Third baseman Kazuma Okamoto has been a bright spot for the Toronto Blue Jays in their disappointing season.
He had two doubles and three RBIs on Friday night in a 6-5 victory over the visiting Cincinnati Reds (74-86) in the opener of a three-game series, with Game 2 on tap for Saturday afternoon.
Okamoto leads the Blue Jays (78-82) with 92 RBIs and has put them in a position to end their season with a series win. He also has 33 home runs in his first season in the majors after leaving Japan.
“He’s been fantastic,” Toronto manager John Schneider said. “He’s just preparing, adjusting and showing off the hitter that he is.”
The Blue Jays will start right-hander Trey Yesavage (5-5, 3.67 ERA) on Saturday in an attempt to clinch the series. He has never faced the Reds.
Cincinnati is slated to start right-hander Rhett Lowder (6-12, 6.01), who has not opposed the Blue Jays.
One of the biggest disappointments for Toronto has been the lack of hitting by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who is in the first season of a $500 million, 14-year contract and has only nine home runs.
Before Friday’s game, he took advantage of a second chance to walk back comments he made on a podcast that caused an uproar.
“The main reason I’m here is because I regret my comments I made the other day, ” Guerrero said through translator Hector Lebron. “I feel from my heart that my fans, my teammates, they need an apology from me, and that’s (what) I’m here for.”
In an interview in Spanish with Veronica Batista of Noticias Telemicro on Wednesday, Guerrero said: “The money they gave me wasn’t for what I’m going to do. It was for what I already did. They didn’t pay me because I’m going to hit 40 (home runs) every year. They paid me for what I already accomplished.’
When asked in Baltimore after the Jays were eliminated from playoff contention with a 4-2 loss in the opening game of a doubleheader on Wednesday, he stood by what he had said. He apparently changed his mind about an apology on the off-day Thursday and addressed a media scrum on Friday.
The fan reaction during Friday’s game was mild and mixed. Guerrero went 1-for-5 with a broken-bat RBI single, giving him 57 RBIs for the season.
The positive occurrence for the Reds on Friday came when Elly De La Cruz hit a two-run double in the third inning and stole third base on the next pitch. He became the fourth player in Reds’ history to have at least 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in the same season. The double also was his 30th.
“It’s really special,” De La Cruz said. “That means a great season. I know as a group this season didn’t go the way we wanted it to. But it’s a great season individually.”
The other Cincinnati players with 30 homers and 30 steals in a season were Brandon Phillips (2007), Barry Larkin (1996), and Eric Davis (1987).
“Those are great guys. They play hard. They play the game the right way,” De La Cruz, 24, said. “It’s really good to join them.”
“He’s still really young. He’s still developing. He’s getting better,” Reds bench coach Mike Napoli said. “He’s hungry to get better. You would expect him to be that superstar. He’s gotten better every single year. We expect him to get better.”
–Field Level Media
