TORONTO — A disappointing season was capped with one final blow Sunday as the Toronto Blue Jays dropped a 3-1 decision to the Miami Marlins.
It was the first road sweep of the season for the lowly Marlins, who outscored the Blue Jays 26-7 over the three-game series.
The performance on Fan Appreciation weekend was a microcosm of a campaign gone awry for Toronto, which was mediocre early in the year and spent the last three months in last place in the American League East.
"Obviously this is not where we want to be," said Blue Jays outfielder George Springer. "This is not where we expected to be. It's a very talented room in there.
"At the same time, there's a lot of guys that got some very valuable experience."
Trade acquisitions and triple-A call-ups got their chance in a second half that served as an audition for 2025 for many. Improving a stagnant offence and overhauling an underperforming bullpen will be on general manager Ross Atkins' to-do list this off-season.
The few moments of excitement for the 31,688 in attendance on a sunny autumn afternoon came when Blue Jays leadoff hitter Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was at the plate.
However, he remained stuck at 199 hits on the season after two walks, a groundout and a strikeout.
"As much as it’s a cool accomplishment, my goal was I was not letting him get 200 hits," said Marlins starter Ryan Weathers. "It didn’t matter how I got there. He’s a really good player and I threw my best bullets to him.
"I definitely knew that going in and didn’t want to be on that side of history."
Guerrero, one of the few bright spots on the Toronto roster, finished the year with 30 homers, 98 runs, 103 RBIs and a .323 average.
"He's putting himself in a different category," said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. "It's still an unbelievable season. It would have been really cool to get 100 runs and 200 hits to go along with his other numbers but it was not meant to be. He'll get there at some point."
The Blue Jays' 74-88 mark was their worst record since a 67-95 showing in 2019.
"We've got to get better at everything," Guerrero said via interpreter Hector Lebron. "I've got to be realistic here and honest."
The Marlins (62-100), who entered the series with the worst record in the National League, attacked Blue Jays opener Ryan Burr (0-2) with three singles over their first four at-bats.
Jonah Bride knocked in two runs when his drive up the middle caromed off shortstop Ernie Clement's glove and rolled into centre field.
The Blue Jays loaded the bases with nobody out in the bottom half but Weathers escaped without giving up a run.
Left-hander Ryan Yarbrough served in a bulk role and held the Marlins scoreless over a 52-pitch outing. With Dillon Tate on the mound, Otto Lopez drove in Bride with a double to make it 3-0.
Weathers (5-7) was pulled after giving up a one-out double to Luis De Los Santos in the seventh. De Los Santos scored Toronto's lone run on a Joey Loperfido groundout.
Guerrero's bid to reach the 200-hit mark ended in the eighth inning when he was pulled for a pinch-runner after a leadoff walk. Anthony Bender recorded the last four outs for his first save.
Miami outhit Toronto 9-4 in a game that took two hours 37 minutes to play.
ROSTER MOVES
Before the game, the Blue Jays recalled left-hander Brandon Eisert from triple-A Buffalo and optioned right-handed starter Yariel Rodriguez to the team's spring training complex.
Rodriguez pitched into the sixth inning in an 8-1 loss to Miami a day earlier.
COMING UP
The Blue Jays will begin spring training in mid-February at Dunedin, Fla. The Grapefruit League opener is set for Feb. 22 against the New York Yankees.
Toronto will open the 2025 regular season on March 27 against the visiting Baltimore Orioles.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 29, 2024.
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Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press