Jays capitalize, O’s don’t, leading to 13-3 blowout

To be surprised would imply that you expected a differing result, but Orioles fans are generally too smart and inherently cautious to agree to bargain for the unexpected. Thusly, Mike Wright and Ubaldo Jimenez being pummeled by the steady Blue Jays lineup does not come as a shock.

Wright, who managed only 3.2 innings while allowing eight earned runs on six hits and three home runs, was hit hard early and often en route to an Orioles 13-3 loss. New long reliever and old scapegoat Ubaldo Jimenez didn’t fare much better, surrendering five runs in 2.1 innings of his own. Toronto’s Michael Saunders, who continues to rake, smacked three home runs and accounted for 8 of the Jays 13 runs in his first career three-homer game.

To harp on solely on the ineptitude of the Orioles most infamous ineptitudes would be to discount what the O’s didn’t do at the plate, however.

After Saunders went oppo taco off of Wright in the 1st inning for a three-run dinger, the Orioles did what they usually do, and scrapped back in haste. Adam Jones and Hyun Soo Kim both singled to lead off the inning, while Manny Machado sliced a base hit to right-center field to tally back a quick run. Chris Davis followed, working a tough walk to load the bases with no outs.

Mark Trumbo tried to do a little too much, pressing his way to a swing and a miss at a fastball down and away for strikeout. Pedro Alvarez whiffed on a 3-2 curveball while Jonathan Schoop bounced a grounder for the third out of the inning, squandering an early chance to tack on comeback runs.

Josh Donaldson led off the 3rd inning with some rain bringing, smoking a first pitch, get-me-over Wright slider into the bullpen for a solo home run, extending the Jays’ lead to 4-1. But again, the Orioles tried their hand at redemption.

The Hitting Machine, aka Kim, smoked a single to left field to lead off the 3rd, going from corner to corner after a Machado single off the right field scoreboard. After Davis was robbed of a sharp single up the middle via the shift, Trumbo totally redeemed himself, lining a single through the vacant four-hole scoring Kim. Pedro Alvarez followed with a walk, giving the Orioles another their second bases loaded threat in three innings.

Unapologetic in his efforts, Schoop popped up a first pitch fastball down the right field line, forcing second baseman Darwin Barney to make a darling over-the-shoulder catch. Trying to tag on the play, Machado raced home, only to be gunned down on an even better throw from Barney. Grrr.

As quick as the scoring threat disappeared, the Jays were at it once again. Russell Martin cracked a double through Jones and Trumbo for a leadoff double, only to score a batter later on a Justin Smoak moonshot over the out-of-town scoreboard. Wright was pulled, Jimenez came in, as Buck Showalter waved the white flag in surrender.

Jimenez would allow a pair of Wright’s inherited runs to score in the 4th inning after Josh Donaldson tripled on a 1-2 pitch, before Saunders sent his second home run over the left-center field wall two batters later, with the Jays up 11-2. Saunders would get to Jimenez again in the 6th inning on a 3-2 slider for his third homer of the night, putting the finishing touches on a 13-2 lead. It turns out he isn’t good out of the bullpen, either.

The Orioles offense went into sleep mode the the rest of the night, with only two Ryan Flaherty hits from the 5th inning forward comprising the rest of the offense. Seventeen Orioles were set down consecutively from the 4th inning forward until a Flaherty solo homer off of Roberto Osuna in the 9th inning sprinkled some life on the offensive drought.

Tomorrow, the O’s will unleash the soft-throwing Yovani Gallardo against the knuckle-balling R.A. Dickey, while J.J. Hardy may be activated from the disabled list. That could be fun!

And remember, the game starts at a precarious 4:05 PM ET, so the Bohs will flow a little earlier than usual.