So...I was in Canada yesterday. Which was nice.
I mean, I'd never been, so it was kinda nice to take everything in, see how different things were. I mean...I say different. It's basically another state. More baseball fans, more regular people. Just differences in currency and stuff.
The stadium I went to yesterday, though...WAS different. Astroturf, closable roof, larger feel to it. It's a nice place to watch a game, but I feel like the understocked the place. Not enough restrooms, food stands. Good enough food, but...it felt like the Toronto people were trying to build a stadium from what they knew, rather than what MLB was. And it stands out in a few less-than-savory ways on that front...like a lack of cup-holders. But I quibble. Because THESE...were my seats:
This was the fifth row. We could see the bat-girl, and had a nice view of Manny Machado at shortstop. And yes, I should say...this game was against the Orioles. OH BOY...WAS IT AGAINST THE ORIOLES.
Something I should point out about this Jays game- it was Jr. Jays Weekend, and they had kids helping out all over the stadium. In the broadcast booth, with the groundskeepers, on the news-desk. It was very cute. And I feel like those kids did a better job than Alex Cobb, who was on the mound for Baltimore.
Alex Cobb...gave one of the most pitiful performances I've ever seen from a pitcher. Not since Ryan Vogelsong in a spring training game last year have I seen someone give up as many runs as Alex Cobb did.
Okay, to be fair, Marco Estrada did give up the first run of the game, for a Trey Mancini home run...but then...Cobb started getting hammered by the Blue Jays offense. First an RBI double from Curtis Granderson, the guy I'd essentially come here to see. Then, the following inning (the third), Kendrys Morales took him for a solo shot.
And THEN, in the 4th inning...the same guy who'd gotten him in the 2nd...went bigger...
This guy hit a 3-run home run, to make it 6 to 1. And believe me, this was just the start of Curtis Granderson's fantastic day. He'd strike again in the 5th, doubling in Gio Urshela, and capping off a 6-RBI day, a career HIGH for him. So...it's kinda nice to see a career day for one of my favorite players.
It didn't just stop at him. In the fifth, Teoscar Hernandez hit a 2-run homer, and then Kevin Pillar hit another solo homer. This wasn't even off of Alex Cobb, as he'd been taken out by then. This was Pedro Araujo's doing, as he was sent in to quell the fire...which he could not do.
Thanks to the ineptitude of the Baltimore pitching, the score was 13 to 1 after the 5th inning. Suffice to say, there wasn't going to be any extra innings this time.
This was also thanks in part to a fantastic job done by Marco Estrada, who only gave up 2 runs on the day, both solo home runs (the other one was a Jonathan Schoop shot in the 7th). The bullpen would let one more run go by, an RBI from...Jace Peterson of all people, but there wasn't any more mayhem about.
...Which was fine. Tyler Mayza shut down the team for the last 2 innings, the later closers for Baltimore kept the runs down, Machado and Jones left the game because...they were losing by like 10 points, so they could use a rest.
Still, when the game ended, the crowd went wild again, cheering on their team, and being very proud of even the Donaldson-less Jays. And, even though I usually despise the Blue Jays, I couldn't help but join them. Especially considering the day Curtis Granderson had.
I'll be heading to two more AAA parks before I'm done, including one tonight. Tonight's is an affiliate of a team that doesn't especially need many minor leaguers right now.
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