TORONTO – At the midway point of 20 games in 20 days, within a wider stretch of 30 contests in 31 days, all after an abbreviated spring training, the Toronto Blue Jays are feeling the toll of an unforgiving schedule to open the 2022 season.
“Actually, I was thinking about that coming into the ballpark, what a grind baseball is, and people have no idea unless you go through it,” manager Charlie Montoyo said in his office during a quiet pre-game to help his players manage their workload.
“So many guys have the tools and stuff but the mental grind of baseball, it’s unbelievable. And playing so many games in a row, against good teams and against good pitching, that’s why not everybody can play in the big-leagues for a long time. That’s why not everybody can have success. It’s a grind and today is one of those days, like, OK, it’s too many games in a row, people are feeling it, you’re playing on turf. There’s a lot that goes on.”
That’s what made the seven dominant and low-stress innings delivered by Alek Manoah in Thursday afternoon’s 1-0 victory over the Boston Red Sox all the more timely. Not only did the right-hander get deep enough into the game that Montoyo could optimize his busy bullpen, he also did the heavy lifting for an offence that was without Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who fouled a ball off his foot Wednesday night and was sore enough that he sat for the first time this season.
X-rays were negative and at one point the all-star slugger put on batting gloves in the dugout in apparent preparation for a possible pinch-hit at-bat, so he should be ready to play Friday night when the Houston Astros check in.
But without any days off, there’s no chance to rest and let bruises like the one on his foot, or the tightness Lourdes Gurriel Jr. experienced in his legs earlier in the week ease, or to take a break from the mental rigours of competing in daily leverage.
There’s always another game the next day and the only thing to do is suck it up and get after it.
Manoah, as he always does, did precisely that against the Red Sox before a Rogers Centre crowd of 23,144, keeping a game with no margin under his thumb. He allowed just three hits and a walk while striking out seven, pivotally stranding a leadoff double from Kiké Hernández in the seventh.
Jackie Bradley Jr. advanced him to third with a weak comebacker but Manoah rallied to get Christian Arroyo on a liner right at shortstop Bo Bichette before Gosuke Katoh made a nice catch on Bobby Dalbec’s foul pop up by the first-base stands.
That ensured that the lead provided by Alejandro Kirk’s RBI single off Garrett Whitlock in the third inning – cashing in Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who reached on Arroyo error – was handed over to the bullpen.
Adam Cimber, pitching for the ninth time in 20 games, delivered a clean eighth before Jordan Romano, who took a comebacker off the leg Tuesday but still came out for his 11th outing, locked things down in the ninth.
