Addison Barger hits another home run in Blue Jays’ loss to Orioles

Instant Reaction: Addison Barger hits another home run in Blue Jays’ loss to Orioles

Although they had their chances, the Toronto Blue Jays were unable to find a way to win against the Baltimore Orioles.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Jays were back in action, hosting the Orioles in Dunedin with some of their regulars in the lineup. Let’s take a look at what went on in this 3-2 loss to move their Spring Training record to 9-13.

Before the Blue Jays even had a chance to bat, the Orioles were on the board. With runners on first and second, Ryan Mountcastle hit an RBI single to drive in a run. Two batters later, Blaze Alexander drove in another run thanks to a bloop single, giving the Orioles a 2-0 lead.

The Jays got on the board in the bottom of the second inning, as Addison Barger hit his third home run of Spring Training. It was a nice pull-side home run on a high fastball, but wasn’t given a distance or exit velocity.

ABSOLUTE BOMB FROM ADDISON BARGER 💣

In the top of the fourth, the Orioles got that run back with a home run off the bat of Jeremiah Jackson, giving them a 3-1 lead. There was no more scoring until the bottom of the seventh, , as Jesús Sánchez stole home on a designed play.

Takeaways…

Addison Barger has had a sneaky good Spring Training, as his home run gave him a batting average of .281 with an OPS of 1.034. Only one Blue Jay, Daulton Varsho, has more than Barger’s four home runs this Spring Training. In fact, Barger is just one of three Blue Jays with two or more home runs, Eloy Jiménez is the other player.

Varsho had a quiet day, going 0-3 with a strikeout, bringing his batting average to .400 with a 1.317 OPS. Jiménez smacked another ball, as his force out in the bottom of the sixth had an exit velocity of 107.2 mph, the third-hardest ball he’s hit this season.

Barger hit the team’s only home run in this game, but the Blue Jays also hit two doubles. George Springer hit his first double of Spring Training, while Yohendrick Piñango hit a double in the bottom of the eighth, the closest they came to tying the game.

Kazuma Okamoto made his return to the lineup after Japan was defeated in the World Baseball Classic, drawing a walk in all three of his plate appearances. On the flip side, Davis Schneider struck out in all three of his plate appearances.

Josh Fleming made the start, giving up two earned runs in two innings of work. Rule 5 selection Spencer Miles pitched the third and fourth innings, giving up an earned run in his two innings of work. Thankfully, the rest of the day was smooth for the pitchers.

Louis Varland struck out three of the four batters he faced. Angel Bastardo struck out a batter in his one and one-third innings of work, and Braydon Fisher got the final out of the seventh inning. Brendon Little pitched the eighth inning, striking out the side, while Mason Fluharty struck out a batter in a scoreless top of the ninth.

It appears the Blue Jays will have their “A” squad in the lineup on Thursday, or at least close to it. That game will be in Dunedin at 1:07 PM ET, with Cody Ponce making the start for the Blue Jays.

Takeaways…

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