NOW THAT ONE’S A STRETCH
Jays take series opener from Baltimore with a little glove from Jansen
Blue Jays catcher Danny Jansen reaches back to bring in a pop-up off the bat of Baltimore third baseman Renato Nunez in the third inning Monday night. Kendrys Morales hit two homers as Toronto won 5-3 in the first of three games against the Orioles this week.
A visit from the worst team in baseball lifted the Blue Jays’ spirits on the heels of a difficult road trip, with Kendrys Morales and his two home runs the difference in a 5-3 win Monday night.
Toronto went into the game with a 19-32 record in divisional meetings, but 9-1 against the Orioles. And Morales made sure the Jays improved on those numbers with long balls in the fourth and fifth innings off Baltimore starter Andrew Cashner. The two homers accounted for four runs.
Morales, who didn’t hit above .200 consistently until after June 7, is averaging .290 since then with 10 homers and 23 RBIs.
“He’s dangerous, he’s always dangerous,” Jays manager John Gibbons said. “But he works hard, too. He’s the first guy here just about every day, he spends his day in the cage. If anybody was going to come out of it, it was him.”
Centre fielder Kevin Pillar accounted for the Jays’ other run.
If there was still strife between Gibbons and Pillar a day after the manager had some choice words for the centre fielder when he was caught trying to steal third for the third out of an inning, there was no sign of it.
Gibbons put Pillar in the No. 2 spot in the lineup with Devon Travis unavailable following a root canal. The manager made a point of giving a broad, wry smile and a thumbs-up to television cameras in the first inning when Pillar doubled off Cashner. Pillar went 2-for-4, extending his hit streak to seven games.
“He’s been getting hits,” Gibbons said. “When somebody’s hot ... and you need a guy (hitting) second, put him at second, right? It’s pretty simple and he responded. Thank god we didn’t punish him.”
Catcher Danny Jansen is also riding a streak of his own; the rookie now has a hit in each of his first six major-league games.
Cashner lasted six innings, giving up all five runs on seven hits, walking three and striking out two.
Jays right-hander Marco Estrada was tapped for all three of Baltimore’s runs, including a solo homer by third baseman Renato Nunez. Estrada allowed seven hits and three walks in 51⁄ 3 innings.