JAYS OBLITERATE RED SOX, BLOW OUT CARDINALS IN SERIES OPENER

MLB / Baseball

Written by Gus Cousins

Coming out of the All-Star Break, few teams had more to prove than the Boston Red Sox. A 1-6 record in the seven games prior to the week off, nobody was happier than Alex Cora’s club when the unofficial halfway point of the season rolled around. A few days for the players to relax and recover before a gruelling second half, some time for the ever-so-tightly wound Boston faithful to chill out, and - most importantly - a small period of time in which Red Sox GM Chaim Bloom could begin planning for the imminent trade deadline.

Source (Background photos): MLB

With Ace Nate Eovaldi on the bump against Toronto’s Kevin Gausman, Boston was looking to cut their 2-game Wild Card deficit down against their division rivals. The problem Boston faced, however, was a big one - they’re just not very good.

Well over four hours later, Anthony Banda closed out a remarkable 28-5 Toronto victory in a game that produced a combined thirty-nine hits and four errors - including an inside-the-park grand slam by Raimel Tapia after Boston OF Jarren Duran lost sight of the ball, and then just…stood there. One could argue that although the Red Sox scored five runs, two were off Jeremy Beasley - so do they really count? You be the judge of that.

Amidst chaos erupting in Beantown, Manager Alex Cora gave little credit to the red-hot Jays, saying “It’s not about what they did offensively, it’s about what we didn’t do defensively and on the mound.” In fairness to Cora’s point, while Boston had only two official errors there were other humiliating mistakes - be it Duran in CF or three Infielders letting a ball drop between them. One game in July doesn’t end a team’s season though, does it? Let's check back on that in September.

Following the 28-5 loss, Boston produced a meagre five runs over the next two games against the Jays losing 4-1 and 8-4 - less embarrassing, but not remotely acceptable for a team trying to make the playoffs. With the dust settled and Toronto exiting Boston with a sweep, anti-Bloom rhetoric has grown along with the voices of fans pleading for the team to sell at the deadline. SS Xander Bogaerts and DH J.D. Martinez are the two most notable names on the block following their lacklustre Toronto series, with Bogaerts uncertain of re-signing and Martinez willing to opt out.

One team’s downfall is another team’s enjoyment though, with every Blue Jays starter knocking at least two hits in the massive offensive outburst in the club’s first game back from the break. Matt Chapman and Raimel Tapia continued their hot streaks, as well as Lourdes Gurriel Jr. went 6-for-7. Tapia finished the series with a whopping ten RBI, with much of the roster boosting their stats on both the pitching and offensive sides.

Having won six in a row ranging back from before the break, Toronto flew home with grins on their faces and a pep in their step. Even more, good news awaited them.

As has been the case all season, whenever an opposing team visits Toronto for the first time there’s an extra layer to it all - vaccine restrictions. Yes, the United States has the exact same border policy as Canada, and yes, many Americans - fans and players alike - choose to ignore this fact under the guise of blissful ignorance. When a fringe-MLB’er is unvaccinated - take Boston’s Kutter Crawford, for example - nobody loses any sleep. A team survives and can slot in another middling back-end starter for a game. Where the news does become blown out of proportion is when, in St. Louis’ case, NL MVP frontrunner Paul Goldschmidt and otherworldly 3B Nolan Arenado are forced to miss two games based on their let-me-do-my-own-research position. The Cardinals entered their series with Toronto just a half-game up on Philadelphia in the Wild Card, and two back of the Brewers for the NL Central lead. As the Jays witnessed just last season, one game can decide your fate - and boy oh boy will Cardinals fans not be happy if they fall just short. I guess that’d be a big shot in the arm.

On the flip side, Toronto is gaining back one of their own as they began this homestand - longtime play-by-play man Buck Martinez is returning to the broadcast booth alongside Dan Shulman after a lengthy battle with cancer. Receiving a standing ovation from both fans and players, Martinez and his perfectly-combed hair enjoyed a 10-3 thrashing of the MVP-less Cardinals, extending Toronto’s win streak to seven games. Berrios was shaky, although it didn’t matter as a five-run sixth inning blew the doors open, headed by a George Springer grand slam.

Mayza, Phelps, Castillo, and Beasley threw a combined 3 ⅓ shutout innings, shutting the door on the Cardinals in the first game of this mini two-game series. In other news, Yusei Kikuchi is expected to make a start in the Jays’ rotation this Thursday against the Detroit Tigers. He last pitched a couple of days ago in Buffalo, posting five shutout innings in his “rehab” start.

Contrary to the Red Sox, Toronto has nowhere near selling come the 2022 Trade Deadline. Juan Soto is likely out of the question, but rumours circulating about Pirates’ David Bednar, Diamondbacks’ Joe Mantiply and Cubs’ David Roberston continue to swirl. Barring insanity, it is likely that Toronto adds at least a couple of arms by the time August rolls around - hopefully sooner rather than later.

Tomorrow, Kevin Gausman takes the ball and will be countered by veteran Adam Wainwright as Toronto looks to sweep the Cardinals and push their win streak to 8.