Those 47 Games

Wednesday, November 23 2005 @ 08:25 AM EST

Contributed by: Magpie

Here we look at what the Blue Jays did in those 47 games decided by a single run. Seeing as how they lost 31 of these games, there are a lot of painful memories in here. Viewer Discretion Advised. But it's always a good day when I get to be the Dude's Advocate!

We'll have a quick recap of all 47 games, data tables of how the hitters and pitchers performed, and a few random observations.

Part One - A Game-by-Game Account

APRIL (13-12 overall, 3-4 in one-run games)

Game 1 (LOSS) - 8 April 2005 

BOS (2-2) 	111 001 200  	6  9  0 	  	
TOR (2-2) 	011 000 102  	5  8  1
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short.
Also contributing to this loss was a bullpen failure that put the Jays into a hole that proved too large to rally back from. Dave Bush left the game trailing 3-2 after five innings; Brandon League gave up three runs in the 6th and 7th to put the Jays down by 6-2. League's own throwing error led directly to two runs scoring. A ninth inning rally got the tying run to second base with one out, and loaded the bases with two out, but that was as close they would come.

Game 2 (WIN) - 10 April 2005

BOS (2-4) 	010 000 002 	3 10  0 	  	
TOR (4-2) 	000 120 001 	4  9  0
Game Type: Big Hit in a Tie Game
Toronto took a 3-1 lead into the 9th, but the Red Sox rallied to tie off Miguel Batista. The key hits were a chopper off home plate by Johnny Damon and a two-run single by Edgar Renteria. But the Jays scored in the bottom half with an infield hit by Johnson and a double to the wall by Hudson.

Game 3 (WIN) - 14 April 2005 

TOR (7-3) 	100 000 100  	2  5  1
TEX (4-6) 	000 010 000  	1  5  1
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
A fine match-up between Roy Halladay and Pedro Astacio(!). The big hit was Gregg Zaun’s seventh inning double, that moved Alex Rios to third, from where he scored on an Adams ground out.

Game 4 (LOSS) - 17 April 2005 

TOR (8-5) 	000 103 100  	5 10  0 	  	
TEX (6-7) 	420 000 00x   	6 12  1
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short.
Josh Towers fell behind early, but Pete Walker stopped the bleeding. The Jays closed to within 2 runs in the sixth, and put the tying runs on base - but pinch-hitter John McDonald struck with runners on second and third. In the seventh, the Jays scored another and had runners on the corners with two outs, but the Rangers escaped when Adrian Gonzalez made a nice play on Hinske’s hard grounder. In the eighth, Zaun doubled with one out, but was caught off second as McDonald lined into a double play.

Game 5 (WIN) - 19 April 2005 

TOR (9-6) 	000 001 021  	4 13  0 	  	
BOS (8-6) 	100 000 200  	3  6  0
Game Type: Come From Behind Win
This was a Bullpen Failure for the other guys. David Ortiz hit a two-run homer off Halladay to put the Red Sox up 3-1 in the seventh, but Vernon Wells answered right back with a two-run shot off his own off Alan Embree. The Jays scored the winner off Keith Foulke in the 9th. Catalanotto was hit by a pitch and Zaun walked. Hillenbrand singled, but Jay Payton threw pinch-runner Reed Johnson out at the plate to keep the score tied. But Corey Koskie, who had a huge game, then singled to drive in Zaun with the go-ahead run. This was the only game Boston lost by one-run in Fenway in 2005.

Game 6 (LOSS) - 21 April 2005

NYY (7-9) 	000 220 000  	4  9  1 	  	
TOR (9-8) 	000 030 000  	3 13  0
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short
After scoring three times in the fifth to close to within a run, the Jays couldn’t push across the tying run despite a number of chances. In the sixth, they loaded the bases with one out: Zaun popped out, Hillenbrand grounded out. Wells doubled with one out in the seventh, but Hinske and Rios couldn’t cash him in. Hudson walked to lead off the eighth, but never made it any further. With two out in the ninth, Wells and Hinske singled, but Rivera got Rios to ground out to end it. The Jays stranded 13 baserunners.

Game 7 (LOSS) - 30 April 2005

TOR (13-12) 	000 020 010  	3  8  0 	  	
NYY (10-14) 	200 100 001  	4 10  0
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
This was Chien-Ming Wang’s debut, and he and Dave Bush matched up in a close game. Corey Koskie’s eighth inning homer tied it. In the bottom of the ninth, Vinnie Chulk gave up a leadoff walk to Rodriguez, and a single to Martinez. An intentional walk loaded the bases for Womack, who delivered the game-winning single.

MAY (Overall 15-12; 1-5 in one-run games)

Game 8 (WIN) - 3 May 2005 

TOR (16-12) 	000 000 010  	1  5  1 	  	
BAL (17-9) 	000 000 000  	0  3  0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
Josh Towers and Daniel Cabrera matched zeroes through seven innings. Hinske and Zaun walked to start the eighth, and Hinske moved to third on Rios’ force out. The Jays tried a suicide squeeze, but Russ Adams' bunt went foul. Adams then rolled a nubber past the pitcher for an infield hit that scored the game’s only run.

Game 9 (LOSS) - 8 May 2005

CHW (24-7) 	120 200 000  	5 10  2 	  	
TOR (16-16) 	000 400 000  	4  9  0
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short
Gus Chacin fell behind early, but the Jays closed the gap to one run with a four-spot off Mark Buehrle, aided by a key Uribe error. The final five innings were scoreless - the Jays didn’t really threaten until the ninth. Zaun walked with one out - he was injured sliding into second on McDonald’s force out, but Hudson followed with a pinch-hit double, putting both the tying and winning runs on base. Reed Johnson then lined out to centre to end it.

Game 10 (LOSS) - 14 May 2005

TOR (19-18) 	020 000 000  	2  7   0 	  	
CLE (16-19) 	020 000 10x   	3  5   0
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
A lengthy rain delay removed starters Gus Chacin and Kevin Millwood. The ensuing battle of the bullpens was settled when Jhonny Peralta homered off Jason Frasor in the seventh. Alex Rios, who walked to lead off the sixth, and singled to lead off the ninth, was the only Blue Jay to reach base after the fourth inning.

Game 11 (LOSS) - 18 May 2005

TOR (21-19) 	001 100 000  	2  7  0
MIN (22-16) 	020 100 00x  	3  7  0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
Michael Cuddyer’s fourth inning homer was the big blow off Dave Bush, who worked a complete game. Vernon Wells led off the sixth with a double; he was the last Toronto hitter to reach base, as the Twins retired 16 of the final 17 batters.

Game 12 (LOSS) - 28 May 2005

MIN (29-19) 	020 020 000  	4  6  2
TOR (26-23) 	001 000 002  	3  9  1
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short
Kyle Lohse beat Dave Bush for the second time in 10 days. Bush was not happy about being pulled in the fifth with two outs and the bases empty. By the time the weekend was over, he was in Syracuse. Aaron Hill delivered a two run double off Joe Nathan, putting the tying run on second with one out, but Adams and Zaun couldn’t deliver the needed hit.

Game 13 (LOSS) - 30 May 2005

TOR (27-24) 	000 010 200  	3  8  0
SEA (21-29) 	000 310 00x  	4  7  0
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short
Trailing 4-1 against Jamie Moyer, the Jays got seventh inning homers from Hudson and Johnson off Mateo to cut the gap to a single run. Hillenbrand singled to lead off the eighth, and Hudson walked with two out, but Thornton got Zaun to fly out to snuff out the Jays best chance.

JUNE (Overall 12-15; 1-1 in one-run games)

Game 14 (WIN) - 22 June 2005

BAL (42-29) 	001 100 000 	2  7  0
TOR (36-36) 	001 020 00x 	3  7  1
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
The Jays scored the go-ahead run on Daniel Cabrera’s fifth inning balk, and got some yeoman relief work out of Jason Frasor (retired Palmeiro and Gibbons with two men on in the sixth), Scott Schoeneweis (struck out Roberts with a runner aboard in the seventh) and Miguel Batista (retired Sosa and Palmeiro with the tying run on second in the eighth.) Then Orlando Hudson made an amazing stop on Jay Gibbons leading off the ninth.

Game 15 (LOSS) - 27 June 2005

TOR (38-39) 	000 200 010 	3  10  1
TAM (27-50) 	003 100 00x 	4   7  0
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short?
Aubrey Huff’s three-run homer off Pete Walker helped push the Devil Rays to a 4-2 lead. In the eighth inning, Wells walked and Hillenbrand doubled. Wells was out at the plate on Hill’s fielder’s choice and Hinske struck out. Rios singled to score Hillenbrand and move Hill to second, but Hudson grounded out to end the threat. Danys Baez set them down in order in the ninth.

JULY (Overall 13-12; 2-6 in one-run games)

Game 16 (LOSS) - 8 July 2005

TOR (44-42) 	060 000 000  	6   6 	3
TEX (44-40) 	111 200 002  	7  14 	0
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
Not entirely a failure by the bullpen - Miguel Batista gave up two runs in the ninth to lose the game, but he only gave up one clean hit, a single by Blalock. Errant throws by Hillenbrand and Zaun accounted for most of the carnage. Jason Frasor gave up a pair of fourth inning runs to allow the Rangers back into the game, but the rest of the bullpen held fast until the calamitous ninth. This was the game in which Halladay was injured.

Game 17 (LOSS) - 10 July 2005

TOR (44-44) 	000 130 013 	8  13  1
TEX (46-40) 	021 020 04x 	9  12  2
Game Type: Bullpen Failure / Rally That Fell Short
Trailing 5-4, the Jays tied it up in the top of the eighth. Zaun singled and Hinske doubled to start the inning. Rios’ grounder scored Zaun and moved Hinske to third. But McDonald and Adams both grounded out to leave him there. With one out and no one aboard in the bottom of the inning, Jason Frasor relieved Scott Schoeneweis and immediately imploded, giving up a pair of two-run homers, to DeRosa and Teixeira. The Jays rallied for three off Cordero in the top of the ninth. With one out, Wells singled, Hillenbrand was hit by a pitch, and Hill’s double cashed in both runners. Zaun walked, and Hinske doubled to score Hill. But Zaun, possibly flagging a little in the Texas heat, stopped at third on the play and was stranded there as Rios struck out and Johnson grounded out.

Game 18 (LOSS) - 16 July 2005 

TAM (30-62) 	031 200 000 	6  12   1	 	
TOR (45-46) 	003 002 000 	5   9   1
Game Type: Rally That Fell Short
A missed call by John Hirschbeck on a play at first cost the Jays a run, as Carl Crawford’s subsequent homer cashed two runs instead of one. That put the Jays down 6-3, but they cut the gap to a single run on Rios’ double in the sixth. Wells was intentionally walked to load the bases, but Hillenbrand popped out and Hill grounded out to end that threat. The Jays got the leadoff man aboard in the seventh and eighth, but couldn’t do anything with it.

Game 19 (LOSS) - 17 July 2005

TAM (31-62) 	000 100 031 	5  12 	2
TOR (45-47) 	020 000 200 	4   8 	1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
A wild game, and a tough loss, as the Jays took a 4-1 lead into the eighth inning. The Rays scored a run off Schoeneweis, and Batista entered the game with two out and a man on first. He allowed a single to Gomes and then Toby Hall doubled down the left field line to cash both runners. Gregg Zaun and John Gibbons didn’t think much of John Hirschbeck’s work on the play. Reed Johnson then saved three runs with a spectacular diving catch in the gap, probably the best catch I saw all season. All this sent the game to the ninth tied at 4-4, where, with two out, Batista gave up back-to-back doubles by Lugo and Cantu to put the D’Rays ahead. Rios walked to start the bottom of the ninth, and Adams singled with two out, but Johnson lined out to deep left to end the game.

Game 20. (LOSS) - 24 July 2005

TOR  (49-49)  	100 300 001   	5  10  0 	
KAN (36-62) 	000 420 00X  	6   9  0
Game Type: Blown Lead, Rally that Fell Short
Ted Lilly's aching shoulder gave out in the fourth inning, and the Royals scored 4 runs to tie the game. Chad Gaudin was the first man out of the pen, and he instantly gave up two runs to put the Jays behind. Toronto put the tying run on base in the ninth, but a Hill double play ended the threat.

Game 21. (WIN) - July 27 2005

LAA  (59-42)  	101 000 000 0   2  10  0
TOR (51-49) 	010 010 000 1  	3  10  1
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
Josh Towers and Bartolo Colon hooked up in a tight game that was decided on Donnelly's wild pitch with the bases loaded. The key hits for Toronto were Adams' leadoff single in the 10th, and Hill's infield hit to load the bases.

Game 22. (WIN) - July 28 2005

LAA  (59-43)  	000 000 001 000 000 000   1   9  0 
TOR (52-49) 	000 000 001 000 000 001   2   9  0
Game Type: Pitcher's duel.
This one featured Dave Bush and John Lackey. Toronto rallied off Rodriguez in the bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings - Adams led off with a walk and scored after Wells and Hillenbrand singled. In the 18th, Rios singled, stole second, took third on a wild pitch and scored on Hudson's single through a drawn-in infield.

Game 23. (LOSS) - July 30 2005

TEX  (53-50)  	010 002 000   	3    7  1
TOR (52-51) 	200 000 000 	2    6  1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure, Missed Chances
Dustin McGowan had a 2-1 lead through 5 in his ML debut. The first man out of the pen was Jason Frasor, who immediately gave up two runs to put the Jays behind. Toronto had four chances to tie, couldn't get it done.

AUGUST (Overall 13-15; 6-6 in one-run games)

Game 24. (WIN) - August 3 2005

TOR  (55-51)  	400 000 000   	4    5  0
CHW (69-37) 	100 020 000 	3    9  0
Game Type: Big Early Lead, Hung On
Zaun's bases loaded double and Hinske's RBI single gave Toronto a big lead in their first at bat. That was all the offense for the day, but Dave Bush and the bullpen made it stand up.

Game 25. (LOSS) - August 4 2005

TOR  (55-52)  	000 300 010  	4    7  0   	
CHW (70-37) 	400 000 01X 	5    7  1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
Turnabout is fair play - Chicago scored four in their first at bat against Dustin McGowan. The rookie shut them down after that, and with Russ Adams leading the way, the hitters eventually tied the game. As soon as they did that, Justin Speier gave up a homer to Tadahito Iguchi leading off the eighth inning.

Game 26. (LOSS) - August 8 2005

DET  (53-58)  	401 110 001 001  9  15  0
TOR (56-55) 	110 202 020 000  8  20  1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
The Jays trailed 4-0 after Detroit's first at bat, and 7-4 after 5 - but they took an 8-7 lead into the ninth inning. Batista gave up two singles and a sac fly to tie the game - the Jays blew a bases-loaded with one out opportunity in the bottom of the inning. Scott Schoeneweis eventually gave up the winning run.

Game 27. (WIN) - August 10 2005

DET  (53-60)  	000 201 000  	3    5  0
TOR (58-55) 	010 002 001 	4    9  1
Game Type: Come-from-behind win.
Gustavo Chacin worked into the seventh. Trailing 3-1, the Jays tied it on a two-run single by Rios in the sixth, and won it on Hudson's ninth-inning homer.

Game 28. (WIN) - August 11 2005

DET  (53-61)  	000 000 010   	1    2  1 
TOR (59-55) 	200 000 00X 	2    4  0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
Russ Adams walked and Frank Catalanotto homered off Jeremy Bonderman in the first inning. Bonderman was untouchable after that, but Scott Downs and the bullpen made it stand up.

Game 29. (LOSS) - August 13 2005

TOR  (60-56)  000 000 000   0  	5  0 
BAL (57-59)   001 000 00X   1 	4  0
Game Type: Pitcher's duel (Dave Bush special!)
Miguel Tejada delivered a two out RBI single in the third, and Toronto couldn't get anything done against John Maine. Only one runner made it to third base all day.

Game 30. (WIN) - August 14 2005

TOR  (61-56)  110 011 030  7 14 1
BAL (57-60)   210 100 002  6 10 0
Game Type: Barely Hung On
Trailing 4-2 at one point, the Jays took a 7-4 lead into the 9th. Miguel Batista made things very exciting, before retiring Rafael Palmeiro (first game back after his suspension) with two runners on to end it.

Game 31. (LOSS) - August 15 2005

TOR  (61-57)  000 010 300 00  	4  9 2
LAA (69-49)   010 011 010 01 	5 13 1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
Trailing 3-1, the Jays rallied against Santana to take a 4-3 lead. But the Angels scored a run against Chulk and Schoeneweis to tie it in the eighth. The game went to extra innings. Pete Walker came in to work the eleventh and after facing Cabrera (double) and Erstad (RBI single) this one was over.

Game 32. (WIN) - August 16 2005

TOR  (62-57)  010 001 002  4   7   0
LAA (69-50)   010 020 000  3   6   0
Game Type: Come From Behind Win
This bullpen failure belonged to Francisco Rodriguez. Trailing 3-2, Hillenbrand led off with a single. Hinske, pinch-hitting, drew a walk. Gregg Zaun laid down what would have been a sac bunt - except he beat it out for a single, loading the bases. Corey Koskie drew a walk to force in the tying run, and Catalanotto's sac fly drove in the go-ahead run.

Game 33. (LOSS) - August 20 2005

TOR  (63-59)  100 010 000 000 0  2  5 0 
DET (59-62)   100 010 000 000 1  3 11 1
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
Gustavo Chacin and Jason Johnson kept it close before turning it over to the bullpens. Batista and the Jays blinked first - in the bottom of the thirteenth, Polanco led off with a single, moved up on a walk, and scored the winning run when Ordonez doubled.

Game 34. (LOSS) - August 23 2005

TOR  (63-62)  000 200 011   4  10 2
NYY (69-55)   000 001 112   5 	9 0
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
Shudder. Also known as The Felix Escalona Game. This was surely one of the most painful losses of the season. The Jays pushed across a run against the great Mariano Rivera himself to take a lead into the bottom of the ninth. But it was all in vain. This one featured not one, but two Blown Saves, by Speier in the 8th and Batista in the nightmarish 9th. Josh Towers, who went into Yankee Stadium and held the Bombers to two runs in seven innings, tried to take the blame for this debacle. And that's just one of the many reasons we all love Josh so much.

Game 35. (WIN) - August 27 2005

CLE  (72-58)  001 000 000   1  	5 0 
TOR (65-64)   001 100 00X   2 	6 2
Game Type: Pitcher's duel.
Believe it or not, boys and girls, there was actually a pitcher in the AL who had even worse luck than Dave Bush in 2005. The mind boggles, but it's true. His name is Kevin Millwood. He led the league in ERA, his team won 93 games and were fourth in the league in runs scored. Somehow, Millwood went 9-11. He must have had a lot of days like this one. Russ Adams singled to score Hinske and make it 2-1 Toronto after four. And that was all she wrote. Millwood later said "I've had the urge to break things, but right now it's to the point where it's almost funny...I'm not angry by any means. I know the guys are trying their best. They want to put runs up on the board, but we ran into a guy that was on today." That would be Scott Downs, supported by Frasor, Schoeneweis, and especially Batista who pitched out of an inherited jam in the eighth inning.

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER (Overall 14-16; 3-9 in one-run games)

Game 36. (WIN) - September 2 2005

TAM  (55-81)  003 000 000   3  	8  0 
TOR (67-67)   001 010 02X   4 	10 0
Game Type: Come from behind win.
Trailing 3-2 in the eighth, Toronto scored two without an RBI, to bail out Scott Downs, who had struck out 11 but was on the hook to take a very tough loss. Facing Joe Borowski, Wells and Hillenbrand started the rally with a couple of singles. Adams beat out a bunt to load the bases. Koskie hit into a double play, as the tying run scored. Borowski then threw a wild pitch (the batter, Gregg Zaun, had tried to call time but the umpire didn't oblige) to score the go-ahead run.

Game 37. (LOSS) - September 3 2005

TAM  (56-81)  001 000 002   3 6 0
TOR (67-68)   000 002 000   2 2 1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
The Travis Lee game. Another outstanding start by Josh Towers, another ninth inning nightmare for Miguel Batista. Towers put the leadoff hitter on to start the ninth, but Scott Schoeneweis retired Aubrey Huff, and Batista got Jonny Gomes. But then he threw Lee one cutter too many. It was an 0-2 pitch, too. I was there. I distinctly heard booing.

Game 38. (LOSS) - September 4 2005

TAM  (57-81)  010 000 000  1 7 0
TOR (67-69)   000 000 000  0 4 0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel (Dave Bush Special!)
Scott Kazmir escaped a first inning jam (1st and 3rd with none out) and was utterly untouchable after that. Tampa put together two singles and a sac fly to score the game's only run. Toronto batted eight times after that, trailing 1-0, and never managed to get a runner as far as second base.

Game 39. (WIN) - September 10 2005

TOR  (71-70)  010 000 002   3 9 0
TAM (59-84)   000 200 000   2 4 1
Game Type: Come From Behind Win
The Bush-Kazmir rematch was very like their previous encounter. Kazmir struck out 11 and Bush worked eight strong innings, but a two-run HR by Hollins in the fourth gave Tampa a 2-1 lead heading to the ninth. Danys Baez came on to work the ninth, and Gibbons sent for his LH pinch-hitters. Catalanotto, batting for Rios, led off with a walk, and Hinske, batting for Menechino, singled him to second. Gregg Zaun pinch hit for Quiroz, and delivered a single to tie the game; Russ Adams (batting for himself!) stroked another single to put the Jays ahead. Batista set the Rays down in order to close it out.

Game 40. (LOSS) - September 11 2005

TOR  (71-71)  010 000 220 00  5   8  1
TAM (60-84)   003 000 002 01  6   9   1
Game Type:Bullpen Failure
Another tough day at the office for Miguel, as he couldn't protect a 5-3 lead in the ninth. Travis Lee - him again? - delivered the game-tying hit in the ninth, and drove in the winning run with a grounder in the 11th. Both hits were ground balls to Hillenbrand at first base - he misplayed the one in the ninth that tied the game, and his throw home in the eleventh was too late to catch Joey Gathright. A very fine running catch at the wall in right-centre by Damon Hollins robbed Adams of an extra base hit in the top of the eleventh, saving at least one run, as Hinske, running all the way, was doubled off first base to end the inning.

Game 41. (LOSS) - September 12 2005

BOS  (84-59)  000 102 200 01  	6  12  1
TOR (71-72)   000 000 500 00 	5   8  0
Game Type: Bullpen Failure?
Trailing 5-0, the Jays rallied to tie, thanks largely to Vernon Wells' three-run homer. John Gibbons called on Pete Walker in the eleventh, and with two out and no one on base, Walker gave David Ortiz something to hit. Ortiz, who has his own version of the old Willie Keeler formula, hit it where it couldn't be caught. He'll do that.

Game 42. (LOSS) - September 16 2005

NYY  (84-62)  	114 500 000   	11 12 1  
TOR (72-74) 	300 013 300  	10 14 0
Game Type: Rally that fell short
The Jays took an early lead against Randy Johnson, who then managed to get himself ejected from the game. But Dave Bush couldn't solve the bottom third of the lineup (Flaherty and Cano), the guys who followed Bush (League and Walker) were just as bad, and Toronto fell behind by eight runs after four innings. They rallied against Proctor, Rodriguez, and Embree to make it close. This meant mainly that a tired Mariano Rivera had to come into the game. The Sandman, as he generally does, put an end to all of that nonsense. On the bright side, the rally did accomplish something - it meant that under no circumstances would Rivera be available the next day...

Game 43. (LOSS) - September 17 2005

NYY  (85-62)  	010 000 000   	1  10 0
TOR (72-75) 	000 000 000 	0   6 0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel
The long-awaited Chacon-Chacin matchup was a dead ringer for the Bush-Kazmir game on September 4 (Game 38). Bernie Williams hit an RBI single in the second, and Toronto had eight chances to tie it up. But Shea Hillenbrand kept hitting into double plays, including the one that ended the game with two runners aboard in the ninth. Tom Gordon was filling in for Rivera, and escaped with the save.

Game 44. (WIN) - September 18 2005

NYY  (85-63)  	002 000 111  	5  8 1 
TOR (73-75) 	130 010 01X  	6 10 1
Game Type: Early Lead, Barely Hung On
The Jays roughed up Jaret Wright early - literally, as a piece of Hinske's broken bat nailed him on his pitching arm. Toronto led 4-0 and then 5-2. The Yankees chipped away, closing to 5-4. Koskie drove in an insurance run in the eighth, and Batista needed the breathing room.

Game 45. (LOSS) - September 21 2005

SEA  (66-86)  	000 300 000  	3 5 0
TOR (74-77) 	000 000 002   	2 4 0
Game Type: Pitcher's Duel, sort of.
Dave Bush and King Felix cruised through the first three, and then Bush's control inexplicably abandoned him. In the fourth inning, he walked three batters, hit another, and gave up a pair of singles, allowing Seattle to count three. League and Marcum did an outstanding job to hold the fort, but it didn't matter. King Felix was awesome - he didn't even give up a hit until the seventh. The Jays made it close on Hillenbrand's two run HR off Guardado in the ninth, but Everyday Eddie closed it out, retiring Zaun and Johnson to strand Rios on first.

Game 46. (LOSS) - September 29 2005

TOR  (78-81)  	011 020 000    	4 10 1
BOS (93-66) 	001 002 011   	5 10 1
Game Type: Bullpen Failure
The Jays took an early 4-1 lead off Matt Clement, but no lead is safe in Fenway, especially when Manny and Papi are in the house. Ramirez hit a two-run HR off Jason Frasor in the 6th to make it 4-3; Ortiz tied it with a solo shot off Vinnie Chulk in the eighth, and Papi's ninth inning single off Batista scored the winning run.

Game 47. (LOSS) - October 1 2005

KAN  (56-105)  	102 002 020  	7  12 6
TOR (79-82) 	000 000 600   	6   6 0
Game Type: Bullpen failure
Trailing 5-0 to the hapless Royals, the Jays suddenly rallied for six runs in the seventh as Kansas City showed off their 100 loss form. Two walks, two hits, and two errors on double play balls scored three runs and loaded the bases - Catalanotto then delivered a double to score all three runners and put the Jays ahead. Pete Walker came on, faced two batters, and left with runners on second and third. Jason Frasor gave up a sac fly to tie the game and a single to put the Royals ahead. Kansas City made six errors in the ball game, and won it anyway.

Part Two - The Hitters and the Pitchers

How did individual Blue Jays perform in these 47 games? I thought you'd never ask.

Hitters 	  GP  AB  R  H 2b 3b HR RBI BB SO SB CS SH SF HBP GDP BAVG  SLG  OBP RC RC/27
						
Eric Hinske	  37 106 14 32  9  0  2   8 15 26  3  0  0  0   2   1 .302 .443 .398 19 6.93
Orlando Hudson	  36 130 14 40  7  1  3  17  8 15  2  1  0  0   2   2 .308 .446 .357 20 5.95
Reed Johnson	  42 108 13 30 10  0  1  12  7 24  4  2  1  0   4   4 .278 .398 .342 13 4.61
Vernon Wells      45 177 17 46  8  2  4  22 16 26  2  1  0  3   2   4 .260 .395 .323 22 4.46
Shea Hillenbrand  43 176 23 46 10  1  3  17  8 26  2  1  0  0   2   4 .261 .381 .301 19 3.88
John McDonald	   7  17  2  5  0  0  0   2  0  4  1  0  1  0   0   0 .294 .294 .278  2 3.78
Alex Rios	  43 144 14 38  6  0  1  13 10 27  5  3  0  2   0   6 .264 .326 .308 13 3.23
Frank Catalanotto 38 124 14 28  8  0  2  17  9 18  0  1  3  3   2   3 .226 .339 .277 11 3.16
Gabe Gross	  12  28  5  5  2  1  0   2  4  9  0  0  0  0   0   0 .179 .321 .281  3 3.01
Aaron Hill	  29 102 11 22  7  0  0   7 10 12  1  0  2  1   1   2 .216 .284 .284  8 2.81
Frank Menechino	  19  37  6  6  1  0  1   3  7  8  0  0  0  0   1   0 .162 .270 .311  3 2.75
Gregg Zaun	  40 131 10 25  6  0  1  12 20 28  1  0  0  0   0   2 .191 .260 .298 10 2.51
Corey Koskie	  36 130 10 24  2  0  3   9 19 35  1  0  0  0   0   4 .185 .269 .289  9 2.38
Russ Adams	  46 162 17 31  4  2  1  12 20 25  3  1  1  2   0   3 .191 .259 .276 11 2.37
Ken Huckaby	   9  20  1  5  0  0  0   0  0  4  0  0  0  0   0   0 .250 .250 .250  1 2.25
Guillermo Quiroz   5  15  1  3  1  0  0   3  0  7  0  0  0  0   0   0 .200 .267 .200  1 1.80
Greg Myers	   2   5  0  0  0  0  0   0  1  1  0  0  0  0   0   1 .000 .000 .167  0 0.23
A Dominique	   1   1  0  0  0  0  0   0  0  0  0  0  0  0   0   0 .000 .000 .000  0 0.00
John-Ford Griffin  2   3  0  0  0  0  0   1  0  1  0  0  0  1   0   0 .000 .000 .000  0 0.00
Sometimes, being the Dude's Advocate has its rewards. (You will notice that the Jays only played two one-run games in June, which neatly eliminates Eric's Month From Hell.) Hinske, Hudson, Johnson, and Wells were the only hitters who performed at a level better than league average. Remember, these games take place in a different offensive context. One-run games on the whole are lower scoring games than the overall average - teams score at the rate of about 4.00 runs per game.

The second thing that leaps out at me is that while some of the veterans, especially Zaun and Koskie, struggled in these games, all of the young players - Adams, Hill, Rios - performed quite poorly indeed. Rios was the best of the bunch, but all he did was produce about as empty a .264 BAVG as you could hope to see.

And finally - where did the power go? The Jays' team-wide inability to hit home runs probably cost them dear in these games. Vernon Wells led the way, with 4 dingers - but this was in 47 games, almost a third of a season. That's a 14 HR pace for a full season.

How about the pitchers?

Pitchers	    G ST  W  L SV  H BS    IP  H  R ER BB  K HR ERA
Shaun Marcum	    2  0  0  0  0  0  0   3.0  2  0  0  1  3  0  0.00
Justin Speier	   16  0  1  1  0  4  1  14.2 10  3  3  8 17  3  1.84
Vinnie Chulk	   18  0  0  1  0  4  1  23.0 20  5  5 10  9  1  1.96
Scott Downs	    7  5  2  0  0  0  0  37.0 24 10  9 10 33  2  2.19
Scott Schoeneweis  23  0  1  2  0  8  1  17.2  9  5  5  8 12  0  2.55
Jason Frasor	   26  0  1  2  0  6  1  30.1 23  9  9 12 27  4  2.67
Roy Halladay	    3  3  2  0  0  0  0  19.2 15  7  6  3 16  4  2.75
Pete Walker	   15  3  2  4  0  3  0  37.0 38 15 15 11 19  6  3.65
Gustavo Chacin	    8  8  0  3  0  0  0  48.2 46 23 22 17 31  6  4.07
Brandon League	    6  0  1  0  0  0  0  11.0 11  6  5  9  3  1  4.09
Dave Bush	   13 13  2  7  0  0  0  76.2 75 40 38 15 34 14  4.46
Josh Towers	    7  7  1  2  0  0  0  41.2 47 23 21  3 15  5  4.54
Miguel Batista	   28  0  2  6 11  0  7  29.2 34 17 15 15 21  2  4.55
Ted Lilly	    5  5  1  1  0  0  0  25.2 27 15 14  6 21  5  4.91
Dustin McGowan	    4  3  0  0  0  0  0  15.1 13  9  9 10 10  1  5.28
Chad Gaudin	    1  0  0  1  0  0  0   1.2  4  2  2  2  0  0 10.80
It is bizarre that 13 of Dave Bush's 24 starts were decided by a single run. In one of them, Bush was pounded early, but the bats came back to make it a one-run game - that would be the 11-10 affair with the Yankees. Otherwise, there's two 1-0 losses, two 3-2 losses (and another loss when he left trailing 3-2 and the final score was 6-5), and a 4-3 loss.

These close games do not apear to have been Miguel Batista's finest hour. It's not the six losses and the seven blown saves that bothers me - I mean, I'm not wild about them, but by definition, this data set would be expected to include most of those games. You can't really complain when they show up. But, clearly, he doesn't seem to have pitched very well. And it troubles me somewhat that Pete Walker ended up with 6 decisions. Somehow, Walker's not the first guy I'd want out there when the game was on the line. But in fairness to Gibbons, I know that on at least one occasion, Walker was the seventh pitcher he sent into the game. So sometimes, no doubt, he was the only option.

Part Three - Random Observations

In the 31 losses, the Jays fell behind to stay ten times in the early innings, six times in the middle innings, ten times in the late innings, and five times in extra innings.

In the 16 wins, the Jays went ahead to stay three times in the early innings, twice in the middle innings, nine times in the late innings, and twice in extra innings.

That strikes me as interesting enough to turn into a Data Table! (I know, I don't need a lot of excuses.)

Took Lead to Stay   1-3   4-6  7-9  Extra
Other Guys           10     6   10    5
Blue Jays             3     2    9    2
Notice that the Jays are 5-16 in one-run games where the lead was settled in the first six innings. The Jays starters had almost half of the decisions - they went 9-13 , the relievers went 7-18. (Pete Walker was 1-0 as a starter, 1-4 as a reliever.) I'm not sure what I expected here: anyway, roughly half of the games were settled after the seventh inning. Which suggests, to me anyway, that the other guys' bullpens did a better job in these games than Toronto's.

In previous discussions of this subject, which have occurred more or less willy-nilly over the last few months, it's been suggested that the Jays were in the habit of falling behind and then scoring not enough runs to win, but enough runs to create a one-run loss. It happened a few times, of course, so let's get some sense of how often it was a factor.

The largest deficit at any time in the 31 losses was 8 runs (Game 42, 11-10 loss to New York.) They trailed by 6 runs once (Game 4, 6-5 loss to Texas.) Both of these games represent scoring enough runs to make it close, but not enough to win. The Blue Jays have, in their long and sometimes glorious history, overcome an 8 run deficit to win a game exactly once. And actually, it was a ten-run deficit on that occasion - who could forget Sunday, the 4th of June 1989 .

However, that wasn't what always happened in the games where they fell far behind. Three times they trailed by as many as 5 runs: in Game 9, they had cut the gap to one run by the fourth inning, but never did tie it up; in Game 41, they actually erased the five run deficit, only to lose in extra innings; in Game 47, they actually rallied to take the lead, only to lose in the eighth inning.

Six times the Jays trailed by as many as four runs at some point during the game. Twice it was a ninth-inning rally that fell short to make it one-run game (Game 1 and Game 17). Twice the Jays drew to within a single run with plenty of subsequent opportunities to tie it up (in Game 6, they had closed to 4-3 by the fifth, and in Game 18 they had closed to 4-3 by the third.) Twice the Jays erased the deficit, only to lose later on. In Game 25, after falling behind 4-0 in the first inning, they tied the game in the eighth inning; in Game 26, after trailing 4-0 and 6-2, they actually took an 8-7 lead into the ninth inning.

The other teams, of course, posted rallies against Toronto that fell short. To some extent, the one-run games created by rallies that fell short are cancelled out by the one-run games created by the other team's rallies.

In the 31 losses, the Blue Jays never had a lead at any time during the game 16 times. Which means that 15 times, they held a lead and gave it up. In nine of those fifteen games, they fell behind to stay in the final three innings (three times in the seventh, four times in the eighth, twice in the ninth.)

This looks like a bullpen failure, and I suppose it is. The two largest leads they surrendered both came in games when they lost their starting pitcher to injury. The biggest was a five run lead in the Kevin Mench game (Game 16) - Doc had a 6-1 lead when he took the hill in the second inning. The other occasion was the 4-0 lead Ted Lilly held against the Royals when his shoulder started hurting (Game 20).

In the Jays' 16 one-run victories, they trailed at some point in 11 games, six times in the seventh inning or later. The biggest deficit they overcame in any of these games was a 3-0 Tampa Bay lead early in Game 36.

In the 31 losses, five times the Jays scored in their final at-bat to close to within a single run, only to fall short. (They scored three runs once, two runs three times, and one run once.) Seven times, the other team scored at home in their last at bat to win by a single run. That leaves 19 games when the Blue Jays went into their last at bat trailing by a single run, and were unable to score.

In the Blue Jays 16 wins, twice they allowed a single run in the opposition's final at-bat to make it a one-run victory; four times they scored at home in their final at bat to win by a single run, for a walk-off victory of their own. Once that run scored on a wild pitch (thank you, Mr Donnelly) - on all three other occasions, Orlando Hudson delivered the game-winning hit - a double, a single, and a home run. All hail the O-Dog, the Blue Jays Mr Walk-Off!

As for John Gibbons... I'm not going to complain. I review these games and on occasion I see things that make me wonder. First man out of the bullpen in a tie game... Chad Gaudin? Game on the line, and here comes Pete Walker? John McDonald, pinch-hitting? These are not moves I'm entirely comfortable with.

But there is still something to be said for them. First of all, I think the fact that Gibbons was willing to use anyone on his roster at pretty well any time is very much a good thing. After all, if you're not willing to use all the resources at your disposal, you're literally not playing with a full deck. Sometimes it has educational value - a young player gets the experience of coping with a difficult situation, and the manager maybe learns something about the young player. And sometimes, there really isn't a better option. In no sane universe should John McDonald ever be a pinch-hitter. But early in the season, Gibbons was spotting Russ Adams against LH pitchers. In a key situation, with a LH on the mound, he would naturally prefer to pinch-hit for Adams. This is where the modern tendency to carry a dozen pitchers handcuffs the manager and severly reduces his in-game options. His bench consisted of a backup catcher, a backup outfielder, and two backup infielders. If he used anyone besides McDonald to bat for Adams, he'd generally find himself having blown through fully half his bench on a single at bat, possibly with several innings left to play. Bring back the 10 man pitching staff!

Who was the opposition, anyway?

Tampa Bay 2-6
New York 1-5
Boston 2-3
Texas 1-4
Baltimore 3-1
LA Angels 3-1
Detroit 2-2
Chicago WS 1-2
Cleveland 1-1
Minnesota 0-2
Seattle 0-2
Kansas City 0-2

So - a combined 2-10 mark against three lousy clubs, Tampa, Seattle, and Kansas City. Each of whom lost more than 90 games. That was... very unfortunate.

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