Blue Jays-Mariners ALCS Game Six: Double Plays & Dingers

The Blue Jays faced their first elimination game of the playoffs, playing an almost textbook Toronto game to force another elimination game tonight. Momentum is a funny thing, isn’t it? In typical Blue Jays fashion, the contributions came from all over the roster. Let’s take a look at how the Jays forced the second Game 7 in franchise history.

Trey Yesavage: 5.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 K
Jesse Burrill wrote an excellent breakdown ahead of the game, dissecting how Yesavage was “built for the moment”. It wasn’t exactly the performance he put on in the ALDS, but it was what was needed. We’ve seen all series that Seattle is a free-swinging team, and Yesavage racked up seven strikeouts - including Cal Raleigh twice and the side in order (Josh Naylor, Randy Arozarena, and Eugenio Suárez) in the second inning. Yesavage gave the Mariners some chances, though. After retiring the side for the first two innings of the game, Yesavage faced the bases loaded with one out in both the third and fourth innings. Fortunately, the Jays escaped without any damage both times, thanks to perfectly fielded double plays. Raleigh hit into a 3-6-1 GIDP in the third, and J.P. Crawford went 4-6-3 in the fourth. Julio Rodríguez would end the Mariners ' at-bats in the fifth inning with another 6-4-3 double play and leave Yesavage with five shutout innings. In the sixth, after recording the first two outs, a solo home run by Naylor and a single by Arozarena would lift Yesavage from the game. All things considered, we couldn’t have asked more of the rookie.

The Bullpen: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Louis Varland and Jeff Hoffman locked down the game. Varland came in to finish the sixth inning for Yesavage, and after giving up the bloopiest of singles (Arozarena scored from first), he struck Crawford out to end the inning. The seventh went quickly, three up, three down with a pair of pop outs and another K for good measure. Then it was Hoffman in for the eighth to face the heart of the Seattle lineup as he had done in Game Four (no time for “new looks” now). In Game Six, he got the same result - two strikeouts and a pop-out to retire the side in order. Unlike Game Four, this time Hoffman would come back out for the ninth inning. Two Ks and a pop out again (with a walk sprinkled in for spice) to close out the game and secure the win. Pitching like this really emphasized why the Jays traded for Varland at the deadline and why they signed Hoffman in the off-season. When they’re locked in, they’re nasty.

Addison Barger: 2 for 4, HR, 3 RBI
Barger had been scuffling this series, hitting 3-for-17 coming into this game. All three of his hits had come on the road, so he was looking for his first knock at the Rogers Centre in the series. Well, after a Daulton Varsho “double” (a single with a heads-up advance to second on a bobble by Rodríguez) and a single by Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Barger had one of the biggest hits of the game. His second-inning single to right added 12.5% win probability to the Jays' column as Varsho came around to open the scoring for the game. The next inning, after an Ernie Clement triple, Barger came to the plate and put up another 12.5% WPA hit. A 403 ft home run, the furthest hit ball of the game, gave Barger the (eventual) game-winning RBI and staked the Jays to a 4-0 lead. Barger’s 25% WPA was the most in the game, and no other batter was even close. Only Yesavage’s 20% WPA is anywhere near the discussion. What a time for Barger to break out of his slump.

The Other Multi-Hitters: 6 for 14, HR, four runs scored, 12 total bases
Barger had three teammates get a pair of hits each. Nathan Lukes, batting second, had a pair of singles and now has a five-game hit streak going. It was also his fourth multi-hit game of these playoffs. Clement had a double and a triple, scoring both times. It’s easy to forget that this postseason is the first taste of the playoffs for both Lukes and Clement. Both players have really taken the ‘act like you’ve been there before’ mantra and run with it. The other multi-hitter in Game Six was Vladimir Guerrero Jr., a guy who has been there before. Vladdy’s last homer put him into sole possession of the franchise record for home runs in a postseason. With his Game Six homer, he not only gave the Jays a 5-0 lead, he also moved into a tie with Joe Carter and José Bautista for the franchise’s career postseason home run lead. Wouldn’t it be nice to see him take sole possession of that one tomorrow?

The Blue Jays have now won 100 games in 2025. They’ll send Shane Bieber to the mound tonight looking to get 101 and punch their ticket to the World Series. In a rematch of Game Three, the Mariners will counter with George Kirby. With everything to play for, Toronto will hope to replicate that game. The only other Game Seven for the franchise came in the ALCS in 1985 and was played at Exhibition Stadium. At that time, the Jays were unable to secure the victory, and the KC Royals moved on. In a season when Toronto brought their overall franchise record back to .500 for the first time in decades, this would be the perfect time to get that Game 7 record to .500 as well.