Edwin Encarnacion of the Toronto Blue Jays circles the bases after hitting a three-run home run in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim on May 21, 2015 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images
It was kind of indicative of how things have transpired for the woebegone Toronto Blue Jays and R.A. Dickey, their confounding knuckleball pitcher.
Desperate for a win, it would figure that the Blue Jays had caught a bit of a break with the news that Albert Pujols, the dangerous hitter for the Los Angeles Angels, was out of the lineup for Thursday night's game with a bruised hand.
His replacement in the lineup was Marc Krauss, who was installed at first base for just the third time this season and hitting second in the batting order with a resounding .125 batting average.
So of course it stands to reason that Krauss crushes the second pitch he sees from Dickey, a moon shot that landed in the second-deck nosebleed section in right field.
It provided L.A. with an early first-inning lift, and you could sense the here-we-go-again mentality already beginning to take hold among the more cynical Blue Jays' fans in attendance.
But both Dickey and the Blue Jays displayed some resilience, something that has been in short supply with this outfit.
Dickey straightened out his knuckler – meaning he got it to flutter with its normal confounding consistency – the Blue Jays offence started to rumble, and the result was an 8-4 Toronto victory.
The Blue Jays (19-24) snapped a two-game slide to earn a 2-2 split in the four-game set over the Angels (21-20).
And it marked a return to some sense of normalcy for Dickey, who had been roughed up his past two outings.
Against Los Angeles, he was sublime, pitching a complete-game five-hitter to earn the win and improve his record to 2-5.
A Danny Valencia home run in third inning, his first of the year, drew the Blue Jays even, but not for long.
Ryan Goins followed with a double to right.
Goins would then come around to score an unearned run when L.A. starter Matt Shoemaker made a throwing error to first base off a nice bunt off the bat of Steve Tolleson that moved Toronto in front 2-1.
Shoemaker (3-4) took the loss, getting roughed up for eight runs off eight hits through six-plus innings.
The Blue Jays iced it in the four-run fifth, when they moved in front 6-1, highlighted by a three-run home-run shot by Edwin Encarnacion, his 10th of the season.
Now that the Blue Jays have seen the last of the pesky Angels, they will greet a kindred spirit in the form of the Seattle Mariners, who arrive Friday for the start of a more traditional three-game series at the Rogers Centre.
Like the Blue Jays, the Mariners have scuffled for most of the season and already find themselves well back in the American League West standing after missing the postseason by one game a year ago.
After that, the Blue Jays will welcome the Chicago White Sox to Toronto on Monday, at which point Toronto manager John Gibbons hopes to have shortstop and leadoff hitter Jose Reyes back in the starting lineup.
Reyes, who is now on a rehab assignment with the Buffalo Bisons, Toronto's Triple-A affiliate, has missed the past 23 games recovering from a cracked rib.
The Blue Jays also played without the services of rookie second baseman Devon Travis for the fifth successive game as he recovers from a bruise to his upper ribcage.
Along with Josh Donaldson, Travis had been Toronto's most consistent hitter this season. Gibbons said he hopes Travis will be ready to play in a game or two.
Gibbons said going into Thursday's game, he really didn't know what to expect from Dickey, like most not privy to the mysterious mechanical machinations of a knuckleball practitioner.
In his previous two outings, Dickey had looked miserable, allowing 13 earned runs over 11 innings, including four home runs.
"Pete Walker [the Toronto pitching coach] told me he had a pretty good side [session]," Gibbons said. "The thing was moving pretty good. You know he's been looking to make some adjustments. He liked what he saw, so we'll see."
What he saw was some vintage Dickey, who was able to overcome Krauss's wakeup call in the first inning to mostly befuddle the would-be L.A. batters.
Although David Freese got to him in the ninth inning with a two-run homer, Dickey had just enough gas to finish it off, striking out seven L.A. batters to pitch his first complete game since July 3, 2014, against the Oakland A's.
ON DECK
The reeling Blue Jays will welcome the Seattle Mariners to town Friday night for the start of a three-game weekend set. The series pits Toronto, with the longest current postseason drought (21 years) against Seattle, which owns the second-longest streak (13 years). The Blue Jays will immediately be thrown into the fire, though, facing Felix Hernandez in the opener. King Felix, one of the game's top hurlers, is off to a torrid start – 6-1 with a 2.30 earned-run average. The six wins tie Hernandez for first place among major-league pitchers, while his ERA ranks him fifth in the American League. Hernandez has not fared well against Toronto over the years, compiling a career 5-6 record in 13 starts. His career 4.80 ERA against Toronto is his second-highest total among all teams.
Friday, 7:07 p.m. (ET): Toronto RHP Marco Estrada (1-2, 3.55) vs. Seattle RHP Felix Hernandez (6-1, 2.30).
Saturday, 1:07 p.m. (ET): Toronto LHP Mark Buehrle (5-3, 5.36) vs. Seattle LHP James Paxton (2-2, 3.59).
Sunday, 1:07 p.m. (ET): Toronto RHP Aaron Sanchez (3-4, 4.17) vs. Seattle RHP Taijuan Walker (1-4, 7.47).
All games at Rogers Centre.