Instant Reaction: Blue Jays defeat Mariners 6-2 to force winner-take-all Game 7

Trey Yesavage pitched a scoreless third inning, and the Blue Jays’ bats went right to work. Ernie Clement just missed hitting a home run, but this time it wasn’t caught; instead, it hit the wall, and Clement found himself on third. It was Barger who drove in another run, this time hitting a two-run bomb to give the Jays a 4-0 lead.

The game was essentially won in the bottom of the fifth with one swing of the bat, as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit his sixth home run of the season to give the Jays a 5-0 lead. In the top of the sixth, the Mariners scored their two runs, but in the seventh, Matt Brash threw a wild pitch and Cal Raleigh committed an error, allowing Guerrero Jr. to score from second for a 6-2 lead.

Takeaways…

This postseason, the Blue Jays have won six games, which is the most wins they’ve had in a single postseason since 1992 and 1993. Hopefully, the same omen follows them. Funnily enough, they didn’t go the distance in those two seasons, with their lone Game 7 coming all the back in 1985.

Trey Yesavage had a good start, going five and two-thirds innings, giving up six hits, two earned runs, three walks, and striking out seven. That doesn’t tell the whole story, as Yesavage loaded the bases in the top of the third and top of the fourth, getting an inning-ending double play in both innings. In the fifth, he got a third double play.

Of the 10 Blue Jays’ games this postseason, Louis Varland has now appeared in nine of them, where he has a 2.79 ERA in 9.2 innings pitched. On Sunday, he threw an inning and a third, allowing an inherited run to score and striking out two. Jeff Hoffman retired the final six outs, walking a batter and striking out four.

It was reported on Saturday that any pitcher physically able to pitch would be available, but the Jays thankfully didn’t need to go that route. You’d have to think that Chris Bassitt, Max Scherzer, and potentially Kevin Gausman could be available if needed.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Ernie Clement have been so valuable to the Blue Jays in this postseason. Both had two hits in the game, Clement hitting a double and a triple, while Guerrero Jr. hit a bloop single and a home run. Guerrero Jr. is slashing .462 with a 1.532 OPS, and Clement is batting .447 with a 1.121 OPS. With his sixth home run of the postseason, he’s tied both Joe Carter and José Bautista for the most home runs in a single postseason run in Jays’ history.

Addison Barger has quietly put together a good postseason, as he’s now slashing .281 with a .892 OPS. On Sunday, he hit his second home run of the postseason to give the Blue Jays the game-winning run and an insurance run. Nathan Lukes has also had a strong postseason, batting .343.

Game 7 is on Monday at 8:08 PM ET, with Shane Bieber expected to start, while the Mariners have announced George Kirby will start.