Now granted, no one in uniform gains anything by focusing on that pressure or even acknowledging it. That’s where the baseball cliches come into play. Focus on one thing at a time. It’s a long season. We still have time.
All of that’s true, even after a 7-3 loss at Atlanta’s Truist Park. But not only was Wednesday’s loss the Blue Jays’ fourth in a row, it sets up a significant mismatch in the series finale with future Hall of Famer Chris Sale on the mound opposite a Blue Jays starter who has yet to be named.
Maybe it’ll be Chad Dallas, who’s in Atlanta on the taxi squad but not yet on the roster, but it’s not expected to be Simeon Woods Richardson, who was acquired back from Minnesota in a minor trade.
Either way, though, there’s a little pressure to turn this back around. It’s doable. Just a few days ago, the Blue Jays completed a long climb back to the .500 mark, seemingly setting them up to put that milestone behind them.
Yet as Kevin Gausman said after Tuesday’s loss, it’s too often felt like four steps forward, two steps back with this team. Or, depending on the day, two steps forward and four steps back.
Facing Grant Holmes Wednesday, the Blue Jays (29-33) continued to struggle offensively. Despite some hard contact that found gloves, they managed just three runs on eight hits against Holmes and Atlanta relievers Dylan Lee, Robert Suarez and Tyler Kinley.
Batting leadoff in place of George Springer, Nathan Lukes scored two of those runs as his impressive offensive season continued. First, Lukes led off the game with a single to right field. He’d later score on a ground ball, giving the Blue Jays a brief lead.
In his next at-bat, Lukes hit his first home run of the season, sending a slider into the right-field seats. After a two-hit day, he’s batting .317 with a .787 OPS to take over the team lead in both categories.
But as impressive as Lukes has been since recovering from a bout with vertigo, Blue Jays decision-makers didn’t expect him to be leading this offence into June.
Springer’s on-base percentage has dropped by 117 points to .282 compared to last year, while his slugging percentage is down 210 points to .350. Hurrying back from a broken left toe undoubtedly impacts his production to a degree, and manager John Schneider praised Springer’s swing decisions before his scheduled day off, but the dropoff in offence still hurts.
Many others, including Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Daulton Varsho and Andres Gimenez have also seen their production fall off considerably. And while Alejandro Kirk homered in a rehab game Wednesday and could be ready before long, this offence is more than one hitter away from being where it should be.
As for the Blue Jays’ pitching, Patrick Corbin provided five solid innings against the team with MLB’s best record, allowing four runs on six hits over five innings as his ERA climbed to 3.98.
Blue Jays defenders didn’t always help their pitchers out Wednesday, as a pop-up dropped in foul territory between Guerrero Jr. and catcher Brandon Valenzuela with Yariel Rodriguez on the mound. Later, Valenzuela hit his fifth home run of the year, a no-doubter to right.
As always, momentum can shift quickly in baseball. And whatever’s happened so far, there are still 100 games remaining. But after losing four in a row, the Blue Jays are in an uncomfortable spot: beat Sale, or get swept.