The Toronto Blue Jays ended their unusual 2020 MLB season with an 8-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays in the second game of a best-of-three American League wild card round series on Wednesday, Sept. 30. A day after Toronto’s bats struggled to produce in a 3-1 Game 1 loss, the Blue Jays’ pitching was the issue in the second game.
Despite excelling all season long, Blue Jays’ ace Hyun-Jin Ryu had by far his worst game of the year when the team needed him to succeed the most. Ryu only made it through 1.2 innings and allowed seven runs (three earned) on eight hits and one walk. He allowed two home runs and struck out three batters.
Ryu allowed one earned run or less eight times in his last 10 outings entering the postseason. Toronto won nine of Ryu’s 12 starts in the regular season, and he was coming off a performance in which he threw seven scoreless innings in a victory over the New York Yankees on Sept. 24.
The scoring started early for the Rays with an RBI single for Manuel Margot in the first inning to put them ahead 1-0. Tampa Bay put the game out of reach in the second inning with a two-run home run for catcher Mike Zunino, which was followed by a crushing grand slam for rightfielder Hunter Renfroe, which gave the Rays a 7-0 advantage after two innings of play.
Both teams added a run in the third inning, and Danny Jansen hit a solo home run to put the Blue Jays on the board. Toronto added another run in the top of the fifth with another homer for Jansen to make it an 8-2 game.
A day after the Blue Jays finished with just five hits, Toronto rattled off seven hits in Game 2 with Jansen as the only player to record more than one hit.
The Rays will move on to play either the Cleveland Indians or the Yankees. New York won Game 1 by a score of 12-3 on Tuesday night and will go for the sweep on Wednesday night.
Toronto finished 0-2 in its wild card round series, which was somewhat expected from oddsmakers. According to a popular United States sportsbook, the Blue Jays entered the playoffs at +3500 odds to win the World Series, which were the worst odds among the 16 playoff teams.
Blue Jays 2020 betting splits
Now that it’s all over, here’s a look at what the Blue Jays did for sports bettors in 2020. It was a strange year for Toronto, which wasn’t even allowed to play its games in its home city. Due to COVID-19 concerns, the Blue Jays stayed in the United States and played their home games in Buffalo, New York.
Run Line
The Blue Jays hit the run line at exactly 50% in the 2020 season at 31-31. Toronto struggled as favorites, covering the run line with a 10-17 record. However as underdogs on the run line, the Blue Jays finished 20-15.
Despite playing in a new stadium this season, Toronto finished 14-12 on the run line in home games. On the road, the Blue Jays covered the run line at a 16-18 clip.
Run Totals
It took till the final game, but the Blue Jays finished their 62 total games with more unders than overs in terms of the run total this season. Toronto hit the under at a rate of 30-29-3.
Overs hit at 15-10-1 during Toronto’s home games for 60%, but unders were successful at an 18-13-2 clip.
Moneyline
Toronto finished the regular season 32-28 straight up this season, which was good enough for the No. 8 spot in the American League to qualify for the playoffs. After an 0-2 playoff performance, the Blue Jays settled for a 32-30 record on the moneyline.
Toronto settled in nicely to its 2020 home ballpark and finished 17-9 straight up at Sahlen Field. The Blue Jays ran into issues when they went on the road, finishing 15-21 straight up away from home.
Toronto finished 17-10 on the moneyline as favorites and 15-20 as underdogs this season.
MLB Playoffs resume
While the Blue Jays are out of it early, there is plenty of MLB Playoff action to be had in October. As of moments after Toronto’s season-ending loss, 14 teams remain alive to win the World Series. Only the Blue Jays and Minnesota Twins have been eliminated. The Twins were tied for the fourth best odds at +1000 to win it all, but they were swept by the Houston Astros for their 18th consecutive postseason loss.
