2020 MLB Season: Simulating AL games, June 26-28

This week, a Toronto reserve delivers a key base hit in AL East race. Find out what else happened in this 2020 MLB season simulation.

If the Toronto Blue Jays succeed in catching the New York Yankees in the 2020 MLB season’s AL East race, they may look back on one at-bat June 28 as the pivotal moment.

The Blue Jays took two games of their three-game weekend series with the Los Angeles Angels thanks to that Sunday at-bat, delivered by backup middle infielder Ruben Tejada. As a result of that at-bat, the Jays closed the week percentage points ahead of the Yankees.

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That potentially decisive moment came at the conclusion of Sunday afternoon’s battle with the Angels. The teams had split the first two games, Toronto losing 5-1 and then winning 5-2. In that Friday game, Mike Trout homered to support Julio Teheran’s seven innings of three-hit ball.  Toronto came back Saturday behind Hyun-Jin Ryu, 9-5, Randal Grichuk doubling twice and driving in three runs.

On Sunday the Blue Jays overcame an early 2-0 Los Angeles lead with seventh and eighth-inning home runs by Teoscar Hernandez and Lourdes Gurriel to send the game into extra innings. But at the top of the 12th, Shohei Ohtani turned around a Brian Moran pitch for a home run that moved the Angels within three outs of a victory.

The Angels turned that lead over to Hansel Robles, who ranks second in the AL with 21 saves. But closing is always problematic. Robles allowed a leadoff single to Rowdy Tellez, then compounded his problems by issuing a base on balls to Derek Fisher.

Robles briefly stabilized, fanning Danny Jansen and retiring Travis Shaw on an infield pop. But Tejada, who came into the game batting .128 in light-duty, slashed a double into the gap in right-center, sending Tellez and Fisher home with the decisive runs.

It was only Tejada’s second extra-base hit of the season.

The hit mattered because the Chicago Cubs came into Yankee Stadium and took two of three from the Yankees, elevating the Jays ever so marginally into first place in the division. In other AL action, the Baltimore Orioles took two of three from the Detroit Tigers, Oakland took two of three from the Chicago White Sox, and Tampa Bay swept a three-game home series with Seattle.

The two AL Central leaders, Cleveland and Minnesota, both ran sweeps, of Kansas City and Colorado respectively. The weekend’s other sweep was the biggest surprise, Texas coming into Minute Maid and taking down the AL West-leading Houston Astros.