Sloppy.
That’s the type of the game the Blue Jays played tonight as they lost to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim by a score of 6-1. Francisco Liriano got the start for Toronto, and despite looking good early, he was hurt by some key errors and extended innings that allowed the Angels to take advantage and score four runs (two earned) before Liriano came out of the game after the sixth inning. The Blue Jays defense committed three errors on the evening, one by Liriano, one by first baseman Justin Smoak, and one from third baseman Josh Donaldson. In the bullpen, Ryan Tepera had a rough game, allowing two (unearned) runs on two hits, while Bo Schultz pitched a perfect bottom of the eighth.
Like it seems they have been doing all month, the Blue Jays stranded plenty of runners on the evening, with the leadoff batter reaching on six occasions, and only scoring once, in the eighth inning. The team grounded into one double play on the evening, and went 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position. The lone bright spot in the Blue Jays order came from Devon Travis once again, as he continued his fantastic sophomore season with another three hits, going 3 for 5, and raising his batting average to .309.
Top Play of the Game by WPA
Moments after the Sportsnet broadcast showed the Albert Pujols countdown to 600 home run sign in the second inning, Pujols launched a 1-2 slider to deep left field to put the Angels on the scoreboard with a 1-0 lead. That was the beginning of Francisco Liriano’s trouble, and increased the Angels’ chances of winning by 11.8 percentage points.
Bottom Play of the Game by WPA
Down 2-0 in the top of the sixth inning, Russell Martin lead off with a base hit off of Ricky Nolasco. That brought up Troy Tulowitzki, who after taking a ball in the dirt and fouling off of a couple of pitches, grounded a slider into a double play that lowered the Blue Jays’ odds of winning by 10.1 percentage points.
Boston Wins, Baltimore Loses
In divison race news, the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Yankees 6-5 on Saturday afternoon, and with the Blue Jays loss, moved to three games ahead with the division lead. The Orioles, also in play on Saturday, lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 5-2, and remain tied with the Blue Jays in second place.
Up Next
The Blue Jays will look to win the series and stay close with their division opponents on Sunday afternoon. Marcus Stroman (9-8, 4.55) will take the mound for Toronto, while Los Angeles will counter with Alex Meyer (0-3, 8.18). First pitch is set for 3:35 PM ET.
The Red Sox (+3.0 on the Jays) and Orioles (tied with the Jays) will both be in action on Sunday as well. The Red Sox are home and will be taking on the Yankees at 8:05 PM ET, while the Orioles are also at home, facing the Tampa Bay Rays at 1:35 PM ET.
Lead Photo: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports