Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman (34) hangs his head as Tampa Bay Rays’ Yandy Diaz rounds the bases on his three run home-run during second inning MLB baseball action in Toronto, Thursday, Sept. 15, 2022.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
Kevin Gausman was disappointed with his start for the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday, but he took solace in knowing he chewed up innings at an important time.
As the Blue Jays are showing, it’s complicated to manage a rotation in the thick of a September sprint, manoeuvring around doubleheaders and facing division rivals for playoff spots.
One such rival – the Tampa Bay Rays – clobbered the Blue Jays 11-0 Thursday in the finale of a five-game set in Toronto, a result that squeezes the two foes tighter in the American League wild-card standing.
Gausman absorbed the loss, which included just a few mistakes by the Jays’ veteran right-hander in his 28th start of the season, as he gave up a solo shot and a three-run homer. Yet he did pitch well enough to eat up seven innings, much needed as the Jays carefully plot pitching assignments through a congested stretch of late-season games that will determine the team’s postseason fate.
Tampa’s win leaves three teams – the Seattle Mariners (80-62), Jays (81-63) and Rays (80-63) – all within a half game of one another in the AL wild-card race. The fourth team, the Baltimore Orioles, arrives in Toronto on Friday to open a three-game series.
The Jays didn’t know Thursday night who they would start on Friday, but are likely to use a mix of bullpen arms. Playing two doubleheaders eight days apart called for adjustments to the usual Jays’ rotation, to ensure pitchers get appropriate rest between outings.
“That’s probably the one positive thing I did today, was go seven innings, and give some of those guys a break,” said Gausman, (12-10), who soldiered on Thursday, despite throwing 45 pitches in the first two innings. He allowed five earned runs on six hits against seven strikeouts.
“Every game means a lot right now,” Gausman said. “I just wish I could have shown up and pitched the way I know how.”
The Rays weren’t done scoring after Gausman left. The Jays also used Zach Pop, Trevor Richards (five earned runs) and David Phelps (one earned run) out of the bullpen.
Blue Jays interim manager John Schneider said that Richards and Phelps’s lengthy appearances – they combined for 47 pitches – complicated his plan for Friday.
The Jays have become used to adjusting pitchers on the fly, most recently during a day-night doubleheader on Tuesday. Alek Manoah was scheduled to start Tuesday’s daytime game, but woke up with a stomach bug in the night – so disconcerting that the 23-year-old considered visiting an emergency room before ringing the team’s trainer in the wee hours. Toronto’s ace remained at home to rest and hydrate while his teammates played the matinee at Rogers Centre, holding out hope that Manoah would be well enough to start the 7 p.m. game.
The Jays knew they’d need a bullpen game somewhere in Tuesday’s doubleheader, so they made it the early game instead. They started Julian Merryweather and he pitched one inning. Then Mitch White, who was called up from Triple-A Buffalo that day to be the 29th man, took over and threw six innings. That was the first of two Jays losses in the five-game series against the Rays. But White fulfilled the job of eating up innings, too.
With the help of two IV drips and a nap until 2:30 p.m., Manoah was able to pitch Tuesday night. He emerged with a football tucked under his arm shortly before that game, as he always does, then warmed up. Manoah, among the favourites for the AL Cy Young award, unleashed his signature array of sliders, sinkers, changeups and fastballs, and gutted through 6⅔ innings. He left to a standing ovation from the fans after allowing five hits and two earned runs – both homers – with five strikeouts.
“As long as I wasn’t throwing up,” Manoah said with a laugh, “I knew I’d be all right.”
The playoff picture is still murky with just under three weeks in the regular season. The Jays have 18 games left over six series. The Jays, Rays and Orioles each face a bunch of playoff contenders down the stretch – namely one another. The Mariners have it far easier – a schedule heavy against teams with losing records.
“If you’re going to be where you want to be, you have to beat good teams eventually, whether it’s in September or October,” said Schneider, who isn’t wasting time comparing the strength of teams’ schedules at this point. “The schedule has been out for a long time, so we know what’s coming. And I think it’s good to keep the intensity, the adrenaline, kind of that feeling that every game is important.”