Blue Jays AL East Recap: Jays Fall to the Bottom

Blue Jays struggle before key division series

Each week, Jays Journal will take a look at the bigger picture of the AL East to help frame not only where the Blue Jays are in the standings, but why they are there.

Baltimore Orioles: 26-16
Boston Red Sox: 27-17
New York Yankees: 21-22
Tampa Bay Rays: 20-21
Toronto Blue Jays: 22-24

The Blue Jays struggled in a big this past week. An inconsistent offence, a down week for the rotation, and an awful ‘pen paved the way for the Blue Jays’ being swept by the Rays. Despite winning 3 of 4 from Twins in Minnesota, the Jays fell to the bottom of the pile, as the AL East competition surged ahead of them.

Normally two of the Blue Jays’ strongest options, J.A Happ and Marcus Stroman both had rough outings early in the week as the Rays offence mounted a mighty challenge. Their offensive bursts only highlighted the inconsistency and problems the Jays have faced with their own offense this season thus far.

Bullpen woes continued as Happ looked much stronger was unable to get his win as the ‘pen blew the lead on Saturday. Thankfully for Toronto, Stroman looked much stronger on Sunday allowing only one run on three hits over 7.2 innings.

Things are not all doom and gloom however. A recovering Devon Travis has been excellent in his rehab starts, and is poised to join the team in the very near future. Creative lineup adjustments, too, have helped the Jays to manufacture some runs. Batting leadoff, Jose Bautista has three home runs and six RBI’s to show for it.

Final Takeaway:

The Blue Jays are not the worst, but while the rest of the division is finding consistency, the Jays own adjustment period seems to be coming a little late. Time is drawing close for the Jays to make or break.

Next: Orioles Keep on Keeping on

Red Sox ride hot JBJ; offense to maintain pace

Boston Red Sox: 27-17

The Red Sox continued to be a force to be reckoned with this week, despite early struggles with the Royals.

Jackie Bradley Jr. extended his hitting streak to 27 games on Sunday night, while David Ortiz continues to hit like it’s 2004. The Red Sox received a much needed shot in the arm adding Joe Kelly back from the disabled list and watched him shine on Saturday in his start against the Indians.

Kelly will provide a much-needed boost for the Red Sox rotation as they still try to find consistency. However, much like the Orioles, a consistent rotation doesn’t mean much when you are outscoring your opponent as much as the Red Sox are.

David Price continues to be a mixed bag of tricks, adding another win to his record, while still managing a 5.53 ERA.

Final Takeaway:

Offence has been the name of the game early in the AL East, as powerful bullpens continue to be the succeeding force behind it. The Red Sox have both, and will look to gain a lead if the Orioles’ offence falters.

Next: The Evil Empire Strikes Back

Yankees ride a streak of strong starts back into the picture

New York Yankees: 21-11

The Yankees received five straight quality starts in five consecutive wins to close that gap in the AL East. Their success amid the Jays’ inconsistencies has helped to propel New York back into the picture and third overall in the division. They will look to continue this against the Blue Jays and the Rays this week.

The rotation has long been New York’s biggest problem, but this week saw five consecutive starting pitchers twirl out gems, and wins as a result. With an offence that has regained consistency after an early May slump, they Yankees could make a stab at the top of the division.

The Yankees bullpen has established itself as one of the most feared units in the American League, something which will come in handy as the Yankees look to dispatch their division foes this week.

Final Takeaway:

The Yankees could be poised for a major breakthrough. By finding consistency in their rotation, they can enable their scary offence and dominant pen to the win column.

Next: Rays keep themselves in the picture

Rays stay in the picture

Tampa Bay Rays: 20-21

The Tampa Bay Rays slaughtered the Blue Jays early in the week, in a dazzling combination of rotation dominance and offensive superiority. This display of power/pitching has been the thing the Rays have been missing on a consistent basis.

If they can keep things going against fellow division rivals this week, they may well be able to fight their way towards the front end of the division.

Tampa Bay’s offence showed they were capable of exploiting some of the League’s best pictures early in the week, as the Rays staff showed that they were no slouches either.

Drew Smyly, Chris Archer, and Jake Odorizzi combined to allow just five earned runs in 27 innings at the beginning of the week, followed by Matt Andriese pulling off his third straight win to highlight a four-game win streak.

Next: Blue Jays shopping Drew Storen?

Final Takeaway:

The Rays will look for more of the same from both their lineup and their rotation as they look to gain ground in the the AL East.