Chris Bassitt bombs as Blue Jays rocked in 15-1 Beantown blowout

Edmonton Journal

3 days ago

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The close-up camera shots in the dugout of Blue Jays pitching coach Pete Walker often tell the story of what's going on with the team and on Saturday they spoke volumes.
In fact, the zoomed-in pictures came early at Fenway Park as Jays starting pitcher Chris Bassitt was getting hammered by the Red Sox, eventually leaving after two-plus miserable innings.
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Yes, the Fenway Follies that so often mark games at the Boston baseball cathedral can — and often do — go both ways.
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So, a day after blanking the Bosox 9-0, the home side turned the tables with a 15-1 blowout, handing the Jays their most lopsided defeat, not just of the season but since the New York Yankees beat them by the same margin on Sept. 20, 2020. It was pretty much as ugly as it sounded, too, especially early on for the veteran right-hander Bassitt.
And the disastrous outing was the latest case study of the fact that there are times when almost anything goes at Fenway. Prior to Saturday, Bassitt owned a skimpy 1.89 ERA over five starts in Boston, his lowest at any big-league park.
But a 35-pitch first inning in which the Red Sox jumped out to a 3-0 lead — and all nine hitters made a plate appearance — set a miserable tone for a confident Jays team that allowed the plummeting Sox to snap their six-game losing streak.
How bad was the second-shortest start of Bassitt's career? Well, 13 of the 19 batters he faced reached base and it was just the third time in his career that he's allowed eight earned runs or more, this after tossing at least six innings in each of his previous four starts.
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All six of the Red Sox runs that were scored while Bassitt was still on the mound came with two outs as the usually crafty hurler showed a complete lack of finish. The eight runs Bassitt was on the hook for by the time of his premature exit — with none out and the bases loaded in the third — came as he allowed eight hits, four walks and one plunked batter.
Bassitt's ERA ballooned from 3.61 to 4.29 as he recorded just six outs from the 70 pitches he threw, only 44 of them for strikes.
The early ineptitude made the middle match of the three-game weekend series a dud from the outset. By the time the Red Sox had stopped thumping, their 15 runs surpassed the 13 the Jays surrendered in that ugly shutout loss to the Rays in Tampa on May 25.
As well, the previous time they've allowed more than 15 runs in a game was a year ago when they were shellacked in a 16-8 loss to the New York Yankees at the Rogers Centre that launched the second half of the miserable last-place 2024 season.
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The Jays, who are 3-2 thus far on the six-game road trip and 44-38 overall, will attempt to claim the rubber match on Sunday when lefty Eric Lauer, one of the biggest success stories of the Jays this season, is scheduled to face Boston righty Walker Buehler.
GAME ON
The Sox scored three runs in each of the first three innings and turned it into a game for Jays manager John Schneider to preserve bullpen arms as best he could. To that end, the skipper put in backup catcher Tyler Heineman to pitch the ninth. Never a pleasant experience, Heineman plunked the Sox's first hitter Jarren Duran with a 'fastball.' At least the backstop limited the Sox to one run … So much for entering the world of a positive run differential, where the Jays found themselves (plus-1) prior to Saturday's contest … With the Yankees losing 7-0 to the Athletics on Saturday, the Jays remain three games behind the Bronx Bombers for the division lead … The Red Sox have now won seven of their past nine at Fenway, hoping to regain momentum after their disastrous West Coast road trip … The 18 hits for the Red Sox topped the 16 the Jays put up in Sunday's well-rounded shutout and equalled a season high surrendered against the Philadelphia Phillies on June 15.
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AROUND THE BASES
The Jays made a roster shuffled prior to Saturday's game, sending outfielder Alan Roden back down to triple-A Buffalo while recalling infielder Will Wagner to take his place on the roster … As well, the Jays announced that right-handed starter Spencer Turnbull, who had been designated for assignment earlier in the week, cleared waivers and was released … Prior to the now vanquished six-game losing streak, the Red Sox had won eight of their previous nine games … The Jays still have a 6-3 record against the Sox this season, including a 4-2 mark at Fenway … There's a reason the Red Sox like wearing those rather loud yellow alternate jerseys, which honour the spirit of Patriots Day weekend and the Boston Marathon. They're now 39-17 in the bright duds after Saturday's breakout.
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