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The Toronto Blue Jays make franchise history before the all-star break
Photo credit: Lachlan Cunningham / Toronto Sun
After suffering back-to-back losses to the Athletics in Sacramento, the Toronto Blue Jays still remain first in the AL East heading into the MLB All-Star break.
The Blue Jays fell 6-3 to the Athletics on Sunday, marking their second straight loss and third defeat in their last four games.
Blue Jays head into All-Star break with some concern.
Rob Longley from the Toronto Sun writes that all things considered, it's been an impressive stretch for the Jays, who will leave the Athletics' temporary home holding a two-game lead over the defending division champion Yankees. However, with a 3-3 record on their recently concluded road trip, they've allowed the red-hot Boston Red Sox, now on a 10-game winning streak, to narrow the gap to just three games behind.
"The break probably comes at a good time, however, for a team that could use the rest, especially on the pitching side. They certainly showed it in California, after the red-hot streak from earlier in the month chilled somewhat." -Longley
Sunday's starter, Jose Berrios, appeared fatigues, while Kevin Gausman, who took the loss on Saturday, admitted that the upcoming break would be crucial for him to reset hopefully regain the form he showed during the late stages of the 2024 season.
The rest of the rotation faces similar challenges, especially with earlier injury setbacks to Max Scherzer and struggles from Bowden Francis leaving the team short-handed.
The silver lining is that, before this recent stumble, the Jays had strung together an impressive 10-game winning streak that propelled them to the top of the division.
"What comes next matters most. But a team doesn't get to 14 games above .500 at this point in the season by accident. A worst-to-first season is no guarantee, but it's suddenly a realistic target for a team that is playing hard for each other." -Longley
The Jays' offense on Sunday didn't show up until later in the game, and it came exclusively through the long ball, a solo shot from Davis Schneider in the fifth inning, which was also Toronto's first hit of the game, followed by a two-run homer from Addison Barger in the seventh.
Notably, Barger's 13th home run of the season puts him second on the team, trailing only George Springer by three, and sitting one ahead of both Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bo Bichette.
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 14 | 1673 ANSWERS The Toronto Blue Jays make franchise history before the all-star break Does the Blue Jays two-game losing streak concern you? | ||
| yes | 647 | 38.7 % |
| no | 1026 | 61.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
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