cannot win with that kind of support. Athletics: Crisp, Gomes, Reddick, Cespedes, Carter, Inge, Norris, Rosales, Weeks and Straily pitching. Gose, Cooper and Sierra have hit against him in Vegas with Sierra hitting a home run off him but he is not in the lineup tonight. Your guess is as good as mine. Crowd looks a lot larger than last night, most probably in to see what the fuss is about Straily. Top 1st: Lawrie, full count, takes strike three. Looked low and Lawrie also thought so. One down for Rasmus, 0-2 count, singles into centre, Colby continues his hitting streak on this road trip. Encarnacion one on one down. 2-2 count, another pop up to second, Edwin has been doing that all week. Timing is really off for some reason and he knows it slamming his bat on the ground. Two down one on for Johnson, 3-0 count, takes it all the way. Full count, ball four, two on two down for Escobar. 1-1 count, Pulls it to Inge at third steps on the bag to get Rasmus. Time to think about moving Yunel down the order John. Jays push Straily hard this inning but to no result. Whoa. 29 pitch count for Straily. Welcome to the big leagues. Bottom 1st: Oh dear, Vizquel is in for Lawrie defnsively. Looks as if he might have done something to muscle in his side at this at bat. Another starter and bat out of the lineup. Crisp leading off. Singles into centre. One on for Jonny Gomes, grounds to Escobar, shovels it to Joihnson, over to Cooper double play ball to help Cecil lout here. Two down but Jays killer Reddick at the plate. Not this time grounds to Cooper steps on the bag himself for third out. Nice start for Cecil. Seven pitches. Top 2nd: Cooper, lifts it softly to short, Rosales makes it more difficult than it really was, one down for Davis. Takes a swing at a first pitch way outside half way to first. His signature swing. Looks ridiculous Rajai, bounces to short, throw to first, two quick outs. Mathis, two down. 0-2 count, waves at high ball outside. Jays are getting themselves out. Nine pitch inning for Straily gets his pitch count down. Bottom 2nd: Cespedes grounds to Vizquel at third, long throw not in time. Carter, full count, low ball four, two on and nobody out. Danger time for Cecil. Inge, 0-2 count, lines it to Davis in left, here comes Cespedes scores on the throw by Davis way off target. 1-0 A’s. Norris, two on and still nobody out. 1-1 count, bounces it half way to the plate, ugh. Caught his spike. Here comes trainer and Farrell. All ok. Norris grounds to Johnson flip to Escobar over to Cooper not in time, one down runners at the corners. That’s better Rosales first pitch grounds to Escobar, to Johnson to Cooper double play ball. Pitch count 24. Top 3rd: Gose leading off. 0-2 count, grounds to Straily, tags Gose out half way to first. One down. Vizquel. 2-1 count, singles to left, way to go Omar. Rasmus with one on and one down. Showing bunt, takes ball one. Pops it up to Norris behind the plate, two down for Encarnacion. Pops it up to Rosales for the out. Edwin having a rough time these days. Bottom 3rd: Weeks, pops it up and Cooper sprints to make very nice catch. That was great catch. One down. Crisp, bounces slowly to Cecil, throw to Cooper, two down for Gomes, 0-2 count, hammers this to left and this one is over the wall, home run and 2-0 A’s. Reddick, 1-1 count, singles to centre. One on two down for Cespedes. Grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper to end the inning. Two runs is not a huge deficit normally but with this team right now to score three is probably too much to expect. Sad. Top 4th: Johnson leading off. Singles to left, the hits are coming but with no results to show for them. Escobar, 1-2 count, there goes Kelly, fly ball to right for the out and he has to retreat, one down. Cooper, 2-2 count, fouling them off here as Kelly does wind sprints. There he goes again and this time Cooper connects and drives it to the wall in centre. Johnson to third on the play. Double for Cooper. Two in scoring position for Davis. One down. Have to score here Rajai. 1-2 count, awful swing. Finally fly ball to centre, Kelly tags and scores 2-1 A’s. Two down for Mathis Cooper had to hold at second. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Awful. Pitch count for Straily now at 73. Bottom 4th: Carter, 2-1 count, high fly ball to left and this one is out of here, another home run. 3-1 A’s. Get one back give it back straight away, not good Brett. Inge, 0-2 strikes out looking. One down for Norris. Full count, singles to Gose in right. One on one down for Rosales. Need a ground ball here Brett. HA !!! they have Norris picked off, throw to Cooper and over to Johnson to make the tag. Two down. Rosales lines it hard to third and a great catch by Vizquel. Two pitches two outs, we like it. Pitch count at 53. Top 5th: Can Jays hitters take some heart here with those two outs? Gose leading off. Bunting and pops it up over the netting Gose escapes there. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Vizquel, full count, grounds to short, throw to first for the out. Two down for Rasmus. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. 87 pitch count. Bottom 5th: Weeks leading off. Singles to left. One on for top of the order Crisp. Grounds to Vizquel throw to Johnson at second gets Weeks but that is all. No chance for two. Gomes, one on one down. 3-1 count, lines it to left off the wall throw by Davis to second holds Gomes to a long single. Crisp at third. Here comes Reddick. And here comes Bruce Walton. What are we going to do? Walk him? No pitching to him. OK. 1-1 count, high fly ball to right centre, Rasmus and Gose go for it, collide by Colby has it and throw home not in time but Mathis throw to second gets Reddick a little greedy there. Double play to end the inning. 4-1 A’s but could have been more. Question in outfield though on that play, Colby takes it as centre should but did Gose ruin chance for play at home to get the runner? Top 6th: Encarnacion, 1-2 count, high fly ball to left but not far enough. Edwin cannot buy a home run these days. One down. Johnson, 0-2 count, grounds to third, throw to first, two down. Escobar, 2-1 count, lines it to the wall and missed by the left fielder Cespedes, that was catchable, double for Yunel. No error given. Can Cooper bring him in? A’s bullpen working in a hurry. 2-0 count, pops it up to Inge for the out and slams his bat down. Lots of frustration right now in the Jays clubhouse. They should be a fan watching the games after midnight for five days. Bottom 6th: Brandon Lyon now pitching. Cespedes leading off. Grounds to Johnson and beats out the throw. Carter, 2-2 count, there goes Cespedes and safe on the throw. Full count. strikes out. Inge, Cespedes stealing third and throw gets him. Two down. 0-2 count, Inge strikes out swinging, very nice Brandon. Top 7th: New pitcher Grant Balfour. Davis leading off. Base runners Rajai. First pitch, grounds to Inge, throw to first for the out. Awful but that is Davis. Mathis, grounds back to Balfour, throw to first two quick outs, gets worse. Gose. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Bottom 7th: Lyon still out there, Norris, 0-2 count strikes out swinging. Rosales, grounds to cooper, throw to Lyon as Rosales dives headfirst, no quite sure why as he was out easily, maybe trying to impress his manager. Two down for Weeks. 3-1 count, grounds to Cooper throw to Lyon for the out. Weeks does not dive headfirst. Top 8th: Vizquel, 1-2 count, drives to centre for Crisp to make the out. One down for Rasmus. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down. Encarnacion, 0-3 tonight. 2-18 on the road trip. Swings wildly at first pitch. 0-2 count, strikes out on a pitch way down and away. Not good Edwin, you are supposed to be a leader on this team. Bottom 8th: Oliver now pitching where has he been hiding? Has not pitched for so long. No use waiting for winning situations John. You might as well use Janssen tonight as well. He needs the work as does Oliver. Jays last won a game last Saturday. Ouch a week. Top of the order Crisp. 2-2 count, lines to centre, Rasmus, off his glove and kicks the ball and Crisp to second, error on the play. Gomes, grounds to Vizquel, looks Crisp back to second and throw to Cooper for the out. Reddick, one down. There goes Crisp stealing third and throw high. That is called rubbing it in with a 4-1 lead, Jays will remember when tables are turned. Reddick fly ball to Rasmus for the out. Crisp hold two down. That is it for Oliver and guess who is coming out. Casey Janssen. Farrell has no option as there may not be a bottom of the ninth and Casey has not pitched in at least a week. Not good for a closer. This could be trouble. Taylor pinch hitting. Full count, takes strike three. Good to see that the Oliver-Janssen combo is still working well, but the problem is they don’t get into any games. Top 9th: Deja vu last night. Closer Ryan Cook in for the save. Johnson, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down. Escobar, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Well off the plate. Cooper, singles to left. Davis or pinch hitter Sierra? Please John Sierra. No, pinch runner Sierra for Cooper. Oh my. Davis 0-2 count, singles into right, two on again just like last night but now no pinch hitter. Has to be Mathis. Two on two down. Tie run. Full count. Three staright balls. OH MY !!!!!!!!! Mathis has hammered this one to left center, and this one is over the 388 sign, three run home run and this one is all tied up 4-4. Lots of smiles in the Jays dugout. Gose now, 2-2 count, off the end of his bat throw to first gets him but this is a different game if Janssen can hold them here. Bottom 9th: Gomes in at first for Cooper. Carter leading off. 1-2 count, fly ball to Gose in right for the first out. Inge, full count. Pops it up to Gomes at first. Two down for Norris. Full count, takes strike three. Extra innings whooooeee. Who would have thought. And Manager Farrell delighted that he has a reinforced bullpen for this. Top 10th: Jerry Blevins pitching, Vizquel pops it up to first for the out. Rasmus, 2-1 count, hits him. One on one down for Encarnacion. 3-0 pitching Edwin carefully here, way outside ball four, pitch got away lucky break for Blevins here in ball four. Two one down for Johnson. Drives it to shallow right but Reddick makes nice running catch, two down and here comes the manager. Pat Neshek, sidearmer now pitching. Escobar with two on. Grounds to third throw to first for the out. Escobar should never be allowed to hit with two outs and men on base. Bottom 10th: Brad Lincoln now pitching, maybe we start to see the value in Alex’s new hirings. Sogard pinch hitting for Rosales, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down, Weeks. 1-1 count, singles past diving Johnson off his glove into centre. One on one down for Crisp. Full count, weeks going, ball four. Two on one down for Gomes. 1-1 count, ball gets away and runners move up. 3-1 count, high ball four. Bases loaded. Here comes Farrell. Strategy. Rajai Davis in as fifth infielder. Reddick bases loaded. 2-2 count, WOW great pitch strikes out looking wow froze him. Two down. Moss pinch hitting, Davis retreats to left field. 1-1 count, grounds to Escobar, low throw to first for the out. Gomes nice play to dig it out, but how about Lincoln, wow great pitching Brad. Top 11th: Now can Jays take advantage here ? Neshek still pitching. Gomes 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Davis. Full count, strikes out swinging, two down for Mathis. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Pitch was way outside. Bottom 11th: Lincoln still out there. Carter, pops it up to Davis in shallow left, one down. Inge, grounds to Escobar, much better throw to Gomes, two down. Norris, 1-1 count, drives it to Rasmus in centre for the out. Another great inning by Lincoln. Top 12th: Come on guys it is almost 2.00am in Toronto, some of us are getting tired. Doolittle now pitching. Gose, full count, takes strike three. One down for Vizquel, singles to left centre, one on for Rasmus. This is trouble, Colby slices it into the left field corner and here comes Vizquel, throw by Moss gets Omar at the plate. Not the speediest guy is our Omar. Should he have gone? Or stayed at third? Rasmus at second for Edwin, you have to come through here not getting the chance intentional walk. Johnson, make them pay Kelly. Grounds to second, flip to the bag for the out. Maybe Omar should have stayed at third. Bottom 12th: Lincoln grabs his glove. Oh no, Colby is being called off the field. Hope that does not mean trade. Sogard grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper, one down. Weeks, same play and out at first. Just. Two down for Crisp. Grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper. That was good. Top 13th: Travis Blackley now pitching. Escobar leading off, chance to be a hero Yunel. Full count, pulls it past a diving shortstop into left. Nice start. Gomes, have to move him over Yan. 2-0 count, pops it up one down. Davis, 1-2 count. Grounds to short, throw to second over to first not in time for two. Two down one on for Mathis. NO !!!!, Davis is picked off, that was insane play by Davis, no excuse for that. Takes the bat out hand of Mathis. His teammates should let him know what they think. Bottom 13th: Gomes, strikes out looking. Reddick, no here comes Farrell. That is it for Lincoln pitch count 42, did a superb job for 3 1/3 innings. Loup to face Reddick. Singles to right. One on one down for Moss. 1-2 count strikes out swinging two down for Carter. 2-2 count, they have him picked off throw to Edwin at first throw to Johnson, pulled off the bag and Reddick safe at second, Carter strikes out looking. Whoa. Nice pitching by Loup. Top 14th: Mathis leading off. Grounds to second, throw to first one down. Gose, 0-5 night. Time he counted. 3-1 count, grounds to first for the out. Two down for Vizquel, 2-5 night. 1-2 count, takes strike three. Bottom 14th: Inge, 1-2 count, grounds to Vizquel throw to Encarnacion for the out. Norris, grounds to Escobar, throw to Edwin, two down. Sogard, 2-2 count, takes strike three. Another excellent inning by Loup. Top 15th: Loup first major league at bat. Crazy. Grounds to short, throw to first for the out. Encarnacion, 0-4 with two walks, 3-1 count, ball four. One on one down for Johnson, There goes Edwin and no throw stolen base. Wow that was unexpected. I told you, get Edwin into the game and he will be much happier, 2-2 count, takes strike three Two down for Escobar, another chance to be a hero here Yunel. 2-6 tonight. 2-0 count, putting him on. Ball four. Two on two down for Gomes. Grounds to short, Sogard off balance throw to third gets Edwin sliding. Inches but a great play to get him. Bottom 15th: Weeks, lines it into the right field corner and a lead off triple. Speed. Crisp, anything here will score him, swing away. 1-1 count, lines it to left for the out,. Weeks tags and scores. A’s win 5-4 but Jays can hold their head high on this one. The (very) good: Mathis three run home run with two down and two strikes to tie the game up. The bullpen. Lincoln in particular but Loup, Janssen, Oliver. The very bad: Davis, picked off in the 13th for the third out, no excuse.

Hapless Jays continue losing streak in Oakland.

Jays v A’s. Game one of four. Jays stagger into Oakland on a four game losing streak, beaten up badly by the lowly Mariners. Oakland 19-5 in July. We can but dream about such a month for the Jays. Less pressure on Jays after Seattle and that huge Canadian crowd not least the Lawrie family following. Maybe Brett can relax and concentrate on his job. Farrell has half of a bullpen that needs work, this series might change that. Lineups:Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Johnson, Escobar, Cooper, Davis, Gomes, Gose and Alvarez pitching. Cooper still at 1B, let’s see if Edwin can get into the game with his hits because he has been looking very disinterested as DH. This lineup remains pitifully weak, they are going to have to scratch for runs one way or another if they hope to win this or any other game for the next while until they get some heavyweight hitters back.. A’s: Crisp, Smith, Reddick, Cespedes, Moss, Inge, Kottaras, Rosales, Sogard and Colon pitching. Top 1st: Lawrie, 1-2 count, pops it up to first base. One down. Rasmus, great bunt and no throw Colon much too slow to get to that. One on one down for Edwin, time this guy proved he is the leader of this team. He is one of his slumps at the wrong time. 0-11 wow. Make that 0-12 as he pops it up to Reddick in shallow right. Two down for Johnson. Lines this to left centre but robbed by Cespedes making a great running diving catch. Kelly cannot believe it. Those are the breaks that the Jays are not getting these days. Bottom 1st: Crisp, grounds to Cooper, takes it himself for the out. One down, Smith, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper for the second out. Reddick who feasted on the Jays pitching in Toronto. 1-2 count, lines it into right. One on two down for Cespedes. High chopper to Escobar throw to Cooper for the third out. Good start for Alvarez. Top 2nd: One very small crowd here, looks like well under 10,000, obviously Jays not an attraction but we may start to see this size crowd in Toronto after this road trip unless this team turns it around. Escobar, first pitch swinging grounds to short, throw to first, one down. What can we say about that guy? Please trade him Alex. Cooper, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, two down for Davis, 0-2 count, bounces to second, throw to first, seven pitches for the inning. Awful, just awful hitting by the Jays. Bottom 2nd: Moss, grounds to Cooper takes it himself to the bag for the out. One down for Inge. Fly ball to Gose in right, two down. Kottaras, 2-2 count, Henderson thought that a strike. Full count, low ball four. Rosales, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Pitch count 30. Top 3rd: Gomes, full count, grounds to third, throw to first, one down but at least he took five more pitches than Escobar. Gose, 0-2 count, grounds to first, takes it himself for the out. Two down for Lawrie. 1-2 count, high chopper to second throw to first, three up and down for Colon. Easy pickings tonight. 33 pitches 26 strikes. Bottom 3rd: Sogard, 1-1 count, lines it up the middle to Rasmus. Number nine guy, leadoff single. Top of the order again Crisp. Wild pitch, what would a Jays game be without at least one of those? Sogard to second, full count, Crisp ready to walk, tough, fly ball to Gose for the out a bullet to third just off the bag but great throw, would have had him online. One down one on for Smith. 2-2 count. Singles to Gose, here comes Sogard to score 1-0 Athletics. One on one down for Reddick. Hammers it into right field seats, Reddick loves Jays pitching. 3-0 A’s. But if you throw it down the middle and leave it up, sayonara. Cespedes, full count, inside ball four, not even close. Some one settle him down. Here comes Walton to do just that. Moss, 1-2 count, High fly ball to right but this time Gose has it for the out. Two down. Inge, 2-1 count, Alvarez getting wild now in his control. Fly ball to Rasmus to bring this agony to a close for one inning at least. How about a 30 !!!! pitch inning to give you a headache. Pitch count now at 60, that new bullpen will be getting lots of work tonight. Top 4th: Rasmus, lines it into right centre, Colby 2-2 tonight and the only hitter to date providing any leadership on this road trip period. Encarnacion, pops it up to first base, 0-13 our Edwin and back to last season’s dismal performances when most fans wanted to see his back. Johnson robbed last at bat, drives high to centre for the out, Colby stuck at first. Escobar, 3-0 count, Colon taking pity on the Jays here. 3-1, pulls it to short throw to second but Colby beats it out, he was running on the play, huge error by the short stop, he forgot that Escobar is the slowest runner in the league, he had lots of time to get him at first. A big break here for the Jays, two on, can they make hay. Cooper, first pitch swinging fly ball to centre for the out. That was one horrible at bat by Cooper, totally out of his depth at this level so far. Bottom 4th: Kottaras, fly ball to Davis in right for the out. Rosales, grounds to Escobar, throw to first for second out. Sogard, 3-1, fly ball to Rasmus in centre for the out. Pitch count 69. Top 5th: Just over an hour to play four, these guys are in a hurry tonight. Davis first pitch of course, grounds to third throw to first one down. Maybe someone should tell him perhaps to change this because it is not working for him. Gomes, takes strike three, two down. Gose, please don’t try to bunt here. Shows bunt strike one. I give up. Grounds to short and beats out the throw to first. Speed but what can the Jays do with it? Lawrie, 0-2 tonight, make that 0-3, fly ball to right for the out. 54 pitches for Colon for five innings, walk in the park for him tonight. Bottom 5th: Top of the order Crisp. Full count, Crisp looks likes Eric Thames. Lines to Davis in left, NO, Rajai loses it in the lights and triple for Crisp and so it goes on for Davis. Who mentioned that word Snider? Smith, grounds back to Alvarez, throw to Cooper, one down. Crisp holds. Reddick, intentional walk. Cespedes with runners at the corners, full count, inside ball four to load the bases. Happ working in bullpen, nobody out there talking to Alvarez come on. Moss, bases loaded. I LIKE IT, grounds back up the middle off the foot of Alvarez to Escobar, steps on the bag throw to Cooper double play ball. WOW, the baseball gods smiled, a sign here friends. Pitch count 90. Top 6th: Rasmus leading off, 2-2 tonight. 2-2 count, high fly ball to centre for the out. One down for Encarnacion, 0-13 slump. 1-1 count, finally a hit, as he pulls it to left for a single, that will have to do. First time he has seen first base for a long long time. Johnson now, one on one down. 0-2 count, high fly ball to right centre but not far enough out at the wall, two down for Escobar. Delabar now warming up. Escobar lines this one to the wall in left centre and Edwin makes it to third, first time a Jay has visited third tonight. Two on for Cooper, time for you to produce. Just a base hit that is all we ask for. 3-1 count, outside ball four, bases are loaded, wow when did that last happen with this Jays team? Davis chance for redemption here, just a base hit Rajai. No, grounds to first, for the out. Pitch count 77. Bottom 6th: Inge, 3-0 count, high ball four. That should be it for Alvarez, yes here comes Farrell furious. A four pitch lead off walk would get any Manager fuming. Alvarez may have seen his last start for a while. Delabar now pitching, Kottaras, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging but ball gets away and Inge to second. One down for Rosales, full count, Delabar not as sharp as he was his last outing. Outside ball four. Not what the manager wanted Steve. Two on one down for Sogard. 1-1 count, pops it up to Rasmus in shallow centre, two down. Top of the order Crisp with two on. Another full count, fly ball to shallow right centre, Colby makes a great running catch in front of Gose. Jays escape once again. Top 7th: Gomes leading off, very quiet 0-2 tonight, maybe catching is taking all his concentration but Jays have no choice right now. 2-0 count, grounds to third, throw to first gets him, one down for Gose, please, please do not try to bunt here. Think. First pitch fly ball to centre for the out. Groan. Two down for Lawrie, 0-2 count, fly ball to right for the out. Pretty bad hitting by Jays and maybe time to move Lawrie down the order. Bottom 7th: Happ now pitching. Carter pinch hitting. Full count, ball four, oh boy. One on for Reddick, bad things happen with this guy. 2-2 tonight. 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, yeah. One down, Cespedes, full count, ball four. Two on, one down for Moss. Singles to Rasmus in centre. Carter holds at third, Bases loaded. Inge, 1-1 count, singles to Davis in left, Carter scores 4-0 A’s. Bases stay loaded. Kottaras, 2-2 count, whoa takes strike three, two down. Not sure the manager would like that at bat. Rosales, 2-0 count, Fly ball to left and Rasmus takes it from Davis for third out. I don’t blame him with Rajai’s record in left. Not a pretty inning by Happ but could have been a whole lot worse. Top 8th: Jays running out of time here. Rasmus leafing off. 2-3 tonight. Colon still out there on 85 pitches. Hammers this to right but again just short of the wall for Reddick to make the out, one down. Encarnacion, single last at bat to break his slump. Full count, singles to left. Maybe just maybe Edwin out of his slump. One on one down for Johnson, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down for Escobar. Grounds (first pitch) to short throw to first. Bottom 8th: Happ still out there. One day Farrell has to get Oliver and Janssen into a game. They have not pitched for almost a week. Sogard, bunting, not sure why with a four run lead against the Jays. 0-2 count, lines it into right, stand up double. Top of the order Crisp, 0-2 count, grounds to Escobar, looks Sogard back and throws to Cooper at first, one down, Carter, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Two down. Reddick, full count, very nice, strike him out swinging. Great work by Happ. He struggled for two innings but did not give up too much. Top 9th: Doolittle to finish Jays off here. Cooper, Lines it to the wall in left centre, stand up double, finally a contribution from Cooper. Is it too late? Davis, do NOT bunt. Need base runners Rajai. 2-2 count, grounds to first, and no throw as Doolittle much too late to the bag. Cooper to third. Two on still nobody out, Gomes. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down. Gose, that is it for Dolittle. Closer Ryan Cook now pitching. Sierra pinch hitting for Gose. 2-1 count, grounds to second throw to the bag to get Davis over to first not in time and Sierra safe. Cooper scores, 4-1. Finally Jays get on the board although much too late now. Lawrie, two down runner at first. 1-2 count, bounces up the middle. Sierra to third, Lawrie at first. Two on two down for Rasmus, actually the tying run !!! 1-1 count, bounces it to second steps on the bag to get Lawrie. Jays lose another. The good: A flurry in the ninth but far too late. Only Rasmus tonight with anything positive with bat and glove but could not come through in the ninth. But then no one else did all game. Encarnacion finally gets a hit but he is the big bopper not the singles guy and his contribution is sadly lacking right now. The rest of the lineup is minor league. The not so good: Everything. Pitching, fielding and not least lousy hitting, Recipe for a long losing streak. Davis once again a liability in left. The curse of Snider is now over this team. Now at five and this team looks down and out and in for a long losing streak despite the pitching. It takes runs to win games and this team right now is unable to string more than one together.

Jays tailspin continues as they give away this one

Jays v Mariners Series finale. Firstly thanks to those who noted the omission last night of Lind. How could I forget him when I mentioned the loss in the batting order of Bautista, Arencibia and now Snider and of course Adam Lind... Those four make a large hole in this Jays order and is one reason why the lineup looks so anemic and has been playing like it over the last three losses. Tonight Farrell has made the obvious change behind Edwin moving Cooper out to enable Edwin to get some decent pitches. Cooper seemed totally at sea last night and Mariners pitchers could not wait to get to him. I would have also let Edwin play at first and Cooper DH because Edwin looked so disinterested in the proceedings all night long. Get him in the game John. Tonight Jays face the sweep and then from the frying pan into the fire in Oakland. Not an easy road trip for the struggling Jays. Mariners on a crazy six game win streak when did the Jays ever get past four? Win three lose three, that has been their pattern for far too long. Horrible thought that if they go .500 for rest of the season they only get to 81 wins. That is one awful season for this team coming out of spring training so full of confidence. Lineups: Jays: Lawrie, Rasmus, Encarnacion, Johnson, Escobar, Cooper, Davis, Mathis, Gose, and Villanueva pitching. An improvement on last night but will it be enough. Mariners: Ackley, Saunders, Montero, Jaso, Seager, Wells, Carp, Thames, Ryan and Blake Beaven pitching. Top 1st: Lawrie, first pitch fly ball to Wells in right. Groan. I will be glad when Lawrie gets out of Seattle and his family and friends. Rasmus, that is better, hammers this one to right and this one is over the wall. Classic Colby swing. Home run number 19 for Colby. 1-0 Jays. Encarnacion 0-2 count, grounds to third, throw to first, two down for Johnson. 1-1 fly ball to centre for third out. Jays strike early but they have done this before without winning. Bottom 1st: Ackley, pops it up to Escobar behind Lawrie. One down for Saunders, 1-1 count, grounds to Cooper takes it himself for out at first, two down. Montero, high fly ball to Rasmus in centre for the out. Three up and down for Villanueva. Eight pitch inning. Top 2nd: Escobar leading off. First pitch softly back to short, throw to first for the out. Garbage at bat by Escobar. Cooper. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging, overmatched by Beavan. Two down, Davis, grounds to third, throw to first. This is far too easy for Beavan, Jays hitters flailing away at everything as if they want to get out town fast. Maybe they do, but this is not good hitting. Another eight pitch inning. Bottom 2nd: Jaso, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging, one down for Seager. 0-2 count, fly ball to centre for Rasmus to make the out. Two down. Wells, fly ball to Rasmus. 18 pitches 15 strikes. Beavan 17 and 14. Must be some pact between the two sides to get this one over fast. Top 3rd: Mathis, now Beavan throwing it off the plate and still they are swinging at them, pops it up to short, one down. Gose first pitch, lines to left for Thames to make nice catch. Two down on three pitches. Lawrie, pops it up to third. Six pitch inning, this is ridiculous. I hope this was not the brilliant idea of hitting coach Murphy because it is backfiring bigtime and looking ridiculous for major league baseball. Bottom 3rd: Carp, full count, sanity prevails the first full count of the game. High pop up to Rasmus in centre. Colby is doing all the work out there tonight. Thames first at bat as a Mariner. And against his old club. 1-1 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper for the out. Two down for Ryan. 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. Very nice Carlos, nine up and down, now if you could only get some run support. Top 4th: Rasmus leading off. 2-2 count, lines it into right off the glove of second baseman. Single for Colby. Encarnacion, missing this series so far. 1-1 count, pulls it to third, throw to second over to first, double play ball. Ugh... Two down for Johnson. WOWEEEE Kelly drives this one to left centre and this one is OUT OF HERE. Home run and Jays up 2-0. Escobar, 1-2 count, I wonder if Escobar knows how he looks when he swings at a ball six feet off the plate. Pops it up to short but damage is done by Kelly. Maybe just maybe the bats are alive. Bottom 4th: Ackley, 2-1 count, singles into centre the first hit off Carlos tonight. One on for Saunders. 1-1 count, lines it past a diving Cooper into right. Edwin has to get out there Farrell, that was a playable ball and possible double play. Ackley at third, Montero nobody out. 1-1 count, that’s better grounds, to Johnson, flip to Escobar over to Cooper double play ball as Ackley scores. 2-1 Jays two down for Jaso. 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Villanueva able to overcome Cooper failing. Top 5th: This game is less than an hour !!! result of all the first pitch swinging outs. Cooper, 0-2 count, drives this one to centre field wall for stand up double, finally a hit. First since his recall. Jays need his hits. Davis, trying to bunt ! 2-2 count, bounces it high off the late and Ryan unable to make the barehanded ball ad no throw. Davis safe at first, Cooper to third still nobody out. Big chance for Mathis here. This will do it fly ball to centre for the out as Cooper tags and scores. 3-1 Jays. Gose with Davis at first, one down. Bunting and a beauty up the first base line, no chance for Beavan as he slips and Gose is past him. Davis to second. Speeed. They will be going. Lawrie, hit and run here ? 0-2 count. Fly ball to right for the out. Disappointing at bat by Lawrie. Two down for Rasmus, 2-2 tonight and a great chance to add more. Oh boy they have Davis picked off that was double steal, Davis changed his mind but Gose kept coming and should have retreated as Davis had no option. Man. Baserunning by the Jays is awful. They cannot afford such luxuries. Red Sox and Orioles have both lost, Rays and Yankees have won their games. 55 pitch count for Beavan They had him on the ropes with two on. Bottom 5th: Seager, strikes out swinging. One down for Wells, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. Carp, two down, 1-2 count, singles up the middle, past a diving Escobar. One on two down for Thames. 1-2 count, OH BOY, Thames has hammered this one to right centre two run home run and this one is all tied up. 3-3. How sweet is that for Thames against the Jays. Ryan, 2-2 count, strikes out swinging. The base running errors last inning are now huge. 67 pitch count. Top 6th: Rasmus, full count, high fly ball to left Thames for the out. One down for Encarnacion. Pulls it to short, throw to first two down. Johnson, 1-2 count, strikes out swinging. Awful. 67 pitch count. Bottom 6th: This game is swinging back to the Mariners, you can feel it, Ackley 2-1 count, fly ball to left centre but Davis makes the catch with his back to the play. One down. Saunders, lines this one off the wall in right centre, stand up double. Loup warming up in the Jays bullpen. Montero, 1-2 count, grounds to Escobar, thinks about third, he had time to get Saunders but throw to Cooper for second out. Jaso, singles into centre here comes the run, now that mistake by Escobar is huge, 4-3 Seattle. Seager, singles to Gose in right. Jaso holds at third. Here comes Walton to settle Villanueva down. Wells, 2-0 count, grounds to Escobar, this time no error as he flips to Johnson for the out. Don’t blame Villanueva here. His team-mates are doing everything they can to frustrate him. 84 pitch count. Top 7th: Will someone help Villanueva out here? Escobar, sure. 0-2 tonight and far worse. 0-2 count, looks at strike three. Will we ever rejoice when this guy is traded. Cooper, lines it to short, two down. Davis, lines it to right field corner for stand up double but with two down we shall see. Mathis, pops it up to first. Much too easy for Mariners tonight. Bottom 7th: The infamous new bullpen of Lincoln, Oliver and Jansen unused for three games. Farrell will have to give them work sometime. Loup it is. Carp, 1-2 count, grounds to Johnson, throw to Cooper, one down. Lincoln working in the bullpen. Thames, full count. Fly ball to Davis in right, two down. Ryan, lines it over head of Rasmus and bounces over the wall, ground rule double. Ackley, wild pitch to the wall, Ryan to third. When things are going wrong everything goes wrong for the hapless Jays. Full count. Pops it up into left bounces in front of Davis. Ryan scores. 5-3 Mariners and this game is over. That is it for Loup. Lincoln now pitching. We need one out. Saunders, 0-1 count, pops it up into shallow centre for Colby to make great running catch. Top 8th: Gose, 0-2 count, strikes out swinging. One down for Lawrie, 0-3 tonight, don’t try to be a hero Brett, you need base runners. 2-1 count, grounds to short, throw to first just gets him, two down. Rasmus. That is it for Beavan. Luetge now pitching, lefty matchup. 1-2 count, takes strike three. Bottom 8th: Montero grounds to Escobar, throw to Cooper, one down. Jaso grounds to Cooper, throw to Lincoln, two down. Seager, pops it up to Lawrie at third. Makes the catch in the front row of the crowd. Nice catch. Nice pitching by Lincoln, four up four down. No nonsense. Now if only Jays had some hitters to go with that. Top 9th: Jays looking at being swept here and then on to Oakland for four, could be ugly by Sunday 0-7. But then they have the Angels and back to the Yankees. How about 0-13 losing streak? Good luck. Wilhelmsen 14/16 saves situations. Encarnacion has done nothing. Must hate sitting on that bench as DH. 2-2 count, fly ball to left for the out. One down for Johnson. 3-1 count, grounds to second throw to first, Jays down to their last out. Escobar, 0-3 tonight. 2-2 count. grounds up the middle throw to first just gets Escobar. Jays are swept by the Mariners. The bottom team of the west division and now head into a much tougher ballpark of Oakland for four in a real tailspin. The good. Rasmus hitting and fielding. Lincoln pitching 7 pitches four outs. I think that is an excellent start. Johnson home run and that is it. Nothing else tonight. Very disappointing when they had a 3-1 lead. Poor situational hitting, lousy base running. The wild first pitch swinging in the early innings gave Beavan quick innings and enabled him to go into the eighth. However it looked like the game plan so Jays hitters may not be too blame tonight,