Blue Jays Stat of the Day: August 2021

MLB.com is keeping track of a Stat of the Day for the Blue Jays this season, highlighting a unique, interesting or fun nugget from each game.

• Blue Jays Stat of the Day, July 2021

Aug. 31: Orioles 4, Blue Jays 2 -- Guerrero Jr. hits No. 39
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. followed up his two-homer performance in Monday's opener against Baltimore by hitting his 39th of the season on Tuesday. It was a slow August for Guerrero, but this recent surge moves him back into second place in home runs, just three behind the Angels' Shohei Ohtani (42). The 377-foot shot went to the opposite field, which is always a sign that Guerrero is back in a groove, and he's put himself in a position to go head-to-head with the AL MVP favorite, Ohtani, down the stretch in September.

Aug. 30: Blue Jays 7, Orioles 3 -- Most K's in first 1,000 innings
Robbie Ray kept building his case for the AL Cy Young Award against the Orioles, throwing seven innings of two-run ball with 10 strikeouts. Ray set a new AL/NL record for the most strikeouts through the first 1,000 innings of a pitcher's career (1,241), including his 200th strikeout this year, topping the previous high of 1,222 that belonged to Yu Darvish.

Ray is also now one of just four pitchers to strike out 200 batters in a single season in Blue Jays history, joining AJ Burnett (2008), Roy Halladay (2008, 2009) and Roger Clemens (1997, 1998). The Rocket's records are likely safe, but with Burnett's total of 231 in one season ranking third all-time, it's easy to see Ray overtaking him by the end of September.

Aug. 29: Blue Jays 2, Tigers 1 -- Berríos deals in Detroit
José Berríos bounced back from a rough stretch in a big way in the series finale, compiling 11 strikeouts, no walks and one unearned run during seven sharp innings Sunday. It marked Berríos' first double-digit strikeout performance with Toronto, and it was one off his career high, which was set April 3 during his season opener for the Twins against the Brewers.

Aug. 28: Blue Jays 3, Tigers 2 (10 innings) -- Kirk hits it big at Comerica
Rookie catcher Alejandro Kirk has hit just five home runs in his Major League career, and the latest one was a big one in more ways than one. Kirk went deep off Tigers reliever Tyler Alexander with two outs in the sixth inning to break open the scoreless game, parking a high cutter 412 feet away into the left-field bleachers.

While the long ball counted as career No. 5, it was actually the first home run he has hit in a Major League ballpark. His first three round-trippers this season came in April, when Toronto played its home games at their Spring Training home in Dunedin, Fla., due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The first homer of Kirk's career came on Sept. 21, 2020, when the Blue Jays were playing at their Triple-A Buffalo park.

Aug. 27: Tigers 2, Blue Jays 1 -- Will Vladdy provide spark?
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had two hits in the series opener, the first of which was a double that drove in Toronto's lone run. The 22-year-old now has 91 RBIs and 40 multi-hit games this season, ranking third and tied for fifth in the Majors, respectively. After hitting .286 in July, Guerrero's season batting average dipped 19 points before he began to turn it around with a current five-game hit streak.

Aug. 26: White Sox 10, Blue Jays 7 -- Semien moves into top 5
Marcus Semien launched his 31st and 32nd home runs in the series finale. That ties him with former A's teammate Matt Olson for fifth in MLB, and puts Semien just one shy of his career high of 33, set in 2019. That's the year Semien finished third in the American League MVP Award voting, and he's playing the same caliber of ball in 2021. It's happened quickly, but Semien is now just four back of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (36) for the team lead.

Aug. 25: Blue Jays 3, White Sox 1 -- Ray makes Blue Jays history
Robbie Ray seems to be getting better by the start, and turned in one of the most dominant outings of his career. Ray threw seven innings of one-run ball, striking out an incredible 14 batters. It's the first time that a left-handed pitcher has struck out 14 batters in Blue Jays history, and it tied Ray's career high. With his ERA now at 2.72, Ray is the ace of the staff and putting himself in the middle of the conversation for the AL Cy Young Award.

Aug. 24: White Sox 5, Blue Jays 2 -- All 3 OFs with an assist
The Blue Jays lacked starting pitching and offense in Tuesday's loss to the White Sox, but they put on a defensive clinic with Teoscar Hernández, Josh Palacios and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. all recording outfield assists on strong throws. This is just the second time in club history that all three outfielders recorded an assist, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The only other time came back on July 5, 1995, when Devon White, Joe Carter and Shawn Green all had an assist. This was also the first time in five years that any MLB team has done it, stretching back to Aug. 4, 2016, when Cleveland's Rajai Davis, Brandon Guyer and Abraham Almonte all recorded assists.

Aug. 23: Blue Jays 2, White Sox 1 -- Manoah's strikeouts
Alek Manoah's incredible 2021 continued in Monday's win, striking out five while allowing one run over six innings. With 78 strikeouts on the season, Manoah has the most K's by a Blue Jays pitcher through the first 13 games of their career. The next closest is 69, belonging to Trent Thornton, Ricky Romero and Marc Rzepczynski. Manoah entered Spring Training as a prospect who wasn't expected to make a significant impact until 2022, but he's emerged as one of the best rookies in baseball.

Aug. 22: Tigers 5, Blue Jays 3 (11) -- Brilliant effort by starters
In the weekend series in Toronto, the Blue Jays' three starters pitched to a 0.86 ERA. Robbie Ray was simply brilliant, Hyun Jin Ryu got back to his steady self and Steven Matz gave the Blue Jays every opportunity to win with six innings of one-run ball. Still, the Blue Jays dropped two of three in heartbreaking fashion. It shows just how troubling these late struggles have been, but if there's blame to be placed, it's certainly not the rotation's fault.

Aug. 21: Blue Jays 3, Tigers 0 -- Semien on way to set high in HRs
Marcus Semien launched his 30th home run of the season, moving him ahead of Brandon Lowe of the Rays for the most home runs by a second baseman in MLB. Semien should cruise past his career high of 33, set back in 2019, and continues to look like one of the best moves of the offseason after signing a one-year, $18 million deal. Coming off a season like this, his free-agent market will be much more lucrative this coming winter.

Aug. 20: Tigers 4, Blue Jays 1 -- Another first-pitch HR for Vlad
Friday's loss to the Tigers didn't have many bright spots for the Blue Jays, but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. launched a solo home run, his 36th of the season, to provide the only offense. Guerrero has now hit 13 home runs on the first pitch he's seen, which leads all of Major League Baseball. It's a combination of confidence and his improved physique, but Guerrero knows that the first pitch he sees might just be the best one, and he's not waiting around for anything in his breakout season.

Aug. 18: Nationals 8, Blue Jays 5 -- Rare series loss to Nats
Entering Wednesday's series finale, Toronto had won eight of its last 12 games against Washington. However, with back-to-back losses, the club dropped its first series to the Nationals since 2012. The Blue Jays now boast a 41-34 record when playing the Nats.

Aug. 17: Nationals 12, Blue Jays 6 -- Dolis tosses his 100th inning
Rafael Dolis recorded two outs in the bottom of the eighth to top 100 innings for his career. Dolis, who went into the day with 99 2/3, entered the game with the bases loaded and one out and finished the inning.

Aug. 15: Blue Jays 8, Mariners 3 -- Blue Jays love the long ball
The Blue Jays are built for the long ball, and with home runs from Teoscar Hernández, Randal Grichuk, Corey Dickerson and Marcus Semien in the win, they now lead MLB with 178 homers this season. Toronto's lineup has power throughout, but this effort has been led by the breakout season from Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who sits second in the Majors with 35. Semien is also having a great season, ranking eighth in MLB with 27 home runs.

Aug. 14: Mariners 9, Blue Jays 3 -- Vlad hits 3 balls 114+ mph
After a brief stretch in which he didn't look like himself, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is back to mashing baseballs. In a loss to the Mariners, Guerrero produced exit velocities of 115.6 mph, 115.5 mph and 114.3 mph, resulting in a pair of singles and a groundout. This was just the third time a player has hit three balls over 114 mph since Statcast began tracking in 2015, joining Avisaíl García in '19 and Nelson Cruz in '18.

Aug. 13: Mariners 3, Blue Jays 2 -- Getting on a habit for Vlad Jr.
August hadn't been kind to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. early on, but the young star is showing clear signs of slipping back into his MVP-caliber form. Against the Mariners, Guerrero went 1-for-2 with a single and two walks, and his one out was just a foot from clearing the right-field wall for a home run. Guerrero has now reached base safely 200 times in 2021, the most in the Majors.

Aug. 12: Angels 6, Blue Jays 3 -- Overton's debut: 4 up, 4 down
A long road to the Major Leagues resulted in a scoreless outing for right-hander Connor Overton. He became the eighth player to make his MLB debut for the Blue Jays this season. He needed only 15 pitches (12 strikes) to retire four batters in order. Overton's fastball reached 93.4 mph, as he recorded a combined four called strikes and whiffs. Overton was drafted in the 15th round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Marlins before spending six seasons in the Minor Leagues and two in independent leagues.

Aug. 11: Blue Jays 10, Angels 2 -- Manoah fastest to 70 K's
Blue Jays rookie right-hander Alek Manoah was dialed in during the 11th start of his MLB career. After recording 11 strikeouts over 6 2/3 strong innings, Manoah has 71 strikeouts this season. He reached the 70-strikeout mark in the fewest number of games by a pitcher in Blue Jays history.

Aug. 10: Angels 6, Blue Jays 3 (Game 1) -- Keeping it in the yard
Left-hander Steven Matz is finding the consistency he needs to be successful on the mound, as this was the third consecutive outing in which he did not allow a home run. It is the longest such streak this season for Matz, and his longest since a three-start stretch from July 21-Aug. 2, 2019, when he was with the Mets.

Aug. 8: Blue Jays 9, Red Sox 8 -- Springer scores runs
George Springer's most notable feat on Sunday was certainly his go-ahead three-run homer in the eighth inning, but he filled up the box score all game long. Springer reached base four times (once on a throwing error) and scored four times, marking his first four-run game of the season (and first since May 12, 2019, vs. Texas). Since returning to his familiar leadoff spot, Springer has scored 23 runs in 21 games.

Aug. 7: Blue Jays 1, Red Sox 0 (G1); Red Sox 2, Blue Jays 1 (G2) -- Split!
One of the great benefits of having a domed ballpark is that rain delays are pretty much never an issue. As such, the Blue Jays hosted their first ever split doubleheader at Rogers Centre (necessitated by a rainout in Buffalo, N.Y., two weeks prior). There have been three straight doubleheaders at the stadium in the past: July 17, 1989, vs. the Angels (after a rainout at the outdoor Exhibition Stadium); Oct. 5, 2001, vs. the Indians (a rescheduled game due to 9/11); and April 17, 2018, vs. the Royals (rescheduled after ice fell through the roof a day prior).

Aug. 6: Blue Jays 12, Red Sox 4 -- Blue Jays double down
With the sheer volume of hits (nine) and runs (nine) the Blue Jays posted in the fifth inning on Friday, it's important not to forget about a feat Toronto accomplished for the first time in more than a decade. The Blue Jays hit five doubles in the frame, with one apiece provided by George Springer, Teoscar Hernández, Alejandro Kirk, Randal Grichuk and Breyvic Valera. The last time the Blue Jays did that was Aug. 2, 2010, when they hit six doubles in the fifth inning against the Yankees.

Aug. 5: Blue Jays 3, Indians 0 -- Bichette joins Tulo, Batista
Bo Bichette was the entire offense, launching his 20th home run of the season along with an RBI single. Bichette already has 76 RBIs in his All-Star season and is well on his way to 100, and with 20 home runs, he becomes just the third shortstop in Blue Jays history to reach that mark, joining Troy Tulowitzki (2016) and Tony Batista (1999, 2000).

Aug 4: Blue Jays 8, Indians 6 -- Springer in rare air
The first at-bat of the game has been awfully kind to leadoff man George Springer lately, and he's wasting no time. With his 439-foot homer in Wednesday's win, Springer became just the third Blue Jays player in history to homer on the first pitch of a game twice in the same season. The only others to accomplish this are Alex Rios (2007) and José Reyes (2014).

Aug. 3: Blue Jays 7, Indians 2 -- Hits parade in Toronto
The Blue Jays tend to put up offense in bunches, and it happened again in the win over the Indians. Toronto's 12 hits gave the club its 44th double-digit-hits game of the season, tied with Houston for the most in the American League. This came on a night that featured a rare 0-for-5 performance by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., too, but the Blue Jays' lineup has stretched out of late with better production from top to bottom.

Aug. 2: Indians 5, Blue Jays 2 -- Cimber extends homer-less streak
Adam Cimber turned in another scoreless inning of relief for the Blue Jays on Monday against Cleveland, and it's been 53 innings since he last allowed a home run (Aug. 12, 2020). That's the longest streak in the Majors. Cimber produces plenty of weak contact on the ground thanks to his unique sidearm delivery, and he's been racking up the strikeouts lately too. Since coming over from the Marlins along with Corey Dickerson in a trade earlier this season, Cimber has been one of the most valuable pieces in the club's bullpen.

Aug. 1: Blue Jays 5, Royals 1 -- Semien racking up the stats
Marcus Semien launched his 25th home run of the season Sunday, and his career high of 33 (2019) is likely in reach. That gave him 66 RBIs, which is the most among American League second basemen, and he is tied for third among all MLB hitters with 218 total bases. The All-Star has been a pillar of the Blue Jays' lineup, first as the leadoff man and now batting third, and he'll need to be a major part of any run the club makes towards the postseason down the stretch.