We’ll save the question for just what is an ideal spot for Blue Jays reliever Sam Gaviglio for another day and perhaps a more extensive body of work in 2020.
But let’s go with what was pretty much apparent on Saturday afternoon down at Tropicana Field: That the right-hander with a fastball that touches 90 mph when it is really humming, probably isn’t best suited to the eighth inning of a 1-1 ball game.
With weary early-season arms in the bullpen drastically limiting his options, Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo took a shot on a pitcher he has had an affinity for in his time with the Jays and trotted Gaviglio out in that high-leverage spot under the St. Pete, Fla., dome.
And by doing so, the manager and his hungry young team paid the price.
A walk, a balk and a bases-clearing triple allowed by Gaviglio in the eighth turned a 1-1 game into 4-1 win Rays win to even up the three-game season-opening series at a victory apiece.
The Gaviglio gas can move — a decision Montoyo feels he essentially had to do given the workload his bullpen got in Friday’s opener — wasted a strong starting effort from starter Matt Shoemaker, who took to the mound in a regular-season game for the first time in more than 15 months.
It also denied the Jays a chance to take back-to-back road wins against a Rays team coming that is coming off a playoff appearance in 2019 and predicted by many to get back to the post season again this year.
“I said he would be used in a high-leverage situation and it was a high-leverage situation,” Montoyo said of Gaviglio, who managed just one out but gave up two walks and two hits before being removed. “He didn’t have it. He wasn’t locating his stuff. He didn’t located his pitches and he paid the price.”
Montoyo couldn’t account for Gaviglio’s off outing, given his belief in the pitcher, and you can debate the manager’s assessment of right hander. But in fairness to Montoyo, his options beyond leaving in A.J. Cole — who had breezed through an easy seventh inning — were limited.
In the 6-4 win at the Trop the night before, he had used up some of that set up firepower with Jordan Romano, Anthony Bass and Rafael Dolis all getting work and unavailable to pitch on short rest.
“That’s why Sammy was in that situation, of course,” Montoyo said.
The Jays clearly didn’t help themselves on offence as Rays starter Ryan Yarbrough pitched 5.1 shutout innings at them.
The price for such losses will be dearer than most years given the shortened season and the heightened playoff implications attached to each game. But the Jays aren’t about to beat themselves over one frustrating loss just yet.
Still, one of the measuring sticks of a developing team will be how they respond late in tight games. While this one could have gone either way, the Jays fell to 7-11 in games that were tied through seven innings through the start of the 2019 season.
REALLY GOOD SHOE
It was quite an afternoon for Shoemaker, who was making his first start in 15 months and went six strong innings allowing just three hits and one run.
The right-hander — who suffered a season-ending knee injury in a rundown against Oakland last April, allowed back-to-back singles in the first but not another hit until Ji-Man Choi touched him for a double in the sixth.
“It’s exciting to say the least,” Shoemaker said of returning to action. “We’re finally back to baseball. Building back up and getting ready and back where we all want to be. The adrenaline was flowing.”
The latest outing was the 10th consecutive effort in which Shoemaker allowed five hits or fewer. A veteran leader in the clubhouse, the right hander certainly has shown the potential of forming a nice one-two punch at the front of the rotation with free agent signee, Hyun-Jin Ryu.
“I’m really happy about his outing,” Montoyo said. “He was outstanding. Having Ryu and Shoemaker … that’s good news.”
GAME ON
The Rays winning blow came from the bat of Brandon Lowe, who drove in two with an eighth-inning triple …
The lone Jays run came off the bat of Reese McGuire, whose solo blast in the seventh tied the game at 1-1. The eighth homer of the catcher’s career ensured that Shoemaker wouldn’t take the loss … Shoemaker was replaced by A.J. Cole who breezed through a three-up, three-down seventh on just 10 pitches … When Cavan Biggio reached with a first-pitch single in the second inning, it extended his on-base stretch to an MBL-best 31 games. It’s also the longest streak by a Jay since Jose Bautista reached 33 in 2016 …Right fielder Teoscar Hernandez went 0-for-4 at the plate to snap a 10-game hit streak … Clutch for Yarbrough was getting out of a bases-loaded jam in a 21-pitch fourth inning.
REVOLVING ROTATION
The coy hype preceding the debut of the Jays top pitching prospect Nate Pearson will continue until the club is through with its service time manipulation, likely some time in the middle of next week. But with Pearson still on the Taxi squad, Montoyo has to get creative with his starter in Sunday’s rubber match by starting Thomas Hatch. The Rays will counter with lefty ace, Blake Snell. Montoyo did say that it won’t be long before Pearson and lefty Ryan Borucki in game action. “They aren’t going to go too long there,” Montoyo said of the two pitchers that are on the taxi squad but have joined the team on the season-opening road trip. “We’re not going to do that to those guys. If we don’t think we are going to activate them soon, we are going to send them back.”
AROUND THE BASES
Dante Bichette (father of Bo) who was such a hit with batters as a guest instructor has been retained for the season and will appear in the Jays dugout as what the team is calling a major league coach … Lourdes Gurriel Jr. became the first Jays player to regularly wear a mask while at the plate and on the base paths … Losing a tight one at the Trop shouldn’t really come as a surprise to the Jays who are 3-9 in their last 12 at the St. Pete stadium and have a league worst .397 win percentage under the dome … Shoemaker, who was making his 99th career start, on playing in an empty stadium: “I have tunnel vision so it doesn’t bother me, but it’s noticeable. It’s definitely odd. We want sold out crowds and fans in the stands. We build off of that.”
