Morales goes yard, again
Hampered by a back injury, Marco Estrada struggled through his start on Sunday.
Estrada (7-10) surrendered five earned runs on seven hits and walked four over parts of just three innings as the Toronto Blue Jays fell 8-3 to the Philadelphia Phillies.
“I just wasn’t making pitches, had no command of my fastball or changeup,” said Estrada. “Threw some OK curveballs, but for the most part, I just had no idea where the ball was going.”
Estrada left his July 3 start against the Mets after just a third of an inning and landed on the 10-day disabled list with a left glute strain, but says he doesn’t plan on missing time with his nagging back ailment.
“I’m good enough to be out there and I don’t plan on missing anything,” he said. “I’m going to work through this and maybe get a cortisone shot or something and numb it up and be ready to go for the next one.
“I haven’t really had much issues with it this year, but obviously the last two weeks or so it’s been bothering me. Not really sure what happened, but it is what it is. Obviously I’m going to look into it (in the offseason) and get it all fixed up because I can’t keep doing this.”
Wilson Ramos went 4 for 5 with a home run and three RBIs for the Phillies (70-60), who won for just the second time in eight games.
Vince Velasquez (9-9) allowed two earned on three hits while striking out six and walking three in five innings in the win.
Kendrys Morales hit a home run in his seventh consecutive game — eight homers in total — as the Blue Jays (60-70) had their season-high five-game win streak snapped.
Morales got Toronto on the board in the bottom of the third, taking Velasquez’s 2-0 pitch over the right-field wall for a two-run homer, his 21st of the season. With the home run, Morales surpassed Jose Cruz Jr. (2001) for the longest home run streak in franchise history.
The Blue Jays designated hitter will donate a bat from the streak to Cooperstown while Sunday’s ball will be displayed in the team’s trophy case in the clubhouse.
“Really happy that they want my bat, and they want something,” Morales said through an interpreter. “It’s amazing what I’ve been doing so far so it’s really nice.”
The 35-year-old also tied the fourth-longest home run streak in MLB history and is just the seventh player all-time with a streak of at least seven games.