Jays come up big against Tigers

TORONTO - The big guy is gone. Long live the little guys.
The Toronto Blue Jays put together another patchwork victory over the Detroit Tigers on Sunday, prevailing 5-3 thanks to pivotal hits by David Eckstein and John McDonald and some solid work by the lesser lights out of the bullpen.
It was the Jays' first day without Frank Thomas, who was released for failing to hit the long ball (or singles and doubles, for that matter). Stepping into the breach were Eckstein, with a three-run homer, and McDonald, who contributed a vital RBI single.Eckstein stands barely five-foot-seven, McDonald a touch below his listed five-foot-11. Both delivered in the fourth inning, when Toronto overcame a 2-1 deficit against lefty Nate Robertson.
"The little men did the work today," said starting pitcher A.J. Burnett.
Burnett, a big man, had to work, too. He managed to hold Detroit to three runs over five arduous innings while throwing 113 pitches, many of them curve balls in the dirt. He walked six.
"I did get quite a bit of ball-blocking practice today," catcher Gregg Zaun deadpanned.
Given the Jays' lack of power so far and their habit of stranding runners galore (44 in the past five games), Sunday's victory underscored their need to balance the load.
"We're not exactly tearing the cover off the ball right now," Zaun observed. "We've got to scratch and claw and get RBIs from everybody in the lineup.
"We're going to need all 25 guys in this room (in order) to be alive in September and have a chance to win this division."
The Jays have won two of three games from the Tigers, with one to go this afternoon before they hit the road. They boosted their record to 10-9 and beat a left-handed starter for the first time this season.
And on offence, the little guys did the heavy lifting.
Eckstein led off the first inning with a broken-bat double and scored on Aaron Hill's bloop double. McDonald singled home Marco Scutaro in the fourth before Eckstein put one over the left-field fence.
Eckstein, who averages about four homers per season, turned the spotlight on McDonald, who was the third baseman Sunday. McDonald came through with two outs, two on and the Jays down 2-1.
"Johnny Mac broke the ice (with) that key base hit," Eckstein said. "For us to be able to be successful, we're going to have to get the key hits with runners on base, especially against clubs like the Tigers, where you don't know if you have enough runs at any point in the game."
Burnett, who said he had "electric stuff," struck out the side in the first inning, but struggled after that. He disputed several calls by plate umpire Jeff Nelson, but admitted he had some sympathy for the arbiter.
"I can see how hard it is to umpire when a guy's throwing what I'm throwing up there and it's going everywhere," Burnett said.
His key pitch came with three walks aboard and two outs in the third.
Burnett threw a 98-mile-an-hour fastball to Magglio Ordonez, who grounded out.
After Burnett left, newcomers Jesse Carlson and Shawn Camp blanked the Tigers on one hit over three innings. Because B.J. Ryan saved Saturday's victory, he was unavailable for the ninth, but Jeremy Accardo rebounded from a slump with a one-hit ninth, finishing it on a double-play grounder by Ivan Rodriguez.
"It feels good to get those rough ones out of my system, get that bear off my back," said Accardo, who had allowed eight runs over his previous four appearances.
Carlson, a rookie, has allowed one run in eight innings since his callup last week. Camp, a veteran, made his first appearance and fanned three in 1 2/3 innings.
John Lott , Canwest News ServicePublished: