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After sweeping the Kansas City Royals in Tuesday's doubleheader, the Toronto Blue Jays find themselves sitting six games over .500 with 11 wins on the season. Last year, they didn't win their 11th game until May 7. TSN Baseball Reporter Scott Mitchell provides his key takeaways from the game.

GAME 16, APRIL 17: ROYALS AT JAYS, GAME 2

RESULT: 5-4 win in 10 innings

RECORD: 11-5

STREAK: W3

1—Sweeping Tuesday’s double-header against the Royals has the Blue Jays sitting six games over .500 with 11 wins on the season. Last year, they didn’t win their 11th game until May 7, and at that point they were still nine games under .500 at 11-20. The best opening month in franchise history came in 1992 when they won 16 games in April.

2—Joe Biagini’s night didn’t start well — he gave up a run in the first inning on a pair of hits and a walk — but the big right-hander settled down to make it through 5.2 innings in the second game of the double-header. Recalled from Triple-A Buffalo as the 26th man, Biagini ended up allowing three earned runs on six hits and a trio of walks (he also hit two batters). He struck out four and left the game down 3-0 in the sixth inning. Biagini will now be sent back to the Bisons, where he’ll continue his transition from reliever to starter, and you can expect to see him again when the Jays have a need in the rotation.

3—After giving up a home run in his first appearance of the season against the New York Yankees, setup man Danny Barnes has been lights out since, running his streak of scoreless appearances to eight Tuesday night. In 8.2 innings this season, the right-hander has struck out 12 and walked just one. Barnes’ ERA is a sparkling 1.04.

4—Luke Maile continues to show he’s more than capable of being Russell Martin’s caddy behind the plate, driving in a pair of runs with a single in the seventh inning and then providing the game-winning base hit in the 10th. His defence and handling of the pitching staff have been solid since he arrived a year ago, but the bat has come alive in 2018, as the 27-year-old is now slashing .421/.500/.579 in 22 plate appearances. Small sample size, sure, but the bar is low when it comes to backup catcher production.

5—Eligible to be activated from the DL on Friday, designated hitter Kendrys Morales is expected to be ready to return from his strained right hamstring, which will necessitate a corresponding roster move. Left-handed reliever Tim Mayza could be sent back to Triple-A, or the Jays could decide to send down Teoscar Hernandez, rather than have him sit on the bench if they think there aren’t enough at-bats to go around.​

GAME 15, APRIL 17: ROYALS AT JAYS, GAME 1
RESULT: 11-3 win
RECORD: 10-5
STREAK: W2

1—Randal Grichuk broke out of a season-long slump, collecting a double and his second home run of the season in the sixth inning to bump his average to .109. Manager John Gibbons gave his struggling right fielder a vote of confidence over the weekend, so he wasn’t surprised to see Grichuk start to turn things around. “He definitely needed that,” Gibbons said after the first game of Tuesday’s double-header. “Hopefully, he breathes a little easier now.”

2—After hitting his third home run as a Blue Jay and enjoying a 2-for-3 day, Yangervis Solarte is now sporting an OPS of 1.007. Aledmys Diaz, another off-season pick up, also had a pair of hits to bump his OPS to a solid .874. The Jays wouldn’t be five games over .500 if it wasn’t for those two winter additions.

3—Devon Travis was plunked on the right hand/wrist in the seventh inning, the third time in an eight-day span that he’s been hit by a pitch in the same area. Travis shook it off, though, and finished out the game, before sitting in the second game of the twin-bill.

4—Despite allowing a pair of home runs, Jaime Garcia battled through five innings to pick up his second win of the season. The left-hander allowed three earned runs on eight hits, walking one and striking out five. Garcia and his 3.86 ERA are scheduled to take the mound again Sunday on the road against the New York Yankees.

5—Teoscar Hernandez has played two games at the major-league level this season and he’s had a pair of hits in both of them. After playing hero in his season debut Friday in Cleveland, the 25-year-old outfielder had a double and a single Tuesday. Since being recalled in September, Hernandez now has 17 extra-base hits in 28 games.