Blue Jays 11, Twins 4: Eight-run Eighths For Everyone! (But Mostly Us)

 

Kaz got another one

Even before the eight-run eighth—which proved decisive!—this one had already felt like a whole entire baseball game, as we had already been offered much to enjoy (seven strong innings from Dylan Cease, home runs from two of our unlikeliest guys [Lenyn Sosa, Myles Straw] plus a truly towering one for Okamoto) and also a fair bit to mind, too (kicking it around a little on the infield [tough to see after several years of being spoiled by league-best defense], another home run by our noble foe Byron Buxton, and George Springer leaving the game after taking a slider directly to his already broken toe). Fair enough! I guess we'll just lose this one by a run, probably! Except we extremely did not: after Luis Garcia replaced Kody Funderburk ("you called down the funder?" is something I have not heard anyone say but we should maybe start), we went thus: Ernie Clement single up the middle, Vladdy walk, Okamoto single off a glove and barely up the middle, Lenyn Sosa infield hit, pitching change to our old friend Anthony Banda, who immediately botched a Daulton Varsho comebacker, then a Myles Straw walk, and finally a Brandon Valenzuela three-run homer. That's eight runs on the first eight batters to appear in the eighth! That's unlikely! And would you have believe that the Blue Jays put up an eight-run inning in which Vladdy appeared twice, and he only have walked in it, and just the one time? Baseball remains, as ever, full of surprises. Also surprising: with our much-improved record (nine wins in thirteen games!) now standing at 16-17, which you will note remains slightly (almost imperceptibly, really) below .500, the AL is still in such a state of "not good yet" that this actually has the Blue Jays in the third and final Wild Card position! Imagine where we might be if we were actually at .500 (possibly Wild Card 2), or even a little above it (still Wild Card 2, actually, as the Rays are one of two actually good AL teams so far [the Yankees, alas, are the other]). With Trey Yesavage taking the bump Sunday afternoon, I'll tell you what I am daring to do, and it is to dream. Please join me in this reverie!    

KS