Blue Jays find power stroke, down Orioles

March 4th, 2016

DUNEDIN, Fla. -- Russell Martin, Justin Smoak and Dalton Pompey each homered while J.A. Happ tossed two scoreless innings in the Blue Jays' 4-3 victory over the Orioles on Friday afternoon at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.
Toronto did most of its damage in the fourth inning when all three players hit solo shots off right-hander Andrew Triggs. Martin and Smoak began the fourth with back-to-back shots to right-center field, and Pompey followed later in the frame with his homer.

Triggs was charged with four runs on five hits with one strikeout over his 1 2/3 innings of work. The results were much better for starter Vance Worley, who didn't allow a hit and issued one walk during two scoreless innings. Worley threw 25 of 36 pitches for strikes in his spring debut.
"I like the way he attacked the zone," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said of Worley. "You could tell he was ready to pitch first time out. He was aggressive against good hitters."

Happ in his first start of the spring faced one batter over the minimum and surrendered two hits without a walk or strikeout. Late-inning relievers Drew Storen and Roberto Osuna made their spring debuts as well and combined to allow two runs on three hits and two walks in two innings.
"You've been competing against yourself all offseason, mentally and physically, so to get out there against a different uniform is always good," Happ said. "I wanted to get out there and throw strikes and for the most part I did that. It was a good building block for sure."
Baltimore designated hitter Mark Trumbo was the standout on offense for the Orioles. He sent a deep shot to left field for a solo home run in the third inning off veteran righty Brad Penny, and he also added a single in the first off Happ. First baseman Christian Walker added a triple off the wall in center field off Osuna in the sixth, and Jonathan Schoop hit an RBI single in the fifth.

Up next for the Blue Jays: Right-hander Drew Hutchison will try to make his case for the final spot in Toronto's starting rotation when the Blue Jays host the Phillies on Saturday in a 1:05 p.m. ET start at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium on MLB.TV. Hutchison is competing against right-handers Aaron Sanchez, Gavin Floyd and Jesse Chavez for the No. 5 job. Other pitchers scheduled to appear include: Steve Delabar, Ryan Tepera, David Aardsma, Chad Jenkins and top prospectConner Greene. It wasn't immediately clear which regulars will be in the starting lineup, but a lot are expected to play because it's a home game.
Up next for the Orioles: Baltimore will have split-squad action Saturday. Tyler Wilson will get the start in Fort Myers, Fla., against the Twins at 1:05 p.m. ET on MLB.TV, while Kevin Gausman will start and make his spring debut at home against the Rays at 7:05 p.m. Darren O'Day is also scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut against Tampa Bay.