Blue Jays takeaways: Baltimore’s starters happy to leave Buffalo after a weekend pounding

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This article was published 27/06/2021 (1605 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The view from Deep Left Field on the Blue Jays’ 5-2 win over Baltimore on Sunday:

While the Blue Jays didn’t score in double digits, as they had twice previously over the weekend series, they still did a good job of beating up on a weak starting pitcher.

The rotation sent out by the Orioles for the series came in with a combined ERA of 6.52, and by the time the Jays were done with them, those four starters’ ERAs were a combined 6.88. They all had terrible numbers coming in, and all of them were worse when they left Buffalo, save for Friday night’s starter, Matt Harvey, whose ERA improved from 7.80 to 7.52 after allowing just three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings in the only game of the series won by Baltimore.

Sunday’s victim was Jorge Lopez, chased in the fifth inning after Cavan Biggio’s two-run double extended the Jay’s lead to 5-2. Tronto had 10 hits off Lopez, who walked four, and his bloated 5.92 ERA still leads the Orioles, among qualifying pitchers. At least the right-hander kept the Jays in the park, something none of his rotation-mates managed to do.

The Jays pounded Baltimore starting pitching for 20 runs in 15 innings of work, lowlighted by Dean Kremer’s Thursday night start in which he allowed six runs and recorded only one out.

• There’s something there: As the Jays’ search for helpful late-inning relief continues, one name that could emerge from within is Patrick Murphy.

The 26-year-old former third-round pick took over for starter Ross Stripling in the sixth inning after back-to-back leadoff singles brought the tying run to the plate. Armed with a fastball that can touch triple digits, the six-foot-five righty cleaned up the mess. He struck out Domingo Leyba on a big curveball and, on the next pitch, got a ground ball from Maikel Franco that was turned into an inning-ending double play.

Murphy came back out for the seventh and had to be bailed out of trouble himself, handing over a bases-loaded, two-out situation to Tim Mayza, who took care of the dangerous Trey Mancini to wriggle out of the jam.

The trouble was of Murphy’s own making, starting when he walked the No. 9 hitter, Austin Wynns, who is batting just .139. He loaded the bases on another walk, but those were the first two free passes he had issued in his four appearances since being activated off the injured list.

The biggest hurdle for most young pitchers is giving big-league hitters too much credit. If Murphy can get past that, he has the stuff to become a trusted high-leverage arm in what has been a very shaky Jays bullpen.

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• All-star consideration: Five Jays have reached the second stage of balloting for this year’s midsummer classic in Denver, Colorado, and they all celebrated with hits Sunday.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the leading vote-getter among all players in the first stage, smacked a two-run double in the third inning to put the Jays on top for good and later added a single and scored a run. Marcus Semien, who led the first-stage balloting for American League second basemen, went 2-for-4 with a run scored.

Bo Bichette, Randal Grichuk and Teoscar Hernandez all made it to the second stage and all got at least one hit Sunday (Hernandez had a single and a double), and Grichuk threw his glove into the ring with an outstanding diving grab to rob Ramon Urias of a leadoff single in the seventh inning.

The five potential all-stars combined to go 8-for-20, scoring four of the Blue Jays’ five runs.

All vote totals go back to zero for the second stage of balloting, so all five players have a chance to represent the Jays in Colorado on July 13.

Mike Wilner is a Toronto-based baseball columnist for the Star and the host of the baseball podcast Deep Left Field. Follow him on Twitter: @wilnerness