Blue Jays' bottom of the order comes up big in comeback win over Giants
From top to bottom, the Blue Jays' lineup has generally been good as evidenced by the club's excellent record and first-place standing in the AL East.
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The team's big boys tend to reside in the top of the order, but this season, if anything, has shown that even the alleged unknowns are more than capable of producing.
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Witness Saturday's 6-3 comeback win over the San Francisco Giants at a sold-out Rogers Centre crowd of 42,015.
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All six of Toronto's runs came from the bottom of the order as the triumvirate sparked the team to its longest home winning streak in 10 years.
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Clement has hit as high as leadoff. He has that rare bat control that allows him to lay down bunts, hit behind runners or be used in hit-and-run scenarios.
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Wagner came on the scene last season following the trade deadline deal with Houston that also netted Joey Loperfido.
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Heineman has come out the blue, but he is more than a serviceable backup catcher.
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Saturday's belt was Heineman's third of the season, while his first-career multiple extra-base hit game would also be produced in the win.
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As well as the bottom of the order performed, it was hard to overlook Addison Barger's career-high four-hit performance.
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'A guy with really, really great talent,'' added the skipper on Barger. 'He can hit the ball hard, he can hit the ball out of the ballpark, and you pair that with a very good approach.
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'He's got a bright future. He can be as good as anyone … It's tools, it's approach, it's confidence. He's in a good spot.'
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The same could be said for the Jays, who have taken the first two games of the series after losing three of four just before the all-star break.
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Toronto Sun
22 minutes ago
- Toronto Sun
SIMMONS SAYS: Blue Jays' LaMacchia hit a home run with Clancy
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CBC
an hour ago
- CBC
Cricket is growing in popularity in Waterloo region, especially among women
Cricket has been growing throughout Canada in recent years, and in Waterloo region, this growth is quite tangible – especially among women and children. "You can take Indians out of India, but not cricket out [of] them," said Priyadharshini Anandhan, captain of the Tamil Cultural Association's women's cricket club. "Wherever you see a group [from the] Indian community, you can see cricket there." Anandhan, who loves the sport for instilling discipline in her, is one of many female cricket players in Waterloo region who is seeing the sport's growth as a win. Cricket's growth Cricket in general has been growing over the years. In Toronto for example, cricket has grown so much that in 2024, the city's executive committee had to push forward plans to develop a formal cricket strategy. In Calgary, the demand for cricket fields has grown so much that cricket groups started setting caps on registration to ensure as many players as possible get field time. Khrisna Bhure, captain of the Golden Triangle Marathi Mandal's men's cricket team in Waterloo region, said he's excited to see the growth of the sport he grew up playing. "Coming to men's cricket [around 2017-2018], I would say there were about 15 to 20 season ball clubs," he said. "Now I see more than 70 to 80 full-time teams." Rajanikanth Ruthiran, captain of the Tamil Cultural Association men's cricket club, said he's watched cricket in Canada grow significantly since moving to the country in his 20s. Now in his 40s, it still excites him to see more people showing interest in the sport. Ruthiran said cricket has become like a "religion" in a lot of South Asian countries. "It's not only in India," he said. "Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Bangladesh – anywhere in the South Asian countries, cricket [has become] a very dominant sport." More women, children picking up the bat Bhure sees all this growth as good news, but it's the recent boost in popularity for women and children that excites him even more. Anandhan said she's seeing so many women – even those without previous sports experience – picking up the bat. "I have two players on my team who are new moms," she said. "They never played any sport, but they wanted to play, so we told them to come and practice and we are practicing. We are participating in two tournaments right now and they play extremely well." Krishna also noted how cricket is attracting younger players. He said his 11-year-old daughter has started playing cricket after watching her mom play, and Bhure describes it as being part of their culture. "It's a transition in culture," he said. Pallavi Bhure, Krishna's wife and the captain of Team Marathi's women's cricket team, shares her husband's insight on the growing interest among younger people. "We come with that cricket culture, and we want to make it, you know, take it forward to our next generation." The Golden Triangle Marathi Mandal and the Tamil Cultural Association's cricket clubs are among the many sports teams who will be playing at the South Asian Family Sports day later this month. "We wait for it every year," said Khrisna, "Eight communities come together with their families and kids, and it's like a mini South Asia on the Waterloo [Park] grounds." The event will take place on July 26 and 27 at Waterloo Park. Attendees will also have the chance to play other sports including volleyball, soccer and throwball. There will be activities for kids, as well as yoga and zumba.
Canada News.Net
4 hours ago
- Canada News.Net
Jays go for record-tying 10th straight home win vs. Giants
(Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images) The Toronto Blue Jays will be out to extend their nine-game home winning streak Sunday afternoon and complete a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants. The Blue Jays clinched the series win with a 6-3 victory on Saturday and have won seven of their past eight series at home. The last time Toronto won nine games in a row at home was in 2015. The longest home winning streak in franchise history is 10 in 1985. The Blue Jays are 34-16 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto this season. The Giants hope former Blue Jays pitcher Robbie Ray (9-3, 2.65 ERA) can salvage the series finale on Sunday and end their four-game losing streak. The left-hander is 1-1 with a 3.50 ERA in three career starts against the Blue Jays. Ray won the American League Cy Young Award when he was with Toronto in 2021. Right-hander Jose Berrios (5-4, 3.75) is Toronto's scheduled starter for Sunday. He gave up two runs on six hits over 5 1/3 innings and got the win in his only start against the Giants, in 2017. The Blue Jays continued to get contributions from the bottom of the lineup on Saturday. Ernie Clement had an RBI single, Will Wagner had a two-run double for the second game in a row and Tyler Heineman had an RBI double and a two-run home run. 'That's huge when the bottom of the order can get it done,' Clement said. 'It takes a lot of pressure off the top. That's our job.' 'When you know you're hitting 7-8-9, whatever it is, the tendency is to kind of chase results,' Toronto manager John Schneider said. 'And the guys aren't doing that. You have to have nine players trying to be the starter. ... We've stressed that from the get-go this year, and they have embraced it.' The Giants scored for the first time in the series -- they were shut out 4-0 in the series opener -- when Willy Adames homered with one out in the fifth against left-hander Eric Lauer, who had been perfect until that point. Adames also homered in the seventh against Chad Green. The first homer by Adames was the first run of the game. San Francisco added a run in the top of the sixth before Toronto answered with four in the bottom of the inning against Logan Webb. 'At the moment it felt great, like maybe it could start something going for the team,' Adames said. 'But, unfortunately, we couldn't back (Webb) up. It's been a little tough, obviously, to start after the break 0-2. Not the greatest, but we have a really good group here and I know we're going to click sooner than later and play better baseball.' Webb was not pleased. 'It's the second time in a row I've given up four runs in the sixth inning, so I have to figure something out,' he said. The Blue Jays outhit the Giants 14-4 on Saturday. San Francisco had two hits against Lauer and two more against right-handed relievers. Left-hander Brendon Little pitched a perfect eighth. 'We've struggled with lefties all year,' Giants manager Bob Melvin said. 'It has been a little better the last month or so, but it's been a sore spot for us.' The Giants are 10-17 against left-handed starters. 'We have not done enough against lefties,' Melvin said. In the series against the Blue Jays, the Giants have not done enough against anyone. Giants' hitters have struck out 21 times and have not walked.
