logo
The mystery behind Blue Jays starter Eric Lauer's fat lip. Was it actually a teammate?

The mystery behind Blue Jays starter Eric Lauer's fat lip. Was it actually a teammate?

DETROIT—
Eric Lauer
pitched one of the best games of his career Thursday night. And he did it with a fat lip.
Lauer has been around, and doesn't light up the radar gun, but the Jays rotation would be lost without him.
Lauer has been around, and doesn't light up the radar gun, but the Jays rotation would be lost without him.
The 30-year-old left-hander, the junior member of the
Toronto Blue Jays'
veteran pitching rotation, threw eight innings of walk-free five-hitter, allowing only one run, in a
series-opening 11-4 win
over the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park that propelled the Jays into sole possession of first place overall in the American League. But after the game, the first question was about the fat lip.
'I knew that was coming,' smiled Lauer. 'So, there's kind of this, like, known thing not to mess with (Max) Scherzer on his start days, especially when he has his headphones in, and I broke that rule. I tried to talk to him a little too early. He wasn't very happy about that, so six stitches is what you get for that.'
There is little to no chance that, despite his well-known intensity, Scherzer actually slugged Lauer for talking to him too early on a start day, but for now, this is what the southpaw would have us believe.
As he walked away from the scrum after talking about his and his team's great performance, I asked Lauer if we were really supposed to believe that Scherzer actually punched him in the face. He flashed a wry smile and shrugged his shoulders.
Eric Lauer explains his fat lip postgame.
Yeesh.
pic.twitter.com/XTPvWhP4Nk
We have learned two things from Lauer's explanation of his fat lip: Being in first place seems to be a lot of fun and lefties continue to be weird.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Check out the baseball diamond the Reds, Braves will play on at Bristol Motor Speedway
Check out the baseball diamond the Reds, Braves will play on at Bristol Motor Speedway

Yahoo

time2 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Check out the baseball diamond the Reds, Braves will play on at Bristol Motor Speedway

The trouble with playing a regulation MLB game at Bristol Motor Speedway is that, well, the venue is what the name suggests: A motor speedway. It's a race track. It's not the biggest racing surface in NASCAR, but it's big enough to fit that regulation MLB playing surface, evidently. Construction of a field for the one-off game between the Cincinnati Reds and Atlanta Braves August 2, probably wasn't too big of a deal. It does look cool, though, and MLB has started to show video and images of the field the Reds and Braves will play on. According to Mike Wilson of the Knoxville News-Sentinel, nearly 20,000 tons of gravel was used to build the field at the iconic race track. From Wilson's June 24 story: "The process included using 17,500 tons of gravel to level and create the field. It will require 340 tons of clay, which is expected to arrive soon. A synthetic turf playing surface that matches what is used at Rogers Centre, the Toronto Blue Jays' ballpark, will be installed. Additional lighting will be installed on the roof of the facility." Thing is, MLB is pretty good at making regulation fields where they didn't previously exist. For instance, they even built one in Europe, at the London Stadium during years when MLB stages its London Series. London Stadium was the centerpiece venue for the 2012 London Olympics and is now home to the English Premier League's West Ham United. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Check out the field Reds, Braves will play on at Bristol Motor Speedway

Blue Jays vs. Royals: Trade deadline hangover hits Gausman, Varland and France debut
Blue Jays vs. Royals: Trade deadline hangover hits Gausman, Varland and France debut

Hamilton Spectator

time5 hours ago

  • Hamilton Spectator

Blue Jays vs. Royals: Trade deadline hangover hits Gausman, Varland and France debut

The Blue Jays were riding high following a couple of big moves at Thursday's trade deadline, but then the Kansas City Royals rolled into town and caused them to crash back down. A three-game homestand began on a sour note with right-hander Kevin Gausman allowing five runs on six hits, including two homers. The offence then did little to help him out against veteran righty Michael Wacha in a 9-3 loss on Friday night. The Jays have lost five of their last six games after storming out of the all-star break with an 8-1 record. They need to win Saturday and Sunday to avoid losing back-to-back series for the first time since the middle of May. Here's everything you need to know about what took place at the Rogers Centre: Gausman entered this game on a roll. He had allowed just one run on five hits while striking out 18 over his previous 13 innings. The 34-year-old dominated contenders in those outings — the New York Yankees and Detroit Tigers — but wasn't nearly as effective against the now 55-55 Royals. In the second inning, Royals trade deadline acquisition Mike Yastrzemski hit a two-run homer to centre. The following inning, Gausman served up a three-run shot to star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. The Royals finished the night by tacking on three runs against lefty reliever Mason Fluharty. One of the only bright spots for the Jays occurred in the first when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a solo homer to left. Guerrero's 16th home run of the season was a no-doubter that travelled an estimated 428 feet. That gave the Jays an early lead, but the momentum was short lived as Gausman surrendered homers in the second and third. Wacha got through eight innings and allowed just the one run on three hits and zero walks. After he departed, Addison Barger hit a two-run homer in the ninth off former Jay Thomas Hatch. Star sports columnist Gregor Chisholm joins the 'Deep Left Field' podcast to review the Jays' Prior to the series opener, the Jays officially introduced starter Shane Bieber, reliever Louis Varland and utilityman Ty France to the media. All three were acquired prior to the deadline and arrived the following day to meet their new teammates. The Jays also welcomed back centre-fielder Daulton Varsho to the big-league roster. Varsho had been out since May 31 with a strained hamstring. France got the start at designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with two groundouts, a line out and a strikeout, while Varland required just 14 pitches to get through a scoreless seventh. The former Twin got the first two batters he faced to ground out before striking out Kyle Isbel on an 89-m.p.h. knuckle curve. Varsho went 0-for-3 with a pop-up and two strikeouts. 'I'm excited, this is a great baseball team,' France said when asked about joining the Jays. 'It's always nice coming into a winning environment, a winning atmosphere. You can't ask for more than playing meaningful baseball at this time of the year. I'm excited to be here and we'll see where things go.'

Jhoan Durán earns a save in his Philly debut as Philadelphia rallies to beat the Tigers 5-4
Jhoan Durán earns a save in his Philly debut as Philadelphia rallies to beat the Tigers 5-4

Yahoo

time6 hours ago

  • Yahoo

Jhoan Durán earns a save in his Philly debut as Philadelphia rallies to beat the Tigers 5-4

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jhoan Durán earned a save in his Philadelphia debut after Bryson Stott beat a throw to first base and was ruled safe on an overturned review call for the go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning as the Phillies beat the Detroit Tigers 5-4 on Friday night. The Phillies trailed 3-0 in the seventh and 4-3 in the eighth, rallying each time against the AL Central leaders and setting the stage for Durán's ballyhooed debut. With former WWE star The Undertaker's gong setting the soundtrack, Durán entered with only iPhone lights on in the ballpark and flames on the big screen to create the dramatic mood. Duran did the rest in his first appearance since his trade-deadline acquisition from Minnesota. He retired the side in order in the ninth inning — on four pitches — for his 17th save. The Phillies rallied without slugger Bryce Harper, ejected in the seventh inning for arguing a called third strike on a check swing. Gleyber Torres hit a three-run homer off Phillies starter Ranger Suárez in the third inning for the early lead. Stott had a sacrifice fly and Trea Turner and Kyle Schwarber added run-scoring singles against Detroit's bullpen to make it 3-all. Wenceel Pérez hit a solo homer off Phillies reliver Orion Kerkering (6-4) in the eighth to give Detroit the 4-3 lead. Otto Kemp tied the game at 4 with an RBI double and the Phillies caught a break with two outs when Edmundo Sosa's slow roller in front of the plate was snagged by reliever Brenan Hanifee (3-3). His wild throw pulled first baseman Spencer Torkelson off the bag, allowing Sosa to reach and give the Phillies new life. Stott was ruled out on a grounder into the hole at short, but replay confirmed he was safe, giving Philadelphia a 5-4 lead. Key moment Hanifee's error doomed Detroit. Key stat Torres had three hits Up next The Phillies send ace RHP Zack Wheeler (9-4, 2.56 ERA) to the mound against Tigers LHP Tarik Skubal (10-3, 2.09). ___ AP MLB:

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store