Reid Detmers Just Struck Out Aaron Judge Twice and the Blue Jays Have No Idea What's Coming

Reid Detmers is feeling it right now, and the defending American League champion Toronto Blue Jays are about to find out why. The Angels left-hander takes the mound Monday night in Anaheim coming off one of the most dominant starts of his career, and he's bringing a changeup that has his own teammates shaking their heads.

Last Tuesday in New York, Detmers was absolutely locked in. He threw a complete gem against the Yankees, allowing just one run on four hits with zero walks over seven innings while striking out nine. That nine strikeout total included reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge, whom he fanned twice. Detmers threw 99 pitches with 69 for strikes and left the mound having done exactly what you want a starter to do: dominate and get out.

That Changeup Is Doing Something Special

Angels manager Kurt Suzuki was gushing about the performance. "He pitched great," Suzuki told the Orange County Register. "Using all his pitches, mixing it up. I thought our catcher did a great job mixing it up with that. He pitched to all quadrants of the strike zone and attacked and kept them on their heels. It was awesome."

Detmers himself knows exactly what worked. "It was one of those games where everything felt good," he said. "Heater command was pretty good, but the changeup was really good. I was able to get the changeup in the zone, get some swings and misses, and it kind of freed everything else up."

Four of those nine strikeouts came on changeups sitting around 85 mph. Mike Trout, watching from center field, had the best seat in the house. "That changeup is the best I've seen from him," Trout said. That's not hyperbole. That's a future Hall of Famer telling you something special is happening.

Toronto's Starting to Wake Up, But Timing Could Be Everything

The Blue Jays come into this one-game removed from an offensive explosion. After scoring just seven runs total across four straight losses, Toronto erupted for eight first-inning runs Sunday against Arizona in a 10-4 victory. Eight straight batters reached base to start that game, tying a franchise record. Nathan Lukes capped the outburst with a bases-loaded double.

Toronto had been ice cold with runners in scoring position at 1-for-20 with the bases loaded before that breakthrough. "That's what we were missing, stringing the hits together and then hitting with runners in scoring position at that time," Lukes said. "It was huge."

Manager John Schneider credited a better approach at the plate. "I feel like for the past week or so, there have been pitchers pitching us deliberately on the edges and us not making great quality of contact," Schneider said. "Today, I thought we did a really good job of forcing Arizona into the middle of the zone. That's what we're talking about, having a little bit of intent when it is where you can handle it."

Detmers is 1-1 with a 4.76 ERA in six career appearances against Toronto. The Blue Jays counter with Dylan Cease, who's 0-0 with a 1.74 ERA but carries an ugly 0-2 record with a 4.98 ERA at Angel Stadium in four career starts there. Monday night in Anaheim: the hottest pitcher in baseball against a suddenly dangerous offense that just found its swing.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.