The Toronto Blue Jays made it two straight against the Minnesota Twins in their 9-3 win as Jose Bautista scored his seventh homer of the season after some tremendous stuff from Josh Donaldson, whose third-inning double got the Blue Jays up and running.
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Second baseman Jimmy Paredes, who joined the Blue Jays this week after being claimed off waivers from Baltimore, committed a damaging error in the first inning when he let a groundball through his legs with one out that led to a run.
Of course, Donaldson had crossed home plate and rather than pointing to the heavens, he continued across the dirt portion and half-way onto the grass in foul ground – all the while staring into the Twins dugout. Donaldson, ejected in the first inning Saturday, connected three pitches later for his 11th home run, a 425-foot drive to straightaway center field. “If you don’t get ahead and stay ahead, you get into those fastball counts and they just get comfortable in the box”.
Roberto Osuna then came on to get a four out save.
Pat Dean, making his first big league start in his third appearance, did not figure into the final decision.
“It’s just having a feel for his pitches, understanding hitters and tendencies, and executing”, Molitor said. The first inning was Hughes’ downfall Sunday. Given how good the starting pitching has been, once the offence gets better the Blue Jays will go on a run that will propel them to the top of the AL East. “Giving up three runs, it’s a tall task for our guys to dig our way out of a hole”.
Ryan Pressly (1-3) gave up the one-out single to Encarnacion in the top of the 11th that set up the winning run, and Tulowitzki delivered against Fernando Abad to send the Twins to their 16th loss in the last 19 games.
“Yeah, I definitely had a little bit more motivation to go out there and play”, Donaldson said. If he expects to get a hefty pay day in the offseason then he needs to improve his offensive numbers because teams will not want to pay for a player that is declining offensively, especially at his age.
“It’s hard to say they were better than us today”.
Kurt Suzuki hit an RBI groundout in the second after Oswaldo Arcia’s double put runners at second and third, starting a stretch in which Stroman retired 17 of 18 batters. Donaldson complained to plate umpire Mark Ripperger that a warning or ejection should be issued.
Manager John Gibbons came out to argue and eventually crew chief Joe West ejected him. Stroman hit Suzuki with a pitch in the bottom of the inning.
Blue Jays: LHP Aaron Loup (forearm flexor strain) began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Buffalo on Saturday. “It’s tough. You feel like you have decent stuff with a chance to pitch a pretty good game”.
Twins: RHP Kyle Gibson will go on a rehab assignment to Class A Fort Myers, where he’ll test his strained shoulder in a start Sunday and make at least one more there before rejoining the Twins. General manager Billy Eppler said Lincecum would need 20 to 30 days to get ready. He allowed career highs of 13 hits and seven runs over 5 2/3 innings in Tuesday’s loss to Tampa Bay.
The Twins scraped together a run in the second inning to bring the score to 3-1.
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The Blue Jays have won six of Stroman’s last seven road starts and are also 8-2 in his last 10 outings coming off four days of rest.
