Are You with Me, Bryan Woo? (2025 ALCS: Toronto vs. Seattle)

Sorry, gyac, couldn't pass up the thread title.

Meant to close this tomorrow...I think these teams are, on balance, close to dead even, with one huge advantage to Seattle that I probably don't even need to articulate: they've got Mariano Rivera closing, we have Joey McLaughlin. I've picked the Jays to somehow win in 7.

Rivera didn’t look so reliable last night. Haven’t watched the Ms enough to know if it’s a fluke or if he’s been off lately.

Tigers have also seen Muñoz four times in the last week

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Sportsnet just showed Bichette running the bases today, visibly wincing. No way he plays in the ALCS, not unless both he and the team are willing to risk his career. Thinking back to the way he returned after a rain delay that day--how and why?

The roster is out and he's not on it. Bassitt and Scherzer are on, replacing Bruhl and Nance.

Mariners right-hander Bryan Woo was added to Seattle's 26-man ALCS roster on Sunday, but he will not be available for Game 1 in any capacity.

Infielder Ben Williamson and utility man Luke Raley were left off the roster in this series, and infielder/outfielder Miles Mastrobuoni was added.

(xpost) Exactly what I thought. If they win, can't see him back for the WS, either.

bummer about Bo, but surprised they went with both max and Bassitt. you'd think they'd only need to add one SP, but now they're at 5. and shame Nance was left off the roster, we was great during the season.

If Bassitt is indeed 100%, or very close, I think I'd give him a home start over Scherzer, especially if they win G1. At home this year: 8-0, 2.71, 1.172 WHIP, 3.70 K/BB.

One of them is clearly headed to the pen.

Those 15-inning games will mess you up.

https://i.postimg.cc/L6nCd2m3/moyer.jpg

Same two worries:

1) Hoffman. If he blows a save early on, this series could unravel quickly. I keep thinking about the pitch Judge hit for a double before Hoffman got Bellinger for the last out. I don't think you could throw a more nothing pitch--if that's the pitch he has to throw when he falls behind, look out.

2) sticking with Santander. I now understand why he plays the field: if Springer's out there, you can't (or wouldn't) pinch-hit for him to get some late-inning defense, whereas with Santander that's an easy call. And I know what they're hoping for--that even if he goes 2 for 20, maybe that'd be two HR, and maybe one of them will win a game. I haven't seen anything yet to indicate that's going to happen.

Should have challenged that out at home imo

I'd have to watch the replay, but I didn't think it was that close.

Was curious about Eugenio Suarez and 500 HR, so plugged him into the Favourite Toy calculator:

Based on his age, your player can be expected to play for 4 more years, at an average of 38.2 per year. At that rate, he will finish at 477 for his career. He has a 37 percent chance to reach 500.

Robles made that error with his alignment card hanging out of his mouth..

There’s a dude in the front row built like a frickin kangaroo

Raleigh just kills Gausman. Just keep him in the park.

Gausman got him there but I think Cal’s OPS just in Toronto is over 5000

1.126 for his career, but he really hits Gausman: 5/12, 3 HR.

I had no idea Springer had a .959 OPS this year, wow.

He was amazing...This is exactly the game the Jays didn't want. They're letting Seattle's stopgap starter with the near-6.00 ERA mow them down; first-pitch HR, nothing since.

What a bomb

No surprise at all. But it's the offense that's got me on edge right now, not Gausman.

If I could find that old post of mine about how Cal Raleigh has Hall of fame numbers on pitches in the bottom third of his strike zone I’d post it here

I don't know the right answer here. Pulling Gausman too soon in 2022 still hangs over the franchise, but this is a very different situation.

What the fuck was that? Oh yeah, nerves.

Even if by necessity, I applaud Seattle for keeping Miller in there; most teams wouldn't.

what a catch

Ouch on that catch--that's what we do.

Dominguez got away with that first pitch to Raleigh - 97 right down the middle.

I'm really skeptical that the Jays can rebound from losing tonight. That's all I heard all day--that, with the 15-inning game as context, they had to win tonight--and I tend to agree.

"You bring Hoffman in to keep it right where it's at"--great idea, Buck.

Well, at least that'll be something they can take away from tonight.

Short of a Hoffman blown save, that's about as sobering a loss as you could have. One hit after Springer's HR; none after the second inning.

Muñoz got all three outs on his slider.

The Jays' broadcast panel is focused on pulling Gausman too soon. I said I wasn't sure in the moment, and I'm still not. The offense lost the game. It is interesting, though, that the Mariners trusted their fourth or fifth starter more than the Jays trusted their number-one.

Trey Yesavage, a nation turns its lonely eyes to you.

I do sometimes wonder if Schneider has a genetic resistance to being criticized for leaving his starting pitcher in too long. You even saw it with Yesavage in his great game--didn't let him finish the inning.

They pulled Gausman too soon. With the the benefit of hindsight, the offense lost the game. However,

1) They pulled Gausman in a tie game in the sixth -- well before the offense "lost"
2) They burned through Fluharty, Varland, Hoffman ... all their best relievers. The Jays have to limit their usage, especially since this isn't a shutdown crew, the more the Mariners get to face them, the better they'll hit against them.

Like I say, the contrast with Seattle--sticking with their makeshift starter--was eye-opening.

What in the world is going on with Yesavage? I caught the tail end of some cryptic press conference.

i guess his family is getting the standard abuse/bullshit that athletes have grown to expect in this modern gambling-saturated sport environment.
dude went from a little-known prospect to making a name for himself in the bigs very fast and i guess the media splashing his family on TV and socials is making them a target for the worst shit heads out there.

Ok???

How do you throw it that far past someone who’s six seven with the wingspan to match

How is nobody watching this ffs

work :/

Was there last night and have it on rn.

Glad Schnider is in instead of Santander today

I thought the game started at 4:00, so I made it a point to catch a 2:00 movie in London. I wanted to dodge the first hour; either I'd join up with the Jays ahead, or I'd spare myself the agony of them falling behind. So of course I jumped in the car just in time to hear Seattle score three on the radio. Switched off, came back, home now, glad it's a new game.

I also forgot the start time :/

Honestly, I think they changed it--I'm positive they were saying 4:00 earlier.

yeah i thought it was starting at 5 pm central, that's what it said on mlb this morning

I've always thought Luis Castillo looks very regal--like he should be in a 16th century French court or something, wearing a flowing red robe.

“If the ball hits the ass of a guy on the dugout step is it still in play or nah - we go to New York for confirmation”

Why isn't that interference (and send the runner back to first)? Shouldn't there be some kind of penalty?

Geno: TWO BASES

Who's Geno? I'm watching Schulman/Martinez.

Why isn't that interference (and send the runner back to first)? Shouldn't there be some kind of penalty?

Cos it’s going in the dugout if he’s not there

xp Eugenio Suarez

The camera went to him after the call was confirmed and he held up two fingers and very audibly shouted to Arozarena “TWO BASES”

User Sharivari predicted something bad happening the second they walked Raleigh

based on what the commentators were saying, the challenge was about whether suarez was on the field by sitting on the top step or not - sounds like it's one of those things that varies by stadium. but it was still a pretty dumb challenge imo

“DON’T INTENTIONAL WALK DON’T BUNT” - Mr I-only-like-dingers

Definitely agree the ball goes into the dugout with no Suarez--obviously--but to me, he chose to sit there and ended up interferring with a ball in play when it hit him. They didn't consult me on the rule book, though.

It's all moot now.

Jays are deader than dead if they can't stage an improbable comeback, and I think we may have used all those up in the regular season. (Sorry to the three or four Jays fans for all the negativity. I've officially turned into my dad.)

In all seriousness how was he interfering with a ball, his engagement was passive

To me interfering is like a fan reaching into the field of play and actively directing the ball

Three runs isn't improbable!

Yesterday they pulled Gausman too early, today they pulled Yesavage too late. Rosenthal is interviewing Schneider and his justification is that Yesavage was "throwing the ball well". Sure, dude.

If a fan had his hands hanging over the railing and fell asleep and the ball hit them, that'd be passive interference, wouldn't it? But honestly, it's not worth arguing about now.

It's improbable only for doom and gloom Grampa Simpsons.

They said the step is “in play” which means to me, a player shouldn’t be there? But you see guys on that top step all the time. So… I dunno

It's well past time for Vlad to Be A Star and start doing something in this series.

Dude def seems to have used up all his hits against the Yankees.

It's one of those cases, I fear, where beating the Yankees was "his WS" and there's a loss of focus once that goal is accomplished.

Vlad had him moment, Yesavage too; Nathan Lukes is now the face of the franchise.

I hate to see that--Varsho is so great out there (like the catch earlier).

Varsho has looked bad in the field today? What's happening? Is it really due to the wind?

I thought he might dive for the Naylor bloop, but those are so tough to read off a power hitter.

My partner just shut the game off

otm

Getting late....

I think I got suckered into believing the idea that there was no way the Mariners were going to win G1 coming off the neverending game.

Bassitt as mop-up instead of starter is the new moneyball

Listening to Schneider right now--god, I'd hate to have to answer questions after such a nothing game.

that was a wild play

Guessing that was meant for the other thread...

100%

10 years ago today:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UdsVO7HaJg

Today: sigh.

I'm a terrible fan. I start this game with zero enthusiasm--the musings of Geddy Lee aren't helping--and I'm ready to bail the second things start to unravel.

Well you weren't lying

There is going to be so much second-guessing about hitting Santander cleanup.

About fucking time.

https://i.postimg.cc/ydmxGHMJ/IMG-2851.jpg

Really letting him wear it here

Has there ever been a postseason cycle? Vlad's got two probably two more AB to hit a triple.

I'd give Bieber two baserunners on at the same time; let him keep going till that happens, or till he gets near 100 pitches. Don't pull him as soon as one guy gets on.

The ball is carrying in Seattle tonight

KIRK

Actually, I would take Bieber out now. Long, long way to go, but if it ever did go seven, I assume he'd get the start.

I can't believe it--he rolls one to the wall in a 12-2 game and he doesn't go for the triple! I mean, I know cycles are the gimmickiest things going, but why wouldn't you go for it? Just run normal speed, see if they mess up the relay.

Selfishly going for a cycle, even if it means slowing down, is a Blue Jay tradition.

Injury risk, no upside at all. /morbs

Has there ever been a postseason cycle?

Brock Holt for the Red Sox in 2018, apparently

That's why I added "run at a normal speed"; obviously, don't risk an injury. Hell, jog. Anyway, I'm probably the one person who even noticed.

Right you are:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYKq2of7yqc

will no one win a home game

The first inning home run curse continues

Would make any Jays fan over 50 smile (Posnanski):

Then like two eyeblinks later — after homers from Andrés Giménez, George Springer, Vladimir Guerrero, Alejandro Kirk, Otto Vélez, Bob Bailor, Danny Ainge, Barry Bonnell, Rance Mulliniks, Lloyd Moseby, Alfredo Griffin, Jesse Barfield, Willie Upshaw, Jorge Bell, George Bell (after he changed spelling of his name), Tony Fernández, Fred McGriff, Kelly Gruber, Shannon Stewart, Ed Sprague, Marco Scutaro, José Bautista and Russell Martin — the Blue Jays led 3,467-2, and pitcher George Kirby looked like Shaggy after he’d seen a ghost, and I imagine there were Mariners fans everywhere walking into lakes.

Santander getting pulled from the roster

Why?

Back soreness

wonder how many Jays fans made it into the seattle stadium

Hilarious. I was going to say that every myth about the grizzled old veteran starter who refuses to hand over the ball is about to either laid to waste or ressurected.

Resurrected, too.

Really should have added another there; poor baserunning.

I have the game on but muted while I listen to Music to Spazz By, and I assume Max was screaming "THIS IS MY HAPPENING AND IT FREAKS ME OUT!!!"

Place I’m watching the game at is giving out shots for every home run.

Watched the Jays big inning in a pub after tennis. Only about a third full, and you might have thought no one was paying attention, but when Gimneez hit the HR, lots of noise.

Gimenez...god, my typos get worse all the time.

I don't think Schulman and Martinez are being totally honest about Hoffman's usage here. They say it's because they want him in there as the Mariners' best hitters come up--he's there to make sure the score stays exactly where it is. Really? I think it's more just to give him some work, and also, an ongoing project, to give him a low-stress situation where he can have some success.

Agreed. He was warming up and then, why not stress test him against the heart of their lineup

Could've backfired, but a great moment for old-school sentimentality.

https://i.postimg.cc/yxh2CBjr/max.jpg

Can't believe this series is tied. The Jays were hot garbage in the first two games.

As much as I loved the moment, I'd agree with what Scherzer (pretty candidly, I thought) said in the press room later: that it was really some theatre on Schneider's part, either to fire up Scherzer or to manufacture some drama, but that he really had no intention of pulling him right there.

(And Schneider's own post-mortem would seem to support that: that he'd been waiting all year for Scherzer to yell at him, and that Scherzer wanted to kill him and that that was great.)

happy for scherzer. didn't realize there's only a four-year age gap between him and schneider

Gausman--not every Jays pitcher, but Gausman--needs to treat Raleigh like Judge.

Mariners tanking the past few days has really muted my enthusiasm about this series. I so badly wanted them to make the WS for the first time!

Congratulations to the LA Dodgers for winning the first home game of either of the Championship Series.

I honestly think Kirby’s elbow might be fucked (thought from game the other night I’m only posting now). He missed a load of time with an elbow inflammation issue that didn’t require surgery at the start of the season, had, his previously league-leading bb/9 rate (1.1 last year) has almost doubled, his k/9 is higher but his era+ is below average (90!), his hard hit and exit velo metrics have declined. What I’m getting at is that it would be shit if this was the case, that he’s going to the pulled pork factory, because he’s an incredible talent and they really need him if they’re going to compete during the window they have all these arms. Castillo had a solid season but his road numbers are alarming and he’s still very much a long ball merchant. Woo is amazing but you need to see it from him a full season really, Miller is kind of a work in progress, Gilbert is likely walking in FA. They can’t waste this window when all these guys are healthy and under team control for at least 2-3 more years.

Geno finally did something

Gotta make sure you give up that first HR if you expect to win in this series.

Lol that was my thought

Re: Mariners rotation… is Hancock considered a bust a this point?

I don’t know if I’d say that but he’s really not a viable starter. Actually I just checked and I hadn’t realised he was a sixth overall pick - rough. They hit on Kirby and Gilbert with their preceding first round picks which is a bounty comparable to the Giants drafting Cain, Lincecum and Bumgarner all within a few years of each other. Maybe he’s a change of scene guy, Cleveland and Milwaukee are pretty great for figuring pitchers out.

Wow perfect double play to get out of that jam

What on earth

That was disheartening

I have never seen a ball chopped in front of the plate that just ... stayed there.

It was such an odd bounce I was sure it hit a foot or something

I was manning a tennis kiosk at the rec centre and just closing up when the Jays loaded the bases; heard the three outs on the radio going home, thus sparing me having to throw a brick at the TV. (I always keep a few bricks on hand when I watch at home.)

Ontario pitcher strikes out Quebec hitter

Jesus--walking the 9th hitter.

Are you with me, Bryan Woo?

Leadoff man on again. Interesting move bringing in Woo.

I think Toronto completely forgets situational hitting after a couple of big offensive games.

Speechless--almost posted about pinch-running for Kirk two minutes ago.

I just don't see us winning a 2-1 game; need more runs.

Oh man

Sickening.

Jays should be up about 6-1; we've all seen this game a million times and know how it usually ends.

Bringing in Little to face Raleigh and Polanco, all so that Naylor races a lefty, is some A+ dumb shit.

I like Seranthony, but he's just the last guy you want when you can't afford a walk (or HBP in this case).

There you go

This is the worst inning in Jays history.

Bottom of the 8th grand slam

Jays just aren't goint to win a game where they're called upon to protect a one-or-two run lead in the late innings. They miraculously made it through one series, and halfway through a second, without having to do that. They can score a bunch early and hang on.

Jomboy will have a field day with this inning. How many shitty decisions can a manager make in such a short time?

I do hope all the potential runs they squandered are part of the post-mortem. (I am having a hard time right now listening to Schulman and Buck talk about Hoffman--"Why not Hoffman?"--like he's some kind of saviour.)

The one good thing to hang on to is that they won two to bring it back to Toronto. If you reverse last night with tonight, we'd probably be pretty happy. If Springer returns--hate to think about him not--they're not in a horrible spot.

Again, this is ridiculous. Joe Siddall's comparing what they did yesterday--when they were winning 39-2--to tonight; all they had to do was bring in Hoffman, who was awesome protecting the 37-run lead, and all would be fine. I'm not disagreeing that Little wasn't the best choice, but that's the problem; the Jays don't have an obvious best choice.

I think John Schneider had his 15 minutes of Zen Cool with the press last night; tonight's debrief might be a little less fun.

Joe Siddall: "Between the two of them (i.e., Hoffman and Seranthony), you've got two guys that can close ball games, and that you can trust late in the end."

Evidently was not present for the 2025 regular season.

They didn't trust Little to pitch in any big spot the entire postseason. They wouldn't even put him in last night with a big lead. Why now??

I don't trust Hoffman, obviously, but if you're not going to use your closer in the 8th inning of a tie game, with runners on, GAME FIVE, then why is he even on the roster??

I think Schneider thought he was so damn smart playing 4D chess by bringing in Little to face Naylor, somehow forgetting about the Mariners ' two most dangerous hitters, and when that blew up in his face he just froze. No Plan B. A total managerial failure on every level.

(xpost) Same reason they stuck with Santander so long? Because they pay him so much money and they're stuck in the sunken-cost fallacy? I don't argue with anything you're saying about Little--and especially agree that worrying about Naylor down the line is absurd--but I guess I'm just saying (again) that the Jays started the postseason with a lousy bullpen, they have a lousy bullpen today, and they've somehow managed to avoid that reality for a series-and-a-half.

Apparently Springer is okay and will be back Sunday, so that's good. They need two good starts and about 12-15 runs.

Little has been stinking for a while now and trusting him here was insane. My partner and I have been dunking on him for a while now because half the time he comes in, he walks the lefty he was brought in to face and then coughs up a hit after that. He looked better earlier in the year against weaker bats but schnider keeps riding his obsession with matchups against elite bats and it hasn’t been working out for a while now.
been been screaming this for months - a left/left matchup is not a viable alternative to using your best guys against their most dangerous.

having lost the first two at home, bringing the series back to toronto is still a victory imo

but i'm told josh naylor is (somehow) a sabres fan? god bless him for having a choice of the two most cursed hockey teams of all time and still rejecting the leafs

I'm glad the rest of the world will have someone to talk about other than Brendon Little.

lol way too early in the season for the leafs to be catching strays!

I’m glad that Springer is seemingly ok, that was fucking tough. That strange DP turned out to be mega costly. Playoff baseball…

While relatively sanguine about the next two games--that's why those last three games were so important, for the bye and for home-field--one thing that wouldn't shock me is Schneider digging in his heels about using Little in another key spot. He really is a player's manager, and I think he would love vindication for both himself and Little. And I trust NoTime and Thermo when they say how ill-advised that is. (I've spent the whole season thinking of Brendon Little and Braydon Fisher as the same guy, so my feelings about him aren't as strong.)

The bottom line on Little is that even Schneider would slot him as the 5th or 6th best reliever on the roster at the moment. You don't want your 6th best guy facing a 60-HR hitter, perhaps the league MVP, in the eighth inning of a one-run game in the playoffs. There's no possible defense for it.

I don't think Schneider will dig in, in fact the opposite, he'll quietly move on from this incident and mentally bump Little down in the pecking order. But that doesn't mean he won't make an equally ill-advised move with a different pitcher.

I think he only really trusts Varland, Fluharty, and Hoffman. In G5, Varland had already pitched, and (in his mind) he had to wait with Fluharty and Hoffman so they could "nail down the save" in the ninth inning. Which is dumb thinking, of course, because the game was on the line in the eighth. Way too many managers have messed up in the playoffs by not bringing in their closers soon enough, saving them for a ninth-inning save situation that never materializes.

One more thing: for me, the lesson of the infamous Jose Berrios start against Minnesota a few years ago was that Schneider (and maybe he gets additional instruction about these things from the higher-ups, my guess is that he does) makes moves for the sake of making moves, in part to fend off the second-guessers, rather than trying to win the game that's in front of him. Against Minnesota they had too many healthy and effective starting pitchers, and the thinking was, hey, we have all these weapons at our disposal, we need to get these guys into the game somehow. Because if we don't get them into the game, then people will ask "Kikuchi et al were healthy and ready to pitch, and it's all hands on deck in an elimination game, so why didn't you bring them in? Why did you leave Barrios in when so many others were available to pitch?" And that's why Schneider made a stupid move, rather than managing the game that was there in front of him, trying to play 4D chess when it wasn't necessary at all.

Similarly, in G5 of this series, the obvious choice was to rely on Hoffman and Fluharty in some order to close out the game. They'd both pitched in G4 (perhaps uneccessarily, but never mind) but with the travel day after G5 they'll get their rest. But if Hoffman had entered in the eighth, and perhaps stayed on for the ninth, and if he had given up the lead, then everyone would have asked (in Schneider's thinking) "why was Hoffman in the game in the eighth?", even though bringing in Hoffman was the safe choice. So, to get around that problem, he brings in Little to "give the Mariners a different look" which even Schneider knows is BS. He tries to be too clever, thinking that he'll look like a super genius if it all works out. They'll all say "Little in the eighth and Hoffman in the ninth -- so clever, I never would have thought of it! Schneider is a master of baseball strategy!" Yeah, nobody would have thought of it because it was a STUPID IDEA. Will he learn his lesson? I don't think so. We'd better root for another eight run lead.

OK, rant over. Next time I'll just start up a podcast and link to it.

That's all well explained, no issues with any of it, and totally agree that Schneider is far more comfortable risking criticism for doing something than for sitting back and letting the game unfold.

The only thing that gnaws at me about all the G4 post-mortem is the collective amnesia going on with Hoffman. (And not saying with you, I think you're pretty clear-eyed about him.) Somehow in the last three weeks he has gone from the team's #1 villian to the Reliable Guy We Needed to Bring In on Friday (see Joe Siddall quote above). How did that happen? Because it feels like three weeks since he's actually had to protect a one- or two-run lead. I might have forgotten a game in there. He's been adequate protecting four- and five-run leads, and the other day he was awesome protecting a 10-run lead. To me, Friday's game was lost earlier by the offense.

G5 post-mortem, that should read.

Don't know if Scherzer's available for an out or two today, but obviously he'd be an option if there's a G7; ditto Gausman. Not sure about Bassitt.

I am so fucking on edge right now.

aw

so annoyed at how fox commentators are trying to make springers knee happen

The bottom half of Seattle's lineup is comically weak. Canzone's postseason OPS is hovering around the Mendoza line.

(xpost) I don't think they'd ever risk playing him and potentially lose him for a WS if he weren't close to 100%.

Yeah that spot should really be Luke Raley’s but he had a down year interrupted by injury. Also, Robles missing so much of the season meant Canzone got more playing time and he did have decent numbers.

God, I hope they keep waving at that flutter-ball or whatever it is (too slow for a sinker, no?).

just saw naylor throw his gum away. does the bat boy have to pick it up? feel like gum on the cleats cant be good

Yesavage with some nasty stuff early

21Savage dealing

gilbert pitching from the stretch is somehow even more awkward than from the windup

They have to cash in a run or two here. They can't rerun Friday's game.

I'm sure this is well covered, but Naylor feels so much like a character from a 90s baseball movie.

Who are the game 7 starters?

I don't even want to say this, but it'd be Bieber-Kirby.

Suarez pulling an Andrus

Not only is Suarez a liability at the plate, his defense is equally garbage.

This will sound very strange to a non-Jays fan, but: two's great, they need three or four. They need to pile on and take the bullpen out of the game.

We call anything under a five run lead the “danger zone”

Do you go to the bullpen or do you somehow hope Gilbert pulls his head out of his ass?

xp Yeah I get that

That is not good at all. That's exactly the inning you end up remembering all winter.

cheering for game 7. Hit a bomb vlad

or, not

Yeah, they really needed a bigger inning there. Suarez made a nice play on Vlad's ball, but still.

I’m such a goth dork that whenever they play iron man between pitches, I keep expecting to hear Foetus

long single

Long inning on the bench has seem to have shifted the tides.

damn, safe. Would have been cool

I think he's out, but they won't overturn it because it's not "conclusive." And I hate that.

i think the laces got him

Not a smart challenge.

Why swing at that... yikes

Scraping Rivas Off the Field (or Not)

Massive, massive at-bat. Time for the AL MVP to show his true colo(u)rs.

Sickening!

Huge!!

Jesus, that was close--fully expected the whole game to unravel there.

Can’t believe they jays got out of that vs Raleigh

779 major leaguers beat that out, but it's okay, our lives revolve around Alejandro Kirk.

that honestly could have been an inside the parker

out of the parker works too!!!

One run and jays are out of the danger zone

Two totally unexpected runs with two out wipes away the earlier missed opportunity--fantastic.

I was going to say, I might have walked Suarez anyway.

Watching this as a Jay's fan, gotta be a health hazard

If you're listening to an American feed, you missed this: Yesavage is the least experienced (not youngest, but fewest games) pitcher ever to start an elimination game.

He's gonna be taking his infield out for a very nice dinner very soon.

The old "load em up" every inning strategy can only get you so far.

i hardly even see the point in watching this one as a Mariners fan, it feels inevitable that whether they win or lose the series it'll come down to the most miserable game 7 imaginable.

You sure you’re not a jays fan?!

whether they win or lose the series

How could a G7, if it came to that, be miserable if the Mariners won? Wouldn't any kind of win be cause for celebration?

Three DP--I'm ready to invoke that tiresome bingo-card phrase.

I can remember the Jays in the World Series in my lifetime, which isn’t something I can say for either team that I’m a fan of.

How could a G7, if it came to that, be miserable if the Mariners won? Wouldn't any kind of win be cause for celebration?

― clemenza, Sunday, October 19, 2025 6:34 PM (two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

I just mean it would inevitably be a grueling experience where I’d be convinced they’d lose for 90% of the game. Obviously would be great if they won though i would be concerned about the world ending.

Vlad doing Vlad things.

Totally get that. G5 of this series ensured that this game would be impossible for me to enjoy...Vlad! Yesavage has one more inning left (I assume), so still need a run or two.

I think Gilbert knew that was gone as soon as it left his hand.

Ha--Schulman just more or less quoted my panicky-guy warnings.

vlad .447/.511/1.000 in the playoffs <3

thank god they extended him

I agree with JoeStork, having been given so many opportunities to capitalize on so many opportunities only to be primed to break the single game LOB record while being shutout, it probably will squash all momentum they had going into this game.

Believe it or not, I think Ernie Clement has a higher post-season OPS than Vlad.

and now raleigh's swinging at pitches bouncing before the plate

Reality check--you cannot completely squash momentum against the Jays, not unless they change the rules and all games are six innings from here on out.

Let him finish the inning, Schneider. It's one run.

Vlad's HR made it easier to send Yesavage out for the sixth. Although I'm not sure it was a good idea.

Because Yesavage is so young, I'm okay with this. You gave him another batter after the HR, now there's another runner on. A HR makes it 5-3--I wouldn't want to leave him vulnerable to that.

I saw no problem with letting him pitch the 6th.

Okay--let's call the bloop a wash with the three DP. 5-2, nine more outs. But get more runs.

never liked jeter but seeing him do ads for sports betting…

I absolutely wanted him sent out for the 6th. I mean, not sending him out would have lived up to every thing ever said about Schneider.

Yesavage was DONE. Got lucky with those DP's, but he wasn't that sharp.

Seriously: if whoever they send out there for the next three innings can't hold on to a three run lead, that will be irrefutable proof the Jays have no business even being here.

The two hits after Naylor's HR were pretty soft contact...anyway, doesn't matter now.

I hate when the Jays go down so quickly as the game tightens. Maybe take a few pitches?

Schulman's explanation for no one warming up: "The circle of trust has shrunk." Subtle!

Schumann otm.

I wish you could give all the details of the Jays' season to a New Yorker cartoonist for a "circle of trust" cartoon.

Okay, NoTime, looks like you're going to get what you wanted Friday night: Hoffman in the 8th, Seranthony in the 9th.

all right, i've seen enough: LAD vs. TOR

Except for that one dreadful game against the Yankees, the one thing the Jays don't do is kick the ball around.

wow i thought our 3b was a sieve

Ernie: .447 BA, 1.108 OPS.

Fasten your seatbelts. Hoffman coming in

Okay--here comes the guy Joe Siddall calls money.

Keep him out for the 9th?

(Again, questions like that must seem bizarre to the rest of you.)

Tough call. I think you need to save his arm for tomorrow. If they can't hold a four run lead then they don't deserve to go to the WS.

They've really got it in for Springer.

One nice thing about taking him out is that, assuming they hold on, he'd be in a very good frame of mind if he's back out there tomorrow.

I hit some of my best tennis shots like that.

this TOR closer is lights out!

watch out Shohei Ohtani... there's a new ace in town

First Jays G7 since 1985, right?

lfg

I honestly believe this: the biggest challenge facing the Jays tomorrow is that just-when-you-think-you've-figured-out-sports rule. Every sign--the Mariners' history, their sloppy play tonight, home field, Bieber's first start--points to a Jays victory. And that's when everything goes screwy.

Hoffman did look really good tonight.

(xposts) I thinks so. I think they said they've never had one tonight, and that's wrong.

The circle of trust has slight expanded for approximately 24 hours.

First time in postseason history that a team has hit into bases-loaded DP in consecutive innings.

Vlad's pretty masterful at moments like this:

https://www.sportsnet.ca/mlb/video/i-born-ready-guerrero-jr-fired-up-for-game-7-at-rogers-centre/

I've got pub trivia tonight, so won't be home till 9:00. I don't mind--like one of the earlier games, they'll either be ahead (or at least tied), or I'll be spared some early misery. It'll be weird, because trivia takes place in one room--with all monitors hooked up to that--while the other room, the regular bar, will go on as normal; hopefully we'll hear lots of whooping and cheering.

the opposite will happen as the lack of whooping and cheering will weigh on you as trivia night goes on

Conspicuous silence will be unnerving...From the interview I linked to above; you can't beat this.

https://i.postimg.cc/zfc2w1hM/vlad.jpg

And kudos to the camera person's De Palma imitation.

Anyone else watching in '85 when the Jays played (and lost) their last G7? I was a week or two shy of turning 24. What I still remember: 1) Brett's G3 (with Jays up 2-0), which was about as epic as it got pre-Shohei: 4-4, a double, 2 HR, 3 RBI; 2) Jays scoring three in the 9th to win G4, putting them up 3-1 (we watched in the Imperial Pub Library, which went under a few weeks ago--bedlam); and, of course, 3) Sundberg's wind-aided triple against Steib in G7, which put the Royals up 5-1. 40 years ago, unbelievable.

I do wish we were playing the Astros or the Red Sox instead of the Mariners; I realize that fans there have been waiting forever and how devastating a loss tonight would be. You'd think '92/93 would put Toronto in a different category, but I'm not sure that's true; it'll be devastating here too. (Parsing degrees of devastation...)

good luck canada

interesting base running tactic by naylor

oh wow, inning ending GIDP with runners on.

Always a good sign when Kirby walks someone

always a good sign when there's a mound visit with 1 out in the first

bullpen game: ✅

Only took him twenty pitches to finally get some whiffs going

Ofc this being game 7 you’re going to see Castillo, Woo, everyone probably…Castillo has terrible road numbers though

mariners double play in 3... 2...

Bottom half of the M’s lineup has stunk up the joint

kirby seems to have settled down since the first

tight game

Well. At least the bases were empty

He was due, so to speak.

Man, Varland is not it

🎵cal and julio are gonna go yard🎵

Is that to the tune of Milkshake?

Woo is a local to me*, so it's nice to see him in this position with the game on the line.

*he turned down the Giants offer out of HS.

it’s to the tune of mama pajama xp

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:rafuudgy4wrxvb4h4bsqox4t/bafkreibg3hjjnj3suvisqp626jizhabb5tsyqh2xaksvu6d4c74lgtlgxu@jpeg

i gotta say that was an incredible throw, i feel like most jump throws
get spiked in the dirt

yeah it was close at first too needed to be good

Vlad struck out!

I have now gone from "worried" to "very worried" about the Jays' chances.

down two in the seventh isnt great

What do we think about using Gausman here?

They should opt for their lights closer Hofferton "Hoffles" Hoffman

Hoffomatic?

Out of Gaus

i can’t really figure out where the bottom of this ump’s strike zone is

What do we think about using Gausman here?

Made sense to me.

Bassitt, otoh ....

Hey guys, they cancelled movie trivia bcz too many ppl wanted to watch the baseball. What’s going on?

lead off walks are not fantastic imho

Woo boy

Lol, sic

we got bunts its the playoffs baby

given how thoroughly the Brewers got their ass kicked I gotta say I'm enjoying the tension here

I don't like the bunt here. Outs are more valuable than advancing the runners, they need a big inning.

They just love bunting with Giminez though.

...

o jesus

wow

holy cow folks

Wow

sheesh the shot of Raleigh was brutal

If they hang on - that’s got to be the, maybe 4th biggest home run in jays history? (After alomar vs Eckersly)

I'm not going to comment on that yet (too nervous).

wow bassitt’s delivery - feels like the ball just squirts out of his hand

Bringing in a guy who has barely pitched in a month always seems to backfire in the playoffs ... but not today. Got to hand it to Schneider for making these moves.

lads!

this is pretty depressing

Ya. Bassitt looked great. Hit all his spots masterfully

Bringing in a guy who has barely pitched in a month always seems to backfire in the playoffs ... but not today. Got to hand it to Schneider for making these moves.

well it def backfired for the other team that did it today

Fitting that the season should come down to Hoffman in the ninth with a one run lead. No matter what happens, it'll be a microcosm of the Jays' season.

can you imagine being 3 outs from elimination and feeling confident leading off with Leo Rivas?

like why even roster a bench at that point?

I’m pulling for extra innings, there are some great looking beers on tap

JROD strikes out on Ball 5

Cal up with a man on and two outs would be fun

there it is

Congrats Blue Jays fans

^^^

https://i.imgur.com/0ZPIiXD.jpeg

ball 6, my bad

USA vs Canada

East vs West

clemenza are you okay

Good patience when it counted, good win, congrats Canada

USA vs Canada

East vs West

fuck that; it's just baseball

Toronto vs Los Angeles

good vs evil in nuclear baseball war

at least one of these teams won't visit the white house

Congrats jaybros

Not gonna be nice next series tho, either way it goes. Hope you suffer! 🥰

Can't believe they actually did it. Sorry Mariners fans, you had a great team too.

If they hang on - that’s got to be the, maybe 4th biggest home run in jays history? (After alomar vs Eckersly)

It's ahead of Alomar. This was an elimination game.

Alonar's was "more difficult" (hit off a HOFer, got them back in the series) but Springer's was more important.

I was messaging Thermo and another friend tonight, but I stayed off here to spare everyone my hand-wringing and negativity. I was fully expecting to lose. Springer's HR is right up there in the Jays' pantheon, and for everything to come down to a Hoffman one-run save was unbelievable (and unbearable). Found myself tearing up along with Vladdy after the last out. JoeStork, I've been there--sorry. Thought I'd be there again tonight, with the likelihood I'd never see them come this close again.

Not gonna be nice next series tho, either way it goes. Hope you suffer! 🥰

so you *want* to see dave roberts lead the world champion baseball team present fealty to donald trump

i mean i know you're a dodgers fan but i would invite you to draw a line somewhere

post a controversial opinion

It’s cool. Sports fandom can transcend reason a lot of the time. People like the team they like - because their dad liked them or their friends growing up. My best friend died unexpectedly 4 years ago and we were both huge jays fans. We had season passes (the cheap kind) and went to every playoff game we could back in 2015/16. I took his son to a game back in august and he as telling him this season was similar to how it felt back in 2015. I miss him every day and this win m and so much to me because of that. It’s a game. A silly game. But it can mean so much at the same time

xp i hate it but that's fair

Typos because beer and hands shaking

(i'm pissed off at dave roberts, not you H.P.)

Gausman started to break down a bit just now talking to Hazel Mae.

Him Vlad, Yesavage’s dad

Lovely post Thinwall. (Silly) Suffering wishes redacted. I am sorry for you loss and glad you were able to share that moment with his son.

Therms <3

Nerviest move of the night had to be Bassitt. That curveball he threw to Suarez to end the inning was incredible.

I made it to three beers and my companion had them switch to the Seahawks after but we hung long enough to hear childhood parental affair storylines from the 30ish woman whose table corner we were squatting for glasses, and rundown a 14-year précis of electoral politics for a 50something lady who had moved to Seattle four hours earlier

movie trivia rescheduled for Sunday, I know next ⚾️ game is Friday but maybe another clash will hit

Nah the Mariners collapse reminds me very much of that painful 18 inning game where they couldn’t push across a single run at home and lost 1-0 to the Astros? You cannot strand a million men on base and ground into endless double plays in the playoffs.

Also shout out to the Jays crew on here, I love reading your posts about them and the Jays absolutely deserved to go through

Thought I'd be there again tonight, with the likelihood I'd never see them come this close again.

I was explaining to my eight-year old son that the Jays haven't been to the WS in 32 years. In a way, for me, 1993 feels like yesterday. But when you're a kid you don't have a time reference for anything that happened that long before you were born. Case in point, when I was eight years old, thirty-two years ago meant Dodgers vs Yankees, multiple times, in the 1950's. I would read about those World Series and they might as well have been battles from Greek antiquity. They were legendary stories from a generation of baseball that even my parents had no virtually no memory of. Well, that's what 1993 must feel like to my son.

So yes, I am going to savour this World Series, no matter what happens.

Shout out to this fella, he must be beside himself

Post by from…Peru? (gyac) from The inability to strike a deal is the latest blow for the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays on ILX - The inability to strike a deal is the latest blow for the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays

Thought the Jays and Mariners were about as evenly matched as could be. If I had to pinpoint a difference, I'd go with what a couple of people brought up here: the Jays' bottom third of the order vs. the Mariners'. The Jays got the two big HR from Gimenez (plus a couple of key bunts), many other hits, and the usual setting-the-table for Springer and Vlad; Seatlle got next to nothing (exacerbated by injuries, gyac pointed out).

Supposedly Bichette is ready to play. Obviously happy for him, and maybe he'll step in like it's July. Thinking about Gimenez's glove, there may be a cost--can't see that they'd DH him and send Springer out to play the field.

I'd argue that after JRod, Cal & Naylor, the Mariners bottom 6 offense was below replacement.

I mentioned it last night but when your season is on the line, your 3 outs away from ending your season and you're leaving in Leo Rivas as lead off instead of going to the bench, something is fundamentally wrong.

i was v surprised to learn that canzone batted .300 during he season

Yeah you just cannot have Leo Rivas getting meaningful ABs in a game 7, the bench was barren. Robles was actually pretty good before he crashed into a wall in SF and missed a ton of time this season, but then again he was batting ninth or whatever. Agree on how putrid the bottom of the order is. JP Crawford is a big disappointment, he was batting leadoff for the Mariners to start last season but his bat has not been good this postseason and he’s previously been a good solid hitter. He had a bounceback year of sorts with a .352 OBP (from .304 last year) & a 111 OPS+ which pretty much any team will take from a qualified bat in the 9 hole. Canzone I think I said was playing well this season but the Mariners have too many plug and play utility guys like that to be a serious team in the postseason. Maybe Canzone was still in mourning for the TP guy (one of several Mariners who posted on their Instagram status about it, way to read the room fellas!)

Or wherever JP was, maybe 7-8?

The problem as I ranted at length to a friend of mine this morning is that the Mariners really are up against it with the pitching. Castillo’s metrics have declined a third straight year and he’s …risky outside Seattle. Kirby I have covered my suspicion about his elbow. Gilbert looked not great. Woo is fantastic but misses time every season. Miller is enigmatic. Hancock…let’s not and say we did. Basically they have had the bounty of good young controllable starting pitching for years and those guys have been largely good, cheap and healthy the whole time. Nothing is guaranteed when your team is built on pitching so they needed more. The moves for Naylor and Suarez at the deadline were bold, but let’s be honest they have so many holes in the lineup and I don’t know what they’re going to do to fill them.

I mean - they almost made it! Naylor was every bit as frightening a figure at the plate as Raleigh. I feel like Canadian players get a weird adrenaline boost vs the jays.
In the end tho, the jays did what they’ve been doing all season (except for Hoffman who’s been lights out) - they came from behind in dramatic fashion in a way I haven’t seen them do in over 30 years.

Yeah Tyler O’Neill hit great in Canada last year too IIRC.

I've been looking at some of the post-mortems on last night, including the Seattle Times, and Wilson is getting the same kind of grief that Schneider gets re bringing in Barzado instead of Brash or Munoz. I tend to create this fantasy world where only the Jays deal with these issues.

Yeah that was an unbelievable choice especially with the bullpen he had available to him! Like, what are you saving it for, IT’S GAME 7

at the end of the day, the M's lacked a tommy edman

Jays had one for sure--Ernie Clement--and a couple of others (Nathan Lukes, Myles Straw, maybe even Gimenez) who were close.

Clement has been unreal. His WAR over the last two seasons is not something anyone would have expected and then playoff Ernie has been crazy. Not that I buy jerseys often, but my next might have to be Clement.

I mean - they almost made it!

yeah, kind of weird checking out some the talk online today and lots of people treating this Mariners defeat like it was inevitable when they lost game 7 by one run.

Had to laugh at the Bryan Woo interview where suddenly off camera Rodriguez lets out to most insane fucking rage scream

Mitch Garver: 7 ABs in the ALCS (one of THREE rostered catchers, holy redundancy):

.286/.333/.571 (remember he had that clutch triple!)

wtf are you rostering THREE catchers when the whole point of Raleigh is that he's a DH that can actually perform and excel at the most taxing position in the game...

only to leave them on the bench in favor of Leo (.403 OPS) Rivas, Dom (.245 OPS) Canzone etc. (the third catcher, Ford, actually hit a double in his lone at-bat!)

in the end: a complete comedy of errors for the Mariners, countless momentum-sucking bases-loaded/RISP double plays, were handed so many opportunities on a silver platter to walk away with the series only to squander it all.

I was looking at both ALCS rosters and wondering which position players would even make the Dodgers major league roster... :-(

Sneaking into the Jays clubhouse to post that last sentence on the wall.

Last post I'll make in this thread. Missed the first inning last night, so I didn't catch up with Naylor's interference call till today. I don't know the rule (I should)--I thought the baserunner was entitled to the base line. I do think that what Naylor did was a lot less egregious than Reggie in 1978, who totally got away with it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvWKWvrVfrI

I mean totally different eras and mentality to the game now vs back then. I think it’s fair to say that while runners have the line, they don’t own the air space above. Launching yourself into the air AT the ball, is not really part of what his job is, which is running to second base.

I only watched it the one time, but wasn't Naylor turning away from the ball (or at least pretending to)? In any event, they didn't argue the call, so I guess it was a pretty clear violation.

He leaped up to block it. Only way it could have looked more intentional is if Naylor yelled "Jinx!" at Isiah Kiner-Falefa and wildely flapped his arms while sticking his tongue out and pulling a face

Which would have been really cool to see tbh and rock-the-baby Naylor is exactly thr player to do it

Ftr: would much rather the Dodger be playing the Mariner's. Jay's got that heat, that intensity, that fuck-da-stats-we-are-playing-on-pure-vibez-and-hatred energy. Despite the Dodgers sweep and all the odds pointing their way, the Jays have unquantifiable upset energy and could really do something here

According to this story about the play from MLB, the rule is 6.01 (a)(5), which reads:

Any batter or runner who has just been put out, or any runner who has just scored, hinders or impedes any following play being made on a runner. Such runner shall be declared out for the interference of his teammate (see Rule 6.01(j));

There's nothing in the rule about running in the baseline or not, the rule is applied purely based on the act of interference. I couldn't find anything in the rulebook that specifically addresses interference on thrown balls, but I think that's what the phrase "any following play" is meant to imply.

6.01 (j) is the Chase Utley rule, involving breaking up double plays by sliding into a base, which didn't apply here.

There's a comment about 6.01 (a)(5) in the rulebook, that I think applies to the Reggie play:

If the batter or a runner continues to advance or returns or attempts to return to his last legally touched base after he has been put out, he shall not by that act alone be considered as confusing, hindering or impeding the f ielders.

Reggie froze on the basepath, I think there was confusion about whether the ball was caught (see the reaction of the runner on second) and Reggie didn't know whether he was out by force or whether he needed to get back to first to avoid getting doubled up (not sure how many outs there were here). In any case, I think he gets the benefit of the doubt based on how the ball was fielded and the reaction of the other runner.

Thanks. I do remember that I was smiling from ear to ear when Reggie ever so slightly threw out his hip on that play--48 years later, rooting against the Dodgers again.

if not for being raised from birth to be a Dodger fan I'd be rooting against them with you Clemenza.

In '78 (that should be 47 years, not 48), I really did hate the Dodgers; I was a Reds fan, and then the Reggie-Thurman Yankees were much closer to what a high school kid would love. There are a lot of Dodgers I really like now: all their obvious HOF'ers (yes, even Kershaw still), Teo, Will Smith, Edman. As to their obscene payroll, the Jays had the highest payroll in baseball in '93, and I fully approved.