Jays roar back late to complete sweep of O’s
TORONTO — J.A. Happ didn’t let the distraction of trade rumours seep into his performance Sunday in what could have been his last home start in a Toronto Blue Jays uniform.
The veteran left-hander was stellar through five innings in a no-decision, striking out nine and allowing one run as Toronto rallied from three runs down to beat the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 and sweep the series between the two bottom teams in the AL East.
With the playoff picture increasingly dimming in Toronto, Happ’s name has been consistently brought up as a trade target ahead of the July 31 deadline.
“I’m not letting myself go there,” Happ said, when asked if he had thought about the start as potentially his last in Toronto. “I’m just going to wait and see. It’s a tough place to be mentally, so I’m trying to avoid those what ifs right now.”
“I think in some aspects, I want the next week to go quick and in some I think I might look back and maybe not feel that way,” he added.
Happ, in his first start since making his all-star debut Tuesday night in Washington, allowed four hits and didn’t walk a batter, joining Justin Verlander as the only starters this season with four games of nine-plus strikeouts and zero walks.
He cruised through the first four innings and struck out six of his first eight batters. But he ran into trouble in a fifth inning — blemished by a missed opportunity at a double play — as his pitch count crept above the 100 mark.
Jace Peterson tied the game for Baltimore (28-72) in the fifth on a run-scoring single off Happ, and Jonathan Schoop gave the Orioles a 2-1 lead with a solo homer off Joe Biagini in the sixth.
Baltimore tacked on two more runs in the eighth before Toronto (46-52) staged a comeback with a four-run bottom of the frame to steal the win.
Yangervis Solarte drove in the winning runs on a two-run homer off Tanner Scott (1-2) that followed a comeback-sparking two-run shot from Randal Grichuk.
Syndergaard back to DL: In the latest bizarre medical development for the baffling New York Mets, ace pitcher Noah Syndergaard is headed back to the 10-day disabled list after contracting hand, foot and mouth disease.
The team believes it’s likely Syndergaard caught the contagious virus when he made an appearance at a baseball camp for kids during the All-Star break last week. Mets manager Mickey Callaway says that probably explains why Syndergaard weakened and his velocity decreased during Friday night’s victory at Yankee Stadium.
Syndergaard just returned from the DL on July 13 after sitting out more than six weeks with a strained ligament in his right index finger. Callaway and assistant general manager John Ricco say it’s possible the right-hander will miss only one turn in the rotation this time while allowing the virus to run its course.
The news comes two days after a startling health revelation from slugger Yoenis Cespedes, who said he might need surgery on both heels that would require an eightto-10-month recovery.