Toronto Blue Jays take opener with gem from Dickey

The Toronto Blue Jays took their time doing it, but came away with an exciting 3-1 win in their series opener against the New York Yankees. R.A. Dickey was the star of the show allowing just 1 earned run over 8.0 innings pitched while Brett Cecil looked sharp to earn a save.

Toronto struggled to hit in high-leverage situations at several points early in the game, but that all changed when Russell Martin stepped to the plate for a pinch-hit opportunity in the eighth inning. Martin’s infield single also caused an error to score two, giving R.A. Dickey the run support that has been missing in action before Monday.

Final. 1. 43. 3. 39

Game Notes:

Josh Thole started with Dickey on the mound and handled the knuckleball very well. His framing may have been the best that Dickey that has received this season, even if the home plate umpire did not agree.

Ezequiel Carrera

dropped one of the nicest bunts of the season in the bottom of the third, showing his plus speed tool along the way. An errand throw by Whitley sailed into the right field foul area, and Carrera raced all the way to third. Blue Jays fans were beginning to forget what a real “bunt” looked like, so this was a welcome sight.

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Ryan Goins made multiple highlight-reel plays, saving R.A. Dickey from a single up the middle in the second inning and doubling up Alex Rodriguez with a great scoop and throw in the fourth.

Toronto failed to capitalize on a wide-open opportunity in the sixth with some untimely situational hitting. Following a Devon Travis single and Josh Donaldson double, the Blue Jays had runners on second and third with nobody out. Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion and Kevin Pillar were all retired without a productive out, however, which isn’t an acceptable outcome.

In the eighth inning with a similar situation (runners on 2nd and 3rd, 1 out), Kevin Pillar once again popped up to the infield. He’s been doing all of the right things up until this point, but from the five spot in the lineup, Pillar needs to get the ball to the outfield in one of those at-bats.

Russell Martin was the man of the hour following Pillar, however, ripping a ground ball down the third base line and beating out the throw to first. Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion scored on the play to set the table at 3-1 for Brett Cecil in the ninth.

A. That’s the R.A. Dickey we have all been waiting for. Dickey gave the Blue Jays’ rotation exactly what it needed with 8.0 innings of quality baseball on 108 pitches. The knuckleball was dancing all night long, and Dickey added a beautiful snag on a comeback liner to help his own cause.Dickey will swing between highs and lows as the season continues, but this is an encouraging sign of what he can be when his pitch is “on”. With <a href=. Game Ball. R.A. Dickey. STARTING PITCHING

Game Ball. Russell Martin. HITTING . C+. It only took one at-bat, but Russell Martin did what the Blue Jays struggled to do on Monday: hit with runners in scoring position. This was scheduled to be Martin’s game off with Dickey on the mound, but after <a href=

Game Ball. Brett Cecil. BULLPEN . A. Brett Cecil is back! It took the lefty just 10 pitches to close out the New York Yankees in the ninth inning, and he seems to have fully regained his 2014 form. When Cecil is able to spot his pitches early in the count it opens the door to his lethal curveball, and if he can continue down this path, the bullpen may find some relief.

MVJ: R.A. Dickey — All water finds it’s level, and finally, R.A. Dickey has found his groove. With the struggles around the roster, Dickey has quickly become one of the most important players on the Blue Jays, and he answered the bell on Monday. This is the type of start that can kick the rest of the rotation in the seat of their pants ad kickstart a widespread rebound.

Next: Devon Travis: AL Rookie of the Month

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