Latest news with #BoBichette
National Post
20 hours ago
- Sport
- National Post
Baltimore Orioles bury the Blue Jays in a barrage of hits and homers
Article content His elite hand-eye co-ordination was on full display in his first two at-bats Monday night, each resulting in singles as Bichette went 7-for-7 in his past seven at-bats. Article content A fifth-inning bloop single that went off the end of the bat gave Bichette eight for eight to tie a franchise record. Article content In the seventh inning, his first pitch in the at-bat was ruled a hit, giving Bichette his ninth consecutive base knock to set a club record. Article content His streak ended in the ninth inning when he hit into a double play to end the game. Article content His 5-for-5 day in Detroit came in a loss as did Bichette's 4-for-5 game in Baltimore. Article content Article content 3. Making moves Article content As of press time, no deal was engineered by the Blue Jays, who are in the market to add, ideally, at least two arms to the bullpen, a potential starter and a right-handed bat. Article content A double dip awaits Tuesday followed by an afternoon game Wednesday in as hectic a stretch the Jays will experience. Article content It will all lead up to Thursday's 6 p.m. trade deadline. Article content Daulton Varsho has a few more games scheduled in triple-A as he makes his way back from a hamstring injury. Article content Article content If a deal makes the Jays better and Varsho must be sacrificed, so be it. Article content Nathan Lukes and Myles Straw have almost made Varsho an afterthought. Article content Lukes hit leadoff in the series opener and went yard in the third inning for his eighth homer of the season and his third in the past five games. Article content He was denied a multi-homer game when Cedric Mullins soared over the wall in straight-away centre to rob Lukes and prevent the Jays from tying the game in the fourth inning. Article content Opportunities such as the one the Jays have been presented and created this season don't come around often and no one, save for Vlad Jr., should be exempt from any trade discussion, including Varsho. Article content Pitchers Lazaro Estrada, Easton Lucas and Paxton Schultz were in Baltimore as the club prepares for the doubleheader. Article content None was active for the series opener. Article content The frenetic slate at stifling hot Oriole Park at Camden Yards continues with Tuesday's 12:35 p.m. first pitch followed by first pitch at 6:35 p.m. to complete the day's double dip; a DH day for Vlad Jr. is a certainty for one of the two games; teams are allowed to add a player to the 26-man roster for doubleheaders. Article content
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tarik Skubal energizes Detroit Tigers but can't save them in 6-1 loss to Toronto Blue Jays
Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal unleashed one of his trademark roars after escaping the bases loaded and one out in the sixth inning Saturday, July 26, against the Toronto Blue Jays. He pumped his fist into his glove. He backpedaled off the mound. And he screamed an expletive. Skubal energized the Tigers in Saturday's game, but he couldn't save them from their losing ways. The Tigers lost, 6-1, to the Blue Jays in the third of four games in the series at Comerica Park – their 12th loss in 13 games. The Tigers (60-46) gave up go-ahead run in the eighth inning, when Bo Bichette hit a two-run single off right-handed reliever Will Vest. Meanwhile, the Tigers' offense was limited to two hits and one walk. In the eighth, the Blue Jays tallied three hits in four at-bats against Vest, including back-to-back singles from Joey Loperfido and George Springer. A wild pitch by Vest put two runners in scoring position. Although Vest got Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to ground out, Bichette delivered the biggest hit of the game — pushing Vest's middle-in sinker the opposite way through a pulled-in infield for a ground-ball single into right field, scoring both runners. That's how the Blue Jays grabbed a 2-0 lead. Remember 125 epic seasons of the Detroit Tigers with our new book! The Blue Jays didn't need to score more than one run, but they took the lead on a two-run single in the eighth inning and posted four more runs in the ninth. To make it a 6-0 lead, Nathan Lukes hit a two-run home run, George Springer hit a solo home run and Guerrero hit a solo home run — all off right-handed reliever Chase Lee, whose ERA has climbed from 2.05 to 4.21 in his past six relief appearances. The Blue Jays finished with 12 hits. [ MUST LISTEN: Make "Days of Roar" your go-to Tigers podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple, Spotify) ] Tarik Skubal and Matt Vierling The Blue Jays had seven baserunners across the fourth, fifth and sixth innings against Skubal. None of them scored. In the sixth, Skubal escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam, but not without help from center fielder Matt Vierling. He threw out Springer, who didn't slide, on a throw to catcher Jake Rogers for the second out. For the third out, Skubal struck out Addison Barger with a 100.5 mph sinker. Skubal celebrated the clutch strikeout by screaming, backpedaling and swearing. The 28-year-old tossed six scoreless innings on five hits and three walks with seven strikeouts, throwing 96 pitches. He entered the sixth at 61 pitches, but a 35-pitch inning — including a 13-pitch walk to Bichette — kept him from returning for the seventh. Skubal owns a 2.09 ERA in 21 starts. Kevin Gausman shoves Blue Jays right-hander Kevin Gausman dominated. He completed six scoreless innings on one hit and one walk with 10 strikeouts, throwing 96 pitches. The three baserunners: Rogers hit a single in the third inning, Colt Keith drew a walk in the fourth inning, and Gleyber Torres reached safely on a fielding error in the sixth inning.. Riley Greene finished 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, but the Tigers scored their only run on his groundout in the ninth inning after Rogers singled and advanced two bases on defensive indifference. In his past 19 games, Greene is hitting .167 (12-for-72) with four home runs, four walks and 35 strikeouts — dating back to Game 2 of the July 2 doubleheader against the Washington Nationals. Greene leads MLB with 141 strikeouts in 103 games. Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@ or follow him @EvanPetzold. Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at Order your copy of 'Roar of 125: The Epic History of the Tigers!' by the Free Press at This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers drop 6th straight, 6-1, to Blue Jays despite Skubal gem
CTV News
a day ago
- Sport
- CTV News
A year after they were (to a degree) deadline sellers, the Blue Jays are soaring
Toronto Blue Jays' George Springer reacts after hitting a home run during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Detroit Tigers, Saturday, July 26, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez) Even when they traded away a handful of established players at last year's deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays clearly believed a rebound was possible. A year later, they have a comfortable lead atop the AL East. It's hard to say that last year's deadline jump-started Toronto's turnaround, but the important thing is the Blue Jays didn't give up on their core despite being on their way to a last-place finish in 2024. They dealt players like Yusei Kikuchi and Justin Turner — but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette remained with Toronto. Keeping those two was something of a risk given that both could become free agents after this season. Bichette still can, but the Blue Jays were able to sign Guerrero to a $500-million, 14-year contract in April. Guerrero, Bichette and George Springer are part of a Toronto team that ranks third in the American League in OPS while leading the majors in batting average and on-base percentage. Even after a lopsided loss to Detroit on Sunday, the Blue Jays have a 5 1/2-game lead over the second-place New York Yankees — although Toronto also has the second-worst run differential in the division. The Blue Jays have the best record in baseball by a half-game over the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers. Toronto has won 21 of its last 27 games, and included in that stretch is a 6-1 record against the Yankees. The Blue Jays are 7-3 against New York, meaning they have clinched that season series should it become a tiebreaker. New York is just 11-18 against the AL East. Trivia time The Blue Jays last made the World Series in 1993. Who are the only other American League teams with longer droughts since their most recent pennants? Tumbling Tigers Detroit's 10-4 win over Toronto on Sunday snapped a six-game skid for the Tigers — and that does not do justice to how poorly they were playing. Detroit had lost 12 of 13, being outscored 89-33 in the process. Ace Tarik Skubal can only do so much. The lone win during that stretch came in one of his starts — a 2-1 victory over Texas on July 20. When he took the mound six days later against Toronto, he threw six scoreless innings, only to have the Tigers go on to lose 6-1. Before Detroit fans panic too much, the Tigers had built up such a big lead that they still have an eight-game advantage over second-place Cleveland in the AL Central after Sunday's victory. FanGraphs gives them a 95.9% chance to make the playoffs. But their chances of earning a first-round bye — by having one of the top two records among AL division winners — is down to 52.6%. Line of the week More like line of the decade. Or perhaps the century. A's rookie Nick Kurtz went 6 for 6 with four home runs, eight RBIs and six runs in a 15-3 rout of Houston on Friday night. Kurtz became the 20th player in major league history — and first rookie — with a four-homer game. He also doubled and singled, so he tied the single-game record for total bases with 19. Comeback of the week Minnesota had a one-run lead at Los Angeles in the bottom of the ninth Wednesday — and Griffin Jax retired the first two batters for the Dodgers. Then it all unravelled for the Twins. Mookie Betts singled, Shohei Ohtani was walked intentionally, Esteury Ruiz drew another walk and then Freddie Freeman singled home two runs for a 4-3 win. The Twins had a win probability of 95.6% after the second out, according to Baseball Savant. Trivia answer The Orioles (1983), Athletics (1990), Twins (1991) and Mariners (never). ___ Noah Trister, The Associated Press
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
A year after they were (to a degree) deadline sellers, the Blue Jays are soaring
Even when they traded away a handful of established players at last year's deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays clearly believed a rebound was possible. A year later, they have a comfortable lead atop the AL East. It's hard to say that last year's deadline jump-started Toronto's turnaround, but the important thing is the Blue Jays didn't give up on their core despite being on their way to a last-place finish in 2024. They dealt players like Yusei Kikuchi and Justin Turner — but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette remained with Toronto. Keeping those two was something of a risk given that both could become free agents after this season. Bichette still can, but the Blue Jays were able to sign Guerrero to a $500-million, 14-year contract in April. Guerrero, Bichette and George Springer are part of a Toronto team that ranks third in the American League in OPS while leading the majors in batting average and on-base percentage. Even after a lopsided loss to Detroit on Sunday, the Blue Jays have a 5 1/2-game lead over the second-place New York Yankees — although Toronto also has the second-worst run differential in the division. The Blue Jays have the best record in baseball by a half-game over the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers. Toronto has won 21 of its last 27 games, and included in that stretch is a 6-1 record against the Yankees. The Blue Jays are 7-3 against New York, meaning they have clinched that season series should it become a tiebreaker. New York is just 11-18 against the AL East. Trivia time The Blue Jays last made the World Series in 1993. Who are the only other American League teams with longer droughts since their most recent pennants? Tumbling Tigers Detroit's 10-4 win over Toronto on Sunday snapped a six-game skid for the Tigers — and that does not do justice to how poorly they were playing. Detroit had lost 12 of 13, being outscored 89-33 in the process. Ace Tarik Skubal can only do so much. The lone win during that stretch came in one of his starts — a 2-1 victory over Texas on July 20. When he took the mound six days later against Toronto, he threw six scoreless innings, only to have the Tigers go on to lose 6-1. Before Detroit fans panic too much, the Tigers had built up such a big lead that they still have an eight-game advantage over second-place Cleveland in the AL Central after Sunday's victory. FanGraphs gives them a 95.9% chance to make the playoffs. But their chances of earning a first-round bye — by having one of the top two records among AL division winners — is down to 52.6%. Line of the week More like line of the decade. Or perhaps the century. A's rookie Nick Kurtz went 6 for 6 with four home runs, eight RBIs and six runs in a 15-3 rout of Houston on Friday night. Kurtz became the 20th player in major league history — and first rookie — with a four-homer game. He also doubled and singled, so he tied the single-game record for total bases with 19. Comeback of the week Minnesota had a one-run lead at Los Angeles in the bottom of the ninth Wednesday — and Griffin Jax retired the first two batters for the Dodgers. Then it all unraveled for the Twins. Mookie Betts singled, Shohei Ohtani was walked intentionally, Esteury Ruiz drew another walk and then Freddie Freeman singled home two runs for a 4-3 win. The Twins had a win probability of 95.6% after the second out, according to Baseball Savant. Trivia answer The Orioles (1983), Athletics (1990), Twins (1991) and Mariners (never). ___ AP MLB:
Washington Post
2 days ago
- Sport
- Washington Post
A year after they were (to a degree) deadline sellers, the Blue Jays are soaring
Even when they traded away a handful of established players at last year's deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays clearly believed a rebound was possible. A year later, they have a comfortable lead atop the AL East. It's hard to say that last year's deadline jump-started Toronto's turnaround, but the important thing is the Blue Jays didn't give up on their core despite being on their way to a last-place finish in 2024. They dealt players like Yusei Kikuchi and Justin Turner — but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette remained with Toronto.
