Morales homer caps comeback
When Marco Estrada last won a game, the Toronto islands were still above water.
It was May 27, to be precise, the last time the Blue Jays right- handed starter picked up a W. In his 10 starts since, Estrada has gone 0- 6 with three no decisions.
On Wednesday night at the Rogers Centre, the 2016 all-star went five innings and gave up three hits, including a two- run home run by Oakland shortstop Marcus Semien in the fifth inning. A decent outing, but he did walk four.
But the Jays managed just two hits off of Oakland starter Paul Blackburn over seven innings and five hits overall.
Fortunately for Estrada and the 41,984 fans at the Rogers Centre, two of those hits came in the form of home runs in the bottom of the ninth inning as Toronto roared back to record a dramatic 3- 2 walk- off victory over the reeling A’s.
Oakland manager Bob Melvin brought in righthander Santiago Casilla to try to close the game for the A’s but Casilla began the ninth by walking Josh Donaldson. He then gave up a two- run home run to Justin Smoak, who deposited his 28th of the season into the second deck in right. The next batter, DH Kendrys Morales, then won by slamming a moon beam just over the fence in right — the sixth time this season the Jays hit back-to-back dingers, the last three by Smoak and Morales.
The victory was the third in a row for the Jays.
Estrada, whose two- year, $26-million contract expires after this season, is said to be one of two or three Jays on the trading block. But the way he’s pitched since May, the Jays can’t expect to get a lot for him — that is if someone is willing to take a chance on a 34- year- old finesse pitcher. To his credit, it’s tough getting a win when your team’s offence constantly goes in hiatus as they did on Wednesday night. The Jays had their chances, but stranded five on base and hit into two double plays.
Estrada did get out of a first inning jam. After loading the bases — on two walks and an infield hit with two out — he managed to get DH Ryon Healy to pop out to the catcher Miguel Montero for the third out, though he did have to throw 27 pitches. The first inning has been particularly unkind to Estrada, which has kept him from working deep into games several times this season.
In 20 first innings prior to Wednesday’s game, Estrada has allowed 15 runs on 23 hits and 12 walks. Opponents have posted a .902 OPS over that time.
Estrada settled down after the first inning, retiring seven hitters in a row before first baseman Yonder Alonso smacked a double to right in the fourth with one out. But the Jays’ starter got out of that jam by striking out the next two.
Unfortunately for Toronto, the wheels fell off for Estrada in the fifth when Semien smashed a two-run homer to left to put Oakland ahead 2-0. Estrada was pulled after five innings and 100 pitches.
With the Jays down 2- 0 in the sixth and Donaldson on second, Smoak hammered a Blackburn offering to the .500 level in right, but just foul. The Toronto all-star first baseman ended up lining out to short to end the threat.
The Jays stranded Jose Bautista at third base in the first inning. Bautista, who has played in all 101 games for the Jays this season, opened the inning with a double to left and moved to third on a sacrifice fly by Donaldson to right. But with Smoak on first, Morales hit into a double-play to end the inning — the 18th time this season the club’s DH has hit into a DP (tied for the most in the AL).
With Kevin Pillar on first, Bautista hit a missile to centre field that Oakland outfielder Rajai Davis managed to corral at the warning track in the eighth.
The Jays’ bullpen was lights out again, allowing only one baserunner in the last four innings of the game. Joe Biagini walked Matt Chapman with two out in the ninth. Biagini got the win, now 3-8.
Three homers were recorded in the game between two teams who have been reliant on the home run ball. Entering the game, the Blue Jays had the league’s highest rate of runs scored by home runs at 51.1 per cent.