Well, if it wasn’t official before, it’s definitely official now: The Toronto Blue Jays are on fire. They have now won eleven straight games after sweeping a three game series against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, and now hold a record of 34-30, which is just one game behind the New York Yankees and the Tampa Bay Rays for first place in the American League East.
It has definitely been an entertaining month of June if you are a Blue Jays fan, as they have a lineup that is just flat out stacked with home run power. They have four players who have hit double digit home runs this season, and they’ve caught lightning in a bottle with undrafted 31 year old left fielder Chris Colabello, who has hit .343 with 4 home runs and has driven in 22 runs in 143 at bats. He’s come out of nowhere and excelled at a level that is just unimaginable. Right fielder Jose Bautista has continued to be that big time threat at the plate, and even though his 11 home runs aren’t quite where the slugger expects to be at this time in the season, his production at the plate is still there, driving in 38 runs. First baseman Edwin Encarnacion has picked up where he left off last season as he continues to show off his ability to drive the ball out of the park even though his average is below .240. He has 13 big flies and has driven in 37 runs. Catcher Russell Martin is surprisingly having a huge year with the bat as well hitting .285 with 10 home runs, 34 RBI, and has an on base percentage of .369.
Of course, you can’t talk about the Toronto Blue Jays without mentioning 29 year old third baseman Josh Donaldson, who broke out two seasons ago with the Oakland Athletics, but has found a new home in Toronto. He’s having an MVP caliber year in 2015, hitting .315/.369/.575, leads the team in average, hits with 80, home runs with 17, RBI with 47, slugging percentage, runs with 52, and doubles with 15. He’s been both a catalyst and a run producer out of the 2-hole in this potent lineup. Everywhere you turn on this team there’s talent, and I didn’t even bring up shortstop Jose Reyes who is having a very good comeback season, hitting for an average of .300 with 9 stolen bases and 21 RBI, or 30 year old outfielder Danny Valencia who has taken the playing time he has gotten and ran with it, hitting .330. Even second baseman Ryan Goins is getting in on the fun, hitting a three run home run and driving in five runs in yesterday’s 13-5 blowout of the Red Sox. This is a very dangerous lineup and should not be overlooked.
The only issue I can think of would be in their starting rotation. 24 year old right hander Drew Hutchinson was supposed to be the ace of the staff, but he has been extremely inconsistent thus far, and you can say that he has regressed. His earned run average has sky-rocketed to 5.75 after being shelled for 8 runs on 9 hits and 3 home runs by Boston. His record is 5-1 but he can thank his offense for that, as his ERA has been between 5 and 8 all year long. Last time I checked, that wasn’t good. Veteran soft-tossing lefty Mark Buehrle has given the Blue Jays a solid starter, as he’s pitched to a record of 7-4 with an earned run average of 4.25. That’s nothing special but it’s good enough to get the job done, and at this point, you’ll take that if you’re Toronto. Knuckleballer R.A Dickey, whom the Blue Jays acquired in the trade that sent starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard and catcher Travis d’Arnaud to the New York Mets, has continued to struggle. Dickey is 2-6 with a 5.29 ERA. That was one of the biggest steals of a trade that I’ve ever seen. Could you imagine if you could add Syndergaard and d’Arnaud to this roster? They would probably be a playoff team for years to come. Aaron Sanchez has pitched to a 3.55 ERA, which is impressive, but his strikeout to walk ratio is definitely something to keep an eye on, as he’s walked a staggering 37 hitters in 66 innings this season.
The Blue Jays bullpen has been decent as Liam Hendriks, rookie right hander Roberto Osuna, and left hander Brett Cecil, who looks like he’s taken over the closer’s role, have held down the fort. But they’ve had their trouble closing out games. Their bullpen has combined to record just 8 saves out of 18 save opportunities this season. The eight saves may partly be because when they’ve won, they’ve blown the other teams out, but it’s also because of their struggle to close games out.
Overall, you need consistent pitching to win in this league. No matter how potent your lineup is, if you have trouble getting opposing hitters out, you’re going to have trouble being consistent as a team. Do I think they have a shot to contend in the weak American League East? I think they have a shot, yes. Are they fun to watch? Absolutely. But as long as their pitching staff continues to struggle, they will have a tough time making a push for October baseball.
The Blue Jays look to stay hot as they start up an unconventional series against the Mets tonight in which they will play two games in New York and then fly to Toronto for another two games. It will be an interesting matchup: The Blue Jays’ great hitting vs. the Mets’ great pitching.
