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National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Two homers aside, Gausman sharp but outduelled by red-hot Cubs rookie
Hits and runs were sparse on Wednesday night at the Rogers Centre, in what turned out to be a very good game between the Blue Jays and the visiting Chicago Cubs. Article content Kevin Gausman and rookie Cade Horton engaged in a taut pitchers duel that the Cubs would prevail in, 4-1, counter-punching after the Jays took the series opener of this highly anticipated three-game set on Tuesday. Article content Article content The Jays' bats were silenced by Horton and failed to manufacture any threat. When only two hits are produced, while an opponent hits two solo homers, the margin gets pretty thin. Article content In their final at-bats, against Cubs closer Daniel Palencia, the Jays went quietly into the night, deserving of their fate as their record dropped to 70-51. Article content The following are three takeaways on a night when the Jays outdrew their season-high attendance from Tuesday night by attracting 43,120, witnessed an ugly injury when Cubs catcher Miguel Amaya tumbled over first base and was carted off the field; and maintained their 4.5-game lead in the AL East as the second-place Red Sox also lost. Article content TWO MISTAKES COSTLY Article content There wasn't much to find fault with in Gausman's performance as he provided his team with a quality outing — seven complete innings of three-hit ball. Article content The only problem was that two of those three hits left the yard as Michael Busch and Matt Shaw tagged him for solo home runs in the third and fifth innings, respectively. He also managed just three strikeouts. Article content Article content The one thing about Gausman is he will battle and his outing against the Cubs was no exception. He pitched into the seventh inning in a 2-1 game and looked as locked in as he did in the first. Article content First time through the order and Horton was well-deserving of an A-plus rating. Article content He entered the night having pitched a Cubs rookie record 23.2 scoreless innings, a stretch in which he surrendered just 10 hits. Article content In facing the order for the first time, Horton struck out five, while inducing four groundouts as his compact windup and delivery may have been difficult to pick up at first view. Article content The Jays finally had their first base-runner when Horton walked Bichette with one out in the fourth inning. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. then tagged him for a long fly ball to left that was caught at the warning track. Horton then struck out Addison Barger for the third out. Article content Horton's no-hit bid ended on an 0-2 count in the sixth inning when Andres Gimenez sent a ball up the middle for a one-out single.
CBC
2 hours ago
- CBC
Blue Bombers call on rookie safety to help fill holes in banged-up secondary
Jordan Younger kept Winnipeg's secondary on the field after the Blue Bombers finished their walk-through practice on Wednesday. The team's defensive co-ordinator and defensive backs coach gave extra attention to the unit after more injuries caused changes ahead of Thursday's home game against the Ottawa Redblacks. One of the adjustments was adding rookie Cam Allen, who'll make his CFL debut at safety. The 25-year-old Purdue graduate is ready for it. "Whenever a new guy comes in, I know on the other side of the ball they're probably looking at who's back there," Allen said. "Me going into the game, I know I'm expecting a couple shots, for them to come at me. A guy like me, I'm very confident in my play, so I want those plays because if they go away from you, you ain't got no opportunity to make a play. I'm just ready for the opportunity." Dru Brown is the quarterback who'll be testing Allen's coverage, and he's coming off a career-high five-touchdown performance in Ottawa's 46-42 comeback victory over the Toronto Argonauts last Saturday. Allen knows a thing or two about reading quarterbacks. The six-foot-one native of Bluefield, Va., played the position in high school before sticking to defence at Purdue. "I feel like I have a very good sense of where the quarterback wants to go," Allen said. "Just reading concepts, being able to break on the ball and just knowing the quarterback wants to throw the ball and where he's going to throw the ball. Reading and reacting is what I'm best at." Allen got on the roster after cornerback Terrell Bonds was carted off the field in last week's 28-27 loss to the Calgary Stampeders that was decided by a final-play, 40-yard field goal from Rene Paredes. Bonds had knee surgery and is done for the season. Bombers rookie defensive back and kick returner Trey Vaval replaced Bonds in the game and remains in the spot this week. Winnipeg's other cornerback is Dexter Lawson Jr., a recently signed three-year veteran who started last week in place of the still-injured Jamal Parker. Winnipeg head coach Mike O'Shea isn't losing sleep over changes for a club that sits at 4-4 and has lost four of its past five games. "They're pro football players, right? They're going to step up and make the most of their opportunity," O'Shea said. Bomber halfbacks Deatrick Nichols and Evan Holm have been the constants in Winnipeg's secondary, both playing all eight games. Holm said the biggest challenge with change is communication. "Communication, getting everybody up to speed," he said. "It's just mostly trying to see the game the same, making sure there's not miscommunications because not everybody sees the game the same." The Redblacks (3-6) are replacing two defensive backs, bringing in rookie cornerback Gavin Heslop to make his first career start. Safety Bennett Williams' addition is a game-time decision. Two linebackers are also coming onto the roster. Head coach Bob Dyce told Ottawa media that even though it's a short week of practice, the players are ready to keep rolling after the victory over Toronto and two wins in a row. "You get an opportunity to get back on the field, carry through with the momentum that we built the last couple of weeks ," Dyce said. Running back William Stanback had 17 carries for 84 yards versus the Argonauts. "We're in great spirits, but we know that we're not even close to where we feel we can be," Stanback said. Winnipeg quarterback Zach Collaros and veteran receiver Nic Demski said the focus for the offence is cleaning up its mistakes from the loss to Calgary. The Bombers had mounted a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter and were ahead 23-16 at halftime, but didn't score a point in the third quarter. "When you look at the little things, the little details, alignments, assignments, being on the same page with everybody, being in the right place at the right time, I think that's a big thing right there," Demski said.
Winnipeg Free Press
2 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Horton shines, Cubs hit two solo homers in 4-1 victory over Blue Jays
TORONTO – Michael Busch and Matt Shaw hit solo homers and Chicago starter Cade Horton was dominant as the Cubs defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 on Wednesday night at Rogers Centre. Toronto starter Kevin Gausman gave up Busch's 23rd homer of the year in the third inning. Shaw followed two innings later with his 10th of the season. Horton (7-3), one of the top rookies in the National League this season, held the Blue Jays (70-51) without a hit until Andres Gimenez singled with one out in the sixth inning. The right-hander retired the first 10 Blue Jays in order before walking Bo Bichette in the fourth. Horton was pulled after issuing a two-out walk to Bichette in the sixth. Reliever Andrew Kittredge gave up an RBI double to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. before retiring Addison Barger on a flyout. Chicago catcher Miguel Amaya was taken off the field on a cart in the eighth inning. He appeared to injure his left leg as he lunged for first base while beating out an infield single. The Cubs (68-51) tacked on two insurance runs later in the frame. Daniel Palencia worked a clean ninth inning for his 16th save. Gausman (8-9) allowed three hits and two earned runs over seven innings. He had three strikeouts and one walk. Chicago outhit Toronto 6-2. A sellout crowd of 43,120 took in the game, which took two hours 27 minutes to play. KEY MOMENT Blue Jays third-base coach Carlos Febles held Bichette at third base on Guerrero's double into the left-field corner. A night earlier, Ty France was thrown out at the plate after testing Ian Happ's arm in left field. KEY STAT The lone Toronto run was charged to Horton, ending his scoreless streak at 28 2/3 innings. He had eight strikeouts. JOJO MOJO Shortstop JoJo Parker said he's settling in nicely at the Blue Jays' player development complex after being selected by Toronto with the eighth overall pick in the MLB Draft last month. 'I've never had a hitting coach. I've never had a fielding coach,' Parker said on a video call. 'So I'm really excited to get involved with the coaches here.' Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. The 19-year-old Mississippi high schooler was MLB Pipeline's ninth-ranked prospect in the 2025 draft class. UP NEXT The teams will close out the three-game interleague series on Thursday afternoon. Right-hander Max Scherzer (2-2, 4.21 earned-run average) was tabbed to start for the Blue Jays against left-hander Matthew Boyd (11-5, 2.45). This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 13, 2025.
