Blue Jays AL East Recap: Signs of Life

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

Baltimore Orioles: 12-5

New York Yankees: 11-7

Boston Red Sox: 11-8

Tampa Bay Rays: 10-10

Toronto Blue Jays: 5-13

The Blue Jays saw many positives amidst an effort to find their footing in the American League East. Toronto more than doubled its season win total and improved to 5-13 on the season. While the Jays are guaranteed to have a losing April record, they have much to celebrate. First would be the Jays offense. It finally appears to be kicking off the rust. Blue Jays batter’s combined to score 29 runs over 6 games this week. That is more than double the total from the second week (14) and more than they scored During the period they went 2-10. In this 6 game period, the Blue Jays finally had a week of .500 baseball. Both Jose Bautista and Devon Travis hit their first homers (both in timely situations). The offensive hero of the week was undoubtedly Kevin Pillar. He carries the hottest stick on the team, and an 11 game hitting streak.

The Blue Jays saw this productivity while dealing with another set of troubles. Mat Latos and Casey Lawrence made their underwhelming debuts. Both are likely to get another start or two as J.A. Happ saw a setback in his recovery. The Blue Jays lost another veteran to the disabled list as well. Troy Tulowitzki suffered a hamstring injury in a late win Friday Night. With Josh Donaldson on the shelf, the Jays will be forced to play with an infield of Ryan Goins and Darwin Barney. Not the worst pair on the field, but far from the production of the veterans.

Final Takeaway:

The Blue Jays will hope to see more of this production as they wrap up a road trip against the heart of the St. Louis rotation. Toronto also figures to miss out on some time from Kendrys Morales, as they will be without their designated hitter.

Baltimore Flying High
12-5

The Baltimore Orioles improved on their early season success with a 4-2 week, including a pair of wins against the Red Sox. The contest against Boston was not without its hiccups though. Dustin Pedroia was injured on a slide by Manny Machado on Friday Night. This appears have resulted in a retaliatory pitch by Matt Barnes on Sunday afternoon. The Orioles continue to hit and hold Baseball’s best record, even with key players on the shelf. Baltimore’s rotation continues to shine as well. No one shone brighter than Dylan Bundy on Friday night. He absolutely dominated the Red Sox during the contest.

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Brad Brach continues to prove that he’s one of baseball’s best relievers, in any role. He has taken on the closing duties with his usual dominance. Staff ace Chris Tillman has made significant progression in his recovery from injury. He and All-Star closer Zach Britton should return to the fold soon. Once there, they’ll make the best team in baseball even better.

Final Takeaway:

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. The Orioles have been playing excellent baseball in all aspects of the game. The Orioles get more chances to solidify their holdings on the East this week. They are set to face the Rays and the Yankees.

Yankees Regress
11-7

After winning 5 straight games last week, the Yankees streak was ended by the Tigers to start the week. Their misfortunes continued as they dropped the weekend series against the Pirates and former teammate Ivan Nova. The Yankees still cling onto the second spot in the East, but only by a hair. They’ll have to battle the resurgent Red Sox for that spot. It won’t take long, as they open the week in Boston. Luis Severino will have to square off against reigning Cy Young Rick Porcello.

When the Yankees weren’t being stifled by opposing pitching, they were hitting the ball all over the place. That said, their offensive production was lacking much of what we saw from the last few weeks. The offense failed to bail out some excellent starts by their rotation. Losing to Ivan Nova on Sunday had to sting a bit for the club, and feel great for him.

Final Takeaway:

The Yankees will get their first real test of the season as they try to bolster their position in the standings. They fell flat in similar circumstances in the wild card race last year. Let’s see what the Baby Bombers 2.0 can do this time.

Rays Succeed On, Struggle Off Field
10-10

The Rays put themselves atop the leaderboard this weekend, though not the one they wanted. Tampa Bay currently leads baseball with injured players (it could be worse Jays fans). Even worse for the Rays, these have decimated the Rays bullpen. Alex Colome has been excellent as a closer but has little help right now. With Erasmo Ramirez filling in for injured Jake Odorizzi, Tampa has a pen problem. They are currently without Brad Boxberger, Xavier Cedeno, Shawn Tolleson, and now Tommy Hunter. Adding in the injuries to Matt Duffy and Mallex Smith, the Rays have their share of holes to fill in the field too.

The good news for the Rays? They are staying afloat despite this. The Rays managed a 4-3 record this week, and remain at .500. Matt Andriese had a stellar outing for them this week, and their offense has continued to surprise. If the Rays can hang in there a little while longer, they could be transformed into a force to be feared.

Final Takeaway:

If the Rays can continue to succeed despite the injury losses, they could become a dark horse candidate in a tough AL East. If they are still in the mix when the laundry list of players return, they’ll be a team to watch.

Next: Blue Jays’ Stroman angers halos with his swagger