FCL Blue Jays set to play FCL Twins in best-of-three Championship Series

A team in the Toronto Blue Jays farm system will have a crack at their league’s championship.

With a 4-3 win against the Florida Complex League Astros, the Florida Complex League Blue Jays will play a best-of-three for the FCL Championship.

In the top of the first, David Beckles hit an RBI ground out for a 1-0 lead, but the Astros tied the game in the bottom of the seventh. It was Beckles once again who put the Jays ahead, as he hit an RBI single in the top of the eighth, with the Astros once again tying it to send the game to extras. Drew Jemison drove in a run with an RBI single, followed by Aldo Gaxiola’s RBI single to make it a 4-2 game.

The FCL Astros threatened in the bottom of the tenth, even making it a one-run game, but Diego Dominguez generated a pop-up and ground out to give the FCL Jays the win. On top of Beckles’ two RBIs, starting pitcher Troy Guthrie had a strong start, pitching five scoreless innings with four strikeouts.

It’s been an impressive turnaround for the FCL Blue Jays. Last season, they finished with a 12-44 record, not just the worst in the Florida Complex League, but their .214 win percentage was by far the worst in all of baseball.

Beckles has been the most impactful player for the FCL Jays. The 21-year-old slashed .304/.388/.483 with eight home runs in 237 plate appearances for a 144 wRC+, the highest of any player on the team. Jemison, Dariel Ramon, Yorman Licourt, and Raimundo De Los Santos also finished with a wRC+ above 110 this season (minimum: 50 plate appearances).

On the pitching side of things, Johnny King was terrific when he was with the team, finishing his FCL tenure with a 1.13 ERA and 1.53 FIP in 24 innings pitched. Of players with 10 or more innings pitched, his 41.8 K% was the highest on the team.

Dominguez got the save on Saturday, but he was also often used in high-leverage situations for the FCL Jays. In 28 innings pitched, the 21-year-old finished with a 2.25 ERA and 3.32 FIP, with a 22.6 K% and 11.3 BB%. Overall, he finished with five saves.

Game One of the FCL Championship Series starts on Sunday at 12:00 PM ET, and it’ll be against the FCL Twins.