TORONTO BLUE JAYS NOTES:
THE LATEST: The Blue Jays won their 4th straight game last night, opening up their four-game series in Cleveland with a 3-1 victory…Have held opponents to one run or fewer on 31 occasions this season, six more than any other MLB club (2nd: TB – 25)…Moved to a season-high 14 games over .500…Improved to 17-6 (.739%) against AL Central opponents this year, the 3rd-best record against the division in baseball (TB – .783, TEX – .773). Toronto has won 10 of its last 15 games, 19 of its last 29, and is 38-25 over its last 63 contests…Its .603 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, a half game back of Houston (64-49) for the 2nd spot, and 3.0 games up on Seattle.
CLUTCH CAVAN: Cavan Biggio delivered the decisive blow last night, opening the scoring with a two-run homer in the top of the 8th inning…Was his 8th longball of the year and his first since June 25 vs. OAK…Five of his eight homers this season have come in the 8th inning, tied for the most among AL hitters (also: Wander Franco, Adolis García, & Masataka Yoshida). Over his last 43 contests, the Houston native has gone 27-for-101 (.267) with 21 runs scored, five doubles, six homers, and 18 RBI (.852 OPS).
SPRINGING INTO ACTION: George Springer tacked on an insurance run in the 9th inning on Monday, singling home Brandon Belt to put his side ahead, 3-1…Since snapping a career-long 0-for-35 hitless streak on Aug. 2 vs. BAL, has gone 9-for-21 (.429) with three doubles, four RBI, and four walks.
RYU KIDDING ME?: Hyun Jin Ryu tossed 4.0 no-hit innings (BB, 2K) last night in his 2nd start since undergoing Tommy John surgery last June…Was removed after the 4th inning with a right knee contusion…Since joining the Blue Jays in 2020, the team has gone 18-7 (.720%) when he starts on the road, the 3rd-best winning percentage in the Majors over that span, min. 20 starts (Logan Gilbert – .732%, Jack Flaherty – .724%).
VERY ON BRAND-ON: Brandon Belt doubled and scored a run in the 9th inning on Monday, part of a 1-for-4 evening…Over his last 61 contests, the Nacogdoches, TX, native has batted .283 (56-for-198) with 18 doubles, nine homers, 24 RBI, and 42 walks (.407 OBP)…His 4.44 pitches/ PA this season tops all AL batters (min. 200 PA), behind only Patrick Wisdom (4.50) for the highest in the Majors.
VLAD TO THE BONE: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. notched a double in the 1st inning last night, part of a 1-for-4 game…The ball left the bat at 109.2 MPH…Has recorded an AL-leading 194 hard-hit balls (95+ MPH) this season, 23 more than the next closest batter (Kyle Tucker – 171)…His 54.6 hard-hit percentage ranks 5th in the Junior Circuit.
HICKS IN THE 6IX: Jordan Hicks earned his 10th save of the season last night, tossing a scoreless 9th inning to preserve the 3-1 win (1.0IP, H, BB, HB)…Threw a four-seamer to Brayan Rocchio at 102.5 MPH, setting the franchise record for the fastest pitch (since 2008). The 26-year-old lowered his season ERA to 3.72…Hasn’t allowed a home run since April 15th vs. PIT, a stretch of 40.1 consecutive homerless innings, the 10th-longest active streak in the Majors.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Blue Jays are on a seven-game, seven-day road trip (4-0 so far)…Own a 34-26 road record this season for a .567 win%, 3rd best in the AL…Have won 14 of their last 18 road games, the best road record in the Majors since June 20th (.778%)…After this four-game set in Cleveland, will head to Rogers Centre for a five-game homestand against the Cubs (58-55) and Phillies (61-51). Blue Jays hitters sit 2nd among MLB clubs with a .266 road AVG, while ranking 2nd in the AL in road OBP (.334), 3rd in road SLG (.434), and 3rd in road OPS (.768)…The pitching staff ranks 7th in the AL in road ERA (4.09), 10th in road WHIP (1.32), and 13th in road opponents’ AVG (.256).
WORKING LATE: Toronto batters have combined for an AL-high .266 batting average in the 7th inning or later this season, trailing only Miami (.281) for the best mark
in the Majors…Of AL players with 100 at-bats in the 7th or later, four of the top eight are Blue Jays (Matt Chapman – .314, Bo Bichette – .309, Whit Merrifield –
.302, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. – .297).
PITCHING IN: Toronto pitchers have combined for a 3.77 ERA this season, the best mark among all MLB teams… Are 3rd in MLB with 1,077 strikeouts (MIN – 1,088; MIA
- 1,081)…Rank 8th in the AL in opponents’ average (.243) and 6th in WHIP (1.26)…The rotation has 53 quality starts, T-3rd most in MLB.
HITTING IT: Toronto batters have notched 1,022 hits this season, 2nd most in MLB (1st: TEX – 1,067)…Are currently 2nd in the AL in team OBP (.331), 3rd in AVG (.261), 5th in OPS (.752), 6th in SLG (.421), and 7th in extra-base hits (349).
PRETTY GOOD, YUSEI: Yusei Kikuchi is slated to make his 23rd start of the year tonight…Tossed 6.0 innings of one-run ball on Wednesday against the Orioles, scattering six hits and a walk with three strikeouts…Earned his career-best 9th win (7 in 2021)…Has allowed two runs or fewer in 10 of his last 12 starts, pitching to a 2.95 ERA (21 ER/64.0 IP) and a 1.19 WHIP while holding hitters to a .233 average with 20 walks and 71 strikeouts… His 2.95 ERA since May 30th ranks 7th among AL pitchers.
VS. THE GUARDIANS: All-Time: 218-221-2
2023: 1-0 Road: 101-119-2
Road: 1-0 Progressive Field: 44-67
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…Two of their three losses in Cleveland were 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 .355 hitter (11- for-31) vs. CLE, notching four doubles and four RBI for a .943 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 37 career games vs. CLE, has hit .274 (37-for-135) with 12 doubles, seven homers, and 20 RBI (.905 OPS).
Whit Merrifield leads all current Blue Jays with 114 career games against his former division rival…Has gone 114-for-453 (.252) over that stretch with 22
doubles, two triples, 10 homers, and 48 RBI.
STARTING PITCHER – Yusei Kikuchi, LHP #16
TODAY’S GAME: Making his 23rd start of the season and his 13th on the road…Improved to 9-3 his last time out, on 8/2 vs. BAL, twirling 6.0 innings of one-run ball (6H, BB, 3K)…Marked his 7th quality start of the season…Has pitched into the 5th inning in all 22 starts this year, the only Blue Jay starter to do so.
Has allowed one run or fewer in each of his last 4 starts, and in 6 of his last 8…Over that span (since 6/20), has gone 3-1 with a 2.64 ERA (13 ER/44.1 IP), the 4th-best ERA among AL hurlers.
2023 HIGHLIGHTS: Picked up his career-best 8th win of the year on 7/26 at LAD, tossing 6.0 frames of one-run ball with 7 hits, 2 walks, and 8 strikeouts. Took a no-decision on 7/21 at SEA, tossing 5.1 shutout frames with 5 hits, a walk, and 8 strikeouts…Marked his 4th scoreless outing of the season. Gave up 2R/1ER over 4.2 innings on 7/16 vs. ARI, allowing 2 hits and 3 walks with 4 strikeouts. Earned his 7th win of the season on 6/25 vs. OAK, tossing 7.0 frames of one-run ball with 2 hits, 2 walks, and 8 strikeouts…Marked his longest outing as a Blue Jay. Faced one batter over the minimum on 6/20 at MIA, tossing 6.0 shutout innings with 2 hits, no walks, and 6 strikeouts on 87 pitches (57 strikes)… Marked his 3rd scoreless start of the season. Took a no-decision on 6/4 at NYM, giving up 2 runs over 5.0 innings with 4 hits, a walk, and 8 strikeouts…Induced a season-high 19 swing-and-misses. Improved to 6-2 on 5/30 vs. MIL, giving up 2 runs on 3 hits and a season-high 5 walks over 5.0 frames with 4 strikeouts…Punched out Joey Wiemer in the 4th inning for the 500th strikeout of his career…Became the 9th Japanese-born player to record 500 strikeouts and 500.0 innings pitched in the Majors. Shouldered the loss on 5/24 at TB, giving up 5 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks over 5.0 frames with 5 strikeouts…The outing was his 100th career start, becoming the 11th Japanese-born player to reach the century mark. Earned his 3rd win of the year on 4/21 at NYY, tossing 6.0 frames of onerun ball with 4 hits, 2 walks, and 3 strikeouts…Has back-to-back starts of 6.0+ innings and 0-or-1 runs allowed for the first time since 6/18-25 of his
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS: Made his MLB debut on 3/21/19 for Seattle against Oakland at the Tokyo Dome in Japan…Became the 1st Japanese-born player to make his Major League debut in Japan, picking up a no-decision (4.2 IP, 4H, ER, BB, 3K). Recorded his 1st career complete game shutout on 8/18/19 at TOR, pitching 9.0 scoreless innings and allowing only two hits and a walk with eight strikeouts…Became just the 13th pitcher (17th time) in club history to throw a complete game shutout within his first 30 career appearances (previous: Mike Montgomery on 6/30/15 at SD). Named to the American League All-Star Team for the 1st time on 7/4/21…Was on the AL club but did not pitch…Became the 14th Japanese-born player to be selected to participate in the Midsummer Classic. Had a career-high 12 strikeouts in 6.0 IP on 7/23/21 vs. OAK…Was his 3rd double-digit strikeout game of the year and the 4th of his career. Spent 8 seasons in the Nippon Professional Baseball league with the Saitama Seibu Lions, earning himself three NPB All-Star nods while fashioning a 73-46 record and a 2.77 ERA.
VS. THE GUARDIANS: Facing the Guardians for the 1st time this season and the 4th time in his career…Has thrown a quality start in each of his three career outings against Cleveland, giving up 4 runs over 20.0 innings (1.80 ERA) with 7 walks, 20 strikeouts, a 0.90 WHIP, and a .164 opponent’s average…Over 2 visits to Progressive Field, has allowed one run over 14.0 combined frames (0.64 ERA).
CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
WILLIAMS TOSSES GEM, BUT GUARDS FALL 3-1 TO JAYS
The Cleveland Guardians opened a 4-game dalliance against Toronto with a 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Blue Jays on Monday night at Progressive Field…Cleveland is 1-3 on this a 7-game homestand against Chicago-AL (1-2) and Toronto (0-1, 3-to-play)… club has gone 11-7-2 over last 20 series (+2G above .500/33-31 record since May 26). » In a game that remained scoreless through 7.0 frames, GAVIN WILLIAMS (7.0IP, H, 0R, BB, 12SO, HB, 90 pitches) put forth one of the most outstanding performances of his young career, amassing 12 strikeouts while allowing just 2 of the 23 batters he faced to reach base safely…Hyun Jin Ryu tossed 4.0 hitless frames before getting struck in the right knee by a comebacker (4.0IP, 0H, 0R, BB, 2SO, 52 pitches)…Toronto broke the deadlock against ENYEL DE LOS SANTOS in the top of the 8th, as Cavan Biggio connected for a 2-run homer (8) to plate Daulton Varsho (one-out single)… Cleveland’s offense mounted a threat with 3 hits in the bottom of the 8th, but managed only an RBI-single from BO NAYLOR before second baseman Biggio turned an unassisted double play to stamp out the rally…with NICK SANDLIN on to pitch the 9th, Brandon Belt doubled and scored on George Springer’s RBI-single to provide the Jays with an insurance run…the Guardians loaded the bases in their final at-bat, but fell short of generating any runs.
Cleveland (54-59) sits in 2nd place in AL Central standings, 5.5 games behind 2nd-place Minnesota (60-54) and 4.5 games ahead of 3rd-place Detroit (-10.0G, 49-63)…despite dropping 8 of last 10, Guardians have still won 22 of 43, 29 of 56 and 32 of last 62… have also dropped 53 of last 98 overall since starting year 9-6.
GAVIN THE GREAT
Last night, GAVIN WILLIAMS posted the most efficient start of his rookie season, tallying 12 strikeouts and limiting Blue Jays bats to just one hit on 90 pitches in 7.0 innings of work…he became the first Cleveland rookie pitcher and 12th rookie pitcher in MLB history to post an outing of 12-or-more strikeouts and one-or-fewer-hits allowed, last done by Jack Flaherty (13SO, 1H) on June 22, 2018 for St. Louis…his 12 strikeouts were the most by a Cleveland rookie since Luis Tiant (12SO) on August 18, 1964 (G2) vs. the Kansas City Athletics and rank T6th-most strikeouts by a rookie arm in franchise history…he became the second rookie pitcher in club history to post 12 strikeouts in 7 innings, joining Herb Score (14SO) on May 1, 1955 vs. Boston…Williams is the fourth Cleveland pitcher ever to post 12-or-more strikeouts, one-or-fewer hits and one-or-fewer walks in an outing, joining Dennis Eckersley (1977), Bartolo Colon (2000) and Corey Kluber (2015)…he joins TRISTON McKENZIE (2021) as the only Cleveland pitchers in franchise history with multiple outings of 7.0+ innings and one-or-fewer-hits allowed in their rookie season, also doing so on June 27 at Kansas City.
MLB ROOKIES w/ 12+SO, 1-OR-FEWER H SINCE 2000
PLAYER TEAM DATE
GAVIN WILLIAMS CLE 8/7/2023
Jack Flaherty STL 6/22/2018
Freddy Peralta MIL 5/13/2018
Shohei Ohtani LAA 4/8/2018
Shelby Miller STL 5/10/2013
Óliver Pérez SD 7/7/2002
LET’S GET IT STARTED
Cleveland’s starting pitching has excelled in the second half, holding opponents to 2-or-fewer earned runs in 19 of the rotation’s 23 outings since July 14…they have lasted 5.0-or-more innings in 18 of their 23 starts since the All-Star break, with 3 of those 5 outings being XZAVION CURRY’s spot starts…the rotation’s 2.77 ERA (38ER/123.1IP) to start the second half is the lowest in MLB, 31 points lower than the next-best team (Toronto, 3.18)…Guardians starters also rank among 2nd-half MLB rotations in H/9 (6.86, 1st), batting average (.213, 2nd), SLG (.358, 2nd), OPS (.650, 2nd), WHIP (1.14, 3rd) and OBP (.292, 5th)…per Elias, the Guards have the 2nd-youngest average age of current MLB starting rotations (25 years, 317 days), behind Cincinnati (25 years, 258 days).
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 (94.2IP) LOGAN ALLEN (86.1IP), XZAVION CURRY (64.0IP), GAVIN WILLIAMS (49.2IP), PEYTON BATTENFIELD (34.2IP) and HUNTER GADDIS (31.1IP)…39.53% of Cleveland’s innings pitched this season .399.0IP/1009.1IP) have come via rookies, 2nd in MLB behind Oakland (42.10%)…the Guards rookies rank amongst MLB clubs’ rookies in wins (19, 1st), games started (58, 1st), strikeouts (366, 2nd) and innings pitched (399.0, 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).
TERRIFIC TITO
Terry Francona’s next victory will be his 900th as the Manager of the Guardians…through his 11 seasons with Cleveland, he is currently 899-730 (.552), leading the Guardians to 4 AL Central Titles (2016-18, 2022) and the American League Pennant in 2016… Francona won AL Manager of the Year in 2013, 2016 and 2022.
Francona (1,928) recently passed Hall-of-Famer Casey Stengel (1,926) for 13th-most wins by a manager in MLB history…he is 81 wins away from 12th place, held by Hall-of-Famer Leo Durocher (2,009)…Francona has the 3rd-most wins by an active MLB manager behind Bruce Bochy (2,070) and Dusty Baker (2,157).
CITY OF ROCK AND ROLL PLAYING THE HITS
Since June 1, Cleveland has out-hit their opponents in 37 games, 4 more than any other MLB team (Miami, 33)…the Guardians 26 wins in those 37 games are most in the AL and 3rd-most in MLB behind Atlanta (28) and Los Angeles-NL (27)…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 tying a season-long stretch of 10 straight games without reaching the 10+ hit mark, the Guardians lead MLB with 27 double-digit hit games in 60 contests since May 30, ahead of Texas, Miami and Atlanta (26)…the club’s 564 hits since May 30 are 2nd-most in MLB during the stretch, behind Texas (569)…with a .270 batting average since May 30, they rank just behind Texas (.273) and Atlanta (.281)…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, 6th), JOSÉ RAMÍREZ (71, T7th) and STEVEN KWAN (68, T13th) comprise the Cleveland trio
TONIGHT’S STARTER – #61 TANNER BIBEE RHP
BIBEE AT HOME
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 4-1 4.25 8 8 46.0 30 12 10 16 47
Career 4-1 4.25 8 8 46.0 30 12 10 16 47
BIBEE’S MLB CAREER
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023 7-2 3.14 17 17 94.2 83 35 33 35 95
Career 7-2 3.14 17 17 94.2 83 35 33 35 95
TONIGHT’S START
The 24-year-old right-hander is scheduled to make his 18th career start, ninth at home, in the second matchup of this 4-game set with the Toronto Blue Jays…marks his first career start against the Blue Jays and his third start against the AL East…is 1-0 with a 2.61 ERA (3ER/10.1IP), 7 strikeouts and 2 walks in his 2 starts against the division.
Bibee ranks among MLB rookie starting pitchers (min. 60.0IP) in win percentage (.778, 1st), wins (7, 2nd), ERA (3.14, 3rd), batting average (.233, 4th), WHIP (1.25, 5th) and H/9 (7.89, 5th).
Bibee was originally selected by Cleveland in the 5th round (156th overall) of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Cal State Fullerton… entered the 2023 season as Cleveland’s #5 prospect according to MLB.com…he is starting on extended 5 days’ rest; is 3-2 with a 3.26 ERA (18ER/49.2IP) in 9 starts on 5 days’ rest.
LAST TIME OUT
Bibee took on the Astros in his previous start on August 2 at Houston…the rookie did not factor into the decision after 5.0 innings of work (7H, 2R/ER, 4BB, 4SO)…after allowing a base-hit to José Abreu in the 2nd inning, Chas McCormick drove him in with a 2-run home run, his only blemish on the day…Bibee worked through traffic his whole outing, having a baserunner in each of the 5.0 innings he pitched…walked 4 batters, tying a season-high, for the 5th time this season…has not lost a decision since June 13 at San Diego.
THE SUMMER OF TANNER
Per Elias, Bibee (7-2, 16GS) is the 6th pitcher to win 7 of their first 9 career decisions as a starter with Cleveland, last done by
SHANE BIEBER (7-2, 13GS) in 2018, and joins CC Sabathia (7-2, 14GS) as one of 3 Cleveland pitchers to do so since 2001… he is also the 8th Cleveland rookie starter to win 5+ consecutive decisions, last done by Cody Anderson in 2015…his 1.78 ERA (6ER/30.1IP) in July was the 7th-lowest ERA in a single month
by a Cleveland rookie pitcher (min. 5GS) and the lowest since Anderson in September 2015 (1.38).
THESE ARE MY TOOLS
Since June 24, Bibee is 4-0 with a 1.96 ERA (9ER/41.1IP) in 7 starts, ranking 2nd in the AL in ERA behind Houston’s JP France (1.73, 8ER/41.2IP) and 5th in MLB during that stretch…is holding opposing hitters to a .200 batting average (30-for-150) with a .597 OPS during the span…the rookie has allowed 2-or-fewer runs in 6 of his last 7 starts.
Over the last 7 outings, his breaking balls are holding hitters to a .175 average (10-for-57) with 17 strikeouts and an average exit velocity of 83.6mph…his 4-seam fastball has had success as well, limiting opposing hitters to a .192 clip (10-for-73) with 21 strikeouts in at-bats ending with the pitch…overall this season, opposing batters are hitting .230 (28-for-122) against breaking balls and .237 (42-for-177) against his fastball (Baseball Savant).
NEW KID ON THE BLOCK
Bibee has thrown 7+ strikeouts and allowed 3-or-fewer hits in 5 of his first 17 career games, more than any pitcher in club history and tied with 4 others for the 4th-most such outings in MLB history within a pitcher’s first 17 career games…also has 6+ strikeouts in 10 of his 17 career starts, 4th-most such starts in club
history, trailing SHANE BIEBER (11), Danny Salazar (11) and Herb Score (14)…Bibee’s 95 strikeouts trail only Greg Swindell (100), Bieber (104), Salazar (109) and Score (132) for most in a Cleveland pitcher’s first 17 career starts…in July, he posted 3 wins without registering a loss, becoming the first Cleveland rookie pitcher to accomplish the feat since ZACH PLESAC in July 2019 (3-0).
