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Hunter Renfroe held his bat in the air as he admired the deep fly.

George Springer and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. gave chase, bolting towards the alley, but Renfroe broke into a slow trot before it officially cleared the wall.

On his 36th pitch of the opening frame, Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling allowed a grand slam to the Red Sox outfielder. It pushed the score to 6-0 and ended Stripling’s day with just one registered out. Boston added two more first-inning runs, crushing Toronto’s hopes of a victory and forcibly seizing the opening game in the biggest series of Toronto’s season thus far.

The Blue Jays came into Monday’s game undefeated after the all-star break, crushing the Texas Rangers in a weekend series where they outscored the AL West squad by 23 runs. Toronto gave half those runs back in the first two innings tonight. A disastrous first frame was followed by a three-run second and any building electricity was quickly zapped.

Before Monday’s game, the Blue Jays sat two and a half games back of a wildcard spot and six back from the division-leading Red Sox. A Blue Jays sweep could’ve halved Boston’s division lead and placed Toronto into a postseason spot but, as always, manager Charlie Montoyo preached one game at a time.

“Any time you play your division they’re all big games,” Montoyo said before the contest Monday. “But I’m not gonna put that much stock in three games.”

As July turns to August every Blue Jays series gains more weight, with each win and loss increasingly influencing Toronto’s playoff chances. But Boston’s walloping win Monday raised their division lead by the same margin that a nail-biting walk-off would’ve, and by the same margin Toronto can regain tomorrow.

Boston presents an opponent that Toronto has toppled before (including an 18-4 shellacking of their own) and will need to beat in the final months of the season, but a single loss doesn’t change the mission. While the Blue Jays have the fifth-easiest remaining slate in the American League, they’ll have nine chances to beat the Red Sox in the next 21 days.

“One of the times I went to the mound,” Montoyo said. "Bo Bichette told me ‘Hey Charlie, we’re gonna be alright."

Chasing the Tampa Bay Rays, Oakland Athletics, and Red Sox for some October baseball, head-to-head matchups could define the remainder of Toronto’s season. They quickly spoiled a shot to gain ground Monday, but more opportunities remain in the next 70 days — starting tomorrow.