DETROIT – The first half of the Blue Jays’ 2023 season was frustrating, with more than its share of missed opportunities and underperforming players, but at least it ended on a high note.
One day after being no-hit, the Blue Jays were down to their last out trailing 3-1 on Sunday afternoon. But Matt Chapman walked and Danny Jansen connected for a game-tying, two-run home run to left field to buy the Blue Jays a little more time.
“It's awesome. You feel on top of the world at that moment," Jansen recalled. "It's definitely a great finish. Last game before the break, to be able to go out on top … it's good.”
"It went from one extreme to the other in one swing," added manager John Schneider. "You went from 'damn' to '(expletive), yeah' in a hurry."
An inning later, Nathan Lukes doubled home Daulton Varsho to give the Blue Jays a 4-3 win, delighting the many Blue Jays fans who packed Comerica Park with the biggest weekend crowd it’s seen since 2017. The victory assured them of a series win over the Tigers and gives them a 50-41 record heading into the All-Star break – an 89-win pace.
They’re competitive, in wild-card position and now 7.0 games behind the AL East-leading Rays. Yet when you consider that the Blue Jays have superstar calibre players in their primes and a franchise record payroll, it’s still a little underwhelming.
“It’s been a bit of a roller coaster. Frustrating at times for the fans and us for sure,” said Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano, who was named an all-star Sunday. “But I believe our best ball’s ahead of us. We’re playing pretty good now and we’ve just got to keep that rolling.”
“Up and down,” added starter Chris Bassitt. “Really good or really bad. But I think our best baseball is by far to come.”
True to form, Sunday’s game offered its share of highs and lows. Jansen’s homer offered a huge lift and the Toronto bullpen offered six scoreless innings to keep the game close.
At the same time, Bassitt completed just four innings, allowing all three runs. And one day after being no-hit, the Blue Jays combined for only five hits in another quiet day at the plate.
“We’ve definitely got some superstars on this team, but they can’t do it by themselves so we’re all got to pick it up a little bit,” said designated hitter Brandon Belt.
Zooming out beyond Sunday’s loss, let’s take stock of where the Blue Jays stand, starting with some negatives:
• Below-average offensive performances from core players Alejandro Kirk and Daulton Varsho, both of whom have an OPS under .650.
• Offensive numbers from Vlad Guerrero Jr. that are better than league average (13 home runs, .787 OPS), but worse than the numbers he posted in 2022 and far off his career-best 2021 production.
• The struggles of Alek Manoah, whose strong showing Friday night capped a first half in which he spent a month in the minors and posted a 5.91 ERA.
• A lack of upper minors prospects available to reinforce the big-league rotation or support the big-league lineup.
Now granted, there were positives, too. Among them:
• All-Star calibre seasons from Bo Bichette, Kevin Gausman, Whit Merrifield and Romano.
• Bounce-back seasons from Jose Berrios and Yusei Kikuchi. In Kikuchi, the Blue Jays have a serviceable back-end starter. As for Berrios, he looks like a No. 2 starter again.
• Elite outfield defence thanks to newcomers Kevin Kiermaier and Varsho, who rank first and second, respectively, in defensive runs saved by MLB centre fielders.
• A strong bullpen including the emergence of right-handers Trevor Richards and Nate Pearson as trusted leverage arms.
It adds up to a team that needs its existing roster to perform better if they’re going to reach the playoffs, let alone achieve their ultimate goal of winning it all. Some reinforcements may come from the minors and further help will be pursued in trades (pitching reinforcements and a right-handed bat should be the top targets), but the biggest potential for change likely lies with players already on the roster.
“At this point we definitely haven’t played our best baseball,” said Gausman. “We’re in a spot where we feel like we’re good, but we definitely know we’re capable of a lot more.”
One way or another, the remaining 71 games of the Blue Jays’ season have high stakes. And if they continue playing the way they did on this 5-1 road trip through Chicago and Detroit, the second half has a chance to be far more memorable.
"We put ourselves right in the middle of a playoff hunt," Schneider said. "It's been a battle. We've been on the road a lot. It's been a grind. To be in this position is great. Enjoy the time off and hopefully hit the ground running when we get home. It's been a little bit of a roller coaster, but such is life in the big leagues."
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