Blue Jays 6, Tigers 0: Another winnable game given away

Mike Pelfrey wasn’t the problem Friday night. Just about everyone else was. The Tigers made miscues on the basepaths and in the field, and the bullpen turned a close game into a laugher, and the offense was no where to be found. The end result, an 6-0 victory by the Blue Jays at Rogers Center.

It was a typically Pelfrey start, but it didn’t hurt him. He gave up six hits and three walks, but three double plays turned behind him kept trouble to a minimum. With 21 DPs forced, Pelfrey now leads the league.

He’d have had a good chance to win on any other night, but instead he was tabbed with a very tough luck loss. The Tigers managed to avoid threatening to score at any point during his time. Jose Iglesias ran into an out in the third. The Tigers loaded the bases in the sixth, but there were two outs and Mike Aviles was batting, so that wasn’t going to be an issue.

J.A. Happ struck out nine Tigers in 5-2/3 innings for the Blue Jays to earn the win.

It was close until the seventh. Then Kyle Ryan couldn’t keep runners off the bases and Bobby Parnell couldn’t keep the ball in the park 1-0 meet 5-0.

So for the second game in a row, an otherwise winnable game was lost. You can blame Brad Ausmus for his pitching decisions again tonight, as you could last. But just as big a part of the equation is that his options were limited, with Bruce Rondon under the weather and GM Al Avila giving him pitchers like Parnell and a shortened bench featuring Aviles in the first place.

This team’s roster is consistently just a little short.

Roars

Mike Pelfrey — He gave up six hits and three walks, but thanks to three double plays only one run scored. That’s his second consecutive start of allowing one run.

Hisses

The Tigers offense -- They loaded the bases for Mike Aviles, but no one really took that seriously. Otherwise there wasn’t a lot to be excited about.

The bullpen -- Kyle Ryan gave up a single, double and a walk while recording just one out. Bobby Parnell gave up a three-run home run that may not have landed. And a 1-0 deficit turned into an insurmountable 5-0 one. Editor’s note: It landed. 446 feet.

Stats and Info

• Mike Pelfrey induced his 20th double play of the season. Also his 19th and 21st.

Win Probability Chart

Not available! :(