The Blue Jays sent 11 men into this inning, scoring six of their seven consecutive two outs. In a dominant, one-sided 11-1 victory over the Orioles, this inning showed a Toronto squad that can not just win games, but run teams off the field. After Tapia ran around the bases and slid his head home, he made an extra rhythm to do two push-ups on the ground behind the plate. The Blue Jays don’t just want to beat you, they want to have a party while they do. “This line-up is extensive and I like it,” said manager Charlie Montoy. “Vlady [Guerrero Jr.] has good bats, Teo has good bats, Gurriel is at the bottom and Biggio too. It’s wonderful to see. That is what we expected and they are doing it now. “ It was a remarkable streak for Toronto this month, already 8-4 while beating the opponents 83-39. This is what we all expected to see, from a 2021 season in which the Blue Jays drove all over baseball with a team of 0.796 OPS and finished third (846), but April was a low-scoring adventure. “It’s funny with Vladdy. “He has very good numbers, but he is not there yet,” Montoyo said after Guerrero released the 15th Homer of the season. “It’s almost there, so I say yes, we’re almost at the same level [as ‘21]. Then there’s Teoscar, the last two days have been great for him. “Whenever these two start, it will definitely be like last year.” However, combine this fully realized offense with the Toronto spin, and it is deadly. Alek Manoah is back to doing what he always does. The tall right-hander closed the Orioles with six innings without a score, allowing only one hit while scoring seven. The victory brings Manoah to 8-1 with 1.67 ERA, further consolidating his position as one of the best pitchers today in Major League Baseball. He has reached this point with astonishing speed and consistency, but Manoah has won his way in the early discussions of the AL Cy Young Award. The big man loved what he saw from his lineup, too, especially after so many close games earlier in the season. “Once we got to seven, I said, ‘OK, enough,’” Manoah joked. Then, the second change in pitching, I said “OK”. He can commit this crime every night. They always show up and run on the board. For me, being able to get there for the sixth with a lead of nine in a row? There is nothing better than that. “ These explosions also offer the Blue Jays the rare luxury of deliberately giving their appetizers extra rest. Manoah needed just 86 pitches to pass his six frames, and for a pitcher who seems to be chasing a complete game every time he’s out, saving a bit of stamina for later in the season matters. George Springer also scored a few goals, with Bradley Zimmer taking center stage as the game was clearly inaccessible. It also matters who the Blue Jays did this against. Baltimore, now 26-36, is a club that is improving. The Orioles are in the midst of a series of emerging top talents that will be part of future success, led by No. 1 nominee Adley Rutschman, but this is still the club in last place in AL East. It is also the first time the Blue Jays have played them, strangely, on June 13th. With 18 more games to go on against the Orioles, the Blue Jays must make hay while the sun is shining. The Yankees have already played the Orioles 13 times, scoring 9-4 in those games, so this is one of the ways Toronto can slowly narrow the gap over the rest of the season. The Yankees are coming to town on Friday, bringing with them a much more terrifying challenge, but this hot run in the fifth inning offered a taste of what this Blue Jays team can do when they are at the height of their power.
