Oakland Athletics JJ Bleday (33) celebrates his two-run home run against the Toronto Blue Jays with Tony Kemp (5) during first inning MLB baseball action in Toronto on Friday, June 23, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov
TORONTO – Shea Langeliers hit a go-ahead ninth-inning homer as the Athletics edged the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 on Friday to snap Oakland’s eight-game losing skid.
JJ Bleday had a two-run homer in the first and a sacrifice fly in the fifth for Oakland (20-58). Langeliers also had an RBI single in the first.
James Kapriellan gave up four runs on six hits and a walk but had eight strikeouts over his six innings of work. Sam Moll, Lucas Erceg (2-0) and Trevor May pitched for the Athletics.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a three-run homer for Toronto (41-36) and Kevin Kiermaier had an RBI double.
Starting pitcher Chris Bassitt gave up four runs on five hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out four.
Relievers Trevor Richards, Tim Mayza, and Erik Swanson kept the A’s off the scoreboard but closer Jordan Romano (3-3) of Markham, Ont., took the loss after giving up Langeliers’s solo shot.
The Athletics entered the game with a .247 winning percentage, the worst in baseball. The embattled franchise has also had fans protesting the potential move of the team from Oakland to Las Vegas.
Blue Jays manager John Schneider, eager to see his team climb out of fourth in the competitive American League East, said the three-game home series with the A’s could be a real opportunity for his team.
“It’s time to really show who we are,” said Schneider in his office before the game. “No matter who we’re playing, no matter where we’re playing. It’s time to show who we are consistently.
“It’s just being locked in mentally for nine innings every single game.”
Conner Capel was the only player in the Athletics batting order on Friday with a batting average better than .250. Three of Oakland’s hitters had averages below .200 – the so-called Mendoza Line – heading into the game: Tony Kemp (.179), Seth Brown (.190), and Langeliers (.199).
But despite the Athletics seemingly soft lineup, Bassitt quickly got into trouble.
He gave up a leadoff single to Kemp, who then stole second. Bleday came to the plate two at bats later, and launched a 1-1 pitch 372 feet to right field to score Kemp.
Bassitt gave up a walk and another hit to bring Langeliers to the plate. The light-hitting catcher singled to right field to score Aledmys Diaz for a 3-0 Oakland lead after just one inning.
Kiermaier answered for Toronto in the third. After Danny Jansen led off the inning with a double to left field, Kiermaier doubled to centre field to score his teammate and cut into the Athletics’ lead.
Four batters later, Guerrero smashed his 10th home run of the season into deep left field. The 434-foot bomb came off a 92.1 m.p.h. four-seam fastball to score Kiermaier and Bo Bichette for a 4-3 Blue Jays’ lead.
The two-out blast was Guerrero’s first at Rogers Centre this season and ended a 16-game homerless drought.
Bleday tied it up for Oakland in the fifth with his one-out sacrifice fly to deep right field. It gave Capel plenty of time to run home from third to make it 4-4.
Langeliers gave the Athletics another lead in the top of the ninth, sending a 1-1 pitch from Romano to deep left field. It was only the third home run the Toronto closer has given up this season.
MANOAH TIMELINE – Schneider said that there is currently no timeframe for pitcher Alek Manoah to return to Toronto’s starting rotation. Manoah was demoted to the Blue Jays minor-league system on June 6 to work on his delivery after he struggled to start the season.
INJURY UPDATE – Catcher Alejandro Kirk did some receiving drills on Friday but hasn’t hit yet. He was put on the 10-day injured list on Monday after his left hand was lacerated when he was hit by a pitch. Relief pitcher Zach Pop of Brampton, Ont., is scheduled to throw at least an inning for triple-A Buffalo. He has been out since May 5 with a right hamstring strain.
ON DECK – José BerrÃos takes his 7-5 record to the mound on Saturday as Toronto continues its series with Oakland.
Hogan Harris (2-1) is scheduled to pitch for the Athletics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 23, 2023.
