Two defensive miscues in the outfield punctuated the Toronto Blue Jays’ 7-6 loss on Wednesday at Tropicana Field. The culprit? Jesus Sanchez. The $6.8 million outfielder is adapting to his duties in left field, and the blunders are not making it any easier. However, he appears to have his manager’s backing.
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“Mistakes are going to happen, right?” defended Schneider, per Sportsnet.
“A play that you know he expects to make, and we expect him to make, and you’ve got to just continue to support guys and keep working.”
On Wednesday, Max Scherzer was charged with 7 earned runs on 5 hits in the 4 innings he threw. However, as the Blue Jays fell back behind the Texas Rangers in the Wild Card race, Jesus Sanchez’s defensive blunders became the talking point.
With four ceiling catwalks and a white roof, Tropicana Field is not an easy ballpark to field. But standing on the verge of a playoff entry, Sanchez must find a way to balance his offense and defense. His misplays were directly or indirectly connected to the run-scoring plays.
During Toronto’s 7-6 loss, the problems started early.
In the first inning, Junior Caminero’s fly ball went over the catwalks in left field, and Sanchez lost the ball. From there, he failed to track the ball properly.
The visibility was affected by the white roof. The ball finally dropped away from his gloved hand and bounced on the warning track, going over the short wall.
Caminero was given a ground-rule double. Sanchez was not charged with an error. However, the failed catch allowed Caminero to reach base. The Rays’ star later scored on Yandy Diaz’s homer.
However, an even costlier defensive blunder was waiting in the wings.
In the fourth inning, Sanchez fumbled again, trying to track a white ball against a white roof under the glaring Florida sun. Replays show his eyes were up, tracking the ball before he briefly looked towards Andres Gimenez.
Then he lost the ball, contributing to the five-run fourth.
“When I made the first step, the light [got] into my eyes, and I just looked at … because I knew I was losing the ball,” Sánchez shared, per MLB.com. “That’s a ball [that’s] easy to catch, and I missed [trying] to catch it.”
Though Sanchez was not charged with an error, it helped the Rays extend their lead to 7-1.
At the bottom of the fourth with the bases loaded, Richie Palacios hit a routine, shallow fly ball to Scherzer. It was a routine catch, but Sanchez was nowhere near.
The ball dropped completely untouched.
The misplay had Max Scherzer bursting out as he yelled a loud “F—.” The Rays scored two more runs as they dominated the fourth inning.
“That’s not acceptable,” Scherzer reportedly said postgame. “I’m a team guy; I don’t sit here and point fingers and talk about other people’s mistakes. I talk about my mistakes, and I’m accountable.”
Schneider made it clear that he is willing to support Sanchez, as long as he puts the work in. Sanchez is doing just that.
Following the game, Jesus Sanchez owned up to his mistakes.
The Blue Jays star knows he needs to improve
During his seven seasons in the big leagues, Jesus Sanchez played 601 games in the outfield. And only 117 have been in left field. He has played 38 of them this season. There have been 415 in right field, and 97 in center. Evidently, this position is new.
But reportedly, he has recorded a minus-6 OAA in right and just minus-1 OAA in left this season. Sanchez has pointed out that the adjustment to a new position is the reason behind his lapses.
“I know I need to improve on my defense because I’m not used to playing left field, and I’m going to make the adjustment because I’m athletic enough to play left field,” said Sanchez.
“I know I’m going to be there, and the next time I’m going to be better.”
The 28-year-old is slashing .260/.319/.423 this season with 8 homers and 33 RBI. However, his production has declined (.161 BA) since returning from a right ankle sprain in July. Yet, his .794 OPS against right-handed pitchers is only second to Alejandro Kirk’s .796 OPS.
And Schneider understands that Sanchez is “working on it,” which is the reason the skipper supported the predominant right-fielder and wants everyone to “move on.” The next outing is all that matters.