Blue Jays AL East Recap: Jays Struggle Out of Town

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: 45-30
Boston Red Sox: 41-34
Toronto Blue Jays: 41-36
New York Yankees: 37-37
Tampa Bay Rays: 31-43

The Blue Jays faced a down week, being out-pitched and out-powered by the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Chicago White Sox.

After pacing their American League East foes well over a three week period, the Blue Jays fell flat against out of division rivals. The Blue Jays rotation struggled, and the offence the Jays had seen so much of lately was out of sight for most of the week.

Despite the struggles of the week, the Blue Jays did get two days of rest to help accommodate for the grind they have been on for most of June. Additionally, though the Orioles consolidate their power, the Red Sox similarly declined, leaving the Jays just a game out of the second place position.

If the Jays can find their power stroke and get a good few weeks from their rotation they could uproot the Sox from second (and from the first Wild Card Slot they currently hold).

Final Takeaway: 

Though they struggled this week, the Blue Jays received key rest opportunities that should allow them to stay healthy, and compete long into the season. If they can find the strength they showed for most of June, they could be set to excel in July.

Now let’s take a look at the division rivals…

Next: Orioles Remain Kings of the East

Orioles Consolidate Power
Baltimore Orioles: 45-30

A week after gaining sole possession at the top of the American League East, the Orioles wasted no time ensuring that they would stay there.

After dropping their first two games of the week to the Texas Rangers and San Diego Padres, they took the week back winning their final five, including a double-header on Saturday night. This allowed them to make most of their stumbling AL East competition, and build up a comfortable four-game lead.

The Orioles won the way they have been, with their bats. Their rotation has been a lot more stable, too, with Yovani Gallardo off of the DL helping to relieve a taxed bullpen.

Now that their set with the Rays over, the Orioles will enjoy a few weeks of out of division competition to further increase their hold over the AL East.

Final Takeaway: 

The Baltimore Orioles look poised to ride to the All Star Break as kings of their own fate. And kings of the AL East.

Next: Red Sox Slide

Boston falls behind in the East

Boston Red Sox: 41-34

The Red Sox entered last week ready to fight to stay in first place, but they ended this week four games behind it.

Boston saw little success in a full week of play, losing a four-game series against the White Sox, followed by a series loss against the Texas Rangers. Their normally strong offence, was silenced for most of the week as their rotation struggled.

Boston’s biggest flaw of the week was its bullpen. The normally strong ‘pen blew multiple leads leading to two losses. Combined with their rotation woes, especially those of Clay Buchholz, the Red Sox looked weaker than they have been.

The Red Sox’ bats will rebound, their offensive core simply had a bad week. Their rotation and bullpen will need to be worked out if the Red Sox are to gain any ground in the East. The bullpen looks like it might have had a down week, but given the inconsistency of Boston’s staff to go late into games, the Red Sox could be in for trouble if they can’t solve their rotation problems.

Final Takeaway:

The Red Sox looked downright bad during this full week of play. They will look to right the ship against the weak Tampa Bay Rays to start the week.

Next: Yanks Have a Mild Week

Tampa Bay see hopes fade

Tampa Bay Rays: 31-43

The Rays finished the week with a season-high seventh consecutive loss. During this time they dropped to 12 games below .500 and are more then ten games outside of first.

Tampa Bay looked poised for a breakout after finding a consistent blend of power bats and rotation quality. Their rotation struggled mightily this week, and their bats were barely present. Outscored  50-17 during the course of the week, their normally strong bullpen showed signs of deterioration as they have been left taxed in the wake of their weak rotation.

The future for the Rays is uncertain. They have had brief glimpses of greatness, resembling one of the best teams in baseball when they’re really on. However as the season goes on, the Rays are showing less and less of the that side of themselves. The road to the All Star Game will be a long one for them. They will need to show off that dazzle to become relevant.

Next: Blue Jays reportedly not signing Jose or Edwing?

Final Takeaway:

The Rays will need to muster all they can in the month of July to prove that they can be more then sellers at the Trade Deadline.