It’s Go-Time for light-hitting Blue Jays

Jays need to thrive over next 16 games

The baseball legend, Rocky Bridges, who passed away in 2015, was known as a mediocre ballplayer for his eight major-league teams, through the ’50s and early ‘60s. Following an 11-year playing career, Bridges went on to coach, never quite making it back to the majors as main man in anyone’s dugout. However, Rocky is credited with, and remembered around the game, for one of the great quotes about the difficulties of being a baseball tactician, one to which, even those of us working with youngsters, we can all relate. “I managed good, but, boy, did they play bad.”  

Blue Jays manager John Schneider could be excused after Wednesday’s disappointment if he chose to borrow that Bridges quote as his personal mantra, emerging as he did from the series finale against the Orioles at Camden Yards. Call what happened to Schneider in Wednesday’s final frame, Exhibit Meh.

Sure, it was a thrilling game for fans with the Jays losing a 3-2 nail-biter on a ninth-inning two-run homer by Adley Rutschman off the top of the wall that earned the O’s a series split. The lack of Jays offence has come to be expected. But the error by a Gold Glover, Isiah Kiner-Falefa followed by a middle, middle, misplaced fastball from Jordan Romano, with Rutschman launching to right, resulting in the devastating loss, were not quite as expected. Hand them the ball and closers are expected to close.  

Can the manager be blamed for any of Wednesday’s disappointments? It’s become a social media, Jays fan, daily tradition to bristle and say “Yes!”. But here are Schneider managerial decisions that worked out on that day. There was the initial call, following Tuesday’s rainout, to bump righthander Chris Bassitt to Friday, leaving lefthander Yusei Kikuchi to work the day game against a talented lineup that had been able to load up on lefthanded hitters vs. Jose Berrios on Monday. Good decision?

There was a series of bold Schneider pitching moves, relative to the use of his bullpen that worked out in relief of Kikuchi, who was dominant after a leadoff homer by Jordan Westburg. Schneider strolled out to lift his surprised starter in the fifth tied 1-1, with one out and a man on. Zach Pop then gave his manager four straight outs. Lefty Genesis Cabrera secured the third out in the sixth, but allowed runners to reach second and third with nobody out in the seventh. Schneider responded, calling on the smoking hot Yimi Garcia who escaped without a run. Yimi Houdini?

The eighth inning, Garcia allowed a check-swing, excuse-me, leadoff double to Anthony Santander. After a sacrifice and an intentional walk put runners at the corners, Vlad Guerrero Jr fielded a two-strike bunt by James McCann and, on a play that was reviewed, nailed Santander at home on a headfirst slide. Schneider brought in lefty Tim Mayza for the final out against lefty-swinging Cedric Mullins. Damn! Every move had worked to that point … and now it was Romano time.

Bottom of the ninth, main-man needing just three outs for a two-game series sweep. No doubt the manager was where he wanted to be and where he had planned to be. The O’s had not been swept since ‘22. It was well-orchestrated by Schneider. Pack up the iPads, high-five in the victory line, head for the charter and arrive home for a comfortable off-day, with 52 hours to prepare for the Rays. But, the best laid plans…

Important 16-game stretch upcoming

The Blue Jays are emerging from a tough, three-series stretch of the schedule vs. teams in playoff position, the Phillies, Twins and Orioles. Yes, the Jays were playing soft baseball and had a clubhouse meeting following an embarrassing loss to Philadelphia on May 7. Since then, they have had more of the type of “all for one and one for all” attitude they were hoping for, but rah-rah didn’t fix the offence.  

However, even though they did only go 3-3, the fact of playing quality baseball given the strength of the opposition may have set them up for what is becoming a very necessary stretch of success over the next two-plus weeks and 16 games.

That must-win schedule starts with the Rays (3), then the White Sox (3), Tigers (4), White Sox (3) and Pirates (3).

Why can they succeed? The Rays are not the Rays of recent history. The White Sox offence has been more pathetic than the Jays. The Tigers are surprising contenders in the AL Central, but fan support for the Jays at Comerica Park is always huge. The Pirates after another quick start are moon-walking the plank. If the Jays can go 10-6 they are merely back at .500, so, in truth, they need to aim higher than that.

The Jays whack-a-mole offence.

For most of the first quarter of the season, the three musketeers at the top of the batting order – Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette and George Springer -- have struggled. Now, with emerging signs of life from Bo, currently on a six-game hit streak and with Vlad already in the middle of a more sustained, healthy rebuild of his numbers, other players in, what shouldn’t be but is, a built-for-run-prevention batting order have quietly backslid so that Jays runs have remained hard to come by.

Consider that Vlad, since April 16, is batting .333 with an OPS of .819. Everything about his at-bats looks better and he has come up with big hits when star players in the game are supposed to come up big. Bo over his six-game streak is batting .435 with a 1.109 OPS. So why are the Jays still having trouble with run creation?

Slumping bats:

Alejandro Kirk … since April 30, 2-for-17-.118 with .402 OPS

Cavan Biggio … since April 28, 1-for-21-.048 with .278 OPS

Ernie Clement … since April 26, 6-for-30-.200 with .517 OPS

George Springer … since April 28, 7-for-48-.146 with .343 OPS

Justin Turner … since April 27, 6-for-49-.122 with .385 OPS

Daulton Varsho … since April 26, 7-for-54-.130 with .483 OPS

Daniel Vogelbach … season totals, 4-for-36-.111 with .405 OPS

If the Jays over the next 16 games can go 10-6, they will be back to .500. Given the stretch of relative softness, they need to do better than that. The bullpen needs to step up and the offence that has scored three runs or fewer in 14 of the last 19 games, needs to take pressure off the pitching staff by creating a couple of laughers.

Since April 23, the Jays are 2-12 when scoring three or less and 4-1 when scoring four or more runs. That’s 14 of 19 with three or fewer. Ridiculous. They are 3-10 in blowout games for the year and have a run differential of minus-47. Be better!