Blue Jays Lose to Phillies

Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Toronto Blue Jays started off the final week of Spring Training with a loss to the Philadelphia Phillies in a rained shortened 7+ inning affair.

Phillies-6 Blue Jays-3 W: Buchanan L: Morrow S: Neris

Brandon Morrow went 5 innings giving up 5 hits, 4 ER, 3 walks and 4 Ks. It wasn’t a bad outing for Morrow. The numbers and results don’t say the whole story. Of note are the walks. Not that 3 is an obscene number, it was more the timing and manner of them. The first one came in the second after back to back hits by Ryan Howard and Domonic Brown. Morrow promptly issued a 4 pitch walk to John Mayberry. Morrow did the same in the 4th: two hits and a 4 pitch walk. Both times, it appeared as though Morrow was frustrated with giving up two hits. The walks just came so quickly after the hits. Regardless, issuing the walks after back to back hits allowed the Phillies to score 2 in each of those innings to make it 4-0. Meanwhile, David Buchanan, Mario Hollands and Phillippe Aumont held the Blue Jays scoreless.

Jose Bautista, making the start in CF did his best to try and stop that lead. On a fly ball to CF, he threw a bullet for a strike to the plate that nearly gunned down Mayberry. The very next play was similar in that there was a play at the plate and RF Brad Glenn (less) nearly throws out Cody Asche at home.  Both times, Dioner Navarro was positioned very well to comply with the new rules regarding home plate collisions. That answers the question as to whether there would be a big adjustment period.

When the rain started to fall, the Blue Jays started their substitutions and, oddly, their scoring. In the 6th, Colby Rasmus scores Munenori Kawasaki with a double off Greg Smith. In the 7th, Brett Carroll hit a double off the CF wall to score Gabe Jacabo and Josh Thole.

The Phillies would add 2 more in the 8th after  Sergio Santos gives up a hit to Mayberry, the only batter he faced, and Tony Davis gives up a double to Cameron Rupp and Tony Gwinn Jr.

OF NOTE: 

–Matt Tuiasosopo made his Blue Jays debut going 1-3 with 2 Ks

–Casey Janssen made his Grapefruit debut giving up 2 hits and nothing else.

–Maicer Izturis played shortstop as Jose Reyes missed another game to nurse his hamstring. He’ll have an MRI today according to Brendan Kennedy at The Star.