Bats never got going for Blue Jays in ALCS

TORONTO — When the Blue Jays reported for Spring Training and star slugger after star slugger walked into the clubhouse, nobody could have predicted that a lack of offense would eventually lead to their downfall.

The question entering this season was whether the Blue Jays would have enough pitching to contend. Well, not only did they have enough depth in that department, they pieced together what turned out to be the American League’s best starting rotation. The problem was that in the AL Championship Series against the Indians, the offense did not live up to its end of the bargain. A 3-0 defeat in Game 5 on Wednesday ended the Blue Jays’ season.

A lineup filled with the likes of Josh Donaldson, Jose Bautista, Edwin Encarnacion, Troy Tulowitzki and Russell Martin had trouble scoring runs? It sounds almost impossible, yet that’s what happened surprisingly often during the regular season and then during the ALCS.

Game Date Matchup TV/Highlights Gm 1 Oct. 14 CLE 2, TOR 0 Gm 2 Oct. 15 CLE 2, TOR 1 Gm 3 Oct. 17 CLE 4, TOR 2 Gm 4 Oct. 18 TOR 5, CLE 1 Gm 5 Oct. 19 CLE 3, TOR 0 • ALCS coverageShop for postseason gear: Blue Jays | Indians

“Obviously I’m disappointed in the result, but I’m not disappointed in anybody in this clubhouse,” Donaldson said. “I know the sacrifices that each and everybody makes in here, and we left it out on the line. They played better than us.”

In Toronto’s four ALCS losses to Cleveland, the team was shut out twice and scored just three runs. The lone exception for the offense was a five-run outburst in Game 4 that helped the …

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