Blue Jays 3, Tigers 0: Offense missing in action once again

The Detroit Tigers’ scoreless innings streak has expanded to 18 as they were shut out for the second time in as many days, dropping game three to the Toronto Blue Jays by a score of 3-0.

The Blue Jays opened the day’s scoring, as they did on Friday, in the fourth inning. Brandon Drury, following a leadoff double, came around to score on a Billy McKinney single. Justin Smoak would help to pile it on as he buried a two-run home run to the opposite field. They would threaten again through the later innings, but these wouldn’t come to pass.

The Tigers threatened in each of the first three innings, but failed to capitalize against Blue Jays pitching, as starter Aaron Sanchez shut them down over five-plus innings of work, limiting them to three hits. Despite having two men in scoring position in the sixth inning, the Blue Jays bullpen picked up the slack, quelling that threat while allowing just one hit of their own while contributing seven of the day’s 13 Tigers strikeouts.

Noteworthy

Spencer Turnbull, making his first start of 2019, looked sharp during his first trip through the Blue Jays’ order, but hit a rough patch with a ragged fourth inning and less-than-confident fifth inning. He made his exit after five innings, giving up three runs on four hits while walking two batters and striking out five. He showed some live velocity on his fastball, sitting in the 94-96 miles per hour range, as well as life on his slider:

Miguel Cabrera notched his first two hits of the season, the 2,877th and 2,878th of his career, pushing him past Luis Aparicio and into second place on the list of career hits by a Venezuelan-born major leaguer. He also reached base in his third plate appearance, reaching by way of a hit by pitch, taking a fastball to his right hand. He would leave the game afterward with a right hand contusion and underwent x-rays, which came back negative.

Today’s game also saw Gordon Beckham and Dustin Peterson making their official Tigers debuts, as well as Daniel Norris’s first appearance of 2019. Beckham would draw a walk, but the pair would finish hitless while Norris worked fairly clean sixth and seventh innings, but ran into trouble in the eighth and made his exit after 2 ¹⁄₃ innings of work.

On deck

The Tigers will wrap up their series with the Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon at the Rogers Centre, with Matt Moore set to make his Tigers debut against Trent Thornton. First pitch is scheduled for 1:07 p.m. ET.