At the plate, they’re a pesky bunch, fouling up pitches, finding holes regardless of defensive alignment, with Jose Ramirez lurking at the triple to deliver big hits. On the mound, they continue to field pitchers capable of suppressing contact and creating swing and miss. Defensively, they are pretty airtight. “I really like this team — I think we have a good chance this year,” said Cal Quantrill, the Canadian right-hander who on Friday pitched seven shutout innings in an 8-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. “We are a complete baseball team. I think we surprise teams when we come in to play, they don’t know what they’re getting into, we have so many young guys out there playing. Referring to anyone else as a child is just ridiculous, I’m not that much older (he’s 27). We’re so young and it’s just fun. It’s an exciting bench. I’m sure you saw the excitement between Josh Naylor and me, but we’re not even the craziest of the bunch.” Playing in the Junior American League Central varsity certainly helps, but the Blue Jays have certainly taken all they can handle from them thus far, fighting tooth and nail on Saturday afternoon for a 2-1 victory. Solo shots by Matt Chapman in the fifth inning – ending a 16-inch hitting drought – and Teoscar Hernandez in the seventh by Triston McKenzie were the difference as the Blue Jays improved to 2-4 against the Guardians this season with their second win them in seven games. But it was touch and go all afternoon in front of a crowd of 44,977, with starter Mitch White having to pitch 4.2 solid innings of one-run ball, five relievers forced to navigate traffic to close things out and the offense to manages precious few despite many steady contact. Until Chapman’s homer in the fifth, all they got off McKenzie was a ground-rule double to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the first, extending his hitting streak to 22 games, and he walked Chapman in the second and Hernandez in the fourth as several lasers turned. in one out. Check out this sample: A Lourdes Gurriel Jr. liner to right at 102.2 mph with an expected .630 batting average in the first, Alejandro Kirk’s liner later that inning with an expected .920 average, Guerrero’s groundout at second at 105.1 mph and an expected batting average of .560. Bo Bichette’s double play grounder in the fourth at 106.7 mph off the bat with an expected .490 average. That will happen over the course of a long season, but for a lineup that isn’t clicking right now, it’s even crazier. “Yeah, it’s frustrating when you hit the ball, make good at-bats and nothing happens, especially right now,” Hernandez said. “You’ve just got to keep going, keep grinding every day and help our teammates stay focused, do what they’ve been doing, keep hitting the ball hard because those bad times will pass and the good times will come. to come.” Underscoring just how hard it is to score for them right now, a potential extra run in the seventh was erased when Andres Jimenez made a terrific play to keep veteran Santiago Espinal from reaching the plate and throwing off balance. plate to get Raimel Tapia in a project that survived a replay challenge. Regardless, they created more opportunities on offense Saturday, and interim manager John Schneider saw more terror in his team’s bats, though he still wants to see more consistency. “We have the ability to change the leverage of a game with one move, but it will take more than that,” he explained. “It’s going to take solid at-bats and getting on base and when that big hit comes, it’s even better with the guys.” The replay decision came close in the eighth when Naylor doubled with two outs off Yimi Garcia to put the tying run in scoring position and Schneider grounded to Jordan Romano, who walked Gimenez before striking out Oscar Gonzalez. Romano then closed the ninth for his fifth multi-inning 26th save this season. “He’s showing he can do it,” Snyder said, noting his closer was going to pitch Saturday no matter what and expected to be ready Sunday if needed. “I trust him at any point.” This series is the second between the clubs and they will not meet again unless it is in the postseason. The Guardians took three of four during a May series in Cleveland, and the way they found holes during that set prompted the Blue Jays to “definitely dial back the aggression in terms of the changeup (for the current series)” and ” we kind of did a whole collective after that series anyway,” Schneider said. “We’re kind of more neutral, if you will, especially with some right-handed hitters,” he continued. “But that’s how they play and it’s an honor for them. So hopefully, when they do play it on the ground, we’re in the right place. But they are very diligent about putting the ball in play. And if you look at them as a whole, they bust their ass on the line, they put the ball in play. It’s obviously something they think is important. So we have to be able to respond.” After a rough start — White’s first seven pitches were balls — the right-hander acquired from the Los Angeles Dodgers at the deadline agreed to keep Cleveland largely under wraps. At 94.6 mph, his fastball velocity was up from an average of 93.7, while his slider was 86.2, up from 85. He threw a handful of curveballs and a few changeups, mostly to lefties. White also showcased his slider against them, including a back-foot beauty that Ramirez got through at third, prompting the all-star to slam his bat into the ground. “I’m definitely using my legs a little bit better,” White said of the increased speed. “The last outing was probably a low point in terms of velo. Maybe some adrenaline too. I’ll take it.” When it comes to the Guardians’ offense, White said his approach is to make sure he’s “running the ball in the zone and causing weak contact. Spin the ball well, but just hold it and let them out, instead of pounding long ABs and wasting pitches.” That’s Cleveland’s MO, and it’s different from the ball the Blue Jays usually play against their American League East rivals. Being able to win in different ways is important and they will need to be at their best against Shane Bieber in Sunday’s series finale to prevent the Guardians from the gate.
