Kevin Gausman and Blue Jays lack sharpness and a killer instinct in loss to A's
Article content
In the second of a three-game set, the A's responded to an early 2-0 Blue Jays advantage and would emerge as the better team Saturday night in a 4-3 win.
Article content
Article content
The series rubber match will be played Sunday.
The Jays weren't clean in the loss, couldn't generate much offence and as a result they didn't give themselves a shot of at least being assured of winning a sixth consecutive series.
Article content
Article content
Trailing 4-2, the Jays were poised to stage a rally in the eighth with a leadoff walk, a double and a sacrifice fly, but swinging strikeouts by Addison Barger and Leo Jimenez limited the visitors to only one run.
Article content
Toronto also threatened in the ninth when pinch-hitter Joey Loperfido led off with a walk and was sacrificed to second. But once again back-to-back strikeouts by Ernie Clement and George Springer against fire-balling closer Mason Miller ended the game.
Article content
The following are three takeaways on a night the A's would end their five-game losing streak to the Blue Jays, who maintained their two-game cushion atop the AL East following an earlier Yankees loss to the Cubs.
Article content
1. The Gausman grind
Article content
After leaving behind a June swoon with three consecutive quality starts, Kevin Gausman's five-inning 19th start of the season was an uneven step back.
Article content
The veteran right-hander produced clean innings in the second and fourth but otherwise allowed too much traffic on the basepaths in the others.
Article content
Article content
He got out of an early jam in the first but wasn't as fortunate in the third and fifth innings, when A's slugger Brent Rooker tagged him for an RBI double and a two-run homer — his 20th of the season — that gave the A's a 4-2 lead.
Article content
With his pitch total up to 96, Gausman was replaced by Tommy Nance, making his season debut, to start the sixth.
Article content
After striking out nine Angels in his previous start last weekend, Gausman managed only two against the A's.
Article content
2. Error of his ways
Article content
For the most part, Tyler Heineman has given the Blue Jays his all, whether it's behind the plate or at it.
Article content
He's no Danny Jansen, whose presence, combined with Alejandro Kirk, allowed the club to have one of baseball's best catching tandems.
Article content
It's no knock on the 35-year-old Heineman to say he's a serviceable backup, even as his .329 average in 82 at-bats this season is easily the best of his career.
Article content
But when he does get the start, as he did Saturday, Heineman needs to be better.
Article content
The game wasn't even three innings old when Heineman was called for two catcher interference calls — the second one figuring in prominently in the A's two-run third inning — and was charged with a throwing error.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
National Post
an hour ago
- National Post
Chelsea's Cole Palmer confused by Donald Trump's lingering presence at Club World Cup
Cole Palmer was jumping up and down behind Reece James as the Chelsea captain received the trophy for the Club World Cup, U.S. President Donald Trump to his left, standing between the midfielder and goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. Article content 'I knew he was going to be here, but I didn't know he was going to be on the stand when we lifted the trophy, so I was a bit confused,' Palmer said. Article content Article content Palmer received the Golden Ball as top player of the tournament after scoring the first two goals in Chelsea's 3-0 smothering of Paris Saint-Germain on Sunday night. Trump — wearing a bright red tie — appeared to leave the award stand with a medal of his own, handed to him by FIFA President Gianni Infantino right after the medallion presented to James. Article content At 23, Palmer was selected player of the match for Chelsea's second straight final. A rising English star, he assisted twice in a 4-1 win over Real Betis on May 28 that won the Europa Conference League. He also scored the Blues' first goal in the 2-1 quarterfinal Club World Cup win over Palmeiras and had England's goal in its 2024 European Championship final defeat to Spain. Article content Chelsea F.C. star Cole Palmer, who also won the Player of the Tournament at the FIFA Club World Cup, appears to be confused why Donald Trump was on stage during the trophy celebration 🤣😆. — Clement (@88cIement) July 13, 2025 Article content He had his name up in the bright lights this weekend. He posed for a photo in front of a huge video board of his image in a Nike ad emblazoned with the words: 'Scary Good.' It was part of a campaign that also features Kylian Mbappe, Erling Haaland and Vinicius Junior. Article content 'I've seen the billboards in Times Square and outside of Madison Square Garden,' Palmer said. 'It's a nice feeling to be obviously alongside them type of players.' Article content Palmer had almost identical left-footed goals from just inside the penalty area in the 22nd and 30th minutes, then sent a through pass that enabled João Pedro to chip goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma in the 43rd for his third goal in two starts with the Blues. Article content Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, who wanted to exploit space on PSG's left flank, told his players he wanted them to attack from the opening whistle. Article content 'I think we won the game in the first 10 minutes and the message before the game was let them understand that we are here to win the game,' Maresca said. 'Probably set a little bit the tone of the game.' Article content Chelsea went ahead after Sanchez kicked the ball downfield and Nuno Mendes mis-hit his header 15 yards past the midfield stripe toward his own goal. Malo Gusto's shot was blocked by Lucas Beraldo and rebounded to Palmer, who ended PSG's streak of 436 minutes without conceding. Article content Article content 'These are the games where we expect Cole to appear because they are big games, big moments,' Maresca said. Article content 'It's a great feeling. Even better because obviously everyone doubted us before the game,' Palmer said. 'The gaffer put a great gameplan out, and obviously, he knew where the space was going to be.' Article content
Winnipeg Free Press
5 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
In an era prizing velocity, more than 20,000 curveballs a year have disappeared from MLB
ATLANTA (AP) — Curveballs have been thrown a curve by a modern game valuing velocity over variety, disappearing from the major leagues by more than 20,000 annually. The Athletics have thrown curves on just 2.5% of pitches this season. The overall big league figure dropped from 10.7% in 2019 to 8.1% last year, the lowest since MLB starting tracking in 2008, before rising slightly to 8.5% this season. There were 22,962 fewer curveballs in 2024 than five years earlier. 'You don't really see a lot of people throwing 12-6 curveballs anymore,' Tampa Bay pitcher Shane Baz said. 'They'd rather have a hard cutter/slider. It's a lot easier for guys to throw a sweeper than it is a 12-6 curveball.' Baz's 28.1% is seventh in curveball use among those who have thrown at least 1,000 pitches this season. Baltimore's Charlie Morton, first at 39%, learned to throw a hook from his dad. 'He was reading some article or maybe he was reading some pitching book,' Baltimore's 41-year-old right-hander said. 'You basically throw it like you're re-throwing a knife.' Curveballs have been around for a century and a half Hall of Famer Candy Cummings, a 145-game winner, is credited with inventing the curveball in 1863 when he was 14, discovering the movement when he threw sea shells into the Atlantic Ocean. Some attribute the curve to amateur pitcher Fred Goldsmith in 1870. With an average velocity of 80.2 mph, curves are the slowest and loopiest of breaking pitches, often disrupting the timing of batters set for smoke. The phrase 'thrown a curveball' has become part of the English language, much like 'screwball,' more a phrase than a pitch these days. Sandy Koufax, Nolan Ryan and Clayton Kershaw were among the consummate curveballers, bamboozling batters as balls they gave up on dropped like hang gliders into the strike zone. 'It's become an industry of throwing over pitching,' New York Yankees senior adviser Omar Minaya said. 'When you pitch, you use different pitches. What we're seeing in the industry as a whole, especially with showcases, is people are looking more at velocity than pitchability — as a scout, I said that unfortunately.' Former pitcher Dallas Braden, now a broadcaster, longs for those days of deception. 'You almost sympathize with the hitter in the moment because you're like: Damn, I couldn't have hit that. He couldn't hit that. Nobody could have hit that,' Braden said. 'The eephus is now almost like as close as we get, when a position player is on the mound, to an aesthetically pleasing pitch like that, just the visual presentation of the pitch starting in the clouds and ending up at the ankles.' Nike's 'Chicks Dig the Long Ball' commercial defined baseball in the Steroids Era. These days the slogan might as well be: 'Velo Rules!' There were just 214 pitches of 100 mph or more in 2008. There were a record 3,880 two years ago and this year is on track for 3,252. In tandem, starting pitcher use has dropped. Starters have averaged just under 5 1/3 innings this season, down from 6 1/3 innings in the 1980s. Their pitch count averages 85.7, down from 97 in 2010 Throw as hard as you can for as long as you can is the mantra Average four-seam fastball velocity is a record 94.4 mph this season, up from 91.9 mph when MLB started tracking in 2008. But fastballs — four-seam, two-seam and cutters, have dropped from 62.1% to 55%. Those missing hooks and heaters have been replaced by sliders, sweepers and slurves. They are 22.6% of pitches this year, up from 13.9% in 2008, and their average velocity has risen to 84.8 mph from 83.4 mph. Colorado throws curves the most often at 15.6%, not that it has brought any success to a team that entered the break at 22-74, on track for a 37-125 finish and the post-1900 record for losses. The Athletics haven't thrown 10% curveballs since 2017. 'If you look around the game, swing and miss has taken more of a priority, so guys are trying to throw more sweepers with more horizontal movement, or they're trying to throw the slider really hard at the bottom of the zone,' Athletics pitching coach Scott Emerson said. 'They're worried about contact with the curveball.' Generational change in the 2020s Veteran pitchers note the curve's decline as youngsters integrate into staffs. 'As you're an amateur going to the big leagues guys are looking at velo. Guys are just looking at stuff,' Yankees ace Gerrit Cole said. 'Velo is important and it pays.' Maybe because the pitchers who throw curves are committed, batters have a .225 average this season on curves, down from .263 on fastballs and up slightly from .222 on sliders, sweepers and slurves. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. 'That's just how the game is trending: to throw it as hard as you can, spin it the best you can and hope the hitter doesn't hit it,' Emerson said. 'The hitters are up there trying to swing as hard they can. If they hit it with hard contact, make 27 swings that are really hard, you got a chance to hit a homer here and there. And it's taken away from the contact-type pitchers.' ___ AP Baseball Writer Janie McCauley contributed to this report. ___ AP MLB:
CTV News
6 hours ago
- CTV News
Canada's Sarah Mitton wins bronze at Diamond League stop in Monaco
Sarah Mitton, of Canada, celebrates after winning the gold medal in the women's shot put final at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China, Friday, March 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian) MONACO — Canada's Sarah Mitton placed third in the women's shot put at the Diamond League meet in Monaco on Friday with a throw of 20.00 metres. Jessica Schilder of the Netherlands won with 20.39, and American Chase Jackson was second with 20.06. Mitton, the two-time reigning world indoor champion from Brooklyn, N.S., was coming off a silver-medal performance at last week's Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore., where she threw a season-best 20.39. Edmonton's Marco Arop, the reigning world champion in the men's 800 metres, finished fifth despite a season-best time of one minute 42.73 seconds. He entered the event on a roll after winning all three 800-metre races in the inaugural Grand Slam of Track. Kenya's Emmanuel Wanyonyi won in a world-leading and meet-record time of 1:41.44, followed by American Josh Hoey (1:42.01) and Algeria's Djamel Sedjati (1.42.20). The next Diamond League meet is set for July 19 in London. This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 11, 2025.
