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Duke in the MLB: Stroman loses again, Justise Winslow catches a home run

Despite another strong performance, former Blue Devil Marcus Stroman suffered his ninth loss of the season Sunday afternoon against the Los Angeles Angels to bring his record to 9-9. 

The loss came at a critical time for the Toronto Blue Jays, who are barely clinging to a playoff spot in the American League wild-card race.

Stroman pitched a solid game, allowing just two earned runs on seven hits and two walks in six innings of work. He pitched out of a couple of jams to escape serious damage and allowed just one extra-base hit. It was another quality effort for the Toronto right-hander, whose ERA has now dropped to 4.50.

The typically potent Blue Jays offense was once again held in check, this time by Alex Meyer of the Angels, who picked up his first major-league win and held the Blue Jays to just two hits in five innings of work. The Angels' offense against Stroman came in the form of an RBI groundout in the second inning after Stroman walked Albert Pujols and allowed a single to C.J. Cron before Rafael Ortega reached on catcher’s interference. 

The second run allowed by Stroman came in the fifth inning when Mike Trout doubled with one out and Pujols followed with an RBI single. The Angels' bullpen shut down the Blue Jays' offense the rest of the way, and their offense tacked on two insurance runs against Toronto's bullpen to win 4-0.

The Blue Jays will need to find a way to get themselves out of their September slump, as they had not won a single series in September until taking two out of three from the Mariners this week. Toronto currently sits at the top of the wild-card race with four teams right on its heels in a race that is separated by just 2.5 games. The Blue Jays will need Stroman at his best when the postseason rolls around, and he will have the opportunity to build on his recent string of quality starts in a matchup against the Yankees Saturday.

Stroman was not the only former Blue Devil to throw from a major-league pitching mound last week.

Just miles from Angel Stadium, former Duke basketball star Austin Rivers threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Los Angeles Dodgers game Sunday night. The former guard was chosen to represent the Los Angeles Clippers after signing a three-year free-agent deal in July.

Brandon Ingram, former Blue Devil and the No. 2 overall pick in the 2016 NBA Draft to the Los Angeles Lakers, threw out the first pitch at the Dodgers game two days later. 

Justise Winslow, another former Duke star and now a second-year pro for the Miami Heat, threw out the first pitch at the Miami Marlins game Thursday night.

Winslow capped off his night at the ballpark by catching a home run in the center-field seats off the bat of Atlanta Braves outfielder Matt Kemp. A true supporter of his hometown Marlins, Winslow hurled the ball back onto the field.

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