Blue Jays MiLB Report: Tellez, Smith Jr. homer again

Toronto Blue Jays scores and analysis for minor league games played on Saturday, September 3rd

Buffalo Bisons (66-76)   –   3
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (89-52)   –   5

Jio Mier led the way offensively for the Bisons from the bottom of the lineup going 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Domonic Brown hit his 24th double of the season and Matt Dominguez went 2-for-3 with a walk.

Casey Lawrence got the start for Buffalo and pitched seven innings, allowing four earned runs on just four hits and two walks. He struck out seven and took the hard-luck loss. Murphy Smith handled the final frame, working around a hit and a walk to keep the RailRiders off the board.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (68-72)   –   5
Portland Sea Dogs (54-83)   –   2

Rowdy Tellez continued his late-season surge by hitting his 23rd home run of the season, giving him six in the last nine games. Dwight Smith Jr. is keeping pace with 15 on the season, and his solo shot on Saturday gave him three in his last five games. Ian Parmley was 2-for-3 with a double while Roemon Fields drove in two (1-for-3).

Shane Dawson earned his 10th win of the season, allowing just two runs in seven innings. He limited the Sea Dogs to just five hits and did not walk a batter. John Anderson struck out three over the final two innings to earn his first save of the season with New Hampshire.

Dunedin Blue Jays (76-58)   –   6
Clearwater Threshers (81-54)   –   5

The D-Jays needed 11 innings, but took the win on a sacrifice fly from David Harris that scored Dickie Joe Thon from third. John La Prise and Jonathan Davis both went 2-for-6 at the heart of the order while Max Pentecost hit a solo home run in the sixth inning, his third since being promoted to Dunedin.

Conor Fisk got the start for Dunedin and allowed three runs over six innings, striking out four. Tim Mayza (1.1 IP, ER, 2 K) and Dusty Isaacs (1.2 IP, ER, K) bridged the gap to Chris Rowley, who earned his 10th win of 2016 with two scoreless innings.

Lansing Lugnuts (69-69)   –   6
Lake County Captains (70-68)   –   0

Juan Kelly hit his 35th double for the Lugnuts, part of a 3-for-3 day with an RBI, walk, and two runs scored. Lane Thomas doubled and drove in two while Joshua Palacios doubled and scored. Catcher Ryan Hissey was 2-for-4 with a pair of singles.

Justin Maese was absolutely excellent for Lansing, pitching five and two-thirds scoreless innings with just two hits and two walks allowed, striking out seven. Kirby Snead picked up with two and a third scoreless, striking out two, before Geno Encina completed the great day of pitching with a clean ninth.

Next: Blue Jays morning brew: Stroman, bullpen, podcast

Vancouver Canadians (29-43)   –   8
Tri-City Dust Devils (32-32)   –   0

Designated hitter Nash Knight was responsible for driving in four of Vancouver’s runs, going 2-for-4. Christian Williams went 1-for-3 with two RBI while Bryan Lizardo had a patient day at the dish, going 1-for-2 with three walks and three runs. Jacob Anderson also walked three times, giving the Canadians 10 on the day.

Patrick Murphy kept the Dust Devils scoreless for four and a third on just three hits, but had his outing cut short by four walks. Griffin Glaude followed with two and a third innings, striking out five and allowing just one hit. Zach Jackson (1.0 IP, 3 K) and Nick Hartman (1.0 IP) closed out the game.