Jays’ bullpen plays giveaway as Royals rally in ninth for win
KANSAS CITY This one left a mark that won’t go away for a while. Nor will the stench of a Blue Jays loss so improbable it almost defies description.
It’s not just that they fell 5-4 in stunning fashion to the Royals here at Kauffman Stadium on Friday night, the Jays completely ruined a stellar effort from Toronto starter J.A. Happ.
Instead of a big road win on the coattails of a brilliant pitching performance, a helpless Jays bullpen, which for some reason didn’t include closer ace Roberto Osuna, blew it in spectacular style.
And spectacular probably doesn’t even do it justice.
Staked to a 4-1 lead with two out in the bottom of the ninth, even that wasn’t even enough as the Royals scored four runs, the capper being a ripped shot to left field from Whit Merrifield to score a pair for the final two runs.
The victim for that last blast was embattled Jays reliever Jason Grilli, but he had plenty of bullpen company. Ryan Tepera and Aaron Loup also had a say in the Royals rally, each giving up key hits and key runs in the unlikely decision.
After allowing a double and a walk, Tepera surrendered a twoout single to Alcides Escobar that scored Salvador Perez to make the score 4-2 with runners on the corners.
With a post-game fireworks show on tap, the sellout crowd of 38,848 was still around and suddenly they were at the edge of their seats for a different type of explosion that awaited.
With Tepera done, Loup allowed a single to Alex Gordon and suddenly it was a one-run game with the tying run at third and the winning run at first.
Grilli then came to the mound — while Osuna watched on from the dugout — and the disaster was just about complete. With one swing of the bat, Merrifield handed the Jays their worst loss of the season.
The loss foiled an outstanding start from Happ, who left after 62/3 innings in which he had given up just four hits and one run and his team leading 2-1. The Jays offence even clicked in with a pair of runs in the top nearly enough. The loss dropped the Jays record to 35-38 overall and 2-3 on this seven-game road trip. Instead of Happ getting a third consecutive win, Grilli was tagged with a blown save and Loup with the loss.
Not sure how manager John Gibbons will pick his team up after that one, but the series continues on this afternoon with Marco Estrada getting the call for the Jays.
Gibbons said post game that his ace reliever “wasn’t feeling well tonight. That’s all you need to know.”
HITTING IT BIGS
As a seventh-round pick by the Jays back in 2012, Ian Parmley had to figure it wouldn’t be a short road to the big leagues.
So when it finally arrived, you couldn’t wipe the smile from the face of the 27-year-old native of Snohomish, Wash.
“It’s a dream come true,” Parmley said before making his major league debut in right field.
“I’ve been waiting for this moment since I was five years old. This is what I wanted to do and here I am.”
The move was made as much out of necessity as anything, given the injuries to Steve Pearce, Ezequiel Carrera and Chris Coghlan. But none of that mattered when Parmley got the word from Buffalo Bisons manager Bobby Meacham in the middle of a game Thursday night in Syracuse.
At first, Parmley was ticked that he was being taken out of the game, but the disappointment didn’t last.
“(Meacham) took me down the tunnel and I kind of lost it a little bit,” Parmley said of hearing the news.
There wasn’t much time to get emotional, however. Parmley had to make his way to K.C. in time for Friday’s game, plus alert his parents John and Joanne so that they could make the flight from Seattle in time to see their son’s debut.