Blue Jays – Athletics
Chris Bassitt once again demonstrated his dominance as the Blue Jays defeated the A's, 7-1, on Tuesday night at the Coliseum.
While his team was finally breaking out for six runs in the seventh inning, Bassitt went to the bullpen down the right-field line to stay warm with some throwing.
Bassitt delivered an impressive performance, allowing only seven hits while striking out seven batters and issuing no walks in eight innings. His outstanding performance helped Toronto secure a series victory. Oakland managed to score their only run against him in the seventh inning when Seth Brown doubled and Jordan Diaz drove him in with an RBI single.
The right-hander notched his ninth start of at least six scoreless innings, the most in the Majors this season. This achievement also tied him with Roger Clemens (1997) for the most such starts in a single season in franchise history.
Teammates praised Bassitt's consistency and durability, referring to him as a workhorse who consistently goes deep into games, allowing the bullpen to rest.
A's lefty Ken Waldichuk matched Bassitt with six scoreless innings, conceding just three hits. However, the A’s bullpen struggled in the decisive seventh inning.
Zach Neal came in and walked three of his first four batters, leading to a bases-loaded situation. Sam Long was then called upon but gave up an RBI single to Kiermaier. This was followed by a two-run single from George Springer and a run-scoring double from Davis Schneider. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was intentionally walked, and Whit Merrifield hit a sacrifice fly. Long walked Alejandro Kirk to reload the bases and walked Cavan Biggio to force in another run. In total, twelve batters came to the plate in the inning, with six of them drawing walks, one of which was intentional.
In contrast, Bassitt faced no such trouble during his stellar outing. He allowed leadoff singles in the first two innings but induced double plays both times. After six innings, he had allowed just three hits and thrown 70 pitches, yet the game remained scoreless.
Ryu, with a 2.48 ERA, is set to take the mound for the third game of the series against Oakland at the Coliseum tonight. We'll see if he can continue the success for the Blue Jays.