The beleaguered Toronto Blue Jays were outhomered 5-1 by the White Sox in their series-ending loss, dropping a season series to Chicago for the first time in six years.
Aaron Laffey had his best start in a long while, giving up only three hits — though they were all solo home runs — and leaving with the team down 3-2. The Jays’ only runs were the result of a two-run homer by Moises Sierra in the bottom of the second.
After Steve Delabar pitched a shutout seventh to keep it a one-run game, Darren Oliver came on in the eighth and couldn’t hold it, allowing a single to Kevin Youkilis and walking Adam Dunn before serving up a three-run shot to Alex Rios that put the game out of reach.
For Oliver, who has had a magical season at the tender age of 41, it was easily his worst outing as a Blue Jay. In fact, it was the first time in 47 appearances this year that he’d given up more than one run in a single outing. He’s been scored upon now only seven times out of those 47 appearances all season.
The game was hugely overshadowed, though, by two pretty terrible things.
Play was halted in the bottom of the seventh with Sierra at the plate, one out, a 2-2 count and Anthony Gose at second base as paramedics from Toronto Emergency Medical Services tried to resuscitate a fan who had collapsed in the stands down the third-base side. White Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis appeared to be the one who got the attention of the umpires and had the game halted as the paramedics worked feverishly to revive the man. There was a four-minute delay as the fan was moved onto a stretcher, which was placed on an EMS golf cart on the field, and he was driven to an ambulance. As he was being taken off the field, doctors were doing chest compressions on him while the crowd of nearly 20,000 watched in stunned silence.
The man, unidentified as I write this, was taken from Rogers Centre — apparently with vital signs absent — and died in hospital.
It’s the second time this season we’ve seen EMS spring into action to help a spectator who had collapsed after suffering a heart attack; thankfully they were able to save the first. Our thoughts, prayers and condolences go out to the family of the fan who passed away Thursday night.
Although a life was lost at Rogers Centre tonight, Blue Jays fans can help save another one. The great Bob Elliott wrote an article in the Toronto Sun about the granddaughter of former Blue Jays’ first base coach Omar Malave, Elissa, who is 17 months old and requires open-heart surgery to repair what’s called a sinus venosus atrial septal defect. Elissa’s mother, Malave’s daughter Omarlyn, has already lost a child — her son Eli died just after his second birthday while waiting for a double-lung transplant.
Malave signed with the Blue Jays out of his native Venezuela in 1981 as an 18-year-old and played eight years in the Jays’ system, reaching as high as triple-A Syracuse for eight games before retiring as a player and moving into the coaching ranks. He never made it to the majors.
Malave has been with the Blue Jays as a player, coach or minor-league manager for all but one year since 1981 — right now he’s a coach with the Gulf Coast League Blue Jays, a rookie-level squad that features prospect Adonys Cardona, among others.
Omarlyn and her husband, Joe Jensen, don’t have enough insurance to cover the surgery that will save little Elissa’s life. It’s set to be performed at Massachusetts General Hospital on Sept. 17. They need help, and we can provide it.
Please go to www.giveforward.com and give what you can. The surgery costs $100,000, and there are other assorted costs including getting the family to and from Boston, hotel costs and such while they’re there. They say their goal is to raise $20,000, and as I write this, just over $16,500 has been raised. I’m sure we can push them over the top tonight. Please do what you can, a long-standing member of the Blue Jays family needs you. Thank you.