Rookie Outduels Halladay As Jays Drop Series To A’s
Posted July 30, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
In the history of games the Toronto Blue Jays should have won, Sunday’s was right up there.
Sending ace and Cy Young candidate Roy Halladay to the hill against Oakland’s Shane Komine who was making his Major League debut, one had to like the Jays chances to close out a four-game set on a high note and earn a split.
But that’s not the way it went down, and the bottom line was a 6-5 Oakland win.
Halladay pitched well enough going 6 2/3 innings while allowing three runs on eight hits, but Komine was simply a little better, only giving up a single run on four hits over six. His only real blemish was a home run from Reed Johnson, which started the game and Komine’s big league career.
And in the ninth the rookie looked to be in great position to beat a current 13-game winner for his first ever with closer Huston Street on the mound with a lead.
But Street (4-3), who was 2005’s American League Rookie of the Year, instead blew his seventh save of the year, setting up a dramatic finish in the bottom half of the inning.
After big hits from Frank Catalanotto, Troy Glaus, Aaron Hill and Lyle Overbay gave the Jays the lead and closer B.J. Ryan (1-1) came in to shut the door, the tables turned again.
Ryan also blew the save, at once taking the loss and letting Street of the hook with a win.
Milton Bradley had the big blast, a three-run shot that marked his first career walkoff and gave the Athletics victory and a series win that keeps them in first in the AL West.
For the Jays, the loss is the ninth in their last 14 on the road.
But there’s no time to dwell for Toronto, not even in the face of such a disappointing loss. After a day off Monday, they’ll start a three-game set with division rivals the New York Yankees.
The first goes Tuesday in the Bronx and features A.J. Burnett (2-4) for Toronto against Jaret Wright (6-6) for the Yanks.
