'Sometimes you eat the baseball, and sometimes the baseball eats you.'

- which is better I wonder?

Seattle Mariners' #2 starter, Michael Pineda looked pretty good last night - shutting out the Blue Jays until the 8th inning. For long stretches the Jays were no-hit - managing just two hits in the 4th - one in the 5th and two in the 8th.

Cory Patterson drove in both Toronto runs with a base hit in the eighth inning after a pass ball moved runners up and over - the first Blue Jays in scoring position since the forth inning - the only other time they achieved such a thing until that point.

The positive news is that the Toronto Bullpen got the night off as Ricky Romero pitched a god-like 8 inning complete game putting up zeros right along side this new Zeus of the Poseidons. Except for the third inning, Romero matched his nemesis.

A Mariner three in the 3rd held up, and the Jays drop to 5 wins and 6 loses.

The only question this observer has is - if the hitting part wasn't working, wasn't expected to work going in, why did manager John Farrell seem to be waiting for the home run in the 4th when Bautista and Patterson were on first and second respectively, with nobody out? The Jays only opportunity to use the running game seemed to go by without the characteristic free-for-all that this team was becoming known for. The forth was their only opportunity to use the running game - until the eighth - when Patterson ran the Mariner battery into a throwing error and a free base. (And, - one could counter - ran them out of the inning on the very next pitch with an attempted steal of home on a foul-out down the line in right.)

* * *

Below is the Jays at-bats last night from the Blogger Baseball Scorecard - and below that, a line drawing rendered from the Jays batting scorecard that shows - rather well I think - the 22 year old Seattle phenom's dominance last night. And below that... Ricky Romero's fabulous start.

Michael Pineda pitching to Toronto last night

Line drawing of  Pineda's start

Batters faced per inning - Seattle's Michael Pineda pitching (RP's in red) to Toronto - April 12, 2011

Ricky Romero pitching to Seattle last night

Line drawing of Romero's start

Batters faced per inning - Toronto's Ricky Romero pitching to Seattle - April 12, 2011

(All images are 'Rebigulated' * on click)



* Simpson's reference: Professor Frink, "..Rebigulator, which is a concept so ridiculous..." - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOULtmVNz7A

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