Instant Reaction: Trey Yesavage pitches a quality start in Blue Jays’ walk-off defeat against Tigers
The Blue Jays went three up, three down in the top of the first. In the bottom of the first, Trey Yesavage had some traffic, allowing two base runners, but leaving them stranded thanks to back-to-back strikeouts.
Andres Gimenez gives the Blue Jays an early lead!
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And that was basically the lone positive of the game, except for a strong start by Yesavage. In the third, the Tigers cut the Jays’ lead in half after a walk and a single. Yesavage threw two wild pitches in the inning, moving Kevin McGonigle to third, then home.
After two more scoreless innings, including one ended thanks to a great catch by Varsho, Yesavage allowed a second run. Dillon Dingler hit an infield single, but Ernie Clement threw it away, giving the Tigers’ catcher second. A ground out moved Dingler to third, and then he was driven in by Riley Greene’s double.
Yesavage got out of the inning, before Braydon Fisher and Joe Mantiply each threw a scoreless inning. In came Jeff Hoffman in the bottom of the ninth, giving up a one-out single to Matt Vierling. The Tiger stole second, leading the Jays to walk Zach McKinstry. That walk didn’t matter, as Spencer Torkelson split the outfielders with a single, walking off the Jays.
Takeaways…
This game was lost in the third. There’s an argument that it was lost in the second, as George Springer flew out with two on to end a threat. But in the third, Yohendrick Piñango hit a comebacker off Ty Madden and reached first safely. It also took Madden out of the game, which was bad news for the Tigers as he was expected to pitch the bulk of the innings. Hopefully, he’s okay.
After that, the Jays had just two base runners thanks to one-out singles. They were both promptly erased thanks to inning-ending double plays. Had Guerrero Jr. taken a pitch and Piñango not been picked off, we could very well be discussing a different outcome of this game.
Pitching was good, at least. Trey Yesavage made his fourth start of the season, going six innings with four hits allowed, two earned runs, and three walks. He struck out six and got in and out of trouble numerous times, which is similar to his other three starts.
Braydon Fisher threw a scoreless inning, as did Joe Mantiply. Fisher’s ERA now sits at 3.04, while Mantiply has a stellar 2.12 ERA this season. Hoffman was tagged with the loss, but the single was hit off a 71 mph blooper, and the walk-off single had an expected batting average of .170.
The Blue Jays’ former closer hasn’t been great this season, blowing three saves in six opportunities with a 6.05 ERA, but he’s also been incredibly unlucky. Of the balls hit in play, over half (51%) have resulted in a hit. He has a huge discrepancy between ERA (6.05) and FIP (3.16), with a 3.29 xERA and 2.23 xFIP.
Saturday’s game returns to Sportsnet. But since Apple TV was needed to watch Friday’s game, here are a few of my favourite shows on the streaming service: Your Friends & Neighbors, Pluribus, Slow Horses, Ted Lasso, and Severance.
The Jays will look to avoid losing another series, as the second game has a start time of 1:10 PM ET on Saturday. Mason Fluharty is expected to start the game. Spencer Miles will likely eat a few innings as well.