By Canadian Press

Cashner solid through seven innings to lead Orioles over Blue Jays

Jul 8, 2019 | 2:54 PM

TORONTO — Another strong outing from a Baltimore Orioles starter has handed the Toronto Blue Jays back-to-back losses against the worst team in the majors.

On Saturday, it was Andrew Cashner (9-3) who silenced the Blue Jays offence in an 8-1 Orioles win before 24,405 fans at Rogers Centre.

The Orioles (27-61) arrived in Toronto with the worst record in the majors and the only team that has failed to win at least 30 games in 2019. But they have outscored the Blue Jays 12-2 in the first two of a three-game series.

“You have to give credit to Cashner. He was good today,” Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. “We had been swinging the bats good, but the last two days they have pitched well, their starters.”

The Blue Jays (33-57) scored 49 runs in the first seven games of their 10-game homestand against the Kansas City Royals and Boston Red Sox.

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But in the series opener on Friday, Dylan Bundy quieted the Blue Jays bats with an effective change-up in a 4-1 Baltimore win. Cashner delivered his breaking ball for strikes against the Blue Jays in the second game.

“I just think we’ve outpitched them the last two days,” said Cashner, who has won five of his last six decisions. “I told our guys as we came in here, ‘This is not as bad a team as their record shows. It’s a lot better team than you think. There’s some guys that can hit it over here.'”

It didn’t help matters that a left wrist injury felled fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. on Thursday kept him out of the lineup on Friday. He returned on Saturday but went 0 for 3 with a ninth-inning walk.

Toronto rookie third baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. left Saturday’s game in the eighth inning after complaining about a stomach ache.

The Blue Jays had felt good about their recent play. They beat the Royals in three of four games and split the first two games against the defending World Series-champion Red Sox before closing out that series with a one-run loss.

Cashner pitched seven solid innings, giving up only three hits in his economic 88-pitch effort, 61 for strikes. He retired the first 10 Blue Jays batters.

The lone run for the Blue Jays came in the fourth inning when Cavan Biggio singled home fellow rookie Guerrero. He reached base on a single up the middle to break-up Cashner’s brief flirtations with a no-hitter and made his way to second on a Cashner wild pitch.

Blue Jays left-hander Clayton Richard (1-5), who won his first game for Toronto on Canada Day, pitched well through six innings, but errors from first baseman Justin Smoak and Guerrero in the fourth inning hurt Richard’s cause.

Richard allowed seven hits, and six runs but only three were earned.

The Orioles sent nine batters to the plate in the fourth. Nunez’s homer, his 20th of the season, followed an error on Smoak that put Trey Mancini on base.

A double from Pedro Severino, Guerrero’s error, and a single to centre field from Anthony Santander cashed in another Orioles run. Keon Broxton knocked in his team’s fourth run with a double to right field, and Santander scored on Richie Martin’s groundout to short.

Richard surrendered another run in the sixth inning on an RBI single from Steve Wilkerson. Wilkerson also homered in the ninth inning.

Notes: Blue Jays ace Marcus Stroman will not pitch in the MLB all-star game in Cleveland on Tuesday. Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo phoned American League manager Alex Cora on Saturday to inform him that Stroman continues to be hindered by a left pectoral cramp he suffered a week ago … Stroman (5-9) hasn’t pitched since his day ended after two pitches in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals on June 29. He began to experience tightness in his non-throwing shoulder while warming up for the inning … He was named to his first all-star game last Sunday.

Tim Wharnsby, The Canadian Press