That maturity and focus goes a long way as far as earning respect from the staff

SEATTLE -- A couple of defensive miscues prevented a possible series sweep for Toronto. The Blue Jays still head home atop the wild card chase.Robinson Cano delivered a sacrifice fly in the 12th inning as the Seattle Mariners avoided a sweep with 2-1 victory over Toronto on Wednesday. The Blue Jays remained a game in front of Baltimore, however, as the Orioles lost to Boston, 5-1.Even though we lost today we played a good ball game against one of the best pitchers in the last 10 years, said Jose Bautista, who sent the game into extra innings with a ninth-inning solo homer. Weve just got to continue to play good baseball and keep our heads up. Were in a good position, we just have to finish strong.Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey (10-15), who pitched five scoreless innings in his last start on Friday, came in on the 12th for his first relief appearance after 29 starts.Guillermo Heredia reached on a two-base throwing error by Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson to open the 12th. Ben Gamel followed with an attempted sacrifice bunt, and first baseman Ryan Goins appeared to have Heredia at third, but the ball popped out of Donaldsons glove on the tag.Cano then followed with a run-scoring fly to left, quieting the decidedly pro-Blue Jays crowd, bolstered for the third straight game by thousands of fans from western Canada.We were the benefactor of some miscues by them, Mariners manager Scott Servais said. That happens, but youve still got to finish them off. Robbie had a nice at bat. Nick Vincent (4-4) pitched two scoreless innings for the win.After being blanked on two hits for eight innings, the Blue Jays tied it in the ninth on Bautistas 19th home run, a one-out solo shot to left off hard-throwing rookie closer Edwin Diaz.Anytime you can contribute makes it worthwhile, Bautista said. It was a big moment. It was one of the most electric pitchers in the game. I was behind in the count. I was simply trying to put the ball in play. His ball has some run. I just managed to get the head out and I connected.Seattle shortstop Mike Freeman prevented the go-ahead run from scoring in the 10th with a diving grab of Kevin Pillars one-out liner with a runner on third.Thats the game right there, possibly, Toronto manager John Gibbons said. If we get the lead and (Roberto) Osuna is still in the game. Helluva play.Both starting pitchers were outstanding. Seattles Felix Hernandez allowed two hits in seven innings, striking out four and walking three in a 112-pitch outing.Aaron Sanchez, who allowed six runs in 3 2/3 innings in his last start, gave up a run in the third on a double by Jesus Sucre and a bloop RBI single by Norichika Aoki. Sanchez gave four hits, striking out five and walking three in six innings.Both Sanchez and King Felix were good, Gibbons said. They plated the go-ahead run on a little gork hit with Aoki and then we came back with the big home run at the end there. We had some chances, but the pitching on both sides was really good.SANCHEZ ROLLINGAlthough he did not get a decision, Sanchezs 13-2 record is still the best winning percentage (.867) in the majors. He has allowed two earned runs or less in 11 of his last 15 starts and has limited opponents to one earned run or less in 13 starts this season.UP NEXT:Blue Jays: After an off day Thursday, Toronto heads into the A.L East gauntlet with two series at home -- four games against the Yankees, followed by three against Baltimore, that has huge wild card implications. The Blue Jays then close the season with three games at first-place Boston. Toronto has not announced a starter for the first game of the New York series.Mariners: Seattle is running out of time. The Mariners followed an eight-game winning streak by losing four out of five. Only one of their three remaining series is against a team ahead of them (Houston) in the wild card race. After a day off, the Mariners open a three-game series at Minnesota. LHP James Paxton (4-7, 3.88 ERA) starts the Friday opener. The math is not good, manager Scott Servais said. Were going to need some help and some other teams to help us along the way. Nike Air Force 1 Cheap Outlet . Zvonareva, who won the tournament in 2009 and 10, couldnt handle her opponents big groundstrokes in only her third event back after 17 months out with a shoulder injury. Zvonareva made her comeback in January in Shenzhen and played in the Australian Open but lost her first matches at both tournaments. Cheap Air Force 1 Shoes Wholesale . 24 Baylor in a Big 12 clash between teams trending in opposite directions. 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He did his usual turns in the batting cage, and the 5-foot-10, 175-pound catcher looked like just another 20-year-old in the minors.Yet Mejia is something of a modern-day Joe DiMaggio, plying his trade for the Lynchburg Hillcats of the high Class A Carolina League. The Cleveland Indians prospect now has a 49-game hitting streak thats tied for the sixth-longest in pro baseball history and the best in 62 years.Mejia has gotten a hit in every game he has played since May 25, a string that dates to his time with the Lake County Captains of the low Class A Midwest League. He extended it Friday night with a sixth-inning single against Winston-Salem -- that tied him for the longest hitting streak by a catcher, set by Harry Chozen in the Southern Association in 1954.Neither Lynchburg manager Mark Budzinski nor hitting coach Larry Day has had a single conversation with him about the accomplishment, which stands out because of Mejias age, his role as a catcher and the distractions he has faced along the way.As one of Clevelands top 10 prospects, he took part in the MLB All-Star Futures Game in San Diego and would have gone to the Milwaukee Brewers at the trade deadline last month had the deal for Jonathan Lucroy occurred.It has not been easy for him, said Carter Hawkins, the Indians director of player development. This has not been put on a silver platter. Hes moved levels, hes traveled around to different All-Star Games, hes been a name that came up in trade rumors. There have certainly been a lot of different reasons or potential excuses to end this streak, but I think just focusing on his work and focusing on what he can do and what he can control has really helped him out.In the meantime, Mejia has moved closer to the record 69-game hit streak by Joe Wilhoit of the Western League in 1919.DiMaggio owns the streak that most fans know about, the major league mark of 56 games in 1941 for the New York Yankees. Many fans dont realize Joe D also owns the second-longest hitting streak ever in pro ball -- as a teenager in 1933, DiMaggio hit in 61 straight for the San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League.Mejia, who signed out of the Dominican Republic at 16, reminds Budzinski of a young switch-hitting Vladimir Guerrero without the power because of his ability to hit the ball so effectively out of the strike zone. An aggressive hitter, he doesnt walk much.Its no coincidence that after the organization decided to make him repeat a year in the Midwest League, like a student who gets held back a grade, Mejia changed everything from his body language to his preparation.This year I got a better approach, better routines, Mejia said. I got routines this year.Last season, he said, it was simply come to the stadium, lets go play. This year everything is different.It has paid off. Mejia improved his batting average from .243 in 2015 to .348 this season, which DDay credits to an improved all-field approach, especially left-handed.dddddddddddd Before, the right-handed-throwing Mejia would pull from that side of the plate and cut off half the field.Now hes hitting the ball everywhere, early and often.Its his gifted hand-eye coordination ability to put the barrel of the bat on the ball, Budzinski said Thursday before a game at the Potomac Nationals. The guys that are a little more aggressive and can hit the ball out of the zone hard, which he can do, thats where you tend to see guys that can extend those hit streaks longer.The streak is even more remarkable because of Mejias catching responsibilities.When Mejia arrives at the park, he first works with pitching coach Rigo Beltran and the days starter to prepare, then focuses on his defense and finally works on his hitting. Its working out pretty well.Youre dealing with not only calling a game from a mental standpoint, working with a pitching staff, blocking balls, youve got all the gear on in the hot weather, foul tips off of you, youve got to make 100-some throws a night, Budzinski said. It is impressive to see a guy that can kind of maintain that through the course of a season and stay strong physically, mentally, emotionally.Handling the mental and emotional pressure of the hitting streak seems to be the least of Mejias concerns. He acknowledges its fun to keep it going and hear encouragement from his teammates, but he doesnt talk to fellow players about his place in history.That maturity and focus goes a long way as far as earning respect from the staff.He doesnt make it about him, Day said. These games are not being played to see if he will or will not extend his hitting streak and he doesnt act that way. He plays to win. He hits to win. He prepares to win.The Hillcats are winning plenty as Mejia has been hitting. But they almost lost him when the Indians tried to acquire Lucroy, an All-Star catcher.As much as playing -- and getting a hit -- in the Futures Game gave him confidence and motivation, almost being traded made Mejia upset. Of course, he understood the situation like a grizzled veteran.A couple times I feel sad at that trade because I signed with this organization, Mejia said. I like (it) here. But Cleveland wants a World Series, so they have to do it.Lucroy vetoed the trade and went to Texas instead, leaving Cleveland with one of its top prospects still in the organization. Mejia, of course, still has a long way to go before hes ready for the show.Hes still in A-Ball, hes still extremely young, hes still learning a lot of things about the baseball game, Hawkins said. If he continues to improve, if he continues to have the consistent approach at the plate, if he continues to improve behind the dish and manage a pitching staff, we absolutely see him as a guy that can help us out in the major leagues down the line. ' ' '