BOSTON – Ramon Ortiz was no sacrificial lamb left in to soak up innings Friday night, instead giving the Toronto Blue Jays a surprising five innings of bend-but-don’t-break, one-run ball.
The only thing to get slaughtered was the offence, as Jon Lester came a Maicer Izturis double away from a perfect game in a 5-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox. The left-hander faced one batter over the minimum.
Ortiz, who turns 40 on May 23, hadn’t started since allowing six runs in four innings for the Cubs against the Pirates on July 10, 2011, and last began a game against the Red Sox on Aug. 7, 2003, when he was roughed up for seven runs in three innings.
So his strong spot-start performance in place of Brandon Morrow, who may or may not be well enough to pitch Sunday, was better than expected.
“He did a tremendous job, he kept us right there,” manager John Gibbons said. “He did everything and more than we expected. Good for him.”
Said Ortiz: “I feel so good. I made pitches when I had to make them. I tried to throw down and away, down and inside, I didn’t want to stay in one place with my changeup, it worked out so good.”
That Lester pitched better is no shock, but he was completely dominant after getting roughed up for six runs in six innings last week in Toronto. The left-hander retired his first 17 batters before Izturis doubled down the left-field line in the sixth.
Adam Lind struck out to keep the game 1-0, the Red Sox added four runs off the bullpen in the seventh and that was all for the Blue Jays in this one.
“He mowed us down,” Gibbons said.
The Blue Jays will need another starter again Wednesday, and with Ortiz’s effort, he may have earned himself another start.
“I sure think so, I don’t know how he could have done more,” Gibbons said.
Ortiz is taking nothing for granted.
“Well, I don’t know,” he said. “I’m here, and what he wants me to do, I do. I’m here for I don’t know how much longer, but if he gives me the opportunity, I try to do my job.”
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WHERE THINGS STAND: The Blue Jays (13-24) lost their third in a row after a season-high three-game win streak before a crowd of 33,606 at Fenway Park. They dropped to 2-5 this season against the Red Sox (22-14), who had lost six of seven coming in, and 6-15 against the American League East.
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MORROW UPDATE: Tests on Brandon Morrow’s stiff neck taken Friday came back clear and the Blue Jays hope to have word Saturday on whether or not he’ll be ready to pitch Sunday’s series finale.
“He got an MRI down there (in Florida) so the disc and everything are fine, but he’s still a little bit stiff,” John Gibbons said. “It’s a question of whether he can get that out of there or not. We think he’ll be able to pitch but that’s not 100 per cent yet, either.”
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THE ARMS: Ramon Ortiz pitched his butt off in this one, the only run against him coming in the second on a run-scoring fielder’s choice by Will Middlebrooks that included a throwing error by Izturis.
Ortiz allowed four hits and five walks in his five innings, but was aided by a pair of double plays. Only 51 of his 96 pitches went for strikes, although he felt that ratio should have been better.
“It’s hard pitching here in Boston, it’s the same as New York,” Ortiz said. “I threw a lot of good pitches low and away and down inside and we didn’t get any pitch. It’s not accusing, but when the umpire gives the pitch to you the game is a different story.”
Brett Cecil allowed three of the four runs in the seventh, with Mickey Storey coughing up the other.
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RAJAI TO DL?: Rajai Davis left the game in the sixth inning with a left oblique strain and could be headed for the disabled list.
The Blue Jays were close to placing him on the DL earlier this week but his symptoms eased. He batted leadoff out of the DH spot, flying out to right in the first and grounding to short in the fourth.
“It’s just nagging,” he said of the problem. “It’s not progressing like I would want it to.”
He said his removal from the game, “was the manager’s decision, I think it’s a wise decision and it’s in our best interest.”
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THE BATS: Beyond the double to Izturis, there was virtually no Blue Jays offence to speak of.
Brett Lawrie hit a couple of at-’em line drives that turned into outs at third base in the third and second base in the eighth, but solid contact was mostly hard to find.
They struck out five times, including Adam Lind looking to end the game.
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IN CASE OF EMERGENCY: In Thursday’s loss at Tampa, J.P. Arencibia was hit in the hand in the ninth inning and was able to keep going, but with Henry Blanco already out of the contest, who would have caught for them had Arencibia been unable to continue?
“I don’t know if we had any gear to fit him but it would have been (Emilio) Bonifacio. … (Mark) DeRosa is the guy but he was done.”
DeRosa, who had been playing second base, was replaced defensively in the eighth.
