Although he didn’t start the day at his sharpest, Alek Manoah was at his best against the Angels, striking out seven while allowing just four hits. Opposite Manoah, Shohei Ohtani was electric, touching 100 mph while mixing in his hard slider and disappearing splitter on his way to nine hits of his own. And it was perhaps fitting that on an afternoon the Blue Jays honored the 1992 World Series Champions, both starters went seven innings, in comeback style.
“Every game is Game 7 of the World Series for me,” Manoah said afterward. “It doesn’t matter if Ohtani is on the mound there or Roger Clemens. Does not matter. My job is to compete, give the team everything and do everything I can to try to win.”
In the end, Ohtani proved too much for the Blue Jays this time, as a Luis Rengifo RBI single was the game-winner and the home team lost 2-0 in front of a sellout crowd of 45,311. But where the Blue Jays faltered in all phases of the game Friday, it’s hard to find much fault with their effort Saturday. They just happened to face one of the best pitchers in the game on a day when his stuff was about as good as it gets.
“I enjoyed it,” Ohtani told reporters afterward. “I would like to avoid that if possible because (Manoah) is a great pitcher. Less chance of getting good results at the plate. But I loved going pitch to pitch with him.”
Ohtani lowered his season ERA to 2.67 with the outing — and remember, he also has 27 home runs.
“It was today,” said Blue Jays manager John Snyder, who was ejected for batted balls and strikes in the eighth. “He called and did his job. It’s four or five pitches. It’s 100 mph It’s bad stuff. You have to tip your hat to him.”
“Everything he does is amazing for me to watch,” longtime Blue Jays manager Cito Gaston said before Saturday’s ceremony. “She’s a Babe Ruth in many ways. He is a great player. I just don’t know how he’s going to do that for the rest of his career, but we’ll see what happens.”
On the mound, at least, Manoah is right up there with Ohtani, who walked, hit and grounded into a homer’s choice in three trips to the plate against his counterpart. As impressive as Ohtani has been, Manoah’s 2.60 ERA is lower and he has thrown 27.2 more innings. However, both belong in the American League Cy Young conversation along with Justin Verlander, Shane McClanahan and Dylan Cease.
Manoah began the day with a slow velocity, but his fastball picked up as the afternoon progressed and ended up hitting 96.2 mph. His fastball average was 92.9 mph, down from his season average of 94 mph, but it didn’t stop him from holding the Angels to one run.
“It started slow. His rhythm was off,” Snyder said. “But then he called it and it was an old-fashioned duel. They went toe to toe there for seven and he got stronger as he went. What allows him to win is his desire to win and his competitive nature.”
Even with Ohtani giving way to the bullpen, the Blue Jays couldn’t generate the offense they needed and fell to 68-57 on the season. But despite the team’s upward trajectory, some Blue Jays franchise greats believe the 2022 team has the potential to make a memorable October run.
“Last year they learned that one game makes a difference,” Joe Carter said. “They will work to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
“They play great,” added Gaston, who still attends regularly. “They have a great chance to go straight to the World Series. They have a good team out there. They seem to be having a lot of fun playing with each other. They seem to have each other’s backs. And they are fun to watch. It’s really fun.”
Meanwhile, Teoscar Hernandez was on the bench on Saturday after fouling a ball off his left foot for the second time in a week. The strain forced him to leave Friday’s game early, but he was available off the bench if needed on Saturday.
If Hernandez needs to ease his way back into the lineup, that’s an option the Blue Jays have now that George Springer is back on the field for the first time since July 28. the designated hit point to get them a few days off.
“He’s also at the point where he understands that it’s time for other guys to step up a little bit,” Schneider said of Springer.
Over time, that versatility will certainly help the Blue Jays, but Saturday wasn’t enough. They got the pitchers’ duel they’d been waiting for and enjoyed a 30-year celebration. But a loss to one of the game’s current greats means the Blue Jays will try to prevent a sweep when the series concludes Sunday.
