The bullpen of the Toronto Blue Jays has a 3.12 ERA, the fifth-best mark in the major leagues this season. Three relievers -- southpaw Scott Downs, rookie Jesse Carlson and closer B.J. Ryan -- have worked at least 30 innings and have an ERA lower than 3.00. Seven Jays have pitched more than 15 innings in relief and have ERAs lower than 3.75.

The Toronto bullpen ranks sixth in the majors for lowest opponent batting average (.234). Yet Jays relievers are just 7-17 on the season. Their win total and .292 winning percentage are the lowest among all major league bullpens. Such a statistical dichotomy is unusual.

Despite a 3.36 ERA in April, Toronto relievers were 1-7 for the month. In six of those eight decisions, the Jays pitcher who earned the decision entered a tied game in what turned out to be a one-run or extra-inning defeat.

The bullpen was rarely touched for big innings in April, and that trend has continued, though the relievers are now 5-11 in games that were tied when they entered. They are 3-7 in extra innings.

The Jays are 15-22 (.405) in one-run games, and only four big league clubs have lower winning percentages in games decided by a single run.

Still, those aren’t reasons to beat up on the relief corps. The pen has been victimized by poor run support. In seven of those 11 losses, the Jays haven’t scored a run after the sixth inning.

When Downs allowed two late scores in a 7-6 loss to Seattle on July 1, the bullpen had slipped to 4-17, though with a solid 3.16 ERA. To that point in the season, the offense had provided just 3.2 runs of support per nine innings for the relievers. That’s barely a run for every three innings worked by the pen.

Getting the clutch hit hasn’t come often enough in any inning. The Jays are batting .241 with runners in scoring position this season. That’s the third-lowest mark in the majors, and in 10 of the bullpen’s 17 losses, the team stranded double-digit runners on base.

Things are looking up for the run-starved relievers. The bullpen has won three straight decisions over the last two weeks. The difference has been the 12 runs scored by the offense over the final three innings of those three victories combined.

Prior to those three wins, the bullpen had lost eight straight decisions, dating to June 1. In those eight one-run defeats, the Jays scored a total of three runs after the sixth inning -- a span of 29 innings when the pen could have used a little help.