Even baseball fans who were in ‘92 and ‘93 have never seen this: the Toronto Blue Jays will play a seventh, winner-take-all Game 7 for the World Series for the first time ever — and while hope remains high, you can feel the city’s blood pressure rising.
Despite a solid start from Kevin Gausman and a promising rally late in the game, the Blue Jays missed their first chance to clinch the series in Game 6 Friday, losing 3-1 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
It’s been an exciting October, but the dramatic wins and losses, high nerves and late game times are taking a toll on some Jays fans, like Maria Havelka, who was at the city’s downtown watch party at Nathan Phillips Square for Game 6.
“It was so disappointing. I was out here six hours in the cold. We expected to at least tie the game,” she said, bemoaning the Blue Jays inability to get the tying run home from second base with nobody out in the last inning.
Jays lose heartbreaking Game 6 3-1; World Series heading to Game 7
But Havelka, like several other fans CBC Toronto spoke with at Friday’s watch party, said she’s keeping the faith.
“We’re going to fight back. We always have. We’re going to win it,” she said. “I believe with all my heart that we’re going to win tomorrow and we’re going to blow the Dodgers out of the ballpark.”
Game 6 was another thrilling matchup in what is likely to go down as one of the best World Series of the past decade, if not this century.
All the game’s runs were scored in the 3rd inning. The Dodgers scored three times on hits from catcher Will Smith and shortstop Mookie Betts, while the Jays’ lone run was pushed across on a single from George Springer, who returned to the lineup for the first time since what some thought was a season-ending injury in Game 3.
It was the only blip for the starters, L.A.’s Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Toronto’s Kevin Gausman, though the Blue Jays would have multiple chances to score as the game went on, including right at the end.
In the ninth inning, it appeared for a moment that the “power of friendship” — the Blue Jays’ secret weapon, according to infielder Ernie Clement — was destined to prevail.
The Blue Jays led off the last inning with Alejandro Kirk reaching base after he was plunked on the hand. Then, Addison Barger hit a bizarre double on a ball that lodged itself between the outfield wall and the turf. That put the tying run on second, and the winning run at home plate, with no outs.
But hot-hitting Ernie Clement popped out on the first pitch he saw. Then Barger got caught with some poor baserunning, getting doubled up at second after Andres Gimenez lined out to shallow left field.
And that was it for Game 6.
Jays fan Mackenzie Barwell summed it up simply: “Just disappointing.”
“It kind of ended really abruptly. We thought something else might come of it,” she said. “It’s not over though.”
Barger’s strange double caused some controversy on the field.
Jays manager reacts to ground-rule double
The Jays’ left-handed hitter smoked a long line drive that perfectly sandwiched the ball between the field and fence in left-centre. The L.A. outfielders raised their hands to call time out, refusing to play the ball as Barger and Myles Straw circled the bases for an apparent inside-the-park home run to tie the game. But the umpires ruled the ball was dead and a sold-out Rogers Centre crowd booed fruitlessly as the runners were placed back at second and third.
“I’ve never seen that before,” said Jays fan Mark Chinchilla, as Nathan Phillips Square emptied out quietly. “It’s just really unfortunate. But I still believe. We’ve done really good and I’m hopeful for Game 7.”
The last time the World Series went seven games, the starting pitcher for the 2019 champion Washington Nationals was none other than Max Scherzer, who just so happens to be the Jays’ starter for Saturday.
L.A. hasn’t confirmed who will take the mound to start Game 7, but it looks likely to be a battle of two future hall of famers: the veteran Scherzer and the do-it-all, in-his-prime, baseball machine that is Shohei Ohtani.
For baseball fans, it would be a dream matchup, though each pitcher has points for and against.
While Ohtani is widely accepted as the best player in baseball, he gave up four runs in his Game 4 loss and he would be pitching on short rest Saturday.
Scherzer is one of the best pitchers of his generation and has played in three prior World Series, winning two. A third ring would be a fitting cap to a tremendous career. But he is now 41 and, though he’s shown flashes of his former brilliance this year, including in the post-season, he has been up and down and struggled with injury since joining the Jays.
With no tomorrows to worry about, pretty well every pitcher on both teams will be available to throw Saturday, so expect both managers to empty their bullpens if things get rocky.
Whoever pitches, Saturday should be one for the ages, if the rest of the series so far is any indication.
And while some Jays fans are stressed about what’s to come or still stewing about what might have been Friday, others, like Jamal Teymurlu, say these two teams were destined to go the distance.
“It was kind of written in the stars,” he said after the game. “Honestly, I called it [would go to] Game 7 at the beginning of the series. But I’m pretty positive we’re going to get the Game 7.”
First pitch is set for 8 p.m. ET at Rogers Centre Saturday. The winner will be crowned champions of baseball.
Watch parties are set to take place across Toronto, including at Scotiabank Arena, Nathan Phillips Square and the University of Toronto’s downtown campus.
The City of Toronto says it’s working closely with the Rogers Centre, Toronto police, transit agencies and others to prepare for “all possible scenarios.”
Watch parties are also planned across the province, including at Celebration Square in Mississauga, Garden Square in Brampton, Springer Market Square in Kingston and Sault Ste. Marie’s downtown plaza.
