Fastball

Toronto Blue Jays Star Aids Playoff Chances with Big Night at the Dish

With a four-hit effort on Friday night, Toronto Blue Jays star Bo Bichette made some team history and helped the Jays in their quest for the playoffs.
Brady Farkas|
Toronto Blue Jays Star Aids Playoff Chances with Big Night at the Dish
Toronto Blue Jays Star Aids Playoff Chances with Big Night at the Dish

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Toronto Blue Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night 11-4 as they move closer to a second consecutive playoff berth.

With the win, Toronto is now 89-71 on the season. They are 1.0 game up on the Houston Astros for the second wild card spot in the American League and are 2.0 games clear of the Seattle Mariners for a playoff spot in general.

The Jays will clinch a playoff berth with a win or a Mariners loss on either Saturday or Sunday. 

Should Seattle and Toronto finish in a tie, Seattle has the tiebreaker.

The win on Friday night was fueled by Jays' star Bo Bichette, who went 4-for-5 with three runs scored and an RBI.

His effort also made some team history, according to @StatsCentre:

Most 4+ hit efforts in a season by a player with the @BlueJays franchise: 

6- Bo Bichette (2023 thanks to a double and 3 singles in tonight's 11-4 win over the Rays) 

6- Shannon Stewart (2000) 

5- Fred McGriff (1990) 

5- Paul Molitor (1993) 

5- Stewart (1998) 

5- Tony Fernandez (1999)

Considering that McGriff and Molitor are in the Hall of Fame, that's some elite company to have passed. Though he's battled some injuries, Bichette is one of the most impactful players in the sport, hitting .307 this year with 20 homers and 72 RBI.

He made the All-Star Game again this season and is a lifetime .299 hitter.

The Jays and Rays will play again on Saturday at 3:07 p.m. ET.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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