Baseball finally returned to action after the All-Star Break last night, but only kind of. Only 14 of MLB’s 30 teams were in action on Thursday night, which means that more than half of the league actually gets a four-day All-Star Break. The Wednesday after the All-Star Game is always one of the most excruciating sports days of the year because without baseball, there’s usually nothing on the calendar. Monday has the Home Run Derby, Tuesday has the All-Star Game, Wednesday has nothing at all, and for half of the league, Thursday doesn’t have much to offer either. Why not kick off the second half with a big mid-season re-launch? Why not turn it into a day full of games and make it a mini-event in the middle of the season?
OK, I’m done ranting. Let’s talk about one team that didn’t have any trouble launching their second half on Thursday night. The Blue Jays lit into Bartolo Colon and the Yankees with eight first inning runs. The Yankees actually managed to make it an interesting game by cutting the score to 9-7 in the top of the sixth after the second of two Andruw Jones home runs, but the Blue Jays then added seven more runs and strolled to a 16-7 victory.
What really stands out in the boxscore to me, though, is the fact that the Blue Jays managed to tally 16 runs without hitting even one home run. They scored 16 runs in the Rogers Centre with the best home run hitter currently alive on their team, but they didn’t go yard even once on Thursday. It’s actually the second time this has happened this year. The Mets pulled the same feat against the Tigers just a few weeks ago (June 29th), though beyond this year it’s generally one of those things that only happens once a year or so. In fact, the Blue Jays 16 runs/no homers outburst makes them just the 10th team since 2000 to turn the feat.
Scoring 16 runs without a homer is child’s play compared to what the Indians did to the Red Sox on July 7, 1923, though. The Tribe piled up 27 runs on the Sox without a home run. In fact, they did it with just 24 hits and only seven of those 24 hits going for extra bases (five doubles and two triples. They turned the feat thanks to a ridiculous 14 walks allowed by the Red Sox pitching staff, plus one hit by pitch. That’s the most anyone’s scored without homering since 1919, which is as far back as Baseball-Reference’s Play Index goes. Given the way the balls fly out of parks today, I doubt it’s a number we’re going to see approached anytime soon.
Also last night: Cleveland kicked off the second half with a win over the Orioles, the Rockies smashed the Brewers 12-3 in a matchup of the two teams that most people are predicting to break out in the NL after the break, the Twins beat the Royals and are somehow just six back in the AL Central, the Marlins beat the Cubs with six runs in the ninth because someone had to win that game, and Derek Holland tossed his second straight complete-game shutout to lead the Rangers over the Mariners. Also, it’s 1:30 AM on the East Coast and the Padres and Giants are still playing, though Luke Gregerson has just walked a ton of Giants in the 12th inning and it looks an awful lot like they’re going to win.
Tonight: A full slate of action! The White Sox and Tigers face off in Detroit with Justin Verlander going for the Tigers. Half of the four-team NL Central log-jam faces off in Cincinnati when the Cardinals take on the Reds. With the best rotation in baseball at their disposal, the Phillies have tabbed Vance Worley to start against the Mets. Out west, Clayton Kershaw takes the mound for the Dodgers in Arizona and Tim Lincecum’s on the hill for the Giants in San Diego. Full schedule here.
