4 Takeaways From Blue Jays' Loss to Mariners

TORONTO — The Blue Jays have been chasing that elusive three-game sweep all season.

Toronto entered the final stop of a three-game series versus the Mariners with a bit of added zip, having won back-to-back contests for the first time since May 1. The air was quickly drained from Rogers Centre, though, and, despite getting a few chances to make things close, the Blue Jays fell short on Wednesday.

Here are four takeaways from the Blue Jays’ 5-1 loss to Seattle.

Baserunning blunder wrecks the Jays’ chances

This was the most glaring error of the game. Trailing by a run in the sixth inning, Toronto had Alejandro Kirk at the dish and Teoscar Hernández on second with one out.

Mariners starter Marco Gonzales stared Hernández down for a few seconds, then quickly spun his shoulders and fired a seed to his second baseman, Abraham Toro, who slapped down the tag. The play was reviewed, and Hernández was called out.

The Blue Jays remain near the top of the league in having baserunners picked off, and the latest gaffe was the costliest of the bunch. Kirk grounded out in that at-bat and Toronto never really threatened again.

"Of course, it's a concern," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said of his club's baserunning woes.

Montoyo said he doesn't want his team to be less aggressive; the Jays just need to be smarter.

"Not everybody's getting picked off, just a couple of guys, but we've got to talk to them individually and just gotta be careful," he said. 

Gausman wobbles for the first time since Opening Day

After a shaky first start with the Blue Jays, Kevin Gausman has pitched like a Cy Young candidate this season. His 2.40 ERA through seven starts was a great number, only bested by his league-leading 0.83 FIP, a sparkling indicator of his stinginess handing out walks or homers. The problem with near perfection, however, is that any deviation from status quo looks more dramatic than it really is.

On Wednesday, a few screws shook loose. From the get-go, it looked like Gausman didn’t have his best stuff. The first three Mariners hitters ripped singles off him before a sac fly plated the game’s first run.

"They really got my pitch count up and got to me early in the first inning," Gausman said. "And I felt like I threw 50 pitches in the first inning. I think, at one point, I was at 18 pitches and hadn't gotten an out yet. So, not ideal, but, we worked through it."

The 31-year-old rolled a clean second, hit a snag and walked a batter in the third, but settled back down in the fourth. It was a rare rollercoaster outing for Gausman, who flashed an occasional sharp splitter through his five innings of work yet generated just seven whiffs on 48 swings.

"That's just a testament to them and their game plan," Gausman said, commending Seattle's plate discipline. "I thought they did a really good job of really battling."

Gausman’s fifth and final inning was especially tragic, as, after 49 innings, he allowed his first longball of the season—a solo shot to Cal Raleigh—ending MLB’s longest active homer-less streak.

In total, the right-hander pitched five innings, allowed an uncharacteristic seven hits, two earned runs, walked one, and struck out three.

Gurriel exits with hamstring tightness

Toronto was nipped once again by the injury bug, as left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was removed after two at-bats with hamstring tightness, per the Blue Jays.

Raimel Tapia replaced Gurriel in the field and went 0-for-2 at the plate. Gurriel was pulled from a game with a hamstring issue earlier this season, too, but Montoyo said there's no concern, and his outfielder won't need any further evaluation on the injury

"That happens to him once in a while," the Jays skipper said. "And so trying to compensate to kind of be careful because you can pull it. That's why we took him out."

The nagging hammy offers some explanation for Gurriel’s .369 OPS this month. The 28-year-old has always been prone to hot cold stretches during his career, but he’s rarely sunk this low. Still, Montoyo expressed confidence in Gurriel.

“At the end of the day, he ends up hitting .300, .280,” Montoyo said pre-game when asked about Gurriel’s streaky track record. 

Guerrero receives Tip O’Neill Award for Best Canadian Baseball Player

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. narrowly missed out on the 2021 AL MVP award, but his tremendous performance didn’t go totally unrecognized. Last season, the 23-year-old was an AL All-Star, a Silver Slugger, and received the James “Tip” O’Neill award, given to the best Canadian baseball player.

On Wednesday, the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame officially handed Guerrero the O’Neill hardware in a small pre-game ceremony. Guerrero, who was born in Montreal, smiled for a few photos before returning to the dugout

“I’m honoured to receive this award,” Guerrero said in a statement. “It’s an honour to be honoured in the country I was born in. Thank you to the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. I hope to win this award again in the future.”

It’s likely Guerrero wins the award again—perhaps as early as 2022—though he’s got some work to do before he catches MLB Hall-of-Famer Larry Walker, a nine-time O’Neill winner.