TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays blanked the Guardians, 1-0, in the third game of their four-game series last night…Was their 12th shutout of the season, matching Milwaukee & Cleveland for the most in MLB…Have surrendered one run or fewer in four consecutive games, equaling the longest streak in franchise history (4G from Sept. 7-10, 1990 & 4G from May 23-27(1), 1984). Toronto has won 11 of its last 17 games, 20 of its last 31, and is 39-26 over its last 65 contests…Its .600 win% over that span (since May 26) is the highest mark in the AL (3rd in MLB)…Is currently holding the 3rd Wild Card spot, 1.5 games back of Houston (66-49) for the 2nd spot, and 2.0 games up on Seattle (62-52)…With a win today, can improve to 23-14-0 in series play this year (12-8-0 on the road).
SPRINGER STAMINA: George Springer provided all the scoring last night, drilling a solo home run in the 1st inning on the 13th pitch of his at-bat…Was tied for the most pitches seen in a plate appearance ending in a home run by a Blue Jay since pitch counts have been tracked (1988), matching Bo Bichette (Sept. 5, 2019), Dave Berg (July 8, 2004), and Tony Batista (April 18, 2001)…Became the 2nd Blue Jay ever to hit a 1st-inning home run in a 1-0 win, joining José Bautista on Sept. 23, 2010 vs. SEA…Marked his 14th longball of the season and his first since July 7 at DET, snapping a skid of 23 straight homerless games. Since snapping a career-long 0-for-35 hitless streak on Aug. 2 vs. BAL, the Connecticut native has gone 13-for-29 (.448) with three doubles, a home run, five RBI, and four walks (1.155 OPS).
ALL GAUS, NO BRAKES: Kevin Gausman earned his 9th win of the season last night, twirling 7.0 shutout frames while scattering four hits with no walks and six strikeouts…Marked his 7th start with at least 6.0 innings and no earned runs allowed, matching teammate Chris Bassitt for the most among MLB hurlers. The 32-year-old leads the AL with 183 strikeouts (2nd: Pablo López – 173), behind only Spencer Strider (211) for the MLB lead…Currently tops the Majors with a 2.70 FIP and a 4.4 fWAR…Also ranks 1st in the AL in K rate (32.5%) and SO/9 (11.85) while ranking 3rd in ERA (3.04), 5th in SO/BB (5.38), and 6th in innings pitched (139.0).
A VLAD, VLAD MAN: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singled in the 3rd and 8th frames as part of a 2-for-4 night…Was his 32nd multi-hit game of the season…Has recorded an AL-leading 196 hard-hit balls (95+ MPH) this season, 19 more than the next closest batter (Kyle Tucker – 177)…His 54.0 hard-hit percentage ranks 8th in the Junior Circuit.
KIRK CLICKING: Alejandro Kirk went 1-for-3 with a walk last night…Has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 starts, going 18-for-44 (.409) with two doubles, three homers, and seven RBI (1.169)…Has raised his season batting average by 28 points since July 20th (from .230-.258).
THE D-JAYS: According to Sports Info Solutions, Toronto fielders have recorded a total of 67 Defensive Runs Saved, the most in the Majors (2nd: MIL – 48)…The group is led by an MLB-high 25 runs saved in center field, 13 more than any other team (KC – 12)…Among all MLB fielders, Daulton Varsho sits T-1st with 19 runs saved (12 in CF, 7 in LF) while Kevin Kiermaier is T-8th with a CF-best 13 DRS…Alejandro Kirk ranks 2nd for the most runs saved by catchers (12).
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Blue Jays are at the end of a seven-game, seven-day road trip (5-1 so far)…Own a 35-27 road record this season for a .565 win%, 3rd best in The AL…Have won 15 of their last 20 road games, the best road record in the Majors since June 20th (.750%)…After this four-game set in Cleveland, will head to Rogers Centre for a five-game homestand against the Cubs (59-56) and Phillies (63-52). Blue Jays hitters sit 2nd among MLB clubs with a .265 road AVG, while ranking 2nd in the AL in road OBP (.333), 3rd in road SLG (.430), and 3rd in road OPS (.762)…The pitching staff ranks 5th in the AL in road ERA (3.98), 10th in road WHIP (1.29), and 12th in road opponents’ AVG (.253).
WHAT A RELIEF: Toronto’s bullpen threw a pair of shutout innings yesterday (2H, 2K)…Since June 20th, Blue Jay relievers lead the AL in ERA (3.04), FIP (3.41), opponents’ SLG (.352), opponents’ OPS (.648), HR/9 (0.73), and inherited runners scored % (16.4).
PITCHING IN: Toronto pitchers have combined for a 3.72 ERA this season, the best mark among all MLB teams… Are 4th in MLB with 1,092 strikeouts (MIN – 1,112; MIA – 1,100; CWS – 1,095)…Rank 6th in the AL in WHIP (1.25) and 7th in opponents’ average (.241)…The rotation has 55 quality starts, 3rd most in MLB.
HITTING IT: Toronto batters have notched 1,039 hits this season, 3rd most in MLB (TEX – 1,084; ATL – 1,042)…Are currently 2nd in the AL in team OBP (.330), 3rd in AVG (.260), 5th in OPS (.749), 6th in SLG (.418), and 7th in extra-base hits (350).
ALEK IN ACTION: Alek Manoah takes the hill today for his 19th start of the year…In five starts since being recalled, has gone 2-1 with a 4.26 ERA (12 ER/25.1 IP) while holding hitters to a .221 AVG (14BB, 25K).
VS. THE GUARDIANS: All-Time: 219-222-2
2023: 2-1 Road: 102-120-2
Road: 2-1 Progressive Field: 45-68
The Blue Jays are facing the Guardians for the first time this season…Lost two of three at Rogers Centre last year after dropping three of four at Progressive Field last May…Three of their last four losses in Cleveland have been by a single run.
Santiago Espinal hit safely in all six of his games against the Guardians last season, going 8-for-19 (.421) with three doubles, an RBI, and four walks (.522 OBP, 1.101 OPS)…Is a career .333 hitter (11- for-33) vs. CLE, notching four doubles and four RBI for a .905 OPS.
George Springer recorded four hits over his four meetings with the Guardians in 2022, batting .333 (4- for-12) with a pair of doubles and four RBI…Over 39 career games vs. CLE, has hit .287 (41-for-143) with 12 doubles, eight homers, and 21 RBI (.930 OPS).
Whit Merrifield leads all current Blue Jays with 116 career games against his former division rival…Has gone 118-for-461 (.256) over that stretch with 22 doubles, two triples, 10 homers, and 48 RBI.
STARTING PITCHER – Alek Manoah, RHP #6
TODAY’S GAME: Making his 19th start of the season and his 10th on the road…Picked up his 3rd win of the year his last time out, on 8/4 at BOS, giving up 3 runs over 6.2 innings (6H, 2BB, 5K)…Was his 4th quality start of the season, and his longest outing since a 7.0 frame start on 4/22 at NYY. Owns a 3.94 ERA (21 ER/48.0 IP) in 9 road starts this year, compared to an 8.15 ERA (32 ER/35.1 IP) in 9 games at Rogers Centre. Since entering the league in 2021, has held opposing righthanded hitters to a .183 AVG, the 6th-best mark among qualified hurlers.
2023 HIGHLIGHTS:
Gave up one run over 4.1 innings on 7/29 vs. LAA, surrendering 4 hits with 3 walks and 6 strikeouts. Took a no-decision on 7/23 at SEA, giving up 3 runs over 5.1 frames with 3 hits, 4 walks, and 6 strikeouts. Picked up his 2nd win of the year on 7/7 at DET in his return from the minors…Threw 6.0 frames of one-run ball with 5 hits, no walks, and a season-high 8 strikeouts. Made a start with Double-A New Hampshire on 7/2 vs. POR, tossing 5.0 innings of one-run ball with 3H, 3BB, and 10K. Took the loss on 5/3 at BOS, giving up 5R/2ER over 5.0 innings with 8 hits, a walk, and 3 strikeouts on a season-high 103 pitches (63 strikes). Threw 7.0 shutout frames on 4/22 at NYY, scattering just 2 hits and a walk with 5 strikeouts…Was his 2nd outing with 7.0 scoreless innings this season (also: 4/5 at KC).
Took a no-decision in the team’s Home Opener on 4/11 vs. DET, giving up 3 runs on 4 hits and 5 walks over 4.1 innings with 3 strikeouts…Became the 5th pitcher in team history to pitch the club’s Season Opener and then their Home Opener, joining Jim Clancy (1981), Jimmy Key (1989), Marcus Stroman (2016), and Hyun Jin Ryu (2020). Earned his 1st win of the year on 4/5 at KC, tossing 7.0 frames of one-hit, shutout ball with four walks and five strikeouts. Was the Opening Day starter for the Blue Jays on 3/30 at STL…Took a no-decision that day, giving up 5 runs on a career-high 9 hits and 2 walks over 3.1 innings with 3 strikeouts… At 25 years and 80 days old, became the 4th-youngest Opening Day starter in team history (Drew Hutchison – 24.227 in 2015; Todd Stottlemyre – 24.324 in 1990; Marcus Stroman 24.338 in 2016).
CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
SPRINGER SOLO SHOT ENOUGH TO DOWN GUARDS 1-0
Despite receiving yet another exceptional effort from the Guardians pitching staff, Cleveland fell to the Toronto Blue Jays by a 1-0 margin on Wednesday evening at Progressive Field, as our neighbors to the north avenged a 1-0 loss from the previous night… Cleveland is 2-4 entering the finale of this 7-game homestand against Chicago-AL (1-2) & Toronto (1-2)…club has gone 11-7-2 over last 20 series (+2G above .500/34-32 record since May 26).
LOGAN ALLEN set the tone early, following similar efforts by his right-handed rookie rotation mates GAVIN WILLIAMS (7.0IP, H, 0R, BB, 12SO) and TANNER BIBEE (7.0IP, 6H, 0R, BB, 6SO) the previous 2 nights…the southpaw Allen held the Jays to a single run across his 5.0 frames (5.0IP, 4H, 1R-ER, HR, BB, 3SO, 87 pitches), which came in the second plate appearance of the contest on a solo homer by George Springer…Springer finished the contest with a game-high 3 hits…KOLE CALHOUN picked up a pair of singles for the lone multi-hit effort in Cleveland’s lineup…Kevin Gausman earned his 9th win for Toronto (7.0IP, 4H, 0R, 0BB, 6SO, 90 pitches), scattering just 4 hits that included doubles by STEVEN KWAN and OSCAR GONZALEZ. » Cleveland (55-60) sits in 2nd place in AL Central standings, 4.5 games behind 2nd-place Minnesota (60-56) and 3.5 games ahead of 3rd-place Detroit (-8.0G, 51-63)…despite dropping 9 of last 12, Guardians have still won 23 of 45, 30 of 58 and 33 of last 64…have also dropped 54 of last 100 overall since starting year 9-6.
RUNNING WITH THE ROOKIES
Following stellar performances from GAVIN WILLIAMS (7.0IP,
1H, 0R/ER, 1BB, 12SO) on Monday and TANNER BIBEE (7.0IP,
6H, 0R/ER, 0BB, 6SO) on Tuesday, LOGAN ALLEN (5.0IP,
4H, 1R/ER, 1HR, 3BB, 3SO) added to the incredible 3-game run by Guardians rookie starting pitchers…in this series, the trio combined for a 0.47 ERA (1ER/19.0IP) with 21 strikeouts and 4 walks while allowing only 11 hits in their 19.0 innings of work…per Elias, Williams, Bibee and Allen are the first trio of Cleveland rookie starting pitchers to start in 3 consecutive games and allow a total of one earned run across the 3 starts since Stan Coveleski (9.0IP, 0ER), Al Gould (9.0, 0ER) and Jim Bagby (9.0IP, 1ER) on August 1-3, 1916…the pairing of Williams and Bibee became the first duo of Cleveland rookies to throw 7.0-scoreless innings in back-to-back starts since Albie Lopez and Jeff Mutis on July 17-18, 1993.
Williams became the first Cleveland rookie and 12th rookie in MLB history to post an outing of 12+ strikeouts and one-or-fewer hits… his 12 strikeouts on Monday night were the most by a Cleveland rookie since Luis Tiant on August 18, 1964 (G2) and T6th-most in a game by a rookie in franchise history…Bibee became the 7th pitcher in MLB history to make 16 starts of 5.0+ innings and 3-orfewer runs within their first 18 career starts…he also became the first Cleveland rookie starter to win 6-or-more straight decisions since Jeremy Sowers (6, 2006).
LET’S GET IT STARTED
Cleveland’s starting pitching has excelled in the second half, holding opponents to 2-or-fewer earned runs in 21 of the rotation’s 25 outings since July 14… they have lasted 5.0-or-more innings in 20 of their 25 starts since the All-Star Break, with 3 of those 5 outings being XZAVION CURRY’s spot starts…the rotation’s 2.59
ERA (39ER/135.1IP) to start the second half is the lowest in MLB, 33 points lower than the next-best team (Toronto, 2.92)… per Elias, the Guards have the 2ndyoungest average age of current MLB starting rotations (25 years, 317 days), behind Cincinnati (25 years, 258 days) as of August 7…the table above shows how Cleveland’s starting pitching ranks among MLB teams since the All-Star break.
RUMBLE, YOUNG MAN, RUMBLE
Cleveland is one of 2 MLB teams (also Oakland) to have 6 different rookies throw 30.0+ innings this season; TANNER BIBEE (101.2IP) LOGAN ALLEN (91.1IP), XZAVION CURRY (64.0IP), GAVIN WILLIAMS (49.2IP), PEYTON BATTENFIELD (34.2IP) and HUNTER GADDIS (31.1IP)…40.10% of Cleveland’s innings pitched this season (423.0IP/1010.0IP) have come via rookies, 2nd in MLB behind Oakland (41.88%)…the Guards rookies rank amongst MLB clubs’ rookies in wins (20, 1st), games started (60, 1st), strikeouts (376, 2nd) and innings pitched (412.0, 2nd)…per Elias, Cleveland possesses the 2nd-youngest average age of current MLB pitching staffs (27 years, 31 days), behind Pittsburgh (26 years, 281 days) as of August 7.
LET’S JUST SPLIT THE BILL
With Toronto winning on Monday and Wednesday and Cleveland winning on Tuesday, the Guardians need a win in today’s contest to split the 4-game series with the Blue Jays…during the Terry Francona era, the Guardians are 34-29 against the Jays and 20- 13 at Progressive Field…overall, Cleveland is 222-219 all-time against Toronto dating back to 1977…the Guardians have won or split each of their 4 previous 4-game series this season, taking 3 of 4 at Seattle and vs. Kansas City while splitting at Minnesota and at Chicago-AL…the Guards last lost a 4-game set on August 25, 2022 vs. Seattle, dropping 3 of 4 contests.
CITY OF ROCK AND ROLL PLAYING THE HITS
Since June 1, Cleveland has out-hit their opponents in 37 games, 3 more than any other MLB team (Miami and Texas, 34)…the Guardians 26 wins in those 37 games are most in the AL and 3rdmost in MLB behind Atlanta (30) and Los Angeles-NL (28)…their 11 losses when out-hitting their opponents since June 1 are more than any other MLB team, ahead of Miami and Houston (10).
Despite a season-long stretch of 12 straight games without reaching the 10+ hit mark, the Guardians rank T1st in the AL/T2nd in MLB with 27 10+ hit games since May 30, trailing Atlanta (28)… the club’s 573 hits since May 30 are 2nd-most in MLB during the stretch, behind Texas (586)…with a .267 batting average since May 30, they rank behind both Texas (.272) and Atlanta (.285)… Cleveland has 3 players ranking in the top-15 in hits among MLB players since May 30; no other team has more than 2 players… JOSH NAYLOR (74, T6th), JOSÉ RAMÍREZ (71, T9th) and STEVEN KWAN (69, T15th) comprise the Cleveland trio.
TODAY’S STARTER – #34 NOAH SYNDERGAARD LHP
SYNDERGAARD AT HOME
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 1-3 4.93 7 7 38.1 43 21 21 6 27
Career 36-21 3.45 86 84 508.0 473 206 195 107 500
SYNDERGAARD’S MLB CAREER
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 1-5 6.75 14 14 66.2 82 50 50 11 41
CLE 0-1 4.76 2 2 11.1 11 6 6 2 3
Career 58-46 3.66 160 158 919.1 888 405 374 208 913
TODAY’S START
The 30-year-old right-hander is scheduled to make his 15th start of the season and 3rd for Cleveland in Thursday’s series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays…owns a 1-5 record with a 6.75 ERA (50ER/66.2IP) in 13 starts this season…seeking his first win since April 30 against St. Louis while he was with Los Angeles-NL…is pitching on 4 days’ rest; is 1-2 with a 5.93 ERA (18ER/27.1IP) in 5 starts on 4 days of rest this season.
Syndergaard was acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 26 in exchange for Amed Rosario and cash considerations… he was originally selected by the Blue Jays in the 2010 MLB Draft (#38 overall) and later traded to the New York-NL in a package that sent R.A. Dickey to Toronto.
LAST TIME OUT
Syndergaard took the hill on August 5 against Chicago-AL, allowing 5 runs (earned) on 9 hits over 6.0 innings of work…all of his earned runs came by way of the longball, giving up a career-high 4 home runs on the day…after working through the first 2.0 with allowing a run, Luis Robert Jr. sent a solo shot over the center field wall with 2 outs in the 3rd…the White Sox struck again in the 4th with solo home runs from Andrew Vaughn and Oscar Colás… the final home run from Chicago-AL came in the 6th frame, a 2-run homer from Elvis Andrus…Syndergaard would work through the inning to finish his day…he has allowed a home run in 9 of his 14 outings this season and multiple homers in 4 of those outings.
RUNNIN’ THROUGH THE 6 WITH MY WOES
Today will mark his third start and fourth appearance against the Blue Jays in his career…in his 2 starts he owns a 2.45 ERA (3ER/11.0IP) with 18 strikeouts and a .179 opposing average (7- for-39)…both of his starts against Toronto came while he was with the Mets, with the most recent one coming on May 15, 2018 at New York-NL…worked 2.0 scoreless innings of relief against the Blue Jays on September 21, 2022 while he was with Philadelphia… teams are 3-0 when he appears against the club.
In 15 appearances (4 starts) against the AL East, he owns a 4-6 record with a 4.44 ERA (39ER/79.0IP)…his sole start against the division this season came on May 26 at Tampa Bay, suffering the loss after allowing 6 earned runs on 8 hits over 6.0 innings.
THOR’S HAMMERS
Per StatCast, in 2023, Syndergaard has a six-pitch arsenal primarily relying on his sinker and changeup while using his cutter, 4-seam fastball, curveball and slider as secondary offerings:
Pitch #pitches RHB/LHB %usage AVG. velo BAA
Sinker 296 148/148 28.6% 92.4 .324 (24-for-74)
Changeup 240 91/149 23.2% 87.4 .305 (25-for-82)
Cutter 170 75/95 16.4% 89.5 .333 (14-for-42)
4-Seam FB 150 64/86 14.5% 92.7 .280 (7-for-25)
Curveball 143 74/69 13.8% 78.0 .278 (10-for-36)
Slider 31 30/1 3.0% 86.4 .200 (2-for-10)
Split Finger 4 0/4 0.4% 87.7 .000 (0-for-1)
Syndergaard also ranks in the 97th percentile in BB% this season, per StatCast…since his MLB career began in 2015, he has ranked in the 81st percentile or better…among MLB pitchers (min. 900.0IP) since 2015, he ranks 11th in BB/9 (2.04) and 10th in SO/BB (4.39).
