During Cincinnati’s heyday in the 1970s, the team was known as the Big Red Machine, a collection of future hall of famers who won back-to-back World Series.
The 2024 Jays aren’t even going to appear in the coming post-season, but at least they resembled a poor man’s version of a Big Blue Machine.
And to think Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wasn’t able to add to his team-leading home run total.
At least for one night, the Jays didn’t have to rely on Vlad Jr.’s thump after he went yard in Monday’s series opener when Cinci took the game, 6-3.
In the second game of the three-game series, the Jays unloaded by hitting five home runs, including going yard on back-to-back at-bats.
The Jays won by a comfortable 10-3 margin, setting up Wednesday’s series rubber match.
For the first time this season, the Jays hit five home runs in a game, with George Springer going deep twice.
Vlad Jr. started at third base for the seventh time this season and will likely make his eighth in the series finale.
It’s no secret the Jays will be in the market for some power bats this off-season.
But as Chris Bassitt made perfectly clear the other day during a podcast, there’s no reason why Vlad Jr. shouldn’t play more often at third base.
His weight is no longer an issue and it’s never bad to show competence at third while chasing a mega-contract.
The free-agent market at third base is pretty thin, a list that includes one-time Blue Jay Matt Chapman.
The list at first, by comparison, is pretty deep, a group that includes Pete Alonso.
In the meantime, the Jays can only control what they can control.
On Loonie Dogs Night, with the Rogers Centre roof closed, the Jays took complete control when Alejandro Kirk and Spencer Horwitz belted back-to-back dingers in the third inning.
Vlad Jr. had two hits in his first three at-bats, both singles on sharply hit balls.
Through four innings, the Jays had hit three homers, recorded two triples and one double.
In total, 11 hits were recorded and seven runs scored during the stretch.
For a refreshing change, the spotlight was on Toronto’s red-hot hitting.
Not to be overlooked was Jose Berrios, who gave up three hits through five innings.
For the third straight start, Berrios went seven complete innings, his 96-pitch outing against the Reds featuring two walks, back-to-back no less in the second inning, two runs on six hits, while recording seven strikeouts.
In the home half of the seventh, former Jays catcher Luke Maile was on the mound for Cincinnati, which took advantage of a new rule that allows a team trailing by eight runs to use a positional player.
For the record, Maile pitched two perfect innings.
Davis Schneider, who entered the game as a pinch hitter with two outs in the eighth, couldn’t even record a hit off a positional player as Schneider’s woes at the plate continue.
WILL POWER
For the first time during his brief run as a Blue Jay, Will Wagner hit cleanup.
In his six previous games, Wagner’s name has normally appeared in the bottom of the order.
He has been raking, the club has no legitimate cleanup hitter and Wagner clearly deserved a move up in the order.
Wagner came through for the Blue Jays in his first at-bat when he scored Daulton Varsho.
For Wagner, it was his fourth RBI in his seventh game, Wagner’s 10th hit in his 20th at-bat.
In the second, Joey Loperfido, who came to Toronto with Wagner as part of the package that sent Yusei Kikuchi to Houston, tripled.
When the Jays made the move with the Astros, Loperfido was the first player to report with the Jays, who were in Baltimore.
Wagner, meanwhile, was sent to triple-A Buffalo.
Loperfido hit a triple in the second inning of Tuesday’s game and came around to score Toronto’s second run.
The third player acquired, right-hander Jake Bloss, remains with the Bisons.
With the Blue Jays in Boston following the completion of their seven-game homestand, there’s a chance Bloss might make his debut.
The Jays and Red Sox will resume their suspended game on Monday with the regularly scheduled game to follow as part of an unusual double dip.
The Jays will cross paths with Danny Jansen and may actually see their former teammate in Boston’s starting lineup.
In late June, Davis Schneider was on first base following a walk in a scoreless game with one out with Jansen about to hit.
If Jansen does play Monday, he would have technically played for two teams in the same game.
DRESSED TO THE NINES
The Jays broke open a tie game in the home half of the second inning when nine total bases would be recorded.
In fact, the Jays were one single shy of hitting for a combined cycle of sorts.
There was the Loperfido triple before Addison Barger turned on a pitch to record a double.
One batter later, Springer went deep for a two-run home run.
With Leo Jimenez back in the lineup following a knee setback he suffered at Wrigley Field during Saturday’s rain delay, the Jays’ bottom of the order featured Loperfido, Jimenez and Barger.
The trio combined to score four runs and record five hits, including Jimenez going deep for the third time this season.
Oddly enough, the only one not to strike out was Loperfido, who is known for whiffing.