Looking For Good Mojo From Toronto Blue Jays Win Over Seattle

April 10, 2013; Detroit, MI, USA; Toronto Blue Jays left fielder Mark DeRosa (16) hits a two RBI double in the sixth inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY SportsThe 10-2 win by the Toronto Blue Jays over the Seattle Mariners on Sunday was big. The score was big, the hit count was big, and the overall performance was big.

The elation of such a performance was even bigger.

The general consensus of Blue Jays fans from coast to coast, and all over Twitter was that this was the type of game performance that we were waiting to see. This was the type of game we have expected this team to play for quite some time, and it took until Cinco de Mayo for it to finally occur.

So what exactly did we see from the Blue Jays on Sunday?

– The Blue Jays banged out 15 hits in the game, with Maicer Izturis, Mark DeRosa, and Melky Cabrera all notching 3 hits in the game. J.P. Arencibia and Munenori Kawasaki each added a pair base knocks.

– Brandon Morrow, who came into the game with a 5.29 ERA, became the first Blue Jays pitcher to throw 8 innings in 2013. At the end of the day, Morrow knocked that ERA down to 4.69. Outside of a four-walk, two-run fifth inning, Morrow was spotless, striking out 8 on the day on the way to earning his first win of the season.

– Talk about signs of life, after struggling against mediocre pitchers, the Blue Jays bats finally came alive and knocked around Seattle pitching. What was most important from that fete? The Blue Jays hitters struck out just once on the day.

– Six different batters came through with RBI on the day, with DeRosa, Cabrera, and Kawasaki each notching a pair or more.

– The Blue Jays have struggled all season to put the lead-off man on base. In Sunday’s game, the Blue Jays put the lead-off man on base 6 times in 8 innings.

But it was not just sheer numbers that started bouncing the Blue Jays way. The breaks that opposing teams have been enjoying at Toronto’s expense finally started swinging back in favor of the good guys.

– In the first inning, after a lead-off double by Rajai Davis and a sacrifice bunt by Melky Cabrera, Jose Bautista hit a routing pop-up behind second base. Justin Smoak and Dustin Ackley appeared to converge on the ball, with Ackley making a stumbling grab at the last minute. With his head in the game, Davis immediately tagged up and scored from third on the miscue.

– In the second inning, Arencibia lead-off with a single. During the next at bat, a wild pitch by Saunders kicked away from Montero, but Arencibia didn’t pick it up and failed to move up to second. DeRosa doubled on the next pitch, moving Arencibia up to third. Arencibia came around to score when Izturis singled him in on the next at bat. In the past, he would have been stranded at third and the Blue Jays would have wasted an opportunity.

– Morrow walks four in the fifth inning, but somehow limits the Mariners to just two runs. In the past, this would have been a demoralizing, big inning.

– In the 7th inning, DeRosa pops one up behind second that Ackley loses in the sun. DeRosa hustles into second base on the drop and then comes around to score on a Kawasaki RBI single.

– In the top of the 8th, Edwin Encarnacion loses a simple pop-up in the middle of the diamond, tripping over the rosen bag in the process. In the past, this play would not only result in runs scored, but also an injury to Encarnacion, the Jays escaped the inning unscathed and uninjured.

While some people would say that we may be clinging to anything good in sight, I am a firm believer in mojo. If you believe good things are coming, then good mojo will come with it. If you believe in the glass half empty, then bad mojo will befall your team.

I choose to see this as a sign of good fortune finally turning toward the Blue Jays.

What do you choose to see from this game?