A critical call against Orioles has massive domino effect, and Blue Jays take advantage

TORONTO — Shane Baz had a right to be ticked off. He left the mound and kept staring back past second base, where umpire Nic Lentz stood with his back turned toward the outfield. He eventually pointed toward Lentz and yelled in his direction.

This game shifted on a judgment call, and in the Orioles’ view it was a clear miss.

With runners on the corners and one out, Brandon Valenzuela hit a grounder near second base. Shortstop Gunnar Henderson, whose error the play before allowed Ernie Clement to reach first, fielded the dribbler and went to tag Clement. What happened next depends on point of view, but there is no debating the basic facts: With Henderson in his path, Clement maneuvered out of the way. Henderson abandoned the tag attempt and threw to first for an out.

Now here comes the debate. If Clement avoids Henderson’s tag attempt by moving 3 feet or more out of the basepath, he should be ruled out. It would have been an inning-ending double play. The Orioles clearly thought that should have been the case, and arguments to that effect came from Henderson, Baz, first baseman Pete Alonso and manager Craig Albernaz.

The reverse argument is that Henderson didn’t make a discernible attempt to tag Clement or that Clement didn’t exit the basepath. Those arguments seem rather dubious, but a reporter will speak to the chief of this umpire crew at the end of the game.

This was not a reviewable play. It’s an in-the-moment call, and depending on which side of the aisle one sits on in this Blue Jays-Orioles competition, the view may well be different.

What is undeniable is that the game swung in that moment, and when Baz left the mound, a four-run lead had vanished into a tie game. A fifth run in the sixth inning scored when Nathan Lukes hit an infield single against right-hander Yennier Cano, which sealed Toronto’s series-clinching 6-4 victory Sunday.

So Baz stared and chirped. He could’ve been out of the inning with only one run against him, when Yohendrick Piñango led off the sixth with a solo home run. But Henderson’s error on Clement’s grounder was the first issue, and then Lentz’s call exacerbated things.

The Blue Jays scored four more runs in the sixth inning, taking the lead.

Before all of that, the Orioles were on their way to a series win after posting a four-spot against right-hander Kevin Gausman in the fifth inning. Colton Cowser homered for the second straight game, Blaze Alexander scored Jackson Holliday with a double, and Taylor Ward powered a two-run shot to build the lead.

But it soon crumbled in the sixth, and even when Baltimore threatened in the seventh, the Orioles didn’t break through.

Tyler O’Neill led off the inning with a single, and Holliday walked. With two on, no outs and Alexander — one of Baltimore’s hottest hitters — at the plate, the Orioles decided to bunt both runners into scoring position.

Alexander’s bunt, however, was too close to home plate. O’Neill’s lead wasn’t large, either. Valenzuela, the catcher, scooped up the ball and fired to third for the first out. Then Ward grounded into an inning-ending double play.

There is also concern for catcher Samuel Basallo, who was on deck to hit in the eighth but left the on-deck circle and was pinch-hit for by Leody Taveras. In the bottom of the sixth, when Lukes reached on an infield single, Holliday’s throw to first was too late. Alonso fired home because Andrés Giménez rounded third and attempted to score.

Giménez dove in ahead of Basallo’s tag, and Basallo stayed down holding his left arm. After several moments and a few practice catches, Basallo remained in the game until he was pinch-hit for.

The task of coming back became more difficult, too, when right-hander Rico Garcia allowed a homer to Valenzuela in the eighth.

There will be gripes about this one for a long time. They are probably justified — although they may depend on one’s point of view.