Blue Jays Lose in Toronto For First Time in Extras to Cleveland

[Box Score]

The Cleveland Indians have always seemed to give the Toronto Blue Jays fits up in Canada. Remember back in 2016 when they won in 16 innings on Canada Day?

Therefore, when I turned on the television this afternoon to see a little matinee action and see what Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the re-tooled Toronto core was up to, I knew they were going to lose this game. And this was the antithesis of the type of game that the Blue Jays let slip away that they shouldn’t have – that even with all the weapons they have and all the good names they have added and their great run differential – they’re still going to miss the playoffs because of miscue losses like on Monday afternoon at Rogers Center.

First, the Indians jumped out to a little 2-0 lead. Indians beleaguered starter Eli Morgan was whiffing hitters and giving Cleveland a quality start, just enough to keep them in it. Somehow, Robbie Ray went six innings while only striking out four Cleveland hitters, allowing just two earned runs. From there, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. launched his 34th home run of the season off Morgan to tie the game at 2-2.

Your Vladiator is HOME 💥 #PLAKATA pic.twitter.com/OTFZEz2ubo

— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 2, 2021

Guerrero Jr. had two hits on the day, his average sits at .328 on the season with the 34 bombs and now 85 runs batted in. His OPS has dipped some to 1.082 but it’s still incredible. 

After that, Cimber, Soria, and Romano gave the Blue Jays three scoreless innings to force extra innings. And then against his former team, Brad Hand blew up in a spot that he was brought in to control. 

This should have been a win for the Blue Jays and they should have kept rolling. When they miss the postseason, they will be able to look back on losses at home like this one where their big bats didn’t do enough against an average starting pitcher, and even when given a quality start their revamped bullpen found a way to lose the game and not win it.