Game Recap: Blue Jays Drop Spring Training-esque Game

In their second game of the doubleheader, the Blue Jays sent out a lineup of: Dalton Pompey, Cliff Pennington, Ezequiel Carrera, Chris Colabello, Matt Hague, Josh Thole, Munenori Kawasaki, Darwin Barney and Jonathan Diaz. No one would have imagined such a line up at the beginning of this year. And no, it was not because all the regulars got the flu, it’s because the Toronto Blue Jays are officially AL East champs. That still needs to soak in. The regulars got a well deserved rest and the B-team was more than happy to get an opportunity to audition for the post-season roster or for jobs next season.

The Buffalo Bisons, er… the Toronto Blue Jays were unable to put much together against Kevin Gausman this evening. Gausman held the Jays in check until the 8th when Darwin Barney sent a pitch out of the yard. He was done after 8 innings.

RA Dickey, on the hand, was excellent in his 5 innings of work. As predicted, Dickey was pulled after 5 innings. Dickey was really out there just to get some work in and stay sharp. R.A threw 58 pitches. He allowed 2 hits, walked none and struck out 3. This game would have had a substantially different outcome if the Jays were still looking to clinch and Dickey was kept in the game.

Things went downhill after Dickey left the game. The normally dependable Ryan Tepera got rocked. He allowed two home runs. Liam Hendriks didn’t fare much better and loaded the bases. Still with none out, Aaron Loup was brought in to clean up the mess and did finish off the inning. He allowed three inherited runners to score but wasn’t charged with an earned run. Seldom used Steve Delabar saw action in the 8th. He promptly gave up a homer to Chris Davis… and then a two-run shot to Matt Wieters. He eventually scraped together 3 outs.

It was the most meaningless regular season game the Blue Jays have played in a long time. To be honest, it was somewhere between a bore and an embarrassment to watch. The mind of the team was totally elsewhere—which makes complete sense and you can’t blame them. It was easy to forget about it watching the clubhouse celebrations though. (No, the image for this article isn’t from the game but it’s what’s sticking in our minds right now)

Game Notes:

– Darwin Barney has been a pleasant surprise down the stretch. The Jays may be rueing the fact that he isn’t playoff eligible

– The only real highlight of this game was it ending so the revels could begin

– Forget this one and PARTY!

RA Dickey. STARTING PITCHING . “A”. In perhaps his most meaningless start as major league pitcher, Dickey was highly effective. He was used sparingly and the starters for the rest of this regular season will also be used gingerly. Dickey didn’t allow a run over 5 innings. .

“F”. Yikes. Tepera did himself no favours in trying to snag a postseason roster spot. Hendriks’ spot on the playoff roster is still safe but he had quite an off night. Loup gave up a few hits as well but wasn’t charged with the runs. Not be outdone, Steve Delabar had an awful night allowing 3 earned. Yikes, good thing no one gave a crap about this one. . Aaron Loup. “RELIEVER”

The AAA Blue Jays weren’t able to get anything going offensively until the 8th inning. Barney got his first home run of the season. Everyone was pretty much phoning it in after that point. . Darwin Barney. “OFFENCE” . “D-”

MVJ: RA Dickey

Next: Blue Jays: AL East Champs

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