Toronto goes for the sweep after rallying for three runs in the 12th inning capped by a walk-off wild pitch.Upton, who clubbed 16 homers and drove in 45 runs for San Diego before he was shipped to the Blue Jays on Tuesday, will be in the lineup Wednesday and is expected to play primarily against left-handers.
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He fouled off four-seamers up; he fouled off sliders down; he fouled off change-ups outside. At one point, Travis took a fastball down and in deep down the left field line where it bent ever so slightly past the yellow screen and, of course, foul. A wild pitch then scored Travis to win the game.
“I’m proud of the guys”, Gibbons said. “To go in that atmosphere and that moment and grind out an AB like that, to (almost) hit a homer and come back and take the next pitch, it shows you the composure that Devon has”.
Blue Jays manager John Gibbons was equally impressed by Perdomo, who came in with a 6.93 ERA.
With Edwin Encarnacion batting, a pitch bounced away from catcher Derek Norris, and Travis slid in headfirst just ahead of the tag as his teammates stormed out of the dugout to celebrate.
Upton couldn’t join Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins for an early afternoon press conference because he was at the nearest border crossing being cleared to re-enter Canada. “It was a insane game”. “Sat at border patrol for a little while, jumped in the vehicle and came back”. They kept gutting it out and competing. “That’s all you ask for”.
Well before any of that, San Diego starter Andrew Cashner took the mound knowing he was very likely making his final start for the Padres, as the hard-throwing right-hander has been at the centre of the Major League Baseball rumour mill for weeks.
Pillar cut the deficit to 7-3 with a two-out, two-run double, and scored on a single from Carrera in the bottom of the sixth, but Dickerson led off the eighth with a solo homer off Franklin Morales. After Kevin Pillar beat out a double-play ball, Darwin Barney doubled to move Pillar to third with one out.
Donaldson and Justin Smoak homered for the Blue Jays (57-44).
The Blue Jays looked sunk in the top of the 12th inning.
“It was about this time previous year that I took off and felt good”, said Dickey, who had five strikeouts over his 5 2/3 innings of work. That would be the end for Stroman who finished with seven strikeouts.
“What attracted us to him was several things”, Atkins said. “I felt like I could throw the ball where I wanted to”. “I actually thought (Dickey) had a good knuckleball today”.
The Padres will counter with right-hander Luis Perdomo (4-4, 6.93 ERA), who has never faced the Blue Jays before.
“I know (Clemens) has a really good curveball, a really sharp one”, Travis said. “He put it all aside, stepped up and pitched a big game”. The Nationals reinstated first baseman Ryan Zimmerman from the disabled list after he missed 13 games because of a strained left rib cage.
But then Myers sent a rocket to right field for a two-out double in the 12th. But this is a really good ball club all around.
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But that only set the stage for Travis’ dramatics in the bottom half of the inning.
