Blue Jays Fall To Nationals On Tough Tuesday

The Blue Jays lost George Springer and a game against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday

Bo Bichette reached with his glove as the ball dinked off leather and skittered into the outfield.

The narrow miss pushed two more Nationals runs across and, seconds later, a mistimed Alek Manoah pickoff move cashed another. By the end of the third, the Blue Jays' sour day had further unraveled.

Matching up against a Washington Nationals team that’d lost seven straight games, Tuesday’s contest provided the Blue Jays teetering on the edge of a playoff race an opportunity to build some confidence — to bank a win. Instead, Toronto’s tough Tuesday got worse.

Learning their star centerfielder would be placed on the injured list with a knee sprain put a damper over the squad, manager Charlie Montoyo said before Tuesday’s game. The 12-6 loss couldn’t have helped.

“Anytime you lose a guy like Springer," Montoyo said. "It hurts."

In the third, Corey Dickerson gave way to Toronto’s interim everyday centerfielder, Randal Grichuk, who chucked in a throw as Alcides Escobar flared his 11th extra-base hit of the season. The double scored a pair of runs to regain Washington's lead, and they added four more before the frame ended. A week after setting a career-high in strikeouts and posting one of the best starts of his young career, Alek Manoah’s outing ended abruptly on Tuesday.

Facing an early deficit, the Blue Jays lineup attempted to slash their way back in it. Teoscar Hernández followed his American League Player of the Week campaign with another homer and Toronto ended up tied with the Nationals in hits. Nine days after Springer's three-run comeback homer over the Boston Red Sox, Toronto's order turned over with one out, two on, and a swing away from the lead once again.

Assuming Springer’s leadoff spot, Semien put the ball in the air, hacking a second-pitch slider into the outfield, but not deep enough to inspire another Blue Jay comeback. A half-inning later the Nationals finalized their victory, receiving another big hit from former Blue Jay Riley Adams and adding on four more runs. The ripple effect of Springer’s loss leaked down the roster, but Montoyo didn't attribute Tuesday's news to the loss.

“Losing Springer’s big," Montoyo said after the game. "But we just didn’t pitch good today. And when you don’t pitch good, you lose games like this. I don’t think that’s the reason we lost, there was no heavy heart. We felt bad that we lost him, but that wasn’t the reason for this game, the way we lost.”

The fact remains the Blue Jays sit four games out of a playoff spot with 44 games remaining. But, as the calendar nears September Toronto’s games continually become more important, and without Springer, they become harder to win.

“Somebody's gotta pick up the slack,” Montoyo said, “and do the best they can. We've done it before, so let's do it again until he comes back.”