Major League Baseball Update: Estrada looking to bounce back for Toronto Blue Jays

The following are updates on local Major League Baseball players.

Marco Estrada (Glendale Community College, 2003) Toronto Blue Jays pitcher: Though he hasn’t won a game since April 10, Estrada is showing signs of turning the corner. Estrada, a former All-Western State Conference selection who helped Toronto win the American League’s East Division championship last season for the first time since 1993, has recorded two straight quality starts.

In his last outing Tuesday against the visiting Texas Rangers, the right-hander allowed one run on two hits and struck out three in six innings. Estrada, who began the season on the disabled list with a back injury, yielded a home run to Rougned Odor on the second pitch of the game before settling down. Estrada, 32, made 88 pitches, 58 for strikes.

Toronto, which advanced to the AL championship series last season, posted a 3-1 victory in 10 innings on a two-run home run by Justin Smoak.

“That was a lot of fun, we needed it,” Estrada told mlb.com. “We just haven’t been putting up big hits and having two of them in one game, it was incredible to watch. It was something we really needed.”

Estrada, who signed a two-year contract with Toronto in November after placing 10th in the league’s Cy Young Award voting, allowed three runs on three hits in a 4-0 home defeat against the Chicago White Sox on April 27. He struck out five in 6 2/3 innings despite battling some shoulder soreness.

“It didn’t feel very good, but, you know, I don’t want to talk about it,” Estrada told the Associated Press.

In his 100th career start, Estrada pitched seven scoreless innings against the visiting Boston Red Sox on April 10. He struck out eight and scattered five hits in a 3-0 win.

Entering Thursday’s contest against Texas, Estrada is 1-2 with a 2.64 earned-run average. In 30 2/3 innings, he’s struck out 28 and walked 12, while allowing nine runs and 24 hits.

Estrada is scheduled to start Sunday at home against the Los Angeles Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw, a former Cy Young Award winner.

Heading into Thursday, Toronto was 14-15 and in third place in the division.

Christian Bergman (St. Francis High, 2006) Colorado Rockies pitcher: The former All-Area Baseball Player of the Year has spent most of the first part of the season in the bullpen. The right-hander has made six appearances, five in relief.

The Glendale native last worked April 26 in relief against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates. In 2 2/3 innings, Bergman allowed three runs (all earned) and struck out four in a 9-4 loss. On April 23 at home against the Los Amgeles Dodgers, Bergman, 28, surrendered one run on three hits and struck out two in two innings in Colorado’s 4-1 defeat.

Bergman (0-3 with a 7.62 earned-run average) took the defeat in a 6-5 road loss against the Cincinnati Reds on April 20. He gave up the winning run in the ninth on a single by Tucker Barnhart. Berrgman yielded one run on three hits and got just one out after coming on to begin the inning.

In Bergman’s lone start, which came April 16 at the Chicago Cubs, he equaled his career high of seven strikeouts. He gave up back-to-back homers to Anthony Rizzo and Jorge Soler on consecutive pitches in the fourth. He tossed 49 of 67 pitches for strikes to 19 batters faced. Bergman allowed just four hits in a 6-2 defeat.

In 13 innings, he’s given up 11 runs (all earned) on 19 hits. He’s truck out 16 and walked three.

Colorado was 13-14 entering and in third place in the National League’s West Division entering Thursday.

Cesar Ramos (La Crescenta resident) Texas Rangers pitcher: Ramos, who began the season with the triple-A Round Rock Express, was brought up by Texas on April 25 and made a spot start against the New York Yankees at home. In six innings, Ramos, 31, allowed nine hits, three earned runs, two walks and struck out five.

Ramos, a left-hander who pitched in relief for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim last season, hasn’t made an appearance since.

In three starts with Round Rock, Ramos was 0-1 with a 3.18 earned-run average in 11 1/3 innings. He struck out 10 and walked two.

Heading into Thursday, Texas was 15-13 and in second place in the American League’s West Division.