TORONTO — As the fifth inning threatened to unravel on the Toronto Blue Jays, the recent struggles of their bullpen appeared destined to deepen with yet another implosion.
Lefty Brendon Little, taking over from Max Scherzer with a one-run lead, could have been out of the inning, or at least in a good spot with two out and one on, but instead, a bobbled dribbler and an imperfect relay left the bases loaded with none out. After a Sal Frelick chopper to the mound led to an out at home, manager John Schneider turned to Tommy Nance — and the right-hander completed a remarkable escape by striking out Andrew Vaughn and inducing an Isaac Collins groundout.
For a relief group under the microscope during a rough stretch that’s coincided with a challenging period overall for the club, it was an important moment of catharsis.
Now, one strong performance doesn’t alone put the Blue Jays back on track, but the three-run rally the offence put up immediately after Nance’s crucial hold, along with the steely relief work that followed in an 8-4 victory Sunday over the Milwaukee Brewers, was a needed response to cap a 3-3 homestand.
Louis Varland, with a dominant 1.2 shutout innings that ended a run of six straight outings with a run allowed, Seranthony Dominguez and embattled closer Jeff Hoffman all locked the game down behind Nance, aided by the breathing room that three-spot in the fifth provided.
The offence did the heavy lifting on a warm afternoon before a sell-out crowd of 41,488 at Rogers Centre as Scherzer gave up a two-run homer in the first and then surrendered a pair in the third to cough up a 4-2 lead.
The Blue Jays’ defence played a vital role, too.
Myles Straw, who had three hits including a two-run single in the fifth, chased down a Vaughn drive to centre in the third and then threw out Contreras at third base for an inning-ending double play. In the fourth, Andres Gimenez made a clever read on a double-steal attempt and threw out Andruw Monasterio at home to end the frame.
Combined, the Blue Jays (79-58) ensured they wouldn’t lose further ground to the New York Yankees (76-60), who were playing the Chicago White Sox, and maintained a three-game edge on the Boston Red Sox (76-62), who beat Pittsburgh 5-2.
