Blue Jays Match A's Feat From 2002 in Game 5 Win
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The Toronto Blue Jays rolled into Los Angeles this week and took two of three from the home team, giving them a 3-2 series lead headed back to Toronto. The one loss was also in the 18-inning thriller that vaulted former A's relief pitcher Will Klein to legendary status.
What was notable about this game, however, was that the Jays began with back-to-back home runs in the top of the first inning from Davis Schneider and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., giving the away team an early 2-0 cushion. According to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, this was just the second time in MLB history that this has happened, with the Jays joining the 2002 Oakland Athletics.
The Blue Jays are the second team in postseason history to go back-to-back to lead off a game, joining:
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) October 30, 2025
2002 ALDS G3 A’s https://t.co/3ImZXEoN8o
The A's in question were Ray Durham, who was the team's DH that day, and Scott Hatteberg, the first baseman. This was the year after Jason Giambi left via free agency and signed with the New York Yankees, and just so happened to be the Moneyball season, complete with a 20-game win streak.
Their opponent in the postseason that year was the Minnesota Twins, a team that they had some very memorable wins against back in August and September, good for wins 16 through 18 of The Streak. The most memorable was Miguel Tejada's walk-off homer against closer Eddie Guardado in the finale.
The Twins were also the team to break the A's streak a few days later in Minnesota. The A's week began with a game on Monday against the Kansas City Royals, another walk-off from Tejada, and then following an off-day on Tuesday, the dramatic home run from Hatteberg for the 20th win.
The A's then had a second mid-week off-day—which is a very odd scheduling quirk—and faced the Twins yet again on Friday, having played two games in four days at that point. They lost 6-0, snapping the streak, but answered back by shutting out the Twins the next two days and outscoring them 8-0 behind starts from Mark Mulder and Barry Zito.
The two clubs met in the postseason, and in the record-creating game where Durham and Hatteberg led off the game with home runs, the A's would take home a 6-3 win on the road and a 2-1 lead in the series.
Tim Hudson was the game four starter, and while he was largely considered the best member of the Big 3, he didn't have his best stuff in this potential clinching game. Keep in mind, this was a Twins team that still had David Ortiz before he became 'Big Papi,' so they could mash.
Mash they did in the third and fourth innings, putting up a total of nine runs between the two frames with the aid of a pair of throwing errors on Tejada (to third) and Hatteberg (to home). The A's dropped the game 11-2, and went back home for a decisive Game 5. If you're at all familiar with the team's history at this time, you know that they didn't come out ahead.
The A's were always one of the best teams in baseball around this time, and would push their ALDS matchup to a fifth game, but they never came out on top. That inability to win the big one led to new ownership with John Fisher and Lew Wolff, and eventually got them to the nomadic franchise they are now, despite the impressive resumé.
Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.
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