The day that Dustin McGowan was on top of his game, the relief brigade  did not have the right to mess it up!

While Marcus Stroman was auditioning in Buffalo, pitching six inning of no-hit ball with a single walk and 10 strikeouts, McGowan gave his manager six solid innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on three hits and three walks, leaving with a 5-2 lead in Kansas City.

The first two relievers, Brett Cecil and Steve Delabar, who represented the Jays at the All-Star Game last year, were touched for three runs in an inning and a third. Then, Sergio Santos and Esmil Rogers, were roughed up for four more and the Jays lost 10-7.

How do you spell relief when Casey Janssen is not available?

Not only did the relief corps wasted a solid outing from McGowan, but also a 12-hit attack which included Jose Bautista’s 8^th homer and Edwin Encarnacion’s second, but also two hits each from Jose Reyes, Melky Cabrera, Dioner Navarro, Brett Lawrie and Colby Rasmus.

The next day, the Jays had a scare when Cabrera was hit by a Danny Duffy’s fast ball on the left left leg. But X-rays showed only a contusion… no fracture!

But, the Jays could not supply any offense for Drew Hutchison. As they could muster only two base hits with runners in scoring position and stranded 12 runners in a 4-2 loss to the Royals.

Hutchison gave up only five hits and one walk over seven innings.

So Cabrera had his 11-game hitting streak stopped but he ended the month of April with 41 hits, a new Jays record and tops in the majors.

In the last game, Mark Buehrle stepped up and gave only three runs (two earned) over the first six and two thirds innings to register his fifth win, 7-3.

Aaron Loup notched his first save of the season, retiring all seven batters he faced.

Juan Francisco (3^rd) and Colby Rasmus (5^th) hit one homerun each while Anthony Gose celebrated his return to the major with two hits and two rbis. Chris Getz and Lawrie added two hits each and Encarnacion, a 16^th rbi.

And on to Pittsburgh

In the first of the three-game series in Pittsburgh, Brandon Morrow could not miss a bat as he was roughed up for 11 hitsin five innings. But, despite this barrage, he was leading 4-3 when the ball was handed to Steve Delabar.

Later, Morrow’s name was added to the disabled list.

The Jays added a run in the 6^th inning. Delabar and Cecil were up to the task until Sergio Santos took over in the ninth. A three-run assault as Pedro Alvarez and Starling Marte went deep, transformed the lead into an 6-5 heartbreaking loss.

The way Santos was pitching, it was expected that the closer’s role would be taken away from him. His slider was sharp, but his fastball had no movement and the hitters were sitting on it.

On Saturday, R.A. Dickey  was not at his best, but he surely deserved better. Dickey was furious when John Gibbons took him out in the seventh inning and he helplessly watched Loup and Todd Redmond falter. Loup was roughed up for three runs and Redmond for two more in the 7^th and 8^th innings, and the Jays lost 8-6.

Dustin McGowan ended the series on a positive note, as gave up only one run over the first seven innings to record his second win of the season.

Rasmus, with a grand slam in the second inning, and Cabrera, with a two-run shot in the fifth, supplied the power as they both had three hits.

Going back to the relief corps, which was supposed to be the strong point of the team at the start of the season, the Jays relievers have, over the last 15 games, called upon to pitch in 49 2/3 innings, giving up 44 runs, on 53 hits and 33 walks.

Too bad the Jays couldn’t find the correct way to spell relief since the beginning of this trip. They could have landed in Philadelphia, riding a six-game winning streak…