Seattle’s Julio Rodríguez hit a two-run home run off Toronto’s Shane Bieber in the first inning to give the Mariners an early 2-0 lead over the Blue Jays in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series on Wednesday night.
Seattle starter George Kirby mostly sailed through the top of the first inning by striking out two Blue Jays — Nathan Lukes and Anthony Santander. He escaped some brief trouble caused by a poor throw from Eugenio Suárez at third that allowed Toronto slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to reach second base off an infield hit.
Bieber got the start for Toronto, as he tries to shut down the Seattle lineup that has outscored the Blue Jays 13-4 across the first two games.
Shane Bieber gets the start for the Blue Jays in Game 3 of the ALCS on Wednesday night. Bieber also started Game 3 of the American League Division Series against the New York Yankees. (Vincent Carchietta/Imagn Images/Reuters)
Blue Jays manager John Schneider says he’ll be looking for Bieber to execute his pitches well, to keep Seattle’s batters in check.
“He’s at his best when he’s got all of his pitches where he wants to put them,” Schneider said at a media availability ahead of Wednesday’s game.
‘We’ve gotta make pitches’
But the Toronto skipper also says that’s something all the pitchers will have to do to avoid Seattle inflicting further home-run damage.
“They’ve scored a lot of their runs this post-season via the home run, so we’ve gotta make pitches and be pretty stubborn in certain situations with where you’re throwing the ball,” said Schneider.
Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. wears a toque with the team’s logo at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park ahead of Game 3 on Wednesday. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)
“I think we just have to be real deliberate with the guys that can leave the yard,” he said, reffering to the Mariners known for parking home runs. “That’s kind of what’s come back and hurt us.”
Seattle has tasked George Kirby with starting Game 3, as the Mariners try to push for a 3-0 lead in the ALCS — an outcome that would turn Game 4 into a must-win for Toronto.
Mariners manager Dan Wilson downplayed any suggestion that his ballclub was starting to think about reaching the World Series — a feat the Seattle franchise has yet to achieve after nearly 50 seasons in Major League Baseball.
“We’re just focused on what’s going to happen tonight … and not looking beyond that,” Wilson told reporters ahead of the game.
Blue Jays slugger Anthony Santander returns to the Toronto lineup on Wednesday, after sitting out Game 2 due to back tightness. He’s 3 for 13 at the plate in the post-season with two runs batted in (RBIs).
Toronto and Seattle last did post-season battle in 2022, during a shorter, best-of-three wildcard round that saw the Mariners sweep the Jays.
Jays’ offence lacking so far
Toronto’s offence did not deliver enough firepower in the first two games of the ALCS, as the Blue Jays fell 3-1 to Seattle in Sunday’s Game 1, then lost 10-3 to the Mariners in Game 2 Monday.
WATCH | Game 2 struggles pushed some Jays fans to head home early:
‘Seattle’s a better team’: Unhappy Jays fan leaves Game 2 early | Hanomansing Tonight
This Toronto Blue Jays fan left Game 2 of the ALCS against the Seattle Mariners early saying, ‘We don’t have a prayer.’
Toronto’s George Springer hit a solo home run on the first pitch thrown in Game 1, a double in Game 2, and has scored two of the Jays’ four runs through the first two games of the ALCS.
No other Blue Jay has managed to hit anything beyond a single in this series so far — though outfielder Nathan Lukes had three hits, along with a run scored and an RBI during Game 2.
Jays outfielder Nathan Lukes celebrates after hitting an RBI single during the second inning of Game 2 Monday against the Seattle Mariners. Lukes had three hits during the game and also scored a run. (Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)
Both of those losses came before home crowds at Toronto’s Rogers Centre, where the Blue Jays recently won two American League Division Series games. They later eliminated the New York Yankees from the playoffs in the Bronx.
Toronto played just three games at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park during the regular season — a series in May that saw the Blue Jays sweep the Mariners.
The teams also played a three-game series in Toronto in April that the Mariners won 2-1.
A tough road ahead
The road to the World Series remains long for the Blue Jays.
Toronto has to claw its way to four wins in order to make it to the Fall Classic.
Should the Jays make it to the next round, they’ll face the winner of the National League Championship Series (NLCS) — either the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Milwaukee Brewers.
Both would be formidable opponents.
The Brewers won 97 regular-season games — also the most in the Milwaukee franchise’s history — more than any other team in Major League Baseball this year.
The Dodgers, who hold a 2-0 lead in the NLCS, have won two of the past five World Series championships (in the COVID-shortened 2020 season, and again in 2024).
Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith celebrates with pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto after their victory over the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series on Tuesday. The Dodgers are up 2-0 in the best-of-seven series. (Benny Sieu/Imagn Images/Reuters)
