Fittingly and quite painfully when reflecting on the team’s body of work, the Blue Jays wrapped up the road portion of the 2024 season with a bullpen day.
Rewind all the way back to opening day on March 28 at the Trop and the Jays used three relievers in Trevor Richards, Nate Pearson and Tim Mayza, who combined for three scoreless innings in an 8-2 win.
How times have changed, how so much change must be made this winter in the pen for Toronto to return to any semblance of relevance.
When the season began against the host Tampa Bay Rays, Jordan Romano (elbow inflammation) and Erik Swanson (elbow tightness) were each on the injured list.
The contingent of healthy bullpen arms consisted of Chad Green, Genesis Cabrera, Yimi Garcia, Mitch White and Wes Parson.
Of all the aforementioned names, only Green, Cabrera and Swanson made it to Sunday’s series finale against the Rays.
Supplementing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with power bats is one priority, but so much will depend on whether a long-term deal can be consummated this winter knowing the Jays have only one year of control, which remains the franchise’s biggest priority.
The same applies to Bo Bichette, whose injury-plagued season ended on the injured list.
Decisions await, but any meaningful gains in 2025 will hinge on the strength of the bullpen, a deficiency this past season management was never able to address.
There was Ryan Burr serving as the opener as the Jays closed out their three-game stay at the Trop where Tampa completed the sweep with a 4-3 win.
Burr remains intriguing.
Of greater intrigue is Ryan Yarbrough, the original bulk guy who is a pending free agent.
Yarbrough was quite good against his former team.
Zach Pop replaced Yarbrough with one out in the sixth inning.
Pop retired his first batter he faced on a groundout and then became the latest victim of Jonathan Aranda, who lifted a fly ball into right field for a two-run homer, his third dinger in as many games.
First base was open, but the Jays opted not to issue the intentional walk.
Of Aranda’s 10 career homers, six have come against the Blue Jays.
After tying the game in the top of the seventh, the Jays, who had Cabrera on the mound, were trailing.
Whether it was a very nice play in left field by Davis Schneider or the second strikeout/pickoff sequence in two successive games, the Jays did manage to avoid a big inning, which would also see manager John Schneider ejected for arguing home plate umpire Nate Tomlinson’s strike zone.
Richard Lovelady became the third reliever used by the Rays when the lefty started the eighth inning.
Two two-out hits later and yet another pitching change would be made, this one triggered after right-fielder Jonny Deluca over-ran a play in foul territory that should have led to the inning’s third out.
Enter Hunter Bigge, who faced Davis Schneider, who struck out on four pitches.
The game featured its second long ball when Swanson surrendered a solo bomb to Brandon Lowe in the eighth inning.
Edwin Uceta became Tampa’s fifth reliever.
A leadoff walk to pinch-hitter Alejandro Kirk followed by a one-out double by Ernie Clement had the tying runs in scoring position.
Tampa elected to pitch to Guerrero, who took the first pitch and sent it into centre to record his 100th RBI of the season.
In the final road game of the season, the Jays would see their record drop to 73-83, while Tampa reached the .500 mark at 78-78.
During Toronto’s final road trip of the year, it went 1-5.
With Boston in town for a three-game set beginning Monday, fans will at least to get see Danny Jansen and more at-bats from Guerrero.
Other than that, there’s not much, if any, interest left.
HIT CLUB
Tony Fernandez became the first player in Blue Jays history to reach 200 hits in a single season when he recorded 213 in 1986.
Vernon Wells holds the team record for most hits when he produced 215 in 2003.
John Olerud, Paul Molitor and Shannon Stewart are fellow members of the Jays’ exclusive club.
Guerrero may soon join the coveted group.
Following a three-hit game Saturday when he started at third base, Guerrero had increased his hit total to 191.
Guerrero DHed Sunday and had yet another three-hit game.
With the season down to its final six games, all at home, Guerrero is six hits shy of joining the 200-hit club.
RUN OF THE MILL
As if anyone had forgotten the miserable plight of the Jays’ hitting with runners in scoring position, it was reinforced in their series against the Rays, who shut out Toronto 1-0 in Friday night’s opener.
The first time the Jays were able to cash in a runner from scoring position arrived Saturday when Spencer Horwitz hit a ball that barely travelled 10 feet up the third base line.
When the Jays had the bases loaded in Sunday’s fourth inning, they had gone 1-for-17 with runners in scoring position.
With two outs, Leo Jimenez hit a sac fly into centre field as the Jays had their first lead of the series.
The inning ended on a Jonatan Clase fly ball to left field.
Interestingly, they resorted to small ball in the seventh inning when they attempted to bunt home Clase, who would get tagged out at the plate.
Clement stepped up by driving in the tying run.
Clase, by the way, had his first multi-hit game in his second game with the Blue Jays since his callup from triple-A Buffalo.