Blue Jays must get bats going vs. Athletics

The Blue Jays will seek for improved offense on Thursday evening in Toronto after they conflict with the struggling Athletics to open a seven-game homestand.

Toronto is getting back from a 2-4 street journey during which it scored a complete of six runs. The Blue Jays took two of three video games from the Texas Rangers to begin this week regardless of scoring solely 4 runs in a sequence between two offensively challenged groups.

The Rangers’ solely hit in a 2-0 loss on Wednesday got here main off the primary inning. The Blue Jays gained the sport on a pinch-hit, two-run homer within the prime of the ninth inning by Bo Bichette, who didn’t begin in order that he might relaxation a decent decrease again.

Daulton Varsho batted in Bichette’s leadoff spot with Anthony Santander hitting second and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. moved from second to 3rd. The shuffled lineup did little to enhance Toronto’s offense that continued to wrestle till Bichette got here off the bench.

Blue Jays supervisor John Schneider stated the lineup change was not deliberate. However, he added, “We’ll see how it rolls out and see how guys do in certain spots.”

Varsho and Santander every went 0-for-4, however Guerrero completed 2-for-3 with a stroll to increase his career-best on-base streak to twenty-eight video games.

Nathan Lukes and Addison Barger additionally had two hits every, however Toronto went 1-for-9 hitting with runners in scoring place to complete the sequence 1-for-31 in these conditions.

“You’ve got to keep getting traffic, and you have to trust the guys to get the hits,” Schneider stated. “It takes one to kind of get it going, but you’ve got to trust that it will.”

Bichette’s blast was sufficient for the Blue Jays to win the sequence in opposition to the Rangers after being swept in a three-game set in opposition to the Tampa Bay Rays.

The Blue Jays pieced collectively a bullpen recreation on Wednesday by utilizing Paxton Schultz, Eric Lauer, Braydon Fisher, Brendon Little and Jeff Hoffman. Toronto pitchers yielded simply 4 baserunners (the leadoff single and three walks) whereas putting out 13.

The Athletics might be attempting to shake a 1-13 drought after they start the four-game sequence in Toronto. The A’s misplaced 5-3 to the Astros on Wednesday as they began their six-game street journey with two defeats in Houston.

The Athletics did not make the most of Luis Severino’s stable six-inning begin on Wednesday. Severino permitted simply two runs (one earned) and recorded profession strikeout No. 1,000 earlier than exiting with the A’s up 3-2. Rookie reliever Justin Sterner allowed three runs within the seventh inning.

“That’s kind of the story that we’ve been going through lately,” Athletics supervisor Mark Kotsay stated. “Severino gave us a great performance. He got out of the sixth inning. To be at his 90th-plus pitch and to continue to gear back and give it everything he had, it was a big performance. We got one from him last game.

“He walked off the mound with a lead, and we simply haven’t been in a position to end the sport off for him.”

The Athletics are scheduled to start left-hander Jacob Lopez (0-2, 2.57 ERA) on Thursday. He has one made career appearance against Toronto, a start for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2023, and he earned his first major league win despite yielding six runs, five earned, on eight hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Right-hander Jose Berrios (1-2, 4.22 ERA) is expected to start for Toronto. He is winless since April 7, having gone 0-1 with a 4.08 ERA in his past eight starts.

In 11 career starts against the Athletics, Berrios is 3-3 with a 3.46 ERA.

–Field Level Media