This game featured all the things-

Felix Doubront gave up 6 runs in the first, but then settled down for workman-like pitching into the sixth. The starting pitching has shown flashes of brilliance mixed in with some serious flaws.

“[Doubront] didn’t have his best command, but they were also finding holes — seeing-eye singles. Weren’t able to get those outs on weakly-hit balls,” Russell Martin said. “It’s definitely frustrating, but he stayed in the game, calmed down, settled down, and got some innings for us.”

This team was down 7-0 until the sixth and then started chipping. Royals pitching started to show signs of weakness and the defense started to fail. Single. Throwing error. Double. RBI groundout. Walk. Pitching change. Catching error. Double. Double. Single. Single.  Soon enough, it was 8-7. This was without Josh Donaldson. This team can hit. And not a homer in sight. Versatile. They are never out of it....until the pitching fails.

While all seemed lost (7-0 in the sixth), the Jays, as they are wont to do, stormed back offensively. And would then give it right back. This happened a few times until the bottom of the 8th, Bo Shultz gave up the go-ahead homerun to Paulo Orlando (who had two homers on the season- yeah, it was one of those games) and that made the final 11-10. Shultz calmed down and was fine, but the damage was done. Hearts were broken.

Yes, it wasn’t the typical 2-1 type affair that seems endemic to the 2015 first half, allowing various talking heads to spew nonsense about meaningless runs (as if runs are somehow finite) but 11-10 is still a one run loss.

A few of those runs on Doubront’s watch were unearned or should've been. This was a horrific game in general. Of the 21 total runs score by both teams, 11 were unearned. Bad baseball. Very, very bad.

With Josh Donaldson sick and Jose Bautista DHing, it meant Encarnacion had to play first and Colabello was in left. Which just isn’t ideal. The dude is not a left fielder, but you do what you. He was charged with an error, and maybe really should've had more than one. This was an ugly, ugly game.

Mike Saunders' knee. I miss you.

Jose Reyes makes a couple spectacular plays at SS, but boots a routine grounder, allowing a run to score. This encouraged fans on the Internet rip into the dude for several innings until Russell Martin had, what I assume to be, a heat-induced delirious TOOTBLAN at third base in the top of the 7th to draw attention away. Lost in the wailing was the fact that Reyes went 3-5 and got a hit off Wade Davis and his 0.25 ERA. Reyes giveth and he taketh away.

An umpire was a dick to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Jerry Meals was particularly generous with high strikes for Wade Davis in the top of the 8th. Bautista wasn’t impressed, told him so and got himself tossed with the count 1-2. 

I’m not saying Bautista wrapped himself in glory here, but Meals should probably have done more to de-escalate the situation rather than taking off his mask to say more. It felt dickish on all sides at the time. At least, I thought it was the high strikes. Baustista, however, had this to say:

“What I said, I don’t feel was deserving of an ejection. He pretty much went out of his way a lot to confront me,” Bautista said. “I didn’t mention the strike zone. I didn’t use any curse words. I simply voiced my opinion and said that the pitcher was not coming to a stop because his leg kept moving — that he started his delivery without coming to a full stop. And he apparently didn’t want to hear it.”

So, according to Bautista, he wasn't arguing high strike calls, he was arguing that Davis wasn't coming to a full stop. Can you toss a guy for pointing out a balk?

In addition to all of this, I had to hear/read two things I hate as a result of the ejection- Pat Tabler criticise Bautista. (Shut up, Pat). Also, it encouraged people all over Twitter complain that Jose Bautista isn't a leader and should be an example to all the younger players, like he doesn't already give a great example of being kickass. (Shut up, everyone else.)