The Toronto Blue Jays, who failed to win even a single game during the most important period in the American League wild card race, are mired in four consecutive losses. Now we are in a situation where we cannot guarantee whether we will advance to the postseason or not.
Toronto lost 2-9 in the final game of the 4-game series against the Texas Rangers of the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) held at the Rogers Center in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on the 15th (Korean time). The season record was 80 wins and 67 losses, and the gap between Toronto in 4th place and the Seattle Mariners in 3rd place in the American League wild card widened to 1.5 games.
On this day, Texas had Marcus Siemian (second baseman) – Corey Seager (shortstop) – Nathaniel Rowe (first baseman) – Mitch Garber (designated hitter) – Robbie Grossman (right fielder) – Jonah Haim (catcher) – Josh Smith (third baseman). -The lineup was formed in the order of Ezekiel Duran (left fielder). The starting pitcher is Nathan Evoldi.
Toronto, aiming to escape their 3rd consecutive loss, had George Springer (designated hitter) – Bo Bichette (shortstop) – Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (1st baseman) – Davis Schneider (2nd baseman) – Cavan Biggio (right fielder) – Matt Chapman (3rd baseman) – Witt. The lineup consisted of Merrifield (left fielder) – Alejandro Kirk (catcher) – Kevin Kiermaier (center fielder). Kevin Gausman took over the starting role.
Texas opened fire first. With one out in the top of the first inning, Seager pulled Gausman’s splitter on the second pitch and succeeded in taking the lead by hitting a solo shot that went over the right-center field fence.
Then Toronto immediately launched a counterattack. After Bisset got on base with a single to left with one out in the bottom of the first inning, Guerrero Jr. turned the game around with a two-run shot to left from Evoldi. The score is 2-1.
Texas, which came from behind, regained the lead in the top of the second inning. Seager, who was the star of the go-ahead solo shot in the top of the first inning, hit a 2-RBI double to left field with 2 outs and runners on first and second base. Merrifield followed through to the end and tried to catch the catch with a jump catch, but the ball that went into his glove came out and resulted in a hit. Seager’s 40th double this season.
Texas began to widen the gap with Haim’s solo shot in the top of the third inning. Toronto attempted to turn things around in the top of the 4th inning with bases loaded and 2 outs when center fielder Kiermaier caught Garber’s missed ball with a sliding catch, but was unable to score any runs and was tied up with 2 runs.
The two-run gap continued until the bottom of the 7th inning, and Texas, which needed an additional run, finally solidified the victory by scoring a large number of runs in the top of the 8th inning. After leadoff hitter Duran’s double and Carter’s walk, Siemian hit an RBI double, and after Trevor Richards’ automatic 4th pitch, Rowe hit a timely hit with 2 RBIs. With the addition of Grossman’s walk and Smith’s sacrifice fly, the gap between the two teams widened to 7 points.
Toronto, whose will to chase was inevitably broken, was ultimately unable to close the distance until the end of the game, and the game ended with Texas winning by 7 points. Both the players and the fans watching felt sad after losing all four games at home.
Starting pitcher Gausman suffered his 9th loss of the season, allowing 6 hits (2 home runs), 6 walks, 5 strikeouts, and 4 runs in 4⅔ innings, while fourth pitcher Trevor Richards recorded 3 hits, 2 walks, and 5 runs without recording a single out. did. In the batting lineup, except for Bisset, who had 2 hits in 3 at-bats, 1 walk, and 1 run, there was not a single player who achieved multiple hits.
After the game, Gausman could not hide his disappointment with the result of the four-game series against Texas, saying in an interview with local media, “Our team played disappointingly in all aspects and had a difficult series. All the players were very angry.” .
Ben Nicholson-Smith, a reporter for the Canadian media ‘Sportsnet’, said through his SNS (social networking service), “I started the week in a good position, but after the Texas game started, I was completely overwhelmed. The total score of the four games was 9-35.” He said, “The fans booed the players, and of course it was inevitable. Toronto missed a huge opportunity. It has never looked this dangerous.”
Toronto needed to win at least 2 to 3 games in this four-game series to continue cruising toward advancing to the postseason. But everything went wrong from the first day of the series. Starting pitcher Chris Bassett performed poorly, allowing 9 hits, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts, and 5 runs in 5⅓ innings, including 1 home run, and the team lost badly, 4-10.
The only time Toronto played an even match was in the second game of the series in which ‘Korean Monster’ Ryu Hyun-jin appeared as the starter. Ryu Hyun-jin, who faced off with Max Scherzer as the starter, allowed 5 hits (1 home run), 1 walk, 5 strikeouts, and 3 runs in 6 innings, achieving a quality start for the first time since returning from injury. They suffered their third loss of the season due to lack of scoring support, but the process was not bad.
However, the batting line, which did not score a single run in 6 innings, could not help Ryu Hyun-jin. They tried to catch up late, but it was not enough to overturn the gap that had already widened, and they ended up losing 3-6. The scenario of achieving three wins was already over.
Game 3 was ‘the worst’. While starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi performed poorly, allowing 5 hits (2 home runs), 2 walks, 3 strikeouts, and 6 runs in 5 innings, the batting lineup remained silent throughout the game. Other than Santiago Espinal and Ernie Clement’s hard work with multiple hits, no other hitter showed remarkable performance. Toronto could not avoid losing 0-10.먹튀검증
In the end, the trend continued until the final game, and no reversal occurred. It’s difficult to say that getting two wins in four games is satisfactory, but not being able to get even one win clearly requires Toronto to look back on the course of the four-game series.
Now it has become difficult for Toronto to advance to the postseason on its own. The rankings can only change if one of the wild card teams, Texas in second place and Seattle in third place, declines and Toronto succeeds in rebounding.
There are now only 15 games left for Toronto. After a three-game home game against the Boston Red Sox on the 16th-18th, a six-game away game awaits Toronto, including a game against the New York Yankees on the 20th-22nd and a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on the 23rd-25th. It remains to be seen whether the players can overcome the current crisis.
