Late Inning Meltdown Spoils Gritty Blue Jays Effort

What had shaped up to be a gritty Blue Jays comeback all fell apart in the ninth inning on Thursday night.

Blue Jays reliever Rafael Dolis entered the final frame with his team leading 7-5, ready to close out the game.

Dolis, in just his second appearance since returning from the injured list, uncorked a wild pitch that skipped off catcher Danny Jansen's chest protector and allowed runners to move to second and third with one out.

An RBI groundout then brought slugger J.D. Martinez to the dish with two outs. Martinez, who had just one extra base hit in his last 13 games, took advantage of a hanging slider that he blasted over the wall in centre field for a two-run bomb.

That was all the wiggle room Boston needed, as Red Sox closer Matt Barnes went to work. The Blue Jays hitters struck out three times in the bottom half, closing the book on an 8-7 loss.

It was Dolis's first blown save of the season, jumping his ERA to 5.52.

Toronto's catastrophic ninth inning excluded, there were some positive takeaways from Thursday's heartbreaking loss.

"It was a great comeback," Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo said. "We did everything right. [Steven] Matz struggled at the beginning, gave up five runs and somehow found a way to regroup and then our offence came back."

"Everybody deserves credit. We were just one pitch away or two pitches away," Montoyo said.

With runners on the corners and two out in the fifth inning, Cavan Biggio strode in the batter's box against Red Sox starter Nick Pivetta. The Blue Jays third baseman had struck out twice to Pivetta already, but looked more prepared the third time around.

Biggio, showing some excellent awareness, punched a groundball the other way to beat the shift and tie the game 5-5.

It certainly wasn't flashy, but that Biggio single -- a mere 59 miles per hour off the bat -- tied the game for Toronto at the time.

Jonathan Davis also had a clutch RBI single in the sixth inning where, after choking up on the bat, he was able to get his hands in on a high fastball and drive it into left field.

Despite the game's end result, both these situations showed a mid-game adjustment by Blue Jays hitters who've done a phenomenal job of driving balls to the opposite field and grinding out at-bats in recent games.

Steven Matz showed serious composure

After a brutal second inning that saw Blue Jays starter Steven Matz give up seven consecutive two-out hits and allow five runs, the big lefty didn't quit.

Boston's offence, which came into this game leading the league in slugging (.448), looked like it had Matz figured out, but he made adjustments.

Usually, pitchers struggle as they go multiple times through the order. Matz did the opposite Thursday night. After his painful second inning, Matz turned in four scoreless innings and gave the Blue Jays a chance to win the ballgame.

Toronto couldn't seal the deal, but Thursday's heartbreak served as a harsh reminder that nothing comes easy in the American League East.

Up Next:

LHP Anthony Kay vs. RHP Tyler Glasnow @ 7:37 p.m. E.T.

Toronto starts a four-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday.

Glasnow has been among the the game's stingiest pitchers this season (an American League best 4.7 hits per nine innings), but the Blue Jays got to him last time around. On April 23, Toronto hit Glasnow for five earned runs, including two home runs, in a 5-3 win.

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