COLE COOLS JAYS' BATS
That 15-run outburst on Saturday? Yankees ace, bullpen dominate in Dunedin
For a while there Monday night at Dunedin's TD Ballpark, it looked like Robbie Ray was going to steal the show in a compelling duel between a pair of on-themark starting pitchers.
Or at least claim his share of the spotlight with New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole.
Through four hitless innings the Jays lefty did just that in his 2021 debut, holding the Yankees hitless. But with one out in the fifth, Ray allowed a singled to the notorious
Rougned Odor, followed by a
Kyle Higashioka homer to spoil what was an impressive effort.
That blast from the Yankees catcher was enough offence to propel the visiting Yankees to a 3-1 win, especially given the way Cole was unleashing his all-star stuff. The right hander struck out eight and at one point retired 15 consecutive Jays, who fell to 4-6 on the season.
With Cole keeping the offence at bay, the Jays were able to remain in it thanks to a solid return to the mound from Ray, who was activated from the injury list earlier in the day.
For both Ray and the Jays, the outing was about much more than one fastball hung over the plate to let the game get away.
With the invigorated lefty appearing to be on his game, there is now some order to the top of the Jays rotation that will continue with HyunJin Ryu working on an extra day's rest on Tuesday. With Steven Matz solid in each of his two starts — winning both — the Jays appear to have some stability at the top.
From the outset of spring training, the Jays had high hopes for Ray after not wasting any time to make their courtship with the pitcher permanent by making his signing their first off-season move.
Through a late-summer trial after acquiring Ray via trade, both sides wanted more. Ray, to work with pitching coach Pete Walker and build on the promise he showed in September, and the Jays to get a reliable arm in a rotation that was desperate for them for much of 2020.
“I put a lot of pressure on myself,” Ray said of the turnaround in form he's enjoyed in his bid to return to the excellent form he had earlier in his career. “It's good pressure, not bad pressure. I definitely feel like I am where I should be.”
During spring training, Ray has built a solid rapport with rookie catcher Alejandro Kirk, who was behind the dish on Monday and helping the southpaw paint the corners.
Kirk, who also caught Ray last fall, immediately noticed a difference in the pitcher, who added 15 pounds of muscle, some zip on his fastball and an attacking mentality.
“When we came here to spring training, you could tell he'd worked very, very hard for this season,” Kirk said prior to Monday's game.
“It's very impressive the way he attacks the hitters. That's one of the things I really noticed from his this spring training. I love that about him.”
Getting the start against the Yankees three weeks after hurting his elbow after falling at his home (and keeping his young child safe in his arms) was never going to be an easy assignment.
But since Ray was almost built up to start the season and didn't have to be shut down for long, it was barely a setback.
He quickly worked back into game shape via bullpen and live batting practice sessions and was ready to go on Monday.
Unfortunately one bad pitch and a stellar Cole kept the debut from being exceptional. But it's clear that Ray is a significant upgrade over Tanner Roark, who has now been relegated to the bullpen for long relief duty.
GAME ON
After allowing a run in the first inning when a Randal Grichuk groundout drove in Bo Bichette, Cole got down to business. He struck out eight over his six innings and retired the last 15 Jays pitchers he faced ... Higashioka continued his battering of Jays pitchers, adding a solo shot off Ryan Borucki in the eighth inning to add an insurance run. It was the catcher's second multi-homer games against the Jays in as many seasons ... The Jays' 14-hit, 15-run outburst from Saturday was short-lived as they were held to just three hits on the night ... A two-out single from Marcus Semien in the eighth ended a run of 20 consecutive outs from Jays hitters ... The Jays have been held to one run in three of their past five games ... Closer Aroldis Chapman brought the 102 mile-per-hour heat on his fastball to close out the Jays in the ninth.
AROUND THE BASES
After missing a day and a half because of reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine he took last week, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. returned to the lineup on Monday, taking his regular spot in left field ... Struggling Rowdy Tellez avoided sole possession of some dubious Jays history when he lashed a third-inning single off of Cole for his first hit of the season. Tellez had been 0-for-21 to that point, sharing the mark for the longest drought to start a season in franchise history along with Socrates Brito (2019) and Pat Borders (1991.) Kirk is now in the chase with an 0-for-13 start ... The Jays were 5-5 against the Yankees in 2020 with all of those wins coming at Buffalo's Sahlen Field where they were 5-2.